From Cabaret to Klezmer
£12.50 advance, includes light supper
Do you want to know more about Oswestry? Hear about our history as you wander around the town with one of our local guides, listen to myths and legends as you stroll through the parks and alleyways of our border market town – then come on a guided tour.
Large selection of rum & gin from all over the world
Following the outstanding success of 2018….the 2019 Oswestry Colour Run is back!
Sunday 30th June 2019
– Follow us on TWITTER @OsColourRun for the latest updates!!
– Like the British Ironwork Centre Facebook page too!
Get ready for the happiest 3K you’ll ever walk, dance or run. Can you help us make this years event even more of a success. Last year we raised over £14,500 to support Macmillan’s work in Shropshire.
The colour run is designed to be a happy, enjoyable day for all ages. It celebrates healthiness, happiness, individuality, and giving back to the community while experiencing the uniqueness of the British Ironwork Centre. The Colour Run is a three-kilometre, un-timed race in which participants are doused from head to toe in different colours from various paint stations around the course.
A great opportunity to visit the British Ironwork Centre with all the family with refreshments available on the day.
Antiques and collectibles fair, we hold it the last Sunday of every month. Cambrian House Emporium Oswestry.
One of the most fun and rewarding events you’ll ever do, created for anyone of any fitness level to participate in walk, jog or run it’s fun for the whole family plus it’s all in aid of Macmillan.
More information to follow.
The House of The Black Star present a 1940’s themed day at the Castle. Browse their stalls, play the traditional games and learn about rations and life on the Home Front.
N-Ex-T (New Experimental Tones)! For this collection of concerts we have drawn inspiration from the underground scene and publications such as The Wire. N-Ex-T explores the adventurous nature of live performance through the mediums of composition, improvisation, motion, sound manipulation as well as the abstract visual and avant-garde. This month we have…
Possibly the wildest ride you’ll experience at Hermon Chapel for some time, Croatian-based didgeridoo musician and composer Dubravko Lapaine is one of the most revered didgeridoo performers in the world.
He is a genuine avant-garde perfomer, who has devoted hos life to strict technical training and uncompromising search for the pinpoint precision of sound to take you on a journey far beyond your known reference – where his mastery of breath collides with a humble hollow tube and transforms it into an expressive organic synth and explosive drum machine.
It is really with the live stage performance that Du’s devotion to music comes to full expression. During his intense musical performances wrapped up with spoken stories of abstract but poetic worlds, the audience is invited to take a step out of the ordinary and float into the vast spaces of inner cosmic freedom full of deep echoes and images. Light contrasts with shade, raw, fast and tight counterpoints melodic and subtle, and all combines to create a unique multi-dimensional ride that will move body, mind and soul.
Support
Manchester-based Marc Constantine plays hang drum and guitar, using live looping and effects to share songs from the heart.
Every summer since 1947 Llangollen has staged one of the world’s most inspirational cultural festivals. Each year around 4,000 performers and as many as 50,000 visitors converge on this beautiful small Welsh town and its International Pavilion; to sing and dance in a unique combination of competition, performance, and international peace and friendship.
Starter and Main £25 per person – £5 deposit required upon booking
Headliner: Steve “Big Bear” Dodd
This self-deprecating, undeniably intelligent, cuddly, beautiful, highly sexual, self-promo writing beast has been performing for over 8 years now and is hot off his Nexus Festival headline closing spot.
If you love one liners and the temperament of Jack Dee, you’ll love the Big Bear and the complete lack of enthusiasm he’ll bring to the room.
Bring a stapler as sides will be split.
Supported by…
Gemma Roberts
Winner – Gregsons New Act 2018
Quarters – Amused Moose New Act 2018
Quarters – Leicester Square New Act 2018
“The audience loved Gemma. She is funny, relatable and engaging. She was far and away the deserved winner of the Gregsons New Act of the Year Competition…” – Gregsons Comedy Club
Ellie Pollard
At only 22 years old, Ellie is already addressing relatable issues to all ages. She approaches topics with a smile on her face, cutting through even the darkest of subjects. Her highly relatable song, ‘Family Dinner’ is a classic earworm.
