Nice touch: Chloe Petts feeling lippy at the prospect of headlining first Basement Comedy Club bill at City Screen Picturehouse on August 16
CITY Screen Picturehouse, York, has redecorated The Basement for the first time in 15 years for concerts, comedy and more.
The refurbishment will be marked by the launch of a new comedy night. “Although we’ll still be working with Damion Larkin for Laugh Out Loud Comedy Club nights on the first Saturday of the month, we’ve now set up our own Basement Comedy Club,” says City Screen general manager Cath Sharp.
“It’ll be held on the third Sunday of the month, so as not to compete with Laugh Out Loud. It’s been many years since we had our own club – remember The Other Side?”
The first bill, on August 16, at what will be the regular early evening kick-off of 6pm, will feature Chloe Petts, Faizan Shah and Lovdev Barpaga, introduced by MC Sara Barron.
Sara Barron: Compere for August 16 bill at The Basement
Petts has been touring their 2025 Edinburgh Fringe show Big Naturals, addressing lad culture and identity politics. Manchester comic Shah sheds light on his experiences growing up in an immigrant household, along with the mental health challenges this journey often entails.
Barpaga is a comedian, breakfast show presenter on FreeRadio in Birmingham and podcaster, hosting “Crazy Little Thing Called Lovdev”. On the comedy circuit for ten years now, he specialises in crafting old school-style one liners and puns.
Compere Barron made her Edinburgh Fringe debut in 2018 and has toured such shows as For Worse (2018), Enemies Closer (2019), Hard Feelings (2022) and Anything For You (2024). She co-created the Succession recap podcast Firecrotch and Normcore and presents They Like to Watch, a weekly TV discussion podcast.
She is taking her work-in-progress show Slop to the 2026 Edinburgh Fringe, where she will explore topics ranging from grannies and dogs to adult films and Jeffrey Dahmer.
Looking ahead, in the diary for September 20 are Daliso Chaponda, Hannah Platt, Dom Hatton-Woods and MC Raul Kholi, followed on October 18 by Lauren Pattison, Nicola Mantalios, Aaron Simmonds and MC Aaron Wood.
The redecorated Basement at City Screen Picturehouse
“It’s us and the Hackney Picturehouse, in East London, that will be running comedy clubs among the Picturehouse cinemas,” says Cath. “Hackney Picturehouse is doing a Saturday programme organised by Jon Barrenechea, and we’ve chosen to do Sundays with an early-doors policy with three acts and a compere from 6pm.”
As part of the Basement revamp, “we’ll be running a menu downstairs – the cinema auditorium menu – served on paper plates, and on cabaret nights, on crockery,” says Cath.
“The Basement capacity will be 100, seated in rows or standing, with a cabaret night capacity of 50, making it York’s most intimate venue.”
Veteran performer and producer Poppy Pout Presents will be putting on burlesque and cabaret nights, while the York Filmmakers club will continue to hold bi-monthly selection of shorts and BFI (British Film Institute) screenings.
The poster for Pigeon Paint Off, the live art competition at The Basement on September 12, in aid of Columba Sanctuary and Advocacy for Pigeons
RARE Collective artist Sharon McDonagh (alias spAm) and artist/DJ Sola will hold a DJ Night on a date yet to be confirmed. The Dead Toe Society’s Pigeon Paint Off day will take over The Basement on September 12 from 11am until late in a day filled with live music, talks and stalls, as well as the centrepiece of two rounds of the paint-off featuring pigeon-loving artists from all over the country.
Visitors will have the chance to “learn more about why pigeons need our support and how you can help advocate for their wellbeing”. The artworks will then go on display in a three-week exhibition.
The Basement upgrade, carried out by Picturehouse Cinemas to a design by architect Marta Tavares, has introduced a new lighting rig and sound panels, ox-blood red chairs and a French navy colour scheme on the walls, topped off by flamingo-pink on the stanchions.
Further features are a new screen for York Filmmakers and new microphone stands, while the floor has been re-painted and the adjoining green room for performers has new carpeting. Meanwhile, the old Basement chairs have found a new home at St Oswald’s Church, Fulford.
New red-and-black carpeting has been fitted at City Screen for the first time since 2000, with off-cuts being used in The Basement as flooring for drummers. The City Screen bar is to be re-fitted in October and new furniture will be provided for the first-floor terrace space.
Gill Riley’s exhibit from A Northern Landscape, on display in the Upstairs Gallery at City Screen Picturehouse
New mustard-yellow blinds have been installed on the first-floor corridor, where the latest exhibition, York Learning’s summer show, A Northern Landscape, is running in the Upstairs Gallery until September 4.
Course tutors challenged painting, drawing and watercolour learners aged 19 upwards to capture the essence of landscapes on plywood canvases, and now the work of more than 70 artists is on show.
This year also has welcomed the introduction of The Book Club programme at City Screen, launched on May 31, when Elizabeth Strout was in conversation with broadcaster Francine Stock, broadcast live from Picturehouse Central.
On August 4, Jaqueline Crooks marked the release of her new novel, Sky City, a spellbinding portrait of 1990s’ London, in conversation broadcast live from The Ritzy in Brixton.
Next up, Waterstones York presents Tidings: Poetry Quarterly featuring Kimberly Campanello at The Basement on September 22 from 7pm to 9pm. Contact event coordinator Nick Newman for more details at Manager.York@waterstones.com.
SledOne’s mural, What Walks Amongst Us, taking shape at AcombFest. Picture: Art of Protest
MURALS in Acomb, early music beyond borders, Mystery Plays on waggons, a political swansong and compact Shakespeare keep Charles Hutchinson’s thoughts off the July heatwave.
Art event of the week: AcombFest, Acomb, York, today and tomorrow
CURATED by Art of Protest, York’s first international street art festival continues today and tomorrow with its theme of A Return To Nature, featuring 20 art installations, live murals, RARE Collective’s Paint Jam, spray battles and more than 30 bands, DJs and performers, across 22 venues.
Look out too for interactive family-friendly workshops, an art market, history walks and talks, special events and tastings and a community cinema. Muralists taking part include SMUG, from Australia, Sheffield muralist Peachzz, wildlife artist Curtis Hylton and Acomb’s very own SledOne. For full details, go to: https://acombfest.co.uk/.
Baroque collective Solomon’s Knot: Performing Friedrich Nicolaus Bruhns’ St Mark Passion, directed by Jonathan Sells, at The Quire, York Minster, on July 10
50th anniversary event of the summer: 2026 York Early Music Festival, Beyond Borders, until July 11
THE premier British early music festival marks its 50th anniversary with a celebration of “just how far early music has travelled – beyond the borders of the myriad historic venues of our city to a worldwide audience,” says director Delma Tomlin.
The festival welcomes The Sixteen, B’Rock Orchestra & Vocal Consort, Imago Mundi, mezzo-soprano Helen Charlston, Solomon’s Knot and NCEM Platform Artists Anacronia and Contre le temps, among others. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk/yemf.
Bodhan Pitel’s Herod in DSpace Ukrainian Theatre’s The Massacre of the Innocents in the York Mystery Plays 2026. Picture: John Saunders
Theatrical outdoor event of the week: 2026 York Mystery Plays, streets of York, tomorrow, 10.30am to 4.50pm
THE four-yearly staging on the York Mystery Plays on pageant waggons takes place at four locations across the city: free viewing at the Minster Refectory Gardens, Deansgate, (from 10.30am) King’s Square (from 11.10am), St Sampson’s Square (from 11.50am) and ticketed seats at Dean’s Park (from 12.30pm). Ten core plays will be complemented by further extracts to tell the story from The War In Heaven to Doomsday. For full details, go to yorkmysteryplays.co.uk; tickets, ticketsource.com/york-festival-trust.
Clive Francis as Sir Humphrey Appleby in I’m Sorry, Prime Minister. Picture: Johan Persson
Political drama of the week: I’m Sorry, Prime Minister, Grand Opera House, York, July 7 to 11, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees
JIM Hacker is back, older, but perhaps not wiser, and still utterly baffled by the real world. Hoping for a quiet retirement from government as the master of Hacker College, Oxford, Jim (Robert Kitson, replacing Simon Rouse) instead finds himself facing the ultimate modern crisis: cancelled by the college committee. Enter Sir Humphrey Appleby (Clive Francis), who has lost none of his love for bureaucracy, Latin phrases and well-timed obstruction.
Can Humphrey and Jim outmanoeuvre the hostile students, the Fellows and reality itself? Or is it finally time to say “I’m Sorry, Prime Minister”? Brimming with wit, nostalgia and more double-speak than a press briefing, the final chapter in the evergreen comedy series is written and directed by Jonathan Lynn,co-directed byMichael Gyngell and presented by The Barn Theatre, Cirencester. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Reduced Shakespeare Company’s 2026 tour cast for The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged)
Shakespeare shake-up of the week: Reduced Shakespeare Company in The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged), York Theatre Royal, July 7 to 11, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees
MARKING 30 years of performances in the UK, the Reduced Shakespeare Company’s 2026 tour company of Efé Agwele, Woogie Jung, Tom Pavey and Kiran Raywilliams presents Hamlet told backwards, a micro-condensed Othello scored to a ukulele, a carnage-filled Titus Andronicus presented as a YouTube cookery tutorial and the History Plays as a manic football game, passing the crown from king to king.
