Creative Courses & Workshops unleash your hidden creativity
south downs & high weald : issue 50: winter/spring '26 plus looking ahead to festivals artists, galleries & exhibitions live music & theatre
cd & book reviews flash fiction & poetry
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Lead and Seasonal features across the year include Creative Courses & Workshops; Art Trails & Open Studios; Festivals; The Art of Giving; and with regular features Visual Arts & Contemporary Crafts; Performing Arts; Poetry Prose & Illustration there is plenty in which to immerse yourself and fill up your diary!
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'Farewell Swallows', by artist and art tutor Gill Bustamante. To read more about Gill's work go to page 10 and visit www.gillbustamante.com
*MSB’s critical scientific mission: to prevent plant extinction, restore species-rich habitats and provide nature-based solutions
Greeting dear readers, and welcome to the 50th issue of your favourite arts and culture magazine. It is said that the British are obsessed with the weather… is it any wonder, given that it feels as though our entire winter has been one long downpour. Even the first glimmers of spring – crocuses popping up hopefully among the sodden grass, birds starting their courting calls, are doused. The very occasional patch of blue and gleam of sun through the fast shifting rainladen clouds lifts our hopes but they are dashed as next day dawns grey and wet. And so we scurry about our business, umbrellas at the ready. What better way to have adventures despite the uninviting weather, however, than immersing yourself in a book …
I was very heartened, in this age of instant forcefed visual entertainment, that the ‘humble’ book is still very much loved and valued. While other schools proudly upgrade the digital media resources for their students, a local primary school, with the help of pupils’ families and local businesses in the community, has filled its newly refurbished library with over £2000 of books. Those children will have the opportunity to discover stories of their own choosing at their own pace, which will hopefully engender a lifelong love of reading.
Recently going through a back copy of ingénu/e I came across one of Louisa Crispin’s exquisitely detailed studies of a teasel and it got me thinking about the connection between art and our natural environment. Back in the day the only record of plants and flowers would have been the studies painstakingly drawn or painted by botanical artists. Now we have not only photography but also a wealth of other ways to record the details of the flora and fauna around us; something that is becoming increasingly vital as the climate changes faster than evolution can keep pace with. We are fortunate in Sussex to have on our doorstep the extraordinary Kew Millennium Seed Bank* at Wakehurst, the largest ex situ wild plant conservation programme in the world. The MSB’s collections come from 190 countries and territories. There are nearly 2.5 billion seeds banked at the MSB, with approximately 40,000 different species of wild plants banked. ingénu/e may be celebrating its 50th issue, but the MSB is marking its 25th anniversary this year. It is a shining example of international collaboration to safeguard the ecological diversity and integrity of the planet’s plantlife in the face of habitat loss and aggressive agriculture.
Now, artists are an observant bunch, and it is a short hop from botanical accuracy to more Impressionist work, and a full circle to the stunning botanical photograpy of Dianna Jazwinski (see p.23), but the underlying purpose for many artists and creatives is to draw people’s attention to details of the world around them. Art, then, can act as the interface between the ‘serious’ science and the public, raising awareness and appreciation. Yet another reason to applaud and support the creatives in our society.
–Gill Kaye, editor
Inspecting the pondlife outside the Kew Millennium Seed Bank
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
It is said that those who can't do, teach. In the field of the arts, however, this saying does not hold water. Good teachers surely lead by example –inspiring and energising students of their craft to keep pushing the boundaries, to find new abilities hitherto hidden from them and create their best work. Here we celebrate some of the best tutors and guides in the creative arts across our region.
Art Junction images –below: Portrait workshop opposite page from top: Michael Joseph, Kneeling by the window; Michael Joseph, Reclining nude; Sculpting the Figure in Clay workshop
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
Keen to try your hand at sculpting animals, perhaps your pet? Jon Edgar will be tutoring a brilliant new workshop that will focus on making dynamic studies of 'the dog' as subject matter.
We also have the pleasure to arrange two entirely new workshops with Michael Joseph, exploring methods to abstraction using the human figure and the self portrait as subject matter.
Visit www.artjunction.uk Questions? Email us at: info@artjunction.uk
All levels of experience are welcome. Hope to see you soon!
ART JUNCTION
Creative Courses at the Studio
Thisyear in the Art Junction studio, Billingshurst, we are offering exciting short courses in addition to our regular favourites.
You can view these on the Masterclass website page: www.artjunction.uk/in-studio-courses as the course information becomes available so please do keep revisiting the page.
Regular courses continue to run most weeks in clay sculpture called Free Form for those working on their own projects, life drawing and mould making.
We are fortunate to work with tutors Hazel Reeves, Mark Longworth, Michael Joseph, and Jon Edgar, all of whom are professional artists and sculptors with years of teaching experience as tutors for our Masterclass courses. This year we have a broad range of courses within the figurative canon, starting this spring for five Thursday 'Sculpting the Figure in Clay' course that is already booking fast!
Summer School in June and July; there are several intensive courses scheduled including the favourites 'Portrait Head in Clay', and another chance to book onto 'Sculpting the Figure in Clay’. Each course works with a professional portrait model and life model respectively.
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
THE OAST STUDIO
Make. Meet. Learn. Eat. Unwind.
Nestled
in the heart of the beautiful Ashdown Forest, just twenty minutes from Tunbridge Wells, East Grinstead, Edenbridge, Uckfield and Crowborough, The Oast Studio is a warm, welcoming space to unwind, create, and connect with like minded people. Located in a beautifully converted oast house with exposed beams and gentle views across peaceful farmland, it’s the perfect place to slow down and rediscover your creative side.
We now run over 100 different craft workshops, from needle felting and sewing to basket weaving, paper flower making and much more, so there’s something for everyone, whatever your skill level.
Once inside you’ll be greeted by the comforting aroma of home baking from The Oast Bakery, where Alison prepares delicious cakes, lunches and refreshments to enjoy as you work. Whether you come to learn a new skill, meet new people, or simply take time out from the pressures of daily life, The Oast Studio offers a relaxed and inspiring environment.
So come for the creativity and stay for the calm, the cake, and the company.
www.oaststudio.co.uk
HORSHAM ARTISTS Art for Wellbeing Event
Due to the huge success of the last Art for Wellbeing which Horsham Artists ran last year, we are pleased to announce that we will be running this again. The venue will be Parkside, on the weekend of the 28th February and 1st March, 9:45 am to 4:00 pm, with free tea, coffee and biscuits!
Beginners are welcome as usual, with sessions covering: easy watercolour, life drawing (clothed model), joy of pattern, paper craft, painting abstracts, and sketching with charcoal. You could decorate a ceramic Easter egg, make paper lavender, or even do some zen doodling! What could be more appealing than indulging in something new and creative? With only a maximum of ten participants per session, individual help from our skilled and experienced artists is close at hand; all delivered in a friendly and relaxed atmosphere.
Tickets can be booked through Eventbrite: https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/art-for-wellbeing2026-tickets-1980557529887
This, as well as other events, helps to raise money for our adopted charity, the Horsham and Crawley Samaritans. We look forward to seeing past and new participants to this popular event, so please spread the word to friends and family to book their tickets in time, using the above link.
More details at https://horshamartists.org
Examples of some of the artworks created in Horsham Artists' previous Art for Wellbeing event
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
CATRIONA MILLAR’S
ART CLASS
Eastbourne
There are very few opportunities to learn the traditional techniques of painting particularly from an acclaimed artist, which makes Catriona Millar’s art class very special.
“We’ve had art students coming to the class to learn the basics of painting which their college no longer teaches,” said Catriona, “these techniques are centuries old and can be applied to oils and acrylics. It’s a pleasure to pass them on and help people develop their work.”
Catriona’s art class runs every Tuesday 11.am to 1pm in the newly restored Meads Village Hall, Eastbourne and is ongoing. The workshop space is large and airy and on the ground floor with disabled access. There is free street parking. Drawing materials and easels are provided along with tea, coffee and biscuits. Ten classes cost £150 and you can join at any time subject to availability.
At the class you can learn to paint in oils, acrylics and multi-media in a friendly, creative environment. You can also learn how to draw in pencil, pen and charcoal. Students of all abilities are welcome, from
absolute beginners to advanced painters, all of whom will benefit from Catriona’s individually tailored advice and encouragement.
Catriona is assisted by her husband Roddy, who as a portrait artist counted many celebrities and public figures as his clients including the late Margaret Thatcher.
If you are interested in joining the class email Catriona at catrionamillarpainter@gmail.com or call her on 07758 367479. https://catrionamillar.com
“Just wanted to say a big thank you for your art sessions…. I am loving them. So chuffed that I’ve started to paint. Thank you for all your help and guidance.”
–HB-D
“I couldn’t recommend Catriona and Roddy enough. They created such a warm inviting environment and were wonderful teachers, I learnt so much and found out I love painting with acrylics and found my love for painting again after about 25 years of not touching a paint brush.” –DS
“Wanted to say a huge thank you to the marvellous Catriona Millar and Roddy Phillips for inspiring me to paint. I really am loving it and it has really helped me focus and concentrate and in the those two and a bit hours really feel calm!“ –KA
Catriona Millar in her studio
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
Make Time for Creativity at MONTAGUE GALLERY
Worthing
Montague Gallery in Worthing is fast becoming a go-to destination on the Sussex coast for those looking to reconnect with their creativity. Alongside its carefully curated exhibitions, the gallery offers a vibrant programme of creative workshops designed to inspire, energise and bring people together through making.
Workshops span painting, printmaking, mixed media, fused glass, pottery, batik and specialist techniques, and are led by professional artists in a welcoming, relaxed atmosphere. Many popular halfday sessions are ideal for complete beginners or those keen to try something new, making them a perfect creative escape – whether you’re picking up a brush for the first time or refreshing your practice.
The light and airy Upper Gallery is also available for hire, providing a flexible and beautifully lit space for workshops, private exhibitions, talks and creative events.
With a long-standing commitment to community engagement, Montague Gallery supports a local charity each year and is now proud to host weekly, free, community-led mindfulness art sessions, helping to make creativity accessible to everyone. These sessions are led by Leigh-Anna Barber Corbett, Art Mind and Soul CIC.
Always open to fresh ideas, the gallery welcomes new tutors and innovative workshop proposals. Coming soon, the Montague OPEN Summer Exhibition returns in July, offering artists the chance to win professional exhibition space and monetary prizes. Visit montaguegallery.co.uk for more information.
from top: Gelli plate workshop; Pottery with Sarah Vosmer; Glass Fusing with Naomi Frances
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
GILL BUSTAMANTE
Art Classes in East Grinstead
Iaman independent artist and art tutor who currently runs three art classes a week in oils, watercolours and drawing. My aim in my classes is not to have people make art like I do, (as some tutors do), but instead to help people find their own unique voice. Humans are astonishing but often lack the confidence to see it. In my classes you will learn the techniques needed to create what you want to create.
I do this by demonstrating at the beginning of each class and participants can either do the project set or do one of their own.
I keep things light and unserious and without pressure so that the range of my students goes from semi-professional artists to people simply meeting up and socialising with some art on the side and plenty of biscuits and tea.
See my Art Tuition page at: www.gillbustamante.com for more details. And to see examples of the work we produce see https://www.etsy.com/uk/shop/WatercoloursForSale Note that the above is where I sell the art I produced during my demonstrations with all proceeds going to my favourite causes which include: https://www.criminon.org.uk/ https://www.drugfreeworld.org/ https://www.thewaytohappiness.org/ Gill Bustamante – Artist www.gillbustamante.com
clockwise from above: Gill Bustamante; Sheffield Park drawing; Panda, watercolour; Class in progress; Gravetye Manor, oils
SILVER JEWELLERY MAKING WORKSHOPS in Lindfield
Based in the picturesque village of Lindfield, Sussex, Debbie runs silver jewellery-making workshops from her studio, welcoming those keen to explore their creativity in a friendly, supportive setting. A jewellery designer for over forty years, with twenty years’ teaching experience, Debbie brings a wealth of knowledge and a calm, encouraging approach to every class.
Participants work in small groups, ensuring plenty of individual guidance, inspiration and hands-on support while learning traditional jewellery-making techniques. For beginners, half-day workshops offer an excellent introduction to working with silver. No previous experience is required – you will be guided through the process step by step and leave with a piece you’ve made yourself.
For those with some jewellery-making experience, or who have attended a half-day session, '3 Mornings at the Bench' is ideal for developing skills further. This course provides more time at the bench to build confidence, explore ideas and refine techniques, all at a comfortable, personal pace.
Workshops are held on Tuesday or Thursday mornings from 10am–1pm, making it easy to fit in after the school run!
(Courses are unsuitable for children under 13, and participants under 18 must be accompanied by a paying adult.) Visit www.thejewellery-workshop.co.uk for more information or call 0777 588 4990.
“I would never have guessed that I could so enjoy making myself silver jewellery – and for friends too! Having been refused entrance for art O-level years ago I am now enjoying doing something practical and creative in a fun place! My friends are asking if they can join in too!”
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
LCA STAGE ACADEMY
LCAStage Academy is an award-winning performing arts school based in Oxted (Surrey) and provides a range of performance classes and workshops in singing, acting and dancing, including technique training, one to one sessions, and a range of performance opportunities for young performers aged 3-18.
LCA Stage Academy, established in 2015, teaches
students who go on to be successful in their auditions for a place at several universities studying areas of performing arts and in leading drama schools such as The Brit School, Arts Educational, Performers College, Bird College, Urdang, Central School of Speech and Drama and The National Youth Theatre.
BOOK YOUR FREE TRIAL SESSION!
Contact us for more information about classes or holiday workshop times and prices. Join the LCA Family today! www.lca-stage.com
LCA Stage Academy Musical Theatre Performers performing at The Barn Theatre in Oxted as part of the theatre's ‘A Night of 100 Years’ celebration production in October 2024!
“Thank you for the wonderful Les Miserables Masterclass. My daughter learnt so much with you in one day. It was the highlight of half term! We will definitely be signing up for the next one!”
“My daughter has just finished a week long summer academy and has loved every minute of it. Thank you all very much.”
spotlight on... creative courses & workshops
ROZ NATHAN Natural History
Artwork / Art Classes / Demos
Roz’s art practice has a natural history focus, she participates regularly in local Artists’ Open Houses, charity exhibitions, and exhibits nationally when time allows, including with the Society of Wildlife Artists at the Mall Galleries.
This Spring Roz is continuing to teach creative, enjoyable studio courses at Polegate Community Centre, offering Mixed Media, Collage & Print on Mondays, and Personal Projects on Tuesdays.
Roz also teaches in Langney at St Barnabas’ Church Hall, where she is running twice a month Watercolour & Mixed Media courses and a new weekly Wildlife Art. Later this Spring, twice a month Watercolour beginners / novices and Mixed Media painting will also be offered.
