The troublemaker

Shirin Ebadi has lived through three different eras in Iran: the western-backed monarchy of the shah, the Islamic republic of Ayatollah Khomeini, and the confrontational regime of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad. And as a champion of women's rights, she has been a thorn in the side of all three. She tells Stuart Jeffries how she overcame death threats to become the clerics' 'worst nightmare'.

Vicious cycles

Matt Seaton: Is there a way out of the doping scandals that still plague professional cycling?

Don’t mention the war

John Harris: As the Hay Festival proves, Iraq is defining contemporary debate. But it's also killing it.

Tinseltown’s rainbow warrior

Matthew Modine may be famous for his roles in Birdy and Full Metal Jacket, but, he tells John Harris, he'd rather be known as the man who slashed Hollywood's paper consumption.

Gore’s plea on climate change wins ovation

"We're running the planet like a company in liquidation," the former US vice-president Al Gore told an audience at the Hay festival, in an impassioned plea to act on climate change before it is too late.

Off the record

Beth Orton's music earned her the title of the 'comedown queen' for a generation of ravers. But, she tells Laura Barton, she has always felt there is more to life than music.

Free to offend? Part 2

Georgina Henry: Audio: Hear Madeleine Bunting and Anthony Julius discuss how to reconcile freedom of expression and religious sensibilities.

Why Creationism is wrong

Sarah Crown: Steve Jones was preaching to the converted about evolution at the Hay festival. It was just a shame America's 100m creationists could not have been there.