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Bottom’s up for love & looning in More Things To Do in York & beyond. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 15, from The Press

The eyes have it: Love-struck Natalie Windsor’s Titania and Tweedy the clown’s Bottom in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, on tour at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Andrew Huggins/Thousand Word Media

GOTHIC Austen, a clowning Bottom, a dose of the blues, a Technicolor dreamcoat, open studios and a reactivated newsroom satire feature in Charles Hutchinson’s recommendations for a busy diary.

York play of the week: Cheltenham Everyman Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, York Theatre Royal, April 9 to 13, 7pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees

EVERYMAN Theatre Company’s staging of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream puts a new twist on the familiar tale by casting comedy clown Tweedy as Bottom and making him “comedy advisor” on Paul Milton’s production to boot.

The night’s magic, mischief, and mayhem unfold in an enchanted Athenean forest, intertwining the romantic misadventures of four young lovers, the playful meddling of mischievous fairies and the comedic antics of amateur actors, culminating in a tale of love, mistaken identity and reconciliation engineered by Jeremy Stockwell’s meddlesome Puck. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Tom Killner: Soul-drenched Southern rock and Americana at York Blues Festival

Festival of the week: York Blues Festival, The Crescent, York, today, 1pm to 11pm; doors, 12.30pm

NAME of the week? Step forward The 20ft Squid Blues Band, participants in this weekend’s York Blues Festival, curated by Paul Winn and Ben Darwin, hosts of Jorvik Radio’s Blues From The Ouse show and the Ryedale Blues Club.

Performing too will be Dirty Ruby, Bison Hip, The James Oliver Band, Hot Foot Hall, York band DC Blues, The Milk Men and Tom Killner. Tickets update: Sold out; for returns only, yorkbluesfest.co.uk.

Ceramicist Patricia Qua, who will make her York Open Studios debut in Hemplands Drive, York

Preview of the week: York Open Studios, Hospitium, York Museum Gardens, York, today and tomorrow, 10am to 4pm

YORK Open Studios 2024 hosts a taster exhibition this weekend at the Hospitium, ahead of the full event on April 13, 14, 20 and 21. More than 150 artists who live or work within a ten-mile radius of the city will be welcoming visitors to 100 workspaces to show and sell their art, ranging from ceramics, collage, digital, illustration, jewellery and mixed media to painting, print, photography, sculpture, textiles and wood. Among them will be 29 new participants. Full details can be found at yorkopenstudios.co.uk.

Back in the news: The original cast reassembles for Drop The Dead Donkey: The Reawakening! at Leeds Grand Theatre

Breaking News of the week: Drop The Dead Donkey: The Reawakening!, Leeds Grand Theatre, April 9 to 13, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Wednesday and Saturday matinees

THIRTY years since the launch of the trailblazing television series Drop The Dead Donkey, the Globelink News team is back, live on stage for the first time. Original cast members Stephen Tompkinson, Neil Pearson, Susannah Doyle, Robert Duncan, Ingrid Lacey, Jeff Rawle and Victoria Wicks reunite for a new script by sitcom writing duo Andy Hamilton and Guy Jenkin.

“It’s going to be hugely enjoyable to watch those seven funny, flawed characters from Globelink News being plunged into the cutthroat world of modern 24-hour news-gathering and trying to navigate their way through the daily chaos of social media, fake news, and interim Prime Ministers,” say the writers. Box office: 0113 243 0808 or leedsheritagetheatres.com.

Go, go, Joseph: Lead actor Reuben Khan in York Stage’s poster for Joseph And The Technicolor Dreamcoat at the Grand Opera House, York

Musical of the week: York Stage in Joseph And The Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat, Grand Opera House, York, April 12 to 20, 7.30pm except April 14, 15 and 19; 2.30pm, April 13 and 20; 4pm, April 14; 5pm and 8pm, April 19

BE ready to paint the city in every colour of the rainbow as Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice’s musical dazzles the Grand Opera House in York Stage’s vibrant production, directed by Nik Briggs, with musical direction by Adam Tomlinson and choreography by Lesley Hill.

Reuben Khan leads the cast as Joseph, joined by Hannah Shaw as the Narrator, Carly Morton as Pharaoh, Martin Rowley as Jacob, Finn East as Simeon and Matthew Clarke as Potiphar, among others. Tickets are selling fast at atgtickets.com/york.

Shareefa Energy!: Guest performance poet at April 12’s Say Owt Slam at The Crescent

Spoken word clash of the week: Say Owt Slam, featuring Shareefa Energy!, The Crescent, York, April 12, 7.45pm

SAY Owt, “York’s loveable gobby gang of performance poets”, take over The Crescent twice a year for raucous, high-energy nights of verse that combine a slam war of words with a guest performer.

“In a slam, poets have three minutes to wow the audience to become the champion,” says host Henry Raby. “It’s fast, frantic and fun: perfect for people who love poetry, and those who think they hate poetry too.”

Special guest Shareefa Energy! is a poet, writer, activist, educator, creative campaigner, workshop facilitator and arts and wellbeing practitioner of Indian and Muslim heritage from working-class Highfields in Leicester. Box office: thecrescentyork.com or on the door.

Robert Gammon: Performing with Maria Marshall and Alison Gammon at St Chad’s Church

Dementia Friendly Tea Concert: Maria Marshall, Robert Gammon and Alison Gammon, St Chad’s Church, Campleshon Road, York, April 18, 2.30pm

CELLIST Maria Marshall opens this Dementia Friendly Tea Concert with Faure’s Elegy, accompanied by pianist Robert Gammon, who then plays two short solo Grieg piano pieces. Alison Gammon joins them for Beethoven’s trio Opus 11 for clarinet, piano and cello.

The relaxed 45-minute concert, ideal for people who may not feel comfortable at a formal classical concert, will be followed by tea and homemade cakes in the church hall. Seating is unreserved; no charge applies to attend but donations are welcome for hire costs and Alzheimer’s charities. 

Lucy Worsley: Revelations about Jane Austen at York Barbican

Show announcement of the week: An Audience with Lucy Worsley on Jane Austen, York Barbican, October 14, 7.30pm

FOLLOWING up her Agatha Christie tour, historian and presenter Lucy Worsley’s latest illustrated talk steps into the world of Jane Austen, one of English literature’s most cherished figures as the author of Pride And Prejudice, Sense And Sensibility and Persuasion. 

Through the houses, places and possessions that mattered to Austen, Worsley looks at what home meant to her and to the women like her who populate her novels. Austen lived a “life without incident”, but with new research and insights Worsley reveals a passionate woman who fought for her freedom. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

In Focus: Exhibition launch, Makiko, Picture Imperfect, York Theatre Royal, April 8 to 28

Exhibition poster for Makiko’s Picture Imperfect at York Theatre Royal

YORK photographer Makiko has shifted her focus to the mental health of vulnerable children in her Picture Imperfect exhibition at York Theatre Royal.

After her trip to photograph scenes from Gunkanjima (Battleship Island), as well as a spiritual journey to the uninhabited island of Nozaki, Japanese-born Makiko has responded to the impact of Brexit and the Covid-19 pandemic.

The result is this month’s Theatre Royal foyer exhibition featuring remote portrait photography, colour photos taken by children and a short film on the theme of the lives of vulnerable children and teenagers in the artist’s community in York, exploring their struggles with mental health and their developing identities.

Makiko’s project has received funding from Arts Council England and was conceived to work alongside The Island, a charity that offers mentorship and safeguarding for young people in the community regardless of their socio-economic circumstances or life experiences.

“The more I began to know the charity, the more I learned of a darker reality and of things such as child trafficking and sexual exploitation,” says Makiko. “All the children involved in this project have experienced early life trauma or pre-existing mental challenges or both.

“The conceptualisation of the project coincided with the lockdowns imposed by the UK government to combat Covid-19. Northern England was particularly hard hit: this in turn has had a profound impact on these children’s lives.”

The Covid strictures placed significant restrictions on how Makiko needed to approach her work, imposing the necessity of a creative solution to comply with social distancing and meeting the necessary regulations.