Online, Roz runs live Zoom courses in small friendly groups, with demos and supportive individual and group feedback, currently Natural History Mixed Media and soon a new Creative Portrait Drawing course – all sessions are recorded for participants. Monthly online demos will be offered from April.
Roz works often with East Sussex art groups and societies, delivering demos, workshops or regular teaching.
Individual or small group lessons, mentoring or support sessions are available too – online or in person – Roz is happy to come to your home to teach you and a few friends!
To enquire please email roz.nathan@hotmail.com and for more information visit www.roznathanart.com
left: Roz leads a watercolour workshop on a sunny day below: students enjoying themselves at watercolour workshops
JESSOPS FARM STUDIOS
Bough Beech, Edenbridge
Anew programme of exciting workshops from Jessops Farm Studios for 2026 has been released. We are going to explore painting across a whole variety of subjects and styles. But our goal is only to increase your pleasure and ability to create YOUR art .
Visit www.weekendarting.com to find out more. Or call Cathy Bird on 07951 72699
“Nothing makes me happier than to see my students leave with a real smile and a determination to do more art.” –Cathy Bird, Jessops Farm Studios
left, bottom left and above: Workshops at Jessops Farm Studios below: Sarah Duffield, artist and teacher
Find Some Creative Space with SARAH DUFFIELD
Beingcreative is a wonderful way to reduce stress and improve your mental wellbeing, it’s also a great way to have some fun.
Give yourself some time and space this year to develop your creativity in an inviting and nurturing environment.
All of my workshops are carefully planned to introduce you to the colourful possibilities of landscape painting and drawing.
Every session includes time for experimentation
and learning through play. I will not teach you to paint like me but, I will encourage you (sometimes it’ll be a prod) to discover and develop a painting style of your own.
My art workshops are for both more experienced painters and those who haven’t picked up a brush since school. Groups are small and welcoming.
There is always cake or cookies.
If you want to: start painting, experiment with colour, make new friends, enjoy some time to yourself and relax, then join us.
Find out more about my art workshops and book your first session at www.sduffieldart.co.uk
art workshops
Parkside (Council Offices) Horsham
SATURDAY 28 FEBRUARY and SUNDAY 1 MARCH 9:45 AM to 4 PM
Tickets on Eventbrite
ART FOR WELLBEING
Have fun painting with Sarah
Experiments from a painting workshop
PROUD TO SUPPORT HORSHAM ARTISTS
details and testimonials: www.roznathanart.com roz.nathan@hotmail.com
Meads Village Hall Eastbourne , Tuesdays 11am -1pm
Meads Village Hall Eastbourne , Tuesdays 11am -1pm
Tutored
Tutored by acclaimed figurative artist Catriona Millar. All media taught, beginners to advanced welcome. To join the Art Class call 07758 367479 or email: catrionamillarpainter@gmail.com catrionamillar.com
subscribe to ingénu/e magazine & never miss a copy
For just £19.95/year you can have your own copy delivered to your door each quarter. To subscribe just email subscribe@ingenuemagazine.co.uk
MARCH 21st & 22nd
PAINT WITH FREEDOM
Build your confidence - learn to trust yourself
MAY 16th & 17th
HOW TO PAINT FIGURES
So many dread it. Tips & tricks to put people into your paintings
JULY 11th & 12th
PASSION FOR PEONIES
Find out how to tackle these blooming beauties
SEP 19th & 20th
EXPRESSIVE PORTRAITS
What is going to make your portrait speak? Find out
OCT 10th & 11th
THE FALLING LEAVES
Trees in Autumn - express your love for this season
Feedback from attendees
As a teacher, Cathy stretches you as an artist beyond what you believe is possible. WA
Chalk Gallery
Lewes gallery celebrates its 21st year
The year has started well for artist-run Chalk Gallery. As well as their busy annual sale, they saw both new and previous members joining and there are exciting developments afoot!
In January they welcomed new member Steve Jowitt to the gallery. Trained as an architect Steve produces beautiful paintings of both urban and rural scenes depicted with the keen eye of an architect.
The gallery featured artist for February is Linda Lethem. Linda is a painter and printmaker and is currently Chair of Chalk. Linda's influences are many and varied but the tropical water garden outside her Sussex studio appears time and time again as does the wonder of the South Downs and iconic Sussex coastline.
Chalk Gallery prides itself on being an approachable and welcoming artists collective but naturally members come and go from time to time. The gallery was thrilled to see the recent return of several ex-members – two hugely popular artists, Sally Smith and Ros Lymer, talented digital photomontage artist Simone Riley and
multi-media artist and founding member Michèle Findlay. As they say, "Once a Chalkie, always a Chalkie", so welcome back Sally, Ros, Simone and Michèle!
There is much to be excited about this year as Chalk not only celebrates its 21st birthday, but also a much anticipated move to larger premises, providing an even better experience for visitors and artists alike.
Visit www.chalkgallerylewes.co.uk to discover more about Chalk Gallery, their artists and latest news.
pictured, three works from the New Beginnings show –from top: Simone Riley; Linda Lethem; Michèle Findlay
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Tonbridge School’s
space at the heart of the school, it presents two major exhibitions each year, offering pupils, staff and the wider community regular access to high-calibre contemporary art. The scale and clarity of the space allow Lintott’s large woodcuts to be viewed at appropriate distance, while the sculptural elements introduce a tactile counterpoint.
Modern Relics is open to the public and free to enter. For opening hours and further information, visitors are encouraged to consult the school’s website or follow the gallery on Instagram @old_big_school_gallery.
Tonbridge School Tunnel Gallery presents Traditional Chinese Papercut Exhibition.
THE OBS GALLERY presents Modern Relics by
Matthew Lintott
The OBS Gallery has opened its doors to Modern Relics, a solo exhibition by printmaker Matthew Lintott. Bringing together woodcut relief prints, driftwood sculptures and an accompanying audio work, the exhibition centres on geology, deep time and material process.
Lintott’s practice is rooted in close study of landscape. Working in remote coastal and upland locations, he gathers natural materials and researches the geological histories of place. A distinctive feature of the exhibition is his use of 200-million-year-old fossilised squid ink, sourced from Jurassic ammonites, incorporated into his printing process. By carving directly into substantial timber blocks, he exploits the grain and resistance of the wood, producing richly textured, atmospheric prints that extend traditional relief techniques through material experimentation.
The OBS Gallery itself plays a significant role in this dialogue. Housed in a striking, cathedral-like
Tonbridge has welcomed one of China’s most distinguished paper-cutting artists, Xu Yang, in a special exhibition celebrating the beauty and heritage of traditional Chinese paper art. Xu Yang holds the title of Senior Chinese Craft Artist and is recognised as a Beijing First-Class Arts and Crafts Master.
As the representative inheritor of the nationally recognised intangible cultural heritage 'Beijing Paper-cutting', Xu Yang has dedicated his career to preserving and evolving this intricate art form. His artistic significance is reflected in the collections that hold his work. Ten of his pieces are preserved in the National Museum of China, with more than eighty works housed in institutions across the world.
This exhibition offers the Tonbridge community a rare opportunity to experience the mastery of a living guardian of Chinese intangible cultural heritage, bringing centuries-old craftsmanship to a local audience in an accessible and inspiring setting. Thursday 12th February to Thursday 5th March (Monday Friday: 9am-6pm, Saturday: 9am-12:30pm)
Xu Yang, Traditional Chinese Papercut Exhibition
Ammons Horn
artist Matthew Lintott chats with visitors to Modern Relics exhibition
visual arts & contemporary crafts
the Little Art Gallery
a fabulous little gallery with a wealth of beautiful art
At the Little Art Gallery in West Wittering we are delighted to be included in the 50th edition of this excellent publication we all love.
Our little gallery has now been running for nine years during which we have seen a big change in times. From the enthusiasm of opening and welcoming a wide range of artists and customers as our visitor base expanded, through to the strange times of the Covid restrictions. We then enjoyed the surge of sales after life returned to normal and people completed their home making. We are now facing an unexpected new challenge, which is most frustrating, due to people's financial stress in the current economic climate.
Artists will always continue to produce wonderful art to enrich our lives. There is something in us all that can be uplifted by a beautiful image or the touch of a piece of sculpture. Here in the gallery we have a range of captivating paintings, both large and small, alongside tactile ceramics, glass art and other smaller items from our talented artists.
We look forward to better times as the spring blossoms are brightening up our gardens after such a wet winter. Do take a trip to our little village and see what we have on display, we open most weekends at the moment but are always happy to open at other times upon request. Please feel free to contact us any time. www.thelittleartgallery.online
above: paintings by Shazia Mahmood; decorative enamel bowls and keyrings; below: paintings by Sue Green and Sarah Monro
visual arts & contemporary
DIANNA JAZWINSKI
Photographic Botanical Artist
It is nearly Spring and Dianna will be welcoming the season with new botanical works to The Affordable Art Fair in Battersea Park, with Will’s Art Warehouse.
Look out for HYDRANGEAS AND FOXGLOVES alongside BLUE MOOD, showing for the first time.
Dianna sources her flowers locally from flower farms in West Sussex. All the images are created by styling these flowers, repeatedly, until the ‘right’ composition appears, all using natural light. The dark background highlights the beautiful details, colours and textures, inviting the viewer
to look more closely at a flower that might normally be passed by.
Dianna’s work aims to convey optimism –Light in the Darkness. Whatever is happening out there, there will always be flowers. They still grow and do what they do; the essence of resilience. We do not always have access to a garden or flowers, but we can bring the garden in, to help focus and reflect on all that remains good.
The Affordable Art Fair, Battersea Evolution, runs between 4th and 8th March, with a private view on Wednesday evening, 4th March. www.mybotanicalheart
All eyes on 2026; the coming of Spring brings hopes and ideas for Art, and the weather!
Spring starts the season of trails and exhibitions for you to enjoy, and I hope you will visit one of the largest single artist displays in West Sussex. Five days of opportunity to experience a wonderful display of over a hundred paintings in a light-filled barn. Browse at your leisure at seascapes, landscapes and skies.
Open Studios are the time to see work in progress. My easel will be up, palette loaded with oils, showing messy paint fingers too.
Alongside my paintings will be unique, humorously captioned wine cards for you to chuckle at, then amuse your friends and family with.
Painted with a palette knife, my work is joyful, colourful and contemporary; my vision of shoreline, fields and skies. I capture the various moods of weather but never sad moods, they are paintings for your imagination.
My venue, The Flansham Barn, is southwest of Arundel and off the A259 west of Littlehampton, PO22 8NJ, road signs will be in place to guide you. There is easy, free courtyard parking.
Dates: 16th & 17th, 23rd, 24th and 25th May 2026. More information www.chichesteropenstudios.org Contact me at smoart@btinternet.com.
Susie Olford, Romance in the Sky, oils
Artists Open Houses May 2026 Festival
Brighton’s May festival season will soon be here again – bringing with it four wonderful weekends of art, conversation and cake in the Artists Open Houses.
Nearly 200 venues will be opening their doors, reaching across the city, along the coast, out to Ditchling village and beyond, offering art and crafts in every medium.
Prepare for Brighton’s legendary cabaret artist and DJ, now turned ceramicist, Boogaloo Stu and his talking vases, each with its own individual character. Visit a new exhibition by respected local artist Anna Dumitriu, involving living bacteria and drawing on cutting edge research in biology, genomics and AI. Take a trip to The Dog Show and visit a pop-up dog tattoo parlour – tattooing pooches onto people! And don’t miss the home of this May’s brochure cover artist Alej ez, where you can explore the beachside history of Brighton via the famous bather Martha Gunn, Madeira Drive’s Volks railway and the technologies of the swimsuit in Alej’s amazing, intricately detailed prints.
Open Houses include venues offering support to homeless, insecurely housed and vulnerable people, often empowering change through creativity. Land, Sea and Sky Open House shows work from a daughter, mother and grandmother, raising awareness of how creativity benefits those diagnosed with dementia, with a percentage of proceeds going to the Alzheimer’s Society. Plus many more houses will be offering events for children and adults, alongside great original and handmade arts and crafts.
The Artists Open Houses May 2026 festival listings go live online in mid-April – so take a look at the myriad treats on offer and plan your tours around the Open House trails each weekend in May, with an en route stop for home-made tea and cake of course!
Artists Open Houses are open these weekends: May 2nd, 3rd & 4th (Bank Holiday); 9th & 10th; 16th & 17th; 23rd, 24th & 25th (Bank Holiday).
Visit: www.aoh.org.uk
from top: The Garden House Open House. Photo, Syl Ojalla; Boogaloo Stu with ceramics (artist’s photo); The Dog Show Own House. Photo, Syl Ojalla
visual arts & contemporary crafts
WE ARE STILL
Bringing the voices of university students in Gaza to the heart of East Sussex, through a powerful exhibition of poetry, visual art & community response. In partnership with academics from the University of Sussex. 14.02 - 21.03
A contemporary gallery space between city and sea showcasing work by local artists. Gift vouchers available. Check website for opening times. We are always happy to open at other times by appointment.
West Wittering, West Sussex PO20 8LT 07779 279963 • www.thelittleartgallery.online
A contemporary exhibition of painting, poetry and installation by The Material Collective.
A reflective exhibition that celebrates the beauty of our precious lands & seas, both urban & wild.
OF SUBSTANCE : 06.09 - 01.11
A wide-ranging, exploratory exhibition of contemporary sculpture and installation. **SUBMISSIONS OPEN UNTIL 11th AUGUST ** visit www.artgallerynorth.co.uk for info
A dynamic exhibition of installation & sculptural work that explores the concept of art outside of the frame, focusing on process, exploration and play.
CONGREGATION:
01.08 - 05.09 FLOCK. Submission deadline 18.07.26
08.11 - 17.12
An exhibition of figurative and still life work that explores people, place and the connection between the two.
Celebrating the power of community & collaboration. Accepting work in all mediums.
12.09 - 17.10 PAPERING THE CRACKS. Submission deadline: 25.08.26
For all enquiries & artist submissions please contact Emma at artgallerynorth@gmail.com www.artgallerynorth.co.uk 70 High Street Hailsham, BN27 1AX
An expressive exhibition of drawing & paper-based art. Expressions of interest: artgallerynorth@gmail.com www.artgallerynorth.co.uk
Karen Ongley-Snook
Nadia Day Shazia Mahmood
Linda Foskett
Bethan Archer
V Pease Jewellery
Vee Pease
jewellery or wearable art?
Vee has been making jewellery in her West Sussex studio for fifteen years, having completed a jewellery degree thirty-seven years ago.
She is hugely influenced by the diverse and abundant flora on her doorstep, where she walks daily on the South Downs. Photographing and sketching wild flowers, leaves and seed-heads inspires much of Vee’s work.
Trying to re-create the delicacy of these plants in silver is a constant challenge, as is making them wearable and functional. She hammers and pierces the surface of the silver, not only to add texture, but also to add shape to each piece. Hammering makes the silver move in an organic way and can often have unexpected results, so each piece is unique.
