Major new
bilingual festival in Wales
Friday 29 June –
Sunday 1 July
Leading names from literature, music and comedy will come together in
west Wales this summer for the Dinefwr Literature Festival, the first bilingual
festival of its kind.
The festival promises to keep eyes, ears and minds buzzing all weekend,
with over 100 events celebrating all aspects of the spoken word – from leading
authors from Wales and beyond to rappers, comedians, cult musicians and
up-and-coming talent. Set in the stunning surroundings of the National
Trust’s Dinefwr Park & Castle, with its 18th century parkland
and medieval deer park, the festival offers a stunning backdrop for those
looking for an escape from the daily grind.
Lleucu Siencyn, one of the festival’s directors and Chief Executive of
Literature Wales, comments: “Now that summer’s finally here, we’re all thinking
about booking our weekend breaks and festivals. The Dinefwr Literature
Festival, held in one of the most beautiful areas of the UK, will give you more
for your money than almost any other festival. This is a festival with
everybody in mind – families, music fans, readers, writers and those who love
the great outdoors.”
Friday
highlights
National Poet of Wales Gillian Clarke will open the first day of
the festival in an event with leading Welsh poet Paul Henry and award-winning
poet and writer Philip Gross.
Literature events continue with the inimitable Howard Marks, with
his one man show ‘An Audience with Mr Nice’, lyrical
artistry from POETica, a group including Mr Phormula, the Welsh
beat boxer, rapper, producer and BBC Radio 1 regular and an exclusive
family-friendly performance with the Brautigan Book Club, inspired by
cult writer Richard Brautigan’s poem Please Plant This Book.
Welsh speakers can enjoy a conversation between Welsh Children’s Poet Eurig
Salisbury and writer Tom Anderson as together they search for new
surfing terms in the Welsh language.
Kids and adults alike will be entertained by an
exploration of science and the fiction of time travel and alien
biology with author Mark Brake and rapper Jon Chase in the Science fiction of Dr Who. Before bed, children will be
regaled with stories by Horatio Clare and Tom Anderson as part of
the festival’s nightly Naughty Boys’ Storytime.
Night owls will then be treated to an evening of live music. Super
Furry Animals’ front man Gruff Rhys will headlining on Friday night,
alongside a performance from The Staves, who will have just returned
from supporting Bon Iver’s US tour.
Saturday
highlights
Early risers can take time out by painting watercolours of local
birdlife with cult illustrator Matt Sewell. A little later in the
morning, lovers of literature and landscape can also join travel writer Horatio Clare as he
leads a walk exploring the relationship between nature and writing.
Other literary highlights on Saturday include former UK Poet Laureate
Sir Andrew Motion talking about Silver, his new sequel to Treasure
Island, and Dylan Thomas’ granddaughter Hannah
Ellis appearing at the festival in conversation with his biographer Andrew
Lycett.
For those wanting to learn more about Welsh culture, journalist
Jasper Rees will be chatting to writer and poet Tony Bianchi
on the subject of Identity. Continuing the theme, Neil Ansell
will also be reading from Deep Country: Five Years in the Welsh Hills
and music writers and producers Iestyn George, Dyl Mei and Owain
Llŷr will talk about the Welsh music scene.
Kids can join creative workshops with the Hunga Munga collective,
learn how to make pizzas in a wood fired pizza oven with Taste from the Fire
and find entertainment in the form of the fabulously bearded children’s
writer Philip Ardagh and Wales’ first ever Young People’s Laureate
Catherine Fisher. Fans of Philip Pullman can check out the
chapter-heading vignette prints from His Dark Materials, as part of the Fantastical
Beasts exhibition in Newton House.
In the evening, there will be comedy from Josie Long followed by a
music and performance salon hosted by The Brautigan Book Club, featuring
H. Hawkline, Gruff Rhys, Martin Carr. Topping off the entertainment will be
a musical performance from visionary rock musician Julian Cope.
Sunday
highlights
Sunday begins with songs from Jeb Loy Nichols, dubbed the ‘high
priest of country cool’ by Rolling Stone Magazine. Later on, the day
gets louder as Mercury Music Prize-nominated singer and producer Ghostpoet,
singer-songwriter Emmy the Great and Welsh chart-toppers Cowbois Rhos
Botwnnog take to the stage. Any budding
Welsh rappers can also take part in a rapping and beatboxing
session with Ed Holden, Aneirin Karadog and
Rufus Mufasa.
Wendy Cope, one of the nation’s favourite
poets, will be performing before lunch. Plus, The Charlatans’ Tim
Burgess will be speaking to Pat Long about his new book, Telling
Stories, as part of Caught by the River’s programme of music and
talks.
Stimulating conversations in the afternoon include Gillian Slovo,
president of English PEN, talking to Swansea University’s Dr Tom
Cheesman on Welsh PEN and conflict writing. Kids will be kept busy by Small
World Theatre, as it re-enacts the tale of The Fisherman and the
Mermaid with a giant puppet and flock of bicycle powered seagulls. If that
wasn’t enough, there will also be illustration and poetry workshops, as well as
nature walks with the Wildlife Trust.
Tickets
Both weekend and day tickets are available for the festival. Adult
Weekend passes are £65, with a discount for National Trust and Literature Wales
members. Adult Day Tickets start at £25; children under 5 go free, and weekend
and day tickets for children aged 6-16 are £10 and £5 respectively. Camping
tickets are an additional £20 per tent for a maximum of four people sharing.
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