Simonsbath Festival 2014 Festival 2014 5 May – 20 June

When the world comes to Simonsbath in the of SimonsbathDon’t Festival’smiss Simonsbath Festival celebrates MAY DAY celebrations at The Old Pottery MAY DAY Monday 5 May – 2.30pm The Old Pottery in the heart of Simonsbath Simonsbath Festival celebrates May Day with art, dancing, traditional music, songs and stories for all the family: • Children’s art workshops • Storyteller Frances Harrison with her magical tales of Exmoor and beyond • Maypole dancing by local school children • Live music from Ben van Weede and Howard Harrison The art workshops and storytelling will cater for separate age groups (4 to 8 year olds and over 8 year olds): Art workshop (mask making) 2.30pm – 3.30pm for 8 year olds and over 3.30pm – 4.30pm for 4 to 8 year olds

Storytelling 2.30pm – 3.15pm for 4 to 8 year olds 3.30pm – 4.30pm for 8 year olds and over 4.45pm – 5.45pm Storytelling for adults and children

Maypole dancing 6pm – 6.30pm with live music from Ben van Weede on fiddle and Howard Harrison on guitar. Refreshments and barbecue food available. Admission to the art workshops and storytelling is free – donations are invited to pay for materials and the musicians. For information and bookings please telephone Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June SimonsbathDon’t Festival’smiss MAY DAY celebrations at The Old Pottery Index: page

Phyllida Lloyd Simonsbath and Simonsbath Festival 2 Patron St Luke’s Church 3 Simonsbath Festival Westcombe Brass with local schools 4 Film premiere: ‘How Many People see the Stars as I do?’ 5 A huge amount of will is required to keep Lord Douglas Hurd’s talk 6 community venues alive and humming and Alaudiae vocal trio ‘. . . a many splendoured thing . . . ‘ 7 nothing puts more vigour back into them than John Burgess ‘Voices from the Moor’ 8 a festival. The transforming effect of unfamiliar Les Petites Annonces Gypsy Swing band music, songs or stories in a familiar place can be 8 electric and once again the Simonsbath Festival is Moorland Quartet 9 welcoming a huge range of talents on to Exmoor. Tom and Barbara Brown ‘An Exmoor Garland’ 9 Ají Pa’Ti Cuban band 11 In addition to some unmissable sounding world DrumNation drumming workshop with Josh West 11 music – gypsy, Latin American, Hot Club jazz and Victoria Eveleigh and Hilary Bradt’s talk 13 Swing – there are outstanding classical talents Tamsin Waley-Cohen Virtuoso Violin and the essential evenings of downright silliness. 13 Great storytellers – from the nation’s Lord Douglas Poetry at St Luke’s 14 Hurd to our very own Paddy King-Fretts, together Karl Daymond ‘Lowering the Tone’ 15 with other local talents of all kinds - will hopefully Midsummer Family and Community Concert 15 provoke some people to muse upon whether they Information and booking form 16-19 themselves might have a story to tell. Simonsbath Sawmill events 21 Exmoor National Park and Heart of Exmoor events Since a night at the theatre in our capital now 22 requires a small mortgage to be taken out, this Exmoor Society walks 23 really does look like six weeks of small miracle Boevey’s Tea Rooms events 24 stimulation. Here’s to it! Exmoor Forest Inn events 25 Events diary – at a glance 29

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 1 Simonsbath The village of Simonsbath lies at the very heart of Exmoor and dates back to the 17th Century. Before then Simonsbath was probably just the name given to an ancient track - Siegmund’s Path – which wound its lonely way across a huge area of untamed moorland, the of Exmoor. This was not a forest of trees but was a vast, open area of wild country where hunting and other rights were reserved to the Crown, as they had been since before the Norman Conquest. Where Siegmund’s Path crossed the there was a ford and, about 500 years ago, a wooden bridge was built which became known as Siegmund’s Path (later Simonsbath) Bridge. Simonsbath Festival The Simonsbath Festival is a non-profit making community venture which is now in its third year. The festival offers an exciting variety of events held throughout the village between 5 May and 20 June. Simonsbath Festival continues to keep admission prices to the bare minimum, inviting a voluntary contribution of £5 for admission to many of the events and trusting that those who can afford it will be kind enough to pay a little bit extra to enable festival events to be enjoyed by those who are less fortunate. For ticket information and a booking form please see page 16. Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition Boevey’s Tea Rooms, on the turning into Hotel, will host the Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition throughout the duration of the festival, from May 5 to June 20. Organised once again by Lucy Pearn, the art exhibition features a wide range of local artwork created by artists living in the Parish of Exmoor, and some from a little further afield on Exmoor and the fringes. The artwork is mainly Exmoor themed and includes paintings in oil, watercolour and pastel as well as printmaking. Admission to the exhibition is free during Boevey’s summer opening hours, from 10.30am to 5pm daily.