Californian co-founders Adam Long, Daniel Singer and Jess Winfield have re-booted, re-imagined, reinvented and updated the restless comedy for a new generation to undertake a rollercoaster ride through all 37 of the Bard’s First Folio of plays. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
Stephen Smith’s Claude Monet in A Montage Of Monet
Busiest actor of the week: Threedumb Theatre presents Stephen Smith in A Montage Of Monet, York Medical Society, Stonegate, York, July 8, 7.30pm and July 11, 3pm; One Man Poe, Ripon Theatre Festival, Ripon Arts Hub, July 10, 8pm; One Man Poe world premiere, York Medical Society, July 11, 7.30pm
THREEDUMB Theatre artistic director and actor Stephen Smith performs Joan Greening’s new play exploring French Impressionist artist Claude Monet’s life and loves: his two marriages, his first wife’s devastating death, his lover’s erratic behaviour, his suicide attempt, his thoughts on fellow Impressionists and the torment of his failing eyesight. The 55-minute Monet montage combines projection design and Joe Furey’s music with Smith’s storytelling in two York performances.
Smith also presents four of Edgar Allan Poe’s Gothic horror works (The Tell-Tale Heart, The Pit and The Pendulum, The Black Cat and The Raven) in Ripon, followed by the world premiere of his latest Poe double bill (The Business Man and The Case of M. Valdemar) in York. All six, amounting to 18,000 Poe words, will be performed at the Edinburgh Fringe. Box office: York, 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk; Ripon, ripontheatrefestival.org.
Musical of the week: Top Hat and Tails Theatre in Little Shop Of Horrors!, Friargate Theatre, York, July 9 to 11, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
MEEK floral assistant Seymour Krelborn stumbles across a new breed of plant he calls Audrey II, a foul-mouthed carnivore that promises him fame and fortune if he keeps feeding it with blood. Over time, however, Seymour discovers Audrey II’s plans for global domination in Howard Ashman and Alan Menken’s sci-fi B-movie monster spoof, presented here with a live band and professionally hand-crafted puppets. Box office: ridinglights.org.
Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark’s Andy McCluskey and Paul Humphreys: Summer of Hits show at York Museum Gardens on Thursday
Music festival of the week: Futuresound presents Live At York Museum Gardens, Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, July 9, gates 5pm; Self Esteem, July 10, gates 5pm, and Super Furry Animals, July 11, gates 4pm
WIRRAL synth-pop pioneers Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark open Futuresound’s third season of Live At York Museum Gardens concerts on Thursday with a Summer of Hits bill featuring Heaven 17, China Crisis and rising Newcastle singer-songwriter Andrew Cushin.
Mercury Prize nominee Self Esteem, aka Rotherham singer, songwriter and actress Rebecca Lucy Taylor, tops Friday’s line-up, featuring London indie group The Big Moon, South African ghetto funk musician Moonchild Sanelly and Nigerian-born musician and spoken-word artist Joshia Idehen.
Welsh psychedelic rock band Super Furry Animals are next Saturday’s headliners, joined by singer-songwriter Baxter Dury, indie-pop septet Los Campesinos!, Nottingham alt-country band Divorce and North Wales psychedelic act Pys Melyn. Box office for July 10 and 11: futuresoundgroup.com/york-museum-gardens-events.
If I Knew The Way, I Would Take You Home, by Matt Sewell
In Focus: Birds of the week: Matt Sewell exhibition for RARE Collective at WET, Micklegate, York,until mid-July
SHROPSHIRE artist, illustrator and author Matt Sewelll is the latest street art luminary to be showcased in RARE Collective’s collaboration with WET wine bar, in Micklegate, York, in aid of SASH (Safe and Sound Homes), the York youth homelessness charity.
“We’re really chuffed to have Matt return to York with his fabulous Riso prints,” says RARE Collective exhibition organiser Sharon McDonagh. “If you came to the Vandalfest charity street art show last year, you would have seen his cracking bird mural on Floor 3 of the big disused office block in Low Ousegate.
Artist Matt Sewell at work
Sewell is an avid ornithologist, contributing regularly to the Caught By The River website and publishing the books Our Garden Birds, Our Songbirds, Our Woodland Birds, Owls, Penguins and A Charm Of Goldfinches And Other Collective Nouns.
He has illustrated for the Guardian, Barbour, V&A Museums, BBC, National Trust, Greenpeace, Big Issue and Levi’s and painted walls for Helly Hansen, Puma and the RSPB (Royal Society for the Protection of Birds). He has exhibited in Great Britain, New York, old York, Tokyo and Paris.
Cuckoo Cuckoo Cuckoo, by Matt Sewell
Under RARE Collective’s partnership with WET, artists and photographers exhibit their work in a six-week solo show. As well as at WET, work can be bought online both during and after the exhibition run at rarecollective.co.uk.
In addition, a selection of Sewell’s prints is featuring in RARE Collective’s exhibition for AcombFest at The Crooked Tap, on show until August 15 in support of SASH.
Matt Sewell’s wall of bird prints for sale at WET
Exhibiting too are: spAm (Sharon McDonagh), Sola, Alison Jagger, Al Murphy, Anthony Appleyard, Boxxhead, HazardOne, Lady Mkei, Lincoln Lightfoot, Liskbot, Michael Dawson, Nicolas Dixon, Slice Of Lino, STATIC and Stephen Bottrill.
“RARE are working in collaboration with the Art of Protest Project, after being invited by AcombFest curator Jeff Clark and the AOP team to curate the live PaintJam at the Carlton Tavern, in Acomb Road, Holgate, today and tomorrow,” says RARE Collective curator Sharon McDonagh.
“This will involve nine artists painting live from 10am to 4pm each day (Boxxhead, HazardOne, Lady Mkei, Lincoln Lightfoot, Liskbot, Nicolas Dixon, Sola, spAm and VYZ); live DJ sets by Alilou, Bob Yenz, Conor Rogan, Free Da Karlos and Sola plus guests, audiovisual artists Fred DWolf, Sonas and JohnManBand on a huge screen, cocktails and mixology by Tulum Spirits Collective and street food by El Chappo, all in support of SASH.”
Did you know?
MATT Sewell is also a musician, performing as Sewell &The Gong with Chris Tate and as the deep-cut compiler of the compilation series A Crushing Glow.
Matt Sewell’s work environment
In Focus too: Michael Flatley’s Lord Of The Dance, 30th Anniversary Tour, York Barbican, July 6 to 8, 7.45pm
THE 30th anniversary tour of Michael Flatley’s Lord Of The Dance promises a grand celebration of the revolutionary Irish dance production’s legacy after captivating more than 60 million fans in 60 countries since its 1996 debut.
The 30 Years of Standing Ovations tour will feature “brand-new choreography, stunning costumes, state-of-the-art special effects and cutting-edge lighting, ensuring that the production continues to push boundaries and deliver an unforgettable experience”.
Creative manager James Keegan says: “Michael Flatley has taught me that there are no boundaries in the creative space. When he burst onto the scene in the mid-90s, he took traditional Irish dancing to a place nobody had ever dreamed of, and that has been the key to the show’s success.
“Michael often says in rehearsals that we need to push the boundaries as much as we can, and if it’s too far or doesn’t work, we can always pull it back. That mindset is what keeps Lord Of The Dance evolving.”
Lord Of The Dance on its 30th anniversary tour. Picture: Brian Doherty
Keegan believes that the core elements of Flatley’s visionary production – choreography, music and storytelling – remain timeless while still evolving. “What made Lord Of The Dance famous 30 years ago is still what makes it work today: 40 of the greatest Irish tap dancers in the world performing in one line in perfect sync. It’s a spectacle that never loses its magic,” he says.
Reflecting on Flatley’s impact, Keegan says: “Professional Irish dancing didn’t really exist until Michael created his shows and added a more entertaining twist to the art form.
“He wasn’t just a dancer; he was a highly tuned athlete who could perform at astonishing levels for a full two-hour show, seven days a week. Today, we see young competitive dancers around the world striving to reach the levels he set.”
But beyond the footwork and the spectacle, Keegan reckons Flatley’s greatest legacy is his ability to inspire. “Michael’s motto has always been, ‘Nothing is impossible.’ He took an already intricate dance form and pushed it even further, breaking records like 38 taps per second and incorporating upper body movements that defied tradition,” he says.
Michael Flatley
“I’ve seen it time and time again: a dancer who never thought they could be a lead receives Michael’s encouragement, and before long, they are fulfilling their dream on stage.”
For Keegan, one moment stands out above the rest. “In 1997, I was a ten-year-old competitive Irish dancer in Manchester, struggling with the name-callers and the challenges of being a young male dancer,” he says.
“Then Lord Of The Dance came to town. Watching Michael and the cast that night at the Apollo Theatre changed everything for me. The masculinity, the precision, the energy, it was like nothing I’d ever seen before.
“I met Michael at the stage door, and suddenly, I knew that being an Irish dancer could mean being a superstar. Nineteen years later, I had the honour of sharing his final show with him at Caesars Palace, Las Vegas, in 2016. It was a full-circle moment I will never forget.”
Michael Flatley’s Lord Of The Dance dancers
As Lord Of The Dance embark on its 30th anniversary tour, Flatley reflects on the journey. “The magic of Lord Of The Dance lives on in the hearts of our audience, and I am thrilled to bring this iconic show back to the UK in 2026,” he says.
“30 Years of Standing Ovations celebrates the incredible journey we’ve shared with fans over the years. It’s a tribute to the enduring power of dreams, the joy of dance and the unwavering support of our audience. This tour is our way of saying thank you for three decades of unforgettable memories.”
Although Flatley, now 67, retired from performing during his final tour in 2016, he has remained at the helm of Lord Of The Dance, guiding its evolution while preserving its timeless magic.