The artist provided the children with disposable cameras to shoot their everyday life. Much of her own photo-shooting was carried out remotely during the lockdown, to document what they were doing and thinking at home.

“Once the restrictions were lifted in early spring 2022, I visited the children during the art activity sessions and let them express themselves both in front of my viewfinder, as well as in writing,” says Makiko. “Subsequently, the work was exhibited at York Open Studios in April that year.”

The story is intertwined with the experience of Makiko and her younger son following their relocation back to the United Kingdom. “He suffered from assault and racial discrimination at school, resulting in school refusal and being housebound for several years,” she recalls. “This provided a precursor to the isolating experiences that children would go on to face during the pandemic.”

Makiko encountered direct racial abuse too, including a physical assault. “Both of us had struggled to fit into the environment,” she says. “The UK has continued to manifest deep division in the aftermath of Brexit, including rises in racism, anti-social behaviour and hate crimes in general.”

Most importantly, Makiko realised that the entire process worked as a catalyst, helping her to recover from a psychological wound she had endured over the past few years. “I began to better understand what my younger son and other children have experienced,” she says. “This included an insight into the thoughts and behaviours of Generations Z during a unique period of UK history.”

This project was carried out when Makiko was a mentee of Magnum Photos during 2021-2022. The exhibition is produced in collaboration with The Island and in association with York Theatre Royal. Its accompanying photobook version will be published in 2024. For more information on Makiko, go to: makikophoto.com.

Makiko’s Picture Imperfect runs at York Theatre Royal, St Leonard’s Place, York, from April 8 to 27; on view from 10am, Monday to Saturday

Makiko: the back story

AWARD-WINNING photographer who has lived, studied and worked in Japan, France, North America, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.

Studied photography at International Center of Photography in New York.

Since 2006 her work has been exhibited in Japan, North America, and Europe. Best known for her black and white photography.

At present at Royal College of Art in London.

Features among 89 award-winning professional photographers from around the world in What Does Photography Mean To You?, selected by Scott Grant (Bluecoat Press).

Particular interest in high-functioning autism. In 2014 she launched her first documentary/photography book, Beautifully Different. Re-published in Japanese in March
2016.

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Bottom’s up for love & looning in More Things To Do in Ryedale, York & beyond. Hutch’s List No. 9, from Gazette & Herald

Rebecca Banatvala, back, AK Golding, middle, and Sam Newton, front, in Northanger Abbey at the SJT, Scarborough. Picture: Pamela Raith

GOTHIC Austen, a clowning Bottom, dark pop chat, vintage blues and harmonious folk feature in Charles Hutchinson’s suggestions for a busy diary.

Play of the week outside York: Northanger Abbey, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, until April 13, 7.30pm plus 1.30pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees

ZOE Cooper adapts Jane Austen’s coming-of-age satire of Gothic novels in a co-production by the SJT, Orange Tree Theatre, Richmond, Octagon Theatre, Bolton, and Theatre by the Lake, Keswick, starring Rebecca Banatvala (Cath), AK Golding (Iz) and Sam Newton (Hen) under Tessa Walker’s direction.

In a play fizzing with imagination, humour and love, Cath Morland knows little of the world, but who needs real-life experience when you have books to guide you? Cath seizes her chance to escape her claustrophobic family life and join the smart set in Bath. Between balls and parties, she meets worldly, sophisticated Iz, and so Cath’s very own adventure begins. Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com.

Megson: Folk duo Debs and Stu Hanna at Helmsley Arts Centre

Folk concert of the week: Megson, Helmsley Arts Centre, Saturday, 7.30pm

BRITISH folk duo Megson combines Debs Hanna’s vocals, whistle and piano accordion with Stu Hanna’s guitar, mandola and banjo on songs filled with perceptive lyrics and exquisite musicianship. An infectious mix of heavenly vocals, lush harmonies and driving rhythmic guitars mark their concerts, topped off with northern humour between numbers.

Chalking up 13 studio albums in 20 years, the four-time BBC Radio 2 Folk Award nominees and two-time Spiral Earth Award winners will be showcasing their latest release, March 2023’s What Are We Trying To Say?. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Red, a dare: Tweedy’s Bottom, clowning around and chancing his luck in love in the Everyman Theatre Company’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream, on tour at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Andrew Huggins/Thousand Word Media

York play of the week: Cheltenham Everyman Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, York Theatre Royal, April 9 to 13, 7pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees

THE Everyman Theatre Company staging of Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream puts a new twist on the familiar tale by casting comedy clown Tweedy as Bottom and making him “comedy advisor” on Paul Milton’s production to boot.

The night’s magic, mischief, and mayhem unfold in an enchanted forest in Athens, intertwining the romantic misadventures of four young lovers, the playful meddling of mischievous fairies and the comedic antics of amateur actors, culminating in a tale of love, mistaken identity and reconciliation engineered by Jeremy Stockwell’s meddlesome Puck. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

John Robb: Rock’n’roll tales at Pocklington Arts Centre

Pop chat of the week: John Robb: Do You Believe In The Power Of Rock’n’Roll?, Pocklington Arts Centre, April 11, 8pm

JOHN Robb discusses his life in music; his pop culture book Art Of Darkness: The History Of Goth; being the first person to interview Nirvana; inventing the word Britpop and his adventures on the post-punk frontline.

Blackpool-born Robb is an author, musician, journalist, television and radio presenter and pundit, music website boss, publisher, Louder Than Words festival boss, eco-warrior and talking-head singer of The Membranes. His special guest is The Sisters Of Mercy co-founder Gary Marx. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

Pianist Robert Gammon: Performing with Maria Marshall and Alison Gmmon at musical tea concert

Dementia Friendly Tea Concert: Maria Marshall, Robert Gammon and Alison Gammon, St Chad’s Church, Campleshon Road, York, April 18, 2.30pm

CELLIST Maria Marshall opens this Dementia Friendly Tea Concert with Faure’s Elegy, accompanied by pianist Robert Gammon, who then plays two short solo Grieg piano pieces. Alison Gammon joins them for Beethoven’s trio Opus 11 for clarinet, piano and cello.

The relaxed 45-minute concert, ideal for people who may not feel comfortable at a formal classical concert, will be followed by tea and homemade cakes in the church hall. Seating is unreserved; no charge applies to attend but donations are welcome for hire costs and Alzheimer’s charities. On-street parking along Campleshon Road complements the church’s small car park.

The Nightcreatures’ Henry Botham and Tom Davies: Blues songs and stories at Milton Rooms, Malton

Blues gig of the week: The Nightcreatures, Farewell To Storyville, Songs and Stories from New Orleans, Milton Rooms, Malton, April 12, 8pm

THE Nightcreatures duo of pianist Henry Botham and guitarist and singer Tom Davies take a journey to old New Orleans for a night of songs and stories, serving up a spicy gumbo of filthy blues, funky grooves and classic tunes.

Old blues, Mardi Gras songs and vintage New Orleans material are explored, drawing on the heritage of Dr John, James Booker, Professor Longhair, Allen Toussaint and the great Louisiana bluesmen. Jenny Wren and Her Borrowed Wings, a trio led by singer and double bassist Jenny Trilsbach, support. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.

Sam Jewison: Interpreting the Great American Songbook at the SJT

Jazz gig of the month: Sam Jewison, Stephen Joseph Theatre, Scarborough, April 27, 7.30pm

JAZZ singer and pianist Sam Jewison returns to the SJT after a sold-out show in 2023 to perform his interpretation of the Great American Songbook in a fusion of jazz, classical and popular music.

Expect to hear new treatments of songs from the Broadway stage, Hollywood screen and golden age of American popular music, made famous Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, and Oscar Peterson, from the pens of Cole Porter, Leonard Bernstein and George Gershwin. Joining Jewison will be Fraser Smith (tenor saxophone), Harry Sankey (guitar), Harry Evans (double bass) and Joe Dessauer (drums). Box office: 01723 370541 or sjt.uk.com. 