Colour is an essential part of Vee’s jewellery and she incorporates semi-precious stones and beads in her work. Although she mainly works in sterling silver, all her pieces can be made in gold.
Visit www.vpjewellery.co.uk to see more of her beautiful jewellery.
pictured: sterling silver earrings with turquoise; semi precious and vintage bead necklaces with sterling silver leaves; sterling silver bracelet
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Towner Eastbourne
Until 12th April at Towner Eastbourne, experience a new and expanded display of works by Eric Ravilious, alongside Impressions in Watercolour: J. M. W. Turner and his Contemporaries, a celebration of Turner at his most experimental and gestural.
Eric Ravilious has been a vital part of the Towner Collection for many years, and his varied works, from ceramics to print and watercolour, continue to inspire today. Building upon extensive research into his legacy, the new display, titled The Ravilious Collection, features the celebrated war artist among his closest friends and peers. As well as Tirzah Garwood, who married Eric Ravilious in 1930, the display includes works by close friends Edward Bawden and Peggy Angus, whose wallpaper design adorns one of the gallery walls. This permanent display also incorporates a quiet study space and library – free for anyone to use.
ing these pieces alongside those by other 19th century artists, including Thomas Girtin and John Sell Cotman, exposes the exciting developments taking place in the often overlooked medium of watercolour painting during this period. The exhibition has been organised by the Holburne Museum, Bath. www.townereastbourne.org.uk
From October 2025 to 12th April 2026, Impressions in Watercolour showcases a selection of J.M.W. Turner’s emotive landscape works and seascapes. Contextualis-
WE ARE STILL HERE: New Exhibition Brings Student Voices From Gaza to Hailsham, Sussex
A new art exhibition at Gallery North in Hailsham is bringing the voices of university students in Gaza to the heart of East Sussex, through a powerful combination of poetry, visual art and community responses.
We Are Still Here: An Exhibition and Anthology of Resilience, Grief and Unshattered Hope from Gaza’s university students opened on Saturday 14th February and runs until Friday 21st March. The exhibition is free and open to the public.
The exhibition is based on We Are Still Here, a recently published anthology featuring writing by students from Gaza’s universities. Through poems, short stories, essays and personal testimonies, the students document their experiences of displacement, loss and survival, writing amid ongoing
violence, starvation and blockade.
Since the start of the most recent atrocities in Palestine, academics, activists and teachers from across Sussex have been in contact with hundreds of students in Gaza whose lives have been turned upside down, with their education disrupted and their universities destroyed. Over the past two years, efforts have been made to continue supporting their learning through online lessons and seminars in subjects including English, science and medicine.
It was through these sessions that We Are Still Here emerged – a book bringing together short and long stories, poems, essays and personal testimonies. The writing is raw and unfiltered, created during the past two years of violence and emerging from the depths of trauma, grief and lived experience.
Despite the widespread destruction of higher education institutions across Gaza, with campuses reduced to rubble, and students and academics killed or forcibly displaced, many students have continued to write. For them, writing has become a way to process trauma, to bear witness, and to remain connected to their identities and futures.
Alongside selected poems and visual material from the anthology, the exhibition will feature new work by Sussex artists who have created pieces in response to the students’ writing. These include paintings, music, textiles and mixed material works, offering creative interpretations of themes such as hope, grief, memory and resistance. There will also be an art installation from ArtBloc – a Brighton-based mobile art exhibition of Art for Palestine featuring well known Palestinian artists.
The exhibition aims to create a space for reflection and solidarity, bringing together international student voices and the local creative community, and inviting visitors to engage with the realities of student life in Gaza through art and storytelling.
The exhibition is hosted by Gallery North, a not-for-profit gallery and arts centre located on Hailsham High Street, founded over twenty years ago. The gallery supports local schools, charities and creative groups, runs classes and workshops, and organises the annual Hailsham Arts Festival.
All proceeds connected to the project support students in Gaza, Palestine. For more information visit www.artgallerynorth.co.uk
Artwork by Farah Ajour
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Eric Ravilious, Beachy Head, 1939, Towner Eastbourne.
Hannah Buchanan Blue Skies and Cow Parsley 2025 Oil on board 30 x 22cm
visual arts & contemporary crafts
THE PATTERSON GALLERY
at The Lansdowne Hotel, Eastbourne an eclectic collection of art from Sussex, Kent, Essex and London
“It is still a tough time in the art market” says gallery owner Peter Patterson. “The Patterson Gallery has now been established in The Lansdowne Hotel since May last year and I'm happy to say we are still here with small but regular footfall and sales.”
“With Spring on the way we will stay positive and encourage clients and visitors to keep coming in to enjoy the art and relax with some light refreshment from the hotel. I notice that the artists that I show are keeping busy – a good thing, I believe – it stretches their minds and encourages them to experiment and, perhaps, move into different fields.
The exhibition on display at the gallery until Sunday the 1st of March is by four artists from the Blue Monkey Network. This is a collective of about seventy artists from local and surrounding areas. The exhibition consists mainly of paper constructions, installations and etchings. Part of the exhibition is a large installation by artist Peon Boyle made up of hundreds of teabags, sown or glued together; it is fascinating and delicate. I believe it took four years to make.
The following exhibition is a mixed show, from Saturday the 7th of March until Easter, when it will be Eastbourne Open Houses, and then back to a mixed exhibition.”
The Gallery is open every weekend and by appointment during the week via Peter or the Hotel, contact 07970 649873 or peter@pattersongallery.co.uk.
“At the end of November, Anthony Ellis, who is a talented portraitist, completed the second portrait of the Deputy High Sherrif of Essex, Lady Sidra Naeem, which I'm pleased to show here.”
Patterson Gallery, The Lansdowne Hotel, King Edwards Parade, Eastbourne BN21 4EF pattersongallery.co.uk
from top: Anthony Ellis, portrait of Deputy High Sherrif of Essex, Lady Sidra Naeem; Peon Boyle, teabag cloth; Stephen Johnston, Boat Study, drypoint on watercolour.
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Exhibit With Us at Benenden Art Fair
BAF is back this Autumn!
For those who don’t know, Benenden Art Fair is a local fair which occurs every October at Benenden Village Hall. Our mission is to showcase the abundance of artistic talent in the South East, most of whom are right on our doorstep!
We are looking for artists to join us for our third year this Autumn. We welcome artists from Kent and Sussex at any stage in their career, working in any medium. Whether you’ve been creating for years or just starting out, we’d love to hear from you.
If you’re interested in taking part, applications will be open on our website www.benendenartfair.com from 2nd March to 24th April. If you’d like to be notified when applications open, please get in touch by emailing benendenartfair@gmail.com or sign up to our newsletter via our website.
We look forward to hearing from you, Hannah & The BAF Team. Benenden Art Fair, 2nd to 4th October 2026 www.benendenartfair.com @benendenartfair
Willow Stacey, Some Old Man, 2025, Embroidery below: Polly Bennet, 50.985, 0.485, 2025, Pigment and gum arabic on paper
top: Hannah Buchanan, Sunshine on the River Rother, 2025, Oil on board above: Scarlett Woodman, Crisp, 2023, Emulsion on corrugated iron
right:
visual arts & contemporary
Become Part of Something Special...
The Cranbrook Art Show
The Cranbrook Art show continues to go from strength to strength having celebrated its 30th Anniversary in 2025 with an impressive line-up of artists taking part. The support for this show is outstanding and 2025 was its most successful year on record, even the team behind it were left speechless by the response.
This annual show, held in a small Kent town, really does pack a punch and attracts visitors from far and wide, with extensive advertising and a strong reputation for quality and variety. The show is organised by a team of professional artists, on a not-for-profit basis, to support professional artists in the South East. It prides itself on the high quality, carefully curated show it delivers each November, in the stunning venue of the Vestry Hall.
The team put the show’s success down to keeping it fresh each year, aiming for a mix of familiar established names and fresh new talent exhibiting with them for the first time. The wide range of media and styles selected offers something for everyone who visits and for artists it is certainly a show to be part of, supporting the careers of many over the last thirty years. The selection for the show takes place in May from an Open Call that runs 16th March to 1st May, submissions via the website. The team look forward to considering your submissions. www.cranbrookartshow.org.uk
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Patterson Gallery at the Alfriston Room
The Lansdowne Hotel, Eastbourne
showing work by established & emerging artists
King Edwards Parade, Eastbourne, BN21 4ER
Open at weekends 10am to 5pm and by appointment during the week peter@pattersongallery.co.uk | 07970 549873
Talent rich but time poor? Would you like to gain more confidence with social media for your creative business?
“Steph at High Weald Marketing really knows her stuff, and is great with her customers, especially those who are not savvy with social media marketing know-how”
www.highwealdmarketing.co.uk @highwealdmarketing
High Weald Marketing
Do you love what you do but hate the chore of having to come up with new ideas for your social media? Recognise the need to build your business on social media but don’t know where to start? Feel overwhelmed at the thought?
Hi, I’m Steph, and I’m a social media mentor. In other words, I’m here to help you understand the right platforms for your business and use them as your digital shop window. Spring is the perfect opportunity to make a fresh start on your social media, and I offer a range of services to support you.
Get your marketing ducks in a row with a social media audit – I’ll do a deep dive into your profile, analyse your bio, posts and the overall appearance of the page, then provide recommendations for content ideas, hashtags, post layout and much more.
I’ll take the mystery out of marketing with easyto-understand language, and explain some of those words you always hear, but never know what they mean – like, just what is a reel?
It’s not just the captions you need to think about – they say a picture paints a thousand words, and it’s certainly true in this case.
I'll help you with the images you’ll need to be on-brand and efficient. Drop in your photos and text and you’ll make the most of your precious marketing minutes. Then you can get on with what you love and do best – being creative!
Visit www.highwealdmarketing.co.uk and follow @highwealdmarketing
Erika Sharp, artist
Winter has a quiet, gentle way of transforming the world. The soft light, misty mornings, and muted tones create a peaceful atmosphere that feels both calming and reflective.
My winter paintings are inspired by these moments – the stillness in the air, the beauty of bare trees, and the sense of warmth we seek during the colder days. While many pieces embrace cooler shades, I also like to bring in warmer colours at times, adding a feeling of comfort and balance to the season’s calm mood.
Through each painting, I hope to capture not only how winter looks, but how it feels, inviting others to pause, slow down, and find beauty in its quiet magic.
Roots of Radiance is a gentle reflection on the beauty of what lies beneath the surface. In this series, the roots symbolize quiet strength, nurturing energy, and the deep connection we carry within ourselves. There is a soft femininity in the way life grows from hidden places – steady, patient, and full of grace. These paintings speak about inner light, natural harmony, and the delicate power of staying grounded while reaching toward the light.
painting landscapes and portraits focussing on beauty and goodness
Erika Sharp, Roots of Radiance #4
Erika Sharp Artist
visual arts & contemporary crafts
Esther N Art
See Esther Newham Brown’s work at Borde Hill Gardens
Sunday 15th February to 30th April 10:00am to 5:00pm
Esther Newnham Brown works from her garden studio in Rusper, creating paintings across a variety of subjects, styles and sizes.
For Esther, the larger the canvas, the greater the joy. She embraces a free-spirited approach to her art, working on whatever idea inspires her in the moment, often breaking traditional rules in the process.
Esther is exhibiting as part of the The Sussex Artists ‘The Art of Spring’ exhibition at Borde Hill this spring.
Her primary mediums are oils, with occasional use of acrylics and watercolours. Esther is known for her playful approach –setting pieces aside when she feels stuck or uninspired and revisiting them later with fresh eyes.
Art has been a lifelong passion for Esther, influenced by her artistic family, including her father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. After a pause to raise her two sons, she has spent the last twenty years painting, exhibiting her work, and running an independent artist gallery in Henfield – a venture she describes as an absolute passion. Inspired by artists such as Henri Rousseau and Frida Kahlo for their bold use of colour, Lucian Freud for his raw honesty, and Edward Hopper for his atmospheric scenes, Esther continues to explore and learn through workshops and new creative challenges. For her, art is a journey of discovery, joy and connection.
One can find Esther’s work at Borde Hill until the end of April, in June and also at the late summer exhibition. Visit bordehill.co.uk/events/ the-art-of-spring or gallerybn5.co.uk/in-the-gallery/ esther-newnham-brown
In my search for the wild and dramatic weather and landscape that I love, I have recently relocated from the south to Shetland.
This is a land of wild seas and huge skies where glaciers once scoured the ancient granite cliffs and earlier still a huge volcano dominated the land.
Massive rock stacks stand tall against the battering of waves and wind in the ever-changing light. The land and sea have an intense physical presence. When the wind rests the silence is just as powerful and moon and stars rise into skies free of man-made light. It is beautiful and breathtaking.
My new work reflects my need for this isolated and remote wilderness in which I can immerse myself and explore in my paintings the extremes of weather and light. The process of my paintings continues to develop. The small board paintings are 'en plein air' as direct responses to my surroundings. The larger canvases, evolved from these along with drawings and photographs, are made in the studio. Paint and raw pigments are layered up, volcanic sand becomes part of the surface expressing the elemental contrast of light and shadow and dark.
It is the ever-changing nature of this place that will continue to inspire.
I continue to be represented in the south by two galleries who show a range of my work: The Little Art Gallery, West Wittering, Chichester PO208LT and McAllister Thomas Fine Art, Godalming, Surrey, GU71AQ
www.nicolaroseartist.com
top: Into the Fire; left: White Moon
Spring forward! The Lighthouse Gallery, Eastbourne
Spring has sprung, and The Lighthouse Gallery is bursting with creative energy.
With many of our twenty-five artists and makers taking inspiration from the beauty of our natural Sussex surroundings there is always something new to discover. Every spring our local woodlands are carpeted with bluebells and it is small wonder that plenty appear in the gallery too.
Sonya Tatham perfectly captures the woodland's magical beauty with her large acrylic paintings. Fused glass artist Jazz Dixon takes inspiration from bluebells too, along with a myriad of other spring flowers. Margaret Turton's stunning watercolour of a host of golden daffodils in Hampden Park celebrates the beauty we have on our doorstep. Finding inspiration is literally a walk in the park!
Whether you are looking for a special piece of art for your home, or a unique gift for someone special, we have plenty to choose from at prices to suit every pocket. Come and enjoy a great cup of coffee in our beautiful vintage gallery and take some time out from life's mayhem to find inspiration and joy.
