Loughborough Bell Festival
Date: Sun, 10th Sep 2023 13:15 - 17:30
Venue: Queen's Park, Loughborough
Come join us as the bells ring out in our first-ever festival to commemorate the bell as a unique symbol of Loughborough and its heritage.
See our 7-foot willow representation of the Great Paul bell - the largest bell ever cast in Britain - as it's blessed at All Saints Church. Watch it leave to a peal of church bells, pulled on a vintage trailer by a 140-year-old steam engine.
Bring a bell of your own and join in the parade to Granby Street, where we will meet the steam engine and follow the bell into Queen's Park to be welcomed by the Mayor of Charnwood and music from our hundred-year-old Carillon Tower.
Relax with a picnic and listen to brass band music and singing, have a go at hand bells and art activities, watch local Morris sides dance and find out about the history of John Taylor & Co, Loughborough's world-famous bell foundry - all in the glorious surroundings of the park donated to the town by local benefactors to mark Queen Victoria's diamond jubilee.
Bell blessing at All Saints Parish Church at 1.30 pm
Parade begins at 2 pm
Activities in the park from 2.15 pm onwards.
We need volunteers to help us stage this event, including supporting the parade for just 30 minutes (max) as it makes its way through the town centre. Interested? Ring/text 0784 268 1393 or email info@charnwoodarts.com.
This is a FREE event staged during the national Heritage Open Day intiaitive. For further details and information on other local HOD activities see here.
More information: https://www.charnwoodarts.com/bell-festival-2023