WATERFEST is returning to Reading for its 35th year this month, celebrating the Kennet and Avon Canal with a packed schedule of shows and events.
Reading Borough Council is teaming with the Kennet and Avon Canal Trust to explore the history of the canal and the surrounding area, including Reading Abbey.
The event sees live performances, workshops, activities, and talks within the ruins of the abbey and Forbury Gardens.
Among them is the Charity Super.Mkt event, which sees pop-up stalls selling second-hand and pre-loved clothing and accessories.
Red or Dead co-founder Wayne Hemingway will also join the People’s Catwalk, a fashion show championing sustainable fashion.
Reading Climate Festival will also take over part of the event, featuring a number of climate change organisations.
The Huntley Wharf stage will see Tino Masanga mix gospel and hip-hop and The Small Strings perform popular covers on ukeleles, as well as performances from the Over-50s dance group, led by Sonia Brown, and My Northern Sky.
Cllr Adele Barnett-Ward, Reading’s Lead Councillor for Leisure and Culture, said: “There is so much to look forward to at Water Fest 2024, and celebrating its 35th year, the event on Saturday 8 June will put the planet at its heart, celebrating our beautiful waterways and inspiring everyday action and changes we can all take to protect them.”
Alex Aitchison, on behalf of the Station Hill joint venture between Lincoln and MGT, said: “The Station Hill team is proud to sponsor Reading Water Fest 2024.
“The centre of Reading is undergoing a dramatic transformation of which Station Hill is a key element.
He explained: “High-profile events like Water Fest serve to showcase the town more widely and the diverse range of activities which it offers to those visiting, living and working in Reading.
“As well as offering up to 1,300 homes – including ‘Ebb & Flow’ in Friars Walk – and more than 600,000 sq ft of best-in-class office space, Station Hill will deliver two acres of public realm and other spaces, representing an investment of around £50 million in social infrastructure, landscaping and improved pedestrian accessibility.
“We hope that everyone attending Reading Water Fest 2024 has a great day out!”
Waterfest takes place in Forbury Gardens and Abbey Ruins on Saturday, June 8.
Full details are available via: reading.gov.uk/leisure/things-to-do/