The Lighthouse Gallery, 19 Cornfield Terrace, Eastbourne, East Sussex, BN21 4NS 07748 354879. Find us on Facebook and Instagram Open Tuesday to Saturday, 10.30am to 4pm.
clockwise from top: Sonya Tatham, Bluebell Woods at Arlington; Jazz Dixon, Bluebell Handkerchief Vase; Suesie Seedpod, Bluebell felted earrings; Margaret Turton, Daffodils in Hampden Park
& contemporary crafts
Commission Pennie for that special gift
‘Our pets mean so much to us and a portrait celebrates the unique bond between us’ –Pennie
Gallery@42, home of Pennie’s Pet Portraits 42 South Street, Eastbourne, BN21 4XB
A New Chapter for Gallery@42, South Street, Eastbourne
Gallery@42 has finally moved past a nightmare scenario while waiting for Southern Water to address a collapsed sewer and the resulting toxic fumes.
Such a crisis could break any small business, making this 'gentle slip into Spring' a hard-won victory for gallery owner Pennie Radcliffe (artist Pennie Cunliffe-Lister) and Eastbourne’s creative community. The restoration of these walls signifies the return of a local landmark, replacing the uncertainty of 2025 with the vibrant energy of 2026.
As a tireless advocate for the arts, Pennie has transformed Gallery@42 into a welcoming sanctuary. Pennie is also known for her Pennie’s Pet Portraits, where she works predominantly in watercolour, oil pastels, and charcoal. Her style focuses on the 'spark of life' in a subject’s eyes, moving beyond simple likeness to capture the pet's personality.
The Spring Show, 18th March to 19th April 2026 features: Maxine Monaghan, Award-winning landscape photography with a dreamlike perspective; Lindy Dunbar, Energetic and vibrant figurative work; Colin Knapp, Whimsical structural tissue collages; Jane Hicks, Colourful pastels and delicate watercolour bird paintings; Sue Branch, Artistic interpretations of the Four Seasons of the Downs; Ed Gouldstone, Intricate architectural drawings and kinetic mobiles.
Clockwise from top: Lindy Dunbar, Dance in Red; Pennie Cunliffe-Lister, 'Luna' cocker spaniel; and 'Sam’s Pine'; Sue Branch, Four Seasons, Spring; Maxine Monaghan, Aurora Borealis, Seven Sisters; Colin Knapp, Arlecchino Targeted
This Is My Theatre
brings us two classic tales this spring
Jane Eyre
by Charlotte Brontë &
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
by William Shakespeare
Jane Eyre
Following This Is My Theatre’s previous successful productions of Pride and Prejudice we are delighted to be back this year with another classic. Our adaptation of Charlotte Bronte’s immortal tale, packed with song and suspense, will be sure to grip audiences this spring.
Orphaned and alone, Jane Eyre grows up in a world that seeks to silence her spirit. Defiant in her search for freedom, belonging, and love, she finds herself at Thornfield Hall, where the enigmatic Mr. Rochester hides dark secrets behind its walls. Passion, mystery, and resilience collide in this sweeping story of self-discovery and courage, brought to life in a bold new adaptation – with traditional folk music woven throughout – of Charlotte Bronte’s timeless classic!
A Midsummer Night’s Dream
We are delighted to be back this year with another delightfully silly show. Our adaptation of William Shakespeare's much-loved story – packed with harmony, hilarity and plenty of hats – will be sure to have audiences laughing along.
The woods outside Athens are busy this night. Four young Athenian lovers are lost. Oberon and Titania, the king and queen of the fairy-folk, are quarrelling whilst a group of craftsmen (who also happen to be some not-so-very-talented actors) are meeting in secret to rehearse their play.
Too many characters and not enough actors will see Shakespeare's story of love, mistaken identity and magic brought to life in a comedic and potentially hat-astrophic production. In a similarly choreographed, character-swapping style to our critically acclaimed productions of The Importance of Being Earnest (2018), The Three Musketeers (2020), A Comedy of Errors (2022) and Persuasion (2024) audiences will love this truly unique adaptation! The tour occurs at many local venues from early March to early May.
Sarah Slator, Artistic Director of This Is My Theatre said: “We are very much looking forward to our Spring/Summer tours this year. We have created these adaptations to be vibrant to capture imaginations and engage audiences of all ages.
Our production of Jane Eyre closely follows the original Brontë novel and we are looking forward to creating a truly magical production for our audiences. With Midsummer Night's Dream we are really excited to be continuing our tradition of stylised, family-friendly and farcical adaptations in historic places and atmospheric spaces. Packed with merriment, music and plenty of mischief, and always a firm favourite with company members and audiences, this production of the much-loved story will remain faithful to the original text whilst also being brought to life with too many roles and not enough performers to fill them, imbuing the show with a farcical jeopardy and clinically-executed tomfoolery. This will offer our audiences a hilarious telling and to see these well-known characters take the stage in a production like no other!
With live music arranged by the company’s resident composer Simon Stallard, both productions are sure to be all that This Is My Theatre audiences have come to love about our shows!”
For further information, to find venues and book tickets visit www.thisismytheatre.com
TUNBRIDGE WELLS OPERATIC AND DRAMATIC SOCIETY
EVITA
26th to 30th May at the Assembly Hall Theatre
From the humble streets of rural Argentina to the glittering heights of fame and power, Evita tells the true story of Eva Perón – the woman who became a myth, a movement and a mystery.
Driven by fierce ambition and unshakable charm, young Eva Duarte fought her way from poverty to the presidential palace, capturing the hearts of a nation and defying the world’s expectations. To her people, she was a saint. To her critics, a scandal. But to history – she remains unforgettable.
With Andrew Lloyd Webber’s chart-topping score, featuring the iconic 'Don’t Cry for Me Argentina', this multi-award-winning musical bursts with passion and power. A tale of glamour, politics, and the ultimate price of fame, Evita invites you to experience the triumph and tragedy of a woman who dared to dream beyond her destiny.
Performances are every evening at 7.30pm with matinees at 2.30pm on 27th and 30th May. There will be a BSL Signed Performance at 7.30pm on 27th May.
Special opening night offer: all tickets £20 (on Tuesday 26th only), valid until 31st March 2026. Cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer.
Book your tickets for Evita at www.twods.org or call the box office 01892 554441.
pictured: This Is My Theatre's previous productions of Jane Eyre (opp page); Midsummer Nights Dream (above)
TWODS' previous production of 'Evita'
NTLive The Audience (12A) from 26th February
Othello (15) from 4th March
NTLive All My Sons (15) from 26th April
NTLive Playboy of the Western World (12A tbc) from 28th May
NTLive Les Liaisons Dangereuses (15) from 26th June
Musik (15) 28th April
THE PICTURE HOUSE, Uckfield and THE ATRIUM, East Grinstead
At The Picture House Uckfield and The Atrium East Grinstead, National Theatre Live is at the heart of our arts programming.
This spring sees one of their most popular titles back on the big screen, The Audience starring Helen Mirren as The Queen. Bryan Cranston and Marianne Jean-Baptiste star in a powerful new adaptation of Arthur Miller’s classic play All My Sons, which was one of the hottest tickets on the West End, recorded at Wyndhams Theatre.
An exciting new title stars Nicola Coughlan in a staging of John Millington Synge’s darkly funny Irish tale full to the brim with secrets, The Playboy of the Western World.
Finally Les Liaisons Dangereuses, Lesley Manville and Aidan Turner star in a striking new staging of Christopher Hampton’s acclaimed adaptation of this classic French novel.
Other theatre screenings this spring include Othello starring David Harewood and Toby Jones, with music by PJ Harvey; MUSIK, Double Olivier nominee Frances Barber stars in this outrageous one-woman odyssey with music by the Pet Shop Boys; and national treasure Sheridan Smith stars in the classic musical Funny Girl.
Watching theatre on the big screen gives you the experience of a front row seat at a fraction of the price. picturehouseuckfield.com | atriumeastgrinstead.com
above: Frances Barber as Billie Trix in MUSIK; below: Sheridan Smith in Funny Girl
APRIL HIGHLIGHTS
New Orleans trumpeter,
photo by Pete Gilbert
ROPETACKLE ARTS CENTRE, Shoreham-by-Sea
Two diverse, but superb, musical experiences coming up
On April 26th Sari Schorr arrives.
A voice of breathtaking quality and power with a live show that erupts like a volcano have catapulted Sari Schorr into the spotlight as the new undisputed star of blues-rock. With her unmistakable voice and charismatic stage presence, New York Blues Hall of Fame singer and songwriter Sari Schorr has earned a reputation as one of the most exciting performers of her generation.
Whether she's belting out a high-energy blues-rock anthem or delivering a heart-wrenching ballad, Sari’s live show is a rollercoaster of emotions. It's a place where the blues come alive, and the power of music to touch the soul is undeniable. Schorr's raw passion and authenticity resonate with listeners, forging an unbreakable connection.
And, in contrast, on April 30th the Furrow Collective arrive.
Drawn together by a shared love of the traditional song and balladry of England, Scotland and beyond and an open, intuitive approach to collaboration, The Furrow Collective share timeless songs of this world and others, with storytelling at their heart.
It is this storytelling focus upon which the band are set to expand with their upcoming project Cantastoria, including digital single releases and the use of visuals, both in their music videos and live performances. Lucy Farrell, who is a talented visual artist as well as musician, will create 'crankies' for each single, illustrating the stories of the songs. The crankie theatre is turned by hand whilst the story unfolds on a moving scroll, an enchanting addition to their live shows. The songs may be hundreds of years old, but they are chosen for the parallels that can be drawn with our times; tales of courage, resistance and wit.
The Furrow Collective are well-loved for their contemporary interpretations of folk songs, and these releases focus on what they do best, breathing new life into old ballads, in song, story and art.
Visit https://ropetacklecentre.co.uk for all that’s on in 2026.
top: Sari Schorr; below: The Furrow Collective
performing arts
LIVE MUSIC IN HORSHAM Spring 2026 presented by Horsham Music Circle for the 84th Season
SATURDAY 21st MARCH
Causeway Barn 7.00pm
AMIRI HAREWOOD Piano Recital supported by The Countess of Munster Musical Trust Shostakovich, Rachmaninoff, Granados, Bach
FRIDAY 17th APRIL
St Mary’s Church 7.00pm
ISATA KANNEH-MASON
RAVEL’s Gaspard de la nuit & BEETHOVEN’S Piano Sonata ‘Waldstein’ BRAIMAH KANNEH-MASON & JÂMS COLEMAN Sonatas for Violin & Piano by Mozart and Grieg
SATURDAY 16th MAY
St Mary’s Church 7.00pm
CANTABILE - The London Quartet Humour & Harmony a cappella style
Award-winning producer Ellen Kent continues her farewell tour this spring with three dates in our area: Madama Butterfly at The Hawth, Crawley, 8th April; Carmen at the de LaWarr Pavilion in Bexhill, 11th April and Portsmouth’s Kings Theatre, 19th March.
We were fortunate to interview Ellen in our last issue of ingénu/e, what a charming and fascinating personality she is (well worth a read, find it on our website, issue 49).
Her Madama Butterfly, winner of the Best Opera Award at the Liverpool Daily Post Theatre Awards, returns in a new production with exquisite sets including a spectacular Japanese garden and fabulous costumes including antique wedding kimonos from Japan. One of the world’s most popular operas, Puccini’s Madama Butterfly tells the heartbreaking story of a beautiful young Japanese girl, the eponymous Butterfly, who falls in love with an American naval lieutenant, with dramatic results. Highlights include the melodic 'Humming Chorus', the moving aria 'One Fine Day' and the unforgettable 'Love Duet'. Sung in Italian with English surtitles.
Bizet’s masterpiece, Carmen, is an evening of passion, sexual jealousy, death and unforgettable arias. Carmen is the story of the bewitching gypsy girl whose tantalising beauty lures a soldier to desertion and ultimately leads to her own murder. The opera includes some of the most evocative and best-loved melodies in opera – 'The Habanera', 'The Seguidilla', 'The Chanson Bohème' and perhaps the best-known baritone aria of all 'The Toreador’s Song'. The stunning set reflects the magnificent architecture of Seville with its Roman and Moorish influences. Sung in French with English surtitles.
Two iconic productions whose music you will undoubtedly leave the theatre humming. Visit www.ellenkent.com for full details.
Madama Butterfly
Carmen
performing arts
Horsham Music Circle
Preview of the Spring Series 2026 Spring In Spotlight!
Horsham Music Circle is delighted to present a sparkling Spring Series featuring world-class artists, rising stars and one of the UK’s best-loved vocal ensembles. Three contrasting concerts promise expressive richness and memorable musical moments.
However, we are sorry to announce that Sheku Kanneh-Mason’s ongoing recovery from his finger injury is taking longer than he had anticipated and with huge regret, he must withdraw from all his concerts over the next few months. He is extremely disappointed, as we are, to be unable to play at Horsham as planned. Firstly our thoughts, commiserations and best wishes go out to Sheku but despite our disappointment we are indebted to the family and delighted that they have devised a new programme for us which is detailed below.
We begin the series on Saturday 21st March at 7.00pm in the Causeway Barn, with a performance by pianist Amiri Harewood supported by the Countess of Munster Musical Trust Recital Scheme which recognises the finest talented young musicians. He offers a vivid journey from Shostakovich’s incisive Preludes and Fugues to Rachmaninoff’s glowing Preludes, the elegance of Granados, the intensity of George Walker, and the grandeur of Bach’s Partita No. 4.
The Kanneh-Mason’s concert on Friday 17th April in St Mary’s Church 7pm is going ahead with Isata appearing as solo pianist joined by her violinist brother Braimah and his accompanist Jâms Coleman. These three world class musicians offer a splendid programme. We will hear sonatas for violin and piano by Mozart and Grieg, and for solo piano Beethoven’s ‘Waldstein’ Sonata and Ravel’s Gaspard de la Nuit. A truly unmissable evening.
We close on Saturday 16th May at 7.00pm in St Mary’s Church with the ever-popular Cantabile – The London Quartet, whose blend of harmony, humour and versatility brings together Renaissance works, 20th-century favourites and close-harmony classics. A perfect finale to the spring series.
Visit www.horsham-music-circle.org.uk for full details and tickets.
top: Cantabile – The London Quartet below left: Braimah Kanneh-Mason; below: Isata Kanneh-Mason
The Royal Tunbridge Wells Symphony Orchestra
2025–2026 season continues at the Assembly Hall Theatre, Tunbridge Wells
Two more spectacular concerts are still to come, under the direction of new Music Director, Peter Selwyn.
On Match 1st award-winning violinist Fenella Humphreys performs Coleridge-Taylor’s vibrant concerto in a programme showcasing the richness of English music, from Vaughan Williams’ Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis to Walton’s fiery Symphony No.1.
The season concludes in spectacular style on 12th April with Jeneba Kanneh-Mason performing Ravel’s Piano Concerto in a programme of vibrant, jazz-infused and dazzling orchestral favourites.
A season of renewal, discovery and celebration, these concerts promise unforgettable musical experiences!
