Ideas

How can our agricultural systems adjust to the changing needs of people and planet? The challenges range from rising energy costs and labour shortages to extreme weather events, but a high level of consumer trust, investment in agritech and a shift towards regenerative practices promise hope for the industry. Our panel of experts explores what the future of farming looks like, and how we can serve people’s needs while protecting the natural environment.

Adam Henson, Countryside presenter and well-known farmer; Philip Lymbery, global CEO of Compassion in World Farming International; and Deborah Meaden, business leader and fellow of the WWF, speak to journalist and Countryfile presenter Sean Fletcher.

Travel back in time for an immersive tour of the extraordinary library of the Mesopotamian king Ashurbanipal, which was burnt to the ground in the seventh century but rediscovered thousands of years later. Despite the burning, the texts, carved on clay tablets, were baked and preserved by the heat. They are written in cuneiform, a language only a few hundred people on earth can read.

Assyriologist Selena Wisnom brings Mesopotamia to life in this session, illuminating the culture of the time and its impact on us today. Casting back to the customs of Mesopotamian civilisation, she will also perform haruspicy live on stage – the ancient art of divination using a real-life liver! Wisnom is lecturer in the heritage of the Middle East at the University of Leicester.

The year ahead is a gift that has been given to you. What might you do with it? In a world of unwanted distraction, where AI is attempting to replace the human imagination, how can we ensure we continue to look, read and think for ourselves? Who can remind us of the joys of creativity? What can we do to bring the necessity of artful living to our day?

Dive into the year with the wisdom of artists and writers. Gathered from interviews and personal conversations, Katy Hessel’s How to Live an Artful Life collects thoughts, reflections and creative insights for every day of the year. Featuring Marina Abramović, Nan Goldin, Lubaina Himid, Louise Bourgeois, Tracey Emin and more, each entry offers wisdom from some of the greatest artists of all time.

Katy Hessel is an art historian and author of The Story of Art without Men, the international best-seller and Waterstones Book of the Year 2022. She talks to historian and broadcaster David Olusoga.

Leading game industry expert George E Osborn exposes how dictators, populists and violent extremists are using video games to influence the world around us. Russia is funding the development of video games to promote their world view, Saudi Arabia has acquired one of gaming’s biggest publishers and Steve Bannon used tactics learned from online game communities to propel Donald Trump to the White House. Osborn helps us to understand this new frontier for political influence and sets out what democracies must do to protect play. He talks to former political and foreign correspondent Robert Nisbet, now a partner at the consultancy 5654 & Co.

This entertaining and immersive event turns maps into theatre, bringing them to life in a way you’ve never seen before. In its Hay Festival debut, the award-winning podcast What’s Your Map? comes to the stage with host Jerry Brotton, a leading authority on the history of maps. He asks each of his guests to unfold a map that’s special to them and share the story that lies behind it. Each map will be projected large-scale and discussed in all its rich detail. Tim Marshall is former diplomatic editor at Sky News and author of Prisoners of Geography. Historian and broadcaster David Olusoga is author of Black & British: A Forgotten History. Emma Jane Unsworth is a BAFTA-nominated screenwriter and best-selling novelist. A perfect way to spend the evening for anyone fascinated by history, adventure and culture.

On the eve of Oak Apple Day, our panel of nature experts explore the distinguished folklore of the oak tree, sharing extraordinary tales of the nation’s forests and how they enrich our lives, as well as the threats to them and what we can all do to make a difference.

Join Jules Acton, author of Oaklore, Anita Roy, country diarist for the Guardian and editor of Gifts of Gravity and Light, and Tamara Ullyart, who leads the Woodland Trust’s ‘Forgotten Forests’ campaign, for a close-up look at the glory of the greenwood with Andrew Simms, director of the New Weather Institute.

Nazanin Zaghari-Ratcliffe was held in an Iranian prison for nearly six years, accused of trying to overthrow the Iranian regime. She survived, she says, through craft. She managed to get hold of scraps of material and a sewing machine. Soon she was teaching her fellow prisoners how to sew, how to knit – how creativity can save you. In an extraordinary conversation that opens the next chapter in her life, Nazanin tells broadcaster and psychologist Dr Sian Williams about the healing powers of creativity and her plans for the future.

Broadcaster and writer Zakia Sewell is on a quest for a different Britain. Criss-crossing the island from Somerset to Scotland, she joins acclaimed historian, David Olusoga, in search of stories beyond divisive national myths and symbols. Together they consider ancient legends, Celtic rites and the mystic stone circles that punctuate our landscape, and ask whether this alternative history could help unite an increasingly divided country. A thought-provoking session offering a fresh, hopeful perspective on British identity.

