2016 festival: Authors

See below for a summary version of each author’s biography – or click “Read more …” or use the pull down menu on the Author tab for a fuller version.

DEBI ALPER
Book Writing Boot Camp

portrait of Debi AlpernDebi Alper is the author of six novels, the first two of which were published by Orion and are also available as e-books under her own Nirvana Publishing imprint.

For the last ten years, she has been helping authors perfect their novels through critiques, mentoring, Book Doctor sessions and creative writing workshops, as well as running an online self-editing course.
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ALAN FRASER
The Hitler Trophy – Golf and the Olympic Games

portrait of Alan FraserAlan Fraser has been one of the country’s finest sports writers for many years, gracing the pages of The Independent and the Daily Mail newspapers among others with his knowledge and wit.

Golf has been a particular passion and speciality throughout his career. Alan has covered all four golf majors, including every Open Championship between 1978 and 2014.
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CLIVE HAYWARD
Start the Day with a Story
With Great Pleasure

portrait of Clive HaywardClive Hayward trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School, winning the Newton Blick Award.

His theatre work has involved numerous West End and National Theatre appearances including Horace Hardwick in Top Hat; Ted Punch in Ducktastic, directed by Kenneth Branagh; Friar Francis in Much Ado About Nothing, alongside David Tennant; Bernard Woolley in Yes Prime Minister; Aeschylus in Frogs and Earl Haig in Oh What A Lovely War.
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EDD KIMBER
The Boy who Bakes

portrait of Edd KimberEdd Kimber is a baker, food writer and TV personality and the author of three cookbooks – The Boy Who Bakes (2011), Say It With Cake (2012) and Patisserie Made Simple (Oct 2014).

He studied politics at university but quickly realised the corporate world wasn’t for him in a spell working as a debt collector for a bank. Two days after winning the first series of the hit BBC Show The Great British Bake Off in 2010 he quit his job and finally got the chance to follow his real passion in life.
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VIKKI ORVICE
Disclaimer

portrait of Vikki OrviceVikki Orvice has been a journalist for 31 years, the last 25 spent on national newspapers including The Observer and The Daily Mail. In 1995 she joined The Sun as a staff football writer, the first female appointment of its kind by a tabloid in this country.

She has appeared on numerous TV and radio shows, is a board member of Women in Football (WiF) and was short-listed for Specialist of the Year for her athletics coverage at the 2015 Sports Journalism Awards.
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SYBIL RUSCOE
The Boy who Bakes

Portrait of Sybil RuscoeSybil Ruscoe has been a journalist since 1978, working on national newspapers, radio and TV. For five years she presented Ruscoe & Co, the afternoon show on BBC 5 Live, where she interviewed thousands of people from sport, entertainment and politics.

Before 5 Live, Sybil worked on Radio 1, where she and Simon Mayo won the Royal Variety Club’s Radio Personality of the Year Award. She even fronted the legendary Top of the Pops and Radio 1 Roadshows.
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RENÉE KNIGHT
Disclaimer

portrait of Renée KnightRenée Knight worked for the BBC directing arts documentaries before turning to writing. She has had TV and film scripts commissioned by the BBC, Channel Four and Capital Films. In April 2013 she graduated from the Faber Academy “Writing a Novel” course, which is sponsored by the famous publisher and known for nurturing breakthrough talent.

Disclaimer, which catapulted into the top 10 best-selling fiction lists earlier this year, is Renée’s first novel and the film rights have already been sold to 20th Century Fox.
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IAN RIDLEY
The Hitler Trophy – Golf and the Olympic Games

portrait of Ian RidleyIan Ridley is the author of 11 sports books, including the number one best-selling Addicted with former Arsenal and England captain Tony Adams, which was nominated for the William Hill Sports book of the Year, and Tales from the Boot Camps with Steve Claridge. His most recent book A Dazzling Darkness, the biography of world middleweight boxing champion Darren Barker, has been short-listed for the 2016 British Sports Books Awards.

He has written on football and sport for The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph, The Independent on Sunday, The Observer and The Mail on Sunday, for whom he was Chief Football Writer, and is a regular pundit on both TV and radio.
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DERMOT TURING
Alan Turing: Decoded

portrait of Dermot TuringDermot Turing – or Sir John Dermot Turing to give him his full title – is the nephew of legendary mathematician, computer scientist and code-breaker Alan Turing.

Having followed his uncle to Sherborne and King’s College, Cambridge he spent his career in the legal profession, most recently as a partner of Clifford Chance. As a family member and also a trustee of Bletchley Park, he had access to many previously unpublished papers and photographs for his biography “Prof: Alan Turing Decoded” including Alan’s own notebook and diaries.
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