“She has a really energetic and likeable stage presence which charms the crowd” – The Stand
David Eagle
One third of the amazing three-time BBC Radio 2 Folk Award winning band The Young’uns and multiple award winning comedian, David is undoubtably one of the hottest new talents in the country.
I’m amazed we’ve managed to book him to be honest so catch him while you can.
Bath Comedy Festival New Comedian Of The Year 2019
Nottingham Comedy Festival New Comedian Of The Year 2018
And introducing… Lovell Smith
Lovell is a brand new but highly recommended comedian who is already breaking on to pro line-ups.
Let’s give him some love and maybe one day, you can tell your friends that you saw him in a converted chapel on the edge of the Shropshire boundaries.
Hawkstone Park is bringing back Follies Festival, for a wonderful weekend of family entertainment on Friday 5th, Saturday 6th and Sunday 7th July 2019.Set against the breath-taking woodland landscape of caves, crags and cliffs, the stage will be set for comedy and music.
Friday will host a night of comedy, with Birmingham-based compere, James Cook as MC for the night. James joins the festivities after recent tour dates with Gary Delaney (Mock the Week, Live at the Apollo) and Paul Sinha (The Chase). Hawkstone are thrilled to have Mitch Benn headlining the line-up. He is one of the most sought-after acts on the comedy circuit, and widely acknowledged as one of the best writer/performers of comic songs in the country. Mitch is a regular writer and performer on The Now Show for BBC Radio 4, and It’s Been a Bad Week for BBC Radio 2. He also has the successful Radio 4 show Mitch Benn’s Crimes Against Music and presents The Mitch Benn Music Show on BBC Radio 7. As well as regularly appearing on television shows, including BBC1’s The One Show. Eddy Brimson completes the line-up. He has featured in several TV and radio shows, along with penning seven books. He has taken to the stage internationally from Norway to China, and was one of the first ever comics to perform in Myanmar. He is a regular at the Edinburgh Festival and is one of the most in demand acts on the UK comedy circuit. Prepare to laugh the night away!
The Saturday show is a must for lovers of musicals, with three acts all boasting west end credentials, sure to transport you to the heart of theatre land. ‘A Night at the Musicals’ features four of the West End’s leading vocalists, recreating the magic of all your favourite musicals. They will be performing songs from Les Misérables, Phantom of the Opera, Wicked, and many more. ‘The Spinettes’ are a trio of starlets set to bring some vintage glamour to the occasion. They will be sprinkling some retro sparkle on the event with their toe-tapping talent. ‘The West End Jerseys’ will be bringing the sounds of the 50’s and 60’s to life. Slick routines, tight harmonies and the unmistakable falsetto sound of Frankie Valli will fill the Follies, with all members of the group bringing their West End talent to the fore.
Sunday will a special day of family fun at the follies with standard admission prices applying. Tickets for the Friday and Saturday evening shows can be purchased from http://www.hawkstoneparkfollies.co.uk/tickets/
Paul Evans is one of Britain’s greatest observers of Nature, a poet, musician, Radio 4 natural history broadcaster, and the author of a new book How To See Nature. His weekly Guardian Country Diary from Wenlock Edge has achieved cult status and has put Shropshire on the map. He will be in conversation with legendary rock climber, wilderness writer, and fellow Country Diarist Jim Perrin whose observations of Snowdonia and north Wales and talks on the beauty and importance of wild places are famed for their insights. Expect a thought-provoking start to Oswestry’s first Festival of Nature.
Come along for an outdoor cinema experience, showing The Greatest Showman on the Green at Blists Hill Victorian Town.
Inspired by the imagination of P. T. Barnum, The Greatest Showman is an original musical that celebrates the birth of show-business & tells of a visionary who rose from nothing to create a spectacle that became a worldwide sensation. The film is rated PG, all children must be accompanied by an adult.
