It’s Festival time!

Come and support the Westbury Festival!  That’s the message to the local community from the organisers as the two-week celebration of music and arts gets under way. 

There are over 35 events planned, running until the 28th July with ‘something for everyone’. 

“I really am genuinely excited about our line-up this year – from music and comedy to talks and literature,” said co-chair of the festival committee, Ian Cunningham. “We’re delighted to present such a varied lineup and hope the community will come out and enjoy themselves 

“The aim is to be a celebration for the Westbury community and it will be great to see people coming along, joining in, meeting people and having a great time. 

“I’d like to thank all the committee who are all volunteers and have worked incredibly hard to put together a great programme. There is a varied line-up – something for everyone – with walks and talks from local people alongside great evenings featuring celebrated names like Nigel Planer, Colin Hoult and Chris Jagger, travel author Gail Simmons and opera singer Jean Rigby. 

 “I do feel a bit sorry for Chris Jagger because if he didn’t have such a famous brother in the Rolling Stones, he would be quite a bit more famous. He’s done a huge number of things, written hundreds of songs, worked with Jimi Hendrix, appeared on TV, films and in theatre. 

Big coup

“And Colin Hoult; I’ve seen him do his stand-up and he’s absolutely brilliant. He was an award-winner at the Edinburgh Fringe and has appeared in so many good things, often alongside Ricky Gervais. People will recognise him even if they don’t know the name.  

“He’s at the Edinburgh Fringe again next month doing dozens of shows – and you can see him in Westbury first! 

“It’s a big coup to get him here at the Westbury Festival.

“The Great Baldini is back again and he’s undoubtedly the funniest magician I’ve ever seen. He would give Tommy Cooper a run for his money. 

“He and Colin Hoult together will be a fantastic night and one not to be missed! 

From Bach to George Michael 

“Then we’ve got the Lucerna Quartet. Nicole Micheli first appeared at the Westbury Festival in 2016 when she was a teenager at school and now she’s at the Royal College of Music playing the saxophone. She’s formed an award-winning quartet and will be offering 400 years of music, starting with Bach through to a foot-tapping arrangement of George Michael’s Careless Whisper.  That will be a very special evening. 

“Other highlights will be writer Gail Simmons talking about her latest book and her career as a travel writer, and a lunchtime concert ‘From Brahms to Blues’ which is a collection of pieces on the clarinet and piano.  

“One of the evenings I am looking forward to most is a Night at the Opera with Jean Rigby singing, alongside Jamie Hayes who will be giving a talk about the history of opera. One of our committee members, Radek, met Jamie on a cruise and persuaded them to come to Westbury for the Festival.  

“He is a leading theatre director who has worked for the BBC and English National Opera and in the West End and on Broadway and she’s a really top opera singer, and has enjoyed many roles at the English National Opera and as a soloist at the BBC Promenade Concerts. 

“It’s a fantastic coup to get them at the Festival.  

“Radek persuaded them that they would love to come to Westbury; that’s the power of Radek!” 

Ian says the Festival committee has tried to find a balance of events to appeal to all tastes. 

“The library has a whole series of events on with special editions of the things they put on normally – you can even enjoy an afternoon / evening of board games!” added Ian. “And Westbury Heritage Society and the Westbury Museum have organised several events. 

“There is Steve Hobbs, former Wiltshire county archivist, talking on crime and punishment and Sally Hendry is doing another heritage walk around town and I think both of those will be very popular. 

“For local artists, there is a chance to sketch the statuette of Hercules with help and advice from a local professional artist and the Family History Society will be providing help for people looking to trace their family tree. 

“You can book tickets online or visit the box office at Southwest Hearing Care in the town centre where you can pay cash! 

“And for most events, you can turn up on the day; just check online on our website to check they haven’t sold out.”  

For full details, see our four-page pullout inside or visit https://www.westburyfestival.org.uk