The Royal Tunbridge Wells Symphony Orchestra (RTWSO) is a vibrant, thriving orchestra at the heart of the South East’s cultural community. The Kent-based orchestra is made up of gifted, local musicians and professional orchestral players from London and the south east. It often performs with internationally renowned artists. RTWSO believes passionately in encouraging music-making, nurturing new talent and enhancing the skills of players of all ages.
Colourful House is the seventh studio album by the untamed talent of vocalist Zoe Schwarz and guitar genius Rob Koral.
The album rolls along at a cracking pace, fourteen songs that blend various musical genres into an altogether wonderful album.
From the outset of track one ‘Venus Ain’t So Far Away’, you can tell that the ‘friends’ are all very talented musicians, and the skills of our two principals have evolved into quite a terrific writing team, both musically and lyrically.
It’s a well-chosen opening track, immediately revealing what you are in for, a rollercoaster ride of rock, pop and blues with an occasional pinch of jazz and funk. Choosing some tracks to mention is very difficult as they all really do have very definite merits, but to take a sample:
Track 4 ‘House Of Colours’ is the closest the band come to a conventional pop song, but it’s much more than that. I liked it a lot, it made me feel warm and
homely. It even has a short spoken section and recurring motif ‘Let’s make it real!’
Track 7 ‘Tell Me’ slows down the tempo, giving us pause for thought about love and loss. I was enthralled by how the Hammond organ and bass guitar combined to fill this track with such colour, yet leaving enough space for Zoe’s vocal to float above freely.
Track 9 ‘You Know It’s The Right Thing To Do’ has the flavour of a smoky jazz café, with Zoe showcasing her bluesy/jazz talents to the full.
The final track ‘It Aint Easy’, a bonus track, shows how to create a twelve bar blues perfectly and winds the album down just right.
The whole album is shot through with Zoe’s very eclectic vocals and Rob’s sometimes free, sometimes delicate, sometimes cultured guitar wizardry. The band do a brilliant job of a solid backdrop while also contributing some musical alchemy of their own, and the whole album has a ‘live’ feel; if you close your eyes it’s easy to imagine you are sitting in on an actual gig.
10 out of 10 for me! For full information visit zoeschwarzmusic.com
top: Rob Koral & Zoe Schwarz
Paul Gunn Trio: Upstairs at Olby’s
Thursday 26th March 7.30pm
Pianist Paul Gunn presents music for cello soloist, piano and percussion at Olby’s Creative Hub, 3-5 King Street, Margate CT9 1DD. There are a limited number of free tickets for this event.
Baroque inspired cello with Latin grooves, 'trancends boundaries and styles', featuring cellist Yvonne-Marie Parsons who plays with the Academy of St Martin in the Fields, The Philharmonia, BBC National Orchestra of Wales, Britten Sinfonia and Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra.
Brazilian percussion wizard Jansen Santa completes the Trio in this unusual non-genreconforming event.
from top: Jansen Santana; Yvonne-Marie Parsons; Paul Gunn
“A high-quality, entirely unclassifiable musical performance. Gunn is an engaging and charismatic band leader. His approach to music is very much his own, and this whimsical yet very accomplished ensemble is a unique creation. A really enjoyable, unusual and excellent show. I look forward to the next time”.
–Victoria Kingham. Hastings Independent
THE OLD MARKET
Of Land, Sea and Sky
The Old Market and Brighton Festival present A new immersive season marking the Festival’s 60th edition
Bringing together electronic music, installation and live performance, this offering explores our connection to environment and place, while celebrating collaboration between artists, communities and cultural partners, including support by the Enjoolata Foundation.
The season opens with a hometown headline show from Brighton-based electronic artist Changing Currents, whose genre-fluid sets have taken him from sold-out international dates to Glastonbury Festival.
Audiences can then dive into Sounds of the Ocean, an award-winning immersive experience blending whale and dolphin song with original music and ocean imagery to create a calming, all-ages underwater journey. TAKKUUK shares stories of indigenous life and climate change in the Arctic through a powerful international collaboration of musicians and visual artists including electronic duo Bicep, visual artist Zac Norman and filmmaker Charlie Miller. The season concludes with musician and artist Werkha presenting Saturama, an immersive performance inspired by the temperate rainforests of the British Isles, created in collaboration with environmental researchers, activists and wild spaces.
Mark Gordon, Marketing and Communications Manager of The Old Market, says: “We’re incredibly proud to be working alongside Brighton Festival for 'Of Land, Sea and Sky'. Collaboration is at the heart of this season, and partnerships like this are vital for
venues and festivals to create ambitious, meaningful work, and for the good of the city we all love. We cannot wait to welcome audiences in for this exciting new offering!”
Of Land, Sea and Sky takes place from 2nd to 23rd May.
For full information of this and all other performances visit theoldmarket.com
top: Changing Currents left: Werkha, Saturama
right: 0 HERO - Of Land, Sea and Sky
performing arts
an inspiring programme of gigs this spring from
melting vinyl
Over the coming months, Melting Vinyl are looking forward to bringing us dreamy indiepop and electronica; experimental Texas folk-rock; displaced beats and glitched loops; pulsating drum machines; brilliant guitarists and singer-songwriters; and much more.
Here are two examples: 25th March at Lewes Con Club – Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman 30th Anniversary Tour. Duos come and go, but few nurture and refine their craft with such dedication and originality as Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman.
Roberts and Lakeman have forged a creative bond that is as enduring as it is inspiring. Their thirty year journey together –from young trailblazers in the 1990s folk supergroup Equation to one of Britain’s most admired and decorated folk duos – stands as a testament to their artistry, authenticity, and masterful musicianship.
Their contribution to the British folk landscape has not gone unnoticed. Kathryn and Sean have twice been named ‘Best Duo’ at the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards, in addition to accolades from Spiral Earth and Fatea Magazine.
In 2025, the duo celebrated an extraordinary thirty years of music-making with the release of their first live concert album, 'Another Day at the Circus', which captures the warmth, humour, and emotional depth that have made their live performances so cherished; an invitation into the
MELTING VINYL LIVE COMING UP IN 2026
of an evening spent in the company of two artists completely at ease with their craft.
At the Greys in Brighton on 20th April are True Foxes.
“Sublime harmonies, perfectly crafted songs and a beguiling stage presence.” –Mark Radcliffe (BBC Radio 2)
Having performed over 700 shows (and counting) since forming in 2019, True Foxes, the acclaimed Alt-Country/Americana, cousin-duo from Cornwall, are quickly gaining recognition in the UK and beyond. Following the release of their debut album ‘Howl’ in March 2024, the duo have been featured on numerous international radio stations.
They then entered 2025 with a sold-out headline tour in the spring, followed by a summer packed full of main stage performances.
With extensive airplay across the UK and internationally, including recognition as BBC Artist of the Week across eight territories, True Foxes continue to captivate audiences.
Visit www.meltingvinyl.co.uk for full information of what Melting
has to offer.
left: Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman; top: True Foxes
magic
looking ahead to festivals
Shipley Arts Festival 2026
‘One of the UK’s finest classical music festivals’ 2026 High Sherrif Gary Shipton DL
We are delighted to welcome you to the 26th Shipley Arts Festival and together with our generous and gracious sponsors: Toovey's Auctioneers & Valuers; NFU Mutual: Chichester, Horsham and Pulborough; Nyetimber; and Kreston Reeves, we're thrilled to welcome audiences to a new festival season of extraordinary music in some truly exceptional and inspiring venues.
Our 2026 programme weaves together chamber concerts in mediæval churches, elegant evenings in historic country houses, performances set against re-imagined wild landscapes, and intimate recitals among beautiful rural estates.
From Bach, Schubert and Vaughan Williams to bold new commissions, world premieres, jazz-infused crossovers and cinematic favourites, the Shipley Arts Festival brings together internationally acclaimed artists and outstanding emerging talent to create unforgettable musical experiences rooted in the heart of our local communities.
Across our programme, a remarkable collection of mostly private venues becomes part of the musical story itself, from the Wilding Concert at Knepp Castle, to a performance of our own Shipley Concerto on the
1696 Stradivarius violin at the resting place of composer John Ireland; from jazz evenings at the George and Dragon to immersive encounters combining fine art and music at Goring Castle. Together, these events form a truly international
festival, celebrating community, creativity and place through some of the UK’s finest artists, all deeply rooted in our Sussex home, while extending our reach further afield with three visits planned to our Hong Kong and Macau Chapter in 2026. Explore our 2026 concert programme at www.BMGLive.com and book your tickets today.
opp bottom: beautiful mediæval barn full of Festival Friends; opp left: Bernardi Music Group; above: BMG musicians and Shipley Festival team – all from the 2025 Shipley Arts Festival Review, photos by Miles Davies Photography; below: Andrew Bernardi with musicians and sponsor at the January preview of 2026 Festival at Tooveys
looking ahead to festivals
Arundel Literary Festival
20th to 22nd March
Arundel
Literary Festival, now in its fourth year, begins on Friday 20th March with two writing workshops. Dr Suzanne Joinson focuses on writing memoirs, while poet Mary Mulholland ‘stills the moment’.
Saturday 21st and Sunday 22nd March are programmed from 10am to 5:30pm with a diverse range of speakers. Professor Robert Barrington looks at corruption while Mark Cocker gets to grips with Swifts and the Story of Life on Earth, no less.
Damien Le Bas explores what unifies The Stopping Places and The Drowned Places. Sam Meekings offers up a practical memoir for writing about grief. Jean Sprackland challenges us to embrace a new more intimate relationship with darkness.
Roger Morgan-Grenville, Rosie Howard, Helen Fields and Colin Chambers amongst others contribute to the lineup for what promises to be a spectacular and fascinating weekend of literary indulgence.
All events are held at The Victoria Institute, a local Arts centre in Tarrant Street, Arundel. On Saturday evening the traditional Festival Concert takes place, with readings from winners of the poetry and flash fiction competitions running alongside the Festival, as well as performances of classical music and the spoken word.
Further details and tickets for all events are available from www.thevictoriainstitute.com/literary-festival
Helen Fields
Rosie Howard
Mark Cocker (ab0ve) Roger Morgan-Grenville
looking ahead to festivals
Lewes Speakers Festival
8th, 9th and 10th May
From small beginnings with a modest festival that we held in Lewes, East Sussex, we have grown significantly and now organise and host our popular Speakers Festivals throughout the year, in which a broad range of books and topics are discussed by their authors.
Held at the All Saints Centre, Lewes, each talk is followed by a Q&A session. Coming up this spring:
Friday 8th May
Anne-Laure Le Cunff, 'Tiny Experiments: How to Live Freely in a Goal-Obsessed World'. Sumit PaulChoudhury in conversation with Richard Church, 'The Bright Side: How Optimists Change the World, and How You Can Be One'. Jeremy Hunt, 'Can We Be Great Again? Why a Dangerous World Needs Britain'. Professor Bill McGuire, 'The Fate of the World: What Earth’s Past Tells Us About Our Future'.
Saturday 9th May
Dr Fola Yahaya, 'Quite Possibly the Best Introduction to AI'. Ian Williams, 'Vampire State – The Rise and Fall of the Chinese Economy – an update'. Dr Andrew Bayliss, 'SPARTA: The Rise and Fall of an Ancient Superpower'. Jason Burke, 'The Revolutionists: How the Radical 1970s Changed the World'. David Torrance 'The Edge of Revolution: The General Strike That Shook Britain'. Thant Myint-U, 'Peacemaker: U Thant, the United Nations and the Untold Story of the 1960s'. Professor Leah Ruppanner, 'Drained: The Real Mental Load and How to Reclaim Your Life'. Helen Pilcher, 'This Book May Cause Side Effects: The Nocebo Effect and the Mind–Body Trap'.
Sunday 10th May 2026
Brian Groom, 'These Isles: A People’s History of England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales'. Philip Coggan, 'The Economic Consequences of Mr Trump: What the Trade War Means for the World'. Professor Colin Shindler, 'A Forever War: Israel, Palestine & the Quest for Impartial History'. John Kampfner, 'Braver New World: The Countries Daring to Do Things Others Won’t'. Dr. Johnny Teague, 'Thomas Paine Returns: Common Sense for a Nation in Crisis'. Liam Byrne, 'Why Populists Are Winning: And How to Beat Them'. Maria Romanenko and Jez Myers, 'How not to flee a war'.
You will find much more information by visiting www.speakersfestivals.com/lewes-speakers-festival
Petworth Proms
14th to 16th May
Returning for its third year, the Petworth Proms celebrates a wonderful partnership between the National Trust, Petworth House and the Petworth Festival.
Anyone familiar with Petworth House will appreciate its magnificent combination of art, design and architecture. Add in a fourth dimension of stunningly performed live music and you have the ingredients for this unique collaboration between the National Trust’s Petworth House and Petworth Festival – the Petworth Proms.
Over three evenings, audiences will be able to marvel at the magnificence of Petworth House’s State Rooms whilst listening to a sequence of four mini concerts performed by exceptional musicians selected in association with London’s premier music conservatoire, the Royal Academy of Music. Over the course of the evening, audiences will experience performances variously in the Carved Room, Grand Staircase and Beauty Room, Square Dining Room and North Gallery, each audience group moving in stately fashion between the rooms over the course of the evening, drinks being available beforehand and during the interval in the courtyard.
The performers for this third edition of the Petworth Proms are: Dominika Mak (piano); The Juno Duo (voice/violin and guitar); The Scintilla Quartet
The Scintilla Quartet
(string quartet); and Duo Tanwen (flute and harp).
We look forward to welcoming you to what should be a real experience for the senses. Music, beauty and elegance with your eyes open or closed… More information and tickets on sale from 26th February at www.petworthfestival.org.uk
Peasmarsh Chamber Music Festival
25th to 28th June
‘Peasmarsh … is a magical Festival’ –Sir David Hare, in The Observer
In the dead of winter, with short days and long dark nights, it is lovely to be able to look forward to the long days of summer and the delights of the Peasmarsh Chamber Music Festival. The 2026 Festival takes place with our customary combination of world class musicians, including the fabulous Britten Sinfonia, stunning venues in Peasmarsh and in Rye and, we hope, beautiful midsummer weather!
looking ahead to festivals
Our guest artists in 2026 will include pianists Marianna Shirinyan and Valentin Dagmar, violinist Pablo Hernan Benedi, violists Edgar Francis and Jennifer Stumm and BBC New Generation Artists the Astatine Trio, all of whom will perform alongside our celebrated Artistic Directors, violinist Anthony Marwood and cellist Richard Lester.
As always, our concerts take place in the Norman church in Peasmarsh and in St Mary’s in Rye, both beautiful settings in which to listen to stunning classical music. We will also be working with children in six local primary schools, bringing world class musicians to their classrooms and supporting them to write their own new compositions, for performance on the Festival stage. It is a magical process and every year we are astounded by the children’s creativity and musical flair.
The full festival programme will be announced in March; the box office opens for general booking on Tuesday 7th April. We look forward to welcoming you to our Festival.
