Hay Festival 2026 Early Birds

Main Programme

Events for Families

THU

MAY

Starts at	Global Stage	Discovery Stage	Meadow Stage	Spring Stage	Creative Hub	Make & Take Hub	St Mary’s Church	Bookshop Garden Marquee	Family Garden Marquee	Garden Kitchen	Meeting Point on Festival Site	MUBI Cinema
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07:30					07:30 29. Start Your Day with Yoga A Movement and Breathwork Class


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10:00	10:00 30. Adam Fleming and Guests The Weekend News	10:00 31. Kamran Abbasi and Chris van Tulleken Dangerous Liaisons: The Shady World of Big Food and Big Pharma	10:00 32. Yvvette Edwards in conversation with Bernardine Evaristo Good Good Loving: A New Novel	10:00 F1. Mikey Please The Cave Downwind of the Café		10:00 MT1. Make & Take Crafting Saturday Morning Session	10:00 36. Stephen Grosz talks to Claudia Hammond Love’s Labour: Why We Need to Do the Emotional Work		10:00 W1. Drama Workshop with Theatr Cymru Miss Prydderch’s Magic Carpet \| Carped Hud Miss Prydderch		10:00 34. Wayfaring Walk 3: The Climate Emergency With Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Guides	10:00 33. Short Film Screenings


10:15


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10:45


11:00
								11:05 37. South Powys Youth Music Pop-up Music

11:15


11:30	11:30 38. Liam Byrne and John Burn-Murdoch talk to Anna Foster Why Populists are Winning and How to Beat Them	11:30 39. Ali Smith talks to Sarah Wood Glyph: The Anti-War Novel from the Author of Gliff	11:30 40. Carissa Véliz talks to Jamie Bartlett South to North Conversations: Prophecy – Prediction, Power and the Fight for the Future	11:30 F2. Sheila Kanani This Event Will Make You a Scientist			11:30 41. Owain Mulligan The Accidental Soldier


11:45


12:00						12:00 MT2. Make & Take Crafting Saturday Lunchtime Session


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13:00	13:00 42. Gisèle Pelicot talks to Helena Kennedy A Hymn to Life: Shame Has to Change Sides	13:00 43. Elodie Harper and Janina Ramirez talk to Samira Ahmed (Mis)representation: Women’s Stories	13:00 F3. Danny Robins Do You Believe in Ghosts?	13:00 44. Vincent Doumeizel The Power of Plankton: Why it’s the Key to our Future			13:00 45. Ronan McCrea talks to Philippe Sands The End of the Gay Rights Revolution		13:00 W2. Drama Workshop with Theatr Cymru Romeo, Juliet and Me \| Romeo, Juliet a Fi


13:15


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14:00											14:00 46. Wayfaring Walk 4: The Climate Emergency With Bannau Brycheiniog National Park Guides
								14:05 47. Got 2 Sing Choir Pop-up Music

14:15


14:30	14:30 48. Douglas Stuart talks to Richard Coles John of John: The New Book from the Shuggie Bain Author	14:30 49. Mariana Mazzucato talks to Zanny Minton Beddoes The Common Good Economy: A Vision for a New Way of Living	14:30 F4. Hugh Bonneville in conversation with Iszi Lawrence Rory Sparkes and the Elephant in the Room: A Children’s Book from the Paddington Star	14:30 F5. Elgan Rhys and Mared Roberts The Five: A Novel in Five Voices		14:30 MT3. Make & Take Crafting Saturday Afternoon Session	14:30 51. Liliana Colanzi and Hanna Limulja talk to Polly Russell Dreaming of Resistance: Indigenous Cultures in the Face of Collapse					14:30 50. A Kestrel for a Knave with Christopher Eccleston Book to Screen: The Read


14:45


15:00


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15:30
								15:35 52. Got 2 Sing Choir Pop-up Music

15:45


16:00	16:00 53. David Miliband talks to Martha Kearney A Personal Analysis of the Political Landscape	16:00 54. Siri Hustvedt talks to Razia Iqbal Ghost Stories: A Personal Memoir of Grief	16:00 55. Cass Sunstein On Liberalism: In Defence of Freedom	16:00 F6. Creative Industry Insights: Danny Robins talks to Janina Ramirez	16:00 56. Itamar Srulovich and Sarit Packer talk to Polly Russell Matters of Taste: Honey & Co. Daily		16:00 58. Liliana Colanzi and Eduardo Halfon talk to Ángel Gurría-Quintana South to North Conversations: Language, Memory and Community in the Face of Disaster					16:00 57. Love & Friendship Book to Screen: Film Screening


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17:30	17:30 59. Dawn French talks to Richard Coles Enough: The Comedian and Author’s New Novel	17:30 60. Devi Sridhar talks to Dan Davis How Not to Die (Too Soon): What to Believe if You Want to Live Longer	17:30 61. Beth Gardiner talks to Jeevan Vasagar Plastic Inc: Are We Stuck With Plastic?	17:30 62. Grace Murray talks to Len Pennie Debut Discoveries: Blank Canvas	17:30 63. Claire Thomson Matters of Taste: The 5 O’Clock Apron Cooks Her Books – Live Demonstration and Tasting					17:30 64. The Beefy Boys Pop-up Supper A Masterclass and a BBQ Platter


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19:00	19:00 65. Tim Minchin You Don’t Have to Have a Dream: His First Non-fiction Book	19:00 66. Richard Coles with Sarah Churchwell, Natalie Haynes and Guests Murder in the Countryside: A Celebration of Agatha Christie	19:00 67. Hisham Matar and Kamila Shamsie talk to Pankaj Mishra South to North Conversations: The Novel in the Age of Globalisation – A New Approach to Fiction	19:00 68. Suzi Ruffell talks to Kiri Pritchard-McLean Barrel of Laughs: Am I Having Fun Now?	19:00 69. Cocktails: Taste the Hay Landscape Matters of Taste: Hay Distillery							19:00 70. Surprise Screening Book to Screen: Film Screening


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19:45


20:00							20:00 71. The GBSR Duo with Taylor MacLennan Morton Feldman: Crippled Symmetry, Op. 71


20:15


20:30			20:30 72. Melissa Auf der Maur and Skin talk to Tiffany Murray Blood, Sweat and Tears in the 1990s Rock Scene	20:30 73. Tishani Doshi and Len Pennie Poems of Protest	20:30 74. Cocktails: Taste the Hay Landscape Matters of Taste: Hay Distillery					20:30 75. The Beefy Boys Pop-up Supper A Masterclass and a BBQ Platter


20:45	20:45 76. Paul Merton and Suki Webster’s Improv Show


21:00		21:00 77. Johnny Flynn & Lillie Flynn In Concert


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