As one of the UK's most established and highly regarded literature festivals, Ways With Words, announces a prestigious and exciting new programme for its annual ten-day festival in July 2008.

Set in the stunning medieval estate and gardens of Dartington Hall in Devon, Ways With Words, celebrates its 17th year, as a distinguished and much loved fixture in the literary calendar which sees 15,000 visitors flock to be entertained, challenged and inspired at over 150 diverse events.

The first and last weekend of the 2008 festival, which runs from July 11-20, will include two of our most trusted and well-known political commentators: Martin Bell and Tony Benn.

In between these two speakers, this year's festival will see a line-up that includes Jonathan Dimbleby on Russia, Jonathan Fenby on China, Lord Owen on his book about sickness in heads of government. Jenni Murray, Katherine Whitehorn and Julia Blackburn will tell their family secrets and Gervase Phinn will do less of a talk, more of a stand-up routine, about life as a school inspector in the Yorkshire Dales.

Biographers Claire Tomalin, Valerie Grove, Patrick French will be talking about their biographies of Thomas Hardy, John Mortimer and VS Naipaul respectively. For thespians there will be acclaimed dramatists Steven Berkoff and Michael Frayn. Fiction lovers can hear Kate Mosse, Penelope Lively, Simon Sebag Montefiore, Poppy Adams and Lloyd Jones.

There's much more with music, comedy, foraging expeditions and speakers on a range of subjects from Riverford Organic food boxes to Green and Black's chocolate to Iraq to the weather to crime and punishment: entertainment and enlightenment in many forms.

Described as 'The Glynbourne of literature festivals', Ways With Words' Dartington festival has become renowned as a uniquely relaxed, convivial and beautiful place to encounter the literary world whether from a deckchair in the spectacular courtyard, from a stool in the on-site bar or in one of the many talks in the 14thC Great Hall.

For more information about this year's festival, visit www.wayswithwords.co.uk.