Wheels in Motion for This Year’s Festival of Arts & Culture

Hailsham is gearing up for a varied line-up of talented regional artists and a feast of music, dance, drama, literature and street entertainment as the town hosts the Hailsham Festival of Arts & Culture in September.

The festival, now entering its seventeenth successful year and one of the highlights of the town’s events calendar, attracts a cross-section of artists and performers from the Southeast and further afield, and offers a wide variety of exhibitions and performances to suit all tastes.

The festival will run from Saturday 2nd September to Sunday 24th September, is rooted in Hailsham and the surrounding area and this year, organisers are pleased to announce that the 2023 festival programme is now available on their website (hailshamfestival.co.uk).

The programme provides information on the wide range of events including a new staging of Orwell’s 1984 which will take place at Hailsham Pavilion (following sell-out performances in Eastbourne and Hastings), an appearance at the Pavilion by the world-famous recorder player, Piers Adams (formerly of Red Priest) who will present Baroque Alchemy with keyboardist Lyndy Mayle, and actor Jeffrey Holland (Hi de Hi) who will visit the Pavilion to perform his one-man show ‘…and this is my friend, Mr Laurel’.

Other entertainment will include an evening of Burlesque at B12 Wine Bar and Kitchen and a singalong screening of Frozen and, once again, the festival is inviting members of the community to share and showcase their creative achievements in their Virtual Art Gallery and publications.

Other highlights include art trails, live rock ‘n roll and folk music, morris dancers, children’s lego-building, a new murder mystery event with fish and chips, writing competitions, a Greek mythology presentation and, of course, the ever-popular Nostalgia Fair on Saturday 23rd September, with free entry and featuring fairground rides, live entertainment, a fancy dress competition, food, drink and more.

The printed programme/brochure will be delivered to households soon, but people are encouraged to visit the Hailsham Festival website in the meantime.

Tickets are already on sale for all of the events and can be obtained at the Hailsham Pavilion box office (George Street) or online at https://hailshampavilion.co.uk/. Other events are generally available at www.ticketsource.co.uk/hailsham-festival.

“Hailsham Festival of Arts and Culture represents a celebration of both professional and amateur talent, creativity and imagination centred in the market town of Hailsham and its surrounding area,” said Tony Biggin, Hailsham Festival Chair. “The arts represent a vital component of our culture, enriching our community and creating a vibrant landscape from which we all benefit.”

“Thank you for all your support over the years.”

Deputy Town Clerk & Business Enterprise Manager, Mickey Caira said: “Hailsham and the rest of East Sussex has such an amazingly rich seam of arts and culture. There is an amazing wealth of artistic talent, and it will be an honour for us to be part of this year’s festival and invite the community to put the festival dates in their diaries.”

“Last year’s festival was nothing short of amazing with some truly great artists, writers, photographers, poets and music performers showcasing their talent across the Hailsham area. There was a positive atmosphere for the duration of the festival, and I was grateful to everyone for turning up and supporting the town’s festival so well.”

Mr Caira added: “I’m sure festival organisers will surpass all expectations again this year with events and, on behalf of the Town Council, I’d like to thank those community groups and individuals in the town for all the hard work and generous support given to organising previous festivals and of course the forthcoming one.

“A huge amount of work is carried out behind the scenes by dedicated volunteers, and we are hoping that even more volunteers will get involved in this year’s festival, give their support and contribute to its success.”