Hay Festival 2022 – Readings

In this spoken-word event PJ Harvey recites poems from her new book and discusses the lyric line with renowned British poet and writer Paul Farley. Orlam reveals Harvey as a gifted poet – whose formal skill and transforming eye and ear have produced a strange and moving poem like no other. Orlam is not only a remarkable coming-of-age tale, but the first full-length book written in the Dorset dialect for many decades.

Ian McMillan is always at home in front of a crowd, and in this Hay Festival Verb he is joined by some of our most exciting writers, performers and poets to explore the idea of homeliness – literal or metaphorical – and to ask if writing can be a kind of home.

His guests are: the poet Lemn Sissay, whose latest book for children is a celebration of curiosity and belonging; Monica Ali, who casts her eye across family matters in her new novel Love Marriage; Daniel Morden, a consummate storyteller and performer, acquainted with all the myths of belonging; and Tishani Doshi, whose poetry and prose is alert to the possibilities of a home – in the poem or in the body.

Ian will also share a brand new poetry commission by a contemporary poet for the BBC's centenary – part of The Verb’s Something Old, Something New series.

Ian McMillan and guests explore language and memory and ask what we choose to write down -or forget. Joining Ian are Jennifer Egan, whose new novel The Candy House imagines wild technological possibilities for human memory; Allie Esiri brings us the words of long forgotten women poets in the anthology A Poet For Every Day of the Year, and Gurnaik Johal examines how we hand down cultural memories in his debut short story collection We Move.

Bestselling poetry anthologist Allie Esiri returns to the Festival to celebrate her latest anthology, A Poet for Every Day of the Year. Allie commences a journey through the calendar year, highlighting key moments and dates with poetry from some of the world’s greatest verse writers, read by leading performers.

What parallels are there between contemporary poetry and spoken word movements and hip hop’s past, present and future? Come chill and find out at the RAP (Rhythm And Poetry) Party, a nostalgic, no-clutter, no-fuss night of hip hop-inspired poems and favourite hip hop songs.

This special Hay Festival edition features event founder Inua Ellams and long-time friend and collaborator Theresa Lola going head-to-head, back-to-back, with DJ Sid Mercutio on the decks.

Born in Nigeria, Inua Ellams is a poet, playwright and performer. Theresa Lola is a British Nigerian poet, writer and editor.

Hay Writers’ Circle is a dynamic group, active in Hay for more than 40 years. It offers three competitions annually for poetry, fiction and non-fiction, each of which is open to both members and non-members. There is an active work in progress group for those working on longer projects. Hay Writers’ Circle has an ongoing, productive relationship with a local primary school. The writers share some recent work.

Join Benedict Cumberbatch and friends as the hugely popular all-star show returns for the sixth year to Hay Festival and in aid of the Ukraine Humanitarian Appeal. A celebration of the enduring power of literary correspondence, Letters Live sees a diverse array of outstanding performers read remarkable letters, inspired by and often drawn from Shaun Usher’s bestselling Letters of Note anthologies. The full cast will be kept under wraps until the performance.

Join Benedict Cumberbatch and friends for a one-off, family-friendly edition of Letters Live, a hugely popular celebration of the enduring power of literary correspondence. The event sees a diverse array of outstanding performers read remarkable letters, inspired by and often drawn from Shaun Usher’s best-selling Letters of Note anthologies. The full cast will be kept under wraps until the performance.