Bear Grylls is one of the most recognised faces of survival and outdoor adventure in the world. His adrenalin-filled life reads like an action thriller – three years with 21 SAS, a life-changing parachute accident, climbing Mount Everest – all by the age of 23. His next chapter saw him become a world-renowned TV presenter, leading the likes of Julia Roberts and President Obama on epic survival adventures. He’s somehow found time to write over 100 books, including two best-sellers, and spends part of the year on a secluded, off-grid island in Wales. In this thoughtful conversation with presenter and podcaster Jamie Laing, Grylls reveals the books that hold a special place in his heart and have helped him through the ups and downs of his incredible life.

A conversation to lift your spirits, as leading scientist Professor Daisy Fancourt reveals how art and culture can directly improve our health and wellbeing – mending us as well as moving us. Talking to Tamsine O'Riordan, Vice President for Science Books at Springer Nature, one of the world's leading research publishers, Fancourt explores the extraordinary links between creativity and health from songs that shape children’s brains to paintings and performances that ease pain, stress and depression. Learn how engaging with art and culture can reduce loneliness, build resilience and even help us to live longer. Is there a better reason to book a place at this optimistic and refreshing conversation?

Anxiety can affect the way you think, feel and behave, but what if there was a way to make it work for you? Broadcaster and psychologist Dr Sian Williams takes a warm and accessible look at anxiety, talking to journalist Kirsty Lang. She shares stories from her counselling career and her book The Power of Anxiety, and urges us to see sensitivity as a strength and anxiety as a tool.

Williams is an award-winning broadcast journalist and chartered counselling psychologist, who has worked in the NHS and privately. She hosted BBC Breakfast for 11 years, and currently presents on BBC Radio 3 and 4.

There will be a BSL interpreter at this event

Former A&E doctor and leading mental health advocate, Dr Alex George, joins comedian Sara Pascoe to explore the perennial question: Am I normal? Together, they tackle the uncertainties and anxieties so many of us share about our bodies, minds, and emotions – from self-image and relationships to mental wellbeing in a digital age. Blending humour, honesty and empathy, this very personal conversation offers practical wisdom and reassurance in a world obsessed with comparison. This event is for anyone feeling the pressures of modern life, seeking inspiration and laughter in equal measure.

There will be a BSL interpreter at this event

A middle-aged woman obsessed with pickling, body painting and taxidermy is an unlikely star, but thanks to a BAFTA-winning animated film, Beryl is just that. Film director, animator and Beryl’s co-creator Joanna Quinn takes us behind the scenes of the 2021 film Affairs of the Art, and explains the creative process behind animation.

Joanna will give an entertaining insight into her creative process including a range of sketches, storyboards and final artwork for Beryl’s creation. She will also illustrate live in this event, bringing her dynamic and vivacious character to life before your eyes.

Internationally-celebrated choreographer and director Sir Wayne McGregor tells us how and why we should master our physical intelligence, in conversation with Dr Gus Casely-Hayford, director of V&A East.

In We Are Movement, McGregor draws on research with elite performers, athletes and cognitive neuroscientists to argue that our intelligence lies not only in our brains, but our bodies too. By learning to use it properly, we can become better communicators, more creative thinkers and live fuller lives. Filled with practical advice and inspiration, this event will have you appreciating your body in a new way.

Kenyan social entrepreneur Linda Kamau and BBC technology and social science writer and presenter Aleks Krotoski discuss the opportunities and challenges facing women carving careers in technology across Africa.

Kamau is a pioneer in the inclusion of women in technology. Co-founder of AkiraChix, she has trained hundreds of young women in programming, providing them with the tools to transform their lives and communities. She has been recognised by initiatives such as the Obama Foundation’s Leaders Africa programme, and is a member of the Segal Family Foundation, a trust supporting social justice in East Africa. Krotoski has written and presented landmark technology and social science series for BBC Radio 4 and BBC World.

They speak to Madhumita Murgia, AI editor at the Financial Times and author of Code Dependent: Living in the Shadow of AI.

Do you have real-life experiences that you’d like to turn into a book? This workshop with Dr Lily Dunn will give you both direction and inspiration. Where do you start and how do you discover a story’s momentum? Dunn will help you identify key moments, how to characterise yourself, capture place and run dual timelines, as well as navigate the ethics of writing about real people. You’ll come away from the session with new tools and techniques to bring your true stories to life on the page.

