Out & About Summer 2018

WHAT’S ON

Find out what’s happening in West Berkshire and the surrounding area, with concerts, theatre, fetes, lectures, exhibitions and markets to choose from. You can find more detailed listings every Thursday in the Newbury Weekly News or online at www.newburytoday.co.uk

The windmills of your mind

An English country garden

Saturday, June 23 Murder mystery and hog roast Wilton Windmill 7pm

Follow the scarecrows Sunday, June 24 Hampstead Norreys open gardens and scarecrow trail 2pm-6pm Seven beautiful gardens of all shapes and sizes will be open. Programmes £7 from the church, to visit all the gardens. Tea and homemade cakes at the church, art exhibition and scarecrow trail. Traditional herbaceous borders and desert and prairie planting, an enchanted knot garden and exotic subtropical schemes, featuring bananas, cannas, hedychiums and much more. Enjoy teas surrounded by Brugmansia and lemons in toning colours. Refreshments. Adult £5 child free The National Garden Scheme offers members of the public the oppotunity to visit some of the area’s beautiful private gardens. Running throughout the summer, below are just a few of the gardens opening their doors. To find out more, visit www.ngs.org.uk Sunday, July 1 The Old Rectory, East Woodhay 2pm-5pm Classic English country garden surrounding Regency Gothic former rectory (not open). Croquet lawn, large walled garden, Mediterranean pool garden, wildflower meadow and fruit garden. Refreshments in aid of the local church. Adult £5 child free Sunday, July 8 West Mills Allotments, Newbury 2pm-5pm A 120 plot site containing a wide variety of gardening styles: traditional vegetables, fruit trees and bushes, herbs, some hens and an increasing number of flowers. Refreshments at Island Cottage in aid of the Rosemary Appeal. Adult £5 child free Sunday, July 29 Malverleys, East End 2pm-5pm Mixed borders and a series of contrasting yew-hedged rooms, hosting flame borders, a cool garden, a pond garden and new stumpery. A vegetable garden within a walled garden, also encompassing a white garden. Tea, cake and tour with Head Gardener included at 2pm or 3.30pm. Ticket availability is limited, so please book early to avoid disappointment. Adult £12 child free Saturday, August 4 Old Camps, Headley, Thatcham 10am - 5pm

Smoke & Mirrors are returning to Wilton Windmill for the sixth Murder Mystery and Hogroast with For Whom the Bells Toll – a comedy of machinations, mayhem, murder and morris dancing – with opportunities for some serious (and not-so-serious) sleuthing. Tickets include gourmet hog-roast buffet (with vegetarian option); and there’ll be a cash bar available all evening. And there will be prizes of champagne and chocolates. Large groups welcome with one free ticket for every group of ten booked. Wilton Windmill, Nr Marlborough, SN8 3SW, 7pm. £27.50 (murder mystery & hog roast) Buy 10, get one free 07769 977779 info@hauntedmysteryweekend.co.uk

Swanning about

Monday, July 16 to Friday, July 20 Swan Upping, along the Thames various times www.royalswan.co.uk Starting at Sunbury-on-Thames and finishing at Abingdon, Royal Swan Upping is a centuries-old, once-a-year tradition, when swans are marked as under the ownership of the Crown, the Vintners and Dyers livery companies or the Ilchesters of Abbotsbury. Swan Upping plays an important role in the conservation of the mute swan and involves The Queen’s Swan Warden collecting data, assessing the health of young cygnets and examining them for any injuries. Cygnets are extremely vulnerable at this early stage in their development and Swan Upping affords an opportunity to help both adults and cygnets that might otherwise go untreated.

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