Our What’s On Guide is sponsored by The Place Theatre, hosts of Overgrown. Played in teams over Zoom (age 10+), Overgrown is a prompt for conversations about our relationship with nature and other species. Players share their hopes and fears for the future, unpack the competing agendas at play in their region, and explore solutions and compromises.
Thursday 1 June 2023
Live music: Opus Kink + Maruja (rearranged date)
Bedford Esquires @ 8pm
Tickets: £11
ROAR CLUB faves Opus Kink return to Esquires.
“Horn-fuelled filth-funk, where punk and jazz combine in grimy circumstances” (Thomas Smith, NME Magazine)
“Barnstorming, infectious” (Steve Lamacq, BBC 6 Music)
“One of the most enjoyable genre fusions I’ve ever seen” (Nels Hylton, BBC Radio 1)
Friday 2 – Saturday 3 June 2023
Theatre: Endgame
The Place Theatre @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £12 / £10
Based on his earlier play, Fin de Partie, Beckett’s Endgame was translated into English by him and first performed in 1957 at the Royal Court Theatre.
Beckett felt that Endgame was a better play than Waiting for Godot; it also features someone who is waiting: Clov is waiting to leave his blind master, Hamm.
“I love order. It’s my dream. A world where all would be silent and still, and each thing in its last place, under the last dust.” “The end is in the beginning and yet you go on.”
Friday 2 June 2023
Live music: Riskee & The Ridicule + guests
Bedford Esquires @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £12
Combining grime, hip hop, punk and metal influences to make an exciting and unique sound, Riskee and the Ridicule are a tour-de-force band of politics, protest and punk who practice what they preach.
Riskee and the Ridicule fuse seemingly disparate genres of music to create a focused assault that hits you in the heart like a hammer with its combination of instant anthems, insanely catchy songs and intelligent, socially conscious lyrics.
Pioneers of the grime punk subculture, this is a band once seen you won’t forget. Riskee has a determined sharpness of tone; cynical and sarcastic, akin to Scroobius Pip. It’s an incendiary thing, brimming with passion and intensity.
Friday 2 June 2023
Live music: Cameo MC
The Cellar Bar @ 8.30pm.
Free entry
Cameo appeared on The Voice in 2020 and turned the heads of Ollie and Tom – they have good taste!
Saturday 3 June 2023
Children’s comedy: Comedy Club 4 Kids
The Quarry Theatre, St Peter’s Street @
Tickets:
Since 2005, the Comedy Club 4 Kids has been getting the best stand-ups and sketch acts from the international circuit to do their thing for an audience of children and their families… but without the rude bits!
It’s just like a normal comedy club, but it’s on in the day, kids are allowed in, and thus there is a higher than usual chance of heckles like “why is that your face!?”
The line-up for this show includes Olaf Falafel and Paul Duncan McGarrity.
Saturday 3 June 2023
Walk: North Bedfordshire Ramblers’ weekly walk
Colmworth Golf Club MK44 2AP @ 1.30pm
Six mile circular walk towards Wilden and back.
Saturday 3 June 2023
Live music: Sack Sabbath
Bedford Esquires @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £10
Sack Sabbath are Europe’s best-known, longest serving and most authentic tribute to the masters of metal, Black Sabbath.
Sack Sabbath were formed in 2002, and in the past two decades have delighted audiences across the UK and Europe with their stunning take on the classic era of Black Sabbath.
Playing only the very blackest of Sabbath from the classic years 1970-78, they deliver a powerhouse performance with every song reproduced to perfection by some of the finest rock musicians in the UK and fronted by the best Ozzy impersonator in the business bar none.
Saturday 3 June 2023
Live music: Sarpa Salpa + guests
Bedford Esquires @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £9
Sarpa Salpa return to Esquires on Saturday 3 June for their first headline show at the venue since August 2021.
Expect to hear some new material the band have been cooking up alongside side a host of Sarpa faves.
Monday 5 – Wednesday 7 June 2023
Theatre: The 39 Steps
The Place Theatre @ 7.30pm
Tickets: from £10
With dozens of different roles, yet only four actors, watch as the young performers of Teleport Theatre undertake this extraordinary play by Patrick Barlow.
