Speaking to Bedford Today, Waterstones manager Kay Duffy said: “Civilised Saturday works well for bookshops, which should be a haven of calm during the craziness of the run-up to Christmas. We want to encourage people to visit their local high street, and we will have our own selection of books at half price.”

So far, so awesome – but the deal is even sweeter when you realise that The Great British Bake Off’s Mary Berry is on board with the event. In fact, some lucky fans will even get the chance to meet the Queen of Bakes, as she’s going to be attending two of her favourite bookshops on the day.

Mary Berry to meet with ‘civilised’ bookworms who shun Black Friday madness