The beginning of the Hay Festival Winter Weekend was marked on Thursday with the naming of the festival’s 2017 Book of the Year.
An illustrated collection of poems for children, The Lost Words is a collaboration by Robert Macfarlane and Jackie Morris that celebrates the natural world. The pair will discuss the book at the festival on Friday, November 24 at 5pm.
Hay Festival Winter Weekend is now in its 18th year. Coinciding with the switching on of Hay’s Christmas lights, Hay Food Festival and Hay Does Vintage, it blends literary conversation, with immersive workshops and musical performance.
Nature is very much a theme this year as programme highlights include Horatio Clare talking about his book Icebreaker: A Journey Far North, Robert Penn speaking about his new book Woods: A Celebration, and gardener Monty Don on Down to Earth: Gardening Wisdom.
Global issues are tackled as investigative journalist Oliver Bullough, Nigerian novelist Chibundu Onuzo and anti-corruption barrister Eva Anderson discuss global corruption. Reporter Luke Harding talks about Collusion, his investigation into Donald Trump's links with Russia. Ben Arogundade presents Barack Obama: 101 Covers, looking at the world leader through the evolution of his magazine covers. While this year's Hay Festival 30 Reformations series draws to a close with a trio of talks by leading figures: Helena Kennedy talks about equality, Owen Sheers reforms men, and Marie-Elsa Bragg tackles Christmas.
Actors Jacob Ifan and Catrin Stewart join screenwriter Roger Williams to talk to Guto Harri about Bang, their acclaimed Port Talbot-based crime drama for the BBC, while broadcaster Jeremy Vine talks about What I learnt, his part autobiographical take on his Radio 2 listeners' wisdom.
Novelist Jeanette Winterson talks about her new work Ghost Night and Owen King talks about, Sleeping Beauties, the new novel he has co-written with his father Stephen King.
The former National Poet of Wales and Hay Festival Medal for Poetry winner Gillian Clarke presents her new collection Zoology, while her 80th birthday is marked by a group of emerging Welsh poets, including Zillah Bowes, Rosey Brown, Imtiaz Dharker, Menna Elfyn, Joao Morais, Pascale Petit and Clare Potter.
Historian Peter Lord discusses the first account of Welsh art for 50 years, The Tradition: A New History of Welsh Art; John Connolly presents He, his retelling of the life of Stan Laurel, and Simon Jenkins nominates Britain's 100 Best Railway Stations.
CEO of tech firm Unruly, Sarah Wood, presents Stepping Up, her guide to leadership; co-founder of the Eden Project, Tim Smit, presents his autobiography Beyond Eden; and former RFU director Rob Andrew talks about Rugby: The Game of my Life.
Highlights from the world of music include Mid Wales Opera presenting one-act comedy classic The Bear and performances from the Siobhan Wilson Trio, Smerins Anti-Social Club and Hay Community Choir. Daniel Martyn Lewis plays Bach, Joanna MacGregor interprets ChopinÕs Mazurkas, while GQ editor Dylan Jones presents his new biography David Bowie: A Life and broadcaster Clemency Burton Hill talks A Year of Wonder, her daily guide to classical music.
Comic classicist Natalie Haynes talks about her much-loved BBC Radio 4 series Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics and comedian Matt Lucas presents his autobiography Little Me: My Life from A-Z.
Free drop-in workshops for young people take inspiration from the festival's #HAYTREES project, with tree-to-type printmaking and outdoor cookery for children with Forest Schools.
Peter Florence, Director of Hay Festival, said: "Come and join us in Hay for fireside storytelling and feasting. The town is decked in Christmas lights and glistening with winter cheer for a celebration of scrumptious food, glorious vintage clothing and high times. Bring a story, bring a new idea, bring a friend. Everyone is welcome."
Other highlights to watch out for in Hay-on-Wye this weekend:
On Friday, November 24 Matt Lucas switches on the Hay Christmas lights.
On Saturday, November 25 the Hay Food Festival features more than 50 stalls, many of them showcasing local produce.
On Sunday, November 26, Hay Does Vintage transforms the square into a festive outdoor flea market with over 50 vintage and retro traders offering a diverse collection of items from clothes, textiles and jewellery, to furniture, collectables and kitchenalia.