WHITCHURCH FRIDAY MARKET

is operating both indoors and at the front of Whitchurch Civic Centre, every Friday 7.30am – 12.30pm.

Whitchurch Singers, every Monday at 7.00pm at the Watergate Centre

DAOIRÍ FARRELL: SINGLEHANDEDLY SPEARHEADING A RESURGENCE OF THE AUTHENTIC IN IRISH FOLK MUSIC 22nd April, 7.30pm at the Talbot Theatre

Tuesday March 7th

Tuesday March 21st

Tuesday April 4th

Tuesday April 18th

The sky’s the limit

WHAT’S ON IN BRIEF 1ST-10TH APRIL

DID YOU KNOW?

In the new Flight Zone at Cosford you can fly with the Red Arrows in 4D!

The RAF Museum Midlands has partnered with the re-enactors of Up an’ at ’em History to show young visitors what it takes to train like an RAF pilot during the Second World War. The special Pilot Training programme at Cosford runs from 1st-16th April and involves four missions that test speed, stamina and teamwork. Entry to the museum remains free but Pilot Training should be booked in advance – it costs £5 per child (from age 4), or £10 for a family ticket covering up to three children. www.rafmuseum.org.uk

Homeward bound

Born in Liverpool and educated in Shropshire, so truly local to the patch, Carol Decker is lead singer of chart-topping group T’pau, who will be bringing a night of ’80s nostalgia to Theatre Severn on 21st April

Their hit ‘China In Your Hand’ is an ’80s classic and has featured on more than 200 compilations to date. Tickets £28. Early booking is recommended. www.theatresevern.co.uk

Fine lines

Surprises in store

Severn Valley Railway is hosting a Spring Steam Extravaganza on 14th-16th April. Locomotives from across the eras will run, including favourites from the resident steam fleet as well as special guests including 4079 Pendennis Castle, plus a selection of perfectly restored coaches. Special dining services will be available. Choose from single or three-day tickets to travel the 16-mile SVR line, details at www.svr.co.uk

Ride out to help out

Bike4Life Ride Out and Festival on 23rd April is one of the UK’s most popular ride outs, attracting over 6,000 bikers and pillions and covering 23 miles of beautiful Shropshire countryside. It o ers celebrity bikers, bands, great food and entertainment, while also helping raise life-saving funds for Midlands Air Ambulance. Ride out plus festival admission from £15, festival only £5. www.bike4lifefest.co.uk

Luxuriate in blissful harmonies during Ludlow English Song Weekend on 14th-16th April, at various venues around the town. e programme has been carefully curated by artistic director Iain Burnside, and includes vocal and instrumental performances from a range of international professional musicians. Festival passes allow entry to all events and cost £230. Single event tickets also available. www.ludlowenglishsongweekend.co.uk

Straight to the point

e fun family outdoors event that is Bitterley Point to Point is on 1st April. e course opens at 11am, with the rst of seven races at 1.30pm. As well as the thrill of the racing there’s a fun fair, shopping, and food and drink vendors. Entry is £15, under15s free, early bird discounts online. Make a night of it and stay for the after-party till midnight for an extra £10! www.bitterleyraces.com

•1st-2nd April, Coleham Pumping Station Open Days

Enjoy a visit to this Grade II listed building, winner of a Listed Status Award from the Institution of Mechanical Engineers, where the engines will be operating and other exhibits open. 10am-4pm. £5 (under-16s free).

•5th April, Shrewsbury Symphony Orchestra, Shrewsbury School Founded in 1888, the SSO is one of the oldest amateur orchestras in the country. This evening they present a varied and ambitious programme. 7.30pm. £15.

•7th April, Cambrian Heritage Railway, Oswestry The historic railway re-opens following winter maintenance, and will be welcoming visitors. See the website for journey times and ticket info including driver experiences.

•8th April, Easter Dash, The Quarry

Join in this Easter fun run in aid of Severn Hospice. Routes of 2.5k, 5k and 10k, no hills, and Easter eggs for all finishers. 11am. Adult race entry from £10. Places must be booked in advance.

•9th-10th April, Plant Hunters Fair, Dorothy Clive Gardens, near Market Drayton Browse the many stalls provided by top, specialist and award-winning nurseries, and take inspiration from RHS medallists and National Collection holders. 9am-5pm. £5 (child £2).

•15th April, Family-Friendly Spring Walk, Severn Gorge Countryside Trust Join in for some spring fun, exploring local sites, playing games and getting hands-on with nature-inspired craft activities. 10am. £3.

Top of the tributes

ere’s a tribute night for every taste at Telford eatre this spring.

•15th-16th April, Oswestry Antique and Collectors Fair, Oswestry Showground This a ordable family-friendly fair regularly attracts hundreds of dealers from around the country, o ering antiques, vintage, collectables, architectural salvage, mid-century and unique decorative items. 8.30am. £3.50 (under-16s free). Dogs welcome.