The 39 Steps adapts the original James Buchan novel, using the inspiration of Alfred Hitchcock’s film noir version. This hilarious stage parody of the film places the importance on slapstick humour, quick costume changes and more exciting drama.
The 39 Steps is a thrilling spy comedy following Richard Hannay, a man on the run from a false murder charge. Set in 1935, the action in this play goes from the streets of London to the barren Scottish Moors as Hannay tries to uncover the secrets forced upon him.
But as he tricks policemen, flirts with mysterious women and performs a number of death-defying chase scenes, will he ever discover the truth of The 39 Steps?
Tuesday 6 June 2023
Live music: Tuesday lunchtime concert
St Paul’s church, St Paul’s Square @ 1pm
Free entry with retiring collection (suggested donation £5)
This week’s Tuesday lunchtime recital is by Vanessa Hristova (Viola).
Tuesday 6 June – Saturday 17 June 2023
Exhibition: Homage – group show by artists Shan Edwards, Norma Wall, Liza King, Jackie Gooding and Joanna Clark
The Basement Gallery in the Bunyan Meeting (Bunyan Museum entrance) @ 11am – 4pm
Free entry
Homage: “Something that is said or done to show respect for somebody or something”.
All artists have worked with subjects which they want to show respect for, remember and to honour. Some of these subjects have been lost in the past, disappeared or are fading.
In this exhibition, you will see the work of five diverse women artists who have been creating and exciting together for over 20 years. Homage features a favourite apple tree, vanishing wildflowers, inspirational figures and a memorable relative.
Ceramics, glass, embroidery, printing and painting are used with wit and beauty to convey their shared ideals.
On Saturday 10 June you can meet the five artists who have contributed work to the current exhibition to find out more about their inspiration, artistic practice and
These five diverse women artists have been creating and exhibiting together for over twenty years. They meet to share ideas and offer each other encouragement, criticism and friendship and much of their work reflects their concern for the ordinary which is overlooked and the lives of the hidden and unseen.
Wednesday 7 June 2023
Walking: “The Jewel in Bedford’s Crown” guided walk
Bedford Town Centre @ 11am at the gold postbox in St Paul’s Square
Tickets: £3/£1.50
Join the Association of Bedford Tour Guides for one of their fascinating weekly walks. Each walk is of 90 minutes to two hours duration and covers a distance of one or two miles. Most walks are suitable for people who are less mobile.
Children of all ages are most welcome on all of our walks but those aged 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Each walk costs £3.00 per adult or £1.50 for children over 8. All walks must be pre-booked.
Wednesday 7 June 2023
Film: Cinema @ 3 St Peter’s presents – Bladerunner 2049
3 St Peter’s Street @ 7pm
Tickets: £12/£10.50/£9/£6
Officer K (Ryan Gosling), a new blade runner for the Los Angeles Police Department, unearths a long-buried secret that has the potential to plunge what’s left of society into chaos.
His discovery leads him on a quest to find Rick Deckard (Harrison Ford), a former blade runner who’s been missing for 30 years.
Wednesday 7th June 2023
Comedy Night: Hosted by Simon Hall of Simon Says Comedy
The Cellar Bar @ 8.00pm. Doors open at 7.00pm.
Ticketed event: £15, includes a drink.
The interdimensional Alasdair Becket-King comes to The Cellar Bar Bedford this week. Mock the Week regular and Winner of the 2017 Leicester Mercury Comedian of the Year, ABK is one of comedy’s hottest names on the circuit.
Also on the bill, host Simon Hall introduces the brilliant Julius Howe, who basically remembers stuff… but in a really funny way.
This is a ticketed event – includes a drink on arrival.
This show may contain adult humour and swearing and is strictly an over 18’s event.
Only customers with a valid ticket, with a valid QR code will be allowed admission.
Thursday 8 June 2023
Comedy: Castle Comedy June Special
The Quarry Theatre @ 8pm
Tickets: £15
BANDOMAN a.k.a Rob Broderick fuses comedy, improvisation, and hip hop to take an audience on a magical journey! He transforms their likes, loathes and daydreams into hit songs and captivating tales.
He has performed in the house band for Alan Carr’s Happy Hour on Channel 4 alongside Craig David, appeared in 8 Out of 10 Cats Does Countdown and stole the show on ITV1’s Christmas Comedy Club with Lost Voice Guy. He has also supported and toured with pop behemoth Ed Sheeran.