Now, as the production prepares for its biggest celebration yet, fans can look forward to a breathtaking spectacle that honours the past, embraces the present, and inspires the future of Irish dance.
SledOne’s mural, What Walks Amongst Us, taking shape for Acomb Fest. Picture: Art of Protest
ACOMB is hosting AcombFest, York’s first international street art festival for York, from today to Sunday featuring 20 art installations, live mural painting, RARE Collective’s PaintJam and spray battles, plus 30 bands, DJs and performers, across 22 venues.
Look out too at this Return To Nature-themed festival for special events and tastings, community cinema, family-friendly interactive workshops, art market, Acomb history walks and talk, plus shopping opportunities in support of independent businesses.
Featuring more than 90 activities and events, AcombFest is the creative brainchild of Art of Protest, Jeff Clark’s York-based street and urban art business “dedicated to transforming cities, towns and communities one spray can at a time in artist-led, community-shaped and stakeholder-driven projects”.
Funded by the York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority Vibrant and Sustainable High Street Fund, Great Acomb Community Forum and City of York Council and supported by York St John University and York School of Art, AcombFest presents a long weekend of highly visual and participatory events.
The centrepiece will be the painting of four large-scale murals in and around Front Street by renowned international artists. This work will be complemented by a further ten art installation paints featuring York artists with community collaborations, alongside a range of workshops, music and cultural happenings.
“Nothing of this scale will have been seen in York before, never mind in Acomb” says Jeff, Art of Protest creative director and lead curator of AcombFest.
Jeff Clark: Art of Protest creative director and lead curator of AcombFest
“Normally, activities of this scale would be confined to the city centre, but this event is a fantastic example of how to broaden out creative and cultural engagement to the people in the wider city and wards.
“Not only does this inject life into local high streets to make them more vibrant and sustainable, it also does the same for the communities themselves.”
Jeff continues: “The ambition for AcombFest is to be a bi-annual event attracting the best international, national and more local artists from across the region to really put Acomb on the map as ‘the creative quarter’ of York.
“This is something that has been much needed as a way of balancing the city’s reliance on its fantastic heritage. Not only that, it will act as an inspiration and a pathway for young creative people in the Acomb and surrounding communities to develop their skills and start their own creative journeys – hopefully into related jobs and industries.”
The mural artist headliners will be Australian superstar SMUG, known as “the world’s best photorealistic artist”; Sheffield muralist Peachzz, 2024 runner-up for Best Mural in the World; wildlife artist Curtis Hylton and Acomb returnee SledOne.
Only one magpie? Phew, luckily plenty more are being added to SMUG’s mural, What Flies Around Us, at AcombFest. Picture: Art of Protest
Creative events and activities will be centred on Front Street with free street art workshops. Venues include Bluebird Bakery, SoJo, The Crooked Tap and all the way down Acomb Road to The Fox, connecting all the green spaces and parks.
Each venue will have its own bespoke offer – from bush craft and nature art to artist talks – with individual tickets, availability information and listings to be found on the AcombFest website at https://acombfest.co.uk/.
RARE Collective are putting on DJs and nine artists will be showcasing their skills in live spray battles at the Carlton Tavern. The community cinema will run at Acomb Explore library and spoken word events at Books & Bevs.
A full programme of family-friendly free activities will run at Acomb Methodist Church; That Acomb Arty Thing will play host to an artist market; the Gateway Church will present art exhibitions; Fishponds Wood will run mini-beast trails. Further attractions will be history tours, Jim Grant and Ben Grant’s Rock Soil Sky light installations in Holgate Windmill and pop-up stalls for Yorkshire Wildlife Trust and York Civic Trust.
Specialist food and drink offerings throughout the festival will include Spirit of Yorkshire and an international mixologist.
The festival was shaped by speaking to more than 1,100 residents and nine schools to learn of Acomb’s rich tapestry of history, flora and wildlife, leading to the festival theme of returning to nature. Acomb Alive and Acomb Methodist Church have supported the event too, the church playing host to music therapy sessions, flower arranging with Acomb Flower Guild, drop-in crafts with Crafty Fox and an art fair with Acomb Artists.
The festival map for AcombFest
What’s On at AcombFest
Friday, July 3
Explore Library 9:30am – 12:30pm Mosaic Workshop 10am & 1pm Hidden History Walk
Gateway Centre 10am – 6:30pm Oak Room Art Exhibition and Art Workshops – Exhibitions & creative workshops curated by That Acomb Art Thing.
The Carlton Tavern 2pm – 5:30pm PaintJam – RARE Collective & Art of Protest setting up PaintJam ready for artists, DJs & mixologist 7pm – 9pm Live World Cup Mega-Screen
Acomb Front Street 3pm – 4pm Art of Protest Street Art Workshops
The Fox 3:30pm – 6pm Water Art – After-school fun! Join the Fox team in a free-for-all floor art event 4pm – 9pm Clucking Oinks Fried Chicken 6pm – 8pm Tri-Starss – Beer garden gig of 1970s-1990s rock
DJ Sola: Leading a bill of live music, dancing and craft beer at The Crooked Tap
The Crooked Tap All weekend RARE Collective Urban Art Exhibition 4pm – 10:30pm DJ Sola & Friends – Live music, craft beer and dancing 6pm – 9pm Philly’s Woodfired Pizza – Neapolitan wood-fired pizza
SOJO 5:30pm – 8:30pm Yorkshire Beer & Cheese Tasting – Celebration of Yorkshire produce 8:30pm – 11pm Live bands – Local bands performing live sets
Bluebird Bakery/Rise 6pm – 7:45pm AcombFest Talks – Curator Jeff Clark and muralists discuss AcombFest (Whisky-Highball on arrival, tickets required) 7:45pm – 8:30pm Whisky Tasting – Spirit of Yorkshire + Tulum Spirits (tickets required) 8:30pm – 10:30pm Flour Power Sound System with Yeastie Boy – Live music (tickets required)
The Hand 8pm – 9:30pm Josh Pulleyn – Live music
Inn on the Green 8:30pm – 11pm Live music – Local bands performing live sets
Saturday, July 4
York pianist Karl Mullen: PIaying outside the bakery at Rise@Bluebird Bakery from 1pm to 3pm
Bluebird Bakery/Rise 9am – 12pm Wild Bee Flowers – Sustainable florist & flower farm 10am – 3pm Fresh Bakes – Bluebird’s fresh bakes & goodies 1pm – 3pm Karl Mullen Live Piano – Busker extraordinaire playing outside bakery All day Craft Beer and Speciality Cans – Fridges of craft beers & small brewery cans in regular rotation 7pm – 11pm Groovetone + The Unknown Stuntman – Jazz, blues, Latin, funk and Ska tunes (tickets required)
The Place 10am – 12pm Leo Morrey Art Workshops 12:30pm – 2pm Drummers 12pm – 4pm Stephen Hodgkins Art Workshops
West Bank Park 10am – 3pm Trapeze classes
Holgate Windmill 10am – 3:30pm Wind, Soil, Rock Art Installation – Video, sound and life-size puppet
The Carlton Tavern 10am – 6pm PaintJam – Watch nine artists begin their paints 10am – 10pm RARE Collective DJs + Audiovisual – Eclectic mix of DJs and audio visual producers for PaintJam. Decks will be pumping out tunes while the paint dries 10am – 10pm Tulum Spirits Collective – Flying in from Mexico, mixologist Craig Feather serves up menu of luxury bespoke cocktails from 11am, preceded by non-alcoholic delights from 10am 11am – 8pm Streetfood
The Crooked Tap All weekend RARE Collective Urban Art Exhibition 10:30am – 12pm The Art of Kokodema Workshop – tickets required 12pm – 8pm Yuzu East Asian Street Food 12pm – 1:30pm Charlie Swainton – Live music 2pm – 3:30pm Amy & Rob – Live music 4pm – 5:30pm Craig Long – Live music 6pm – 7:30pm James Scanlan – Live music 8pm – 10pm Melting Pot – 90s’ Indie, Britpop & dance tribute
Acomb Methodist Church 10:30am – 2pm Bloom Baby – Fiona Price Baby Classes 11am – 2pm Music Therapy 12pm – 1pm Jazzy J’s – Live music 12:30pm – 6pm Cafe 1pm – 2pm Ten Thousand Pairs of Hands – Live music 1:30pm – 4:30pm Acomb Flower Guild – Adult & Child Workshops 3pm – 3:30pm Acomb Choir 3:45pm – 8:45pm Acomb Community Cinema
Explore Library 11am – 3pm Acomb History Group 4pm – 7pm Open Cinema: Hoppers – Cinema with popcorn (tickets required)
Acomb Front Street 11am – 3pm Art of Protest Street Art Workshops
Storyteller Lara McClure
Books & Bevs 12:30pm – 3:30pm Storytelling with Lara McClure
Fishpond Woods 2pm – 3:30pm Mini Beast Safari
The Fox 12pm – 8:30pm Posca Doodle Wall 12pm – 9pm Clucking Oinks Fried Chicken 2pm – 4pm The Mothers – Live music 4pm – 6pm Ten Thousand Pairs Of Hands – Live music 6pm – 8pm Steam Pigeon – Live music 6pm – 8:30pm Beermat Art Lost Property Collage
Inn on the Green 2pm – 11pm Open Mic Night
The Sun 3:30pm – 5pm BBQ 4pm – 8pm Fireball Rockband
The Hand 8:30pm – 11pm Pete Hale – Live music
Sunday, July 5
Fishpond Woods 10am – 11am Moth Reveal
Acomb Methodist Church 10am – 12pm Interactive Worship 12pm – 6pm Pop-Up Cafe 1pm – 4:30pm Crafty Fox Kids Club – Hands-on art & craft activities for two to four-year-olds 1pm – 4pm Bio-Diversity Collage – Reacting to ecological crisis 6pm – 8pm Art Speedquiz
