FOLLOWING a hugely successful inaugural event last year, the Hay Festival Kells returns with an even bigger and more ambitious programme this summer. New names have been announced this week including Jeremy Paxman, Richard Corrigan, Deirdre Kinahan, the National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke, comedian Jason Byrne and musical guests Kells band Ham Sandwich and Liam Ó Maonlaí. Tickets are on sale to the public from 21st May.



Tickets can be purchased online through hayfestival.com/kells, or locally in Kells by visiting or calling Kells Chamber Office (Carrick Street) – which is open from 9.30am to 5pm. Tickets will also be available at Antonia’s Bookstore in Kells – .

Highlights this year include:

BIOGRAPHER: Jung Chang

NOVELISTS: Louis de Bernières, Joe O’Connor, Donal Ryan, Glenn Patterson, Anne Marie Casey, Gerry Stembridge, Audrey Magee, John Kelly

POETS Gillian Clarke, Nerys Williams, Eamon Grennan, Rosita Boland, Tom French

YOUNG ADULTS & CHILDREN’SWRITERS: Darren Shan, Sarah Webb, Judi Curtin, Paula Leydon

DETECTIVE FICTION: Benjamin Black, Eoin McNamee

JOURNALISTS: Manchán Magan, Robert O’Byrne

INVESTIGATIVE WRITERS: Anthony Summers, Robynn Swan

HISTORIANS: Catriona Crowe,David Reynolds, Paul Rouse, Turtle Bunbury

ACADEMIC: Declan Kiberd

BROADCASTERS: Jeremy Paxman, Myles Dungan, Sean Rocks, Sinead Gleeson MUSICIANS: Ham Sandwich, Liam Ó Maonlaí

COMEDIAN: Jason Byrne

SPECIAL GUEST: Sean Boylan

THEATRE: Deirdre Kinahan, Lisa Dwan

FOOD VILLAGE: Richard Corrigan, Kevin Sheridan, Susan Jane White, Sally McKenna, Rory O’Connell.



Hay produces festivals across five continents celebrating great writing around the world from Wales to Bangladesh, Ireland to the Lebanon, Kenya to Mexico and India to Colombia.



Irish Language Events

Thanks to the generous support of Foras Na Gaelige, a celebration of Irish language literature and publishing will yet again feature prominently at this year’s Festival, with a number of events, to cater for young and old, being hosted throughout the weekend. Among those providing entertainment geared towards the younger audience will be musician, author and Futa Fata director Tadhg Mac Dhonnagáin, who will perform a show of song and verse that promises to be lively, spellbinding and fun-filled; Fibín, who will bring their highly visual and widely acclaimed show An Ronn Dall to stage, that uses music, storytelling and live art to tell the tragic story of The Blind Seal; and Lúrapóg Larapóg, which is another show full of comedy and richness of language, utilising material from three recently published children’s books: Ící Pící, Ní Thuigimse Daoine Fásta and Báidín Fheidhlimidh that will be sure to inspire the imagination and mind of all present.

For the more mature reader, there will be an interview with Rónán Mac Con Iomaire, who will discuss his recently published award-winning book, Rocky Ros Muc, based on the life of champion-boxer Seán Mannion; a topical discussion with journalists Cathal Mac Coille, Harry Magee and Máirín Ní Ghadhra about their contributions to the recently published, Scéal Scéil; as well an event, to be hosted by RTÉ’s Siún Nic Gearailt, celebrating the huge contribution of the late Maidhc Dainín Ó Sé to Irish language literature, at which his yet to be published novel, Hitler Miaow, will be launched, in the presence of both family and friends.



Food Village

A major new string to the Festival bow this year is the addition of The Hay Food Tent. Fáilte Ireland Food Ambassador Olivia Duff of the Headfort Arms Hotel has put together a fantastic programme of food tastings, demonstrations, stalls and talks that will delight all ‘foodies’. Perched on the front lawn of Eureka House, The Foodie Tent will host a melange of demonstrations, foodie discussions and book presentations, with guests including Richard Corrigan, Susan-Jane White, Sally McKenna, Rory O’Connell of Ballymaloe Cookery school, organic chef Evan Doyle of Brooklodge, and many more, with MCs John Healy from RTE’s ‘The Restaurant’, Kevin Sheridan of Sheridans Cheesemongers and Olivia Duff. Also present will be a variety of stalls where artisan foods, locally produced in the Boyne Valley region, will be on display, as well as available for purchase.

Younger visitors can enjoy Children’s Cookery Workshops with author Judi Curtin and Pauric White of The Forge Restaurant.

Kells Type Trail

This is the fifth year of the Kells Type Trail, which will see the word ‘create’ appearing in 20 locations around the town, in homage to the inspiration the Book of Kells has provided all over the world. The word will be translated into a number of languages in recognition of the multi-cultural community now living in Kells. It will also be depicted in numerous forms, including a human spelling (with 270+ students making up the letters in a playground) and on ribbons in the grounds of Eureka School. Kells Type Trail is an initiative of local artist Mark Smith, in conjunction with a number of community groups. It will be launched on Thursday July 3rd in its now traditional venue, The Church of Ireland.



One of Fáilte Ireland’s Top 10 Destinations in Ireland, Kells is an ancient market town in County Meath, 40 miles north of Dublin and renowned worldwide as the spiritual home of the Book of Kells®, completed in the 9th century. Today, the town remains a vibrant community with a lively events programme, located in the beautiful Boyne Valley among the turns of the Blackwater River.

Kells is neighboured by a UNESCO World Heritage site, Headfort House, and the unique Spire of Lloyd, a mysterious inland lighthouse built in the late 18th century by the 1st Earl of Bective. As well as the town’s rich monastic legacy, Kells offers an exciting arts and crafts scene, with many artists working and exhibiting in the local area.