For further information please visit www.peasmarshfestival.co.uk
Building on the success of the past few years, the 2026 festival in sunny Bognor Regis promises to be even bigger & better with some really top names from the world of folk and acoustic music.
The 13th Southdowns Music Festival will feature the ever popular Ukulele Festival staged over three days under marquee plus around town, shanty and dance groups will be entertaining the thousands of people who come to the event.
Fascinating festival markets will be in place along the closed seafront and once again, younger musicians and performers will be featured on the brilliant Rox/ Bognorphenia stage over Saturday and Sunday, and what is even better, all this is free!
There will be a whole array of more great free performances in festival outside venues including the William Hardwicke in the High Street, the RAFA Club in Waterloo Square, Bonito Lounge (London Road), The Lamb (Steyne Street), plus the Dog & Duck in Scott Street.
In Venue 24 on Bognor Regis Pier, the main ticketed evening concerts will be staged including on Friday 11th September, the legendary Phil Beer supported by the superb duo who are Megson. Saturday 12th sees the excellent Irish group Roving Crows supported by the delightful Sorrel Nation and on Sunday 13th, the fantastic 3 Daft Monkeys are the headliners with popular local performer, Ed Goodale supporting.
There are also two great free concerts at Venue 24 on Sat and Sun afternoons featuring Americana duo Holly Rogers and friend (Saturday 12th) plus on Sunday 13th September, the one and only Jez Lowe.
Visit southdownsfolkfest.co.uk for full details.
from top: Megson; Phil Beer; Sorrel Nation
Broadstairs Folk Week 7th to 14th August
Broadstairs Folk Week turns this cliff top seaside town into a living stage, with music, dance and mischief spilling from every pub, park and bandstand. Acts for 2026 range from world touring headliners like Martin Simpson Trio, Urban Folk Quartet and Bridget St John to cult favourites Tankus, 3 Daft Monkeys, Gilmore & Roberts and Barb Jungr, alongside Kent Song Collective, hooden horses and morris sides weaving through the streets.
Why go? Your ticket or wristband unlocks over 400 events: intimate concerts, late night ceilidhs, pub gigs, family shows and workshops from dawn til dark. Camping sold out last year, so if you want to wake up to the sound of fiddles on the breeze, don’t leave it too late. No wonder Broadstairs was named one of the top thirty places to be in the world by Condé Nast Traveller.
Visit https://broadstairsfolkweek.org.uk for all details and tickets.
top: Steam Pink Morris, photo Simon West above: Bandstand, photo Sian Photography
looking ahead to festivals
Hailsham
Festival
5th to 20th September
This year the Hailsham Festival of Arts & Culture will be proudly celebrating their 20th Anniversary and invite you to join them for two weeks of arts and culture appreciation.
This year’s Festival is shaped around a simple but timely idea: The World Around Us. In its 20th year, the festival is an invitation to look outward – at our environment, at one another, and at the shared spaces we inhabit.
Using the arts in all their multifaceted glory, the aim is to unite, reflect and inspire. In doing so, the festival encourages the community to join in celebrating a legacy of creative expression from the past two decades.
Expect a packed programme that is bigger and bolder than ever before. Booking goes live mid-June at www.hailshamfestival.co.uk
What do you really know about your Facebook friends? And what would happen if you invited every single one of them to a party?
Facing another Christmas on her own, 37-year-old Tilly Jenkins scrolled through Facebook posts of cheerful couples clinking glasses and jolly families enjoying the festivities. Posed or genuine, they were still a far cry from her solitary Christmas Eve watching trashy '80s films with a supper of crisps and wine. With her parents now living the high life in Florida and her perfect sister busy with her husband and two kids, Tilly was left wondering what had happened to her social life. Single since her boyfriend had walked out seven years ago, her love life was non-existent. Something had to be done. But wait! She had 289 friends on Facebook. A party - yes that was it! She would hold a party and invite all her Facebook friends. What could go wrong?
Having settled on next December for her party –everyone would be in festive mood, besides, plenty of time to change her mind – Tilly spent the following year making plans.
Methodical by nature and enlisting the help of her dearest and oldest friends she plotted out her to-do list. Finally, drawing a deep breath, she posted her 'save the
Junction of Earth and Sky
by Susan Buttenwieser
From the shores of WWII England to 1990s America, this story reveals, in multiple time lines, the enduring bond of grandmother and granddaughter, plagued by the past but determined to find their place in the world.
It is 1940 and England is at war. In a seaside town on the south coast fourteen-year-old Alice is second 'big sister' to her best friend's baby sister, whom she loves. On the cusp of adulthood she falls in love, but the war suddenly bursts upon their little seaside community when a neighbour's house is bombed and the girls are evacuated. Everything has changed. Hopes and dreams for the future turned to shrapnel.
Fast forward to 1970s America and Alice's son is making a mess of his life. Unable to hold down a job and habitually drunk he beats up his wife once too often. She leaves, taking their baby girl Marnie with her. Having nowhere else to go she arrives, bleeding, broken and desperate, at her mother-in-law's doorstep. Alice,
date' invitation. But what if nobody turned up? What if everybody turned up – how would they all fit into her three-bedroom suburban house?! Within a couple of days she had almost 200 likes to her 'save the date' post. With a mixture of excitement and trepidation she embarked on her master plan to enliven the social life of one Tilly Jenkins.
I could say that the year passed uneventfully – but that would be a lie. The spectre of job-loss hovered; there was a disastrous foray into the world of online dating; tensions within the family and unforeseen drama among her small circle of intimate friends in which secrets and revelations were aired threatened their equilibrium, and an ex-boyfriend reappeared unexpectedly in Tilly's life. But she stuck resolutely to her plan. The party was going to happen come hell or high water.
Will Tilly's plans come to fruition? Would the party be a success? Will it re-kindle her social life?
A delightful, feel-good story to indulge in. Curl up on the couch with a glass of your favourite beverage / steaming mug of hot chocolate and lose yourself in Tilly's world.
Available via East Grinstead bookshop and Amazon, for more about the author visit www.joclynes.com
shocked and upset, takes them in with open arms. Perhaps this is a chance to do a better job helping to raise her granddaughter than she did with her son.
Another time slip to 1990 and Marnie's bond with her grandmother is strong. With a wastrel father and absent mother it's her sole foundation. But then Alice dies and without her love and steadying influence Marnie's life starts to spiral out of control. Maybe she is her parents' daughter after all. Will Marnie ever realise the hopes Alice had for her? What was the secret that Alice held close which caused such a riptide in her life? And would she ever see her beloved England again?
Junction of Sea and Sky is a gritty, unflinching glimpse into the dark underbelly of life, where choices are limited and circumstances determine character, if you let them. It's also a story of remarkable resilience against all odds. This debut novel is available via your local bookshop or at uk.bookshop.org/ Check out www.susanbuttenwieser.com & @susanbuttenwieser
The Pagalan Chronicles
Search for Morganuke's Roots – Book 1
by Andrew Houlston
Cast yourself into the realm of fantasy, where adventurers sail the high seas and mysteries and legends abound.
In the world of Pagalan nations are at war, the bloodthirsty Cordinen tribe bringing death and destruction to their civilised peaceful neighbours. But on an island untouched by warfare life continues as it has for centuries. Villages nestle in bucolic surroundings, farmers scythe their meadows and drive their animals in from the fields. Here we find our hero, Morganuke, abandoned as a baby and taken in by his adoptive parents he is now on the cusp of manhood. But his pale skin, silver hair and red eyes sets him apart from his fellow islanders. As well as his obvious physical differences, Morganuke starts to become aware of unusual abilities and powers. When eventually the warfare on the mainland starts to impact his island haven, threatening its peace and tranquillity, he has to act. Despite his love of his home he has long had a yearning to see the rest of the world and when his old friend offers him a place on his ship Morganuke jumps at the chance. But an ambush at a trading port brings the war horribly close.
The Bulletproof Souls
by Jon Neville
What do you get by mixing an Elvis superfan in 1960, a 1980's wannabe rock band, a no-nonsense detective in 2020's Nottingham and five dead bodies? Answer: Jon Neville's intricate debut thriller The Bulletproof Souls; a clever whodunit that keeps you guessing till the very end.
When Jack 'Toucan' Guinness and his four mates formed The Bulletproof Souls little did they know the impact it would have on their lives. This was not just another student band, cobbled together to offset the dry academia of university life. The Bulletproof Souls had legs. A strong local following led to a record deal, radio airtime, and they soon found themselves playing to a rapturous sell-out crowd. This was it –the big time beckoned. But something happened that night to change everything.
Fast forward thirty-six years to covid lockdown and Jack, via Zoom – the communications tool of the moment, called together his old bandmates, now long since scattered, to suggest an online jam. It was not long before the old magic was rekindled. They posted their music on social media; a video on YouTube, and over seven million views later their lapsed career as a rock
He starts to have unsettling dreams that seem to play out in real life. Why is this happening? Where do his powers come from? Where does he come from? These questions that have been nagging away in the background eventually consume him. Morganuke has to find out who he really is.
There follows a series of adventures in which Morganuke finds new friends; learns to be a mariner and a fighter; gets pitched into bloody conflict; comes face to face with an arcane weapon of great destructive capacity; discovers the extent of his powers; is taken captive, escapes, and falls in love. All the while driven by the insatiable need to find his roots. When they come across others who look like him, his hope of learning his origins is heightened and they set off again on this quest, encountering many difficulties and facing great danger. Little does he know that this is just the start.
A compelling tale that plunges you into a fantasy realm immersing you in the hopes and dreams of its protagonists, The Pagalan Chronicles is a classic fantasy epic – the struggle between good and evil, the heroic figure, pitted against seemingly insurmountable odds. Book 2 sits impatiently on my to-be-read pile... the story continues!
Available via East Grinstead Bookshop and online; more information at www.thepagalanchronicles.co.uk
band was reborn.
The discovery of a mutilated body outside the band's venue the morning after their latest gig dragged DCI Gideon Fox away from a romantic dinner with his longsuffering wife and into a murder investigation that would test his considerable talents. With an impatient boss and time not on his side Fox, not unused to dealing with the seedy elements of society, was challenged instead by the heady glamour of the rock industry, whose secrets are just as dark. Old sins cast long shadows. Will he solve the mystery before time runs out?
Alternating between three time lines and multiple characters, The Bulletproof Souls weaves together an intricate plot. The eras are cleverly evoked, with personalities distinctively drawn and eminently believable, their dialogue peppered with the vernacular and witticisms of the time. Like any good murder mystery, clues appear throughout the story that only become significant later as the drama unfolds. A compelling page-turner, The Bulletproof Souls is indisputably worthy of its own mini-series on Netflix.
Available via East Grinstead Bookshop and online. Visit www.thejonneville.com for info about the author.
poetry prose & illustration
The Fun We Had
a Memoir of Teaching and Travel by
Carrie Evans
The Fun We Had is an enthralling and beautifully written account of a young woman's adventures while teaching English around the world.
The memoir begins in the UAE, where Carrie finds her free spirit seriously challenged by its restrictive society and a despotic boss. In a valiant effort to bolster herself up, she focuses on the positive aspects of life in the Arabian desert. Another remedy is to cast her mind back to happier times and to reflect on her development as a teacher.
This is where the memoir picks up and the narrative bounces along delightfully, characterised by vivid storytelling, sharp cross-cultural insights and a wicked sense of humour. We are transported to exotic locations on an anecdote-packed journey that includes such disparate incidents as a hairy night escape from a shady taxi driver in Taiwan to the horrors of dental surgery in Northern Thailand. One reviewer found the memoir, with its thrilling escapades and encounters, to be reminiscent of Kerourac’s On the Road. He describes it as ‘a ride and a half!’
The pleasure in the book is from the author’s honest narrative style, the episodes themselves and the wry way in which she reflects upon them. How fortunate to be able to view the vicissitudes of one’s life with such a positive and amused equanimity!
Watch this space for a sequel to The Fun We Had – Vagabond Soul – in which Carrie memorialises her romantic escapades in her eventful journeys across the continents. www.carrieevans.co.uk
below: Carrie relaxing on a beach in Goa.
By order of the Shaman
a psychological drama by
Stephen J Willis
Warrick is locked inside a sealed room with a spiritual shaman and his devoted inner circle. He soon realises this is no ordinary gathering.
Rituals and inner secrets are laid bare. Moral lessons and deep confessions, cut deep. Where people’s boundaries – sexual, psychological, spiritual – begin to dissolve.
As tensions rise and a 'chosen one' is named, Warrick must decide whether enlightenment is the goal… or sacrifice.
Inspired by an incredible true event, this psychological drama challenges modern beliefs, exposes the power of group influence, and asks how far people will go in the name of salvation. Read it if you dare... www.stephenjwillis.co.uk
Beyond Words
new prose, poetry, paintings & photographs from Bourne Books
During the first Covid lockdown I moved the Bourne To Write workshops onto Zoom and dramatically changed their scope for the better.
Previously based on the South coast of England the workshops now had a global reach and writers could share their work onscreen. Also I didn’t have to make dozens of cups of tea and coffee every week while the writers pored over their twenty-minute timed exercises – you’ll find a selection of those miniature miracles near the end of our new workshop anthology ‘Beyond Words’.
All of the work in this fifth workshop anthology is being published for the first time, many of the pieces explore the same topic or line which was set as homework. However, the high quality, the originality and range of style remain highly impressive. Remember when you are enjoying one of those timed
exercises it was written in just twenty minutes and then read out live to the workshop. Try it, you might surprise yourself.
On Stage Again
The theatre lights go down. The overture begins. The curtain goes up. I’m watching a lifestyle I had once. Ballet was everything to me. Being a dancer. Other dancers. The music. The stories, the drama of the classical ballets. The spotlight. What happens in the dressing rooms. Watching from behind the scenes.
Longshore Drift
A haunting tale of love, loss, and the healing power of wild places by
Bronwen Griffiths
Several of our writers are also established artists and photographers and the anthology also includes their visual work, hence the title – Beyond Words. This is the largest anthology we have published. It was difficult choosing the work but ultimately the seventeen writers featured each have around thirty pages. Which is an astonishing achievement. The benefits of creative writing are well documented. If you’d like to find our more about our workshops email me, Roddy Phillips, at bournetowrite1@gmail.com Beyond Words – published by Bourne Books. Available in paperback on Amazon £12.99. 4
When Joe's mother and sister died in a suspicious house fire, his father vanished without a trace.
Now Joe lives with his uncle Nelson on a remote shingle spit called The Point, but he's starting to suspect his uncle is hiding dark secrets about that terrible night.
Fourteen-year-old Cassie arrives at The Point with her mentally fragile mother Sylvie, fleeing their chaotic London life. As Sylvie's grip on reality crumbles, Cassie finds herself drawn to the mysterious Joe and his uncle Nelson, who paints mermaids but also harbours a devastating secret about Joe's family.
