Hay Festival 2026

Prepare to suspend reality as the Reverend Richard Coles entertains the whole family with fantastical true stories of scrapes, escapes and close shaves from his first book for children. Hear about the theft of Albert Einstein’s brain, pick apart the sticky maple syrup mystery, and find out how McDonald’s was involved in a million-dollar heist! Uproarious tales brilliantly told will leave all with a curiosity for cracking crime… before bedtime.

Enjoy an enchanting afternoon at Hay Festival as author and playwright Michael Morpurgo is joined by actress Jenny Agutter and the world-renowned Brodsky Quartet in a unique celebration of music, poetry and the natural world.

In this one-off performance, Morpurgo brings us poetry inspired by the seasons, and blends it with lyrical narration alongside Agutter and a stunning interpretation of Vivaldi’s The Four Seasons. This is perfect for those who appreciate the meeting of story, music, and landscape – a performance that celebrates the harmony between art and nature.

Acclaimed historian Antony Beevor weaves a tale as seductive as Rasputin himself as he presents his unmissable new book. Beevor combines forensic research with gripping storytelling to unpick how Rasputin – a barely literate Siberian peasant – wove an intricate web of seduction and superstition through the Imperial household, resulting in the downfall of a dynasty. Beevor challenges us to question whether Rasputin was an impressive visionary, an accomplished fraudster or in fact a victim of history. His previous masterful best-sellers Stalingrad and D-Day: The Battle for Normandy position Beevor as one of the great military historians of our times. This is a must for anyone fascinated by Russian history, the forces that shape great empires, and lovers of compelling true stories.

A huge treat for Ruth Ozeki fans as she visits the Hay Festival for the first time. Ahead of publication, Ozeki exclusively unveils her first ever collection of short stories. In conversation with the broadcaster, Samira Ahmed, Ozeki introduces the 11 stories which make up The Typing Lady – each with characters standing at thresholds in their lives: childhood ambition, youthful desire, mid‑life reinvention, and the clarity of old age. For readers of Ozeki’s prize-winning The Book of Form and Emptiness, this is a wonderful opportunity to hear from the author herself about her latest brilliant creation.

A real wait-and-see moment! The International Booker Prize is announced in May 2026, and here we present the winning author and translator in conversation with one of the judges, Sophie Hughes, and the chief executive of the Booker Prize Foundation, Gaby Wood. The world’s most influential prize for translated fiction, the International Booker Prize is awarded annually for a single book translated into English, and celebrates the vital work of translation with the £50,000 prize money divided equally between author and translator. The prize is a global celebration of a community of writers and readers whose experiences and shared love of literature transcend borders.