Margate Soul Festival
The festival is marking its 20th anniversary at this year’s event from August 5-7.
The main outdoor arena ‘The Sunset Stage’ overlooking the sea, provides the backdrop to 3 days of live music, DJ’s and dancing, whilst The Margate Winter Gardens and Olby’s Soul Cafe offer 6 rooms of music for thousands of people throughout the weekend. There are also free stages placed around the Old Town and the Imperial Lounge and Lighthouse Bar make up the third and fourth official venues. This year there are numerous other venues around Margate hosting scores of acts.
The huge line-up include headliner Emeli Sande who, in January, released her latest single ‘Brighter Days’.
Other performers over the weekend include: US singer Melba Moore; “Native New Yorkers” Odyssey; 90s Chicago House Legends Ten City; ‘Defected Records’ Julie McKnight; The Brand New Heavies; Loose Ends; and ‘Lovers Rock Queen’ Carroll Thompson.
Singer-songwriter, house, jazz and soul vocalist, Juliet Roberts will curate an exclusive performance, celebrating the life of Aretha Franklin, and there will be music by new UK modern soul band SouLutions headed by Louise Mehan.
There will also be stalls, street food, fairground attractions and more.
The festival will also mark the 100th anniversary of Caribbean food and drink supplier Grace Foods UK, and 60 years of Jamaican independence. Grace Foods is sponsoring the Sunset Stage at the festival.
Tickets: VIP £175 | Weekend Ticket £99 | Friday Day Pass £45 | Saturday Day Pass £55 | Sunday Day Pass £55. For Group Bookings of 10+ £891 Booking fees apply
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Facebook event page here
Broadstairs Folk Week
Broadstairs Folk Week starts August 5 and is packed with entertainment with 16 Arena concerts, 35 acoustic sessions, 13 ceilidhs and dances, 70 workshops, 21 free family shows, a craft and music fair and more than 180 free pub gigs.
The annual festival takes place until August12 and boasts top musicians heading to Broadstairs from all over the country.
The concert venue will be at the Festival Arena in the Memorial Recreation Ground, next to Broadstairs train station. This is where all the headline acts appear.
The new Folk Week Dance venue is the Sarah Thorne Theatre in Fordoun Road and Victoria Gardens will host the craft and music fair, which has free entry, and will be open from August 6-12,10am -9pm daily.
The bandstand will host the ever-popular – and free- Hobby Horse Club with the madcap Hooden Horses and Clarence the Dragon, as well as Morris dance displays and music every evening.
Dance away the opening night of Folk Week with the Hill Top Ceilidh band at the Sarah Thorne Theatre on Friday, August 5 at 8pm.
The Folk Week Box Office will be at the Festival Arena, Memorial Rec: August 4, 1pm – 3pm and August 5-12, from 10am to 10pm.
All festival tickets available at the box office in advance or on the door if not sold out – concert tickets, workshops, dances – all available as well as Souvenir Programmes.
Festival headliners this year include Lindisfarne, Show of Hands, the Spooky Men’s Chorale, Spiers & Boden, Sharon Shannon, the Longest Johns, the Magpie Arc and Tim Edey.
There will be workshops for all abilities in music, song, African dance, drumming and guitar, flamenco guitar, fiddle, melodeon, spoons and ukulele. Young people can join in with the Band in a Weekend project, bring along any instrument or just your voice and create a band.
And the Grand Parade is back, taking place on Saturday 6 August from 5.30pm down the High Street in a colourful, noisy, jolly display of festival fun.
There are more details and online booking on the website at www.broadstairsfolkweek.org.uk.
Westgate Heritage Centre talk
The next Westgate-on-Sea Heritage Centre talk will be held on Saturday, August 6 at Christ Church, Westgate Bay Avenue, Westgate-on-Sea. The talk will be about the early days of Westgate-on-Sea and some of the characters who helped shape the future of the town.
Doors open at 10am and the talk starts at 10.30 am. Light refreshments (teas, coffees, scones and cakes) are available to buy. All are welcome and non-members pay just £2 on the door.
Margate Pride
The Margate Pride Festival runs from August 5-20 and the parade along Margate seafront will be held on Saturday, August 13 at 4pm. This year it will not include floats.
This year’s Pride is a two-week-long queer arts festival, culminating in the Pride procession where everyone is welcome to celebrate all of Thanet’s queerness and LGBTQIA+ life.
The festival includes art exhibitions, performances and community events.
