Following the success of last year's fully digital programme, the Edinburgh International Book Festival has confirmed plans for its 2021 event. The popular literary showcase will boast a brand new setting when it returns, taking over the beautiful indoor and lush outdoor spaces of Edinburgh College of Art on Lauriston Place.

With events scheduled for Sat 14 to Mon 30 Aug, the festival's team are planning a series of live online author talks, workshops and readings. If circumstances allow, some of these events will welcome audiences in person, with socially distanced precautions in place, while the college's grassy courtyard will hopefully house bookshops, cafes and open spaces to enjoy safely.

The festival's director, Nick Barley, explains, 'While we are now experiencing a full lockdown in Scotland, which is challenging for so many people on so many levels, we very much hope that the combination of this, together with the ongoing vaccination programme, will bring the virus under control by August. While 2020 proved extremely challenging for the Book Festival it also opened up some extraordinarily exciting opportunities. Building on the success of our online Book Festival we can now announce that we will be entering into a new strategic partnership with the University of Edinburgh that will enable us to inhabit this innovative space in 2021 with facilities to create events for both digital and, if circumstances permit, physical audiences.'

Although the festival's full programme and event details will not be announced until the end of June, the collaboration certainly sounds promising. And for those who just can't wait until August, author conversations from the 2020 event, alongside all other information, can be found at edbookfest.co.uk.