2 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June St Luke’s Church Work on building St Luke’s began in 1855 and the church was consecrated the following year. In the 19th Century the Royal Forest was enclosed and sold by the Crown to a midlands ironmaster John Knight whose vision was to create a great country estate. It was under the direction of his son Frederic that Simonsbath became a proper village with church, vicarage and school. Since its recent renovation St Luke’s has become a popular venue for events and remains a working church with regular services to which everyone is welcome. Details are available in the parish magazine, on the church gate or from the present incumbent Rector David Weir. Simonsbath Festival is grateful to the Rector and the Parochial Church Council for the use of their lovely church. Simonsbath Festival and St Luke’s are delighted to have been awarded match funding by the Diocese of Bath and Wells to install a new sound system in time for this year’s festival.

Tickets for festival events at St Luke’s Church are available: • by phoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451 • by post using the booking form on page 17 • by emailing [email protected] • by downloading the booking form from the festival website www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk • by booking online at the festival website www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk Becoming a Friend of Simonsbath Festival for as little as £15 a year entitles you to special discounts on tickets and ensures that your name is added to our mailing list while at the same time helping to support the festival. For full details of ticket prices and booking information If you would like to join the Friends of Simonsbath Festival, please see page 16. please complete the application form on page 18.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 3 Friday 9 May – 6pm St Luke’s Westcombe Brass and the children of Middle, Exford and First Schools

As part of its broader activities in the community Simonsbath Festival has arranged for Westcombe Brass to run a series of workshops in local schools – Dulverton Middle, Exford First and Cutcombe First – working towards this joint concert with the children. Westcombe Brass are an accomplished young brass quintet who have previously given concerts at St Luke’s. They are made up of players who met while studying at London’s prestigious Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance, formerly Trinity College of Music. Winners of the Philip Jones Brass Ensemble prize, the quintet has a busy concert schedule, regularly performing across the UK. The concert programme includes songs from the First World War and music composed during that era. Refreshments available and a Cornish pasty, costing £4 and delivered fresh from Cornwall by the trombone player’s family, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451.

Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and under free.

4 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June St Luke’s Photo courtesy of Simon Timms Saturday 10 May – 7.30pm Chris Chapman

presents the film premiere How Many People see the Stars as I do? The Exmoor Story of Hope Bourne Acclaimed photographer and documentary film maker Chris Chapman presents the premiere of his film about the legendary Exmoor writer and artist Hope Bourne who for 24 years lived in

a tiny caravan in remote isolation, leading a life of self-sufficiency, Photo courtesy of Chris Chapman painting and sketching the moor, writing for the local paper and later combining this creativity in a remarkable series of books.

Refreshments available and an optional snack of Exmoor produce, costing £5, may be booked in advance by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; standard ticket £5; film sponsors and 14 year-olds and under free.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 5 St Luke’s

Wednesday 14 May 7.30pm

Lord Douglas Hurd

Lord Douglas Hurd, who served in the governments of Margaret Thatcher and John Major between 1979 and his retirement in 1995, shares personal reminiscences of his time in office and his special interest in the great 19th Century Conservative politician and twice Prime Minister Benjamin Disraeli, about whom he has co-authored a best-selling biography.

Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4 and supplied by Riverford Home Delivery, West , may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and under free. x 6 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Saturday 17 May – 7.30pm St Luke’s Alaudiae …‘a many splendoured thing’... Alaudiae, n. a species of singing birds the skylark or lark of the poets is noted for its clear and sweet song, uttered as it rises and descends almost perpendicularly in the air; a carefree or spirited adventure. Sopranos Carleen Ebbs and Claire Egan and mezzo soprano Miranda Westcott, who form the vocal trio Alaudiae, perform a selection of trios, duets and solos from the sacred, song and operatic repertoire encompassing a musical journey through the 16th to 20th centuries, accompanied by pianist Charlotte Forrest. Alaudiae have performed in exciting venues around the world including the Royal Opera House, Wigmore Hall and Sydney Opera House and as a group they have performed in London’s Banqueting House, Rosslyn Hill Chapel, The Gate in Cardiff and the Fishguard International Music Festival. Pianist Charlotte Forrest is on the freelance music staff at Opera North and ENO as well as being a recitalist at Wigmore Hall, St Martin-in-the-fields and St John’s Smith Square. She is also a regular pianist for Sir John Eliot Gardiner and the Monteverdi Choir.