18th March, e Upbeat Beatles A journey down the Fab Four’s “long and winding road”, from the early Cavern days through Beatlemania, America and Sgt Pepper to Abbey Road, with narrative and full multi-media presentation. e Upbeat Beatles have a reputation as the best in the business.

7.30pm. Tickets £23.

23rd March, e Diana Ross Story is wonderful show is a chronology of hits from a career that

Welcome in the spring

•22nd April, St George’s Day Parade, Newport This free event includes the Mile of Coins which aims to raise £1000 for Newport X-Ray Appeal, a performance by Shrewsbury Morris, plus a procession at midday followed by a ‘live’ dragon-slaying, and street entertainment.

On 30th April & 1st May, in the heart of the Shropshire Hills, the Green Man and Frosty the Snow Queen battle over the coming of spring to Clun, invoking folklore and fairy tale. This is a traditional family festival with market stalls, refreshments and entertainment in the square and castle grounds. Festival wristbands can be bought in advance or on the day for £8 (child £3, family £20). www.clungreenman.org

•29th April, Henstone Distillery Tour, Oswestry Join a small group tour around one of Shropshire’s finest distilleries. Starting with a Henstone G&T, discover how the spirits are produced and enjoy further tasting! 1.30pm. £20. Other dates available.

•29th April – 1st May

Norbury Canal Festival, Norbury Junction

Sample barge life with this family-friendly festival o ering boat rides, entertainment, and food, trade and craft stalls. Full details on social media.

Hope to see you there

The Hive Shrewsbury continues its LGBTQ+ History Festival on 25th March with Naked Hope, a stage show depicting the legendary gay icon Quentin Crisp at two distinct phases of his life, with the overall uplifting message to be yourself. This joyous play has been touring since 2014 and runs for 75 minutes without interval, from 7.30pm. Tickets range from £2-£22, choose the amount you can afford to pay. www.hiveonline.org.uk

DID YOU KNOW?

Robbie tribute JK originally hoped to be a rugby player achieved record sales of over 100 million, fronted by two international Diana Ross performers, Cheri Jade (Supremes era) and Tameka Jackson (Diana’s solo career). 7.30pm. Tickets £25. www.telfordtheatre.com

25th March, Let Me Entertain You A celebration of Stoke’s most famous son, transporting you to Robbie’s iconic concert at Knebworth and the Royal Albert Hall swing show, as well as his most recent tour. Tribute artist JK has been recognised as the greatest Robbie tribute in the world.

7.30pm. Tickets £28.

Big night at the big top

Circus Funtasia celebrates 10 years of West End quality entertainment with a new show for 2023. Expect re-breathing, aerialists, acrobatics, stunt bikes and laugh-out-loud comedy as well as plenty of singalong moments. At Broadoaks, Telford from 2nd-12th March and Oswestry Showground from 16th-26th March. Tickets from £8.(Please note, includes strobe lighting.) www.circusfuntasia.co.uk

Mud glorious mud

Prepare to get dirty when you take on the mother of all obstacle courses at Shropshire Mud Run on 29th April. River crossings, water slides, dunking, climbing, crawling – the Eaton Mascot Estate near Shrewsbury has it all. Choose between 5k or 10k options. No matter how long it takes, you’re in for fun! Over-8s only, under-15s must be accompanied by an adult. www.ultimate fitnessevents.uk

Oakpond Cottages are Award winning holiday cottages on the Cheshire/ Shropshire border. The cottages are dog friendly with the option of a private hot tub and are situated in peaceful and quiet surroundings. We also have Maggie which is our 1920`s showmans waggon which is situated in a private and tranquil area and sleeps 2. They are close to a Nature Reserve with woodland walks and a canalside village with tearooms and circular walks onto the Sandstone Trail and Shropshire Way. The wedding venue Combermere Abbey is 10 minutes away and Iscoyd 25 minutes.

T: 01630 68520 9 M : 07860 843341 www.hawklakecaravanpark.co

Set beside Hawk Lake in the grounds of Hawkstone Park, this Caravan Park is great for a peaceful getaway.

We have 5 touring pitches each with a hook up and on hard standing, as well as 45 static caravan pitches.

Close to the historic town of Shrewsbury, and in the heart of Shropshire, we are ideally located for exploring Shropshire and Mid Wales.

We offer both Day and Season Fishing on Hawk Lake. The lake has a selection of fish, from big Carp up to 30lb, to Roach, Perch, Bream, Tench, Rudd and Pike.

If it’s the Shropshire wildlife that you like, the lake is home to Kingfishers, Herons, Water Voles and Woodpeckers. Much of the lakeside is perfectly walkable, and there are places to sit and enjoy your surroundings in peace.

