We seek them here, we seek them there, we seek summer defining goings on everywhere. And we’ve found plenty all around the UK to tickle every fancy, whether it be a bit of dressing up at a comic con, feeling some festival vibes or getting sozzled on the finest selection of rum going, we indeed have you covered. Welcome to a bumper edition of The Weekend EDIT….
What to do…
This wonderfully nostalgic 80s inspired festival in the heart of London returns to dazzle and delight punters with an outrageous smörgåsbord of arts, gaming, electronica, and cosplay. There’ll be a whole heap of live performances from new-wave, retrowave, and synthwave artists (that’s a lot of waves!) and a raft of DJs dropping tunes that will transport you quite literally back to the future. With the best in vintage gaming from Mario Kart to Streetfighter and everything in-between this is one trip down memory lane not to be missed.
Saddle up and hit the rarely seen deserted streets (pedestrians that is) of London as the world’s greatest festival of cycling returns. More than 100,000 riders of all ages and abilities will hit the eight-mile course to raise money for charity (last years event brought in £12 million) passing Buckingham Palace, Trafalgar Square, St Paul’s Cathedral and the Bank of England. Aside from the family-friendly ‘FreeCycle’, there’ll also be the annual men’s and women’s pro races, where the world’s best cyclists compete. There’s so much going on, but be sure to head over to The Cycling Show at ExCeL London. There’s not enough time in the day!
The Liverpool Biennial 2018 is up and running, taking place across the city until 28th October and this year is the 20th anniversary of presenting international art in the city and region, while also marking the tenth year since the city won the European Capital of Culture. Over 40 artists from 22 countries are presenting work that responds to the call Beautiful world, where are you? reflecting on a world in social, political and economic turmoil. Check listings for all the fantastic events and exhibitions on offer.
The Port Eliot Festival of creative arts begins on the Thursday for a huge celebration of music, literature, poetry, comedy, film, and art, all set in the stunning estate once the home of the renowned era-defining Elephant Fayre. There’s so much to see with a packed music lineup including an eclectic mix of the established and the new including MALESTROM interviewees Baxter Dury & 77:78, as well as Daphne Guinness, Gaz Coombes, Andrew Weatherall & Justin Robertson and many more. There’ll also be food demonstrations from iconic chefs, well-being workshops, film, art, comedy and literature – you name it, these guys have got it covered. An exhilarating, slightly exhausting, jam-packed weekend of festival fun.
It it a bird? Is it a plane? No flying into the heart of the North West this weekend is Manchester Comic Con. They’ll be plenty of geeky goings on in this joyous celebration of all things from the wide world of comic books and science fiction. Star guests include the voices behind popular Overwatch characters and two stars from the cast of The Walking Dead. They’ll be Q&As, a comic village, stalls packed with fan merch from your favourite shows, not to mention lots and lots of cosplay. So don your spandex and head on down to the only place to be for pop-culture obsessives this Sat and Sun.
What to Eat & Drink…
StrEATLife is back at the Alexandra Palace for the third of four bumper weekends of food and drink, where the capitals best street food vendors, craft beer makers, and cocktail mixologists converge in one beautiful setting for a mouthwatering event that signals the height of summer. There’s something for everyone with vegan delights, the best in barbecuing and street food from every conceivable culture, while record spinning head honchos Scratch Perverts provide the soundtrack.
Overdone it already this summer, or maybe you just fancy a bit of moderation in your life? Either way, the good people behind the Mindful Drinking Festival have spent years honing their knowledge of the most innovative alternatives and producers of the best alcohol-free concoctions on the market. Head on down to Spitalfields this Saturday and experience over 40 stalls, talks, and tasting sessions, bags of entertainment and live music, that makes not doing something the thing to do this weekend. Worth a shot, alcohol-free of course.
On Friday night the steel city will play host to live music, dancing, street food and most importantly over 100 different rums! Yes, at the Sheffield Rum Festival you’ll be in sailor’s heaven with more strains of the potent spirit than you’ll know what to do with. You can buy tokens to sample the host of delights on offer with a mixer of your choice and they’ll be a Festival cocktail team on hand to mix you up some tasty rum-based delights. They’ll also be talks from rum industry experts and bloggers so you can wow your friends with new facts about the drink once modestly known as ‘Kill-Devil’.
What to Listen To…
When listening to Patrick Marber, he seems like a slightly awful human being. But luckily also happens to be seriously funny. Being the man who wrote much of the early Alan Partridge output and The Day Today as well as numerous award-winning plays and screenplays, he has serious pedigree. This Radio 4 podcast sees Patrick and Irish broadcaster Peter Curran muse on all matter of subjects all from the serenity of a bunk bed. It’s already in its fifth season and you can see why, so far in this series, they’ve pondered the problem with James Bond, sock culling and which dinosaur they’d have been. Hilarious wanderings of a very interesting couple of minds.
What to Watch…
Filmworker (15)
Out now on DVD is this fascinating documentary takes a look at the life of Leon Vitali a once-promising actor who landed the role of a lifetime as Lord Bullingdon in Stanley Kubrick’s Barry Lyndon, before essentially curbing his own ambitions to help facilitate Kubrick’s own heady vision… for thirty long years. Taking on the role of right-hand man to the celebrated auteur, devotion and loyalty are the overriding themes as Vitali moved from front of camera to a wizard behind the scenes who helped the notoriously demanding filmmaker achieve international recognition. Seen through the eyes of Vitali, using unseen footage, letters, notes and much more from his own extensive private collection, it’s a heartwarming and in-depth exploration of a very dedicated man.
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