West Bank Park 10am – 3pm Trapeze classes
Freida Nipples: Baps’N’Bingo at Rise@Bluebird Bakery
Bluebird Bakery/Rise 10am – 3pm Bluebird’s Sunday Ritual – Sunday specialties such as Bengali five-spice rolls, spinach & chickpea rolls, plus artisan pastries. 6pm – 8pm Baps’N’Bingo – Burlesque bingo with Dolly Trolly and Freida Nipples (tickets required) 8pm – 11pm Guilty Pleasures Disco – Closing party of pop bangers, disco, R&B & power ballads (tickets required)
Holgate Windmill 10am – 4pm Wind, Soil, Rock Art Installation – Video, sound and life-size puppet
The Crooked Tap All weekend RARE Collective Urban Art Exhibition 10:30am – 12pm Posca Pebble Art 12pm – 8pm Yuzu East Asian Street Food 12:30pm – 5:30pm Acomb Artists’ Kids Art Classes 12:30pm – 11pm Cask Ale Festival 6pm – 10:30pm AcombFest Closing Party – DJ Sola & Friends of RARE Collective
The Fox 12pm – 4pm Bush Craft and Nature Art – Session with Tom Rawson of Branch Out 12pm – 9pm Clucking Oinks Fried Chicken 2pm – 4pm Bare Brass Band – Live music 4pm – 6pm V2 – Live music
Inn on the Green 12pm – 5pm Sunday Roast – OMNI Darts challenge & simulators
The Carlton Tavern 1pm – 6pm PaintJam – Artwork continues 10am – 10pm RARE DJ Sets – Live music 10am – 5pm Tulum Spirits Collective – Flying in from Mexico, mixologist Craig Feather serves up luxury bespoke cocktails from 11am, preceded by non-alcoholic delights from 10am 11am – 8pm El Chappo – New takes on traditional Mexican from Sheffield, ahead of Mexico v England in the World Cup last 16 12pm – 3:30pm The Tavern Sunday Roast – Traditional roasts 9pm – 11pm Live World CupMega-Screen
Gateway Church 2pm – 4pm Little Green Fingers – Plant up container pot to take home
The Sun 4pm – 7pm BBQ 4pm – 7pm York Turnpike Trust – Five-piece band’sR&B covers
The Hand 5:30pm – 9pm The Dunwells – Leeds indie-folk/Americana band
Oliver Farnworth, left, Mollie Gallagher, John Partridge and Sam Jackson in the poster for the world stage premiere of The Silence Of The Lambs
CORONATION Street star Mollie Gallagher will make her professional theatrical debut as Clarice Starling in the world stage premiere of The Silence Of The Lambs, touring the Grand Opera House, York, from March 15 to 20 2027.
Mollie is departing the ITV soap after almost seven years in the role of Nina Lucas, long-lost niece of Roy Cropper, to tread the boards.
She joined Coronation Street straight out of drama school and has since been central to some of Corrie’s biggest storylines, including the Nina & Seb hate crime storyline, based on the attack of Sophie Lanacaster.
She won the Serial Drama Performance prize in the National Theatre Awards and took part in ITV’s Dancing On Ice in 2023, reaching the semi-finals.
Mollie will join the already confirmed John Partridge’s Dr Hannibal Lecter, Emmerdale soap star Oliver Farnworth’s Jack Crawford and Skins actor Sam Jackson’s Buffalo Bill (a.k.a Jame Gumb) in the spine-tingling psychological thriller.
Adapted for the stage by two-time Pulitzer finalist and Tony-nominated playwright Gina Gionfriddo from Thomas Harris’s classic novel, the touring production is directed by North Yorkshireman Nikolia Foster, artistic director of Curve, Leicester.
Produced by Curve in tandem with Indigo Productions and Crossroads Live, the UK and Ireland tour of The Silence Of The Lambs will open at Curve on August 1 2026, featuring an ensemble of Minal Patel as Frederick Chilton; JoMousleyas Senator Ruth Martin; Lottie Amor as Catherine Martin; Mark Peachey as Pilcher; Andrew Joshi as Peterson and Jonny Magnanti as Wertimer, with Mary Timbrell Hill completing the completing the company, all taking on a variety of roles.
Lancashire actor, singer, presenter, writer and director John Partridge is best known for his long-running role as Christian Clarke in BBC 1’s EastEnders and extensive range of West End credits, from Cats to Everybody’s Talking About Jamie.
Now he will don the iconic mask as the refined and sadistic Dr Hannibal Lecter, the psychiatrist and infamous murderer who FBI trainee Clarice Starling is sent to interview in the hope that his brilliant mind will help to catch Buffalo Bill, a sadistic serial killer still at large.
Another girl is missing, time is running out, but Dr Lecter has questions of his own, and now Clarice must decide: should she keep a safe distance or let Hannibal ‘The Cannibal’ into her head?
Gionfriddo’s theatrical adaptation delves into the psychological tension of Harris’s novel, drawing the audience deep into Clarice and Lecter’s intelligent, intricate and bone-chilling game of cat-and-mouse as the FBI scramble to catch Buffalo Bill.
The tour’s award-winning creative team includes theatre designer Michael Taylor, whose credits include his Olivier Award-nominated design for The Ladykillers and Billy Elliot at Curve; sound designer Carolyn Downing, Olivier Award winner for Chimerica and Tony Award winner for Life Of Pi, and projection designer George Reeve, 2025 Tony Award recipient for Best Scenic Design of a Musical for Maybe Happy Ending, with further credits for Disney’s Hercules and Oliver! (West End and Chichester Festival Theatre).
In the team too are Tony-nominated and Drama Desk Award-winning composer Grant Olding, who has collaborated regularly with Nicholas Hytner at both The Bridge and National Theatre, including One Man, Two Guvnors, and Tony and Olivier-nominated lighting designer Howard Hudson (Starlight Express, Troubadour Theatre; & Juliet, Broadway, West End, international and UK tours).
Born in Copenhagen, Denmark, director Nikolai Foster grew up in North Yorkshire and trained at Drama Centre London and at the Crucible, Sheffield, going on to create work for many of the UK’s major producing theatres, touring houses and international venues.
He has been director on attachment at the Crucible, the Royal Court Theatre, London, and National Theatre Studio, London, and served as an associate director at Leeds Playhouse. In 2024, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of the Arts by Leicester’s De Montfort University for his contribution to theatre in Leicester.
At Curve, Nikolai has worked on numerous musical revivals, new plays and musicals and championed emerging artists. Many of the Made at Curve productions Nikolai has directed have transferred to London, toured the UK and internationally.
Tickets for The Silence Of The Lambs’ York run are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.
PLEASE note, phone calls are not being ignored. Alas, the CharlesHutchPress mobile has breathed its last, without warning, necessitating a replacement selection process that is under way.
In the meantime, contact is more than welcome by email at charles.hutchinson104@gmail.com. Hutch is very happy to arrange interviews on Zoom too.
Normal lines of communication will be resumed pronto and the website will function as normal.
OLIVIA Chaney, York musician, Grammy nominee and haunting voice of Emerald Fennell’s “Wuthering Heights”, plays a sold-out concert for York Festival of Ideas tonight.
Olivia’s deep connection to the music of Henry Purcell runs throughout her life. Now comes Sons Of Art,her latest performance and album project highlighting the deep affinities between the Baroque composer and the modern singer-songwriter: a shared immediacy, a delight in word-setting and a fearless mix of high art and street culture.
For Olivia, this is not classical crossover but a radical reclamation – a conversation across centuries that feels startlingly fresh. Tonight’s show is part of a tour heralding the upcoming Purcell album, as this modern English songwriter, now 44, reimagines Purcell’s works in a refreshingly natural and contemporary way, alongside original compositions and a chamber ensemble.
“It’s kind of a home show, as I’ve lived in York for seven years,” says Olivia. “My now husband [George Younge] was a lecturer in medieval history at the university, but he’s quit to be a furniture designer and maker, with his workshop in Escrick, though we may be moving from York.
“For this concert, I’ve been corresponding with Delma (NCEM director Delma Tomlin] and thought how nice it would be to combine with the York Festival of Ideas.
“I’ve played a few shows in York before, but usually at the Sir Jack Lyons Concert Hall [at the University of York].”
Olivia, however, also took part in a poignant concert on February 28 at the NCEM, where Eliza Carthy and Special Guests performed The Songs of Martin Carthy in celebration of the Robin Hood’s Bay folk titan’s 60-year legacy.
“It was a really emotional night, and I did something – I wept,” she recalls. “We’d just done The Life & Songs of Martin Carthy, a huge event at EartH Theatre, in Hackney, in September put on with Jon Wilks, with all the great and good of the folk world, Maddy Prior, Billy Bragg, Peggy Seeger, Martin Simpson, Eliza, Martin, and video contributions by Paul Weller, Van Dyke Parks and Bob Dylan. That one was particularly moving, Dylan saying Martin was a huge influence on him.”
Since then, Olivia had been to America to record her next album. “I came home, jumped in the shower and headed to the NCEM to pay tribute to Martin. I hadn’t expected him to be there [given his health], but then I saw him shuffling out of the green room to watch the concert. It was such a moving night.”