Refreshments available and an optional canapé selection, Handel Let the bright Seraphim Strauss ‘Marie Therese!’ from Der Rosenkavalier costing £5 and prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu Handel Caro bella Handel Endless Pleasure Mozart Sull’aria from Il nozze di Figaro trained Frances Chanter, may be booked in advance for the Mozart Der Holle Rache from Die Zauberflote Pergolesi Stabat Mater interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Handel Non e amor ne gelosia, from Alcina Lassus In pace Curschmann Blumengruß Puccini Storiella d’amore, Morire Bach Vergnügte Ruh Bellini ‘Ah Crudel, d’onor ragioni!’ from I Capuleti e i Montechhi Puccini ‘Oh mio babbino caro’ from Gianni Schicchi Adult £15 to reserve the seat of your choice; Bizet ‘Les tringles des sistres tintaient’ from Carmen standard tickets £10 (student/unemployed £7.50); Puccini (arr Alaudiae) ‘Nessun Dorma’ from Turandot 14 year-olds and under free.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 7 7 St Luke’s

Saturday 24 May – 7.30pm Les Petites Annonces Les Petites Annonces Gypsy Swing band performs an irresistibly delicious blend of French music from the foot tapping gypsy jazz of Django Reinhardt’s famed Hot Club de France to the romantic chansons of the 1920s to 60s, including the wonderful Charles Trenet, and plenty more in between. St Luke’s Refreshments available and optional Wednesday 21 May – 7.30pm tapas snacks, with a French twist, costing £5 and prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu trained Frances John Burgess Chanter, may be booked in advance for the interval Voices from the Moor by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Oral history specialist and former BBC Radio producer John Burgess presents a selection of recordings he has made over the years of local people telling their own personal stories about life on Exmoor, including the Simonsbath area, with tales about the school, the old mine cottages and the First World War. Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adults: £15 Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; standard tickets £10 (student/unemployed £7.50); 14 year-olds and under free. 14 year-olds and under free.

8 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June St Luke’s St Luke’s

Sunday 25 May – 7.30pm Wednesday 28 May – 7.30pm Moorland Tom and Barbara Brown Quartet An Exmoor Garland with Alison Routh Ever-popular folk and traditional entertainers Tom and Barbara Brown present an evening of modern and traditional Haydn Quartet Op 76 No 1 songs, stories, readings and music all about the ancient Mozart Quintet in D major K 593 Forest of Exmoor and its ways of life. Schubert Lieder Refreshments available and an optional Ploughman’s Supper, costing £7, may be booked in advance for the Violins Sarah Greinig and Simon Routh, Violas Barbara Pears and interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adrian Lock, Cello Ruth Lock with Soprano Alison Routh The Moorland Quartet was formed by local musician Barbara Pears. Barbara attended the Guildhall School of Music where she gained a teaching diploma. She then taught violin and viola at Epsom College for 18 years and also taught for Surrey County. One of the highlights of Barbara’s career was singing in the chorus of Saint Nicholas at the very first Aldeburgh Festival with Benjamin Britten conducting and Peter Pears as the soloist.

Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and under free. 14 year-olds and under free.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 9 SOMERSET COMMUNITY FOUNDATION STRENGTHENS COMMUNITIES, TACKLES DISADVANTAGE AND TRANSFORMS PEOPLE’S LIVES. GIVING THROUGH SOMERSET COMMUNITY FOUNDATION IS A SIMPLE AND EFFECTIVE WAY FOR YOU TO MAKE A DIFFERENCE...

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10 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Saturday 31 May – 7.30pm St Luke’s Ají Pa’Ti Outstanding 10-piece band Ají Pa’Ti brings the exciting beat and rhythms of world music and the unmistakable sound of Cuba to Simonsbath Festival. Ají Pa’Ti is a truly international band with members from Cuba, Colombia, Australia and Britain performing a mix of ancient and modern, folklore and tropical, Latin American and European music. The distinctive sound of the charango – the small Bolivian Andean lute, guitar and ukulele blends with the driving rhythm section of percussion and bass, while the voice of Cuban lead singer Indira Roman rises effortlessly above the classic Latin American polyrhythms. Refreshments available and a light Cuban-style supper, costing £7 and prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu trained Frances Chanter, may be Saturday 31 May – 4–6pm booked in advance for approximately 6pm, between the workshop and the evening’s concert, by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. DrumNation Adult £15 to reserve the seat of your choice; Don’t miss DrumNation – standard tickets £10 (student/unemployed £7.50); drumming workshop with 14 year-olds and under free. Josh West at Simonsbath Sawmill. A high-energy and fun-filled workshop for all ages and abilities, see page 21 for more details.

Combined ticket to include both Aji Pa’Ti concert (right) and DrumNation workshop (above): Adults: £12.50 (Concessionary £10); 14 year-olds and under £3

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 11

St Luke’s St Luke’s Wednesday 4 June – 7.30pm Saturday 7 June – 7.30pm Tamsin Waley-Cohen Victoria Eveleigh Virtuoso Violin and Hilary Bradt

