Hay Festival 2026

An hour of movement and breathwork, led by a highly-skilled Hay-on-Wye practitioner, to start your day at Hay Festival with open heart and mind. Whether you need grounding and recharging before a busy day at the Festival, an opportunity to stretch and move your body, or simply an hour to focus on your breathing, this yoga class is open and accessible to all. The class leader will adapt to different levels of experience, so that each student takes what they need from the practice.

Should world leaders stand up to President Trump or keep him onside? Hard to decide when you don’t know his next move. Get rare and first-hand insight from General Sir Tim Radford, who was second in command at NATO between 2020 and 2023, international writer for the New York Times Katrin Bennhold, who was in the room at Davos when President Trump told world leaders he was determined to acquire Greenland, and author and geopolitics specialist Tim Marshall. They talk to Helen Lewis from The Atlantic.

What’s it like to be a famous comedian? If you’re Alan Davies, it’s a life full of uplifting highs and painful lows, success and excess – and it’s hard to survive. Davies tells the story of how he became a stand-up comedian, how he made it on TV and how he coped with the unwelcome realisation that most people knew him from a bank advert and thought he had a perm. Really honest, sometimes painful, always funny. Davies is in conversation with author and comedian Mel Giedroyc.

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.

Watch a selection of short films, curated by MUBI, throughout the morning. The day’s schedule will be listed each morning at the venue – pop along and take a look.

Step into the magical world of Bird & Blend Tea Co., discover the secrets of tea mixology and create your own perfect blend in an immersive and interactive Tea Mixology Experience led by an expert mixologist. This hands-on workshop invites you to taste up to six unique blends and test your tea knowledge with an engaging and fun tea matching game.

With expert guidance, you’ll get to craft two custom tea blends to take home and pair with your next fave book! You’ll also learn about different tea types and brewing tips to enhance your tea-making ritual at home. There’ll be an opportunity to ask questions, plus you’ll get a goody bag with free samples. Visit the Bird & Blend Tea Co. stand afterwards for a free gift with purchase (find a special token in your goody bag). Book now – it’s going to be TEArrific!

Come on a walk through the beautiful surrounds of Hay-on-Wye, led by guides from the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park. You’ll be joined by local experts who will give their insights into this treasured landscape.

Hay-on-Wye is located within 520 square miles of beautiful countryside that makes up the Bannau Brycheiniog National Park. The National Park is driving change to bring about a sustainable future, meeting our needs within planetary boundaries. Their Hay Festival series of walks take you into the town’s local environment while offering the opportunity to learn more about the Park’s work.

Spend a morning visiting Whiskery Paw, where kittens abound in the brand new series from award-winning creator Laura Ellen Anderson. Meet the extraordinary cast of new characters in Star Kitties, including Tabitha Flair and her feline friends. Laura will show you how she creates magical new worlds, and invite you to help her design an exciting new Star Kitty. Then get your pencils at the ready and learn how to draw one of Tabitha’s adorable friends for yourself!

Join expert art historian and best-selling author Katy Hessel for an interactive journey through history and landscape, to celebrate her new Guide to Amazing Women Artists. Hessel has adapted her global sensation The Story of Art Without Men to bring the untold stories of art to a young audience, shedding light on the lives of women artists who have gone uncelebrated for too long.

From the Renaissance to the Second World War, and from Cornwall to Manhattan, Nigeria, Japan, step into the extraordinary lives of these women artists and marvel at the art they made, with its striking styles, hidden messages and calls for women’s rights. Discover how they changed the world with their art, and explore how to bring art into your every day.

Joanna Quinn is very excited to run this fun animation workshop, where she will introduce her endearing heroine, Beryl, and share the skills and knowledge of behind-the-scenes animation processes from her Oscar-nominated animation career.

Joanna’s creation Beryl is an unconventional heroine, a middle-aged factory worker pursuing her dream as an aspiring artist. Joanna’s film about Beryl and her eccentric family, Affairs of the Art, was nominated for Academy and BAFTA awards. An independent animator and director, Joanna holds over a hundred international awards, including four BAFTAs and two Emmys.