Now, Sons Of Art finds Olivia renewing her creative partnership with New York producer-pianist Thomas Bartlett. “The first album I made with him was called Shelter,” she says. “I’d written it on the North York Moors at Hawnby – before I lived in Yorkshire – when I’d been touring heavily in America and wanted to get away from everything. I had a Bechstein piano that my friends helped me transport there, then I had this surreal experience of writing songs in this bucolic setting and then recording them in mid-Manhattan!”
The release of next album Circus Of Desire, was delayed by Covid’s intervention, being held back until 2024. In the hiatus, her Six French Songs EP emerged in 2023.
“My third album with Thomas [the aforementioned Sons Of Art] will come out next year, and this season’s shows are a signposting of the start of the project: one that I’ve wanted to do for more than a decade, revisiting Purcell.”
Meanwhile, Olivia’s profile has been heightened by the presence of her stark, haunting rendition of the 19th century traditional folk ballad Dark Eyed Sailor in a pivotal scene in Emerald Fennell’s outre film “Wuthering Heights”.
“In a sense, I can’t answer completely how it came about in that the director ‘stumbled across the song’, like how after I made Six French Songs, French director Andre Techine – who had Catherine DeNeuve in all his films – found my song Auprès de ma Blonde, one of the first things I put on YouTube, which I then re-recorded for him.” she says. “The film was premiered at Cannes but never got taken up, so I’ve never seen it.”
Back to Emerald… “Having seen other movies by both Andre and Emerald, I think they were each looking for music to drive their narrative, so maybe that’s why Emerld settled on Dark Eyed Sailor, which she decided would be in “Wuthering Heights” right from the beginning.”
What’s more, Emerald was insistent on using the version she had first heard, rather than a new recording. Namely, Olivia’s recording to harmonium accompaniment for BBC Radio 2’s The Folk Show, made on May 22 2013. “There’s something about the rawness of radio sessions, and that was my first ever live session for Mark Radcliffe’s show,” she says.
“I remember painting my nails on the way to the studio, and I guess that session was the beginning of me finding my sound, delving back into folk music.
“In a way it’s a surprise that Emerald hasn’t chosen something from my albums, but she ended up using the song twice, once when Cathy realises she has married the wrong man, and then later an instrumental version, orchestrating out my harmonium.”
How did Olivia react when she attended the premiere. “What was a big surprise was that I thought it might be a little bit imperceptible, or be swamped by all the other music [by Charli xcx], but I was struck by how spare it was, so that you could hardly hear my harmonium,” she says.
“Emily Brontë’s novel is in my top ten, and I thought, ‘how can they use this happy song?’, but Emerald uses it so cleverly, where it’s seven years since Heathcliff went away and has now returned, so the theme is fidelity, as so many songs about sailors and soldiers are.”
Olivia reckons Fennel’s previous work, Saltburn, is superior. ““Wuthering Heights” is so ambitious, so hard to pull off, but where it maybe fails is in its humour,” she says. “But then there is no humour in my work. I’m not into humour in my art. I like humour but I want to be moved by art.”
Olivia Chaney, Sons Of Art: Purcell Revisited, National Centre for Early Music, Walmgate, York, tonight, 7.30pm. SOLD OUT.
Olivia Chaney: back story
BORN in Florence to a writer and painter-turned-academic, Olivia grew up listening to everything from Prince to Joni Mitchell to Henry Purcell.
This eclectic mix of influences sparked a passion for song-writing that she nurtured at Chetham’s School of Music and The Royal Academy.
After showcasing at SXSW and a stint as lead singer for electronica outfit Zero 7, she signed with Nonesuch, leading to collaborations with Kronos Quartet and a Grammy nomination for Offa Rex, The Queen Of Hearts, a collection of Fairport Convention-era classics made with Portland, Oregon band The Decemberists in 2017.
Olivia’s first solo album, 2015’s The Longest River, produced by Leo Abrahams, was followed by 2018’s Shelter, recorded in New York City with producer-pianist Thomas Bartlett. Both explored inherited trauma, the clash of tradition and modernity and the paradoxes of love.
In 2023 came Six French Songs, her spontaneous set ofFrench chanson, from medieval ballad to 1960s’ pop, made over two summer evenings at Reservoir Studios with Bartlett and violinist Sam Amidon.
John Robb: Discussing his new memoir, Punk Rock Ruined My Life: And Other Stories, at Pocklington Arts Centre
WILDLIFE photography and nature-inspired poetry and music turn Charles Hutchinson’s thoughts to the sunnier days ahead.
Talk of the week: John Robb, Pocklington Arts Centre, tomorrow, 8pm
JOHN Robb is a multi-faceted creature: author, musician, journalist, Louder Than War music website boss, Louder Than Words and Louder Than War Live festivals boss, Eco champion, vegan behemoth and punk rock warlord, as well as TV and radio talking head, frontman of post-punk mainstays The Membranes and ambassador for home-town Blackpool.
To mark the May 12 publication of his memoir, Punk Rock Ruined My Life: And Other Stories, he is undertaking a spoken-word and book tour, where each show comprises a one-hour talk by Robb, followed by a conversation and Q&A with a special guest. Tomorrow, he welcomes Pauline Murray, Penetration singer and author of Life’s A Gamble, her 2023 autobiography. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.
Nobody puts Baby’s poster in the corner for Dirty Dancing In Concert at York Barbican
Film event of the week: Dirty Dancing In Concert, tomorrow, 7.30pm
RELIVE the film that stole the hearts of generations with this live-to-screen concert event featuring Emile Ardolino’s 1987 American romantic drama projected in full, accompanied by a live band and singers performing every song from the soundtrack.
Feel the romance, rhythm and emotion as the love story of Baby and Johnny (Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze) comes to life on a full-size cinema screen. A dance-along encore party follows the final scene. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk
Now you see him, now you don’t: Daniel Davis and Georgina Sockett in Our Star Theatre Company’s The Invisible Man, to be spotted at Kirk Theatre, Pickering
Vanishing act of the week: Our Star Theatre Company in The Invisible Man, Kirk Theatre, Pickering, Friday, 7.30pm
THE thought of invisibility, and the advantages it could bring, has captured the imagination since HG Wells’s science-fiction novella was published in 1897. The Invisible Man has been adapted many times for film, but rarely for the stage.
Here comes Derek Webb’s original, fast-paced and riotous adaptation boasting 15 characters, split between three energetic actors, Daniel Davis, Georgina Sockett and Rhys Harris-Clarke, aided by quick and daft costume changes, prop manipulation, whacky imagination and tons of tongue-and-cheek fun in Herefordshire company Our Star’s touring production, directed by founder Ben Mowbray. Box office: 01751 474833 or kirktheatre.co.uk.
The poster for The Future Is Vintage, the latest Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox concert at York Barbican
Retro gig of the week: Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, The Future Is Vintage Tour 2026, York Barbican, Friday, doors 7pm
SCOTT Bradlee’s troupe of singers, dancers and instrumentalists perform a new show in signature time-twisting style, putting a retro spin on everything from Seventies’ rock classics and Britpop hits to the latest chart toppers and movie and video game soundtracks.
“We’re humbly presenting our own unique vision of a spectacular future; one that is built upon the timeless musical genres of the past and the authentically human spirit of creativity that inspired them,” says founder and arranger Bradlee, who invites you to dress in your vintage best for the full time-travel experience. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
The Ocelots’ Ashley and Brandon Watson
Literature-inspired musings of the week: The Ocelots, The Arts Barge, Foss Basin Moorings, Tower Street, York, Friday,7.30pm
BLOOD harmonies are at the centre of The Ocelots’ sound with its Americana echoes of Neil Young and Sufjan Stevens. Twin brothers Ashley and Brandon Watson, from Wexford, Ireland, blend absurdity and sincerity in an array of literature-inspired musings.
Open tunings and clawhammer banjo merge country-folk contemplation with urban imagery, as heard on 2020’s Started To Wonder and 2025’s Everything, When Said Slowly albums and 2023’s Addlepated and March 2026’s Revisions EPs. Fionnuala Mary Bradbury supports. Box office: artsbarge.com.
Ian Smith: Stories of stress, love and buying a magic spell off Amazon in Foot Spa Half Empty at Helmsley Arts Centre
Comedy gig of the week: Ian Smith, Foot Spa Half Empty, Helmsley Arts Centre, Friday 8pm
EDINBURGH Comedy Award nominee and Northern News podcast co-host Ian Smith heads out on tour with Foot Spa Half Empty, his new show about stress, love and buying a magic spell off Amazon, in his follow-up to 2023’s Crushing.
Smith, 37, from Goole, has appeared on Live At The Apollo, Have I Got News For You, The Stand Up Sketch Show, BBC Radio 4’sThe News Quiz, The Unbelievable Truth and Just A Minute and hosted his own Radio 4 series, Ian Smith Is Stressed. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Mike Amber: Taking on Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock songs with Lola-Mae at Navigators Art’s Back To The Garden night of poetry and music
Nature lovers of the week: Navigators Art presents Back To The Garden, York Festival of Ideas, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, Saturday, 7.30pm, doors 7pm
NAVIGATORS Art has invited York performers to celebrate and explore the York Festival of Ideas theme of Place and Space with a focus on the peaceful, wild, mythical, inspirational green worlds of gardens.
