AN exclusive appearance by J K Rowling, writing as Robert Galbraith is one of the star attractions at this year’s Theakstons Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival takes place between today and Sunday, at the Old Swan Hotel, Harrogate.

J K Rowling will be in conversation with Val McDermid about her new book The Silkworm at a special event hosted at the Royal Hall in Harrogate at 7.30pm tomorrow. The Silkworm was published by Little Brown last month.

Rowling joins a stellar list of names put together by the 2014 programming chair, author Steve Mosby, which include Ann Cleeves, John Harvey, Sophie Hannah, Lynda La Plante, Laura Lippman, Peter May, Denise Mina, and S J Watson.

The annual festival, which first launched in 2003, is hosted at The Old Swan Hotel, where Agatha Christie was famously found in 1926 after disappearing from her home.

Attendees are invited to join up to 80 of the world’s most celebrated crime authors “in conversation, in action and in the bar”.

Behind the festival atmosphere, the event is one of the most important in the crime publishing calendar, with publishers scheduling new releases to coincide with the July date. Agents, publishers, publicists and authors attend from all over Europe and the world. The festival will also announce the 10th Theakstons Old Peculier Novel of the Year awards.

Weekend Break Packages are now available. For more details, visit.

harrogateinternationalfestivals.com/ crime or call the Box Office: : 01423- 562-303