As we welcome another 31 days of fabulous things to do, including a rather special coronation
and a simultaneous world event in UNESCO Cities of Literature, says Melanie Cook of www.VisitNorwich.co.uk
May is always a busy month with the return of the Norfolk & Norwich Festival – the biggest international arts Festival in the East of England (I look forward to it with bated breath each year). But this year, May is even bigger as we have three bank holidays to while away, including the Coronation of King Charles III.
Mayday bank holiday falls on 1 May this year, but just one week later we have another three day celebration, this time in honour of the Coronation of King Charles.
We can probably safely say few of us are invited to Westminster Abbey, so how can we get involved in this wonderful occasion? Food and drink has, for as long as we can remember, been a huge part of any celebratory event. And the UK is a nation of foodies, so a simple way to get involved with the long royal weekend is to participate in the nationwide Coronation Big Lunch. Join an organised community meal or, if you fancy something more intimate, invite a few friends and family round for a bite to eat. Take a look at coronation.gov.uk for details.
Norfolk has such a vast choice of wonderful local produce, so a lunch table filled with seasonal food from the area will definitely be a winner! A meal fit for a king, so to speak.
“Norfolk is one of the best counties in the country for growing asparagus because our soil contains flint and we have dry weather conditions”, Richard Bainbridge, chef proprietor of Benedicts told me.
By May there will be abundance of delicious Norfolk asparagus. If you drive frequently through the Norfolk countryside, you’ll be used to pop-up trailers by the side of the road selling asparagus. Always stop to pick some up.
But how easy is asparagus to cook? Again, Richard helped: “The perfect way to cook asparagus is to blanch it and then pour over garlic or lemon butter. However, it is also perfect for cooking over the BBQ brushing with oil or said butters – make a pile, and snack on it before lunch. It will impress everyone.” Fingers crossed for BBQ weather.
During the pandemic Richard and his wife Katja worked on creating their own food range, R. Bainbridge Provisions, which is sold through his website (rbainbridge.co.uk), 14 delis across East Anglia, including Jarrold, and from his restaurant. Richard suggested his Strawberry and Rose Preserve (£4.50) to use on homemade scones. He didn’t need to tell me twice. When I’m next in Norwich, I’m off to buy some!
Afternoon tea is a big event in this country – The Assembly House in Norwich can easily serve 1000 over a special weekend (£27.95 for one and children 12 years and under £16.95) – people love it! So, a great alternative to a lunch is an afternoon tea. Also, The Assembly House, Park Farm Hotel, and The Norfolk Mead create teas that you can collect and take home – I’ve done this and I can assure you the quality is
not compromised.
The Maids Head Hotel is offering Coronation afternoon teas on 5, 6 and 7 May between 12pm and 4pm. Costing £30 per person it includes a glass of Prosecco. Other local venues for an afternoon tea include: The Britons Arms on Elm Hill (£14.99 for one, £28 for two, add a glass of Prosecco £5.50), The Ivy Brasserie in Norwich, Park Farm Hotel (enjoy in their new Georgian Dining Room, from £25 for one with children 10 years and under £12.50) and The Norfolk Mead (£20 for one).
If celebrating at home, don’t forget all the local tipples available to elevate any meal. We have local wines from three fantastic vineyards: Burn Valley Vineyard (West Norfolk), Chet Valley Vineyard (South Norfolk) and Cobble Hill Vineyard (North Norfolk). As well as Gyre & Gimble Gin (Royal Arcade, Norwich) and The English Distillery (whisky, Roudham).
Skipping to June – because I want to give you notice – new this year is the inaugural Norwich Wine Week (3-10 June, norwichwineweek.co.uk) organised by Norwich Business Improvement District. As well as activities across Norwich in bars, restaurants, and venues, the week concludes in a two-day festival in Chapelfield Gardens supported by MysaBar and Norfolk Wine School (9-10 June).
