A literary hot tub on offer at Wigtown Book Festival

Book lovers will be able to share a jacuzzi with the literati for the first time

Book festivals are an excellent chance to get up close with one’s favourite writers, although it’s not usually in swimwear.

This year, visitors to Wigtown Book Festival , which runs from Friday 27 September to 6 October, will be able to share a hot tub with the literati at the new Festival Club in the gardens behind The Bookshop on North Main Street.

Membership is free to friends and speakers, or £5 per day. There will be cups of tea and books to browse and as night falls, the chance to take a dip beneath the stars. Just be prepared to share the bubbles with the likes of Jeremy Bowen or Joanna Lumley.

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Also in this week's arts diary:

Explicit Ian McEwan short story rediscovered after 30 years

Polly Stenham and Lucy Kirkwood graduate to television

Marcus du Sautoy to make theatre debut in new play about the universe