Lucy Worsley: Revelations from the life of Jane Austen at York Barbican

Show announcement of the week: An Audience with Lucy Worsley on Jane Austen, York Barbican, October 14,

FOLLOWING up her Agatha Christie tour, historian Lucy Worsley’s latest illustrated talk steps into the world of Jane Austen, one of English literature’s most cherished figures as the author of Pride And Prejudice, Sense And Sensibility and Persuasion. 

Through the houses, places and possessions that mattered to Austen, Worsley looks at what home meant to her and to the women like her who populate her novels. Austen lived a “life without incident”, but with new research and insights Worsley reveals a passionate woman who fought for her freedom. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

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More Things To Do in Ryedale, York and beyond Easter. Magical thoughts in Hutch’s List No 8, from the Gazette & Herald

Four sigils or “spell tokens” from the Believe It Or Not? exhibition at Ryedale Folk Museum, Hutton-le-Hole. Picture: Olivia Brabbs

MAGICAL thinking and life 11,000 years ago, Shakespeare mischief making and nightclub trouble-spotters, a comedian’s needs and a painterly musical outweigh the delights of chocolate at Easter for Charles Hutchinson.

Ryedale exhibition launch of the week: Believe It Or Not?, Ryedale Folk Museum, Hutton-le-Hole, until November 17, from 10am daily except Fridays

RYEDALE Folk Museum’s new exhibition turns the spotlight on folk beliefs through a selection of more than 200 objects. Believe It Or Not?’ explores the traditions and rituals of our ancestors, pondering whether whether we are still “magical thinkers” today.

Featuring heavily are stories of those accused of witchcraft, represented through their own objects, such as a crystal ball passed down by those seeking to foretell the future and four sigils or “spell tokens”, likely created as a form of “love magic” by a magical practitioner or service magician. Tickets: ryedalefolkmuseum.co.uk.

Curators Andrew Woods, left, Adam Parker and Emily North with Mesolithic remains of a wooden platform and materials used for fire-making in the Yorkshire Museum’s Star Carr exhibition. Picture: Anthony Chappel-Ross

York exhibition opening of the week: Star Carr: Life After The Ice, Yorkshire Museum, Museum Gardens, York; open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm

EXCAVATED in the Vale of Pickering, the Star Carr archaeological site provides the first evidence in Britain of the beginnings of home, a place where people settled and built places to live.

The Yorkshire Museum’s interactive exhibition brings together artefacts from “the Mesolithic equivalent of Stonehenge” to give an insight into human life 11,000 years ago, a few hundred years after the last Ice Age. On display are objects from the Yorkshire Museum collection, from antler headdresses and a decorated stone pendant to the world’s oldest complete hunting bow and the earliest evidence of carpentry from Europe. To book tickets, go to: yorkshiremuseum.org.uk.

Hoglets Theatre’s Gemma Curry, left, Claire Morley and Becky Lennon in A Midsummer Night’s Mischief, visiting Helmsley Arts Centre on Saturday

Children’s show of the week: Hoglets Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Mischief, Helmsley Arts Centre, Saturday, 2.30pm

THE forest fairies are starting a fight, but which side are you on? Team Titania or Team Oberon? York company Hoglets Theatre presents founder Gemma Curry’s interactive, fun and larger-than-life show for children aged five to 11 based on Shakespeare’s A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Expect wild characters, raucous singalong songs, puppets, stunts and some frankly ridiculous disco dancing in the company of Curry, Claire Morley and Becky Lennon. At 3.30pm, Gemma will be running a children’s workshop, showing how to make a paper boogie-woogie puppet of Shakespeare’s donkey-headed character Bottom. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

Jessica Fostekew: On her Mettle at Pocklington Arts Centre

Comedy gig of the week: Jessica Fostekew, Mettle, Pocklington Arts Centre, April 4, 8pm

IN her new stand-up show of passion, pace and purpose, Jessica Fostekew’s son has joined a cult and her cat has learnt to talk. Nevertheless, she feels fine. In fact she is hurtling faster and hustling harder than ever for the things that she wants and needs.

Fostekew appeared in the sitcom Motherland and Sundance Festival Grand Jury prize-winning film Scrapper and is a regular co-host of The Guilty Feminist podcast, host and creator of her own podcast about eating, Hoovering, and the star and writer of BBC Radio 4’s Sturdy Girl Club. Box office: 01759 301547 or pocklingtonartscentre.co.uk.

The four doormen of the apocalypse: John Godber Company in Bouncers, on tour at York Theatre Royal

York play of the week: John Godber Company in Bouncers, York Theatre Royal, April 5, 7.30pm; April  6, 2.30pm and 7.30pm

MEET Lucky Eric, Judd, Les and Ralph, the original men in black, as they tell the torrid tale of one Eighties’ night in a Yorkshire disco in John Godber’s northern parody of Saturday Night Fever. All the gang are out on the town, the lads, the lasses, the cheesy DJ, the late-night kebab man, and the taxi home, all under the watchful eyes of the Bouncers (Nick Figgis, George Reid, Frazer Hammill and newcomer Tom Whittaker).

“We’re delighted to be taking Bouncers back to the heyday of disco and the 1980s,” says Goober. “Looking back, there was so much wrong with the decade but also so much to celebrate; this new production dances a balance between what was great and what is cringe-worthy now!” Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Putting themselves in the picture: Pick Me Up Theatre cast members James Willstrop (as Jules), left, Neil Foster (as Soldier), Natalie Walker (as Dot) amd Sanna Jeppsson (as Yvonne), front, set the scene for Sunday In The Park With George

York musical of the week: Pick Me Up Theatre in Sunday In The Park With George, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, April 5 to 13, 7.30pm except April 8; 2.30pm, April 6, 7 and 13

STEPHEN Sondheim and James Lapine’s musical follows painter Georges Seurat (played by Adam Price) in the months leading up to the completion of his most fanous painting, A Sunday Afternoon On The Island Of La Grande Jatte. 

Consumed by his need to “finish the hat”, Seurat alienates the French bourgeoisie, spurns his fellow artists and neglects his lover Dot (Natalie Walker), not realising that his actions will reverberate through the next 100 years. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

The Moondogs: Paying tribute to Fifties and Sixties favourites at Milton Rooms, Malton

Tribute show of the Easter break: The Moondogs, Milton Rooms, Malton, April 6, 8pm

PREPARE to be transported back in time to the late-1950s and Swinging Sixties as The Moondogs bring their raw energy to the hits of Chuck Berry, The Everly Brothers, Cliff Richard, The Searchers, The Swinging Blue Jeans, The Beatles, The Who, The Kinks, The Rolling Stones and more. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.

Fairground Attraction: Mark Nevin, left, Roy Dodds, Eddi Reader and Simon Edwards reunite after 35 years for a York-bound tour and new album

Gig announcement of the week: Fairground Attraction, York Barbican, October 1

AFTER an absence of 35 years, all four original members of short-lived late-Eighties’ band Fairground Attraction are reuniting for a 14-date British tour and an as-yet-untitled new studio album, preceded by first single What’s Wrong With The World?, out now.

Best known for their chart-topping debut, Perfect, winner of the Best Single prize at the 1988 Brit Awards, Fairground Attraction return with their country-pop line-up of singer Eddi Reader, guitarist Mark Nevin, guitarrón bassist Simon Edwards and drummer Roy Dodds. Tickets go on sale on Friday at 10am at axs.com/York.

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More Things To Do in York and beyond from March 23 onwards. What springs up in Hutch’s List No 13, from The Press?

Adam Kay: If laughter is the best medicine, head to the Grand Opera House

SHORT plays, doctor’s tales, pop memories, life 11,000 years ago, women in word and song, egg hunts and a Sondheim celebration put the spring into Charles Hutchinson’s step as a new season arrives.

Doctor in the House: Adam Kay: Undoctored, Grand Opera House, York, March 23, 7.30pm

BILLING himself as “the nation’s twelfth-favourite doctor”, This Is Going To Hurt author Adam Kay follows a record-breaking Edinburgh Fringe run and West End season with a tour of tales from his life on and off the wards.

Expect Kay’s ‘degloving’ story to feature “because people ask for refunds if they don’t hear it”. Post-show, he will be signing books. Last few tickets: atgtickets.com/york.

