Howard Jacobson on the Hay Festival

The British novelist waxes lyrical about his part in one of the UK's biggest literary events

I've been going to the Hay since the mid-1980s, when it was just a handful of writers in a pub. And maybe some curious readers ambled by, sat at a nearby table, and we all had a beer and the sun shone. There was a nice amateur innocence about it. People often invoke Woodstock when they talk about it, but I think of it more as a tournament, in the medieval sense. A tourney with white pavilions and high-flying pennants but a tourney in which I won't be pushed off my horse by someone with a bigger lance than mine. I go riding on words.

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE
https://cdn.mos.cms.futurecdn.net/flexiimages/jacafc5zvs1692883516.jpg

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up
To continue reading this article...
Continue reading this article and get limited website access each month.
Get unlimited website access, exclusive newsletters plus much more.
Cancel or pause at any time.
Already a subscriber to The Week?
Not sure which email you used for your subscription? Contact us