Original words and music feature alongside well-loved works by familiar names in the company of storyteller Lara McClure; Mike Amber & Lola-Mae, taking on Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock; poet and novelist Janet Dean; performance poet Carrieanne Vivianette and alt folk band Sofa Sofa, whose songs are rooted in nature and people, woods, weather, long walks, short thoughts, longing and love. Box office: ticketsource.com/navigators-art-performance or on the door.
Country Bound: Performing upbeat country songs, complemented by floor fillers re-imagined in a country music style, at Milton Rooms, Malton
Country gig of the week: Country Bound, Milton Rooms, Malton, Saturday, 8pm
COUNTRY Bound put the ‘fun’ into country function band, performing upbeat modern and classic country songs, complemented by classic floor fillers re-imagined in a country music style.
Fronted by Micki Consiglio, they cover hits by Taylor Swift, Shania Twain, Zach Brown Band, Luke Combs, Carrie Underwood, Chris Stapleton, Dolly Parton, Lady A, Blake Shelton, Faith Hill, Morgan Wallen, Billy Cyrus, Luke Bryan, Darius Rucker, Kacey Musgraves, Garth Brooks, Sheryl Crow, Kelsea Ballerini, Kenny Rogers, Patsy Cline and more. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.
Rick Wakeman: The Wizard of Prog reunites with the English Rock Ensemble at York Barbican next March
Gig announcement of the week: Rick Wakeman, The Wizard of Prog, Ultimate Highlights Concert Tour with English Rock Ensemble, York Barbican, March 11 2027
KEYBOARD player extraordinaire Rick Wakeman, who turned 77 on May 18, will be reuniting with the English Rock Ensemble to focus on a broad sweep across his classic back catalogue, including extracts from epic concept albums Journey To The Centre Of The Earth and The Myths & Legends Of King Arthur & The Knights Of The Round Table, Yes material and surprises.
The band line-up reassembles from 2025’s Return Of The Caped Crusader Part 2 tour: Wakeman, Jesse Smith (lead vocals), Adam Wakeman (keyboard, guitars and vocals), Dave Colquhoun (guitars and vocals), Lee Pomeroy (bass and vocals), Adam Falkner (drums) and backing vocalists Sara Davey, Jo Goldsmith-Eteson and Jo Marshall. Tickets go on sale on Friday at 10am at yorkbarbican.co.uk/whats-on/rick-27.
Paul Hobson’s A Toad Swims Across Its Woodland Pond: Grand Prize winner inBritish Wildlife Photography Awards 2026, on show at Nunnington Hall
In Focus: British Wildlife Photography Awards 2026, Nunnington Hall, Nunnington, near Helmsley, until July 5,open Tuesday to Sunday, 10.30am to 5pm
THE winners of the British Wildlife Photography Awards 2026 have been unveiled at the National Trust’s Nunnington Hall, where 75 photographs are on show.
Paul Hobson’s A Toad Swims Across Its Woodland Pond, photographed from a pond-floor perspective in Sheffield, has taken the top prize from more than 12,000 images submitted by professional and amateur photographers.
“I am lucky to have a pond close to my house that has relatively clear water,” says Hobson. “Toads use this pond to breed in, and I decided I wanted to try to capture an image looking up from the bottom of the pond.”
To accomplish this, he housed the camera inside a home-built glass box, complete with old tripod legs and ballast to prevent sinking, and triggered the camera using an adapted long cable release.
“I had to wait quite a long time until a toad swam across the surface,” says Hobson. “Most of them would usually swim below it and rest on the glass. He was eventually successful, however, and the outcome provides a rare view of a toad in its woodland home.
Ben Lucas’s Feathery Pillow: Winner of the Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year Award 2026
Ben Lucas won the Young British Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026 award with Feathery Pillow, his charming image of a mute swan cygnet taking a nap on its sibling’s back. “Nature can often be so cruel, but tender moments like this warm my heart,” he says.
The annual showcase of nature photography is a crucial reminder of what value British woodlands, wetlands and other ecosystems still hold.
“This year’s winners celebrate the wonder, diversity and character of British wildlife in truly exceptional ways,” say British Wildlife Photography Awards director Will Nicholls. “From familiar species to rarely seen moments, the portfolio showcases the skill and passion of the photographers behind the lens.
“Together, they offer a joyful celebration of Britain’s natural world, while also reminding us why these places and species are so deserving of our care and protection.”
Photographers competed in 11 categories in the adult competition: Animal Behaviour, Animal Portraits, Botanical Britain, Black & White, Coast & Marine, Habitat, Hidden Britain, Urban Wildlife and Wild Woods, plus British Seasons and Documentary Series making up the special awards.
Three photographs from the British Wildlife Photography Award 2026 exhibition
Further awards were given for Wildlife in HD Video and three age groups in the youth competition: age 11 and under, 12 to 14 and 15 to 17.
All awarded images are published by Graffeg Books in a hardback coffee-table book, available online at bwpawards.org, with a foreword by actor, writer and director Mackenzie Crook.
The 2027 competition is open for entries at bwpawards.org, inviting photographers of all levels of experience to submit their photos of Britain’s nature at its best.
Nunnington Hall invites visitors take time in the organic gardens overlooking the River Rye to spot many birds and insects and maybe the occasional otter or kingfisher that calls the garden home.
Tickets: nationaltrust.org.uk/nunnington-hall.Entry is free for National Trust members and under-fives.
The Wizard of York (Dan Wood): Presenting the second WizardFest in York city centre. Picture: The Story Of You
FROM WizardFest to the Wizard of Prog, Roman festivities to musical & poetic nature lovers, Charles Hutchinson picks his hot spots for the Bank Holiday weekend and beyond.
Magical event of the week: WizardFest, York, today until Monday
WIZARDFEST, York’s official Festival of Wizardry, waves its magic wand over the Spring Bank Holiday weekend as The Wizard of York conjures up spellbinding events, tours, trails, workshops, shows and fantastical food and drink.
Wizardry fans can book for the Wizard Walk of York, Brick Magic LEGO workshop, Wizard Family Rave, Giant Bubble Show or Wicked at City Screen Picturehouse. Expect owl appearances, dragons and the new Wizard Activity Zone on Parliament Street with wand making, face painting and more. Dress to impress for the free fancy dress parade from St Helen’s Square on Monday at 3p.m A digital map and full list of events with booking links can be found at wizardwalkofyork.com/wizardfest.
The Roman Camp in York Museum Gardens, part of the Eboracum Roman Festival in York. Picture: Gareth Buddo
Festival highlight of the week: Living History, Crafts and Combat, Eboracum Roman Festival, York, today and tomorrow
THIS weekend showcases the best of Eboracum with live performances, creative storytelling and historical demonstrations alongside fun family activities, insightful talks and opportunities to dive into archaeology in York.
At the Living History Camp in York Museum Gardens, discover how the Romans lived by talking to the legions in their camp and watch demonstrations of weaving, carpentry, pottery and blacksmithing. Check out military demonstrations and formations with Ermine Street Guard or join York Museum Trust’s Garden Team for a guided tour of the Edible Garden today. Look out too for artillery demonstrations and the Kids Barbaric Battle. For full festival details, visit: yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/eboracum-roman-festival-2026.
Live baking on stage: Ellen Carnazza’s TV cook in crisis Petronella Parfait in Badapple Theatre Company’s Crumbs. Picture: Karl Andre
Bake-off of the week: Badapple Theatre Company in Crumbs, York Theatre Royal Studio, today, 2pm and 7.45pm
DISGRACED TV baking celebrity Petronella Parfait is out of a job and out of her depth, trying to reinvent herself in the cut-throat world of social influencers. Can she keep the lights on – and the oven – as her live comeback show descends into devilishly delicious disaster?
Expect big laughs, bold flavours, live bread making and a tasty treat for the audience at the end of Kate Bramley’s play as Green Hammerton’s Badapple Theatre returns to the Theatre Royal Studio, where solo performer Ellen Carnazza plays multiple roles. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.
The Upbeat Beatles: Celebrating the Fab Four from the Cavern to Abbey Road at the Joseph Rowntree Theatre
Tribute gig of the week: Joseph Wilson Productions presents The Upbeat Beatles, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, tomorrow, 7.30pm
THE Upbeat Beatles travel the Fab Four’s long and winding road from the early Cavern days through Beatlemania and Shea Stadium, New York City, to Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band and Abbey Road, with narrative and full multi-media presentation. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Nobody puts Baby’s poster in the corner: Dirty Dancing In Concert at York Barbican
Film event of the week: Dirty Dancing In Concert, York Barbican, May 28, 7.30pm
RELIVE the film that stole the hearts of generations with this live-to-screen concert event featuring Emile Ardolino’s 1987 American romantic drama projected in full, accompanied by a live band and singers performing every song from the soundtrack.
Feel the romance, rhythm and emotion as the love story of Baby and Johnny (Jennifer Grey and Patrick Swayze) comes to life on a full-size cinema screen. A dance-along encore party follows the final scene. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk
John McCusker: Leading his trio at the NCEM on Friday
Recommended but sold out already: John McCusker Trio, York Festival of Ideas, National Centre for Early Music, York, May 29, 7.30pm
SCOTTISH violinist John McCusker is joined by virtuoso multi-instrumentalist and singer Sam Kelly and flute, whistle and guitar player Toby Shaer in his trio to perform a thrilling combination of instrumental dexterity, heartfelt songs and live energy. Their fusion of original compositions, traditional melodies and contemporary folk bursts with innovation, joy and soul. Box office for returns only: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
The Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox poster for the The Future Is Vintage tour, visiting York Barbican on Friday
Retro gig of the week: Scott Bradlee’s Postmodern Jukebox, The Future Is Vintage Tour 2026, York Barbican, May 29, doors 7pm
SCOTT Bradlee’s troupe of singers, dancers and instrumentalists perform a new show in signature time-twisting style, putting a retro spin on everything from Seventies’ rock classics and Britpop hits to the latest chart toppers and movie and video game soundtracks.
