Friday 19 April, 9.30pm, Festival Marquee. £15

To say that Howard Marks has taken a different route to most of us would be an understatement. He has worked with the British secret services, the CIA and the Mafia. He was once busted by the American Drug Enforcement Agency and subsequently spent seven years in one of the USA's toughest federal penitentiaries.

These days the best-selling author and raconteur makes crime pay by writing fiction. Howard will be revealing more about his latest crime thriller, The Score, published 4 April, and sharing stories from his own life. A life that is definitely stranger than fiction.

Howard, who graduated from Oxford with a degree in nuclear physics and post graduate qualifications in philosophy, is a regular on the DJ circuit. He currently favours the Dub Step sound, but describing his own style as “stoned eclectic”. He has written for Loaded, The Times, The Daily Telegraph and GQ among others. His autobiography, Mr. Nice, remains an international best seller in several languages.

Parental guidance – this show is not suitable for children under 14 years old.