Ian Rankin to celebrate 30 years of Rebus at Bloody Scotland festival

I an R ankin, Lynda La Plant e a n d A n n C l e e ve s wi l l b e among t he authors app ear - ing at a major crime writing festival in September.

The Bloody Scotland crime writing festival in Stirling will also feature appearances by Chris Bro okmyre, Si r Vince Cable, Peter May, Denise Mina, Alex Gray and a host of other writers, as well as the annual Engl and writ er s v S c ot l and writers football match.

The event, which runs from 8 t o 1 0 S e p t e m b e r, w i l l b e l aunched wit h a gal a op ening at Stirling Castle followed by a torchlight procession to 0 Ian Rankin will discuss his Rebus novels on opening night the cit y’s Albert Halls, where Rankin will talk about 30 years of detective Rebus.

Val Mcdermid will also celebrate a 30 - year anniversar y during the festival, as her first crime novel was published in September 1987.

The op e ni ng r e c e pt i on on 8 September will also see the announcement of this year’s Mcilvanney Prize for the Scottish Crime Book of the Year.

Other highlights i nclude a joint appearance by Cleeves and actor Douglas Henshall, who p l ays d e t e c t i ve Ji mmy Pe r e z i n S h e t l a n d , t h e B B C adaptation of her series.

Sir Vince, the former business secretary, will talk about his book Open Arms.

In The Policing Behind Procedurals, Police Scotland Deput y Chief Constable Iain Livingstone and Detective Superintendent Duncan Sloan will quiz Gray about her research.