Hay Festival has suspended its sponsorship deal with management investment company Baillie Gifford after controversy erupted over its links with Israel.
Artists such as Nish Kumar and Charlotte Church, as well as political commentator, Grace Blakeley, pulled out of appearing in the festival in protest of the deal.
According to The Telegraph, writers Noreen Masud and AK Blakemore, climate activist, Tori Tsui and comedian Ania Magliano have also withdrawn from the festival.
Taking to X on Thursday, Kumar shared: “Sad to say that I will be pulling out of Hay to support this campaign. Love the festival and the people that work in it, but this was the right decision for me.”
Nish Kumar and Charlotte church have pulled out of the festival
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Hundreds of writers have signed campaign group Fossil Free Books’ (FFB) statement, which Kumar shared in his tweet.
The account’s post read: “We invite book workers everywhere to join 200+ signatories and sign our open letter renewing our call for Baillie Gifford to divest from the fossil fuel industry and from companies that profit from Israeli occupation, apartheid and genocide.”
Hay Festival has been running since 1988, attracting hundreds of authors annually.
Commenting on its sponsorship links with Baillie Gifford, Hay Festival Global CEO Julie Finch told the Telegraph on Thursday: “Like so many charities, we are operating amongst huge financial uncertainty. Sponsorship is a complex ethical space to navigate.
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Hay Festival has been running since 1988, attracting hundreds of authors annually.
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“In all of our funding agreements, we maintain editorial independence with a focus on delivering our charitable mission.
“We believe ideas can change the world and bring together diverse voices to listen, talk, debate, and create, tackling the biggest political, social and environmental challenges of our time.
“We believe more than ever that creating spaces to listen, talk and debate is critical to find solutions to our shared problems.”
She has since followed that up saying the decision to suspend the deal was made “in light of claims raised by campaigners and intense pressure on artists to withdraw”.
She added: “Our first priority is to our audience and our artists. Above all else, we must preserve the freedom of our stages and spaces for open debate and discussion, where audiences can hear a range of perspectives.
“We are grateful to all those artists, partners and audiences who engage and contribute to the conversation, on stage and off.”
A Fossil Free Books organiser described the decision by Ms Finch as showing “the power we have when we unite as workers”.
Fossil Free Books, launched by literary industry professionals, said Baillie Gifford invests in companies “linked to the Israeli military” and Israeli settlements in the occupied West Bank, as well as a number of major fossil fuel companies.