WHAT’S ON

What’s on in July

Texas is set to play at ValleyFest Creating Carmen at Ham Farm Festival

The Colston Statue: What Next?

n Throughout July, M Shed A year on since the Edward Colston statue was removed during protests in the centre of Bristol, the city is being asked what should happen to it next. The exhibit is part of a temporary display with a survey drafted by the We Are Bristol History Commission, canvassing citizens’ views on the future of the statue. The statue itself sits alongside a selection of placards from the Black Lives Matter protest of that day as well as a timeline of key events. bristolmuseums.org.uk

Global Carnival: A Cultural Evolution

n 3 July, 5pm, online event The team behind one of Bristol’s most loved public events, St Pauls Carnival, is bringing together organisers and performers from London’s Notting Hill, and the carnivals of the Caribbean islands of St Lucia and Trinidad and Tobago, for a panel discussion. The online event will explore the evolution of Carnival and feature exclusive performances from representatives of the different carnivals. This one-off occasion will be streamed on the day that St Pauls Carnival is traditionally held in Bristol. stpaulscarnival.net

Bristol Pride Festival

n 3 July –16 July, at various venues Although Pride Day and the parade march has been postponed to later this year, Bristol Pride Festival will feature a programme of events that will span two weeks. Look out for a spectacular new drag cabaret night on 9 July with headline performances from Divina de Campo and Tia Kofi from RuPaul’s Drag Race UK as well as favourites from across the circuit, a comedy night on 15 July, theatre events and Queer Vision Film Festival. bristolpride.co.uk

Pride: Cocktail Masterclasses

n 8, 10 & 11 July, Harvey Nichols Bristol To celebrate Pride and raise money for StonewallUK, Harvey Nichols Bristol is hosting a series of ticketed cocktail masterclasses at The Second Floor Bar on 8, 10 and 11 July 2021, priced at £30 per person. Guests can explore the finest creative cocktail concoctions with tastings, demonstrations, and the chance to recreate their own favourite tipples –perfect for beginners and professionals alike. Visit Harvey Nichols’ website for tickets. harveynichols.com

80 Years of the Atlantic Charter

n 16 –18 July, at various venues in Bristol Affirming our historic friendship with the USA and celebrating modern, global, and forward-thinking Britain, Bristol will host celebrations to mark the 80th anniversary of the Atlantic Charter. The event will see Royal Navy ships visit the city’s harbour, the Band of the Royal Marines performing and a celebration dinner attended by US officials and the First Sea Lord. bristolaffiliationhmspwls.com

Creating Carmen at Ham Farm Festival

n 25 July, Mangotsfield Ham Farm Festival –set to be a true community music festival –is welcoming music lovers to its half-acre garden in Mangotsfield. On 25 July, look out for Creating Carmen –a concert-play with Spanish music by the CarmenCo trio. The plot: Prosper Mérimée is struggling with his latest novella, when his leading character, Carmen, appears in his study, larger than life, with a band of musicians in tow and chaos in her wake. Prepare for a fun-filled evening of fantasy, comedy and tremendous Spanish music and book your tickets in advance. hamfarmfestival.com

ValleyFest 2021

n 29 July –1 August, Chew Valley Lake Valley Fest, the best-tasting music festival in the South West, is going ahead. The festival is welcoming huge headliners such as Texas, Deacon Blue and Sophie Ellis-Bextor. Culinary heroes will be cooking up a storm, day and night, in the spectacular open-sided feasting tipis. Look out for Great British Bake Off stars Chetna Makan and Briony May Williams; Josh Eggleton from the Michelin-starred Pony and Trap; Rob Howell from Root; and lots more. Expect treats, beats and plenty to eat, with lots of Somerset style and sizzle. valleyfest.co.uk

Clifton Green Squares & Secret Gardens

n 31 July, around Clifton Visit the fascinating communal private gardens hidden begind Clifton’s elegant terraces, open for one day only due to the pandemic. Tickets cost £5, which includes access for one adult to all open gardens. Free for ages 16 and under (accompanied). Enjoy refreshments and entertainment in some of the gardens. Keep an eye on Clifton Green Squares & Secret Gardens’ website for opening times and updates. gssg-bristol.com

LEAP OF FAITH

Blackhorse Hill, Bristol BS10 7TP wildplace.org.uk; 0117 980 7175

Located in Wild Place Project is Leap of Faith, one of Bristol’s finest outdoor activity centres –ideal for all ages. The whole family can climb up to 25ft on any of the climbing routes, brave the exhilarating ‘leap of faith’ from which the centre gets its name, or take the plunge on Bristol’s only giant swing! It’s within walking distance from The Mall at Cribbs Causeway, so you can head over just to climb, or make a day of it and explore everything the park has to offer: animals from across the globe, forest trails and lots more.