“We’re humbly presenting our own unique vision of a spectacular future; one that is built upon the timeless musical genres of the past and the authentically human spirit of creativity that inspired them,” says founder and arranger Bradlee, who invites you to dress in your vintage best for the full time-travel experience. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Ben Moor on his ‘Three Thing Day’. Picture: Andy Lane, Barbican, London, January 11 2025
Oddball storytelling of the week: Ben Moor, A Three Thing Day, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, January 29, 7.30pm
A STORYTELLER for 30 years and counting, Ben Moor has a show opening later, but first he has a family meeting, and before that there’s a funeral. A single day can encompass the past, present and future; friends, family and strangers; the ridiculous, the moving and the inspirational. Like life.
Surreal and ‘melancomic’, Moor’s2025 Edinburgh Fringe hit is crammed with one-liners and observations, alongside beautiful and poetic digressions. Under discussion will be good gullibility, dolphin infestations, snacks and unreliable phones. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Mike Amber: Performing Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock songs with Lola-Mae at The Basementnext Saturday
Nature lovers of the week: Navigators Art presents Back To The Garden, York Festival of Ideas, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, May 30, 7.30pm, doors 7pm
NAVIGATORS Art has invited York performers to celebrate and explore the York Festival of Ideas theme of Place and Space with a focus on the peaceful, wild, mythical, inspirational green worlds of gardens.
Original words and music features alongside well-loved works by familiar names in the company of storyteller Lara McClure; Mike Amber & Lola-Mae, taking on Joni Mitchell’s Woodstock; poet and novelist Janet Dean; performance poet Carrieanne Vivianette and alt folk band Sofa Sofa, whose songs are rooted in nature and people, woods, weather, long walks, short thoughts, longing and love. Box office: ticketsource.com/navigators-art-performance or on the door.
Rick Wakeman: Performing with English Rock Ensemble in The Wizard of Prog show at York Barbican next March
Gig announcement of the week: Rick Wakeman, The Wizard of Prog, Ultimate Highlights Concert Tour with English Rock Ensemble, York Barbican, March 11 2027
KEYBOARD player extraordinaire Rick Wakeman, who turned 77 on May 18, will be reuniting with the English Rock Ensemble to focus on a broad sweep across Wakeman’s classic back catalogue, including extracts from epic concept albums Journey To The Centre Of The Earth and The Myths & Legends Of King Arthur & The Knights Of The Round Table, Yes material and surprises.
The band line-up reunites from 2025’s Return Of The Caped Crusader Part 2 tour: Wakeman, Jesse Smith (lead vocals), Adam Wakeman (keyboard, guitars and vocals), Dave Colquhoun (guitars and vocals), Lee Pomeroy (bass and vocals), Adam Falkner (drums) and backing vocalists Sara Davey, Jo Goldsmith-Eteson and Jo Marshall. Tickets go on sale on May 29 at 10am at yorkbarbican.co.uk/whats-on/rick-27.
Kelly Munro-Fawcett: Taking up the venue director’s post at Pocklington Arts Centre
KELLY Munro-Fawcett is settling in as Pocklington Arts Centre’s venue director, marking an exciting new chapter for the East Yorkshire cultural hub.
Taking over from Angela Stone, who held the post from October 2022 to January 2026 before returning to her native Scotland, Kelly brings a wealth of experience across performance, producing and creative health.
Beginning her career as an actress, playing such Shakespearean roles as Juliet in Romeo & Juliet and Titania in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, she then founded RedBobble Arts, a socially engaged theatre company known for mounting touring productions and delivering impactful work in communities.
Latterly, she held the role of senior project manager at Hoot Creative Arts, a creative health organisation based at Bates Mill, Huddersfield.
Stepping into the leadership of Pocklington Arts Centre (PAC), Kelly vows to build on the strong foundations and deep community roots established when the former Ritz Cinema and Penny Arcadia Museum opened as a 200-seat multi-purpose arts and entertainment venue in 2000.
“I’m absolutely delighted to be joining Pocklington Arts Centre,” says Kelly, 42, who lives in Leeds. “Live performance has always been very close to my heart, and this venue is something truly special. It’s not only known for the quality of its artistic programme, but also for the role it plays at the centre of the community.”
PAC combines live music, comedy, theatre and exhibitions with a community programme of creative activities designed to support health and wellbeing.
“What really drew me to this role is the unique balance Pocklington Arts Centre holds,” says Kelly. “It is both a destination for world-class performance and a welcoming civic space shaped by its community. That legacy, developed for over 20 years by Janet Farmer and then Angela Stone, is something I have deep respect for and I’m committed to carrying forward.”
Kelly, who took up her post last month, will be working with a team of dedicated staff and more than 50 volunteers as Pocklington Arts Centre continues to play a vital role in the market town’s cultural and social life.
Looking ahead, her focus will be on sustaining PAC’s high-quality programme while ensuring the venue’s long-term resilience and relevance.
“My priority is to maintain the quality of the programme audiences know and love, while also strengthening the organisation for the future,” she says. “That includes growing audiences, particularly as more families make Pocklington their home, and continuing to expand opportunities for people to engage creatively.
“There’s a real sense of care and commitment here, and I’m looking forward to working with the team, volunteers and the wider community to shape what comes next.”
“My style of working is collaborative,” says Kelly Munro-Fawcett. Picture: Rachael Munro-Fawcett
Kelly is beginning a period of engagement with staff, volunteers and stakeholders as she develops plans for PAC’s future.
Welcoming her to Pocklington, town council deputy clerk Claire Findlay, says: “Having spent time with Kelly, I am confident that she and the wider team will build on past successes and steer our amazing arts centre into a bright and secure future.”
Kelly, who was appointed by the town council after undergoing three interviews, says: “My style of working is collaborative. It’s about partnerships, and the more minds you have on a project, the better the outcome.
“What I’ve been doing in five weeks in post is building up my ideas of what might be needed, and for the direction of travel, but I can’t begin to do that until I’ve met the local community: audience members; participants in the community; Friends of Pocklington Arts Centre, which has 500 members; Pocklington Town Council and those behind Pocklington’s bid to be the first UK Town of Culture in 2028.
“I’m also reaching out to people who’ve come to PAC in the past. It’s about respecting what worked previously, what do they want see more of, because ultimately we’re a creative community hub as well as being an award-winning live venue.”
Discussions have taken place already with the Godber family over staging a fourth Christmas show written by John’s daughter Elizabeth and directed by Jane Thornton, and now formal approval is awaited from PAC’s principal funding body, Pocklington Town Council.
Originally from Birmingham and raised in Nottingham, Kelly moved north to study at Arden School of Theatre, Manchester, graduating with first class honours. “I originally wanted to go to Manchester Metropolitan University – like Julie Walters – but Arden turned out to be great because they trained you not only as an actor but also to have a social conscience, because they taught you that art reflects the country you live in,” she says.
“They also taught us how to make our own theatre, which was an incredible opportunity – and the three founding members of RedBobble all came from Arden when we formed the company in 2011 to focus on live performance, community engagement and neuro-diverse empowerment.”
Kelly draws on her ADHD [Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder] in her working practice. “It gives you the ability to see the bigger picture, like spotting patterns and trends, to bring together people or concepts or a multi-disciplinary arts team,” she says.
“It also helps to make me creative; it gives you empathy, with the ability to put yourself in other people’s shoes and to be super-focused. If I’m passionate about something, I won’t stop; I’ll forget to have lunch.
“Having ADHD makes me really keen to support people to achieve their full potential, and that’s why I’m so passionate about the live shows and community programme at PAC.”
Christopher Cross: Sailing into York Barbican tonight
FROM the hotel shenanigans of Fawlty Towers to the uplifting Yorkshire tale of Calendar Girls, Pixies’ 40th anniversary tour to Daniel Sloss’s bitter comic bite, Charles Hutchinson locates cultural hotspots aplenty.
Grammy winner of the week: Christopher Cross, supported by Chris Difford, York Barbican, tonight, doors 7pm
AMERICAN singer-songwriter Christopher Cross plays York Barbican as the only Yorkshire venue on his nine-date UK tour. The multi-Grammy-winning artist, from San Antonio, Texas, now 75, is best known for Sailing, Ride Like The Wind and Arthur’s Theme (Best That You Can Do). His special guest will be Chris Difford, co-founder of Squeeze. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Ebor Singers soloists Alisun Russell Pawley, top, left, Caroline Smith, Jason Darnell, bottom, left, and Jonty Ward
Classical concert of the week: Ebor Singers & Manchester Baroque, Baroque Gala Concert, Dixit Dominus, York Minster, tonight, 7,30pm
THE Ebor Singers unite with period instrument specialists Manchester Baroque to perform Purcell, Handel and Bach works in tonight’s two-hour Baroque Gala Concert in York Minster’s Quire. The soloists will be Alisun Russell Pawley (soprano), Caroline Smith (mezzo-soprano), Jason Darnell (tenor) and Jonty Ward (bass-baritone). Box office: 01904 557200 or yorkminster.org.