Biber Passacaglia Saddlebags and Bach Sonata in A minor Paganini Caprice Number 24 Silver Snaffles Kreisler Recitativo and Scherzo Caprice Equestrian tales, fact and fiction Bach Partita in E major Local authors Hilary Bradt and Victoria Eveleigh talk about the experiences and adventures that inspired them to write their much-loved books. Victoria writes children’s fiction with horses and ponies as a central Supremely gifted violinist Tamsin Waley-Cohen introduces, theme, guided by the conventions of storytelling, whereas Hilary’s discusses and performs some of the greatest works for virtuoso recent books describe a journey with her ponies through Ireland, violin, playing one of the world’s finest instruments, her treasured complete with all the things that real life can throw at you in an Stradivarius which was made in Cremona in 1721. apparently random manner. The violin was played for many years by the great Hungarian violinist As Hilary and Victoria compared notes about their writing they made Lorand Fenyves, with whom Tamsin studied at Prussia Cove. some surprising discoveries… Refreshments available and an optional canapé selection, Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4, may be costing £5 and prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu trained booked in advance by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451 Frances Chanter, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; Adult £15 to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; standard tickets £10 (student/unemployed £7.50); 14 year-olds and under free. 14 year-olds and under free. www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 13 St Luke’s Wednesday 11 June – 7.30pm Poetry at St Luke’s

“ I like poetry to be the interior voice, the voice no one hears, the voice of the person reading it. That is how the ‘I’ becomes ‘you’, the ‘you’ becomes ‘I’ and in the act of reading is born the ‘we’ that only exists in that intimate, full moment of reading.” José Emilio Pacheco 1939 - 2014

Building on the success of last year’s event, the North Poetry Workshop returns to Simonsbath Festival, presenting a series of poems by members on various themes and inviting poems from the floor after the interval. Everyone with an interest in poetry is welcome. The recent publication of the first Exmoor-based contemporary poetry anthology - Midnight Skies - Exmoor in Verse – has generated interest locally and further afield, and its launch was a manifestation of the power of poetry in bringing people together. Copies of the anthology will be available. Contact event co-ordinator Richard Westcott on 01769 572225 or email [email protected] for information. Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451 Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and under free.

14 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June St Luke’s Friday 20 June – 6pm St Luke’s Saturday 14 June – 7.30pm Midsummer Concert James Findlay with the children of Karl Daymond Dulverton Middle, Exford and Cutcombe first schools Lowering the tone The La-La Voices Community Choir of Ilfracombe ‘Music is mankind’s greatest miracle. From the first note, one is Opera Singer, pianist and actor transported into a higher, other world.’ Alice Herz-Sommer 1903–2014 Karl Daymond invites you to waste an evening with him in the company Simonsbath Festival celebrates Midsummer and marks the end of of Noel Coward, Tom Lehrer, Simonsbath Festival 2014 with a family and community concert, Gilbert and Sullivan, Flanders and featuring top folk musician James Findlay and continuing its project ‘Songs from the Exmoor Forest’ which received a grant Swann and others. from the Heritage Lottery Fund last year. Karl Daymond trained at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama This year, as part of the festival’s broader activities in the and at the National Opera Studio, sponsored by Glyndebourne community, Janet West and Tim Marriot have run a series of Festival Opera. He has appeared as a principal baritone with workshops in Dulverton Middle, Exford and Cutcombe first schools English National Opera, Welsh National Opera, at the Royal to teach children the traditional music and songs of Exmoor, Opera House (Covent Garden), Opera North, the BBC Proms, working towards their performance at tonight’s concert. Glyndebourne Festival, the Chicago Festival, the Covent Garden Festival, the Edinburgh Festival and many others. Nowadays he Refreshments available and an optional snack, costing £4, may be booked enjoys nothing more than a good sit down at the piano for a spot of in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. Free food for 14 year-olds and under. his very own brand of operatic and comic musical entertainment.

Refreshments available and an optional snack with attitude, costing £5 and prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu trained Frances Chanter, may be booked in advance for the interval by telephoning Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451

Adult £15 to reserve the seat of your choice; Adult £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; standard tickets £10 (student/unemployed £7.50); suggested donation £5 for unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and under free. 14 year-olds and under free.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 15

