Arts weekend in Higham Ferrers

Higham Ferrers organisers are planning the Town's first arts weekend and it will feature three authors, a prize winning artist, and some Spitfire shaped biscuits.

The April 19-21 event is the brainchild of Brenda Lofthouse, the new chair of The Friends of St Mary's -a secular organisation dedicated to the preservation of the Grade 1 listed buildings in the town - who attended the Cambridge Arts Festival last year.

''I thought we could stage something similar in Higham Ferrers and the hope is that it would become an annual event,'' she said.

The weekend which is being held in partnership with Higham Ferrers Tourism, starts on April 19th with free story telling workshops by best selling author Chris Smith in St Mary's Church for pupils of Higham Ferrers Primary and Henry Chichele Primary Schools.

Higham Ferrers Tourism will host the Saturday afternoon (April 20th) event in the Bede House and will welcome former local resident Ophelia Redpath - the 2021 Sky Landscape Artist of the Year- and Artem Mozgovoy, a prize winning writer from Siberia, who will read segments from his autobiographical novel Spring in Siberia and talk about life in Russia.

Mozgovoy left Russia when the country introduced an anti-gay law and tried his hand at several jobs- including being a magician's assistant- in several countries before settling in Brussels, Belgium.

His forthcoming book is about the war in Ukraine.

Liz Barnatt, chair of Higham Ferrers Tourism, which holds various events throughout the year, said that the afternoon with Ophelia and Artem was something new on on the Tourism committee's calendar.

''As well as talk by both our guests, Ophelia will unveil one of her paintings and people will get the chance to buy one of Artem's book as well as prints and postcards of Ophelia's work,'' she said.

The April 20th Saturday highlight is an evening with '' The Wellingborough Community Gospel Choir'' in St Mary's starting at 7-30pm.

And at the Bede House on Sunday April 21st at 2pm, Victoria Wickes will give a talk about her famous grandfather, prolific author, H E Bates CBE, focusing on his time as a RAF officer.

He was commisioned as an officer during World War 2 to write stories to bring the war and its participants '' vividly exciting and even painfully alive'' and under the pseudonym of Flying Officer X producing stories portraying the lives of pilots.

It is at this event where the Spitfire-shaped biscuits will appear, as guests will get the chance to tuck into WW2 refreshments.

Guests are also asked to get in the mood and dress in 1940's clothes.

Tickets are available from Sidey Design in the Market Square Higham Ferrers. The afternoon with Ophelia Redpath and Artem Mozgovoy is £12-50

The evening with The Wellingborough Community Gospel Choir is £15

H E Bates afternoon is £12-50

Proceeds will go towards the Friends of St Mary's projects as well as Higham Ferrers Tourism projects which support the local community.