Dunn is author of Into Being: The Radical Craft of Memoir and Its Power to Transform. She teaches narrative non-fiction and memoir at Bath Spa University and co-runs London Lit Lab.

Arvon is the UK’s leading creative writing charity. Founded in 1968, it is known for its diverse creative writing courses and events led by leading authors. Its online programme offers writing weeks, writing days, masterclasses and a Saturday Writing Club. Residential courses are set in historic writing houses in inspiring countryside locations. Courses cover a range of genres including fiction, poetry, creative non-fiction, theatre, screenwriting and more.

The perfect session if you love new ideas, original thinking and passionate speakers all on one ticket! Podcaster and entrepreneur Jamie Laing talks about how to be a good man in today’s society. Historian Peter Jones reveals how self-help worked in the Middle Ages. And journalist Aleks Krotoski discusses the moguls and tech bros who are trying to defy death so they can live forever. Hosted by Decca Aitkenhead, chief interviewer for the Sunday Times. We guarantee you’ll leave having learnt something new – something you Heard at Hay Festival.

Amol Rajan kicks off a bold campaign to get young people talking. Improving a child’s speaking skills is proven to directly improve their life chances, and the biggest transformations can be seen in children from the poorest backgrounds. Rajan reveals his own oracy experiment and is joined by some surprise guests in his mission to help those from the toughest beginnings find a better life through the power of speaking.

Are we witnessing the end of democracy? The foundations of freedom and civil liberties are being eroded around the world, and once-liberal countries are turning to populism. Renowned philosopher AC Grayling investigates the forces undermining our democratic ideals, and delivers an urgent wake-up call, offering bold solutions to fix our problems. Grayling is founder and principal of the New College of the Humanities at Northeastern University, London, and is author of best-selling books including The Meaning of Things.

We are in the midst of the most important cultural shift of our time, argues journalist James Marriott: a decline in reading. In this National Year of Reading, join the Times columnist in conversation with broadcaster Georgina Godwin as he looks at the fall in literacy and reading, and presents an impassioned defence of the written word.

In his book The New Dark Ages, Marriott draws on history and classic works of literature and theory to show that reading and writing are essential for innovation, creativity and critical thinking. As print dies, he argues, we risk returning to the chaos, tribalism and rage of a pre-literate society.

What does it mean to be a child today? And what will the future of Britain look like if we don’t care for those who will shape it? Join author and Children’s Laureate Frank Cottrell-Boyce as he talks to Observer literary editor Tom Gatti, casting a glaring new light on childhood in the 21st century. Cottrell-Boyce will share stories about the children and young people he has met during his work, and assess what the impact of successive crises – from the Covid pandemic to austerity and the pressures on the care system – mean for those growing up today.

This illuminating session is a call to arms to us all, to care for the children of today. Cottrell-Boyce is a multi-award-winning children’s book author and screenwriter, and began his two-year term as Children’s Laureate in 2024.

A moving and nuanced look at what it is to struggle in the wake of distressing and painful life events, with forensic psychiatrist Dr Gwen Adshead. Calling on her expertise and long career working in the NHS, including in prisons and secure hospitals, Adshead brings to life the work of therapy, and shares stories of patients who have stepped out of the darkness of shame and fear to discover new possibilities. You’ll leave thinking in new ways about trauma, with myths about its toxicity and permanence burst.

Adshead, author of Unspeakable (co-authored with Eileen Horne), has worked as a forensic psychiatrist and psychotherapist in the NHS for three decades. She speaks to neuropsychology professor Catherine Loveday.

Calling introverts everywhere! Comedian Rhys James offers up a refreshingly honest look at modern life from the perspective of someone who doesn’t want to do anything. If you’ve ever been glad when plans were cancelled, actually quite liked the thought of another lockdown, and tried to control the outcome of everything you do, then this is the event for you.

There will be laughs aplenty as James discusses his book You’ll Like It When You Get There and, don’t worry, you’ll be home by 8.30pm. James has performed stand-up comedy around the world, including six solo shows at the Edinburgh Fringe and two international sell-out tours. He talks to comedian and Austentatious member Cariad Lloyd.

The celebrated poet talks about and performs from her new collection exploring dyke counterculture and the queer underground. Through a cast of characters who meet in the Maryville butch bar over the course of many decades, Joelle Taylor examines queer class politics, the pain of oppression and the beauty and intimacy of community

This is a chance to see one of our best contemporary poets talking about and performing her work. Taylor is author of four collections of poetry and one novel. She won the TS Eliot Prize and the Polar Book Prize for her collection C+NTO & Othered Poems.