Leap of Faith is open to the public at weekends as well as weekdays all through the summer holidays from 10am –5pm. If you have some over-energetic kids (or adults!) take them down to the Leap of Faith course for some fun. All bookings are to be made online via the Wild Place website. Please note, if you wish to explore Wild Place, an additional entry fee will be charged.

WE THE CURIOUS

1 Millennium Square, Anchor Road, Bristol BS1 5DB wethecurious.org; 0117 915 1000

Have you ever wondered why rainbows make you happy? Why time flies when you’re having fun? Whether there’s another you out there in the universe? Step inside We The Curious this summer and explore what it means to be human with their superb new Project What If experience.

Inspired by seven intriguing questions, the science centre’s transformed ground floor features 68 new exhibits and 25 art pieces. Marvel at the beauty of our brains, see what you look like in slow motion, turn invisible. Then head upstairs for mythical eagles and meteor showers in the UK’s only 3D planetarium. Open 10am to 5pm every day of the school holidays. Booking in advance essential. Visit the website for tickets!

WIMBLEBALL LAKE

Brompton Regis, Dulverton, Somerset TA22 9NU swlakestrust.org.uk/activities; 01398 371460

Prepare for a summer of fun and adventure at Wimbleball Lake. Less than a two-hour drive from Bristol and Bath, Wimbleball is the perfect location for your next family escape. Try your hand at watersports, have a go at archery, swing from the high ropes or enjoy a tasty treat from the café. You can also extend your stay and camp on site. Whether it’s a day trip or a longer camping break, the lake offers the ideal escape for friends, family and couples. For more information or to book activities and camping, visit Wimbleball Lake’s website.

ARNOLFINI | WE ARE FAMILY

16 Narrow Quay, Bristol BS1 4QA arnolfini.org.uk; @arnolfiniarts; 0117 917 2300

To celebrate this summer’s Frank Bowling exhibition, Arnolfini have invited their friends at Let’s Make Art to create a special ‘colour lab’ space over the holidays, where families can experiment with colour, mark-making techniques and essentially get messy. It’s completely free and everyone’s welcome. Booking in advance will be required in accordance with current government guidelines around Covid. Running every Wednesday from 28 July –1 September, 1pm –4pm for kids aged five and over. Let’s Make Art have also created Arnolfini’s Art Cart, packed full of colouring-in materials and exhibition-based activities, free for families visiting Arnolfini. Available daily, Tuesday –Sunday, 11am –6pm each week.

Detail of As Above, So Below by Frank Bowling

SOCCER SHOOTERS

Redland Green School, Bristol BS6 7EH; Sir Bernard Lovell Sports Centre, Bristol BS30 8TS; soccershooters.com/holiday-clubs

Football engagement and enjoyment specialist Soccer Shooters is delighted to be hosted by Redland Green School and Sir Bernard Lovell Sports Centre during this summer holiday. Football Fundays are a really popular and fun way for children (Reception to Year 7) to learn football skills and social skills, building confidence and self-esteem. The Fundays are a mixture of fun games, football matches and mini tournaments. Soccer Shooters combines top quality coaching with a relaxed and inclusive environment, enabling children of all backgrounds and abilities to sharpen their football skills while also learning life skills that will serve them well, no matter what they want to do in the future. Book soon to avoid disappointment.

HESTERCOMBE GARDENS & GALLERY

Cheddon Fitzpaine, Taunton TA2 8LG hestercombe.com; 01823 413923

Nestled at the foot of the beautiful Quantock Hills, Hestercombe Gardens features a stunning collection of historic gardens, steeped in history and bursting with wildlife. A visit should include a meander through the splendid Georgian landscape garden, followed by the vibrant colours of the formal gardens, designed by Gertrude Jekyll and Sir Edwin Lutyens. Lose yourself along cool rills, or under the picturesque pergola, adorned with fragrant roses and lavender. The whole family will enjoy Hestercombe, with 50 acres of gardens to explore, two play areas, a café and restaurant, gift shop, and plant centre, plus art exhibitions at Hestercombe Gallery. During school holidays there are fun-packed activity days for children too. See the website for more information and tickets.

BRISTOL ZOO GARDENS

College Road, Clifton, Bristol BS8 3HA bristolzoo.org.uk; 0117 4285300

Bristol Zoo Gardens is the perfect fresh-air destination for summer with over 12 acres of outdoor space and the chance to see animals from all over the globe, including many endangered species. Spot adorable youngsters including two western lowland gorillas, a sloth and a tiny mouse deer, among 400 other incredible species. There’s fun to be had for all the family; kids can run wild in the adventure playground and big and little adventurers alike can climb, clamber and swing through the air in the thrilling aerial ropes course ZooRopia.