Contact Hawk Lake now to join the waiting list.

ALL VIEWINGS BY APPOINTMENT

Hawk Lake Caravan Park, North Lodge, Hawkstone Park, Marchamley, Nr Shrewsbury, Shropshire SY4 5GE

Explore our

Good times

The county of Shropshire is not short of market towns, but one of the favourites is Whitchurch, which boasts a thriving local community as well as a steady trade of passing tourists. Lying two miles east of the border in the Welsh Marches, and close to the Cheshire border too, its central location is one of its many appeals. The town is easily reached by road from neighbouring Shrewsbury, Chester and Wrexham, and has excellent train links as well as its own arm of the Llangollen Canal.

Today’s residents enjoy a bustling centre with a wealth of amenities, good schools and a stock of housing that spans many periods.

Pointers to the past

With its earliest mentions recorded in the Domesday Book, Whitchurch is the oldest continuously inhabited town in Shropshire. Its name is thought to come from the Middle English for ‘white church’, in reference to a church constructed from white stone during the Norman period.

The area also has a long association with military history. Whitchurch Cemetery includes 91 Commonwealth War Graves Commission burials: 24 from the First World War, in scattered plots, and 67 from the Second World War. Fifty-two of the latter are Polish or Czech, as a Polish hospital was located at Iscoyd Park just over the border in Wales.

On the trail

For those who enjoy getting out and about, Whitchurch has a lot to offer. The Land’s End to John O’Groats cycle route passes through the town – why not try a stretch? – and the surrounding countryside is perfect for exploring. Walkers will find plenty of options including the Whitchurch Waterways Country Park, the last stage of the Sandstone Trail and the towpath along the Llangollen Canal, which brings you to Grindley Brook staircase locks and the Lockside Café (open daily 9am-5pm, try their delicious chocolate orange cake).

A Town Trail has been developed to make the most of the fine Tudor and Georgian buildings, and the Heritage Centre has details of a pub trail, clock trail and Great War trail. Further afield, within a 20-mile radius there are plenty of historic houses, gardens and wildlife sites. Whitchurch is also home to a wealth of independent shops, cafés and restaurants to suit all tastes, as well as a weekly country market (Fridays), monthly farmers’ market (also Fridays) and a great array of traditional and modern pubs.

THINGS

SEE

Greenfields Nature Reserve Greenfields Way, Whitchurch SY13 1DG shropshirewildlifetrust.org.uk

Whitchurch Heritage Centre St Mary’s Street, Whitchurch SY13 1QY www.whitchurch-heritage.co.uk

Whitchurch Waterway Country Park Meadowcroft, Whitchurch SY14 1BD www.whitchurchwaterway.uk

If you have a show in the Shire area, we can send a reviewer – and your show can appear on these pages too!

Email editorial@ shiremagazine.co.uk Get in touch!

FAUSTUS: THIS DAMNED WOMAN, STORYHOUSE, CHESTER

Faustus is a thrilling adaptation of Marlowe’s original play, with a female lead. Brutal at times, it is a mesmerising exploration of what we must sacrifice to achieve greatness. Joanna Faustus sells her soul to the Devil to try and change the course of history. But it comes at a price.

Olivia Sweeney is a brilliant lead, raw with emotion, and the stage setting is fabulous. Water drips from the ceiling, there’s a well where the actors draw water, and candles and illuminated rods add to the drama.

The sign of a great production is when you can’t stop talking about it afterwards. This is one of them. AB ★★★★★

DELPHINE TRIO, MARKET DRAYTON FESTIVAL CENTRE

Playing with such awareness of each other they could be renamed the Delphine Unit, the trio took the stage by storm with a programme that was unusual and at its core deeply engaging. Beethoven’s Trio Opus 11 was followed by Robert Delanoff’s clarinet trio, making a dramatic shift in soundscape. Jazzy, then

The Heritage Trail At Liverpool One

Locals and visitors alike will find plenty to engage with on this selfguided trail through 300 years of history, exploring how a thirdrate fishing village transformed into the “Second City of Empire”. That the Transatlantic Slave Trade played a fundamental role is beyond question, and reaffirmed through the first of 16 locations, impressionistic, it ended with the acrobatic tumbles of a French circus.

Kenneth Leighton’s ‘Fantasy on an American Hymn Tune’ developed slowly, gathering strength before reaching a profound peacefulness. JH ★★★★

Saturday 6th May 2023 at 7.30pmWilliam Aston Hall, Glyndŵr the Old Dock. The full accessible route, followed via a free app or a map (from the TIC), introduces anatomists and artists, and takes in the oldest and one of the newest buildings in the city centre: Bluecoat and the Bling Bling. LR ★★★★

Gershwin

Conductor: Mark Lansom

Leader: Craig Clewley

Piano: Teleri-Siân