With the weekend event including all the vineyards already mentioned, offering tastings and the opportunity to meet the producers, as well as music and the locally loved Mysabar stretch tent (previously seen in Castle Gardens). This is going to be loads of fun, and a sociable event to get together with friends. In the tent you’ll find a fully stocked bar, with local food vendors: Thornham Oyster Co, Moco Kitchen, Dann’s Ice Cream and the Garden Kitchen Café, by Hoveton Hall. Tickets start at just £15 per person, book in advance on the website.
Back to May; Norfolk & Norwich Festival (nnfestival.org) always gives us plenty to celebrate with events to let our hair down, calmly relax and to thoroughly enjoy. So, between 12-28 May, expect a full programme of music, performance, visual arts, and song and dance, with plenty of surprises thrown in for good measure. As always, the festival is inclusive so there are free events, low-cost events and tickets for under 26 years at just £7.50.
The festivities start with the Welcome Weekend – a departure from their usual big, free opening event. This year, over 13 and 14 May across Norwich, there’s a programme of free performance including theatre, dance, circus, comedy, and more in the city’s streets. So that’s two packed days of entertainment, plus on Saturday night, in Festival Gardens, music in the bandstand (free), and food and drink, then at 9pm Gorilla Circus (free) with an amazing aerial circus featuring dance trapeze, wire walking and hair hanging-all accompanied by poetry.
I have to highlight one event which has caught my eye over the free weekend; Action Hero, Oh Europa! have been travelling through Europe since 2018 in their motorhome, recording strangers singing love songs. Come along and record one for yourself for their archive and be featured on BBC Radio Norfolk between 22-26 May. Surely this is the ultimate gesture of how much you care about the special person in your life?
The rest of the Festival? Watch out for, La Zanka Cosmic Care which has three intimate and interactive shows; Open to all, A female identifying audience and A male identifying audience. You are invited to wear swimming costumes and participate in body painting (not compulsory) during this one hour show exploring water in self-care and curing. Tickets £7.50, 13 and 14 May varying times, venue The Garage, Norwich.
The bandstand in Festival Gardens (free). If we are lucky to have good weather this month then Festival Gardens comes into its own of an evening. It’s a fabulous place to mix with all ages for a drink – in and out of the tent – and to listen to alfresco tunes from some of the best young musicians. See the website for the full line up and times. And running from 17-28 May (evenings), book tickets for the Adnams Spiegletent for Chelsea McGuffin & Co with Le Coup – this is fight night at the circus! Tickets range from £20-£26.
Jasdeep Singh Degun is a virtuoso sitarist playing at St Peter Mancroft, 18 May (8pm, £10 – £22). Joined by an eight-piece band, this is going to be a very special night.
Don’t miss The Inn Crown At The Festival Speak Easy (23-25 May, £10) where, over three days, there are six shows of the best spoken word and live literature in the UK in a special, secret pub hidden in Festival Gardens. This programme includes a performance by local poet Luke Wright.
From Friday 26-28 May we see the return of the City of Literature Weekend at the Adnams Spieglent and the National Centre for Writing, Dragon Hall. This will include lectures, performance, workshops and the City of Literature Publishing Fair (28 May, 10am-4pm, Dragon Hall).
Visual arts are always an important aspect of the Festival. Book a coach seat from Norwich to Walsingham (£5) for Anne Bean, In Search of the Miraculous (free, 26-28 May). Here the audience will be led through the pretty village of Walsingham encountering performances, actions, demonstrations and films plus an installation by Richard Wilson.
Festival top tips
1. Compline by Candlelight, free, Norwich Cathedral, no booking required. In stunning candlelit settings listen to The Girl Choristers, Lay Clerks and Choral Scholars of Norwich Cathedral Choir.
2. Ragroof Tea Dance – Vintage Hollywood, £16, 21 May, 11am at the Adnams Spiegletent. Dance like nobody’s watching!
3. Page Against The Machine, £2 donation, Plantation Garden, 1pm. This is a global event for 2023. Pick a book, bring a drink, and turn off your phone for a read in the gardens, whilst simultaneous events take place across the world in UNESCO Cities of Literature. In conjunction with The Book Hive.
Full details of everything mentioned here and loads more ideas can be found at www.visitnorwich.co.uk