Tom Stade: Canadian mischief-maker
Mischievous comedy gig of the week: Tom Stade, Naughty By Nature, Helmsley Arts Centre, tonight, 8pm
CANADIAN stand-up Tom Stade is back on the road with his 2025 Edinburgh Fringe hit, wherein he playfully dishes out more of his insightful observations in a night of mischievous and uncompromising comedy. His credits include the Have A Word Pod podcast, Channel 4’s Comedy Gala, Michael McIntyre’s Comedy Roadshow, The John Bishop Show and Live At The Apollo. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.
Willy Mason: Songs full of heart, philosophy and hope for humanity. Picture: Ebru Yildiz
The Crescent & Brudenell Presents gig of the week: Willy Mason, National Centre for Early Music, York, tomorrow, 6.30pm (doors 6pm)
MARTHA’S Vineyard, Massachusetts singer-songwriter Willy Mason has been writing, recording and touring for 25 years, ever since his home demo of breakout single Oxygen became an unexpected hit. Treading a meandering path, he frequently shuns the limelight in favour of odd jobs and unexpected company.
When he does appear, however, it is always worth the wait to hear songs full of heart, philosophy and hope for humanity that draw on a deep well of melody and story passed on from songwriter parents. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.ticketsolve.com/ticketbooth/shows/1173675325.
Chris McCausland: “Doing comedy for Yonks”
Scouse humour of the week: Chris McCausland, Yonks, Grand Opera House, York, tomorrow, 8pm
YOU might have spotted him latterly on Strictly Come Dancing (2024 winner, no less), Would I Lie To You, Have I Got News For You, QI, Blankety Blank or The Last Leg, but this is no overnight success story. Liverpool humorist Chris McCausland has been doing comedy for Yonks. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Jonny Best: Leading Frame Ensemble at Magic and Motion: Georges Méliès and Buster Keaton In Concertat NCEM. Picture: Chris Payne
Film event of the week: Magic and Motion: Georges Méliès and Buster Keaton In Concert, with Frame Ensemble, National Centre for Early Music, York, May 19, 7.30pm
STEP into the cinematic dreamworlds of George Méliès and Buster Keaton with the improvised, spontaneous music of Northern Silents’ resident quartet Frame Ensemble (Jonny Best, piano, Susannah Simmons, violin, Liz Hanks,cello, and Trevor Bartlett, percussion) as two pioneers of visual fantasy meet in a specially created cine‑concert.
French filmmaker and actor Méliès’s technical ingenuity in his extravagant Théâtre Robert‑Houdin illusion shows in Paris carried cinema beyond the simple recording of everyday life, opening up its magical possibilities. A quarter of a century later, in 1924’s Sherlock Jr., vaudeville performer Buster Keaton plays a humble projectionist who steps into the film he is showing, tumbling through a world where the laws of physics yield to the imagination. Box office: 01904 658338 or ncem.co.uk.
Paul Nicholas as the Major in John Cleese’s Fawlty Towers: The Play
Don’t mention the war: John Cleese’s Fawlty Towers: The Play, Grand Opera House, York, May 19 to 23, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday matinees
FIFTY years since John Cleese and Connie Booth’s chaotic hotel sitcom graced British television screens, Monty Python alumnus Cleese has adapted three vintage Fawlty Towers episodes for a stage play.
Following a sold-out West End season, Caroline Jay Ranger directs the 18-strong tour cast featuring Danny Byrne’s calamitous Basil Fawlty, Mia Austen’s exasperated wife Sybil, Joanne Clifton’s stoical chamber maid Polly and Paul Nicholas’s bumbling Major. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.
Pixies: Making York debut after 40 years
Recommended but sold out already: Pixies: Pixies 40, Celebrating 40 Years, York Barbican, May 20, doors 7pm
PIXIES are playing York for the first time in their 40-year career, opening the 13-date British and European leg of the Pixies 40 tour at the Barbican, the only Yorkshire show. Celebrating four decades since their formation in Boston, Massachusetts, the American alt.rock band’s founding members, Black Francis, Joey Santiago and David Lovering, are joined by bassist Emma Richardson. Gans support.
In full bloom: York Musical Theatre Company in the sunflower-power musical Calendar Girls
Yorkshire musical of the week: York Musical Theatre Company in Calendar Girls The Musical, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, May 20 to 23, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
KATHRYN Addison directs York Musical Theatre Company in Cheshire childhood friends Gary Barlow and Tim Firth’s musical account of the true story of a Yorkshire group of ordinary Women’s Institute members doing something extraordinary after the death of a much-loved husband.
When they decide to make an artistic nude calendar for a cancer charity, upturning preconceptions is a dangerous business, leading to emotional and personal ramifications that no-one could anticipate but bringing each woman unexpectedly into flower. Katie Melia’s Chris and Alexa Chaplin’s Annie lead the cast. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.
Skye Pickford’s Ilse in Inspired By Theatre’s Spring Awakening. Picture: Dan Crawfurd-Porter
American musical of the week: Inspired By Theatre in Spring Awakening, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, May 20 to 23, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee
YORK company Inspired By Theatre marks the 20th anniversary of Spring Awakening’s off-Broadway debut in New York City by staging Duncan Sheik and Steven Sater’s raw, explosive coming-of-age musical in the matching week.
Cutting straight to the heart of youth, desire, repression and rebellion in 1890s’ Germany, Mikhail Lim’s actor-musician production follows a group of young people navigating sex, love and identity in a society that refuses to educate or protect them, drawing on German Expressionism and folkloric imagery to boot. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.
Daniel Sloss: Acidic comedy at York Barbican
Snappiest show title of the week gig of the week: Daniel Sloss, Bitter, York Barbican, May 21, 8pm
ACERBIC Scottish wit Daniel Sloss likes to keep his titles brief. After Jigsaw, Dark, X, Socio, Hubris, Now and Can’t, Sloss is Bitter in his 13th tour show, visiting York this weekend after playing 55 countries so far.
He has performed stand-up for more than half of his lifetime, sold out nine New York theatre seasons off-Broadway, appeared on the Conan show ten times on American television, broken Edinburgh Fringe box-office records and published his book Everyone You Hate Is Going To Die (Knopf/Penguin Random House) in 2021. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Freida Nipples: Baps & Buns Burlesque bounces into view once more at Rise at Bluebird Bakery, Acomb
Freida Nipples presents: Baps & Buns Burlesque, Rise@Bluebird Bakery, Acomb, York, May 22, 8pm, doors 7pm
JOIN York’s burlesque queen, Freida Nipples, for a night of cabaret, drag, comedy and beyond at her latest Rise residency. Hosted by Ebony Silk, Friday’s bill features Sucre A La Creme, Cherie Bebe, Molly Ouse, Kiwi Adore and Freida herself. Box office: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/baps-buns-burlesque-tickets-1987497655991
Cheesy humour at Scarcroft Alllotments: Mikron Theatre Company’s James McLean, left, and Robert Took in Wensleydale Whey
In Focus: Mikron Theatre Company in Wensleydale Whey, Scarcroft Allotments, Scarcroft Road, York, Sunday (17/5/2026), 2pm to 4pm
IN its 54th year of touring, Marsden’s Mikron Theatre Company will be conducting the Grate Cheese Quest in Lucy Raine’s new play Wensleydale Whey.
On the road and water until October 24, this legen-dairy tale will transport audiences to the Yorkshire Dales, where the stakes are high. Monks from the Abbey are desperately seeking a living soul to resurrect their traditional Wensleydale cheese.
Raine’s fromage-fuelled musical journey delves into the rich history of cheese, featuring a whey-out cast of characters, ghosts, and grievances. True to Mikron’s signature style, the show promises a gouda time with a cheesy plot and a sprinkle of drama.
Artistic director Marianne McNamara says: “2026 is a milestone year for Mikron. The company remains one of the UK’s most prolific touring theatre companies, performing over 5,000 shows since 1972 by canal, river and road.
“We’re all big foodies here at Mikron, so a pitch for a show about cheese is not a hard sell for writer Lucie [who also wrote Mikron’s show Hush Hush last year]!”
Over five decades, Mikron has been delivering professional theatre to 137 different venues annually, from allotments and fish & chip shops to pubs, village greens and even the odd theatre.
Wensleydale Whey’s cast of actor-musicians James McLean, Georgina Liley, Robert Took and Catherine Warnock is directed by Elvi Pipe, with musical direction and arrangements of Amal El-Sawad’s original music by Robert Cooper and set and costume design by Celia Perkins.
BASED in Marsden, West Yorkshire, Mikron travels the country by van and narrow-boat [called Tyseley]. Over 54 years, the company has performed thousands of times to nearly half a million people.
Mikron is famous for performing in unconventional venues, including youth hostels, lifeboat stations and hives.
A significant portion of Mikron’s performances remain “pay what you feel” to ensure theatre remains accessible to everyone.
In Focus too: Pocklington Area Open Studios, today and tomorrow, 10am to 5pm
CREATIVES from around the heart of East Yorkshire are opening their doors to the public for a weekend celebration of the arts.
Pocklington Area Open Studios (PAOS) has rapidly become one of the premier events of its kind, this year featuring 30 artists at 19 locations, drawing visitors from far and wide.
This weekend’s art trail celebrates quality craftsmanship in its many forms, including painting, ceramics, printmaking, textiles, jewellery, sculpture and photography.
Visitors can meet a diverse and welcoming group of makers and painters in person, many in their own studios and creative surroundings.
Printed free brochures are available from The Feathers Hotel and Costa Coffee in Market Place, Pocklington, as well as shops, cafes and libraries and from participating artists.
The brochure and venue map can be downloaded at https://www.pocklingtonareaopenstudios.co.uk/info.html.
