Returning for its first live event since 2019, Hay Festival brings together some of the greatest voices, authors and minds of our times. We’re talking the first Black female winner of the Booker Prize, Bernadine Evaristo, writer and environmental activist George Monbiot, and designer Jenny Packham, among others.
Set in the grounds of Hay Castle on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, this year’s festival features more than 600 live events, talks and conversations, with a selection available to watch live online from the comfort of your own home.
Highlights include the talk between Elizabeth Day and Emma Gannon, which centres on key themes of Day’s new novel, Magpie; and the new Women in Power series, which sees such famous names as Nicola Sturgeon, Huma Abedin and Bernardine Evaristo discuss the fight for gender equality.
Thesps should investigate the stripped back production of Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar at the specially commissioned open-air theatre, while foodies may enjoy the talk between Kate Humble, Andrew Montgomery and Kitty Corrigan. If you’ve got kids in tow, head to the Make & Take tent, where you’ll find activities from print-making to junk modelling.
With so much to see and do, make sure to browse the festival programme in advance — and, more importantly, pre-book your tickets online. Accommodation gets booked up early, but there are always beds and campsites to be found. So persevere and see you there.
A highlight of the cultural calendar, the RHS Chelsea Flower Show is back, with its spectacular garden designs, floral displays, hand-picked tradestands and fine-dining restaurants.
Central to this year’s showcase are bees and other pollinators, with many gardens demonstrating how to attract and protect them. Among the pollinator-focused gardens is the Royal Horticultural Society and BBC flagship garden designed by presenter Joe Swift.
Other standout Gardens include The New Blue Peter Garden designed by Juliet Sargent, the Mind Garden designed by the landscape and garden designer Andy Sturgeon and the smaller Sanctuary Gardens, among them John Warland’s Ice Garden, featuring a giant ice cube which will melt as the show progresses.
Once you’ve meandered around the curated gardens, head to the Great Pavilion, where you’ll encounter some of the world’s finest growers and nurseries. Expect impressive displays, gorgeous scents and the most glorious spring blooms.
After all that tramping around, refuel with a glass of fizz and a floral-inspired afternoon tea at The Drawing Room or, for something a little heartier, head to Jardin Blanc with Raymond Blanc.
