On Tuesday, September 10, the agonising wait for Margaret Atwood's fans will be over, because the sequel to The Handmaid's Tale will be launched.

Even better, the famous author will be live on the big screen at Malvern Theatres, to talk about her new book and the life and times of Gilead.

A spokesman said: "The momentous literary event will be celebrated with an exclusive live cinema broadcast, as Fane Productions present an evening with the Canadian novelist, poet, literary critic and inventor.

"The publication of Atwood’s The Handmaid’s Tale in 1985 and the current, Emmy Award-winning television series have created a cultural phenomenon, as handmaids have become a symbol of women’s rights and a protest against misogyny and oppression.

"Live from the London stage, Atwood will be interviewed by broadcaster and author Samira Ahmed in a conversation spanning the length of Atwood’s remarkable career, her diverse range of works, and why she has returned to her seminal hand maid story, 34 years later."

Atwood says her new book, 'The Testaments', will answer "everything you’ve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings".

She added: "The other inspiration is the world we’ve been living in."

The spokesman said: "With exclusive readings from the new book by special guests, this will be an unmissable and intimate event with Atwood, spotlighting her signature insight, humour and intellect."

The sequel, The Testaments will be published worldwide that very day, September 10.

The Handmaid's Tale paints a dystopian vision of a future where the US Constitution has been overturned by a violent coup. An assertive patriarchal society, based upon extreme religion, has stripped away women's rights.

In short, much of the USA has been replaced by Gilead.

A hand maid, in this context, is a woman who has been forced into a role of sexual servitude: in part to overcome a fertility crisis. Too few children are being born in Gilead.

Aspects of Gilead are reminiscent of Nazi Germany and other totalitarian regimes, in that any opposition, if discovered or suspected, is brutally crushed.

Punishments for non-compliance are severe, including executions and maiming.

In an interview with the LA Times in 2017, Atwood said: “Totalitarianism always has views on who shall be allowed to have babies and what shall be done with the babies.”

She added: "The generals in Argentina were dumping people out of aeroplanes; but if it was a pregnant woman, they would wait until she had the baby and then they gave the baby to somebody in their command system; and then they dumped the woman out of the aeroplane.

“Hitler stole his children, blonde ones, hoping that he could turn them into blonde Germans. It’s been going on for really a long time."

Tickets for "Margaret Atwood Live in Cinemas" at Malvern Theatres: 01684 892277.