Details have been published of events in Harrogate’s Valley Gardens over the four-day holiday to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
The free events have been organised by Harrogate Borough Council, are for all ages, and include magicians, juggling shows, fairground rides, live music performances and mini discos.
Thursday 2 June
- 10am until 4pm – Face painting
- 10am until 6pm – Fairground rides, climbing wall, character meet and greet
- 12noon until 1pm – Children’s show and mini-disco on the bandstand
- 11am, 1pm and 3pm – Juggling show on the bandstand
Friday 3 June
- 10am – Harrogate Borough Mayor Councillor Victoria Oldham officially opens the event
- 10am and 1pm – Pantasy steel band (various locations)
- 10am until 4pm – Face painting
- 10am until 6pm – Artisan market, fairground rides, climbing wall, character meet and greet
- 11am until 12noon – Live performance from Harrogate Operatic Players, Ripon Operatic Players, Phoenix Players and St Andrew’s Players ‘songs from the shows’
- 12 noon until 1pm – Children’s show and mini-disco on the bandstand
- Juggling shows in various locations throughout the day
Saturday 4 June
- 10am until 1pm – Pantasy steel band in the bandstand
- 10am until 2pm – Face painting
- 10am until 6pm – Artisan market, fairground rides, climbing wall, character meet and greet
- 12 noon until 1pm – Children’s show and mini-disco on the bandstand
- Juggling shows in various locations throughout the day
- Magician and magic shows throughout the day in various locations
Sunday 5 June
- 10am until 4pm – Artisan market
- 10am until 4pm – Face painting
- 10am until 4pm – Character meet and greet
- 10am until 6pm – Fairground rides and climbing wall
- 11am until 12noon – Knot Another Choir live on the bandstand
- 12noon until 1pm – Children’s show and mini-disco on the bandstand
- Juggling shows throughout the day in various locations
- Magician and magic shows throughout the day in various locations
Councillor Andy Paraskos, the council’s cabinet member for environment, waste reduction and recycling, said:
“Valley Gardens provides the perfect backdrop for our four day event to celebrate Her Majesty The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee.
“There will be children’s entertainers, magicians, jugglers, face-painting, rides, live music performances, an artisan market and much more. There truly is something for everyone and even better, it’s all free.”
Sponsored by broadband provider Boundless Networks, the Stray Ferret has compiled a list of events across the district over the big jubilee weekend. click on the banner below for details.
Bank holiday weekend train travellers face delays and replacement buses
Northern will be running a limited service this weekend, despite the bank holiday and forecasts for better weather.
Passengers wishing to travel to Leeds this Sunday will need to use a replacement bus service between Horsforth and Leeds.
This is expected to add 20 minutes to journey times.
Engineering work on the York – Harrogate – Leeds line will take place on Sunday May 30.
Timetable changes across the Northern network this weekend are the result of engineering improvement works around Leeds, Manchester and Warrington. Full details are available on its website.
The company asked passengers to be “flexible with their journey”.
A spokesperson said:
“We’ll be adding extra carriages where possible but, with amended timetables in place in many areas, we will have fewer trains operating than on a normal weekend.
“We need our customers to plan carefully for any rail travel this weekend and be prepared for services to be much busier than they have been recently.”
READ MORE:
- Decision to proceed with £7.9 million Station Gateway sparks anger
- Safety fears over Nab Bridge near Harrogate
Stay away from reservoirs over the weekend, says Yorkshire Water
Harrogate district’s reservoir car parks will remain closed over this coming Bank Holiday weekend.
Yorkshire Water says it has had several reports of people swimming in its reservoirs over the last week despite the closure, something it is trying to deter over safety fears.
With the car parks closed there will be fears of similar scenes to last weekend when people ended up dumping their cars on the sides of busy roads.
Washburn Parish Council told the Stray Ferret that people arrive at Fewston and Thruscross reservoirs to find closed car parks end up wrecking the verges.
Not only is it wrecking the verges but it is causing problems for the emergency services.
Yorkshire Water has said that it is still working on a plan to keep everyone safe while they enjoy the reservoirs but it wasn’t ready yet.
The company’s initial concern is for its key workers who visit the reservoirs regularly to do vital engineering checks.
A spokesperson for Yorkshire Water said today that people should not visit unless they are within walking distance – a policy which is contrary to government advice.
Lockdown festival continues with high hopes after raising £500 for hospital on first day“Unfortunately, lots of people are still visiting our reservoirs despite car parks being closed and we’ve had several incidences of people parking inappropriately on roads nearby causing traffic issues. This has caused issues for emergency services, so please don’t visit this weekend and hopefully we’ll be back open soon.
“We have also received several reports of people swimming in our reservoirs this week. Whilst it might be tempting when the weather is hot, please remember that it is not safe to do so. Reservoir temperatures rarely go above 12 degrees and there is no lifeguard around in case something goes wrong.”
A festival designed to bring people together online has proved a hit with communities across the Harrogate district.
HG Community Lockdown Fest has more than 60 activities scheduled across the bank holiday weekend, including VE Day celebrations on Friday. Among the online performances was a wartime-style song from The Haddow Sisters in Harrogate (shown above), reminiscent of popular 1940s group The Andrews Sisters.
Each session is free, but participants are being encouraged to donate what they can to Harrogate Hospital and Community Charity when they sign up. The fundraising total at the end of Friday stood at £500.
On top of that, Harrogate Town AFC is putting its weight behind the weekend, auctioning off a signed shirt this afternoon and contributing more than £600 for the charity.
Local history
Mental health webinars, children’s Spanish classes, cooking workshops and an online beer-tasting will be held today. Tomorrow, with the weather expected to turn colder, organisers are hopeful that the programme of interior design, floristry, singing, yoga and local history will prove even more popular.
Rebecca Oliver, who helped to put the weekend of events together, said:
“It’s impossible to say how many participants we’ve had, but every event has had someone taking part – despite the amazing weather! We’ve got some great sessions still to come, including plenty on Sunday which are ideal for a rainy day.”
For more information, visit the event’s website: www.hglockdownfest.co.uk.