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Charlie Cumming?s latest spy-thriller,THE TRINITY SIX, has been longlisted for the 2011 CWA Ian Fleming Steel Dagger. Described by the panel as 'an intriguing concept, elegantly and deftly written?, THE TRINITY SIX is one of eight novels in contention for the prize, announced at the Theakston?s Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate last week.

As Atlantis, touches down in Kennedy Space Centre, marking the end of NASA?s STS program, and the end of an era in manned space travel, Kevin Fong presents ?Space Shuttle: The last Mission?, the accompanying BBC documentary that ventures behind the scenes of human space exploration. Click here to watch on BBC iplayer, or catch it again on BBC 2, Thursday night at 7pm. Adam Rutherford also pays tribute to the extraordinary achievements and tragic losses of the last 30 years this brilliant short film for Nature Video.

Click here for a first look at the trailer for Aardman's film adaptation of the brilliant Pirates! books, by Gideon Defoe. Released in March 2012, this will be Aardman's first stop-motion film since Wallace and Gromit and is all set to be a swashbuckling smash-hit.

Fran Abrams? latest report for Radio 4?s ?File on 4? programme, Elderly Care, is a shocking exploration of the state of Britain's care system. Visit the Radio 4 website where you can listen to the broadcast, download the podcast, or read the transcript. http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b01247gy

Tonight at 9pm on BBC2, catch the second episode of Made In Britain, the accompanying 3 part TV series to Evan Davis?s recently published book of the same title. Presenting the show himself, Evan offers viewers an insight into the true landscape of the British economy. He explores what our country is good at and how it can pay its way in the world, bursting some of the myths that have sprung up in recent decades and reacquainting us with some forgotten areas of the economy. And the book itself, was it MADE IN BRITIAN? Follow this link to find out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qHCt5MB7Cm4

Alex Bellos is investigating the phenomenon of favourite numbers. Do you have one? Is it your birthday? Something superstitious, or mathematical? Over the summer, Alex is asking people to tell him what their favourite number is, if they have one, and why it is their favourite. The results will feature in Alex?s new book, The Game Of Life, the follow up to his bestselling Alex?s Adventures in Numberland . To listen to Alex?s appearance on the Today Programme, click here. And to take part in the survey, click here.

This year?s Hay Festival will play host to some of the most exciting literary talent of the moment, and Janklow & Nesbit authors will be there in full force. Throughout the week Mumsnet's Justine Roberts, Evan Davis, Elly Griffiths, Xiaolu Guo, Robert Penn, and Tim Richardson will all take to the stage to debate and discuss their work in a series of intimate talks and performances. Over at the Hay Fever children?s festival, Gideon Defoe joins the founder of Aardman studios, Peter Lord, to present a tantalising glimpse of their upcoming animated adaptation of his Pirates! books. Jasper Fforde will also be introducing the first book in his brilliant new YA trilogy, The Last Dragonslayer. Not to be missed. Hay Festival 2011 26th May -5th June http://www.hayfestival.com/wales/index.aspx?skinid=2&currencysetting=GBP&localesetting=en-GB&resetfilters=true

In his new book, Tim Radford shows us what science can tell us about individual identity and our place in the universe. The Address Book takes the reader on a voyage that starts in the living room and ends at the very limits of the cosmos. Listen to him discussing The Address Book with Peter Forbes on the Guardian books podcast here: http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/audio/2011/may/13/art-science-tim-radford-peter-forbes

Avast ye hearties! The secret is out! Aardman's first feature-length stop-motion animation since Wallace and Gromit: The Curse of the Were Rabbit will be an adaptation of Gideon Defoe's fantastic novel The Pirates! In an Adventure with Scientists. Hugh Grant will play the Pirate Captain, complete with luxurious beard, in the film, which will be released worldwide in Spring 2012. For more information, please click here.

We have moved offices, and are no longer based in Drayson Mews. Our contact details are now: 13a Hillgate Street London W8 7SP Phone: 020 7243 2975 Fax: 020 7243 4339

Elly Griffiths has won the 2011 Mary Higgins Clark Award at the Mystery Writers of America Edgar Awards for her debut novel THE CROSSING PLACES. This wonderful news follows Elly's recent longlisting for the CWA Dagger in the Library Award in the UK. For more information on the MWA Edgar Awards please click here

The Gene Code, BBC4, Monday 18th and 25th April, 9pm. There is a code at the core of every living thing that ever existed on earth, and it?s called DNA. It is only in the last few years that scientists have really begun to explore it, and in doing so, unravel how evolution connects all living things. In two parts, The Gene Code, presented by Adam Rutherford, takes us first on an epic 3 billion year journey from the simplest cells to us, using DNA as our guide, and then explores how far we have come in the decade since the human genome was sequenced. Have the promises of this epic task been fulfilled, and has reading the genome told us what it means to be human? Click here to watch part one, The Book of Life, or here to listen to Adam talking about the programme on 'Start the Week? for BBC Radio 4. Adam?s first book, Creation, will be published in 2012 by Viking in the UK and Penguin Portfolio in the US. His TV agent is Sophie Laurimore at Factual Management.

Elly Griffiths is on the longlist for the Crime Writer's Association Dagger in the Library Award. The list of 16 also features C.J. Sansom, Peter James and Susan Hill. The CWA Dagger Awards celebrate the very best in crime and thriller writing, and are the longest established literary awards in the UK. These premier awards in crime fiction are recognised internationally as a mark of excellence. The Dagger in the Library is distinct in that it is given for the author's body of work, not an individual title. Authors are nominated for the prize by library users, with the winner chosen by a panel of librarians. Previous winners include Alexander McCall Smith, Jake Arnott and Craig Russell. The shortlist will be announced at Crimefest on May 20th, with this year's winner unveiled during the Theakston's Old Peculier Crime Writing Festival in Harrogate, on the evening of July 22nd. For more information please click here.

As the clocks go forward and the sun comes out Robert Penn celebrates the arrival of Spring in this week?s Observer. http://www.guardian.co.uk/environment/2011/mar/27/spring-wildlife-black-mountains-wales.