Arts & Entertainments

LEGION DATE: Guy Fletcher and PJ Wright are at Blandford RBL tonight (Friday) Guy and PJ at Wessex Acoustic this evening

Tonight, Friday, October 1 sees another night of fabulous live music at Wessex Acoustic in the Royal British Legion in Blandford from 7.30pm. Making a return visit to Blandford are club patrons Guy Fletcher and PJ Wright, the driving force from folkrock band Little Johnny England, and currently enjoying great success with the latest folk roots super band, TRADarrr. Supporting Guy and PJ are Somerset based duo, Mitchell and Vincent. Tickets at £15 each must be prebooked by calling Kathy on 01202 732239.

Riyad’s trio of appearances

Award-winning pianist Riyad Nicolas is to appear at three local venues next month. Born in Aleppo, Syria, in 1989, Riyad gave his first appearance with an orchestra there at the age of ten. He first came to Britain in 2005 on a scholarship to study at the Purcell School of Music and later, the Royal Academy of Music and the Royal College of Music, collecting several prizes and distinctions in the process. Since his student days, Riyad has won prizes at international piano competitions and received notable awards in the UK and several European countries. Beside his performances at prestigious venues in London – Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall, Barbican – Riyad has performed in many countries including France, Spain, Germany, and the USA as a soloist with orchestras, as a recitalist and chamber music player at numerous festivals and music societies. Riyad has received plaudits from the likes of Daniel Barenboim, Vladimir Ashkenazy and Uchida Mitsuko and warm reviews from the Beethoven Piano Society of Europe and the International Piano magazine. The music of Franz Schubert, including two sonatas, forms the core of Riyad’s solo programme with additional music by Liszt - transcriptions of two Schubert songs - and an Étude by Scriabin. Through music Riyad has been promoting peace and raising awareness for the plights of the Syrian people and performing for many organizations such as UNHCR, the International Rescue Committee, the Arab British Centre, Said and Asfari Foundation. Riyad will play at Bridport Arts Centre at 11.30am on November 5, then the same evening at Ilminster Arts Centre at 8pm, followed by The Dance House, Crewkerne at 7.30pm the next day. n facebook.com/Pianist RiyadNicolas To book go to concertsinthewest.org.

CONCERTS: Riyad Nicholas HONOUR: Elmira Watts Elmira’s award

Wincanton photographer Elmira Watts has been awarded Self-Commissioned Commercial Photographer of The Year. Awarded in the South West & Cotswolds with the British Institute of Professional Photography in their yearly regional image competition. The British Institute of Professional Photography which is the leading qualifying body for professional photographers celebrates the very best in UK & international photography with its awards, highlighting some of the most creative emerging talent. n elmirawatts.co.uk info@elmirawatts.co.uk Instagram: @elmirawatts

Singers’ Requiem

The Athenaeum Singers are to stage Faure’s Requiem and items of European sacred music at two concerts on Saturday, October 16. Timothy Coleman is conductor, with Lucy Mellor as soprano, Meilir Jones as bass/baritone, Simon Dinsdale on the organ and Emily Harris on harp. There will be performances at 4.30pm and 7pm at The Minster Church of St Denys, Warminster BA12 8PQ. Tickets are £10, from tickets@athenaeumsingers.

Gold medal for botanical artist Pauleen

A botanical artist from Winterborne Whitechurch has won a gold medal and been awarded Best Botanical Artwork in Show at the RHS Art and Photography Show being held in the prestigious Saatchi Gallery, London. Pauleen Trim won the gong for her picture of common ash – and the picture will be added to the RHS Picture Library Archive. This annual exhibition, cancelled from May 2020 due to the pandemic, is showing 15 national and international artists and 19 photographers, totalling over 200 art works. There were five gold medals awarded this year, two to British artists, two to Japanese artists and one to a Portuguese artist. Pauleen’s exhibit of six watercolour paintings depicts British native deciduous trees featuring galls, painted over three years. They illustrate the trees through all seasons. Artists applying to exhibit work at the RHS Show have to submit four paintings which go before a judging panel and must all be of silver standard or above. The artist then has a period of five years in which to submit their works for exhibition – if they fail to exhibit within this time frame they have to go through the judging process all over again. Pauleen is a Fellow of the Society of Botanical Artists, she is also a member of the Association of British Botanical Artists, the South West Society of Botanical Artists, the Hilliard Miniature Society and locally the Blandford Art Society and the Bruton Art Society. She is a tutor on the Society of Botanical Artists’ Distance Learning Diploma Course which enrols students from all around the world. Already planning her next RHS exhibit possibly in 2024, Pauleen is researching six more native deciduous trees.