IMPORTANT: Spaces for the FULL DAY HAND DRUMS & PERCUSSION COURSE in March sold very fast, hence WE RECOMMEND BOOKING EARLY!
This day is a wonderful opportunity for newcomers as well as seasoned hand drum and percussion enthusiasts of all ages to work intensively on developing their understanding of rhythm and exercise their manual dexterity under the guidance of professional drummer and percussionist Rick Wilson.
Rick is an experienced tutor of many years, drawing from his extensive repertoire of Indian, African and South American rhythms, which he makes accessible in astonishingly creative ways whilst providing a joyful and focused learning experience.
The workshop is designed around aspects of percussion such as the sounds of the drum, hand and finger techniques, solid, basic timekeeping, body rhythms, spoken words as a basis of rhythm, call and response rhythms, 2, 3 and 4 part rhythms, as well as a variety of other rhythmic activities that, besides drums, involve the use of bells, gongs, chime bars, shakers and more or less anything else that comes to hand and springs to mind.
Schedule for the day:
10.30am – 1pm Morning Session
1pm – 2pm Free Lunch in the Pews Your hosts at The Hermon will serve a delicious, vegetarian lunch of homemade soup, bread and fresh salad for all participants to enjoy – a lovely opportunity to socialize and regain strength for the afternoon session! Drinks can be purchased from our in-house bar.
2pm – 4pm Afternoon Session
Please bring your own drum and percussion instruments if you have any, but no worries, there will be plenty of instruments at hand! Whatever your experience, plenty or none at all, be sure to bring your enthusiasm – come and make a joyful noise!
DRUM CIRCLE FORECAST: Please watch this space ! New date announcements for our monthly drum circle at The Hermon with 2-hour sessions throughout the autumn will be made here soon – plenty of opportunity for extending your gained skills in this friendly group!
More about Rick that’s well-worth a read: www.eastorywilsound.co.uk/rick.htm
Event Details
Doors Open at 10:00AM
From 10:30AM to 4:00PM
Chose your walk- Monty’s canal walk or Mini’s canal walk!
Monty’s canal walk will be a 13 mile walk, Starting at the Lion Quays. Accessing the canal, entrants will follow the Shropshire Union Canal, with beautiful scenery along the way. The turnaround point will be at the Pontcysyllte Aqueduct. A quick stop for refreshments, if you would like, then entrants will make their journey back to Rhosweil Bridge 18W, and will be greeted by supporters and a lovely treat.
Mini’s canal walk will be a shorter walk for families with children. The walk will start and finish at the Lion Quays hotel. Again joining the canal tow path, entrants will follow the Shropshire Union Canal following the same route as the other walkers. The difference being the turn around point will be at Chirk aqueduct. Entrants will again be met with a little treat at the end.
Please be advised that the long walk will not be open to children under 16, and advise you to book Mini’s Canal Walk.
Why not join us for this years Canal Walk on Sunday 7th July. Registration will open from 9.00am on the day and you will then be sent on your way at 09.45 for the Mini’s canal walk and 10am for Monty’s canal walk. Make sure to bring your EventBrite barcode as your ticket on the day.
Walkers will enjoy beautiful scenery, wildlife, canal boats, and two aqeducts. Also, if the dark doesn’t bother you, we are sure you’ll love walking through the dark tunnel in Chirk. The views are magnificent and their will be lots of photo opportunities.
Essential equipment List- plenty of liquids to drink, a bite to eat, torch/ head torch if you want to walk through dark tunnel, appropriate clothing for weather, appropriate footwear, mobile phone in case of emergency.
We reccomend that you walk in atleast pairs for the whole of the walk. If you are signing up on your own, then please join another group.
A new and exciting theatrical train ride. See surprising things as you travel along the line!
A unique event involving 100s of actors, singers and musicians. As your carriage goes slowly by the drama will unfold!
Sit back and enjoy a very unusual theatrical occasion. 5 trains on the day, tickets can only be booked by telephone 01938 810441
See wllr.org.uk for more info
Free family music in the award winning Cae Glas Park. 2pm until 4pm
Join number one bestselling author Clare Mackintosh as she talks about her new novel After the End, a gripping and propulsive exploration of love, marriage, parenthood, and the road not taken.