Join acclaimed writers Patrick McGuinness and Angharad Price in conversation with author and former Wales PEN Cymru director Dylan Moore for an exploration of how Welsh literature can forge renewed connections with European literary culture after a decade of post-Brexit isolation.

Both McGuinness and Price embody the cross-cultural exchange that has enriched Welsh writing: McGuinness, born in Tunisia to an English father of Irish descent and a Belgian mother, and living in Wales for over 20 years, writes between languages and national identities, while Price has published widely on Welsh literature, frequently within a broader European context. Together, they’ll discuss what has been lost and what might be regained as Welsh literature seeks to re-establish its place within the wider European conversation.

A lively and entertaining discussion to start your day. The BBC’s international editor, Jeremy Bowen, brings together a brilliant mix of actors and authors for an energetic debate on the day’s news. Bowen is joined by actor and writer Carys Eleri, veteran of stage and screen Miriam Margolyes, journalist and author of Empireworld Sathnam Sanghera and author of We Need To Talk About Kevin Lionel Shriver.

Everyone expected Palestinian Aziz Abu Sarah and Israeli Maoz Inon to be enemies. Instead, the peace activists and social entrepreneurs forged a bond of brotherhood, connected by their belief in equality, dignity and the idea that Palestinians and Israelis can work together peacefully for a better future. They talk to the BBC’s chief international correspondent Lyse Doucet about their book The Future Is Peace, a transformative journey across the holy land and a bold call for hope, humanity and empathy.

In this rare and personal conversation, BBC news presenter Sophie Raworth interviews her sister, the economist Kate Raworth, about her groundbreaking book Doughnut Economics. Kate is at the forefront of rethinking how the economy works, so that everyone can live well without compromising the planet. During this intelligent and thought-provoking session, Kate and Sophie explore the challenges of how we meet people’s needs within the Earth’s environmental limits; and ponder the parallel lines of their own careers and how they’ve inspired each other along the way. Warm, insightful and full of humanity, this is a must for those who enjoy smart, accessible discussion about the world’s biggest challenges – and how we might fix them.

Acclaimed historian and writer Andrea Wulf brings to life the extraordinary story of George Forster, the 18th-century writer and explorer known for documenting Captain Cook’s second voyage around the world. His writings on the people and cultures he encountered transformed how Europeans understood the wider world. Drawing on Forster’s vivid letters and personal accounts – much of them never-before published in English – Wulf reveals a man of dazzling intellect and visionary thinking. For history-lovers and those interested in forgotten figures who shaped the modern world. She talks to the host of the BBC’s In Our Time, Misha Glenny.

Experience a live recording of The Working Class Library, a podcast that explores and reclaims working class people’s contribution to literature. Join hosts Richard Benson, author of The Valley and editor of The Bee, and Claire Malcolm, CEO of New Writing North, in their quest to establish a new catalogue of working-class books that tell a different story to the established British literary traditions.

For this live edition of the podcast they will be joined by special guest, Mid Wales-based Maya Jordan, author of Chopsy: Resistance Tales of a Working Class Woman. Together they’ll discuss the Welsh classic Queen of the Rushes by writer Allen Raine, which celebrates its hundredth birthday this year.

The Working Class Library podcast is a venture of The Bee, a new magazine of writing by working class writers, published by New Writing North.

What makes us who we are? Is it our background that creates our identities? Or our families, where we lived, how we were brought up and educated? The answer is all of the above, but more fundamental than any of these is our brain. Neurologist Masud Husain uses real-life examples of patients to show us how our brains create our identity and how that identity can be changed by brain dysfunction. Among his patients is a man who ran out of words, and a woman who stopped caring what others thought of her. Husain is professor of neurology and cognitive neuroscience at the University of Oxford and a practising clinician with over 30 years’ experience. He talks to TLS arts editor Lucy Dallas.

The story of one man’s alcoholism and his daughter’s struggle to make sense of it. Journalist Sophie Calon watched as her father went from high-flying lawyer to homelessness in just four years. After pinballing between tents, homeless shelters and prison cells, he was found dead in Cardiff city centre aged just 55.

In her moving memoir Long Going, Calon tries to come to terms with her and her family’s grief, combining her narrative with letters and messages from her father, mother and siblings. Calon, who lives near Hay-on-Wye, speaks with searing honesty.

Two daring, record-holding adventurers celebrate the human spirit and discuss staying resilient in the face of physical and mental crises.

