A former BBC Wales arts and media correspondent, Jon Gower is much in demand as a producer, presenter and public speaker, and indeed travels the world as an ambassador for the Hay Festival. A prolific author, his 2010 novel Uncharted received unstinting critical acclaim, whilst his An Island Called Smith won the John Morgan Travel award. His Welsh-language novel Y Storïwr won the Wales Book of the Year Award in 2012. He grew up in Llanelli, graduated in English from Cambridge University, and now lives in Cardiff.