Max and Pip are the strongest couple you know. Only now they’re facing the most important decision of their lives – and they don’t agree. As the consequences of an impossible choice threaten to devastate them both, nothing will ever be the same again. But anything can happen after the end . . .
Combining the depth of emotion that captivated readers of Me Before You, the structural ambition of Life After Life and the impossible choice at the heart of My Sister’s Keeper, Clare Mackintosh’s powerful new novel contains her winning formula of compelling characters and a page-turning plot.
With over two million copies of her books sold worldwide, number one Sunday Times bestseller Clare Mackintosh is the multi-award-winning author of I Let You Go, I See You and Let Me Lie. We’re delighted to welcome her back to Oswestry to celebrate the publication of After the End – one of the most moving books you’ll read this year!
Tickets: £8 (without book – redeemable against a signed copy of After the End) or £13 (with book – includes a signed copy of After the End). Tickets available from the bookshop or purchase online with booking fee.
information and fund raising for this fantastic organisation. Dogs to pet ! 9am until 2pm
huge food and drink festival and free to visit . loads of local producers
Cae Glas Park hosts local football team TNS who provide plenty of fun free family activities.
Reggae music all day in Cae Glas Park. Free family event 12pm until 7pm
OSWESTRY’S CLASSIC AND VINTAGE TRANSPORT RALLY IS BACK!
With last year’s transport rally being a roaring success, we are excited to host the event again for 2019.
We had over 500 vehicles in attendance last year, and a huge crowd of enthralled spectators, all of whom made it a fantastic day..
So this year, we are putting the pedal to the metal, and are busy organising lots of exciting things, including live music, the famous midday cavalcade, and exciting activities for the children!
Exhibitors to arrive between 7:30am and 9:00am
Open to the public from 10:00am
BOOK YOUR PLACE VIA OUR WEBSITE HERE: https://www.britishironworkcentre.co.uk/show-areas/whats-on/the-transport-rally
Last year’s transport rally was a roaring success, we had over 500 vehicles in attendance and a huge crowd of enthralled spectators. We would like to personally thank each and every one of our participants and spectators for their attendance during the day.
We have lots of exciting things planned, including live music, the famous midday cavalcade, and exciting activities for the children!
We can’t wait to see you!
Join David Nicholls, the bestselling author of One Day, as he talks about his new novel Sweet Sorrow, a bittersweet and brilliantly funny coming-of-age tale of ordinary lives.
One life-changing summer. Sixteen-year-old Charlie meets Fran…
Charlie is the kind of boy you don’t remember in the school photograph. As the summer stretches before him, his exams have not gone well. At home he is looking after his father, when surely it should be the other way around, and if he thinks about the future at all, it is with a kind of dread. Then Fran Fisher bursts into his life and although it’s unthinkable, Charlie, despite himself, begins to hope.
Poignant, funny, enchanting, devastating, Sweet Sorrow is a deeply evocative novel about negotiating the rocky path to adulthood, a hymn to the tragicomedy of family life, a celebration of the deep, reviving power of friendship and the brief, searing explosion of first love.
David Nicholls is one of Britain’s most successful writers with an incomparable talent for making us laugh, cry and wince with recognition. It’s ten years since his novel One Day became an international publishing phenomenon and the iconic love story for a generation. It’s five years since the journey of Us took him to the Man Booker Prize long-list.
A new David Nicholls novel is a major publishing event and something to look forward to. We’re thrilled to be welcoming him to Oswestry as we celebrate the publication of Sweet Sorrow.
Tickets: £10 (without book – redeemable against a signed copy of Sweet Sorrow) or £20 (with book – includes a signed copy of Sweet Sorrow). Tickets available from the bookshop or purchase online with booking fee.
Over 70 classes for sweet peas from the Formal Vases to Bowls, Baskets, Plants, Floral Art & Children’s section.