Find the full programme at margatepride.org.uk
Looking Back exhibition
Open now, Eclectic gallery, Margate
Looking Back is an exhibition by photographer Keris Eyton-Williams at the Eclectic Gallery in Margate.
And then there is the flip side of the tourist season, the stark emptiness of the winter months. Come and turn back the clock and have a nostalgic glimpse of times gone by with the images by Keris.
Were you, or do you know, someone who lived in or visited Margate in 1970? Fifty-two years have brought many changes since the British seaside holiday was the number one choice for families. Do you have memories from under those long-gone boardwalks?
The exhibition runs from August 5 to September 2, Eclectic Gallery is at 6 Broad Street, Margate. Opening hours are 11am – 5pm.
10 years of York Street Gallery
August 6-7, York Street Gallery, Ramsgate, will celebrate its 10th anniversary with special offers and complimentary drinks.
In the decade since it opened YSG has hosted nearly 500 exhibitions and exhibited work by over 650 different artists, painters, photographers, printers, makers, potters and craftspeople.
Owner Mike Samson has also supported various local and national charities, community groups and charity events, including the local RNLI, Help for Heroes, Caring 4 Connor, Demelza House, Art4All, Ageless Thanet and many more. The venue has hosted events for International language students and held numerous workshops and art classes.
Jolly Farmer, Manston, fun day
August 6, Karaoke, disco, barbecue, music, stall and beer festival. Singer noon-2pm, karaoke 4pm-6pm, disco ^pm until late,
Minion: Rise of Gru (U)
Palace Cinema, Broadstairs
In the heart of the 1970s, amid a flurry of feathered hair and flared jeans, Gru (Steve Carell) is growing up in the suburbs. A fanboy of a supervillain supergroup known as the Vicious 6, Gru hatches a plan to become evil enough to join them. Luckily, he gets some mayhem-making backup from his loyal followers, the Minions.
Upcoming shows
Friday 5 August 4pm
Saturday 6 August 4pm
Sunday 7 August 2pm
And various screenings until August 18
El Dizzy Beast By: Andrea Spisto
August 6, a show about a Queer, Autistic, Latinx, caterpillar, on the edge at the Tom Thumb Theatre, 8:30 pm – 9:30 pm
£5 Book now
Pegwell Bay Country Park
Family summer walk, 11am – 12.30pm
An interactive morning walk to spot some exciting wildlife including unusual birds and if lucky the local seals and their young pups, try to find some fascinating insect life in the wildflowers of the Country Park, and even meet the friendly Highland cows and Konic ponies and learn how they help to manage this important habitat.
Guided walk will last approximately 1.5 hours.
Some paths are narrow with rough terrain and will require use of stairs and kissing gate not suitable for wheelchair users. Please ensure you wear sturdy footwear (during periods of wet weather waterproof footwear is advisable) and wear clothing suitable for the weather conditions. You may wish to bring your own binoculars.
Recommended for children aged 6+ however younger children can attend with families. Children must be supervised by an adult at all times.
Booking is essential
Please arrive 5 minutes before the start time to sign in. Meet by the Kent Wildlife Trust Stand on the green by the Salty Seal Cafe at Pegwell Country Park. Look for a Kent Wildlife Trust Gazibo or Flag. There is paid parking in the KCC Country Park (Sandwich Road, Ramsgate, Kent, CT12 5JB) for £2.30 a day or by the Viking Ship Carpark at Sandwich Road Ramsgate CT12 5JB.Please contact [email protected] for more information.
Pay-what-you-can ticketing system.
Tier 1: Free – There are a large number of free tickets available
Tier 2: £5 – If you are able to, please help contribute to the maintenance of this National Nature Reserve Book now
Shore Search
August 6, Western Undercliff, Ramsgate 11am – 2pm
Shoresearch is a National Wildlife Trust citizen science project which aims to record different species of animals and plants found on the shore at low tide. From crabs to seaweed, we are interested in it all!
Surveys last for 2 hours, surveying 1 hour before low tide and 1 hour after to give a good snapshot of what can be found in the intertidal zone. Beginners are welcome.
All the data collected goes into a National online database which can be accessed by statutory bodies. Much of the data collected has been used in the past to inform the protection of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs).
Shoresearch is not suitable for young children and anyone under 16 years of age must be accompanied by a parent or guardian.
Walking is over rocky shores so a good degree of moveability is required to take part in these surveys- if you are unsure or nervous please email Marine Conservation Officer ([email protected]
Free but booking required Book now
Margate Masonic Centre Open Day
Saturday 6th August, 10am to 4pm, Margate’s Masonic Centre, based in New Cross Street, will open its doors to the public, and everyone is welcome.
