Hay Festival 2019 Programme

Five participants, four Dragons and three minutes to tell a story that will capture the Dragons’ hearts, minds and cheque books for a chance to win a £5,000 cash award and one-to-one support from UnLtd.

Sixty businesses have been launched in the last three months. What are the common challenges new businesses face? Mike is a former RN Officer (Submarine Service) and has helped set up three businesses.

A favourite of art and design aficionados as well as of parents, Chris is the award-winning creator of picture books A Little Bit Lost and Oh No, George! A mixture of stories, pictures, puppets and participation will delight young readers, and he may even draw your ideas.

4–7 years

Join Holly Smale, winner of the Waterstones Children's Book Prize and creator of the bestselling Geek Girl series, talking to Damian Kelleher about smart and funny fiction for smart and funny readers. Guaranteed to get your geek on!

11+ years

A wide-ranging interview with the American Nobel Laureate, author of Beloved, The Bluest Eye, Jazz and Home.

Also see events 211 and 235

‘The supreme tragedy is when theory outstrips performance’ – Leonardo da Vinci. Does contemporary art celebrate concept without skill? What is the value of a Fine Art degree? The Welsh Academy of Art presents a debate on the state of contemporary art and art education.

Despite the efforts of some recent historians, prejudices still deform popular and scholarly understanding of the Byzantine civilization, often reducing it to a poor relation of Rome and the rest of the classical world. Cameron suggests why it is so important to integrate the civilisation into wider histories, and lays out why Byzantium should be central to ongoing debates about the relationships between West and East, Christianity and Islam, Catholicism and Eastern Orthodoxy, and the ancient and medieval periods.

With illustrations ranging from Shakespeare to Sheridan, from Caryl Churchill and Howard Brenton to Oscar Wilde and Brian Friel, playwright David Edgar explores the poetry of plays.

David Edgar's plays include Destiny, Nicholas Nickleby, Pentecost and Written on the Heart for the RSC, and The Shape of the Table, Albert Speer and Playing with Fire for the National Theatre. He founded Britain's first postgraduate course in playwriting studies (at the University of Birmingham in 1989) and is the author of How Plays Work.

The academic presents his annotated edition of FR Leavis’ famous critique of CP Snow’s theory of the ‘two cultures’ of arts and sciences. Collini describes what was at stake in the dispute, reappraises its literary tactics and evaluates the purpose of Leavis’ brand of cultural criticism.

A fantastically funny and delightfully disgusting time-travelling adventure from Heart Radio DJ and former TV presenter Matt Brown. Perfect for fans of Jeff Kinney and David Walliams.
7+ years

Echo Boy is the first novel for young adults from acclaimed author Matt Haig and is a poignant and beautifully-written story about love, loss and what makes us truly human, set in a future world where humans are served by ‘echoes’ – sophisticated, emotionless machines. He is joined by Alyssa Brugman whose groundbreaking novel Alex As Well is a confronting and heartfelt story of adolescent experience – of questioning identity, discovering sexuality, navigating friendships and finding a place to belong.
12+ years (YA)

Nicola Heywood-Thomas presents reviews, reports and analysis from the festival  in Radio Wales’s weekly round up of the arts scene.  Guests include Gillian Clarke, Marcus Brigstocke, Shani Rhys James and a live acoustic performance from BBC Horizons band The People The Poet

Broadcast live on Wednesdays, 6.30pm–7pm.

An interview with the leading painter whose work in portraiture and collage has established him as one of the most treasured contemporary artists. He discusses his relationship with his subjects and the way he builds his understanding of their portraits.

While some scientists in Nazi Germany tried to create an Aryan physics that excluded any ‘Jewish ideas’, many others made compromises and concessions as they continued to work under the regime. Ball examines the records of Max Planck, Peter Debye and Werner Heisenberg.

Relationships between state and society have undergone a significant shift over the last decade. On both sides promises have been made and broken, expectations raised and shattered, partnerships brokered and roles reversed. Moreover, the influence of non-state actors has become impossible to discount. Professor Moore will talk about changes in ‘politics from below’ and ask whether there is something genuinely new in kind about the way in which civil society is now operating. She is joined by video link by the co-founder of the global protest movement AVAAZ. 

A wide-ranging conversation about ambitions and opportunities with several of the remarkable women living and working here in the Border Country as profiled by writer Julia Gregson and photographer Alex Pownall in their book Crossing Borders. Horse trainer Venetia Williams has won over £1m in prize-money this year. Revel Guest is a film-maker and chair of the Hay Festival. Elizabeth Haycox is the owner of Richard Booth’s Bookshop and a Trustee of Hay Castle. Tiffany Murray is a novelist, author of Diamond Star Halo. The session will include a tribute to the late Jean Miller.

Rivas’ All is Silence is a literary masterpiece about three young friends growing up in a Galician community which is bound by a conspiracy of silence. Lythell’s The Lie of You – I Will Have What is Mine is a chilling psychological thriller about obsession, jealousy and lying to those you love.

As an entrepreneur, building and developing your business can follow many different paths, three entrepreneurs describe their journeys. Modwenna is founder and CEO of Angel News and Heather is founder of Wiggly Wigglers. They are joined by Jacob Hill, Young Entrepreneur of the Year for his business, Lazy Camper.

Hosted by Barclays' Richard Heggie.

FREE BUT TICKETED

In yet another farewell tour, Baz returns, having been charged with persistent joking and asks for 20 other shows to be taken into consideration. You are the judge and jury – be merciful to the aged accused King of the One-liners. He merely seeks to bring a ray of sunshine amid the dark clouds of life.
He’ll be enjoying himself – do join him. With Colin Sell at the piano.