Navigators Art & Performance’s poster for GUNA: Views and Voices of Women at The Basement

Navigators Art & Performance presents: GUNA: Live!, Views and Voices of Women, The Basement, City Screen Picturehouse, York, March 23, 7pm

TO complement Navigators Art & Performance’s City Screen exhibition for International Women’s Week, the York arts collective hosts an inspiring evening of music, spoken word and comedy that explores, celebrates and promotes the creativity of women and non-binary artists. 

The line-up of mostly York-based performers features poets Danae, Olivia Mulligan and Rose Drew; performance artist Carrieanne Vivianette; global songs and percussion from Soundsphere; original music from Suzy Bradley; comedy from Aimee Moon and a rousing appearance by multi-faceted York musician and artist Heather Findlay. Box office: bit.ly/nav-guna.

Lush stories: Miki Berenyi’s book, Fingers Crossed, under discussion at York Literature Festival

Book of the week: Miki Berenyi In Conversation: Fingers Crossed, York Literature Festival, The Crescent, York, March 24, 3pm

MIKI Berenyi, former lead singer, rhythm guitarist and founder member of London shoegaze/dream pop band Lush discusses her memoir, Fingers Crossed, and her career, recounting her experiences as a trailblazing woman fronting a seminal late-1980s group. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Livy Potter: Performing in Paul Birch’s Running Up That Hill in Yorkshire Trios at York Theatre Royal

York theatre event of the week: Yorkshire Trios, York Theatre Royal Studio, Tuesday and Wednesday, 7.45pm, both sold out

YORK company Next Door But One brings together York actors, writers and directors to produce original, short pieces of theatre, five to 15 minutes in length, on the theme of Top Of The Hill. Cue tales of motherhood, grief, love, war and even Kate Bush.

Badapple Theatre’s Kate Bramley and Connie Peel direct Nicola Holliday in Sarah Rumfitt’s Toast; Livy Potter performs Paul Birch’s Running Up That Hill under Harri Marshall’s direction; Jacob Ward directs Claire Morley in Yixia Jiang’s Outliving and Bailey Dowler appears in Jules Risingham’s Anorak, directed by Tempest Wisdom. Box office for returns only: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Curators Andrew Woods, left, Adam Parker and Emily North with Mesolithic remains of a wooden platform and materials used for fire-making in the Yorkshire Museum’s Star Carr exhibition. Picture: Anthony Chappel-Ross

Exhibition opening of the week: Star Carr: Life After The Ice, Yorkshire Museum, York; open Tuesday to Sunday, 10am to 5pm

EXCAVATED in the Vale of Pickering, the Star Carr archaeological site provides the first evidence in Great Britain of the beginnings of home, a place where people settled and built places to live.

The Yorkshire Museum’s interactive exhibition brings together artefacts from “the Mesolithic equivalent of Stonehenge” to give an insight into human life 11,000 years ago, a few hundred years after the last Ice Age, such as how they made fires. On display are objects from the Yorkshire Museum Collection, from antler headdresses and a decorated stone pendant to the world’s oldest complete hunting bow and the earliest evidence of carpentry from Europe. To book tickets, go to: yorkshiremuseum.org.uk.

Sam Hird: Singing Sondheim with Pick Me Up Theatre

Musical revue of the week: Pick Me Up Theatre in Sondheim We Remember, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, March 27 to 30, 7.30pm plus 2.30pm Saturday matinee

ROYAL College of Music student Sam Hird returns home to York to join his father Mark Hird in the Pick Me Up Theatre company for Sondheim We Remember’s selection of music from Stephen Sondheim’s Broadway shows, film scores and television specials.

Taking part too in this celebration of the New York composer and lyricist will be show director Helen ‘Bells’ Spencer, Susannah Baines, Emma Louise Dickinson, Alexandra Mather, Florence Poskitt, Andrew Roberts, Nick Sephton, Catherine Foster and Matthew Warry. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

The National Trust’s guide to Easter activties, egg hunts et al, at Nunnington Hall

Easter Egg Hunt of the fortnight: Nunnington Hall, Nunnington, near Helmsley, today until April 7, 10.30am to 5pm; last entry, 4.15pm.

FAMILIES can enjoy a fun-packed visit to the National Trust property of Nunnington Hall throughout the Easter school holiday, when children can take part in an Easter egg hunt trail around the freshly mown garden, with activities to be completed such as an egg and spoon race, archery and boules, before receiving their egg.

Children can enjoy drawing and painting in the creative hub; take part in seed planting in the cutting garden; explore the Lion’s Den play area, with its obstacle course, rope bridge and climbing frame; learn about composting and spend time in the bird-watching area. On March 31 and April 1, additional garden activities include races on the main lawn and bird-feeder making. Tickets: nationaltrust.org.uk/nunnington-hall.

Wet Wet Wet and special guest Heather Small: Teaming up at York Barbican in 2025

York gig announcement of the week: Wet Wet Wet & Heather Small, York Barbican, October 13 2025

WHEN Wet Wet Wet headlined a festival in Dubai, who should they bump into but Heather Small, the big voice of M People. She duly accepted their invitation to be the special guest at all dates on their 2025 tour.

Wet Wet Wet will be returning to York Barbican after their January 31 2024 double bill with Go West on the Best Of Both Worlds Tour. In the line-up will be founding member and bassist Graeme Clark, long-standing guitarist Graeme Duffin and singer Kevin Simm, The Voice UK winner and former Liberty X member, who joined the Scottish group in 2018. Tickets: axs.com.york.

In Focus: Children’s show, Millennium Entertainment International in There’s A Monster In Your Show, York Theatre Royal, March 26 to 28, 1.30pm and 4pm

There’s A Monster In Your Show composer Tom Fletcher with his children, Buzz, Buddy and Max, and a monster puppet

THE Easter holiday festivities at York Theatre Royal kick off with Tom Fletcher’s new family musical There’s A Monster In Your Show.

Based on Fletcher and Greg Abbot’s Who’s In Your Book? picture-book series for Puffin, the 50-minute performance for three-year-olds and upwards is billed as an “interactive, high-energy adventure for big imaginations” that leaps from page to stage with the aid of lively original music

Adapted for the stage by Zoe Bourn and directed by Miranda Larson, the show features new music by McFly band member Fletcher and Barry Bignold. Expect playful fun aplenty for your littlest ones as their favourite characters come to life in a performance packed with interactive moments to enjoy together.

In the story, performers are preparing to start their show but quickly discover they are not alone on stage. Little Monster wants to be part of the fun too, promptly extending an invitation to his friends Dragon, Alien and Unicorn to join him. Cue comedy and chaos as they help to create a magical show, learning about the joy of books and friendship along the way.

Fletcher says: “I’m so excited to see There’s A Monster In Your Book come to life on stage. The whole journey is incredibly exciting. Theatre is such an important way to introduce children to the arts and There’s A Monster In Your Show is the perfect first theatre trip for pre-schoolers and their families. I’m so looking forward to seeing their reactions first hand.”

The 1.30pm show on March 28 will be a Relaxed Performance that aims to reduce anxiety around theatre visits to help everyone have an enjoyable time. All are welcome, but especially people with sensory or communication difficulties or a learning disability. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Ben Murrell and Gil Sidaway in There’s A Monster In Your Show. Picture: Pamela Raith
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More Things To Do in York and beyond with plenty of Bull and no bull. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 12 for 2024, from The Press, York

Bass player Kai West’s poster for Bull’s two-day album launch for Engines Of Honey at The Crescent

COMEDY legends and Arthurian tales, Welsh rock firebrands and a bullish album launch, an Italian dance champion and spa town illuminations have Charles Hutchinson reaching for his diary.

York album launch of the week: Bull at The Crescent, March 22 and 23, 7.30pm

BULL, York’s “finest purveyors of jangling indie joy”, launch second album Engines Of Honey with a brace of home-city shows, supported by FEET and Vehicle on Friday, then Fat Spatula and Eugene Gorgeous on Saturday.