Friday 9 June 2023
Live music: Calling Planet Earth
Bedford Corn Exchange @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £26
A New Romantic Symphony that goes on a journey through one of the greatest musical Era’s of All Time – The Electrifying 80’s
Featuring songs from now legendary artists such as Duran Duran, Spandau Ballet, The Human League, Ultravox, Tears for Fears, Depeche Mode, OMD, Japan, ABC, Soft Cell and many more…
Friday 9 June 2023
Theatre: A Room of One’s Own
The Quarry Theatre @ 7.30pm
Tickets: from £13
The award-winning Dyad Productions return with a twenty-first-century take on Virginia Woolf’s celebrated pre-TED talk.
Take a wry, amusing, and incisive trip through the history of literature, feminism, and gender. Meet Charlotte Brontë, Jane Austen, Aphra Behn, and Shakespeare’s sister – Judith!
Travel to the far-flung future of… 2028. But whatever you do, Keep Off the Grass.
Rebecca Vaughan (Female Gothic, Orlando, Christmas Gothic, Dalloway, Austen’s Women, Jane Eyre: An Autobiography) performs Woolf’s 1928 exploration of the impact of poverty and sexual inequality on intellectual freedom and creativity.
Friday 9 June 2023
Live music: Joe Cullen
The Cellar Bar @ 8.30pm.
Free entry
He rocked the place last time he played so Joe Cullen makes a welcome return to The Cellar Bar. Playing covers by Ed Sheeran, The 1975, Oasis, Harry Styles, The Killers, Coldplay plus more…
Friday 9 June 2023
Live music: Rozi Plain + Low Girl (solo)
Bedford Esquires @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £13.50
This month Esquires is super excited to be hosting the brilliant Rozi Plain as part of her UK tour.
Over the course of four albums, Rozi Plain’s hypnotic, gently askew songs have steadily sauntered their way from her birthplace of Winchester, reverberated through the bustling Bristol DIY scene, to where they now emanate from London’s creative epicentre.
Acquiring a worldliness that’s reflected in her travels as a touring musician, each consecutive release has broached new sonic territory, whilst retaining a home-grown intimacy and a familial warmth of spirit. On Prize, her upcoming fifth long-player, due for release on Memphis Industries on 13 January 2023, Rozi’s unique, heart-felt approach continues to prevail, marking her as one of our most innovative and engaging songwriters.
Support is a solo set from local legend, Low Girl.
Friday 9 June 2023
Live music: My Life Story
Bedford Esquires @ 7.30pm
Tickets: £15
Britpop favourites My Life Story make a very welcome return to Bedford Esquires as part of their 2023 Uk Tour
Releasing three successful albums and six top forty singles in the 1990s combining playful, evocative lyrics with memorable melodies, My Life Story is best known as a flamboyant orchestral 11-piece with string and brass section.
Signed to Parlophone in 1996, the band released The Golden Mile which spawned the hit singles Sparkle, 12 Reasons Why I Love Her, The King of Kissingdom, Strumpet and Duchess, and re-released a remastered version of 1995 album Mornington Crescent.
Joined Up Talking followed on Mother Tongue Records in 2000, featuring the sixth hit single, It’s A Girl Thing.
After enjoying early dates headlining over Oasis, My Life Story went on to tour with Blur and Pulp, among many others, at the height of the Britpop era. My Life Story were firm favourites on the live scene and enjoyed particular success in France and Germany.
The My Life Story orchestra also collaborated with acts such as Morrissey, Marc Almond and The Wonderstuff. The band’s current quintet line-up is led by frontman and songwriter Jake Shillingford, with a distinct rockier sound.
Saturday 10 – Sunday 18 June 2023
Environment: The Great Big Green Week events
Borough-wide
Once again, organisations, individuals and communities are joining together to take part in The Great Big Green Week – the UK’s biggest call for action on climate change.
This year’s event takes place on 10 – 18 June 2023 and there will be a wide range of events to raise awareness of the impacts of climate change while also making a connection with these issues in our community. Full details in the coming wee..
Saturday 10 & Sunday 11 June 2023
Game Play: Overgrown
The Place Theatre @ 7pm (Saturday) & 5pm (Sunday)
Tickets: £30 per group
What is the future of nature?
