BGT semi-finalists & The Archers star at Thornbury Arts Festival 2023

The festival - which has been running for more than 50 years - is due to take place from Wednesday, September 27 to Wednesday, October 4. 

Organisers say despite ongoing difficulties with the continued closure of Thornbury’s Armstrong Hall this year’s event is taking place in a variety of different venues. 

The BIG Gospel Choir will perform in St Mary’s Church on Thursday evening, September 28.

Several members of the group previously performed on Britain’s Got Talent making it to the semi-finals in 2013 under a different name Incognito. 

Meanwhile, another highlight includes the engaging reading of wartime letters between Brief Encounter actress Celia Johnson and her husband Peter Fleming. 

On Saturday, September 30, Marlwood School drama hall, Alveston, will host Posting Letters to the Moon, which will be read by the couple’s daughter, Lucy Fleming as well as Simon Williams, who plays Justin Elliott in BBC Radio 4’s The Archers.

Celia’s letters told of coping with a house full of evacuated children, learning to drive a tractor, dealing with rationing and becoming an auxiliary policewoman, while continuing to act. In 1945 she starred in Brief Encounter, for which she received an Oscar nomination.

Meanwhile, Peter was away for most of the war and wrote about his adventures and trials working on deception in India and the Far East.

A series of lunchtime talks have also been organised. 

Talks will be given in Thornbury’s United Reformed Church, with topics ranging from wartime Land Girls (speaker Fiona Warin) and the NHS at 75 (Dr Nancy North) to writing a debut novel (Justine Pullan) and the life of an auctioneer (Philip Taubenheim).

Although the September 29 show in Tytherington Village Hall featuring Alfie Moore, star of the hit BBC Radio 4 comedy series It’s a Fair Cop, is a sell-out, a waiting list has been established.

For full details and tickets see - www.thornburyartsfestival.org.uk