The show includes a Society Stand where you can seek advice on Sweet Pea problems from Experts, Seeds of pre 1910 Old Fashioned Sweetly scented Varieties, Membership
GIFT VOUCHERS: Gift vouchers are available only for the Four Session Ticket, not for individual sessions! Vouchers can only be purchased over the phone on 01691 662196 and can be picked up in person at the venue. For delivery by mail, postage & packaging costs of £1 apply.
By popular request experienced musician and tutor Rick Wilson will be back at The Hermon for the spring and summer season 2019 to share his exceptional skills on hand drums and percussion instruments in a series of on-going monthly group workshops on 20th April, 18th May, 15th June and 20th July.
Explore in a focused manner Indian, African and South American styles of drumming in a friendly and relaxed environment! No prior experience is needed, bring a drum if you have one but, if not, instruments will be at hand.
Come and join this eager group that brings together beginners, intermediate and advanced players to discover all things rhythmic and develop their skills jointly!
Prior booking helps us with the planning, so please register and purchase tickets for this series of events as early as you can! Thank you.
More about Rick that’s well-worth a read: www.eastorywilsound.co.uk/rick.htm
Real Ale Train
6.30pm departure from Llangollen Station
Step on board and soak up the atmosphere whilst enjoying the Real Ales on offer at our well stocked bar.
Double return journey – arrive back approximately 9.30pm.
£18 Advanced ticket price includes a free Llangollen Railway pint glass.
REAL ALE – £3 per pint, Wines and Soft Drink also available
Food will be available to purchase from The Station Cafe + Bar on the evening, along with a BBQ on the platform.
Reserved seating will be provided for parties of eight or more.
It is not advised that children attend this event.
Advanced tickets – £18 per person with a FREE Llangollen Railway Pint Glass
Tickets purchased on the evening – £20 per person
Due to the terms of our premise licence – Passengers are NOT permitted to bring their own alcohol on board the Real Ale Train. Any alcohol brought will be removed from the customer for the duration of the event, the railway reserves the right to refuse admittance if the request is not complied with. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.
Free family music within Cae Glas Park . Bring a picnic 2pm until 4pm
Whittington Castle Car Boot Sale. £5 per car if you are selling items – free entrance to visitors to the sale. Cars from 8.30am onwards. No need to book just turn up and staff will show you where to set up and collect your fee. Sorry no trade stands. Dogs on leads are welcome. Tearoom will be open selling hot drinks and bacon baps etc.
Our hugely popular Unicorn event returns to Park Hall between the 22nd until 28th July. Come along and meet the Unicorns in there very own fairy tale stables,see Karina the Unicorn keeper and Floss the fairy in there daily magical shows, hop on board our horse drawn carriage rides and find the missing Unicorn eggs.
Come and see the unicorns at Park Hall
Love a bit of domestic noir and looking for your next gripping read? Then join us for an evening of criminally good conversation and a glass of wine as Shari Lapena, international bestselling author of The Couple Next Door, talks about her latest electrifying thriller Someone We Know.
It can be hard keeping secrets in a tight-knit neighbourhood. In a tranquil, leafy suburb of ordinary streets – one where everyone is polite and friendly – an anonymous note has been left at some of the houses. `I’m so sorry. My son has been getting into people’s houses. He’s broken into yours.’ Who is this boy, and what might he have uncovered? As whispers start to circulate, suspicion mounts. And when a missing local woman is found murdered, the tension reaches breaking point. Who killed her? Who knows more than they’re telling? And how far will all these very nice people go to protect their secrets? Maybe you don’t know your neighbour as well as you thought you did . . .
Shari Lapena’s debut novel The Couple Next Door was the UK’s bestselling fiction title of 2017. Her two follow ups, A Stranger in the House and An Unwanted Guest, were both Sunday Times Bestsellers.
Shari will be in conversation with fellow crime author Mary Torjussen. We’re delighted to welcome her to Booka when she tours the UK from Canada this July.
