The Ledbury Poetry Festival ticket hotline lit up on Monday after the release of the new programme.

Festival director Dr Charles Bennett said the phone did not stop ringing and appealed to people who could not get through to try again.

He said: "We had one man spend over £250 on tickets. That just shows how popular poetry is."

The festival runs from July 1 to 10 and popular attractions, out of a programme of 69 events, include the return of Ian McMillan, who will present A Cartoon History of Poetry and Ledbury alongside Cartoonist of the Year Tony Husband.

Actor Timothy West will present The Birdsong Poems of Edward Thomas, while outspoken television critic, academic and poet Tom Paulin will return for a reading in the Community Hall.

Leading poets will include Simon Armitage, one of the original New Generation poets, and Alan Brownjohn, who has never been less than prominent since rising to fame in the 60s.

There will also be a distinct Welsh theme this year. Poets crossing the border will include newly-appointed New Generation poet Owen Sheers, Poetry Wales editor Robert Minhinnick and Ann Drysdale, who has brought out a clutch of volumes with Peterloo, one of the UK's leading poetry publishers.

The festival's poet-in-residence will be Gillian Clarke, regarded as perhaps the most important Welsh poet of her generation.

Musical events will include the Wendy Austen Jazz Band, Jazz on a Summer's Day at the Market Theatre and an evening of folk music, verse and hilarity with the Ledbury Lyricists at The Prince of Wales pub.

Brochures are available from Ledbury Tourist Information Centre and the box office hotline on 0845 458 1743.