Information and booking

Saturday concerts Film screening at St Luke’s • Tom and Barbara Brown’s How to book at St Luke’s Admission to the premiere of ‘An Exmoor Garland’ Premium tickets, standard tickets and Admission to the following concerts: Chris Chapman’s film‘How Many • Victoria Eveleigh and snacks may be booked: £15 to reserve the seat of your choice; People See the Stars as I do? Hilary Bradt’s ‘Saddlebags and • by phone from Marian Lloyd: £10 for unreserved seating (student/ The Exmoor Story of Hope Bourne’ Silver Snaffles’ 01643 831451 unemployed concession £7.50); is £10 to reserve the seat of your • Poetry at St Luke’s • by email from 14 year-olds and under free. choice; £5 for unreserved seating; • Midsummer Concert with [email protected] • Alaudiae film sponsors and 14 year-olds and James Findlay, the La-La Voices • by completing and returning the under free. booking form on the next page • Les Petites Annonces Community Choir of Ilfracombe Standard tickets are also available: • Ají Pa’Ti Refreshments are available and a and the children of Dulverton snack of produce exclusively sourced Middle, Exford and Cutcombe • Online by visiting the festival website • Tamsin Waley-Cohen from Exmoor, costing £5 and prepared first schools www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk • Karl Daymond by Exmoor’s own Cordon Bleu trained Refreshments are available at all Please make cheques payable to Refreshments are available at all events Frances Chanter, may be booked in events and optional light snacks, Simonsbath Festival and send with and the following optional snacks – advance for the interval by telephoning costing £4 (except for the Ploughman’s your completed booking form to: Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. and a meal before Ají Pa’Ti’s concert Supper for ‘An Exmoor Garland’, Marian Lloyd, Higher Bradley, – prepared by Exmoor’s own Cordon which costs £7) may be booked in , Somerset TA24 7RS Bleu trained Frances Chanter may be Other events at St Luke’s advance for the interval by telephoning If you would like us to send you your booked in advance by telephoning Admission to the following events: Marian Lloyd on . 01643 831451 tickets in advance, please enclose a Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451. £10 to reserve the seat of your choice; Free food is available for children at stamped, addressed envelope with a suggested donation of £5 for the Westcombe Brass and • Canapé selection for the interval your cheque, otherwise your tickets unreserved seating; 14 year-olds and Midsummer concerts. Two of the of Alaudiae’s concert (£5) will be available to pick up on the night. under free. bookable snack highlights are: • Tapas snacks with a French twist Concessionary tickets are available • Westcombe Brass in concert for the interval of Les Petites • A Cornish pasty, delivered fresh for students and unemployed only. with the children of Dulverton Annonces’s concert (£5) from Cornwall by the trombone Middle, Exford and Cutcombe player’s family for Westcombe • Cuban-style meal before Friends of Simonsbath Festival first schools Brass’s concert, with a tub of Ají Pa’Ti’s concert (£7) Becoming a entitles you to • Lord Douglas Hurd Styles’s ice-cream (£4) Friend • Canapé selection for the interval ticket discounts, free mailings and news • John Burgess’s • A Ploughman’s Supper for of Tamsin Waley-Cohen’s concert updates while at the same time helping to ‘Voices from the Moor’ Tom and Barbara’s (£5) support the festival. Please complete the (£7). • Moorland Quartet ‘An Exmoor Garland’ form on page 18 and tick the box, if you • Snack with attitude for the interval with soprano Alison Routh would like to become a Friend. of Karl Daymond’s concert (£5)

16 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June

! Booking form for events at St Luke’s

(Free admission to all events for children under 14 years old) Event Date and time Price per ticket Snack(s) Number Total cost insert how many of tickets £10 (reserved) Westcombe Brass 9 May – 6pm £5 donation (unreserved) (£4) ‘How many people see the 10 May – 7.30pm £10 or £5 stars as I do?’ film premiere film sponsors free (£5) £10 (reserved) Lord Douglas Hurd 14 May – 7.30pm £5 donation (unreserved) (£4) Alaudiae 17 May – 7.30pm £15 or £10 (concessionary £7.50) (£5) John Burgess 21 May – 7.30pm £10 (reserved) £5 donation (unreserved) (£4) £15 or £10 St Luke’s parking Les Petites Annonces 24 May – 7.30pm (concessionary £7.50) (£5) and facilities Moorland Quartet 25 May – 7.30pm £10 (reserved) (£4) There are only a few £5 donation (unreserved) parking spaces at the £10 ‘An Exmoor Garland’ 28 May – 7.30pm (reserved) (£7) church itself, which £5 donation (unreserved) are normally reserved Drumming workshop 31 May – 4 - 6pm £5 (under 14s £3) for visitors with limited mobility. There is some Ají Pa’Ti 31 May – 7.30pm £15 or £10 (£7) roadside parking or (concessionary £7.50) Exmoor National Park’s Drumming workshop and Ají Pa’Ti concert £12.50 (concessionary Ashcombe car park in combined ticket £10; under 14s £3 ) the centre of Simonsbath Victoria Eveleigh 4 June – 7.30pm £10 (reserved) (£4) which also has toilets. and Hilary Bradt £5 donation (unreserved) The church is accessible Tamsin Waley-Cohen 7 June – 7.30pm £15 or £10 (concessionary £7.50) (£5) to wheelchair users and has its own toilet facilities. Poetry at St Luke’s 11 June – 7.30pm £10 (reserved) (£4) £5 donation (unreserved) Karl Daymond 14 June – 7.30pm £15 or £10 (concessionary £7.50) (£5)

Midsummer Concert 20 June – 6pm £10 (reserved) (£4) £5 donation (unreserved) Please complete the form overleaf and make cheques payable to Simonsbath Festival Overall total £

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 17 ! Please complete to book tickets and/or to become a Friend of Simonsbath Festival

