Author talk is set for POW camp

A popular author is to entertain audiences next month with a difference - it will be held in an atmospheric prisoner of war camp.

Award-winning biographer Bill Jones will be the star of October’s author talk, which will be held in the unique setting of Cultybraggan POW Camp near Comrie.

Hosted by Culture Perth and Kinross, the evening will feature Bill Jones in conversation with Dr Nicola Small, Culture PK’s local history officer.

He will speak about his debut novel, a World War II thriller‘Black Camp 21’, which is inspired by true events.

The book travels from the battlefields of France to the‘black camp’at Cultybraggan, where only the most committed and fanatical Nazi prisoners were held.

A spokesperson for Culture Perth and Kinross said:“Built a mile and a half from the Perthshire village of Comrie, Camp 21 at Cultybraggan was built in 1941 to house up to 4000 prisoners and was also know as the‘black camp of the north’, holding some of the most notorious prisoners captured during the Second World War, many of which were Waffen-SS officers.

“As a deterrent, the camp was guarded by Polish soldiers, many of whom had a personal hatred for the Germans as a result of the invasion of their country by the Nazi regime.”

The spokesperson added: “Author Bill Jones was a journalist before joining Granada Television in Manchester in the 1980s where he worked on documentaries for the BBC, ITV and Channel 4.

“After 30 years in broadcasting, he turned to a career in writing.

“His first biography,‘The Ghost Runner’, was shortlisted for the William Hill Award and won him The Times best new writer in the 2012 British Sports Book Awards.”

Tickets for the evening with Bill Jones at Cultybraggan Camp cost £5 and are available from Strathearn Community Library in Crieff, Comrie Library or online via EventBrite.

Booking is essential, and the talk will run from 7pm until 9.30pm on Friday, October 5.