Tickets: £5 (redeemable against a signed copy of Someone We Know). Includes a glass of wine / soft drink on arrival. Tickets available from the bookshop, or purchase online (with booking fee).
Buy tickets
Join us for an evening of novel conversation and contemporary feminist fiction as bestselling authors Jo Baker and Anna Hope discuss their latest novels.
From Jo Baker, bestselling author of ‘Longbourn’ comes a dark, thrilling new novel – ‘The Body Lies’: a work of riveting suspense that grapples with how to live as a woman in the world – or in the pages of a book – when the stakes are dangerously high and the relationship between a creative writing school tutor and a student goes tragically wrong.
‘Expectation’ by Anna Hope is a novel of the highs and lows of friendship – how it can dip, dive and rise again. It is also about finding your way: as a mother, a daughter, a wife, a rebel. Most of all, it explores that liminal space between expectation and reality, the place – full of dreams, desires and pain – in which we all live our lives. Anna is the bestselling author ‘Wake’.
Both novels handle issues around feminism, the woman’s experience, societal and moral influences and pressures. For Jo and Anna they also mark a move away from historical fiction to the contemporary landscape. We’re delighted to welcome them to Booka for what should be a great event.
Tickets: £5 (redeemable against a signed copy of either book). Includes a glass of wine / soft drink on arrival. Tickets available from the bookshop, or purchase online (with booking fee).
Buy tickets
OFFA EVENTS present their SUMMER SHOW! featuring
Phoebe Rees – Scottish fiddler and singer
Vicky Turrell – author and columnist in the Advertizer
Peter Cartlidge and Cathy Andrew – singing duo from Ellesmere
Hermon Chapel, Chapel Street, Oswestry. Friday 26 July. 8pm. Tickets £10.
Phoebe Rees – Scottish fiddler and singer
Phoebe Rees grew up in Scotland and it was in the North-West Highlands that she began learning the fiddle. Influenced and inspired by her early years in the Highlands and also by her travels throughout the rest of the British Isles, Europe, Brazil and India, she includes her own compositions along with interpretations of material by musicians close to her heart. Phoebe accompanies herself on the fiddle, viola and guitar.
Vicky Turrell – author and columnist in the Advertizer
Vicky is an author and journalist. She grew up in rural Yorkshire on a farm in the 1940s and 50s. She writes the ‘Nature Notes’ column in the Advertizer and has published two popular books based on her column – ‘Robin on my Teacup’ and ‘Ducklings on my Doorstep’.
Peter Cartlidge and Cathy Andrew – singing duo from Ellesmere
Peter and Cathy are well-known in the local folk and music scenes. Both are members of the popular Ukey Monster. Peter is also a member of the excellent ceilidh band Five Speed Box. Peter and Cathy will sing a number of well-known songs and invite you to sing along!
To order tickets email offaevents@aol.com or phone 01691 650293. Tickets will also be available direct from Hermon Chapel’s website.
Join us at our Multi Period Living History Weekend. Travel through time from Anglo-Saxon Mercians to World War 2. Discover how people lived, what they ate and how they fought. Each encampment will have demonstrations throughout both days and their will be an Arena Programme of activities throughout both days.
Open from the end of July – You’ll have great fun finding your way through the puzzle of pathways
Returning for another fabulous summer season the maize maze is a must to try. Navigate your way through a labyrinth of pathways with lots of dead ends and u-turns.
Do you want to know more about Oswestry? Hear about our history as you wander around the town with one of our local guides, listen to myths and legends as you stroll through the parks and alleyways of our border market town – then come on a guided tour.
Doug Allan is David Attenborough’s favourite Arctic cameraman, famous for his films of polar bears, seals and ice. He has been to both poles. had close encounters with a walrus and spent five winters and eight summers in Antarctica with the British Antarctic Survey. “He is not as other men”, says Attenborough. “He cheerfully endures conditions more uncomfortable and for longer periods than anyone I know. He has an uncanny understanding of animals. That tells him what the animal is about to do before he does it. Come to hear extraordinary stories.
