Our work: Hay Festival

The Guardian Hay Festival is an annual literary festival that takes place every May in the beautiful setting of Hay-on-Wye in Wales. The festival attracts book lovers and authors from all over the UK and abroad.

The Challenge

This was the second time we have worked with the Guardian at the Hay Festival. On both occasions the brief was to dress and organise the Guardian editorial space allowing their journalists to work and conduct interviews.

The solution

The Guardian have been closely associated with the festival for a number of years, The paper always has a striking presence at the festival and we were keen to mirror this with our ideas. In 2008 we dressed the memorable House Of Hay and this year we wanted to provide a quirky talking point within the festival which represents the Guardian brand.

‘The Shed’ was this year’s venue and we brought the brief to life using our creative approach. We dressed the FSC certified wood shed with second-hand furniture and props, such as a 1940s typewriter and desk to create the look and feel of a writer’s shed. Our inspiration came the from sheds used by famous authors such as Dylan Thomas and Roald Dahl. Other props included black & white photos and maps which decorated the walls of the writer’s private sanctuary, branded packets of seeds, old mugs and bottles, and, of course, the obligatory garden gnome. A weathervane incorporating the Guardian logo, sourced from a small independent supplier, was sited on the roof to complete the look. We were careful to consolidate delivery of all props and decorations which kept down the carbon footprint of the project.

The results

The client was thrilled with our creative and sustainable approach in answering the brief within a small budget. This has further strengthened our relationship with the Guardian and we look forward to working with them on future events.