Turn It Up: Urban Rock Festival Hits Burslem

Plus Middleport Canal Festival (13 & 14/06), Much Ado About Nothing at Bolton Gate Farm (31/05), Strange Stoke at Artisan Tap (06/06) and Nigel Kennedy at Victoria Hall (11/06)

WHAT’S ON/THINGS TO DO ✅

HIGHLIGHTED ⬇️ (FULL EVENTS LISTINGS BELOW)

• 🎸 Livin’ It Loud in Burslem. 23/05, 12pm-late, Lemmy Plaza. It’s almost a year since Andy Edwards’ much-loved Lemmy statue was unveiled, and to continue the late Motörhead frontman’s legacy, LFK Legacy has organised Burslem’s first-ever urban rock festival, which will be headlined by Motörheadache. There are plenty of other local bands playing too, including metallers Wolves in Alcatraz, Jesse’s Divide and Walking Alone, with special guest MC Krusher, who designed artwork for the band, doing a talk at 7pm. Admission free; Krusher’s talk £10.

• ⛴️ Take to the Canals with Middleport. 13 & 14/06, 10am-4pm both days. Back by popular demand and promising to be bigger and better than ever before, beyond the narrowboats, there’s kids’ fun live entertainment at this event promising plenty of family fun. Admission free (suggested donation £5).

Splash about on the canal at Middleport Canal Festival (13 & 14/06)

• 🎭 See Much Ado Alfresco. 31/05, Bolton Gate Farm, 4.30pm-6.30pm. Presented by Midlands-based immersive theatre company Lucid Spark, this fast-paced reimagining of Shakespeare’s Much Ado About Nothing transforms the classic comedy into a villa of love, gossip and games. Bea and Benedick are sworn singletons locked in a war of words, while Hero and Claudia fall fast. Don John is stirring the pot, and the whole villa is one bad decision away from chaos. Pay what you decide ticket: £20 supporter, £15 standard, £10 subsidised.

Shakespeare time: see Much Ado About Nothing on 31/05 at Bolton Gate Farm

• 👩‍❤️‍👩 A Celebration of Womanhood. 06/06, 7.30pm, Fenton Town Hall. Amplifying voices that are often overlooked, art festival Back to the Bone explores themes including intergenerational female friendship, birth, contraception, and stereotypes through dance, theatre, and spoken word. Tickets from £18.43.

• 🧛‍♀️ A Great Gothic Night Out. 19/06, 6pm, Artisan Tap. Fancy a heavy evening out soundtracked by loud guitars? Put your best gothic look on for Strange Stoke, which promises the best in Dark 80s, Goth, Post-punk & Industrial. Tickets £5.

  

  Save the date for this event on 19/06 at the Artisan Tap at 7pm

• 🎻 See The UK’s Greatest Living Violinist. 11/06, Victoria Hall. Renowned for his inclusive, open-minded and often adventurous approach to music, Nigel Kennedy will be accompanied by long-time collaborators Alec Dankworth on double bass and cellist Peter Adams. Tickets from £48.88.

EVENTS LISTINGS

• Parkrun, every Saturday at 9am at Hanley Park; Trentham Gardens; Cannock Chase; Lower Milehouse Lane, Newcastle; Birchall Playing Fields; Isabel Trail, Stafford

• Heritage Walks with the Red Haired Stokie, various dates

• Make & Bake, ongoing, Mitchell Arts Centre

• Girls Who Walk Stoke, ongoing, various locations

• Beth Johnson Ramblers for the Over 50s, various dates

• Queerquest, ongoing, Staffordshire Moorlands

• Open mic nights, various dates, Darcy’s + The Woodman, The Beehive Inn, The Windmill Werrington, Foxfield Arms, & The Victoria

• Potteries Centre Events Series, ongoing, Potteries Centre

• Throw a Pot and Pottery Painting, ongoing, Kiln at Number 12

• Throw a Pot Sessions, ongoing, LoveClay

• What’s In Store at the V&A Wedgwood Collection sessions, every Wednesday

• Lunch at Stoke Minster, every Thursday

• Fresh Food Friday, Biddulph Town Hall, every Friday

• Guided Walks in the Peak District, Various, Multiple (Peak District)

• Titanic Brewery Tour, multiple dates, Titanic Brewery

• Spitfire Comedy Open Mic, multiple dates, Old Post Office, Burslem

• World of Wedgwood Artisan markets, every second Sunday of the month

• Electric Tentacle Electronic Music Open Mic, multiple dates, Captain’s Bar

• Honeybox Live, various dates and locations

• Cancer Awareness Bus Tour, various dates and locations from 09/03

• Dusk Beaver Safari, 29/04, Trentham Estate

• Specialist Tree Identification Walk, 29/04, Bucknall Park

• Gladstone Bunny Hunt, until 30/04, Gladstone Pottery Museum

• How to Build A Spitfire, 01/05, Potteries Museum & Art Gallery

• Operation Mincemeat: A New Musical, until 02/05, Regent Theatre

• Foundry Festival, 02/05 & 03/05, Tontine Square and Piccadilly

• The Garden Gate, 02/05, Bolton Gate Farm

• One Day Only – Celebrating Danny Stubbs Legacy, 03/05, Keele University

• Dawn Chorus, 03/05, Trentham Estate

• The Lady Boys of Bangkok, until 03/05, Trentham Shopping Village

• Snoopy Trail, until 04/05, Trentham Estate

• Mow Cop Killer Mile, 07/05, Mow Cop

• Stone Food & Drink Festival, 08/05-10/05, Westbridge Park

• Dan Walsh, 08/05, Fenton Town Hall

• Wartime in the Potteries, 09/05, Middleport Pottery

• Community Day, 09/05, Trentham Estate

• Hamza Yazzin: My Life Behind the Lens, 15/05, Victoria Hall

• So You Think You’re Not Funny Eh? Creative Writing Workshop with Nick Degg, 15/05, Brampton Museum

• Pint of Science Festival, 18/05-20/05, various locations

• Wildlings Play Group, 19/05, 16/06, 14/07, Ladderedge Country Park

• Scott Bradlee’s Post-Modern Jukebox, 23/05, Victoria Hall

• Burslem Urban Rock Festival, 23/05, Lemmy Plaza

• Single White Female, 26/05-30/05, Regent Theatre

• Much Ado About Nothing, 31/05, Bolton Gate Farm

• Back to the Bone Festival, 06/06, Fenton Town Hall

• Vicky Swan & Jonny Dyer, 12/06, Fenton Town Hall

• Middleport Canal Festival, 13 & 14/06, Middleport Pottery

• Nigel Kennedy, 11/06, Victoria Hall

• Keith And Marj: Us, Pots and A Welsh Chapel, 13/06, Regent Theatre

• Strange Stoke, 19/06, Artisan Tap

• Contemporary Collage Workshop, 27/06, Silk Mill House

• Stoke Craft Brew Festival, 11/07, King’s Hall

For more events, check out our comprehensive What’s On list.

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