Name Title

Address

Postcode

Telephone

Email address

I would like to become a Friend of Simonsbath Festival, please send me further details – please tick the box Please send your completed form, plus, if you are booking tickets, a cheque made out to Simonsbath Festival to: Marian Lloyd, Higher Bradley, Withypool, Somerset TA24 7RS

18 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Other events at Simonsbath Festival

Events at the sawmill Admission to events at the sawmill is free, but donations are invited. Sawmill parking and facilities There is limited parking at the Sawmill and no toilets. Visitors are advised to use the public car park at Ashcombe which also has toilets. For more information telephone 01643 831008 or 01643 831202 on the day. Exmoor Forest Inn For hotel reservations and bookings please telephone 01643 831341 or for more information visit the website www.exmoorforestinn.co.uk Boevey’s Tea Rooms For reservations and bookings please telephone 01643 831622. Exmoor Society Exmoor Society walks are normally free of charge. For further information please telephone the Exmoor Society on 01398 323335 or visit the Exmoor Society website www.exmoorsociety.org.uk Exmoor National Park and Heart of Exmoor To book events organised by the Exmoor National Park and Heart of Exmoor please contact David Rolls on 07875 565823 or visit the website www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk or www.heartofexmoor.org.uk

For general enquiries please contact Victoria Thomas on 01643 831343 or email [email protected] www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 19 The Crown Hotel – Exford

The warmest welcome awaits everyone at this famous 17th Century family run coaching inn at the heart of the Exmoor National Park, with 3 star accommodation, an award-winning restaurant and a cosy country bar, serving great food, real ales and fine wines. Long or short stays The Crown Hotel, Exford, Somerset TA24 7PP T: 01643-831554 E: [email protected] Daily walks www.crownhotelexmoor.co.uk Large roomy heated kennels

Very competitive rates

Pitleigh Kennels & Cattery Wheddon Cross Somerset TA24 7BG Tel: 01643841122. E-Mail: [email protected]

20 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Simonsbath Sawmill Saturday 10 May and Sunday 11 May 10am – 4pm Simonsbath Sawmill was built for National Mills Weekend John Knight sometime after 1818 and Simonsbath Sawmill will also be open for National Mills Weekend - refurbished for Viscount Ebrington (later the annual celebration of our milling heritage. Lord Fortescue) in 1898. The building of At least a dozen Devon watermills will be open over the weekend and stone and slate beside the river in the a similar number, plus two windmills, will be open in Somerset. heart of the village was once the hub of Both of Exmoor’s restored water-powered sawmills – at Simonsbath agricultural and estate management for and - will be opened specially for the weekend. a huge country estate covering much For further information visit www.nationalmillsweekend.co.uk. of central Exmoor. On the Sunday afternoon Just4Jazz will be playing at the sawmill. This four- There was a carpenters’ workshop and machinery for cutting piece band plays an eclectic range of ‘lazy’ music with a jazz bias. Numbers chaff, crushing oats and grinding mortar. The mill also generated range from classic pieces from the 1930s and 40s to film scores and 60s pop electricity for houses in the village for more than sixty years. through to the present day - visit A waterwheel no longer powers the mill but the water turbine that www.simonsbathsawmill.org.uk replaced it in 1898 is still working. When there is not enough water in the river to drive the turbine the machines at the mill can be Saturday May 31 - 4-6pm powered by a diesel engine installed in 1952. DrumNation The mill is no longer in regular operation but the saw-benches, Drumming and percussion workshop water turbine, engine and the leats that bring water to the mill were with Josh West restored by Exmoor National Park Authority in 2002. They are A high-energy, fun-filled workshop for all maintained in working condition and used for demonstrations, and ages and abilities, with a range of drums the mill is cared for by a small team of volunteers who help with and percussion and some tuned melodic maintenance, lead tours and are researching the history of the mill. percussion provided, but you are welcome Sawmill Open Days to bring your own instruments as well. Refreshments available during the break. Simonsbath Sawmill will be open from 10am until 4pm on the following Mondays: 5 May; 19 May; 2 June; 16 June Adults: £5; 14 year-olds and under £3. Volunteers will be on hand each day to show you around the mill Combined ticket to include: and tell you more of the history of the area. Tours are free but DrumNation workshop and evening concert with Cuban band Ají Pa’Ti donations towards the upkeep of the mill are very welcome. at 7.30pm at St Luke’s Church – Adults: £12.50 (Concessionary £10); There is limited parking at the mill. See the sawmill website 14 year-olds and under £3. www.simonsbathsawmill.org.uk for more information or email For information and to book the drumming workshop contact Marian Lloyd [email protected] on 01643 831451 or email [email protected].