This is a unique opportunity to see inside a Lodge room, to view the regalia and talk openly to Freemasons.
You can find out directly what it means to them to be a Freemason in the local and wider community, and you can find out what inspires around 6 million men and women around the world to join.
There are now 17 men’s and 3 women’s Lodges that meet in the Margate, Ramsgate, Broadstairs, Westgate and Birchington areas. In total there are 179 Lodges in East Kent, with around 5200 members.
Buffalo Bill in the UK
August 6, Crampton Tower Museum, 5.45pm-6.45pm
A presentation about the fascinating life and times of Buffalo Bill and his show, with a slideshow and some of the folk songs and a little dramatic narration with the John Ward Trio.
Tickets broadstairsfolkweek.org.uk/event/buffalo-bill-in-the-uk
The Dangerous Mind of a Bear
An exhibition of paintings by Sue Cohen
Open now until August 14, The Lido Stores, Cliftonville
The Dangerous Mind of a Bear is a solo exhibition of paintings by London based artist Sue Cohen.
Sue’s preoccupation in The Dangerous Mind of a Bear is that of the ‘other’ and the reversal of norms in the familial social model. The apparent ordinariness of the family unit or social gathering is interrupted and questions about its authenticity are raised.
Sue was born in Hackney and works in south east London. She has an MA in Fine Art from Sir John Cass, London. Sue’s work has been exhibited throughout the south of England including London, Brighton and Margate.
The Lido Stores, 2 Ethelbert Terrace, is open Wed-Sun 11am-5pm
Margate carnival
Margate Carnival returns to the town’s streets on Sunday ( August 7).
The annual event will leave Palm Bay at 2.30pm, before heading along the seafront passing Turner Contemporary, the Old Town, and Dreamland, before ending at Westbrook.
Margate Carnival is the biggest community arts event in the town and features local community groups, dance schools, youth groups, and businesses. Hundreds of people take part, with over 50 entries in the procession this year, and thousands of people line the streets.
Coastal Crafty Crew fair
Coastal Crafty Crew invites visitors to peruse its handcraft stalls and three Destash stalls selling vintage material, beads, ribbons, decoupage plus a lot more at reduced prices. at Small Barn, Quex Park, Birchington, on Sunday from 10am – 3pm.
Free parking and entry. Charity tombola for chosen charities Children’s Air Ambulance and British Deaf Association Kent . Lots of original and unique handmade crafts
For more information please email [email protected] or telephone 01843 449346 and ask for Jan . Find Coastal Crafty Crew on What3Words App ///GARLIC FIRMLY BYSTANDER for entrance to small Quex Barn.
Ramsgate Handmade & Vintage Fair
Ramsgate’s Harbour Parade, 11am to 5pm
Ramsgate’s regular maker’s market with locally-produced and made goodies galore
A couple for tonight (August 5)
Cliftonville Night Market
The Oval Bandstand & Lawns, Eastern Esplanade, 5pm to 9pm, free entry
Street food, music, vintage, arts & crafts, and artisanal goods at the brand new Cliftonville Night Market.
The Oval Bandstand Bar will be serving up alcoholic drinks and cocktails and The Oval Kiosk has freshly-ground barista coffee, speciality teas, and delicious Solley’s ice-cream.
Live music is from 6:30pm to 8:30pm and the band performing is Lew Lewis and His All Star Trio:
Pirates of Pierremont
Theatre in the park in Broadstairs. Broadstairs and St Peter’s Town Council is hosting the free summer theatre events this August at Pierremont Hall.
August 5, from 7pm, free entry, first come first served.
Get ready to shiver your timbers and set sail upon the high seas when you join Captain Cod and her crew as they prepare you for the life of a Pirate! Fascinating Facts, Sailor Songs, Pirate Poems and Silly Sketches! Audiences are encouraged to come dressed as pirates and bring a picnic for Captain Cod to plunder!
Further afield
50’s Festival in Sandwich
Three day event at the Guildhall, the square and along the river, this August.
Part of the festival includes a photo exhibition at the Guildhall from the Eddie Cochran collection- some never seen in public before.
Live music in two venues and include a classic car show.
There will be 12 international rock n’ roll bands, eight DJs, the car show, Cochran exhibition,vintage market stalls, entertainment including dance lessons and competition, a raffle with a handmade guitar donated by master-luthier Pete Leferve and signed by the bands, food and drink and more.
The event takes place on August 5-7 in partnership with Sandwich Community Events. Day tickets £35, weekend tickets £60, via the festival website