Vocalist/songwriter Tom Beer, guitarist Dan Lucas, drummer Tom Gabbatiss, keyboard player Holly Beer and bassist Kai West promise entirely different sets for each night with no repeats. What’s more, they are making a day of it on the Saturday with a free daytime jamboree from 2pm, featuring an art fair, Ben Crosthwaite’s music quiz, bingo with Jade Blood, Bull’s homemade curry and a memoraBullia exhibition, plus post-gig DJs. Box office: thecrescentyork.com.

Rolling out a barrel of laughs: Al Murray at Grand Opera House, York

Comedy at the treble at Grand Opera House, York: Al Murray, Guv Island, Sunday, 7.30pm; An Evening With The Fast Show, Tuesday, 7.30pm; Frank Skinner, 30 Years Of Dirt, Thursday, 7.30pm.

STANDING up so you don’t have to take it lying it down anymore, Al Murray, the Pub Landlord, is back “to make sense of the questions you probably already had the answers to” in Guv Island.

An Evening With The Fast Show sold out suitably fast. Original cast members Simon Day, Charlie Higson, John Thomson, Paul Whitehouse, Mark Williams and Arabella Weir mark their 30th anniversary with behind-the-scenes insights into their television characters and catchphrases, recreating favourite moments too. Two nights later, Brummie comedian and TV and radio presenter Frank Skinner reflects on his own 30-year landmark. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Fast talking: An Evening With The Fast Show at Grand Opera House, York, on Tuesday

Please Please You presents: C Duncan, Rise at Bluebird Bakery, Acomb, York, Wednesday, 7.30pm

THE son of two classical musicians, Royal Conservatoire of Scotland-trained multi-instrumentalist and singer-songwriter C Duncan – ‘C’ stands for Christopher – plays solo at Rise.

The Glaswegian musician will be performing songs from his four albums: 2015’s Mercury Prize-nominated Architect, 2016’s The Midnight Sun, 2019’s Health and 2022’s Alluvium, recorded at his home studio at Helensburgh. He is an artist too, painting all the artwork for his Bella Union releases. Box office: bluebirdbakery.co.uk/rise.

Feeder’s poster for their Black/Red tour, visiting York Barbican on Tuesday

Welsh invaders of the week: Feeder, supported by Girlband!, York Barbican, Tuesday, 8pm

ANTHEMIC Newport rock band Feeder mark their 30th anniversary with a spring tour and the April 5 release of a new studio double album, Black/Red, on Big Teeth Music.

Accruing seven million record sales, Grant Nicholas and Take Hirose’s group chalked up 20 Top 40 hits from 1997’s High to 2008’s We Are The People, and the likes of Just The Way I’m Feeling, Buck Rogers, Feeling A Moment, Tumble And Fall, Just A Day, Fear Of Flying and Lost And Found surely will feature in their set. Leeds Brudenell Social Club awaits on April 7 at 8pm. Box office: York, yorkbarbican.co.uk; Leeds, brudenellsocialclub.co.uk.

Leigh Francis: Leeds comedian heads to York on My First Time tour

Yorkshire comedian of the week: Leigh Francis, My First Time, York Barbican, Wednesday, 7.45pm

LEEDS comedian, radio presenter and Bo’ Selecta! sketch show regular Leigh Francis is the scabrous, scatological, sometimes rubber-faced humorist behind the characters Keith Lemon, The Bear, Avid Merrion and Amanda Holden’s ‘gran’, Myrtle, along with celebrity impressions of David Dickinson, Ant and Dec and Louis Theroux.

All feature in Francis’s debut venture into the live environment in a tour show that combines sketches with buckets of audience interaction. “Come see me being other people live for the first time!” he says. Also playing Hull City Hall, March 22; Leeds Grand Theatre, April 6. Box office: York, yorkbarbican.co.uk; Hull, hulltheatres.co.uk; Leeds, leedsheritagetheatres.com.

Giovanni Pernice: Let him entertain you at York Barbican

Dance show of the week: Giovanni Pernice, Let Me Entertain You, York Barbican, Thursday 7.30pm

GIOVANNI Pernice, the Sicilian dancer from Strictly Come Dancing and BAFTA winner, returns to York Barbican on his 2024 tour, Let Me Entertain You.

Pernice, dancer, performer, showman and Guinness World Record holder for jive kicks and flick to boot, will be joined by fellow professional dancers and West End performers in a show of non-stop action. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk. 

Le Navet Bete: History in the re-making in King Arthur at York Theatre Royal

Legend of the week: Le Navet Bete in King Arthur, York Theatre Royal, Thursday to Saturday, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee

AFTER Treasure Island and Dracula: The Bloody Truth, Le Navet Bete head back to York Theatre Royal for a retelling of the Arthurian legend, King Arthur, in their inimitable comedic style. Camelot is in trouble, and Arthur knows that if he fails to turn things around, this civilisation will be forgotten and be known as nothing more than a rather dull time in British history.

When three hapless squires approach him about changing that legacy, however, a legend is born in a new comedy for the ages, suitable for the whole family. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Jamie Cullum: All that jazz at York Barbican in November. Picture: Charles Gall

York gig announcement of the week: Jamie Cullum, York Barbican, November 12

DID you know that Jamie Cullum failed his Grade 4 piano exam and can barely read music? Nevertheless, the Rochford-born pianist, now 44, became the biggest-selling British jazz musician of all time. This autumn he will play 14 British dates, visiting York as his only Yorkshire destination. Tickets will go on sale on March 22 at 10am at axs.com/york.

In Focus: BEAM Light Festival, Harrogate, today, dusk (6.30pm) to 10pm

James Bawn’s light installation at the Cenotaph war memorial in Harrogate for the BEAM Light Festival. Picture: Charlotte Graham

COMMISSIONED by Harrogate International Festivals, Element 3 Design is illuminating Harrogate town centre with a light installation trail of spa-town locations, landmarks and green spaces, some iconic, others unexpected, ten in total.

Visitors and locals alike will see Harrogate in a completely different light in this new festival, as James Bawn follows up his 2019 light show by using lighting beams, projections and soundscapes to animate the likes of the Cenotaph and Crescent Gardens, while Valley Gardens trees will be lit with dancing twinkling lights. No need to book, just show up!

Supported by Future 50, North Yorkshire Council, Visit North Yorkshire and Harrogate Business Improvement District (BID), the Beam Light Festival festival is free: no need to book, just show up!

Business owners and the Harrogate community are encouraged to create their own lights for display in their windows to enhance the trail.

Beam follows on from such Harrogate large-scale outdoor events as the Fire Garden and the post-pandemicFire & Light Festival. Matthew Chapman, Harrogate BID manager, says: “Harrogate BID are thrilled to continue our close partnership with Harrogate International Festivals and Beam will be another fantastic occasion to celebrate this further.

“With anticipated increased footfall and spend for our members, a new and unique Harrogate experience delivering our objective of a ‘Vibrant Town’, we cannot wait to see Beam come to fruition and really put Harrogate on the map.”

Councillor Simon Myers, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for culture, arts and housing, says: “Beam demonstrates the importance of free-to-attend events to animate our communities and ensure access to the arts for the widest possible audiences.

“Large events like this are an opportunity to celebrate the spaces which we live and work in and enjoy, and Beam is sure to present the town in a brand new light.”

Fiona Movley, chair of the Future 50 Appeal, says: “Harrogate International Festivals’ Future 50 Appeal was created to ensure the widest possible access to the arts for our community, and to develop artists of the future. We are excited to light up our town and shine a light on the creative talent we have in our region.”

The ten locations for the BEAM Light Fesival


1. Valley Gardens

WORKING with sound artist Dan Fox, the Elgar Walk within the Valley Gardens will be transformed with a Glittering Grove. Thousands of specks of light dance across trees and paths creating a sparkling path as you head towards the sculpture that will have a single light beam hitting the clouds above.

2. Crescent Gardens

USING searchlights to cast patterns across the sky, the lights and soundscape will create a magical spectacle. At the heart of the installation is the iconic Cupid and Psyche statue from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, which brings the timeless tale of love and transformation to life.

3. Picture Frame/Montpellier Hill

SEE yourself in a different light as the Picture Frame is picked out in different colours to accentuate the design. Strike a pose!

