THE THOMAS Hardy Society is set for an 'exciting year' as interest continues to grow in Dorchester's favourite literary son.

With the imminent release of the film of Far From the Madding Crowd, featuring many scenes filmed in West Dorset, and the 175th anniversary of the writer's birth it promises to be another bumper year for Hardy enthusiasts.

Hardy Society Mike Nixon said there was a packed programme for the coming months and the draw of Hardy would provide a boost to Dorchester and the surrounding area.

He said: "This is going to be quite an exciting year for us.

"We've got two big things with 175th anniversary this year, which we are going to reflect with a party, and Far From the Madding Crowd."

The Hardy Birthday Weekend celebration will take place on the weekend of Saturday, June 6 and Sunday, June 7 and will include a walk through Hardy's landscape, a lecture reflecting on his links with Virginia Woolf, the traditional wreath-laying at Hardy's Statue and a service at St Michael's Church in Stinsford.

There will also be a party on the Saturday evening with the venue still to be confirmed.

Before that Far From the Madding Crowd will be released in May, sparking added interest in the writer, and on Sunday, May 10 Mavis Pilbeam will lead a walk through Egdon Heath to discuss the sights, sounds and birdlife that inspired The Return of the Native.

Mr Nixon said this year will also see the revival of the society's London group, with a meeting in the capital on Saturday, May 30.

Later in the year, the group will be showing its support for plans to restore Dorchester's Shire Hall by holding its annual general meeting there on Saturday, September 12 followed by a tour of the Old Crown Court and Cells.

Hardy's fascination with the Napoleonic War will also be commemorated with a trip by Eurostar to tour the battlefield of Waterloo on Friday, October 2.

Another of Hardy's literary links will be explored as Philip Larkin expert James Booth gives the society's London lecture on Thursday, October 29.

The final event of the year will see the return of the ever popular Going the Rounds on Saturday, December 19.

The walk, which includes songs and readings, will start at the newly opened visitor centre at Hardy's Birthplace in Higher Bockhampton and follow the route the author described in Under the Greenwood Tree.

Mr Nixon said: "Going the Rounds has come back and is always very popular."

He added that with so much happening relating to Hardy this year, he was hoping to see Dorchester and the rest of Hardy's beloved Wessex enjoy a boom in tourism as a result.

Mr Nixon said: "I think it's all very positive stuff."

For more information about any of the events visit hardysociety.org