PRESTIGIOUS HONOUR: Pauleen Trim with her award at the Saatchi Gallery

CAR BOOT and TABLE TOP SALE STALBRIDGE HALL Saturday 2nd October 9.30am – 12 noon, set up from 8am Inside tables £7- Outside £5 Bookings 01963 362978 or email stal.hall@outlook.com Refreshments

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SOME KINDA WONDERFUL

THE MUSIC OF STEVIE WONDER

Friday 1st October 7.30pm Tickets £21.50

(Box Office bookings over £20 incur £1 booking fee) AN EVENING OUT WITH ANDY HAMILTON

Sunday 3rd October 7.30pm Tickets £20

(Box Office bookings over £20 incur £1 booking fee) TOM WATERS

Rhythm & Blues Review

Thursday 7th October, 7.30pm Tickets £25

(Box Office bookings incur £1 booking fee per transaction)

DORSET BLUES: HANNAH ROBINSON

Friday 8th October, 7.30pm Tickets £12

(Box Office bookings over £20 incur £1 booking fee) GO NOW: Music of MOODY BLUES

Thursday 14th October, 7.30pm Tickets £24.50

(Box Office bookings over £20 incur £1 booking fee)

OMID DJALILI Wimborne Drama presents TOWARDS ZERO

Friday 15th October, 8.00pm Tickets £25

21st - 23rd Oct, 7.30pm, matinee Sat 23rd Oct 2.30pm Tickets £14 (£12 Matinee) 1 in 10 free TOM PETTY:

The Making of Wildflowers

(SCREENING)

Monday 25th October, 7pm Tickets £16.50 (£15 concs) CLIFF RICHARD

– The Great 80 Tour

(SCREENING)

Wednesday 27th October 7.45pm Tickets £16.50 (£15 concs) THE GARY FLETCHER BAND

Thursday 28th October, 7.30pm Tickets £18.50

The downlands of southern England, from Dorset to Wiltshire and Sussex, held a lifelong fascination for the 20th century war artist Eric Ravilious. Now his ability to capture the almost dreamlike quality of this lost world and era is being celebrated at a major new exhibition: Downland Man, which opens at Wiltshire Museum in Devizes on September 25. The exhibition will feature more than 20 works borrowed from national collections and private collectors, including iconic watercolours such as The Westbury Horse and The Wilmington Giant, alongside other rarely-seen works. The exhibition is supported by the Weston Loan Programme with Art Fund, the first ever UK-wide funding scheme to enable smaller and local authority museums to borrow works of art and artefacts from national collections. Central to the exhibition are several of Ravilious’s bestloved watercolours of chalk figures made in 1939, in preparation for a children’s book, Downland Man. The book was never completed, and for many years it was believed lost before resurfacing in 2012, when it was bought at auction by Wiltshire Museum. It will be included in the exhibition alongside some of the artist’s watercolours, aerial photographs, annotated Ordnance Survey maps, postcards and books that relate to the works on show –drawn largely from Wiltshire Museum’s own collection. The exhibition will offer a new view of Ravilious as a chronicler of the landscape he knew better than any other. He appeared captivated by the Downs, returning time and again, from his student days until the last year of his life to record the relationship between the landscape and people. Watercolours and wood engravings included in the exhibition show dew ponds and farmyards, a cement works and a field roller, modern military fortifications and ancient monuments. The exhibition is curated by Ravilious expert James Russell, who curated the blockbuster Ravilious at Dulwich Picture Gallery in London in 2015. He said: “When it comes to downland history and archaeology, Wiltshire Museum has an unrivalled collection, making this exhibition a unique opportunity to shed new light on Ravilious – an artist who is well-known these days but still little understood.” As an artist, Ravilious has gained in popularity. He was assigned the rank of Honorary Captain in the Royal Marines and worked as an official War Artist at Chatham dockyard, on board HMS Highlander in Norway and also painted Ark Royal and the interior of submarines. He died in 1942 whilst on an RAF plane which was searching for another lost aircraft in the seas off Iceland.

ICONIC: The Westbury Horse, by Eric Ravilious Ups and Downs of war artist on display at new exhibition

n Eric Ravilious: Downland Man opens at Wiltshire Museum on Saturday 25 September and closes on January 30 2022. Tickets can be pre-booked at wiltshiremuseum.org. uk/prebooktickets.

