100 events on this year’s Plymouth History Festival

The programme for the 2018 Plymouth History Festival has launched today with an exciting series of events that will take place across the city between Saturday 5 May and Sunday 3 June.

The annual celebration of Plymouth’s heritage is now in its sixth year. Full details of the programme, which features 100 different events, are now live at www.historyfestival2018.wordpress.com

The festival, which is coordinated by the City Council’s Museums Galleries Archives service, features special events, family activities, talks, tours, guided walks, music and performance events as well as exhibitions and displays.

Talks will explore topics such as pirates, smugglers, the 70th anniversary of the NHS, the 100th anniversary of the RAF, the city’s original water supply and the history of its department stores.

If you prefer to experience Plymouth on foot or by water there’s a host of different events to sign up for. These include garden tours, bridge and Blitz walks, boat trips and the chance to view some of our most historic locations by paddle board.

If music and performance are your passion you can listen to a piano, organ or string recital, try your hand at creative writing and storytelling – even take part in a musical pub crawl.

This year’s festival will offer people an opportunity to learn more about Plympton’s medieval history, the city’s Jewish and Quaker heritage, the achievements of the Marine Biological Association and famous characters such as John Kitto, William Cookworthy, Scott of the Antarctic and Captain Cook.

In the year that commemorates the centenary of the very first votes for some women, you can discover more about some of the remarkable females who are buried at Ford Park Cemetery or experience Dreadnought South West’s Rebellious Sounds Archive. This Heritage Lottery Funded project explores how women in the region have contributed to activism since 1918.

In a Plymouth History Festival first, you can also help test a new family-friendly mobile trail on the Hoe this year. The trail will go live on Friday 11 May and looks at the important role the Eddystone Lighthouse and the Breakwater play in keeping the city safe.

Councillor Glenn Jordan, Cabinet Member for Culture said: “This year’s festival has a really exciting and interesting mix with so many different ways for people to engage with the city’s history. From traditional walks and talks to audio trails and mobile trails, and from well-known historic sites and personalities to lesser-known aspects of our local heritage, I’m really proud of the programme that everyone has worked so hard to pull together. I hope as many people as possible will take the chance to learn something new about Plymouth while the festival is taking place.”

Additional events will be added to the festival website at www.historyfestival2018.wordpress.com as they are confirmed and a brochure will be available soon. You can also stay up-to-date with news about the festival on Facebook and Twitter by using @PlymHistoryFest