But there's one thing Britain can always rely on — words. The land of William Shakespeare, Charles Dickens and Jane Austen still loves to read, and to talk.
It's a talent on extravagant display at the Hay Festival, a 10-day literary gathering in a tiny Welsh town that has defied the downturn to become a major cultural event — and an important British export, with branches from Colombia to Lebanon.
Festival director Peter Florence says Hay's formula for success is "serious conversation made light of" — something that's needed more than ever in tough economic times.
"It matters in a recession that people keep talking," he said. "The bonding-together thing, the gathering, matters. Because when you are vulnerable you want to have some form of strength in community."
The term "book festival" doesn't really capture the intellectual-carnival atmosphere of an event that draws some 100,000 people to Hay-on-Wye, (240 km) northwest of London. Former President Bill Clinton, who brought the town to a standstill when he spoke at Hay in 2001, called it the "Woodstock of the mind," a label organizers have happily adopted.
Hay is a blend of highbrow and populist, heavyweight discussion and entertaining stunts. This year's festival, which runs through Sunday, has already seen novelist Ian McEwan embrace an animal, model Jerry Hall talk philosophy and former Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf boast of his huge Facebook following.
Musharraf, who left office in 2008, said his 200,000 followers on the social networking website want him to return to Pakistan and re-enter politics.
"The buzz of Hay is the mongrel mix of it," Florence said, looking around the festival artists' lounge, where 92-year-old Marxist historian Eric Hobsbawm sat a few feet away from cross-dressing artist Grayson Perry, who was sporting in a shocking-pink frock.
"You have neuroscientists and novelists and politicians and warriors and thinkers, and it's the interaction between them," Florence said.
Tucked among lush green hills on the Welsh-English border, Hay is a year-round center for book-lovers, with a population of 1,500 and more than 30 secondhand bookstores.
During the festival, it takes on an atmosphere that's a blend of lecture series, picnic, party and music festival. Visitors in their thousands attend talks, line up to have books signed by favorite writers and soak up the sun or — more often — shelter from the rain with a coffee.
"It's a great way to spend a weekend," said 47-year-old Londoner Gary Leigh, who comes every year with a group of friends. "We're turning into a nation of festivals in the summer, and this is the beginning of the season."
The party atmosphere extends to the speakers, who appear for free but are rewarded with large audiences — more than 1,000 people cram into the tented venues for some talks — and glamorous after-hours parties in nearby country houses.