An opportunity to get crafting! Activities differ every day, including everything from print-making to junk modelling with recycled materials. Get messy and creative in these interactive sessions delivered by artists and discover that your imagination is the only limit.

Book for the session and you can drop in at any point during the 1.5 hour duration. Accompanying adults: please stay in attendance at all times, but you do not require a ticket.

Step inside Hay Castle – a border stronghold shaped by myth, power and reinvention. Visit the current BorderLands exhibition delivered in partnership with Meadow Arts, and enjoy full access to the castle, from cellar to rooftop. Explore rooms layered with stories, including Matilda’s room, the Richard Booth space, historic costumes and the castle cellar.

Experience the new, interactive exhibit on the second floor, then climb to the viewing platform for wide views across the Wye Valley. Your ticket also includes unlimited return visits for a full year, so you can come back as the seasons – and the castle – change.

This ticket allows you to visit the castle at a time of your choice on the day selected, and also gives you entry into the Meadow Arts BorderLands exhibition.

Step inside Hay Castle during Hay Festival 2026 and explore a place shaped by power, survival and reinvention. Led by an expert volunteer guide, this tour traces 800 years of life inside the castle – from medieval plots and royal whispers to its rescue, restoration and reimagining as a place for ideas today. You’ll move through rooms, stairways and towers, hearing stories of the people who lived, schemed, dreamed and partied here. Along the way, take in sweeping views across the Wye Valley – a reminder that this is a border castle, built to watch and be watched.

Guided tours run daily at 11am and 2pm. Tour price includes entry into the Castle for a year including the current exhibition: BorderLands.

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.

The past comes back to life in this new book about a secret kept for decades. In 1960s Italy, Edith is to support her sister Lydia through the final weeks of her pregnancy. Once the baby is born, she makes a phone call that will change their lives forever. Years later, Edith’s best friend receives an email from a stranger claiming to be her brother and Edith must face the truth of her past to help her friend.

Acclaimed author Sarah Moss is assistant professor of creative writing at University College Dublin. Her previous novels include Ghost Wall and Night Waking. She talks to the Guardian literary critic, Chris Power.

Following last year’s sold out scratch choir session, Juliet Russell returns to create a magical rendition of a classic pop banger with a room full of strangers in under 60 minutes. Uplifting, inclusive and hugely enjoyable, this is a session for singers, secret singers and ‘I’ve never sung in my lifers’.

With her warm and knowledgeable approach, Juliet is adept at bringing the best out of every singer, from the terrified to the confident. As a vocal coach and arranger on Netflix’s breakout hit show Building the Band, Juliet helped shape the voices that captivated millions globally. Come and be part of the magic. All are welcome, with no previous experience needed.

 Enjoy undersea antics with Aoife Dooley as she presents her hilarious, zany and action-packed graphic novel Squid Squad. Spongebob Squarepants meets Bunny Versus Monkey in this cartoon chronicle of ocean mayhem. Join naughty best friends Ollie the vampire squid and Zing the toxin-squirting sea bunny as they cause chaos in the deep sea with the rest of their wacky crew, from the stinky Blob to the crafty Hypno-snail and the mysterious Snakey Unicorn Thing…

Aoife Dooley is an award-winning Irish illustrator and graphic designer who shares how an autism diagnosis helped her to truly understand herself. Squid Squad is a celebration of imagination, friendship and being completely unique.

Join award-winning author-illustrator Ed Vere for a story-time session celebrating Waffles and Julius: No Hugs Please – a new, brilliantly funny picture book about friendship and respecting each other’s differences.

Waffles loves hugs and would very much like to hug his friend Julius. Julius, however, doesn’t want a hug right now. Can Waffles wait? Ed will bring his crayons to show you how to draw Waffles and Julius… Sketch along with Ed and see how easy it is to draw this loveable duo!

An opportunity to get crafting! Activities differ every day, including everything from print-making to junk modelling with recycled materials. Get messy and creative in these interactive sessions delivered by artists and discover that your imagination is the only limit.

Book for the session and you can drop in at any point during the 1.5 hour duration. Accompanying adults: please stay in attendance at all times, but you do not require a ticket.