THE popular TV drama, Outlander has launched the second phase of recruitment for its trainee programme, to help make Season 5 when production gets underway at Wardpark Studios, Cumbernauld, this year.

Trainees will work for five to eight months at Wardpark, in areas including locations, props, green screens, hair and make up, set decorating, script supervision, special effects and cameras.

Guy Tannahill, producer of Outlander, said: "Outlander has run four successful training programmes since it began in 2013, training over 90 people.

"Many of the alumni have gone on to take on important roles on both Outlander and in the wider industry and we look to continue to build on this for Season 5."

"It is an excellent scheme, not just for the trainees, who will get to work alongside first-class talent, but also for the wider Scottish industry which will reap the benefits of the training through the increased talent base we are helping to build and nurture.”

Scott Donaldson, head of Screen Education and interim director of Screen at Screen Scotland, said: “Outlander provides exceptional opportunities for significant numbers of training positions in specialist skills across key departments. We are delighted to be able to support this unique programme once again, and we look forward to seeing the trainees' careers develop in future."

www.screen.scot

THIRTY ONE translations from seven languages have been short listed for the 2018 Society of Authors' Translation Prizes.

The books in this year’s shortlists include novels and graphic novels, poetry, art history, short stories, and both modern and classic texts, in translations into English from Korean, Italian, German, French, Swedish, Spanish and Arabic.

This is the second year of the TA First Translation Prize for a debut literary translation, and the first time the society has announced shortlists for all prizes.

The £15,000 in prizes will be awarded in a ceremony at The British Library Knowledge Centre on 13 February.

The TA First Translation Prize, is for a debut literary translation into English published in the UK.

The short list includes Gini Alhadeff and her editor Barbara Epler for a translation of I Am the Brother of XX (And Other Stories), Janet Hong and her editor Ethan Nosowsky for a translation of The Impossible Fairytale by Han Yujoo, Fionn Petch and his editor Annie McDermott for a translation of Fireflies and Alex Valente and his editor Federico Andornino for a translation of Can You Hear Me?

The society also announced the short lists for, among others, the John Florio Prize, the Schlegel-Tieck Prize, and the Scott Moncrieff prize, an annual award for for translations into English of full- length French works of literary merit.

www.societyofauthors.org

EDINBURGH'S Tradfest is to run from 26 April to 6 May this year, and will be opened by Irish folk band Lankum.

The festival will kick off at the Queen’s Hall on Friday 26 April with live music from anarchic Irish folk band Lankum from Dublin, whose music combines vocal harmonies, musical arrangements of uilleann pipes, concertina, Russian accordion, fiddle, and guitar, with dramatic storytelling.

Now in its 7th year, the festival is being organised by music promoters The Soundhouse Organisation.

They will take over from TRACS, who have managed the festival since 2013.

It includes What A Voice with music from three of Scotland’s most engaging and accomplished singers - Kathleen MacInnes, Fiona Hunter and Kaela Rowan.

Heidi Talbot will present contemporary Swedish folk artists Väsen, French harpist, fiddler, pianist and vocalist Floriane Blancke, and Fair Isles’ Inge Thomson.

The festival will also incude Baltic Crossing, May Erlewine, Gnoss, Savourna Stevenson performing with saxophonist Steve Kettley, fiddler Adam Sutherland (Croft No Five/Treacherous Orchestra/Session A9) in a double-bill with Talisk – 2017’s Folk Band of the Year, John Reischman and the Jay Birds; and Canadian supergroup The Fretless.

Douglas Robertson, founder of the Soundhouse Organisation, said: "Scotland’s traditional music scene is thriving. The calibre of our home-grown artists is exceptional and the demand from audiences is increasing all the time. This is why we wanted Edinburgh Tradfest to continue. Thanks to our funders we’ve been able to put together a very strong programme that includes some of the very best musicians from Scotland and around the world."

www.edinburghtradfest.com