Calling all Tolkien fans...

As any serious fan of JRR Tolkien will know, next year marks the 75th anniversary of the publication of The Hobbit - not to mention that the end of the year will see the release of the first part of The Hobbit movie.

So what would any self-respecting litfest do to celebrate such an occasion? Why, sign up a respected Tolkien scholar, of course.

So we're just a little bit delighted to announce that Colin Duriez, Tolkien biographer and walking Middle Earth encyclopedia, has agreed to attend our inaugural litfest in September next year. Colin has a new biography of Tolkien out late next year (yes, fingers are crossed that it will be available in time for the litfest) and this follows previous books The Tolkien Handbook and Tolkien and The Lord of the Rings - A Guide to Middle Earth.

Colin also serves as conference director for Festival in the Shire, a celebration of all things Tolkien held each year at Pafiliwn Bont in Wales, and was one of the commentators used by Peter Jackson for the extended DVD versions of his Lord of the Rings movies.

What's more, Colin's expertise doesn't just run as far as Tolkien - he's also written several books about Narnia creator CS Lewis, including a book charting Lewis and Tolkien's close friendship. And for fans of Hogwarts, he's also the author of The Unauthorised Harry Potter Companion.

So, welcome onboard, Colin - we're looking forward to welcoming you to the Isle of Man next September. Oh, and please try to think on and bring some fine weather with you...