Don’t miss this year’s Yetminster Fair!

Yetminster Fair will take place on Saturday 15th July at Yetminster Community Sports Club and promises to be great fun for all the family. This year’s stalls will be very varied with something for everyone –including a great range of food and drink. New this year, children are sure to love the Feathers, Fangs and

Furries stall – an opportunity to get up close and personal with a range of interesting animals including an owl, a snake and some rabbits!

There will live music from local favourite Joe Jones and a high energy show from ‘Power of Performance’.

With a great display of classic cars, a bouncy castle, children’s games and much more the Yetminster Sports Club bar will also be open all day.

All proceeds from the day will form part of the of the grants made by the fair organisers, the Yetminster Fair Association, to local clubs and charities later in the year.

15th July, 12.30 to 4.30pm. £1 per adult – 16s and under free!

Unveiling the Ancient Wonders: Home of Hillforts & Henges 2023

Home of Hillforts & Henges returns in 2023, celebrating Dorchester’s Neolithic, Bronze, and Iron Age heritage from July 28th to July 30th. The festival invites visitors to explore the ancient landscapes that have shaped the town for over 6,000 years.

Dorchester proudly holds the title of ‘the Home of Hillforts & Henges’ due to its significant historical sites. Before the town’s establishment, the region served as the centre of a major Neolithic ceremonial landscape.

Within Dorchester, four impressive henges and two formidable hillforts stand as testaments to its rich heritage.

One of the remarkable sites is the Dorchester Neolithic Monument, one of Britain’s largest. Located in the Tudor Arcade, its vast palisaded enclosure features signs of huge wooden posts and a curving ditch.

Maumbury Rings, constructed over 4,500 years ago, served as a giant henge with a single entrance and possible standing stone. The Romans later repurposed it as an amphitheater by enhancing the banks and filling the inner ditch. Flagstones, located just outside Dorchester, is a late Neolithic circular ring with chalk walls and unevenly spaced pits. It boasts a large sarsen stone, referred to as The Druid Stone by Thomas Hardy, which still stands in a garden.

Mount Pleasant, an oval Neolithic ‘superhenge,’ captivates visitors with its concentric rings of postholes and cross-shaped aisles.

Poundbury Hill encompasses evidence of Neolithic and Bronze Age settlements, an Iron Age hillfort, and even a section of Roman aqueduct remains.

Maiden Castle, the largest Iron Age hillfort in Europe, stands proudly in the landscape just two miles south of Dorchester.

The South Dorset Ridgeway, nestled between Dorchester and Weymouth, hides more than 500 archaeological monuments and barrows, making it Europe’s finest funerary landscape.

Home of Hillforts & Henges 2023

Part of the National CBA Festival of Archaeology, this year’s event offers an immersive experience for visitors. Guided walks, talks, and activities will take place across the town, culminating in the grand HengeFest at Maumbury Rings on July 30th. This free family day out within the ancient monument features trade stands, local food, live music, and engaging nature crafts, ensuring a fabulous day out for the whole family. The festival is made possible by headline sponsors Kingston Maurward, Dorset Hideaways, and Dorchester Town Council, as well as other supportive partners and sponsors.

Don’t miss the opportunity to unravel the secrets of Dorchester’s ancient past at Home of Hillforts & Henges 2023. From July 28th to July 30th, immerse yourself in a journey through time and explore the wonders that shaped this remarkable town.

discoverdorchester.co.uk