Huge slice of humanity as Syrian Baker visits village hall

Highly acclaimed touring theatre company Farnham Maltings are on the road again with The Syrian Baker and will be staging this new production at Child Okeford Village Hall on Friday, October 15 at 7.30pm. Created especially for rural venues, this show is part of the autumn programme of events by Artsreach, Dorset’s touring arts charity. With almost five per cent of the world’s population on the move, desperate to get away from trouble, The Syrian Baker is a story of two people who have decided to go home despite the state of their country. This human story explores humanity, hope and courage and is told with affection, irrepressible humour and bread. n artsreach.co.uk

Read all about it: Star-studded line-up

Tickets for the 2021 Yeovil Literary Festival (Oct 28Nov 3) are now on sale, with a star-studded line-up of writers, celebrities and thinkers announced. More than 50 events are taking place across multiple venues as The Octagon Theatre and Westlands join forces with Waterstones, the Yeovil Community Arts Association and Somerset Libraries. This year’s line-up boasts some exceptional names, including royalty in the form of Sarah, Duchess of York discussing her first novel for adults. There’s comedyroyalty too, with Michael McIntyre taking to the stage at a post-festival event to talk about the highs and lows of his rise to the top and desperate attempts to stay there. Alongside royalty, wellknown literary figures, comedians and emerging writers will be providing fascinating insights and extracts from their current books and bringing inspiration to South Somerset. The pre-festival event on Sunday, October 17 welcomes Dr Richard Shepherd, forensic pathologist. Dr Shepherd has taken to the road for the first time ever on a theatre tour which promises to be utterly fascinating and his book Unnatural Causes gives insight of not only the cases and bodies that have haunted Dr Shepherd the most, but also how to live a life steeped in death. He has performed more than 23,000 autopsies including some of the most highprofile cases of recent times; the Hungerford Massacre, the Princess Diana inquiry, and 9/11. n Thursday, October 28: Author, illustrator and draw along genius Rob Biddulph, pictured, discusses his journey from budding artist to awardwinning author and Guinness World Record holder, bringing his new title Monsters and Magic to the Octagon Auditorium. Evanna Lynch, best known for her casting as Luna Lovegood in the Harry Potter films, discusses her memoir The Opposite of Butterfly Hunting in a conversation that will bring out stories of her bitter struggle between pursuing perfection and the desire to fully and fearlessly embrace her creativity.

LITERAY DISCUSSIONS: Sarah, Duchess of York, Katie Piper and Clare Macintosh

n Friday, October 29: TV presenter and charity campaigner Katie Piper brings her inspiring book A Little Bit of Faith to the festival and will be encouraging the audience to see that heartbreak and hardship can become fuel for your fight. Sunday Times bestselling author and international sensation, Clare Mackintosh, will be talking about her new novel Hostage, a show-stopping take on the classic lockedroom thriller.

n Saturday, October 30: David Baddiel, pictured, will entertain the audience when he will be talking about his new book (The Boy Who Got) Accidentally Famous and the inspiration behind his award-winning books, plus why he loves writing for children. During the midst of the coronavirus pandemic, ITV’s Dr Hilary

is all booked in for top literary festival

Jones launched his first book Frontline in his epic historical series and will be discussing his foray into fiction. Long-standing Yeovil Literary Festival attendee Lucy Worsley shares secrets and explores the dark story of our fascination with murder and how crime has turned into art.

n Sunday, October 31: Number one bestselling historian, Max Hastings, pictured, provides a thrilling narrative of Operation Pedestal, a little-known but crucial naval battle. Giles Terera draws from his journal kept throughout his year-plus-long process of preparation, rehearsal and performance for the smashhit musical Hamilton in London’s West End. His account is honest, intimate, thrilling and not to be missed. Dr Irving Finkel, author and Assistant Keeper in the Department of the Middle East at the British Museum, explores a subject that has fascinated him since he was at school – Ghosts.

n Monday, November 1: Ben Miller, pictured, – actor, director, comedian and author – talks about his new book Diary Of A Christmas Elf; a funny and heart-warming story about the true meaning of gift giving. We also see Armistead Maupin at The Octagon. n Tuesday, November 2: Sarah, Duchess Of York discusses Her Heart for a Compass, her first novel for adults, and BAFTA-winning actor, voice of everything from Monkey to the Cadbury’s Caramel Rabbit, creator of unforgettable characters such as Lady Whiteadder, Miriam Margolyes OBE will be giving a warm and honest account of her life from her new book This Much is True. Lucy Beautmont, TV’s award-winning comedy mum and one half of the popular Meet The Richardsons, will be discussing her hilarious literary debut on the trials and tribulations of motherhood.