Overgrown is a new game about the tangled relationship between humans and nature. Players collectively imagine the story of their local area over the coming decades.
New animal species arrive, climate impacts hit, people come and go, and the world changes. We lose and we gain, and the future is always stranger than we expect.
Played in teams over Zoom, Overgrown is a prompt for conversations about our relationship with nature and other species. Over the course of the game, players share their hopes and fears for the future, unpack the competing agendas at play in their region, and explore solutions and compromises.
Saturday 10 June 2023
Live music: Organ recital
St Paul’s church, St Paul’s Square @ noon
Free entry with retiring collection (suggested donation £5)
Organ recital by Ian Runnells (Director of Music, St Paul’s, Bedford)
Saturday 10 June 2023
Classical music: Bedford Choral Society present ‘Across the Pond’
Bedford Corn Exchange @ 7.30pm
Ticket Price £16 / £13 / Students £6 / children under 18 with accompanying adult £5
Across the Pond is an evening of music with an American connection including Gershwin’s Porgy and Bess, Agnus Dei by Samuel Barber, Five Negrol Spirituals by Michael Tippet and Five Herbrew Love Songs by Eric Whitacre.
Saturday 10 June 2023
Live music: Meg Sentance
The Cellar Bar @ 8.30pm
Free entry
The wonderful Meg Sentance heads to the Cellar Bar for a night of musical entertainment. Meg is an incredibly versatile singer, we promise you won’t be disappointed!
Sunday 11 June 2023
Games Workshop: RPG Youth Club
The Place Theatre @ 10am
Tickets: from £4
Aged 10-18? Love games, fantasy, stories and play? Want to be the hero (or villain) you’ve always imagined? Want to meet people who share your interests?
A great opportunity for young people to engage in creative problem-solving in a fun, welcoming supervised space. Great for developing speaking and listening skills, team building and developing storytelling and creativity.
Dungeons & Dragons, and other Table Top Role Playing Games (TTRPGs) are a great alternative to videogames, challenging young people to work together, teaching English and Maths skills, and helping young people socialise with like-minded young people.
A great low-cost hobby, where all necessary equipment will be provided and young people will get hands on learning in how to play these entertaining, player-led, story-based games.No prior experience necessary.
Sunday 11 June 2023
Shopping: Bedford Flea, Affordable Art and Local Produce Market
St Paul’s Square @ 10am
Once again, 45 local businesses plus musicians and food vendors will be on St Paul’s Square as part of our town’s liveliest monthly market.
The perfect start to a lazy, sunny Sunday. Hit up the market, take a stroll along the River and watch the world go by. What Sunday’s were made for!
Sunday 11 June 2023
Great Big Green Week: International Yoga Day
Bedford Park @ 10am – 7pm
Free
Bedford Park is once again set to welcome yoga enthusiasts of all ages and abilities as Yoga and Wellbeing in the Park returns for its fifth year on Sunday 11 June. The event is free to everyone with a range of sessions and no need to book in advance, it runs from 10am – 7pm.
This year’s event is bigger than ever with eighteen different types of yoga on offer. This means that anyone attending can try a range of styles and discover which ones work best for them. All people will need to do is to register when they arrive, complete a disclaimer and collect a wristband to take part in the sessions.
Yoga and Wellbeing in the Park has been running for four years and usually coincides with International Yoga Day on 21 June. This year the event has been moved forward as part of the Great Big Green Week and it’s hoped it can inspire people to find a local yoga group and celebrate the day with them.
A limited number of yoga mats will be available on the day and people are asked to bring their own if possible. Further information about the day and a full list of sessions available is available at bedford.gov.uk/yogaday.
Sunday 11 June 2023
Walking: “Bedford in World War II” guided walk
Bedford Town Centre @ 11am at the gold postbox in St Paul’s Square
Tickets: £3/£1.50
Join the Association of Bedford Tour Guides for one of their fascinating weekly walks. Each walk is of 90 minutes to two hours duration and covers a distance of one or two miles. Most walks are suitable for people who are less mobile.
Children of all ages are most welcome on all of our walks but those aged 12 and under must be accompanied by an adult. Each walk costs £3.00 per adult or £1.50 for children over 8. All walks must be pre-booked.
Sunday 11 June 2023
Big Green Week: Black Tom Jumble Trail
Prime Ministers/Black Tom area
Free
The Black Tom Jumble Trail is BACK!
