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Shoreham Wordfest returns this autumn with a glittering selection of authors, talks and performances for its 15th annual festival.

Headliners include Michael Rosen, Natalie Haynes, Jonathan Freedland and Kate Mosse.

Festival director Rosalind Turner said: “There are 21 events in total. The programme includes LBC broadcaster Iain Dale, afternoon tea with Sussex based playwright Simon Brett (author of the Charles Paris mysteries), Earth Scientist Anjana Khatwa, former foreign correspondent Robin Lustig with a family memoir, and journalist and filmmaker Afua Hirsch with her book, Decolonising My Body.

“Fatal Shore is a whole day of crime writing with over 20 top authors including Elly Griffiths and featuring the Rev Richard Coles. History is always a popular topic and the festival will offer its third full day of Sussex History: From Paganism to Piracy.

“Mental health is a current public issue and Wordfest is fortunate to have Sir Norman Lamb in conversation with Professor Tanya Byron about his book, Be Human: why mental health care is broken and how can we fix it. Free tickets are offered for people working in NHS and voluntary mental health services to attend this important discussion.

“Lost Tracks by the Platform 3 is a musical performance with songs and stories set in the 1960s and David Bramwell, Brighton-based author and BBC radio presenter, has a startling presentation titled Ghosts in the Machine: an Odyssey into the shamanic roots of popular entertainment.

“The festival starts on Thursday, October 1 with a free lunchtime Poetry café at St. Peters’ Church Hall. People are encouraged to bring a poem to read, from a favourite poet or one they have written. The following day has two celebrated poets, John McCullough and Henry Normal. They are both lively performers and their poems are moving, humorous and always entertaining. The festival ends with a concert of Sussex poetry and song.”

Rosalind added: “The team is excited about this year’s programme with the theme of Time and Tide, reflecting the local landscape and the opportunities to reflect on the past, celebrate the present and imagine the future.”

Rosalind said she was delighted by how the festival has grown over the past 15 years.

“The first meetings started in a local café as a base for writers to share their work and create new performances. Inspired by the celebrated Hay Festival, the group planned an annual festival of words: written, spoken and sung, as a counterpoint to the summer festivals in Brighton and Adur Art Trail.

“Our first festival weekend was met with enthusiasm so we decided to try again the following year. Since then, the festival has grown while retaining its original mission to celebrate local creativity while also bringing inspirational authors to the town. It now draws an audience from the south-east and beyond, as well as our loyal local supporters and also organises an annual Celebration of Shakespeare each April.”

Shoreham Wordfest, a registered charity, is still organised entirely voluntarily, with a team of 20 helpers, including a team of book sellers at each event.

Rosalind said: “Authors are keen to come to Shoreham Wordfest and increasingly we are approached by them and their publishers directly. One of the things they appreciate is the high number of books we manage to sell at our events. There is still huge enthusiasm for talks and written words in this National Year of Reading.”

The team have built a strong visual presence with their branded T-shirts and bold artwork using local artists and designers and continues to stage the events in various local venues including The Shoreham Centre and Ropetackle Arts Centre.

“Another feature this year which the Wordfest team are particularly proud about is their programme of free creative writing for young people, including a free event in Shoreham Library for young children and author visits for the local secondary schools led by young adult author Nicola Garrard, in partnership with Shoreham Wordfest.

“We are delighted that we can continue our work to support reading and creative writing for all ages.”

Full details of the festival programme are available at www.shorehamwordfest.com or you can call the box office on 07515 800957.