Summer festivals for children
Categories: Toddlers, Kids+, Fun & activities, Places to go / holidays
I love festivals. Not just your 'get muddy and rock out' type but the 'all the fun of the fair' type too. This weekend Manchester International Festival held a specially created children's event for 3- to 11-year-olds called The Great Indoors. It was an ambitious, colourful, wildly creative and fun example of why children deserve the best quality entertainment too.If you didn't happen to catch it, there are lots more children's festivals coming up over the summer holidays:
Manchester's Family Friendly Film Festival is now in it fourth year. There's a Bollywood themed day with films and dance, spooky night time events in some of Manchester's haunted venues and enchanted open air screenings.If you're craving a Glastonbury moment stop by the 28th Glastonbury Children's Festival for a world of performances and workshops.
The Bristol Harbour Children's Festival includes workshops, pirate performances and circus skills to keep everyone from toddlers to teens busy for a long weekend. There's a larger festival happening at the same time with an impressive line-up of music, dance, markets, circus performances and an eco-zone.
In Oxford the Towersey Village Children's Festival holds arts, crafts, music, mime, puppets and storytelling in store.
The Nottingham Children's Festival takes over the city for a full two weeks. You'll find everything from riverside musicians to a global picnic and family friendly cinema screenings, alongside workshops and the seemingly obligatory story telling and puppets (there's a theme developing!)
Finally, the Rose Theatre's Children's Festival in Kingston is running a month long celebration of some all time favourite children's stories including The Tiger Who Came To Tea, The Gruffalo and We're Going on a Bearhunt. They are also offering workshops particularly suitable for children ages 3 upwards.
If you know of more children's festivals add them in a comment below and keep the list growing.












Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Joanne Mallon 7-13-2009 @ 1:12PM
There's the very sweet-sounding My First Festival happening at Legoland this weekend - it's a talent competition judged by BGT winner George Sampson, more info here: http://www.parentdish.co.uk/2009/06/28/britains-got-talent-winners-advice-for-young-performers-excl/
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Ruth 7-14-2009 @ 4:38AM
Hi Sally, dont forget all the fantatsic children's theatre festivals as well - mostly listed on the Assitej site (or on Earlyarts ebulletins but not all at once): http://www.tya-uk.org/internationalactivitylistings.asp . Great stuff to have all this together - I have been doing something similar (informally for friends) for the Pennines / north west theatre listings for children & families but has got the better of me recently - perhaps we should join up on that? Best, Ruth xx
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Sally Fort 7-14-2009 @ 5:30AM
Thanks for these additions. It strikes me that there are some big gaps in provision of children's festivals, surely there should be at least one in each county or borough at some point in the year.
Any more additions anyone?
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