New history festival set for Leamington in May

A new annual festival of history is being launched in Leamington in May.

The inaugural 'Leamington Looks Back' festival, running for a fortnight from May 26 to June 10, will feature talks, walks, films and exhibitions, workshops and live performances.

It has been organised by local non-profit organisation Heritage Matters with the aim of making history more accessible to all.

A ticketed event on May 27 will see political heavyweight Tony Benn and folk singer Roy Bailey perform their show 'The Writing on the Wall: a History of Dissent in Words and Song' at the Spa Centre.

Other activities include a 1950s dinner-dance, 1940s and 50s nostalgia picnics with bands in Jephson Gardens, and more than 40 other events taking place throughout Leamington and surrounding villages in a variety of public venues from cafés to museums.

Jenny St John from Heritage Matters said there would be ”something for everyone, from families and children to history buffs and vintage collectors.”

She added they would be happy to hear from any local history groups or individuals who wished to be involved in the festival.

Visit http://www.heritagematters.org.uk or call Jenny on 01926 774373 for further details.

Another good thing. The only thing that I question is that so many 'Heritage activities' relate to WWII and recent times, and it would be good to see history and heritage events going further back in time. The Festival of History event is excellent for this, and we could use more such events. However, we also need to nurture companies that seek to keep old skills alive - and to help sell those skills to other countries, especially in Europe, remembering that they have heritage to restore and maintain as well!