MAKE A DATE: Michael Portillo and Dr Richard Shepherd

n Wednesday, November 3: The festival is wrapped up with names including Michael Portillo, detailing events from his book Life: A Game of Two Halves and Phil Wang, one of the UK’s most exciting stand-up comedians, who will be reflecting on his experiences as a Euroasian man in the West and in the East from his book Sidesplitter. At the post-festival event on Tuesday, November 9, Michael McIntyre, pictured, will lay bare the highs and lows of his rise to the top and desperate attempts to stay there. All shared in his book A Funny Life. The Yeovil Literary Festival is a not-for-profit partnership between The Octagon Theatre & Westlands Entertainment Venue (part of South Somerset District Council), Waterstones Yeovil, the Yeovil Community Arts Association and Somerset Libraries. When purchasing a ticket to any Yeovil Literary Festival event in The Octagon Auditorium or Westlands Ballroom, you will be allocated a Discover Event voucher (one voucher per purchased ticket). This voucher can be exchanged for a complimentary ticket to one of the council’s Discover Events. For the full Yeovil Literary Festival 2021 programme or to book tickets visit yeovilliterary festival.co.uk or call The Octagon on 01935 422884.

TALES: Peter Macqueen Tales from a greenhouse

PMac Productions presents a delightful version of Alfred Shaughnessy’s adaptation of Reginald Arkell’s 1950 novel Old Herbaceous, carefully cultivated in a raised-bed greenhouse in which master storyteller Peter Macqueen reminisces on vignette memories kept alive through a love of gardening. The show will play at four village halls in Dorset as part of the autumn programme of events by Artsreach, Dorset’s touring arts charity. Pottering among the seeds and cuttings at the back of his ramshackle greenhouse in the garden of a Gloucestershire manor house is Herbert Pinnegar. Now in his twilight years, he’s full of laughter, fond memories, and tales of a bygone era. In between potting up and potting on, he recounts his journey from orphan boy to legendary head gardener and flower show judge ‘Old Herbaceous’. n Shipton Gorge (01308 897407) on Thursday, October 21 at 2.30pm and 7.30pm n West Stafford (07968 633834) at 7.30pm on Friday, October 22 n Nether Compton (01935 815033) at 7.30pm on Saturday, October 23 n Shillingstone (01258 860319) at 4pm on Sunday, October 24. Full details and tickets at artsreach.co.uk.

Scottish jazz duo in village hall fundraiser

Jazz From Scotland, featuring Ian Millar on saxophone and Dominic Spencer on piano will be helping to raise money for Semley Village Hall on Saturday, October 9. The pair, based in Edinburgh, have been travelling up and down the UK with their popular Jazz in the Village concerts. The concert (8pm and tickets at £10) will feature accessible, melodic jazz and amusing stories about the duo’s touring experiences. The hall will be laid out in a cabaret style with low lighting and tea light candles on the tables. There will be a bar. Accompanied under 16s free. Tickets on sale at Semley Village Shop, and from semleyvillagehall @gmail.com, semleyvillage hall.org.uk, or facebook. com/semleyvillagehall or call 07484 349701.

FUNDRAISER GIG: Ian Millar and Dominic Spencer

Legacy of Florence explored by singing storyteller Louise

Florence: The Lesser-known Life and Legacy of Florence Nightingale is an evening of original song and storytelling by Louise Jordan. Acclaimed singer-songwriter Louise returns to Dorset this autumn with a new show. Florence Nightingale was a campaigner and reformer whose pioneering use of statistics called for government accountability and equal access to healthcare for all. She spent decades campaigning for social reform worldwide, advocating equal access to healthcare for all and become an expert in areas such as land irrigation, hospital design and postal services for soldiers to advance her causes. This solo performance questions why Florence’s extraordinary and wideranging achievements are so often overlooked. Louise is a former secondary school teacher with an MA in Human Rights and has released six recordings gaining national radio play on the BBC Radio 2 Folk Show and Radio 4. This dynamic new show celebrates Florence as a

LADY WITH THE LAMP: Louise Jordan’s Nightingale evening ground-breaking statistician and connects Florence’s work in the 19th century with the issues we continue to face in 2021. n Langton Matravers (01929 423834) on Thursday, October 28 at 7.30pm n Ibberton (01258 817269) at 7.30pm on Friday, October 29. After the performance at Ibberton, audiences can recharge their glasses and take part in a Florence themed pub quiz, with Florence Nightingale as quizmaster!