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 21 Exmoor National Park and the Heart of Exmoor Exmoor National Park covers an area of 267 sq miles (692 sq kms) - a unique landscape of moorland, woodland, valleys and farmland shaped by people and nature over thousands of years. High cliffs plunge into the Bristol Channel and cosy pubs and tearooms offer delicious local produce. On Exmoor it is still possible to find tranquility and peace aswell as rediscover a sense of adventure; to catch a glimpse of wild red deer, be amazed by dark skies full of stars and explore villages full of character. Exmoor National Park is also one of the few places in the world to be awarded the prestigious designation of International Dark Sky Reserve, recognising the fact that Exmoor has some of the darkest skies in the country and that it works hard to make people aware of how precious this resource is. For more information please visit the website: www.exmoor-nationalpark.gov.uk

Wednesday 28 May 12pm-2pm Picnic, Paddle and a Pootle The Heart of Exmoor invites you to enjoy a relaxing picnic at Simonsbath Sawmill with an opportunity to paddle and stream dip. Bring your empty ice cream tubs, kitchen sieves and magnifying glasses. There will be an optional nature pootle along the River Barle. Please bring your own food. Children must be accompanied by adults. Please wear outdoor clothing and suitable footwear. Toilets and parking are available at neighbouring Ashcombe car park. While admission is free, donations are invited. If wet, the sawmill is at hand for cover and will also be open for tours. For more information please telephone 01398 323841 (01643 831202 on the day) or visit www.heartofexmoor.org.uk.

22 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Guided walks organised by the Exmoor Society The Exmoor Society as part of Simonsbath Festival: Wednesday 14 May 11am-1pm Mining and Mystery at Wheal Eliza A short walk along the River Barle to Wheal Eliza, exploring the history of the Knights, mining in this part of Exmoor and the tragic mystery of Wheal Eliza. Return to Simonsbath for an optional pub lunch or bring a picnic. Meet at Ashcombe car park, Simonsbath.

Friday 30 May 10.30am-3.30pm Up to Exe Head, down to the Barle Join a member of the Exmoor Society for a walk through the former gardens of Simonsbath House, over the moor to the source of the and back down Limecombe to the River Barle. Please bring a picnic and wear suitable clothing and walking boots. Meet at Ashcombe car park, Simonsbath.

Monday 16 June 1pm-3pm

The Exmoor Society works to protect and enhance the Flowers and Footpaths in Simonsbath special qualities and diverse wild landscapes of Exmoor. A leisurely stroll through the species-rich meadows of Simonsbath. Dogs on leads welcome. Please wear weatherproof The society was formed in 1958 and is a registered clothing and footwear. Meet at Ashcombe car park, Simonsbath. charity dedicated to the conservation, protection and enjoyment of Exmoor National Park. It welcomes No booking is required for Exmoor Society walks and they are everyone who supports these purposes and wants to normally free of charge, although a small donation is requested enjoy the special qualities of this unique National Park. from non-members. For further information please telephone the Exmoor Society on 01398 323335 or visit the website: www.exmoorsociety.org.uk.

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 23 Boevey’s Tea Rooms Monday 5 May – Friday 20 June Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition The Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition takes place throughout the festival period in Boevey’s Tea Rooms, on the turning into Jackie and David welcome you to their Simonsbath House Hotel. family-run tearoom and restaurant situated Admission to the exhibition is free during Boevey’s summer high on Exmoor. We serve a wide range of opening hours, from 10.30am to 5pm daily. homemade and locally sourced meals and cakes, Sunday 1 June – 6pm a range of proper tea and coffee, cold drinks, Paddy King-Fretts wines and beer and our famous cream teas and Pimm’s with Paddy giant teacakes. Paddy King-Fretts – man of Exmoor, soldier, traveller and writer – shares his We also have Internet access so you can keep life story in the friendly and informal in touch with the world outside or upload your atmosphere of Boevey’s: from childhood photographs. in the wilds of Exmoor to his career as an infantryman and SAS soldier and writer about the moors we love. We are open every day An active member of the Royal British Legion, Paddy ends with a February to November timely reminder of the legacy left by the First World War, out of which 10:30 to 4:30 Wintertime the RBL was born. 10:30 to 5:00 Summertime Refreshments available during the interval and a light Ploughman’s, and at other times by with a selection of local cheeses, costing £5, may be booked in appointment. advance for the interval. For information and bookings telephone Boevey’s on 01643 831622 or Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451, or email [email protected] Tel: 01643-831622 Admission: £5 (includes a glass of Pimms)

24 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Exmoor Forest Inn Friday 16 May – 7.30pm Two Skirts and a Sporran Light musical entertainment for a summer evening from the trio Two Skirts and a Sporran featuring James Ross on bass clarinet and flautists Barbara Wilson and Caroline Taylor. The concert includes popular jazz tunes by Gershwin, Rogers and Hart and Hoagy Carmichael; a selection of pop favourites by Abba and Elvis Presley; film tunes from The Thorn Birds, Robin Hood, All That Jazz; as well as a selection of popular classical pieces. Admission: suggested donation £5 Photo – George Ody Wednesday 18 June - 8pm Good Vibes Geoff Nichols brings his Swing jazz band Good Vibes to Simonsbath Festival. Having led the legendary Avon Cities jazz band for many years, trumpet and vibes star Geoff Nichols turns to the Swing music of the 1930s and 40s to present his Good Vibes Band for the discerning jazz fan. Included in the band’s programme will always be a selection of compositions by Gershwin, Porter, Kern, Berlin, plus some of Geoff’s own compositions, spiced with a handful of jazz classics from the 20s. Admission: suggested donation £5 For information and bookings telephone the Exmoor Forest Inn on 01643 831341, visit the website www.exmoorforestinn.co.uk, contact Marian Lloyd on 01643 831451 or email [email protected].

