Hillary Rodham Clinton has joined the line-up of this year's Hay Festival. The former US Secretary of State, First Lady and US Senator will appear in conversation with lawyer Helena Kennedy on Thursday, June 2, as part of the festival’s Women & Power series.
Tickets are on sale for the event from this Friday, April 22, from the Hay Festival website, here. It's a coup for the festival to sign up Mrs Clinton, who was the first woman in US history to become the presidential nominee of a major political party after serving as the 67th Secretary of State and nearly four decades in public service advocating on behalf of children and families as an attorney, First Lady, and US Senator. She is also the author of eight books.
Back in 2001 her husband, former president, Bill Clinton, spoke at the event, which is hosting its first in-person major festival in the town since 2019, and is called a 'Woodstock of the mind'. The former president was booed outside the venue but spoke to a 1,300-strong crowd about conflict resolution. You can get more what's on news and other story updates by subscribing to our newsletters here.
Hay Festival international director, Cristina Fuentes La Roche, said: “We’re honoured to welcome Hillary Rodham Clinton to Hay Festival this spring, joining a vibrant programme to imagine the world anew. It’s been 35 years since writers and readers started sharing their stories together in our Festival tents and we have never needed these stories more urgently. Join us.” Read more here about the line up for this year's Hay Festival.
Taking place from Thursday, May 26, to Sunday, June 5, this will be the 35th spring Hay Festival edition, featuring more than 600 writers, thinkers and performers in more than 500 in-person events over 11 days. The contributors appearing this year include Damian Lewis, Minnie Driver and Benedict Cumberbatch who returns to Letters Live. This year’s programme launches the best new fiction and non-fiction, while offering insights and debate around some of the biggest issues of our times. Award-winning writers, policy makers, pioneers and innovators take part from around the world, seeking solutions to the biggest issues of our time, from the climate crisis to global conflicts. Hay-on-Wye was named best town in Wales by Which?. Read more here.
To get the full line-up of all the lectures, shows, showtimes and more, visit hayfestival.org/wales or call 01497 822 629. Public bookings are open, apart from for Hillary, whose tickets will go on general sale on Friday.
