Hay Festival 2024

It is now indisputable that we are in a climate emergency. Soaring levels of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases, particularly methane, mean more extreme weather events at greater frequency. As tipping points are exceeded, some irreversible changes have already been triggered in our climate systems. Join us on a deep dive into the pivotal moments of the climate crisis. David King will identify the tipping points that could shape our planet’s future and in response, Ed Miliband will lay out the decisions ahead and the opportunities we have to create a sustainable, fairer future for all. Professor Sir David King is Emeritus Professor of Chemistry at the University of Cambridge, Chair of the Climate Crisis Advisory Group and Founder of the Centre for Climate Repair in the University. He was the UK Government Chief Scientific Adviser, 2000–07, and the Foreign Secretary’s Special Representative on Climate Change, 2013–17. Ed Miliband is MP for Doncaster North and Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero.

Greg Jenner and guests on the comedy podcast that takes history seriously.

St Mary’s Church in Hay, with its excellent acoustics, is the perfect setting for Hereford Chamber Choir’s performance of its critically acclaimed Dymock Poets Reimagined. This innovative concert focuses on seven contemporary composers and their choral settings of works by the Dymock Poets (who included Robert Frost, Rupert Brooke and Edward Thomas, all connected with the Gloucestershire village). Founded in 1983, Hereford Chamber Choir consists of 25 exceptional mixed voices. Under music director Simon Harper, the choir has a reputation for performing exciting programmes of choral music from the medieval era to newly commissioned works.

Ruby Wax’s rawest, darkest, funniest and most compelling stage show returns, documenting the extreme journeys she took in order to find an antidote to living a frazzled life. Along the way she hoped to find meaning, peace, happiness – the stuff everyone is chasing. However, after some transcendent experiences, she ended up in a mental institution.

Take a tour of the 88 constellations and explore the science, history and romanticism behind these celestial bodies with the science communicator and presenter of The Sky at Night. Maggie Aderin-Pocock considers looking up at the night sky from different cultures across the globe rather than just focusing on the Western Greek interpretation of the stars. Join her to share in the tranquil joy that is stargazing, reconnecting with both the natural world and our ancestors. You’ll learn how to identify stars, the basics of naked-eye observation, and advice on the best kit and ‘dark sky’ locations.

The winner of the Sky Edinburgh Comedy Award returns with a show about family, immigration, marriage, history, politics – and beans. Shah has appeared on Mock the Week, The Mash Report, QI, Live at the Apollo, Frankie Boyle’s New World Order, Have I Got News for You and 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown. “Intricately crafted, profoundly moving, howlingly funny… he’s a blazing talent firing on all cylinders” – The Daily Telegraph.

Join Welsh wine critic and broadcaster Jane Parkinson to pour and score your way through six wines that have her peers frothing with excitement. The author of Wine & Food discusses the styles we’re tasting and explains why some naturally lend themselves to rave reviews. But would you give them the same reviews? And is the role of the wine critic a help or a hindrance? Are professional reviews insightful or intimidating?

Don’t miss the Fontanas’ debut performance at the Festival – you can expect a well-oiled band, ready to hit the heights and have you up and dancing! Soaked in funky Latin and Brazilian influences, the band has found the sweet spot between tight funk grooves and swinging Latin rhythms.

Taking influence from the likes of the Dap Kings and Banda Black Rio, they’re graced with the inimitable Kay Elizabeth on vocals. Alongside her prowess as a vocalist, Kay is a professional dancer showcasing her skills on the global stage from Rio to Notting Hill, where she has earned the title ‘Queen of Carnival’. Shimmy into a world of rhythm infused with samba swing and electrified by the band’s intoxicating stage presence.

Join comedian Robin Ince for his unique Book Club, in which he chats with guests about the weirdest books and strangest stories they have read, and their secret reading obsessions. He brings along many of his favourite pulpy horrors, awkward romances and most eccentric self help guides. Expect an exhilarating tour around these books, where readings from Crabs on the Rampage will be twinned with Jenny Lives with Eric and Martin. Robin was named Author of the Year by the Booksellers Association and his most recent book, Bibliomaniac: An Obsessive’s Tour of the Bookshops of Britain was described by the TLS as “a tonic”. Don’t miss this event exclusively designed for Hay Festival 2024.