Crime Writer in the making

Our congratulations to downthetubes contributor and former editor of the critically-acclaimed fanzine Eagle Flies Again Ian Wheeler, who has just been announced as the winner of this year's Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival competition, which takes place in his home town of Harrogate.

The short crime story competition challenged writers to come up with a 300-word thriller, with all the entries tales following on from this sentence:

“Next to the body lay a bottle of Theakstons Old Peculier and an upturned book; it was a crime novel and the already lurid jacket was spattered with real blood.”

The festival gets under way next Thursday (17 July) with a range of events with top authors including Jeffrey Deaver and Val McFermind, held in Harrogate's Crown Hotel.

• Click here to read all the entries to the competition, including Ian's story
• For tickets for the Festival go to www.harrogate-festival.org.uk/crime or telephone 0845 1308840.