Mike Gardner, author of Boxer, the Life of a Cumbria Great, published by YouCaxton, will be interviewed on Talksport during the 1 pm to 4 pm prime-time spot with Haawksbee and Jacobs in the next few weeks. Talksport is the country’s premier sport-radio channel with over a million listeners.

The Seagull Hotel is Kirstine Richards’ account of how, in 1945, she and her German friend Gerdy, both war widows, opened a hotel in Exmouth that became famous for its high-quality cuisine and for the hordes of children who scrabbled in the extra-large sandpit in the front garden. It’s a charming account and YouCaxton are very pleased to have been  involved in the publication. The Exmouth launch was held last Saturday and the picture shows Dr Nick Richards, Kirstine’s son who discovered the manuscript, speaking to Louise Hocking, a great niece of the Exmouth boatman who taught Nick to row in the channel opposite the hotel many years ago.

The Shrewsbury Drapers Company by Nigel Hinton is due to be published shortly by YouCaxton. It focuses both on the history of the Drapers Company and on the long slog undertaken by the Drapers to build new almshouses for the benefit of the town. Prince Richard, Duke of Gloucester, Vice Patron of the Almshouse Association, will officially open Drapers’ Place, Horsefair, Abbey Foregate, Shrewsbury today.

YouCaxton Editor, Bob Fowke, will be talking about  the prophet Elijah and biblical history at Bishop’s Castle Town Hall, 2.00pm, Wednesday 22nd February.  His talk is titled Elijah and the Theft of God and looks at Canaanite religion in relation to ancient Israelite religion. He starts with Elijah, a prophet of the cult of Yahweh from the ninth century BC. Elijah’s chosen name meant ‘Yahweh is El’, although El was the senior god of the ancient Canaanites and father of their favourite god, Baal. Since Elijah caused the death of 450 of the priests of Baal, Bob asks, among other things, what Baal’s father would have had to say about it and why Elijah chose it as a name.

Woman’s Hour will shortly be interviewing Netta Cartwright, author of The Many Lives of Zillah Smith, published by YouCaxton Publications, along with Zillah, in Zilla’s caravan in Staffordshire, with transmission in the next week or two.

A pleasant message to Colin Sharp, author of Button Gwinnett, Failed Merchant, Plantation Owner, Mountebank, Opportunist Politician and Founding Father, from Nathan Deal, Governor of the State of Georgia where Button Gwinnett made his mark: ‘It was such a pleasure to receive your book … please extend my best wishes for its success to everyone involved in its publication’.

Shari King and Nicola Brown are launching the first book in their series, Brummie Girls do Social Work, published by YouCaxton, at the Birmingham branch of Waterstones on Friday 17 June, starting 18.30. This lively book looks at daily Social Work practice and the dilemmas faced by practitioners and features a collection of short, colourful episodes based on the authors’ personal experiences – a light hearted approach to a serious subject. The event will give readers an opportunity to meet the authors and gain an insight into how the book developed. After a brief introduction by Bob Fowke of YouCaxton Publications, there will be a  presentation by the authors and some readings followed by a Q&A session at the end.

Netta Cartwright is launching her new book The Many Lives of Zillah Smith, an English Romany at the Wolseley Centre, Wolseley Bridge on Sunday 17th July from 3 to 5pm. ST17 0WT. The Wolsey Centre is just off the A51, 1.5 miles north of Rugeley. After a brief introduction from Bob Fowke of YouCaxton Publications and from Netta Cartwright, there will be poetry readings by Grace Smith and a slide show and display of photos and poems from the book – and a chance to meet Zillah herself.