Fancy a bite to eat? The Hide restaurant is open for eating in or takeaway. Visit the website to book online.

HAYNES INTERNATIONAL MOTOR MUSEUM

Sparkford, Yeovil BA22 7LH himm.co.uk; 01963 440804

The multi award-winning Haynes International Motor Museum is truly a must-see attraction for West Country families, with brand new exhibitions to explore this year including ‘Williams F1: The Drivers and The Driven’.

At the home of the UK’s largest collection of cars and motorbikes you can get up close to some of the very first cars invented in ‘The Dawn of Motoring’; learn how a car works with the working cutaway; explore reds around the world in the Red Room and feed your need for speed with some of the most iconic Formula One cars in Williams’ history. There is plenty to keep the whole family entertained with interactive pitstops, an on-site café and a fantastic outside playground. If you are feeling competitive, the on-site Karting at Haynes track (booked separately) is also open for a fun family race. To book your day out this summer, visit the website or call the museum directly.

Williams F1: the drivers and the driven

Chris Copson, head of collections at Haynes International Motor Museums, tells the story behind an exclusive new exhibition, which uncovers the story of Williams across decades of cutting-edge Formula 1 competition

To anyone with even a slight interest in motor sport the name of Frank Williams will be familiar. He founded the home-grown F1 team Williams Racing which was until recently the last ‘family’ team left in the sport.

As a driver, Sir Frank Williams had a reputation of being lightning fast but not always staying on the road. He frequently rolled cars including on one occasion his mother’s Morris 1000. Frank stopped racing in 1967 and started his journey to creating a world renowned F1 team in partnership with engineer Patrick Head.

Over the years the Williams team has won nine constructors’ championships and seven drivers’ titles, with driving legends such as Keke Rosberg, Nelson Piquet, Nigel Mansell, Alain Prost, Damon Hill and Jacques Villeneuve.

With historical photography and footage from the Williams F1 Heritage collection, paired with research from the museum’s team, this exclusive exhibition captures the incredible history of Williams and the excitement of the sport. No matter what the visitor’s knowledge of F1 may be, there is something to learn and enjoy throughout.

You can get close to some of the most iconic Formula 1 cars in Williams’ history, such as Nigel Mansell’s FW14 or ‘Red 5’ and Damon Hill’s FW17. One thing that is immediately noticeable is how the cars, which truly are spectacular aerodynamic wonders of technology, have evolved over the years.

Williams is, of course, part of a wider story, the sport itself has also changed beyond recognition, from a minority interest for the true enthusiasts into a global phenomenon that rivals the Olympics in terms of popularity. In order to give context to the exhibition, dedicated areas explore the wider connected stories such as the history, glamour and culture of Formula 1.

Chris Copson, head of collections commented: “The social history surrounding the sport is fascinating and will be quite a nostalgia kick for some. We explore back to the days of the 1970s and the boisterous charms of James Hunt, all the way through to the modern day F1 drivers such as Lewis Hamilton with huge salaries, yachts and apartments in Monaco. It also wouldn’t be a story about F1 if we didn’t look at some of the amazing locations of the tracks, from the glamour of oil rich Bahrain to Sao Paulo, where multi-million pound cars race with a background of desperately poor favelas.”

Formula 1 racing has also been a soberingly dangerous sport in which numerous drivers have lost their lives. In the years before 1970 there was very little in the way of safety rules. Indeed fire-resistant clothing was only introduced in the 1970s. The increased focus on safety in the sport can only be appreciated when you look across the decades where there is a demonstrable correlation between increased safety measures and the decline in fatalities. Racing fatalities went from 23 recorded deaths before 1970 to just one fatal crash in the last 10 years. The Williams team was sadly not a stranger to dangers behind the wheel; off the track Frank Williams was involved in a road accident in 1986 which left him in a wheelchair after breaking his neck and Williams F1 suffered a terrible blow in 1994 when Ayrton Senna suffered a fatal crash at the San Marino Grand Prix.

Although the danger still remains today, a crash that would have been fatal in the past is now very much survivable, partly due to regulations and rules but also because car design and construction is now centred on crash survivability and saving lives. Illustrating this within the exhibition is the original monocoque driver cell of one of Pastor Maldonado’s cars which was involved in a dramatic crash during the 2013 Monaco Grand Prix. The carbon fibre monocoque is twice as strong as steel, five times lighter and almost indestructible. Maldonado escaped with minor injuries.

Chris Copson added “Irrespective of whether you are a die-hard F1 fan or not, this exhibition is packed with fascinating stories, facts and figures with something for everyone.” ■ • Williams F1: The Drivers and The Driven exhibition is open to the public at Haynes International Motor Museum in Somerset every day from 10am. Pre-book visit at himm.co.uk or call 01963 440804.