4. Cenotaph & Field of Light

THE Cenotaph war memorial will be illuminated with narrow beams of light to make a solemn and dignified artwork paying tribute to the sacrifices of those who served.

A field of light created by solar jars will glow in the darkness. As the sun sets and the jars come to life, the area will be transformed into a magical sea of twinkling lights.

5. St Peter’s Church

SUBTLE lighting to highlight the beautiful architecture will provide a serene and contemplative atmosphere for visitors to reflect and find solace in this tranquil space among the illuminated surroundings.

6. Jubilee Memorial

SEE Queen Victoria bathed in colour to accentuate the architecture of this memorial commemorating the 1887 Golden Jubilee of Queen Victoria.

7. Victoria Shopping Centre

A DYNAMIC lighting design, complemented by a carefully curated soundscape, will elevate the architecture of this building inspired by the work of Palladio in Italy 450 years ago.

8. The Exchange Building

THE central stairwell of The Exchange will be illuminated to be seen from miles around. Searchlights on the roof will cast beams of light into the night sky, further accentuating the impact the building has had on the townscape.

9. Library Gardens & Library

THE Library Gardens will be lit carefully, playing with light and shadow, whilst the Carnegie Library will tell stories through light projection on the front of the building.

10. Cedar Court Hotel

A COLOURFUL animated light will wash the building in colour, illuminating the beautiful architecture.

Lit up in words: James Bawn’s Harrogate 1571 sculpture, created in 2019 and now part of the BEAM festival. Picture: Celestine Dubruel
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More Things To Do in Ryedale, York and beyond as legends abound. Here’s Hutch’s List No. 6, from the Gazette & Herald

History with a comical twist: Le Navet Bete in King Arthur at York Theatre Royal

COMEDY legends and Arthurian tales, Welsh rock firebrands and an Italian dance champion, a Scottish folk queen and a school talent troop have Charles Hutchinson reaching for his diary.

Legend of the week: Le Navet Bete in King Arthur, York Theatre Royal, March 21 to 23, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee

AFTER Treasure Island and Dracula: The Bloody Truth, Le Navet Bete head back to York Theatre Royal for a retelling of the Arthurian legend, King Arthur, in their inimitable comedic style. Camelot is in trouble, and Arthur knows that if he fails to turn things around, this civilisation will be forgotten and be known as nothing more than a rather dull time in British history.

When three hapless squires approach him about changing that legacy, however, a legend is born in a new comedy for the ages, suitable for the whole family. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

The poster for Feeder’s Black/Red Tour 2024, playing York and Leeds

York gig of the week: Feeder, supported by Girlband!, York Barbican, March 19, 8pm

ANTHEMIC Newport rock band Feeder mark their 30th anniversary with a spring tour and the April 5 release of a new studio double album, Black/Red, on Big Teeth Music.

Accruing seven million record sales, Grant Nicholas and Take Hirose’s group chalked up 20 Top 40 hits from 1997’s High to 2008’s We Are The People, and the likes of Just The Way I’m Feeling, Buck Rogers, Feeling A Moment, Tumble And Fall, Just A Day, Fear Of Flying and Lost And Found will surely feature in their set. Leeds Brudenell Social Club awaits on April 7 at 8pm. Box office: York, yorkbarbican.co.uk; Leeds, brudenellsocialclub.co.uk.

The Talent Troop from Welburn Hall School, performing at Helmsley Arts Centre tomorrow

Community show of the week: Welburn Hall presents The Talent Troop, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow (14/3/2024), 7pm

A SELECTION of students from Welburn Hall School, near York, takes to the stage once more for a variety performance. Prepare to be amazed by The Talent Troop in a fun-filled evening of music and dancing guaranteed to bring out the smiles. Look out for a fund-raising raffle and cake stall too. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.

The Pink’un: Vicky Jackson’s tribute show to an American pop icon at the Milton Rooms, Malton

Tribute show of the week: Vicky Jackson: Pink!, Milton Rooms, Malton, Friday, 8pm

VICKY Jackson has been wowing audiences with her energetic portrayal of Pink, the Grammy-winning singer and songwriter from Doylestown, Pennsylvania, for more than a decade.

In bespoke costumes and accompanied by her five-piece touring band, Jackson presents all of Pink’s major hits from her 24-year career. Box office: 01653 696240 or themiltonrooms.com.

Roll out the barrel of laughs: Al Murray, the Pub Landlord, at Grand Opera House, York

Comedy at the treble at the Grand Opera House, York: Al Murray, Guv Island, Sunday, 7.30pm; An Evening With The Fast Show, March 19, 7.30pm; Frank Skinner, 30 Years Of Dirt, March 21, 7.30pm.

STANDING up so you don’t have to take it lying it down anymore, Al Murray, the Pub Landlord, is back “to make sense of the questions you probably already had the answers to” in Guv Island.

An Evening With The Fast Show sold out suitably fast. Original cast members Simon Day, Charlie Higson, John Thomson, Paul Whitehouse, Mark Williams and Arabella Weir mark their 30th anniversary with behind-the-scenes insights into their television characters and catchphrases, recreating favourite moments too. Two nights later, Brummie comedian and TV and radio presenter Frank Skinner reflects on his own 30-year landmark. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.  

Beneath The Layers: A work by Anne-Marie Magson from her Helmsley Arts Centre exhibition

Exhibition of the week: Anna-Marie Magson, Beneath The Layers, Helmsley Arts Centre, until May 3

FROM her home studio in York, Anna-Marie Magson creates ceramics and artworks. Trained in fine art painting at Liverpool College of Art, she worked initially with clay, exploring surface decoration and textured pattern on tiles and panels.

Latterly, she has returned her focus to two-dimensional work, expanding her practice to encompass abstract collages, printmaking and painting to reflect her long-standing love of printed textiles and quilt designs and mid-20th century art.

The poster for Leigh Francis’s debut tour, My First Time

Yorkshire comedian of the week: Leigh Francis, My First Time, York Barbican, March 20, 7.45pm

LEEDS comedian, radio presenter and Bo’ Selecta! sketch show regular Leigh Francis is the scabrous, scatological, sometimes rubber-faced humorist behind the characters Keith Lemon, The Bear, Avid Merrion and Amanda Holden’s ‘gran’, Myrtle, along with celebrity impressions of David Dickinson, Ant and Dec and Louis Theroux.

All feature in Francis’s debut venture into the live environment in a tour show that combines sketches with buckets of audience interaction. “Come see me being other people live for the first time!” he says. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Giovanni Pernice: Let him entertain you at York Barbican

Dance show of the week: Giovanni Pernice, Let Me Entertain You, York Barbican, March 21, 7.30pm

GIOVANNI Pernice, the Sicilian dancer from Strictly Come Dancing and BAFTA winner, returns to York Barbican on his 2024 tour, Let Me Entertain You.

Pernice, dancer, performer, showman and Guinness World Record holder for jive kicks and flick to boot, will be joined by fellow professional dancers and West End performers in a show of non-stop action. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk. 

Barbara Dickson: All Saints Church autumn concert with Nick Holland in Pocklington

Gig announcement of the week: Barbara Dickson & Nick Holland, All Saints Church, Pocklington, October 4, 7.30pm

IN this special acoustic performance, Scottish folk singer Barbara Dickson and her pianist Nick Holland will explore her catalogue of songs in the intimate and historic setting of All Saints Church.

The pair let the words and melodies take centre stage as they perform material drawing on Dickson’s folk roots, contemporary greats and her classic hits, Answer Me, Another Suitcase In Another Hall, Caravan and I Know Him So Well. Box office: barbaradickson.net.

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Happy days ahead as Henry Winkler discusses The Fonz and beyond in 50 years on Hollywood at Grand Opera House show

AAAYYY! Happy Days legend Henry Winkler will mark his 50th anniversary in Hollywood by sharing stories of his life in The Fonz And Beyond at the Grand Opera House, York, on June 23.

Told he would never achieve, the Emmy award-winning actor, author, director and producer is treading the boards with his heartwarming story of success to celebrate his memoir, Being Henry.

