Pen will be presenting the Operation Ark talk at the Illminster Literary Festival on the 31st May.

Operation Ark is the powerful true story of the most controversial figure from the 2021 Afghanistan Evacuation, whose story captured global headlines.

As a Royal Marine Commando on tour in Afghanistan, Pen founded the animal welfare charity Nowzad working closely with coalition forces and the local community to provide lifesaving animal welfare, rabies prevention, and education for female vets. His work was award winning.

Circumstances changed with the 2021 withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan. Pen had to steer his charity staff and animals through the dangers of a Taliban takeover and a political storm back home. In the melee, he somehow became a villain, putting the lives of others at risk, when he was really doing something decent against all odds. Find out why that happened in this fascinating talk. Pen is the author of the Sunday Times bestseller, One Dog at A Time.

You can buy tickets direct from here