As buried secrets surface and loyalties are tested, Joe must confront his father and uncover the real story behind his family's tragedy.
Bronwen Griffiths is the author of two previously published novels and two collections of flash fiction. Her flash pieces have been widely published and she won the Mslexia Flash Fiction prize in 2024. She has lived in East Sussex for twenty-five years and this novel is based around a fictitious Dungeness and Rye. https://bronwengriff.co.uk
And years later that ballet world, that stage world, inspired me to write my first novel.
But into it I added deep jealousy, ambition, and desire, the idea of copying the perfect dancer and becoming that yourself. First of all, just in class. Copying exactly how your idol does a step, or leans into an arabesque. How fast her pirouette is. Even how that beautiful dancer thinks and feels.
Watching her idol the exquisite Beverley dance, Elaine imitates, borrows, steals, wanting everything Beverley has. Each movement. Every reaction. Each smile. Elaine moves in closer and closer. Adolescence is a time full of physical awakening, and blossoming desire, wanting to be seen, wanting to succeed. But how far will Elaine go? Eighteen. It’s a dangerous age
Felicity Fair Thompson in her dancing days
when you have to cut your way into life.
To watch, borrow, copy – to stalk in pursuit of an image… there's no harm in that, is there?
Cutting In received magic reviews: ‘A great gift for portraying the agonies and ecstasies of adolescence… a rare talent…’ Frederick E Smith. ‘Wonderfully spiked with bitchiness,’ said novelist Graham Hurley. ‘Hard edged, striking and truthful,’ said novelist Julian Rathbone, and applause, applause – Cutting In was top 3 finalist in the Beryl Bainbridge Award: People’s Book Prize. Now the curtain has risen on the novel again with re-publishing. If the intrigue and drama of theatre fascinates you, you will love this book. Cutting In – available online at all the best bookshops ISBN 978-0-9535123-6-2
Poets against Poverty
The Frogmore Poetry Prize
Rich poets are as rare as hens’ teeth, so it’s perhaps unsurprising that poetry competitions attract increasingly large numbers of entries.
The big prizes – the T S Eliot, Forward and National Poetry Competition, among others – furnish their winners with a substantial windfall, but the odds on winning are commensurately long. A number of longstanding competitions have been established in the south east, and while the booty on offer may be less tempting, the odds on winning are certainly shorter.
The Binsted Prize, under the auspices of the South Downs Poetry Festival and won last year by Lindfield poet Wendy Klein, offers a first prize of £250. The Brighton & Hove Arts Council competition, won by Jill Fricker of the Hastings Poets in 2025, has a first prize of £1,000, as does the longestablished Kent & Sussex Poetry Society’s open competition.
The Lewes-based Frogmore Press initiated its Prize four decades ago and will be adjudicated this year by poet and publisher Mike Barlow. The Prize itself is worth 250 guineas (£262.50), and the list of past winners boasts names such as three-times winner Caroline Price, four-times winner Emily Wills and two-times winner Sharon Black, who not only carried off the Prize last year but also won the Kent & Sussex competition.
For more details visit www.frogmorepress.co.uk/frogmore-poetry-prize pictured: Sharon Black, Frogmore Prize winner
THE FROGMORE PAPERS
Celebrating work by established, emerging and neglected writers over the last four decades.
Subscribe for the next two years for only £15.00.
Longshore
Drift a novel by
Bronwen Griffiths
Where the sea meets the shore, damaged souls must find their way back from the edge
Set in a fictitious Dungeness, the Marshlands and coast this is a tale about secrets and trauma, and the healing power of wild places. Bronwen has previously published two other novels and two collections of flash fiction, and won the Mslexia Flash Fiction prize last year.
E-book and paperback available from www.troubador.co.uk or from Amazon. Visit https://bronwengriff.co.uk/
Available now ISBN 978-1-915465-90-0 www.stephenjwillis.co.uk
Inspired by an incredible true event, this psychological drama challenges modern beliefs, exposes the power of group influence, and asks how far people will go in the name of salvation. Read it if you dare...
A tsunami of incident, gossip and character vignettes, an exploration of other cultures sure to entertain anyone with a fascination for human quirks and foibles
“A joyous romp” –Maria Hughes “full of humour, compassion and adventure. If you love travelling you will love reading this book” – F. Bland
And On Your Birthday
–by Angela Petch
And on your birthday, I sing to you, the notes rolling with shingle, tumbling at the sea's edge. When skies are steel grey, the sky a bruise, I shout inside. Your answers reel back in mist, like an embrace. On the horizon, towards Seven Sisters, a gull etches against mackerel clouds: soaring, surfing over the surge. It might be you. At silken sunset, I scatter two heartshaped pebbles at the sea. My heart in yours.
Angela is the author of eight novels and divides her time between beautiful Sussex and her beloved Tuscany. This 75 word paragraph was written eight years ago for Paragraph Planet, www.paragraphplanet.com. Discover more about her work at www.facebook.com/AngelaJaneClarePetch/ Pictured above: 'A Beautiful Survivor' by Sussex artist Gill Bustamante. www.gillbustamante.com
Breathe In
–by Josie Gilbert
It was just one of those days. The alarm clock went on strike or rather failed to strike. Then the toaster decided to swallow and burn the bread instead of disgorging it at a lovely shade of gold. The heavens opened as I walked for the bus and it arrived late and crowded. I stood, strap hanging, mentally repeating my usual mantra. “Breathe in for five seconds, hold for five seconds and then breathe out for ten seconds.”
flash flash fiction flash fiction
As I entered the office my grumpy boss greeted me with the immortal and obvious words, “You’re late and you’re dripping all over the floor!”
I wanted to do an impression of my brother’s dog and stand right next to her, shaking myself vigorously to cover her in cold raindrops. I refrained, knowing it would only make things worse. Instead, I made a coffee, before sitting at my desk and repeating my mantra again.
The day dragged, with the grumpy boss skulking in and out, sniping at us whenever possible.
Finally, it was time to go home. The sun has finally emerged from its blanket of grey clouds and the traffic was reflected in the puddles. I walked home through the park, enjoying the clean, fresh air and the relative quiet.
A pile of post was waiting on my doorstep, but nothing was important. I ate my dinner and sat down to read my emails. The only one that caught my attention was a message to say I had won something on the premium bonds.
“The usual £25,” I thought to myself. “Do I buy a new frying pan to replace the broken one or get something for the garden?”
I entered all my details to access the site, only to find another message. “Please contact us to claim your £100,000 prize.” I re-read the number of zeros again. Yes, there were five. The prize is £100,000. Their phone line had already closed for the evening and I began hyperventilating at the thought of the money and what I could do. First though, I needed to calm down. Breathe in etc.
Exercising Baby
–by Annette Keen
flash
It was still very early when the woman reached the deserted coast road, a chilly morning, cool enough to need a jacket though she knew she’d be carrying it on the way back. A solitary old truck rattled past, its open back holding four African men wearing blue overalls and woolly hats.
She crossed to the promenade and down onto the lower level. Spring had come early, and this was going to be a beautiful day. There were no boats out in the bay, the fishermen already back with their catch and the recreational yachts and motor boats still in their moorings. The sea was empty.
Except that it wasn’t. They were out there somewhere, the Southern Right whales, their huge bulks hidden under the waves.
On a bench the woman took the lens cap off her camera, checked the settings, and got ready to shoot. Almost every morning for the past few weeks she’d been there, waiting for that exceptional shot, the one she’d be able to sell to a picture agency, the one nobody else had. Later on there’d be hundreds of amateur photographers clicking off pictures by the dozen. Mostly they’d get the timing wrong and miss the whales altogether, the amazing sight in front of them reduced to a dark smudge under the surface of the sea.
Once the tourists came out and small boats started bobbing around in the bay, she’d go home. But time was running out – there’d be a few sightings through November, the odd one in December in an exceptional year, but the whales were gradually leaving.
The woman scanned the bay, looking for signs of activity, but there was nothing to disturb the glint of sun on blue water. Foamy waves broke on the beach, providing the only sound apart from the occasional call of a seagull.
Looking now through the lens of her camera, the woman’s attention was caught by a movement out to her left, wavelets foaming over something dark. Suddenly there was a curve of shiny black, her first sighting of the day. She clicked off a few frames, the whale obligingly lifting itself higher each time it broke the surface then disappearing with a flick of its tail, slapping the characteristic fin down on the water with a splash.
And then she noticed a shadow travelling alongside the whale. Smaller, but following the same line of direction. Holding her breath, the woman waited, her finger on the shutter button.
There it was – a calf, lighter in colour than its mother, lifting up out of the water in an arc. She followed their progress, clicking off multiple shots before they disappeared. She took her eye away from the lens and scanned the bay, but there was no sign of the pair. The sea had closed back over them, leaving only the glint of the sun as it caught the waves.
The pictures might be good enough, she thought, it wasn’t common to see smaller calves exercising like this with their mothers. The day was warming up, and she took off her jacket and laid it on the seat beside her. Then as she looked out to the sea again, her breath caught.
Closer now, the whale mother and baby were heading back across the bay. She jammed the camera back up to her eye, and waited. The sea parted, the whale rose up, water running off her sides.
And there, on her back, was the baby.
Not daring to breathe, she caught them in mid flight. Together they crashed back into the sea, the mother’s tail disappearing last, pulled back down through the waves. And then they were gone.
She sat back on her bench, and laughed. That was it – the shot she’d been waiting for. She picked up her jacket, and capped the camera lens. Just as she walked away from the seat a couple came towards her.
‘Any out there today?’ the man asked.
‘One or two,’ she replied. ‘But most of them have gone now.’
And she hurried back home, clutching the camera with its precious photo to her chest.
Annette started writing when she was eight years old! More recently she's had several short stories published, selfpublished four novels and is working on a fifth. She also runs a jazz club, makes theatre costumes, and enjoys yoga and ballroom dancing.
Route 85
–by Bronwen Griffiths
At mile 87, a cholla, at 86, red rocks. 85 – a long view of distant mountains, 84 – a crow atop a saguaro. 83 is a wash and palo verde trees. 82 is a signpost and 81 a broken bottle. 80 is a single jagged peak, also distant. At 79 we pass a red pick-up truck and a man on a bicycle. From 78 to 61 I fall asleep. 60 is a yellow school bus, 59 the shadows grow long and the sun falls from the sky, 58 is the border patrol. 54 is WHY and junction 86, gas, food and lodging, a Texaco garage and 53 is the Coyote Howls West RV Park. At 52 a notice states that to litter the highway is unlawful. There are birds at 51 and telegraph poles at 50 through to 45, and cinder cones, a huge copper mine, tin cans, a flash flood area. It’s a long straight road – no clouds, the sky a pale washed blue gold dry grass on the broken verge. At 45 it might be skiddy and the walls of the mine tailings are dark and high. At 44 bumps and a speed limit. At 43 Belly Acres, truck crossing, a view of the white church, the low sun dazzling our eyes. At 42 we reach Ajo. A destination.
To read about Bronwen's latest book go to page 71 N.B. All flash fiction pieces shown are subject to copyright
flash fiction flash fiction
Tainted Love
–by Tina McNaughton
It was icy that day we met in February, but I knew it would be. I had to remind you that we had agreed to meet again, and you had asked for a list of dates. You picked the final one, on purpose, I felt, and to make a point.
I wore the dress you always admired and a jacket the colour of a summer sky. Diamonds glinted like icicles in my ears. I regretted my choice of clothes, thin and inadequate for such a frosty spring day. I pulled up my jacket collar as the harsh wind bit into my bones. I wished I had dressed more sensibly, and not for you. I heard the distinctive sound of a skylark, as I cut through the frozen fields. Skylarks were rarer these days, but a sure sign that winter was coming to an end.
We met at our usual café. You were already there, of course you were. Marked your territory and inhabited your space, looking as comfortable as you could, under the circumstances. You flushed pink when you saw me, but with a look of annoyance rather than pleasure, I thought with a jolt. I remembered the way you used to look at me and the hollow wrenched deeper within. Foolishly, I tried to kiss you casually on the mouth, but you did not reciprocate. From that moment, I knew that you had won and I had lost.
The café was hot and noisy and full of people. Parents, lovers, families and friends. I tried to push away the joy of the past and the pain of where we were now. I chattered on about everything and nothing, trying to pretend that we were still OK.
flashpoetry
You declined my offer of another coffee and I sipped my steaming brew. My eyes were watering behind the hot mist, and I concentrated hard on keeping my tears in check.
Your eyes looked pale and distant. They were dull grey, without light. Your skin was porcelain white and reminded me of the cold mask of snow, those thin lips always kept your feelings tightly sealed. You spoke flatly, without emotion, as you sat squashed into the corner of the seat, barely inhabiting your space. Had I really hurt you so much, or were you annoyed that it was me who brought the game to an end? I tried to flirt a little, coax you back, so that we could still be friends at least, but you were having none of it.
‘Shall we go for a walk?’ I suggested.
‘It’s cold outside,’ you whined.
I had an impulse to leave you then, escape that place. I was still allowing you to make a fool out of me. I stood up slowly and reached for my insubstantial jacket and put it on.
‘Are you going? Sit down!’ you shrieked. Like a rather petulant child, I thought.
I shook my head and finished my coffee, now cold. I picked up your glass of iced water and threw the freezing liquid in your face. You gasped and drew attention from the other tables. Strangers looked at me warily, as if I was a mad woman, and it struck me that maybe I was when I was with you.
‘What the hell was that for?’ you hissed, incredulously.
‘It’s cold outside,’ I said, as I walked away from you.
Later, I heard the skylark again. It spoke of joy, of freedom and the beginning of the end of winter. The ice was beginning to thaw on the fields as I walked back home.
Further
i need a path to walk it doesn't have to be safe it doesn't have to be straight it just needs to be strange to wind like a drunken stumble home it doesn't have to be hard a heave uphill or a hop skip down it doesn't matter to me it can take in ditches and gutters it could come with a beautiful view
I need a path to walk two feet forward to somewhere
new
–Joe Bunn
Rail
If I was a train station I'd want to be one of the lesser ones: an East, a Little a West, a By-sea.
But not one of those with a short platform you could get on any carriage and alight where you board.
I'd want a very long platform, and not just on one side not an uneven parting but a perfect beehive.
If I was a train station and it's a humungous if a whole train could arrive at me less well known, but still big.
–Joe Bunn
It’s no easy task
It’s no easy task to know the future, Understand the past or make friends with the present. We all cling to rocks for fear of drowning; Overwhelming forces seek to knock us off our feet, Pushing our clamouring thoughts into the wild lands of regret, Deserts of resentment, quagmires of guilt, And vast acres of empty confusion.
It’s what is known as the human condition; One minute you think you know where you stand, The next minute there’s no sense in anything. People in every corner turn their back on common sense And plunge into following mad beliefs which leak like a sieve. Families feud over nothing which really matters to anyone, And the rain never stops.