Launched into stardom as The Fonz in the American sitcom Happy Days, Winkler has transcended the role that defined a generation of cool. In the enduring glow of that fame, he has endeared himself to new generations of fans with roles in shows such as Arrested Development, Parks And Recreation and Barry.

In a show billed as “dynamic, vivid, hilarious and emotional”, Henry will travel from the achingly vulnerable lows to the stratospheres of global acclaim (chiefly his appearance at the 1976 Logie Awards); from the disheartening truth of an upbringing with undiagnosed dyslexia, to the pressures of a role that takes on a life of its own – and the path forward once your wildest dream seems behind you.

In store too will be a story about his dogs and a live question-and-answer session with the audience. Tickets for the 7.30pm show are on sale at atgtickets.com/york.

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More Things To Do in York and beyond from March 9 onwards. Hutch plays his cards for List No. 11 for 2024, from The Press

2023 Strictly champ Ellie Leach’s Miss Scarlett, front right, with her fellow colourful characters in the new whodunit comedy Cluedo 2, on tour at York Theatre Royal. Picture: Alastair Muir

A WHODUNIT comedy, mischievous theatre as a team game, a wicked return, cocktail-bar tales, political satire and one-liners and a very muddy pig are Charles Hutchinson’s clues to the best upcoming shows.

Whodunit, with what and where, of the week: Cluedo 2, York Theatre Royal, March 12 to 16, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees

STRICTLY Come Dancing 2023 champion and Coronation Street star Ellie Leach is making her stage acting debut as Miss Scarlett in the world premiere British tour of Cluedo 2, marking the 75th anniversary of the Hasbro boardgame. Next stop, York.

This follow-up to the original play (based on Jonathan Lynn’s 1985 film Clue) is an original comedy whodunit, set in the Swinging Sixties, with a script by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran (Birds Of A Feather, Goodnight Sweetheart and Dreamboats And Petticoats) and direction by Mark Bell (Mischief Theatre’s The Play That Goes Wrong). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Ash Hunter’s Macbeth and Jessica Baglow’s Lady Macbeth in Amy Leach’s revival of Macbeth at Leeds Playhouse. Picture: Kirsten McTernan

Something wicked this way comes…again: Macbeth, Leeds Playhouse, until March 23

AMY Leach reactivates her 2022 Leeds Playhouse production of Shakespeare’s Macbeth with a wickedly good cast, now led by Ash Hunter, who returns to Yorkshire after his terrific Heathcliff in Emma Rice’s Wuthering Heights at York Theatre Royal.

“Macbeth investigates the nature of belief, love, ambition and desire, asking us to root for two humans who drive each other to do utterly terrible things,” says Leach. Box office: 0113 213 7700 or leedsplayhouse.org.uk.   

Let the games begin: Gemma Curry, left, Claire Morley and Becky Lennon in Hoglets Theatre’s A Midsummer Night’s Mischief at York Theatre Royal Studio

Shakespeare shake-up of the week: Hoglets Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Mischief, York Theatre Royal Studio, March 9, 10.30am

EVERYTHING is kicking off as the fairies in the forest start a fight, but which side will you be on? Team Titania or Team Oberon? York company Hoglets Theatre presents an interactive, fun, larger-than-life production for young children, based on Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Expect wild characters, raucous singalong songs, puppets, stunts and some frankly ridiculous disco dancing from director/writer Gemma Curry and fellow cast members Claire Morley and Becky Lennon. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Comedian Matt Green: “Trying to make sense of the world”. Picture: Karla Gowlett

Political satire of the week: Matt Green: That Guy, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, March 10, 8pm

THE debut national tour by That Guy (@mattgreencomedy) is a stand-up show full of jokes both political and non-political after he achieved millions of views for his online satirical videos launched in lockdown.

Green is touring his first show “since the madness of Covid/Johnson/Truss/Lord-knows-what-else began”, trying to make sense of the world in another year of elections and culture wars. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Jake Bugg: Playing our city on his Your Town Tour

Singer-songwriter of the week: Jake Bugg, Your Town Tour 2024, York Barbican, Tuesday, doors 7pm

ON his 15-date tour, Nottingham singer-songwriter Jake Bugg is performing two sets per night, first acoustic, then electric, as he rattles through his biggest hits, plus songs from 2021’s top three-charting Saturday Night Sunday Morning.

Two nights earlier, founder member Graham Gouldman leads art pop and soft rock innovators 10cc on their Ultimate Ultimate Greatest Hits Tour 2024 at 7.30pm. Ticket availability is limited. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.

Peppa Pig’s Fun Day Out: Songs, muddy puddles and snorts at the Grand Opera House

Children’s show of the week: Peppa Pig’s Fun Day Out, Grand Opera House, York, Wednesday, 1pm and 4pm, and Thursday, 10am and 1pm

PEPPA Pig is joined by her family and friends as they head to the zoo and the beach for a special party, with the promise of a fun-packed day. Prepare to sing with colourful scarecrows, feed the penguins, build big sandcastles and even swim in the sea in a show packed with songs, dancing, muddy puddles, giggles and snorts. Box office: atgtickets.com/york.

Facing the shift from hell in the worst bar in town: Sophie Bullivant, Abi Carter, Holly Smith and Laura Castle in Rowntree Players’ Shakers

Comedy play of the week: Rowntree Players in Shakers, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, March 14 to 16, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee

WELCOME to Shakers, the worst bar in town where everyone wants to be seen. Carol, Adele, Niki and Mel face the shift from hell. The lights are neon, the music is loud, and shoes must be smart. No trainers.

Jane Thornton and John Godber’s 1984 comedy exposes the sticky-floored world behind the bar on a busy Saturday night. Here come the girls, the lads, the yuppies and the luvvies, all played by Sophie Bullivant, Laura Castle, Abi Carter and Holly Smith under the direction of Jamie McKeller, who worked previously with Bullivant and Castle on Godber’s Teechers in 2023. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Rebecca Vaughan in Dyad Productions’ Austen’s Women: Lady Susan, scheming at Theatre@41 for two days

Solo show of the week: Dyad Productions in Austen’s Women: Lady Susan, Theatre@41, Monkgate, York, March 15, 7.30pm and March 16, 2.30pm

FROM the creators of I, Elizabeth, Female Gothic, Christmas Gothic and A Room Of One’s Own comes a new Austen’s Women show, based on Jane Austen’s first full-length work from 1794, performed by Rebecca Vaughan.

Created entirely from letters, this one features the devil-may-care Lady Susan, the coquettish, scheming black widow, hunting down not one, but two, fortunes. Then add oppressed, rebellious daughter Frederica; long-suffering sister-in-law Catherine; family matriarch Mrs De Courcy and insouciant best friend Alicia in this darkly comic tale of Georgian society and the women trapped within it. Box office: tickets.41monkgate.co.uk.

Shock in shirts: Comedian Milton Jones will be displaying his sartorial eloquence in his Ha!Milton tour show

Gig announcement of the week: Milton Jones, Ha!Milton, Grand Opera House, York, September 7; Sheffield, City Hall, December 4; King’s Hall, Ilkley, December 8

MILTON Jones, the shock-haired master of the one-liner, will take his 2024 tour, Ha!Milton, on the road from September 3 to December 15. “This is not a musical,” says Jones, in a nod to the title.

“I am tone deaf and have no sense of rhythm, but at least I don’t make a song and dance about it. This is a whole new show of daftness. You know it makes sense.” Topics will include giraffes…“and there’s a bit about tomatoes”. Box office: miltonjones.com; York, atgtickets.com/york; Sheffield, sheffieldcityhall.co.uk; Ilkley, bradford-theatres.co.uk.

In Focus: Navigators Art & Performance, GUNA: Views and Voices of Women, City Screen Picturehouse, York


Collaborative banner by Navigators Art workshop group, including first-time artists, for York International Women’s Week 2024

YORK collective Navigators Art & Performance presents GUNA: Views and Voices of Women, at City Screen Picturehouse, Coney Street, York, from March 10 to April 5.

Run in association with York International Women’s Week 2024, this exhibition explores and celebrates the creativity of women and non-binary artists.

