Gordon Turnbull (16:45 BST)

When James Boswell’s multiple volumes of confessional diaries and letters were first published in the 20th century, they were hailed and assailed in equal measure for their warts-and-all honesty, showing their subject in ‘light’ and in ‘shade’. In our age of unflinching memoirs, live-stream ‘owning up’ on multiple platforms, and up-to-the-minute emoting from the wild west of X, Boswell’s un-squeamish honesty would appear to be totally on trend. Or is it?

Gordon Turnbull, former General Editor of the Yale Boswell Editions, making his annual Festival appearance, follows Ayrshire’s great diarist and biographer along his disturbingly candid path, wondering at the cost at which Boswell’s openness came, and asking, is honesty always the best policy?

Books will be available to purchase over the Festival weekend