Mark Agnew was part of the first team to ever kayak the north-west passage, spending 103 days in the Arctic, after two previous failed expeditions. Strained to the limit, he experienced a mental health crisis and almost abandoned the water forever. In his book There Will Be Headwinds, Agnew charts an inspirational journey from failure to world record breaker.

Mollie Hughes has explored some of the wildest environments on earth. Aged 29, she skied more than 700 miles across Antarctica, through storm-force winds and temperatures as low as minus 45 degrees Celsius. Drawing from her book Breathe, she uses her extreme experiences and psychological research to share lessons that can be applied to more everyday challenges.

YouTube sensation Fred Mills takes us on a journey through the most important industry in the world: construction. From the homes we wake up in to the transport infrastructure we use and the hospitals we rely on, construction has an impact on us all.

Mills, who founded the largest and most subscribed-to construction channel in the world with over 3.9 million subscribers on YouTube, charts the story of 10 mega projects reshaping our modern world in his book Mega Builds. This is an entertaining and fascinating front row seat to amazing feats of engineering, showing what will inform the future of the man-made world.

Come and join three editing and publishing experts for an unmatched opportunity to refine your creative writing ideas. Silk Road Slippers writing courses are for writers of all levels, and have been described by the Financial Times as “a revelation”.

You’ll complete a short writing exercise, then share your work for immediate constructive feedback. The Silk Road Slippers team – publishing legend and former Bloomsbury editor-in-chief Alexandra Pringle, best-selling author and historian Alex von Tunzelmann and editorial consultant Faiza Khan – will address style, substance and storytelling. This intensive yet welcoming environment will help you take your creative skills to the next level.

Join professional walking guide Sarah Price and Elizabeth Simpson of Elizabeth Simpson Coaching for a guided circular walk through the stunning surroundings of Hay-on-Wye. Designed for creatives and anyone seeking fresh thinking, this walk will help you step out of the ordinary and into inspiration.

Along the route, Elizabeth will introduce nature-based coaching exercises to enhance creativity and problem-solving. You’ll set an intention for the walk, engage in sensory awareness practices and use simple breathwork techniques to unlock clarity. Through mindful observation and interactive exercises, you’ll explore new perspectives on a creative challenge or personal goal. By the end of the walk, you’ll have shifted your mindset, released limiting thoughts and gained fresh insights – whether you’re working on a book, facing a decision or simply seeking renewed energy.

What happens when a single photograph unlocks a hidden past? Lea Ypi reveals a life of glamour, espionage and survival across war-torn Europe. Using archive files and spy reports, Ypi uncovers the fascinating and disturbing story of her grandmother’s life from Ottoman-era Salonica to wartime Albania and through the rise of communism. It’s a life embroiled in politics, class, love, exile and surveillance. Ypi grapples with unsettling questions about her own family’s past, what it means to survive in an age of extremes, and whether we have the moral authority to judge the acts of previous generations. She talks to the host of the BBC’s In Our Time, Misha Glenny.

Eminent philosopher Margaret Heffernan leads an agenda-setting discussion about the importance of creativity, and makes a compelling and urgent case for the integration of art into all aspects of life. Heffernan, whose TED talks have been seen by more than 15 million people, looks at what we can learn from the way artists approach life in her book Embracing Uncertainty.

Heffernan is a frequent broadcaster on BBC Radio 4, and is Professor of Practice at the University of Bath. In this event, she talks to author Irenosen Okojie about why, instead of waiting for the future, we should run towards it like artists do, and how art can help us with the stresses and anxieties of the modern world.

How much power is too much power? Step into the heart of the Big Tech debate with Tim Wu, Columbia Law School Professor of Law, Science and Technology, and Sarah Wynn-Williams, former Facebook Director of Global Public Policy, in conversation with investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr, the reporter who exposed the Cambridge Analytica scandal.

This candid discussion pulls back the curtain on the unprecedented influence of social media, the hidden forces shaping our online lives, and the urgent questions about democracy, privacy and accountability in the digital age. A rare opportunity to hear from the people who understand Big Tech from the inside – and to confront the forces shaping the future of society.

Jeremy Bowen is one of the foremost journalists of our time, and has built a career from making sense of the complexities of conflict. Now, as the BBC’s international editor, we turn to him to analyse the prospects for peace in the Middle East – a region he’s lived and breathed for the past 30 years. Bowen also talks candidly about the difficulties of being a journalist at a time when ideas of truth and free reporting are under attack. And he poses the most difficult question of all: how do you get to the truth in a post-truth world?