With October half-term fast approaching, three professional children’s theatre companies are heading to Dorset to tour with Artsreach and entertain children and families. There will be eight live performances in eight different villages, plus the opportunity to take part in an interactive audio adventure. Following a sell-out tour this summer, Paddleboat Theatre return with Margot & Mr Whatsit, a show which was crowned Best of Brighton Fringe children and family show in 2018. Sophia’s imaginary friend is called Mr Whatsit and no matter where Sophia finds herself living, he’s always there with a new joke to tell and a new game to play. But when Sophia moves into her new foster home, Mr Whatsit finds himself unimagined as Sophia has a new imaginary friend – the glamorous, grown-up Margo. Can Mr Whatsit’s childish playfulness keep him from being unimagined for good? And with her imaginary friends competing against each other, will Sophia manage to find her forever home? Catch Paddleboat on Monday, October 25 with a performance at 11am in Sandford Orcas (01963 220171) and 4pm in Motcombe (07904 904668). Much-loved Angel Heart Theatre return with The Tales of Robin Hood. Join England’s greatest outlaw as he and his merry friends take on the dastardly Sheriff of Nottingham. Be swept along in the adventure as dynamic puppetry and colourful acting bring these muchloved tales to life. With comedy, derring-do and even interactive archery The Tales of Robin Hood is a quiverfull of fun for both young and old alike where the real and imaginary collide, and friends are never far away. Angel Heart head to Lytchett Matravers (07795 467666) on Tuesday October 26, Broadoak near Bridport (01308 424922) on Wednesday October 27 at 11am, and Martinstown (01305 889738) on the same day at 4pm. Renowned stand-up poet and lo-fi theatre maker Jonny Fluffypunk presents a new little show for families, with poetry, puppetry, story and song. At the end of a soonto-be-closed-down pier in a forgotten seaside town, Pierre the pier handyman spends the last weeks as he always does: catching fish for his old bedridden mother and making strange and wonderful things from the rubbish he finds on the beach. Then who should wash into his life but a homeless mermaid with a spiky attitude and a story to tell! Meet Pierre and the mermaid in Piddletrenthide (07786 880676) on Thursday October 28, Child Okeford (01258 861621) on Friday October 29 and Sturminster Marshall (07903 057427) on Saturday October 30. Finally, The Gramophones present an audio adventure for an adult and child to experience together. Ever wondered what it would be like to travel through space? When you register to take part in Another Planet we’ll mail you a package containing everything you’ll need to create your own interplanetary adventure! Simply download our audio track, then visit a green space and listen to Astrid the Galaxy Hopper who will help you collect important scientific samples, dodge alien invasions and delve deep underground to discover more about the mysterious planet you land on. n Further information at artsreach.co.uk.

COMING YOUR WAY: Paddleboat’s Margot and Mr Whatsit and, below, The Tales of Robin Hood

A full programme for your half term

RETRO: Neil Maya Quartet Spirit of ’59 from Neil’s jazz quartet

The Neil Maya Quartet is coming to Stalbridge on October 30. The foursome is described as ‘one of the South West’s most exciting and talented bands, finding fresh, new sounds within the wide scope of jazz whilst staying accessible to everyone’. 1959 is often considered an extremely influential year in the development of modern jazz, spawning some of the genre’s finest albums of all times including Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue and Dave Brubeck’s Time Out. This project by The Neil Maya Quartet brings to life some of the best and most famous modern jazz recordings from that era. Performing with a light, skilful touch and an air of frivolity, Neil Maya on saxophone is joined by some of the most exciting jazz musicians working in the South West today on piano, double bass and drums. Supported by Dorset Council, Arts Council England and Blanchards Bailey solicitors, Artsreach is delighted to present The Neil Maya Quartet at 7:30pm in Portesham (01305 871035) on Friday, October 29 and Stalbridge (01963 362978) on Saturday, October 30, and in Broadwindsor (01308 867252) at the earlier time of 4pm on Sunday. October 31. Full details and tickets at artsreach.co.uk.