But don’t grow weary my friend, don’t give up in despair. Nothing makes sense when you’re in the gutter With the detritus of everyday swirling around your flailing limbs.
Eventually we all get caught up in the stream, Wondering what comes next and not understanding anything that actually happens. Thank goodness there are surprises round every corner; Accept every moment with a leaping heart and a wide open door.
Let the wind blow in and stir up the dust in the corners of your out of date beliefs. You won’t need them where you’re going; tomorrow is a brand new day.
Greet it with excitement and commit to joy; The only thing which we know for sure is change; Be willing to accept this as the only truth and hold in your hearts a love for infinite possibility. There really are no chains to hold us down; Realise this and freedom will be yours.
–Caroline Adcock
The name Joe Bunn is whispered in low tones over pints in seaside pubs, a blend of everyday poetry and low-key magic. He's not a superhero. He's not a wizard. He's an ordinary man armed with wit, words, and a warm coat... @joehmbunn
Caroline Adcock has always written the occasional poem but in recent years this has become more frequent, especially with the luxury of time and the inclination to nurture creativity. Her hopes for the year ahead are to nurture the freedom we all have to think for ourselves; make up our own minds about what life is really about; find ways to express it and keep an open mind and an open heart at all times.
N.B. All poems shown are subject to copyright
poetry prose & illustration
Sky Ballet
Thousands perform in sequence, chatter, swirl, change direction, triangular wings beat in unison-
an acrobatic mass elevates black dots darken the sky–
startling scenes belt the blue–…hearts, balloons …puffs of smoke… a murmuration of starlings migrate.
–Patricia M Osborne
Saturdays
Without much thought I said yes, in the steamed-up café, and the waitress brought them: busy talking of now, I lifted the first forkful and the earthy lightness melted the room away to the Saturday mornings; just my mother and me, mushrooms on toast, soaking dark buttery juice into the crunch of toast, while she poured fragrant tea from the shiny engraved metal teapot and dropped a slice of lemon exotically into its gold, her swirl-skirted dressing gown
a shadow of the movies, the green-and-white formica table at full stretch, arms akimbo a cushion lifting me up for our half hour of imagined glamour and the smiles of being safe inside it
–Fran Duffield
poetry
Suppose
suppose you had turned to the woman on your right put your hand over dry and yellow fingers, glossy nails absurdly red and said tell me about it suppose she did and her cheeks gleamed wet in cadaver bus light, so that you coughed in sympathy not knowing how to meet the smell of her wet coat, the words that shuffle from her lips, a crust of something in the corner.
the op’s next week. she’s under mr chandra, lovely man. top education over there you know. that winter christening in Northumberland she’ll have to miss. my daughters third. long way. no no, it’s quite alright. her sigh says not.
her bulk shifts sideways with the stopping bus. she squeezes past the standing man who drops his weight into her waiting space still warm with her. thank you, driver. you watch. you watch her uncomplaining form negotiate the steps your unconsoling hand still in your lap. someone helps her down.
Suddenly in October the temperature drops. Neon lights on downtown buildings display degrees in Fahrenheit I’ve never experienced. I note them slip ever lower each morning as I walk to my temporary job in Vieux Montreal battling to keep warm in inadequate London clothes. Colleagues rave about la belle neige as first flakes fall.
Snowploughs come out in force, pile waist-high scruffy heaps along the side of roads cracked and rutted from the arctic cold. We drink brandy from your flask at the ice carnival as gradually my toes lose all feeling in unlined boots. We drive across a frozen lake to your cottage on the island where in summer we skim across calm waters in your Indian canoe, steam clams on the beach.
I long for April when warmer weather returns as suddenly as the snow. Soon downtown signs boast humidity levels that intensify suffocating heat. Air conditioners work extra time. A brief flirtation with clement weather when a vibrant colour chart of autumn colours spreads across the Laurentians before the thermometer starts its inevitable slide –as inevitable as my decision: I have to go.
Our tears fall in rhythm with the November snow as I leave, leave you to ice hockey games on Sunday, leave you to contend with blizzards and ice storms in a city so cold at times breath freezes. I leave you to fix snow tyres to your car in the basement garage, stack skis on the roof rack for weekends at Ste Agathe while I head south, embrace warm Caribbean breezes, feel the burning heat of Mexico on my skin.
–Margaret Beston
Fran Duffield is a poet and artist originally from Birmingham now living in East Sussex. Most recently, she was awarded Highly Commended for her poem ‘March Hare’ in the international Bridport Prize for Poetry 2024.
Francesca Ryan spent many years as a working actor in Theatre and TV. Credits include the RSC, the National Theatre and the West End. In particular, playing Shakespeare has taken her touring round the world. She is also an accomplished writer and is happy to call the beautiful South Coast her home.
'Suppose' can be found in Bourne to Write's forthcoming workshop anthology of prose, poetry, paintings & photographs ‘Beyond Words’, see page 70.
N.B. All poems shown are subject to copyright
The Poetry Forecast
Haiku, Non sestina? Si sestina
Syllabic, mainly westerly 5 to 7, decreasing 4 at times. Snow or squally wintry showers. Moderate or poor, occasionally very poor.
Shortish, Poetry
North-easterly 2 or 3, Smooth or slight. Mainly fair. Good. West or southwest, 7 to gale 8 veering northwest. Imminent, wintry showers. Poor or very poor in the early hours.
Four Line, Doggerel
Free Verse
North 4 or 5, increasing 5 to 7, Moderate, occasionally rough at first. Rain or drizzle. Fog patches. Good, occasionally poor.
Golden Shovel Humdrum Rhymes Tense Over Sight
Southwest 6, occasionally 7 or gale 8, decreasing 4 or 5 later. Occasional rain, perhaps thundery. Moderate, becoming good soon.
–Mark Farrar
Margaret Beston is part of Roundel Poetry Stanza, a poetry group based in Tonbridge who meet twice a month to write, share and develop their work in a supportive atmosphere. They also run a Poetry Breakfast in Tonbridge and have published two anthologies of their work.
Mark Farrar describes himself as a Soundscape Gardener, and Venticinqualist (one who is fixated on the number 25).
He is the one with the least poetic name in the performance poetry posse: Armitage, Garcia, Shaw and Farrar.
In 1978, as a BBC Radio trainee, Mark was told that his voice was unsuitable for a future Radio 4 announcer, Nevertheless, he remains hopeful that one day he will be asked to read the Shipping Forecast.
Coda
Mystical or mere coincidence?
Here’s something I came across the other day and it stopped me in my tracks and somehow resonated with me.
I think it will be of intellectual interest to some people, especially those with a creative or spiritual bent. And I wonder what other stories or ‘coincidences’ other people have experienced or heard about in art or, indeed, in life, that seem inexplicable.
When I was young I avidly read the Beano comic. One of the characters is the famous Dennis the Menace, created by George Moonie. The comic was published by Scottish publisher DC Thomson and Dennis first appeared in March 1951.
Here’s where it all gets a trifle ‘far-out man'!
On exactly the same day in March 1951, a daily syndicated newspaper comic strip created by Hank Ketcham, appeared in the USA titled Dennis the Menace.
Neither Moonie nor Ketcham had ever met, had never corresponded and apparently were completely unaware of the work of the other. Moonie’s inspiration
A common scene – art displayed for people to experience
for the name was a music hall song with the chorus ‘I'm Dennis the Menace from Venice’, while Ketcham’s influence was his wife’s nickname for their son. What necromancy was at work then or is this just simply a coincidence? I personally would like to think maybe there was an ethereal connection between these two men that they were completely unaware of, and yet it manifested itself in such an unlikely way. Or maybe not. But perhaps the Bard nailed it in this line that Hamlet says to Horatio: “There are more things in heaven and earth, Horatio, than are dreamt of in your philosophy”.
Tree crime
In the past few issues I have written about the vandals who cut down the beautiful Sycamore Gap tree in Northumberland and their fate in court.
Then strangely enough, at Christmas I read about a Christmas tree in Shotton in Durham that had been cut down by some idiots, just hours after its lights were switched on. It caused an understandable huge upset with locals.
Soon after, a man was remanded into custody and a second man was released under investigation. It was also two men who cut down the
Dennis the Menace, UK (left) and US (right). I can see who looks more of a menace... –ed
Sycamore Gap tree and Durham is the southernmost adjacent county to Northumberland. Is this some sort of contagion of irrational tree surgery running through the North East? Or is it just coincidence?
when just out shopping’.
A little further along the High Street is an empty shop with a very large frontage that my wife and I have often commented on, agreeing it would make an excellent gallery. And lo and behold, when I reached this point on the street, what did I see? The East Grinstead Arts Society had a pretty extensive pop-up display in the windows of this very shop.
What a very pleasant and rewarding little sojourn. Strangely I felt uplifted, as if I was being led down a path where artistry and aesthetics were all around, revealing themselves like flowers in spring. And it was sunny!
"We are all in the gutter, but some of us are looking at the stars"
I was reminded of this famous quote by Oscar Wilde recently while wandering around East Grinstead. I felt life was trying to tell me something, as I kept bumping into creativity, surely brought about by mere coincidence?
First off, I was leaving the supermarket and beheld this rather charismatic fellow carrying a very odd shaped musical instrument case. I had to know what it was and so engaged him in conversation. He was a musician who had just splashed out a rather large sum for this quite remarkable new V-shaped partly transparent guitar.
He showed it me with pride and we chatted about guitars, types of strings and all things musical.
Wandering into the High Street I then came across an artist, shopping bag beside her, sitting painting with watercolours by the local shop. She was so intent on her creativity that I didn’t feel I should interrupt her, but I thought ‘Gosh, it’s so nice to see and meet artists doing their thing locally
from top: The felled Xmas tree in Shotton; Musician with THAT guitar; The East Grinstead Arts Society pop-up gallery
"Art for art's sake, money for God's sake"
Have you noticed Arts Council England’s (ACE) logo? It’s rather plain don’t you think? It looks like it was designed at great expense by an accountant or estate agent. But perhaps it’s actually an attempt at Minimalism. I hope its obvious lack of aesthetic imagination does not mirror the minds of the people who are involved in the work of this body, as art of all genres is an absolutely vital part of our culture.
The above phrase from the 1975 10cc song seems as relevant today as it ever did.
Creating art costs money, and the funding of creativity should be top of any government or philanthropic endeavour. Why?
This is why, so wonderfully expressed in this poem by British poet Arthur O’Shaughnessy, published in 1873…
Ode
We are the music-makers, And we are the dreamers of dreams, Wandering by lone sea-brokers, And sitting by desolate streams; World-losers and world-forsakers, On whom the pale moon gleams: Yet we are the movers and shakers Of the world for ever, it seems. With wonderful deathless ditties
We build up the world’s great cities, And out of a fabulous story
We fashion an empire’s glory: One man with a dream, at pleasure, Shall go forth and conquer a crown; And three with a new song’s measure Can trample an empire down. We, in the ages lying
In the buried past of the earth, Built Nineveh with our sighing, And Babel itself with our mirth; And o’erthrew them with prophesying To the old of the new world’s worth; For each age is a dream that is dying, Or one that is coming to birth.
If you ask me, life without the creativity of artists would not be worth living.
In January the Department for Culture, Media and Sport announced £1.5 billion in arts and culture funding spread over five years. So where does this money go? Well Baroness Margaret Hodge wrote a fairly damaging report about ACE,
from top left: Arts Council England logo; Artist at work in East Grinstead High Street; Arthur O'Shaughnessy and his magnificent moustaches
published in December 2025.
Among the recommendations was that the Government should find innovative ways of responding urgently to the underfunding that has undermined the arts over the last decade. She also stated that ACE must remain free from interference to ensure artistic freedom.
Not to be too critical, but why would these two concepts have to be recommended at all? Don’t they actually convey exactly what an Arts Council should be doing?
It’s rather like having to point out that the Fire Brigade should work towards the prevention of and the
putting out of fires, or a bakery should concentrate on making tasty bread and cakes. The mere fact that she felt the need to highlight these two points, along with mentioning the ten years of underfunding is worrisome in the extreme.
I should add that I feel that grass-roots artistic endeavours of all flavours should be given as much consideration as the more established and professional bodies that undoubtedly benefit from ACE funding, if not more. The RSC, ENB and such do generate their own income, but also receive large ACE funding as they have the resources to navigate the process. For smaller groups and individuals it’s a rather trying process to apply, and I think should be streamlined and made much easier.
RIP to a popular artist
I’m sorry to say that it completely passed me by that Scottish artist Jack Vettriano passed away aged 73 early last year. I don’t read newspapers much and if the news comes on the TV my wonderful wife immediately hijacks the remote to
protect us from the drivel and depressing content.
I thought he was an interesting painter because he was self-taught and although his work was very popular it was often dismissed by critics. And that’s something that annoys me. The quote “Critics are like eunuchs in a harem; they know how it's done, they've seen it done every day, but they're unable to do it themselves” is supposed to have been said by Irish author Brendan Behan. Whether that’s true or not I identify with the statement. My own opinion is simply that beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Why should art be more complicated than that?
Seventy-three is kind of a young age to die nowadays. But I’ve also noticed it’s not uncommon. And as Mr Vettriano and some others who have passed recently were younger than me, I’m reminded of my own mortality.
Among the many amusing quotes about death, my favourite is Woody Allen's “I'm not afraid of death; I just don't want to be there when it happens.”
And this quote from Voltaire is in line with what I actually believe: “The doctrine of reincarnation is neither absurd nor useless. It is not more surprising to be born twice than once.” And so it’s au revoir to Jack and the others we have lost.
pictured, paintings by Jack Vettriano OBE –left: Self Portrait, below: Dance Me To The End Of Love
Senbla presents Ellen Kent’s Farewell Opera Tour featuring Opera International Kyiv, Ukraine, with Highly-Praised Soloists and Full Orchestra
With an exquisite Japanese Garden and spectacular costumes including antique wedding kimonos from Japan. Sung in Italian with English surtitles. An evening of passion, sexual jealousy, death and unforgettable arias.
Sung in French with English surtitles. Cast subject to change.
THEATRE ROYAL BRIGHTON
THE ANVIL, BASINGSTOKE
NEW VICTORIA THEATRE, WOKING
Carmen: Tue 27 Jan / Madama Butterfly: Wed 28 Jan atgtickets.com/brighton*
Carmen: Sat 14 Feb anvilarts.org.uk
Carmen: Fri 13 Mar/ Madama Butterfly: Sat 14 Mar atgtickets.com/woking* KINGS THEATRE, PORTSMOUTH
Carmen: Thu 19 Mar kingsportsmouth.co.uk THE HAWTH, CRAWLEY
Madama Butterfly: Wed 8 Apr hawth.co.uk DE LA WARR PAVILION, BEXHILL-ON-SEA Carmen: Sat 11 Apr dlwp.com *Subject to booking/transaction fees.
