BEST-selling novelist, playwright and scriptwriter Chris Chibnall is one of the big draws at this year’s 29th Beaminster Festival. One of Dorset’s prettiest towns has an eclectic and stimulating programme, from 27th June to 5th July, including Chris Chibnall, superstar folk duo Kathryn Roberts and Sean Lakeman, actress and singer Lucy Stevens as the great Kathleen Ferrier and Nigel Planer, recalling the Young Ones and more.
The opening event on Saturday 27th at 7.30pm is Yeovil Concert Band playing Sounds From Stage and Screen at the festival’s principal venue, St Mary’s Church. Sunday features an evening recital by the brilliant young pianist Ariel Lanyi, with a programme of works by Beethoven, Schumann, Chopin and Debussy, that he will also be playing at London’s Wigmore Hall.
Monday 29th has three events, Flutes and Frets – Dancing Through Time, at 11.30am, Chris Chibnall at 2.30 and a treat for jazz lovers, the Tim Kliphuis Trio at 7.30.
In his talk, Writing Dorset, Chris Chibnall, showrunner, screenwriter and producer, discusses his career and latest writing. His writing credits span genres, but one thing connects them all — his stories speak to us on a human level. Perhaps best known in West Dorset as the creator of Broadchurch, Chibnall’s work includes Torchwood, Camelot, Law & Order: UK, The Great Train Robbery, Doctor Who (Showrunner 2018–2022), and the Sunday Times best selling crime novel, Death at the White Heart. His stage plays include One Last Push and Worst Wedding Ever.
The Roberts-Wakeman folk duo are on Tuesday at 11.30am, followed by journalist John Kampfner at 2.30 and the Fibonacci String Quartet at 7.30.
On Wednesday 1st July, there is a recital at 11.30am by Levi Andreassen, double bass, and Alessio Enea, piano, followed at 7.30pm by the brilliant quintet Connaught Brass, whose repertoire spans from Bbaroque to jazz to specially commissioned music – they will also by giving workshops and sharing their skills and enthusiasm for music to children from seven local schools.
Richard Pinel opens Thursday’s programme with an organ recital at 11.30am, with Lucy Stevens as Kathleen Ferrier in Whattalife! at 2.30, and violinist Coco Tomita and pianist Simon Callaghan at 7.30.
Friday morning at 11.30, brings violinist Harriet Mackenzie and guitarist Morgan Szymanski with a charismatic programme including works by Vivaldi, Paganini, Sarasate, Faure and De Falla. That evening, St Mary’s will resound to the remarkable sounds of the Scott Brothers, a duo playing the unusual combination of piano and organ, with a programme including music by Bach, Dvorak, Handel and Gershwin.
For fans of The Young Ones, one of the festival highlights will be Friday afternoon’s talk by “Neil the Hippy”, Nigel Planer. A founding figure of the 80s alternative comedy scene, in Young Once – A Life Less Heavy, Planer will showcase his dry wit, theatrical flair and knack for finding humour in both disaster and triumph.
The festival concludes with a Saturday 8pm gig at Beaminster School by tribute band Not the Rolling Stones, and the finale event, Bijou Opera in Mozart’s Le Nozze di Figaro at 7pm at St Mary’s. Led by soprano-producer Stefanie Kemball-Read and conductor-director Stephen Anthony Brown, the company reimagines great operas for intimate ensembles and distinctive settings.
For full details of the 2026 Beaminster Festival, pick up a programme or visit beaminsterfestival.com