The comfortable surroundings of the Friends of Hay lounge.

There is less than a week to go before the Hay Festival 2010 is in full swing.  I can’t wait to be back in the company of my tribe, enjoying the delights of Hay on Wye for several days of ideas, stimulating conversations, meeting old friends and making new ones.

This year my highlights to look forward to include Don McCullin, Andrew Marr, Amanda Galsworthy, Howard Davies, Alain de Botton, A C Grayling, Tina Brown, Harold Evans, Carlos Ruiz Zafon, Christopher Hitchens, and Jo Brand – a mixture of old friends and new inspirations.

I look forward to catching up with everyone – watch out for the blog posts.

James

Danny Quah of the London School of Economics (LSE) was fairly optimistic about the Global perspective. His colleague Howard Davies was more pessimistic and took a UK perspective to explain why the UK has a harder position to recover from than some other European states, why the size of the USA bail-out will take years to recover from, and how loss of tax revenues from the banking sector will extend the period needed to pay of government debt incurred. Gillian Tett of The FT explained how a group of bankers on a brainstorming away-day in Boca Raton had invented the derivatives market which caused the banking sector crash, and why she feels we haven’t yet learned that the system needs changing, why politicians who do not understand the complex financial instruments being used today are struggling with regulation, and why the fiscal stimulus package designed to encourage banks to return to the old ways of lending will fail. Finally, whilst listening to Paddy Ashdown talking about Global politics it became clear that in the current UK political crisis we do not currently have politicians who have the insight, vision and morale values to lead the UK out of the mess we are in, and which is much worse than current budget forecasts suggest.

Danny Quah of LSE

Howard Davies' European Economic Outlook

Gillian Tett of The FT

Paddy Ashdown talking about Global Politics

Unfortunately, for me at least, when these messages are brought together I can only see a gloomier picture than politicians and journalists are painting, and I am beginning to understand the enormity of the crisis we have to dig ourselves out of – one that will take more than this generation can achieve…

Anthony Gormley talks with Tim Marlow

As a great fan of Gormley’s previous work I was excited to hear about his next major project – One & Other 

This summer, sculptor Antony Gormley hopes to create an astonishing living monument. He is asking the people of the UK to occupy the empty Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square in London, a space normally reserved for statues of Kings and Generals. They will become an image of themselves, and a representation of the whole of humanity.

Every hour, 24 hours a day, for 100 days without a break, a different person will make the Plinth their own. If you’re selected, you can use your time on the plinth as you like. One & Other is open to anyone and everyone from any corner of the UK. As long as you’re 16 or over and are living or staying in the UK, you can apply to be part of this unforgettable artistic experiment.

If you would like to learn more about this, or even apply for one of the 2400 one-hour spaces, then visit the project website here: www.oneandother.co.uk

Welcome to Hay Festival 2009...

See lots more photos at the HayStyle flickr set here: PHOTOS

You can learn more about their fantastic sustainable products at their website: CafeDirect Website

The CafeDirect team don their welies at the festival...

David Frost in conversation with Peter Florence

There were some very funny moments too… Peter Florence, festival organizer, led what I think was the best interview I have ever seen him conduct (perhaps he’d got some tips from the great man?). At one point, Frost talked about the “one that got away” – the person he always wanted to interview but couldn’t… It was none other than Denis Thatcher. Frost went on to reveal some very funny anecdotes about Thatcher and indeed it seems we have all missed not hearing more about him.

This was a great talk and showed that David Frost is still at the top of his game so I recommend watching more of his current shows on Al Jazeera TV -

FROST OVER THE WORLD

James

Clive James in conversation with Francine Stock

The highlight of my first day at the festival this year has to be Clive James talking with Francine Stock.

Wise, Erudite, Intelligent, and Charming… wish someone would say that about me!  Clive has an inimitable style that had the packed house on the festivals largest stage eating out of his hand.  Even when the power failed for a short time they hushed so that he could still carry on… His subject matter ranged from the foolishness of the clever – i.e. “intelligence and the power of thought does not confer wisdom”; through to the superiority of Australia and the marvelous physical specimens the country produces – a tongue in cheek reference to his own physical frailty as he gets older.

A couple of comments he made struck a resonance with me and the people I spoke with about his talk afterwards.  The first of these is that “a vivid writer is someone who see’s vividly…” and described how it is necessary to enrich the reader by what you write.  The second comment was that “if you write well then people will read you regardless of the subject…”  There were plenty of the audience who will be reading more of his work I am sure.

More later…

It has been a fantastic warm and sunny start to the festival, bringing out the crowds who bathed in the sun in the festival site. Can you spot the BBC Breakfast reporter relaxing in the crowds?

The throngs of festival goers enjoying the early summer sunshine...

Time to chill out...

Ice Cream anyone?

What's in the news today?

sunbathing between events...