A jumble trail is a car boot sale – but on your street. Communities co-ordinate to set up stalls outside their houses to sell bric-a-brac, toys, vintage stuff, art, cakes, the list is endless! Find the map here. Because this event is part of Great Big Green Week, and to keep stalls free, there will be no printed maps or leaflets (although there will be plenty of signage up on the day!) it’s a great opportunity to have a clear out or source second-hand items – and keep stuff out of landfill!
Sunday 11 June 2023
Lyrics and Poetry Workshop: Yvonne Hercules
The Place Theatre @ 1pm
Tickets: Free
Join Yvonne Hercules for a creative lyric writing & poetry workshop. The workshop will be based on creating lyrical work that references identity, background and the nuances surrounding the experiences of minority individuals.
There is no prerequisite for any previous experience within lyric writing or poetry as Yvonne will be guiding you through the process using visual and/or audio to support your creative process. There will also be space for discussion both during and after the workshop.
Yvonne Hercules is a singer-songwriter/artist & performer based in Cambridge UK. Her music has received nods from publications including Clash Magazine, The Line of Best Fit, Afropunk, and others and she has received support from PRS Foundation, Arts Council England towards her work.
Inspired by Folk, Blues, Rock & Soul, her songs are a culmination of these genres underpinned by honest, thought-provoking lyrics. She also draws on inspiration from visual mediums outside of music including art & film, with visual concepts often coinciding alongside her songs.
Sunday 11 June 2023
Choral music: ByrdSong
St Mary’s Church, Carlton @ 3pm
Tickets £10 / £8 on the door. All proceeds to St Mary’s Church
Cantamus Chamber Choir celebrate 400th anniversary of the deaths of William Byrd and Thomas Weelkes with a selection of period music and lighter songs from across the ages with a bird them.
Sunday 11 June 2023
Shopping: Preloved maternity, baby and childrenswear sale
Elstow Playing Field @ noon – 3pm
Entry: £1
Elstow Playing Field Association are hosting a Preloved sale. All proceeds of the table hire and refreshments go to the Hall charity for improvements and to help host more events.
Every Thursday
Cocktails, Quiz Night & Karaoke
The Cellar Bar from 5.00pm
Pit your wits against The Cellar Bar’s resident quizmaster to see if you can win the jackpot every Thursday from 8pm. £2 per person entry and a maximum of six per team. The winning team will win the jackpot PLUS a round of shots. Followed by Karaoke til close.
Every Saturday
Food & drink: Cocktail mixology masterclass
The Cellar Bar @ 3pm / doors open at 12 noon
£30 per person
The Cellar Bar’s resident mixologist, Marley, will explain how to create some outstanding cocktails for your tasting enjoyment. Then, it’s your turn to put what you’ve learned into practice by making (and drinking) three cocktails!
Every Sunday
Live Music: Open Mic Night
The Cellar Bar @ 7.30pm
Free Entry
Every Sunday, join Mat Roberts for the Cellar Bar’s weekly Open Mic night. An opportunity for new and experienced performers to get up on stage and perform.
So whether you think you are the next Tom Grennan or just want a good night of entertainment, head the to Cellar Bar from 7.30pm.
Until 2024
Exhibition: We Are Ten
The Higgins Bedford, Castle Lane
Free entry
The Higgins begins its 10th birthday celebrations with an exhibition featuring old favourites and rarely seen works from the collection, all chosen by organisations, groups and individuals who have worked with the museum and gallery over the last decade.
The exhibition runs for the next year, with special events planned next month to mark the exact date the museum reopened in 2013. Watch this space for more information.
Until 2024
Exhibition: Edward Bawden – Planes, Trains and Automobiles
The Higgins Bedford @ Tues – Sat: 11am – 5pm/Sun: 2pm – 5pm/Closed Mondays
Free entry
Let Edward Bawden transport you in this exhibition celebrating all things travel.
Drawn exclusively from the Higgins Bedford’s Edward Bawden archive, see large linocuts of London’s iconic stations and an array of wonderful vehicles from hot air balloons to jumbo jets and tall ships to cruise liners.
Read: New Edward Bawden ‘trains, planes and automobiles’ exhibition to open this weekend
Theatre highlights by Paula Walker
