Tag Archives: 2020

A new chapter for Newark Book Festival

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If like June you’re a bit of a bookworm, you’ll probably remember this weekend’s guest from previous interviews over the last few years…

The organiser of the Newark Book Festival since summer 2017, Sara Bullimore will be on the phone during the second hour of show to share news of various book-related events, taking a look back at some of the past highlights and, more importantly perhaps, looking ahead to what’s on the cards for the coming weeks and months.

First up she’ll have details of the final chapter in the festival’s 2020 series, some online events for children, young people and families that will be taking place on Saturday 27 February.

And she’ll have news too of a month-long window trail around the town, an opportunity to add a little extra fun to your daily exercise and essential shopping trips with the help of the festival’s mascot.

Preparations are already well under way for this, with lots of local shops, cafés and other businesses signed up to take part, and if all goes to plan, you and your family will be able to go out and start the search for Barry The Bookworm from Monday 1 March!

For all the latest updates, together with news of a special new schools programme and more, make sure you’re tuned in to Girls Around Town on 107.8FM or listening online from 11.20am this Sunday to join fellow booklovers Sara and June…

A light-hearted look back at a difficult year

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It’s the last show of the year this weekend so what better way to celebrate than with a light-hearted look back at some of the highs – and lows! – of 2020, together with a look ahead to what’s in store in 2021?

And who better to do it with than the inimitable Cathie Babbington, a regular guest on Girls Around Town and a good friend to boot?

Well-known to listeners as Coach Cath, she’ll be on the phone to June in the second hour of the show, when the pair of them will be chatting about  how they coped with the trials and tribulations of the last few months, both personally and professionally, and what’s on the horizon for the coming year.

Tune in to 107.8FM or listen online from 11.20am on Sunday to hear what they have to say about some of their favourite moments of 2020, the ones they could perhaps have done without, the lessons they learned in what has  without doubt been an extremely difficult year….

And how they both came out smiling – well, most of the time anyway!

Bringing artists into view

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Their studios may be closed to the public right now but artists across Nottinghamshire will still be welcoming ‘visitors’ throughout May and June, thanks to a special initiative designed to bring Open Studios 2020 to the county ‘virtually’.

“Of course it is no longer possible to run Open Studios in its usual format this year,” said Michael Trueman, co-ordinator of the initiative. “However, the creative community is the best at keeping morale high when times are rough, not only for the wider public but for ourselves too.

“Hence we have decided to use the online and digital opportunities available to continue to fulfil our mission of ‘bringing artists into view’.”

OS Notts will be sharing virtual studio tours and videos of artists’ work in progress on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter and on a dedicated YouTube channel. There will also be opportunities to meet participating artists on social media and a new Meet the Artist section on the OS website.

Linked photographic exhibitions showing artists and makers at work that would normally be held in libraries across the county courtesy of  Inspire: Culture, Learning and Libraries will also take place online.

Links to the exhibition, which launches on Friday 24 April, will be posted on social media and on the OS website. For the third year running, the photographs have been taken by Neil Pledger and curated by Lucianna Gallucci.

And don’t forget to keep an eye on the Girls Around Town social media feeds for regular updates about this year’s Open Studios…

Photographs by Neil Pledger