ORGANISERS of a protest fighting to stop the closure of one of Swindon’s last remaining dedicated book stores have insisted that as far as this saga goes, it was far from the final chapter.

Peter Dilly, a former bookseller at Borders at the Orbital Shopping Centre, north Swindon, said nearly 200 people attended the rally to voice their concern at the closure of the store, which is expected to shut its doors for the final time on August 9.

Yesterday afternoon, supporters gathered on the steps of the nearby North Swindon library armed with their favourite books to read in a peaceful protest against the closure that will see the clothing chain New Look move into the premises from its town centre location.

Mr Dilly, who resigned from Borders last week in a bid to raise awareness of the closure, described the decision to close the popular book store as part of a wider attack on Swindon’s literary history.

“Swindon was built on books,” the 33-year-old from Peatmoor said. “The Mechanics’ Institute had one of the best libraries in the country in its day, now we have Swindon Council closing libraries and Borders trying to close up shop.

“We are not going to stand for it. This was a great turn-out and I think it is going to make a difference.

“What are the people of Swindon left with? We calculated that this location sells about 100,000 children’s books a year, what are those kids going to do without it?

“This is how much people care; one article in the Adver and a bit of Twitter and Facebook, and we get 200 people turn up – that is people power.

“No one from Borders has come out or visited the protest, it would appear they have all been told not to speak to us or the media. This is a vital resource that will be lost forever.”

Mr Dilly believes that teachers, home schooling tutors and countless community groups, who use Borders, will lose out because of the move.

Matt Holland, founder of the Swindon Literature Festival, which Borders had previously supported, said its closure would be a ‘great disappointment’ to the event and a ‘tragedy’ for the people of Swindon.

He said: “Borders was not just a book store, it was a hub for people to meet one another and to be around books. It was like a pub of books, if you will.

“The store did it very well. It had a certain ambiance and that is the real tragedy.

“I do, however, feel that someone will fill the gap.”

Coun Dave Wood (Eastcott, Lib Dem), said he was disappointed the move, especially as Swindon Council’s cabinet has agreed to close Gorse Hill library, as well as to cut staffing at the Even Swindon and Old Town libraries.