MORE than 50,000 used books will be on offer at bargain prices this weekend ... and every buyer will be helping wage Lancashire's war against the drugs menace.

Charity workers have spent months gathering old books, records, cassettes and CDs from donors all over the Fylde for the two-day bonanza, Books Against Drugs.

An army of volunteers will oversee what is billed as "the greatest free book sale on earth" on Saturday and Sunday (June13/14), when bookworms from far and wide are expected to converge on the opulent ballroom at Blackpool's Winter Gardens.

Everything from Jeffrey Archer to Enid Blyton, Shirley Bassey to Boyzone will be on offer, bearing cut-price tags aimed at attracting hundreds of buyers.

Response to the appeal for unwanted items has been enormous, say the organisers, with piles of books ready to be shipped to the town centre venue.

A chunk of the cash raised from the giant two-day bonanza will be handed to bosses of the Lancashire Life Education Centre, which targets schoolchildren by visiting schools throughout the county in specially-equipped mobile "drug war" classrooms.

Rev Michael Wood, President of Blackpool South Rotary Club which is organising the book fair, said: "The evil of drugtaking poses a growing threat in every town in Lancashire.

"Book lovers and collectors of old records, cassettes and CDs can help us this weekend by supporting this event."

Admission is free at the event which is open 10am to 8pm Saturday and 10am to 6pm on Sunday.

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