Backstreet's back, alright

The sun has come out in force today. With not a cloud in the sky and with no full length mirror in the house, I got dressed in what I assumed looked summery. Once I got to the festival site, I noticed people looking at me in a manner rarely associated with admiration. So I found a full length mirror and was confronted with an image of an extra member of the Backstreet Boys from circa 1999. I'm now doing my best to pull off this outfit until time allows for a quick trip to the festival shops for some accessories from this millennium.

So to distract everyone from the mistaken wardrobe choice, I armed myself with a video camera. The results were immediate. Sky Arts' very own Annalisa Johnson and Jonathan Carter agreed to do a video blog of the first two days at the festival. Whether they were frightened that the 90s had returned or if they really wanted to do this no one will ever know, but this is what they had to say...



In a few moments Dave Gorman, David Starkey and Markus Zusak will face Mariella's interrogation on Hay-on-Sky. I'm going there armed with a stills camera and pray to lord my trousers aren't too transparent in the bright lights of the studio...

Sari, Editor-in-white

Hay-on-Sky for the festival virgin

As a Hay Festival virgin, I duly believed everything I'd been told about this event. It will rain. It will be cold. There are apocalyptic amounts of mud. I will need more clothes for Hay than a combined trip to the Alps and the Bahamas. It sounded like I was being sent to Kabul. After day one, I'm still alive to write this so I suspect it's not as bad as Kabul.

During the drive here, the roads got progressively smaller until it was just a tiny lane barely the width of a small car. I fully expected to hit a cow. I thought I saw a dog shepherding sheep on a big field, until I realised the sheep were running away from my car. I felt like Jeremy Clarkson -a shorter and younger version, I hasten to add- driving the narrow lanes with a tad too much speed. Occasionally I stopped to take photos, which were to serve as evidence of good times should my rally skills fail me. A dinner and a late night wander around Hay trying to locate one of our crew houses later, we were ready for the festival.

It's been an excellent first day for the Sky Arts team. The first Hay-on-Sky programme featured the comedienne and impersonator Jan Ravens, author Horatio Clare and food critic Jay Rayner, with music from Asian Dub Foundation. Everyting went more or less to plan and the guests and Mariella were all on brilliant form. What The Dickens? saw the recording of its first episode finish just a little while ago to a packed audience, and featured Rick Wakeman's impromptu opera about a hanky. It's compulsive viewing, and shall be on the Sky Arts website very soon indeed!

So far it hasn't rained a drop. It's not that cold (she writes, sitting next to the radiator on full blast). I haven't had to utilise my brand new wellies yet because there is no mud on the site. I am, however, sad to report that while everyone else in the Sky Arts team are now donning their new Sky Arts branded wellies, mine came two sizes too big and looked like I was wearing a canoe on each foot. Not a sight that would promote any brand, I can assure you.

Tomorrow is another day of excellent guests and events so shall keep you posted on progress.
Sari - editor in field

Author Charles Cumming on the Hay-on-Sky '08 webcam CLIP 1

Charles Cumming, Hay-on-Sky ’08 webcam exclusive:
Tackling China for his latest novel…(we get rudely interrupted by a car alarm going off on this one!)

Alex Valentine, guest performer on Hay-on-Sky, videoblogs backstage...

To find out more about Alex's music, click HERE

Annalisa, production co-ordinator and Seth Lakeman's biggest fan...

The lovely, and wildly talented Seth Lakeman and band: Double-click the play button to watch Annalisa's videoblog...

What's all the fuss about? Click HERE to find out!!

Red House prize for children's books awarded last night to...

Derek Landy popped into the web office here backstage at the Sky Arts Studio at the Hay Festival to tell us a little bit about the trials and tribulations of physically getting himself to Hay-on-Wye!



Turns out it was well worth the hassle as he bagged the Red House children's book prize at the awards doo last night - see the piece in the Guardian HERE.

Sinead, Editor-in-Field.

8 in the bag...two to go.

This videoblog should have gone up late last night, but the upload speed in the field disappeared and we've all been too busy today, with working, eating and birthday celebrations (for me and and for Justin) so here it is now...

Additionally...yesterday was great 'cause I got to chat to the great Kathleen Turner on the sofa while doing the Hay-on-Sky show. I ended up in shot too so I'm glad I was on my best behaviour... She's really been enjoying the festival and told me she's loved the sessions she's gone to and the fact that all these great minds and talents are all in one field! She even came to our wrap part for our What The Dickens? series that we'd filmed here. I had a bit of a 'moment' when I stood in the room (we hadn't been expecting celebs at this particular crew party - but the room was chocca full of 'em!) looking at the A-list Hollywood talent and panning right to the balloons on a string on the far wall....A-list Hollywood talent...balloons on a string...surreal stuff. Party planning consultants, take heed.

I recorded a videoblog with our musical performer Alex Valentine later - he was great and then we all went to see Kathleen Turner's session which was very entertaining. I'm definately getting my hands on that book - Heat magazine, hang thy head in shame - THIS is celebrity gossip at its finest. My cousin (Derek Landy, author of Skulduggery Pleasant) came to Kathleen's session with us - he did a session himself today called 'Question Time: Being a Writer', along with Graham Marks (Tokyo, Strange Hiding Place) and Andy Stanton (Mr Gum and the Power Crystals) and at the end he made the hundreds of worshipping young fans shout 'happy birthday Sinead' to me which was mildly embarassing as I was lurking at the side recording clips & snapping pics.

Then my boss came and told me & Justin that he needed us for an important meeting about the show and lead us into a colleague-filled trailer where there were balloons, booze, cake and pressies. Excellent :-)

We'd Dan Cruickshank as a guest on Hay-on-Sky today and some of us are off to see his session this evening - Adventures in Architecture, then we're off to the Book People/Red House party somewhere nearby and then back to the festival for the Seth Lakeman gig. Then, we shall sleep. The weekend awaits us. Show 9 and 10. Including What The Dickens? we'll have made 16 brilliant HD programmes in this muddy field by Sunday. Then we're all back to Osterley, Sky's HQ. Mental note to self: remember to not wear muddly wellies into the office on Monday...

Sinead, Editor-in-Field.