Chalke Valley History Festival returns
It's one of the first major events to be back in Wiltshire after the pandemic
Last updated 23rd Jun 2021
After two years of waiting, the Chalke Valley History Festival gets underway today (Wednesday 23rd June).
Last year's event was cancelled due to the pandemic, however thanks to careful planning and sticking to the Covid-19 guidelines, 2021 is going ahead.
Two new ampitheatre-style stages have been built at the site in Broad Chalke and there's two large marquees with socially distanced seating.
There have also been restrictions on the number of tickets available.
The event, which is celebrating its 10th annivesary, runs until Sunday (27th June) with a host of speakers taking to the indoor and outdoor stages, including:
- Sir Vince Cable - the former leader of the Liberal Democrats
- Rowan Williams - former Archbishop of Canterbury
- Al Murray - Comedian and historian
- Dan Snow - TV presenter
- Christian Lamb – the centenarian who worked on the top secret D-Day invasion maps with Winston Churchill.
As well as the talks and live history re-enactments there will be demonstrations from things like the Tudor kitchen, stone age flint-knapping and a Cold War-era armoured brigade headquarters.
Aspiring knights can even attend sword school!
Meanwhile, the oldest travelling Big Wheel in the UK, built in 1922, will also be there.
Festival Chair, James Holland, says:
"I'm really very excited about this year's festival. Despite the challenges of the last year we've been able to produce a really inclusive and very wide-ranging programme that feels fresh, vibrant and fun. It will be midsummer, lockdown will be over, and I can't wait to unleash this historical pageant."
All profits from the festival go into Chalke Valley History Trust, which operates to promote the enjoyment and better understanding of history for all ages but especially to school children.
SCHOOL PROGRAMME
Usually, they run a Chalke Valley History Festival for Schools, however that will not be going ahead this year.
Instead, they are going to be producing a programme of curriculum-based films, ready for the start of the academic year this September, and which will be entirely free for all teachers, pupils and schools.
You can find out all the details over on their website.