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 25 Johnny Kingdom Safaris

“I so enjoy taking visitors to some of my special places on Exmoor. My safaris involve a tour around Exmoor of around 4 hours, stopping to see the wildlife on the way. Generally no walking is involved, just getting in and out of the vehicle to look at deer, so the safaris are suitable for everyone.” “We have lots of fun. www.johnnykingdom.co.uk/safaris/ Do come and join me email: [email protected] soon.”

26 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition Monday 5 May – Friday 20 June

The Simonsbath Festival Art Exhibition takes place throughout the festival period in Boevey’s Tea Rooms, on the turning into Simonsbath House Hotel. The exhibition features a wide range of local artwork created by artists living in the Parish of Exmoor, and some from a little further afield on Exmoor and the fringes. 1 The artwork is mainly Exmoor themed and includes paintings in oil, watercolour and pastel as well as printmaking.

Admission to the exhibition is free during Boevey’s summer opening hours, from 10.30am to 5pm daily. 2 1. Sheep Plaque by Renee Kilburn 3 2. In the Dip by Jo Down 3. Astronotus ocellatus (Oscar) by Victoria Ward

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 27 Guardians of the Breed since 1921 A registered Charity, the Exmoor Pony Society was set up in 1921 for the registration of pure-bred Exmoor ponies, the conservation of the breed and the preservation of the breed standard as well as promoting the ponies to the general public by the moorland farmers on Exmoor and holds the official stud book. The Society works closely with the moorland breeders and is responsible for organizing the inspection and registration of moorland foals and has recently obtained hi-tech microchip readers and a mobile penning system on behalf of the moorland herds. The Society works with the Exmoor National Park Authority and the Rare Breed Survival Trust to conserve the Exmoor Pony, which remains on the Rare Breed Survival Trust’s Watchlist in Category 2. The Society is grateful to all its members, both on and off Exmoor, together with those members of the public who provide information about the ponies on the moor during the year and are concerned for their welfare and help with the Exmoor Pony Festival. You can help too – JOIN THE SOCIETY – Associate Membership is just £17.00 a year. For more information call our Freefone number 0845 607 5350 or visit our website www.exmoorponysociety.org.uk

28 Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June Date Event

May 5–June 20 Art Exhibition FESTIVAL EVENTS DIARY AT A GLANCE May 5 May Day celebrations May 9 Westcombe Brass with local schools May 10 ‘How Many People see the Stars as I do?’ May 10-11 National Mills Weekend May 14 Talk by Lord Douglas Hurd May 14 Mining and Mystery at Wheal Eliza - walk May 16 Two Skirts and a Sporran - musical trio May 17 Alaudiae - vocal trio May 21 John Burgess - Voices from the Moor May 24 Les Petites Annonces Gypsy Swing Band May 25 Moorland Quartet May 28 Picnic, Paddle and a Pootle May 28 Tom and Barbara Brown An ‘Exmoor Garland’ May 30 Up to the Exe Head - walk May 31 DrumNation drumming workshop May 31 Ají Pa’Ti Cuban Band June 1 Paddy King-Fretts - Pimm’s with Paddy June 4 Victoria Eveleigh and Hilary Bradt - talk June 7 Tamsin Waley-Cohen - Virtuoso Violin June 11 Poetry at St Luke’s June 14 Karl Daymond - Lowering the Tone June 16 Flowers and footpaths of Simonsbath - walk June 18 Good Vibes – Geoff Nichols’s Swing jazz band June 20 Midsummer Family and Community Concert

Simonsbath Festival 5 May – 20 June www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk 5 May – 20 June Simonsbath Festival 2014

With financial support from the Exmoor National Park Partnership Fund and the Moorland Landscape Partnership’s Heart of Exmoor which is pleased to be supporting the Simonsbath Festival through its lottery funding. Please visit our website to discover and enjoy even more about Exmoor’s moorland – www.heartofexmoor.org.uk.

Photography: landscapes courtesy Nicola Friedrich; St Luke’s interior shots courtesy Jackie Cooper Festival programme produced and edited by Victoria Thomas Designed by Maggie Lyddiatt Advertisement sales – Karen Pearson

Simonsbath Festival logo illustrated by Lucy Pearn

Telephone 01643 831343 [email protected] www.simonsbathfestival.co.uk Printed by Brightsea Press When the world comes to Simonsbath in the of Exmoor