WHILE it is a truth universally acknowledged that we all love Jane Austen (well, most of us do), we probably wouldn’t call ourselves superfans as best friends Charlotte and Ellie do, and they want you to join them at their exclusive Jane Austen Fan Club, on tour from 5th February to 5th March. They start…
AWARD-winning Welsh folk trio VRi come to Langton Matravers village Hal on Friday 6th February, at the start of a three-date tour with Artsreach, Dorset’s rural touring arts charity. Twice winners of Best Album at the Welsh Folk Awards, VRï are Jordan Price Williams (cello, voice), Aneirin Jones (violin, voice) and Patrick Rimes (viola, violin,…
CONCERTS in the West opens the 2026 series on Friday 13th February, with a welcome return for the acclaimed, young, Hungarian-born pianist Daniel Lebhardt. The recital programme follows the usual pattern of coffee concert at Bridport Arts Centre at 11.30am on Friday 13th followed by a 7.30pm performance at Ilminster Arts Centre. The third concert…
PERFORMANCE poet Luke Wright has taken his own story of adoption and turned it into a show that is part stand-up and part poetry, coming to Dorset in February for three dates with Artsreach, Friday 13th at Chetnole village hall, Saturday 14th at the Mowlem in Swanage and Sunday 15th at Ibberton village hall. Later…
WEST End stars Lisa Pulman and Joe Stilgoe bring movie musical magic to Dorchester Corn Exchange with their new show Hooray for Hollywood, on Tuesday 3rd February at 7.30pm, followed by other local dates at Christchurch and Bath. The two versatile and popular performers have put together a delightful mix of some of the best-loved…
LYME Regis has two famous literary connections – Jane Austen’s Persuasion and The French Lieutenant’s Woman, the best-known novel by long-time Lyme resident John Fowles. There was a 250th anniversary production of Jane Austen’s Persuasion at the Marine Theatre last year, and this year, from 11th to 14th February, the mysterious cloaked woman returns in…
DORCHESTER Arts has got together with Sherborne Girls School to present an exciting evening of piano virtuosity, on Friday 6th February at 7pm, when two of the most gifted young pianists of our time, Martin James Bartlett and Mariam Batsashvili give a programme of piano duets at Gransden Hall in the school’s Merritt Centre. Franz…
BOURNEMOUTH Symphony Orchestra, the region’s leading classical music organisation, regularly includes music with a lighter touch in its programme, alongside mainstream and more serious works. Starting on 5th February, there is a series of concerts featuring music from some of the greatest blockbuster films of the past 40 or so years, composed by two of…
THE 2026 programme of Banff Mountain Film Festival screenings starts its local dates on Friday 6th February at Poole’s Lighthouse arts centre cinema, with the Red programme. The short films range from extreme climbing and kayaking to mountain biking and other dazzling adventures in wild places. With extreme climbing, kayaking, mountain biking and the one…
A NEW short documentary, Brick by Brick, is having its first screenings at Bridgwater’s Scott Cinema. Created with the people who live and work in the town, the film takes stereotypes of Bridgwater and challenges the audience to look more deeply. It tells the story of two young, aspiring TikTok influencers who attempt to kick-start…