On show in the cafe and the upstairs gallery is an array of paintings, textiles, collages, photographs and more by 20 emerging and established York makers, curated by York artist Katie Lewis.

Navigators Art & Performance’s poster for GUNA: Views and Voices of Women


“Women have used textiles as an art form to tell their stories and express views for centuries,” says Katie. “Many of the artists are using recycled fabrics that give further meaning to their work.”

The official launch night event on March 11 offers the chance to meet the artists over a complimentary drink from 6pm.  All are welcome, with no need to book; more details at  https://www.facebook.com/events/6804352783003925

The exhibition is free to enter every day during cinema hours. City Screen is fully accessible.

Suffragette City, by Katie Lewis

NAVIGATORS Art & Performance will co-host GUNA: An Evening of Music, Spoken Word, Performance Art and Comedy to complement the exhibition and further celebrate the creativity of women and non-binary artists in The Basement at City Screen on March 23 from 7pm to 10.45pm.

GUNA is a version of the ancient Greek word for ‘woman’, leading to a line-up of
poets Danae, Olivia Mulligan and Rose Drew; performance artist Carrieanne Vivianette; global songs and percussion from Soundsphere; original music from Suzy Bradley; comedy from Aimee Moon; and a rousing appearance by the multi-faceted singer, author and artist Heather Findlay.

“The venue is small and our shows often sell out, so book soon,” advises Navigators’ organiser, Richard Kitchen. Full details and TicketSource booking are available at https://bit.ly/nav-guna

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More Things To Do in Ryedale, York and beyond. Food for thought in Hutch’s taste-filled List No. 5, from Gazette & Herald

Ellie Leach: Strictly 2023 champ is making her stage acting debut in the British tour of the comedy whodunit Cluedo 2, on tour at York Theatre Royal next week

REVOLUTIONARY teens, rabbit cartoon tributes, mischievous theatre as a team game, food stalls, a whodunit comedy and cocktail-bar waitress tales whet Charles Hutchinson’s appetite.  

Whodunit, with what and where, of the week: Cluedo 2, York Theatre Royal, March 12 to 16, 7.30pm plus 2pm Thursday and 2.30pm Saturday matinees

STRICTLY Come Dancing 2023 champion and Coronation Street star Ellie Leach is making her stage acting debut as Miss Scarlett in the world premiere British tour of Cluedo 2, marking the 75th anniversary of the Hasbro boardgame. Next stop, York.

This follow-up to the original play (based on Jonathan Lynn’s 1985 film Clue) is an original comedy whodunit, set in the Swinging Sixties, with a script by Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran (Birds Of A Feather, Goodnight Sweetheart and Dreamboats And Petticoats) and direction by Mark Bell (from Mischief Theatre’s The Play That Goes Wrong and A Comedy About A Bank Robbery). Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

1812 Youth Theatre’s poster for this week’s run of Jmes Fritz’s Start Swimming

Young performers of the week: 1812 Youth Theatre in Start Swimming, Helmsley Arts Centre, tomorrow to Saturday, 7.30pm

HELMSLEY’S 1812 Theatre Company presents Start Swimming, a play about occupation, revolution and what the future holds for today’s youth. One step away from disaster, there is only one option left: start swimming.

First staged by the Young Vic Taking Part department, James Fritz’s play was performed at the 2017 Edinburgh Fringe too. Suitable for age 12+. Box office: 01439 771700 or helmsleyarts.co.uk.  

Terry Brett with his Good Rabbits Gone banner for display outside Pyramid Gallery at his book-signing charity event on Friday evening

Book signing of the week: Terry Brett’s Good Rabbits Gone Volume Three, Pyramid Gallery, Stonegate, York, Friday, 5.30pm to 7pm

YORK gallery curator Terry Brett marks the publication of his third volume of cartoon rabbit tributes to celebrities and remarkable individuals at a charity event at Pyramid Gallery, York. Copies are given away but voluntary donations are encouraged in aid of St Leonard’s Hospice, in memory of Terry’s father, who died of prostate cancer.

Terry, who draws the cartoons under the artist alias of Bertt deBaldock, will be on hand to sign copies outside the gallery, with the books displayed on a table. Inside, visitors can enjoy a glass of wine and buy the original drawings.

Hoglets Theatre’s Gemma Curry, left, Claire Morley and Becky Lennon in A Midsummer Night’s Mischief at York Theatre Royal Studio

Children’s show of the week: Hoglets Theatre in A Midsummer Night’s Mischief, York Theatre Royal Studio, Friday, 4.30pm and Saturday, 10.30am

EVERYTHING is kicking off as the fairies in the forest start a fight, but which side will you be on? Team Titania or Team Oberon? York company Hoglets Theatre presents an interactive, fun, larger-than-life production for young children (ideally aged two to nine, but everyone is welcome), based on Shakespeare’s comedy A Midsummer Night’s Dream.

Expect wild characters, raucous singalong songs, puppets, stunts and some frankly ridiculous disco dancing from director/writer Gemma Curry and fellow cast members Claire Morley and Becky Lennon. Box office: 01904 623568 or yorktheatreroyal.co.uk.

Malton Food Market stalls. Picture: visitmalton.com

Feelgood event of the week: Malton Food Market, Malton, Saturday, 9am to 3pm

THE monthly Malton Food Market returns for the 2024 season this weekend with specialist stalls, street food, live music and “bags of foodie fun”, set against the backdrop of St Michael’s Church.

Billed as “popular with all those who care about where their food is sourced”, the market will be held on April 3, May 11, June 8, July 13, August 10, September 14 and November 9 with free admission.  Malton’s Harvest Food Festival will take place on October 5 and 6; Malton Christmas Festival, December 7 and 8. For two hours of free parking, go to: visitmalton.com/plan-your-visit.

Lazy Sunday Sessions at the Milton Rooms, Malton

Talent initiative: Lazy Sunday Sessions, Milton Rooms, Malton, March 17 and April 14, 3pm to 6pm

THE Milton Rooms has launched an initiative in the updated bar area to promote upcoming Ryedale musicians and find the next generation of performers. After George Rowell and Maggie Wakeling featured in the first session last month, Patrick Robertson and Friends plus Nick Thompson have been booked for a special Irish jam session on St Patrick’s Day, March 17, followed by Phil Hooley and Abbey Follansbee on April 14. Entry is free; a small fee is paid to musicians and audience members can show their appreciation in a tip bucket.

In addition, on the last Sunday of each month, a 3pm to 6pm Open Mic session has been launched, designed to give anyone a chance to bring their own instrument and show off their musical skills. Entry is free; the PA system and microphones are provided.

Rowntree Players’ Sophie Bullivant, Abi Carter, Holly Smith and Laura Castle in Jane Thornton and John Godber’s Shakers at the JoRo Theatre

Comedy play of the week: Rowntree Players in Shakers, Joseph Rowntree Theatre, York, March 14 to 16, 7.30pm and 2.30pm Saturday matinee

WELCOME to Shakers, the worst bar in town where everyone wants to be seen. Carol, Adele, Niki and Mel are about to work the shift from hell! The lights are neon, the music is loud, and shoes must be smart only. No trainers.

Jane Thornton and John Godber’s 1984 comedy exposes the sticky-floored world behind the bar on a busy Saturday night. Here come the girls, the lads, the yuppies and the luvvies, all played by Sophie Bullivant, Laura Castle, Abi Carter and Holly Smith under the direction of Jamie McKeller, who worked previously with Bullivant and Castle on Godber’s Teechers in 2022. Box office: 01904 501935 or josephrowntreetheatre.co.uk.

Boyzlife’s Keith Duffy, left, and Brian McFadden: Heading to York Barbican next February

Gig announcement of the week: Boyzlife, York Barbican, February 1 2025

BOYZLIFE, the supergroup duo of Boyzone’s Keith Duffy and Westlife’s Brian McFadden, will return to York Barbican on their 14-date tour in 2025. The Irishmen will combine hits from both bands, such as Boyzone’s I Love The Way You Love Me, All That I Need and No Matter What and Westlife’s My Love, I Lay My Love On You and Uptown Girl. Tickets go on sale on Friday at 10am at ticketmaster.co.uk.