The leading Scottish writer, AL Kennedy, who has recently penned her first Doctor Who novel, has rejected the idea of a female Doctor.

The award winning author who has written The Drosten's Curse, which features the fourth Doctor, which was played by Tom Baker, said that another great sci-fi character should be created for women.

Kennedy, speaking at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said that she could only imagine the Oscar winning actress Tilda Swinton as the time travelling hero of the hit BBC series.

Kennedy was asked by a member of the audience whether she had considered playing the Time Lord, or whether she thought a future incarnation of the Doctor should be female.

"As a heterosexual woman I have no interest in that, because he plays a big part in whom I fancy," she said.

"I am literally going out with someone like that.

"[Doctor Who] is who he is: just has a guy vibe - he has a hopeless, un-domestic, dozy, dreamy kind of guy-type of eccentricity, not a girl type of eccentricity, so I'd be surprised if he changed gender.

"It might wonderful, I don't know: build something else wonderful and iconic for women and have faith you can do that, maybe - I am not not in favour of women having wonderful parts.

"Make the companions ballsy and wonderful."

She added: "It's like 'Sherlock Holmes is wonderful, so let's make him a girl', no let's make a wonderful part for women that is designed for women.

"I get annoyed when I go to see a Shakespeare production and they've said 'Oh let's make this part for a woman'. Well then all of her lines won't work. It will create a very odd vibe."

Kennedy read from her Doctor Who book, which she said is largely for children.

In the section, a golf bunker - presumably with a creature inside it - ate a character.

"I never felt as a small person that I was robbed because the Doctor was a bloke," she said.

"Other than Tilda Swinton, because she has that strange vibe that she can do anything. He is this particularly Victorian eccentric. You'd have to do a different drama - or bring back the Time Ladies."

The Edinburgh International Book Festival has enjoyed one of its busiest opening weekends and is reporting a "record trade" in its adult and children’s bookshops.

Sales in the two bookshops, which are owned and managed by the Book Festival, topped 10,000 books in the first two days of the Festival with the top sellers being The Shed that Fed a Million Children by Magnus Macfarlane-Barrow, How to be Both by Ali Smith and Julian Clary’s first children’s book, The Bolds.

James Shaw, Head of Book Sales & Retail at the Edinburgh International Book Festival, said: “It’s a great start to what is going to be a very exciting festival.”

Nick Barley, director of the Edinburgh International Book Festival said: “These extraordinary sales figures prove that books are vibrant, exciting and inspiring.

"Stories cross borders, cross cultures and cross languages and books are the vehicle through which we can make sense of the world we live in today."