Thousands attend canal gala
Stoke Bruerne Gala weekend.
A display of pyrotechnics on a floating treasure island was one of the highlights during last weekend’s Stoke Bruerne Canal Festival and Gala Weekend.
Organisers believe visitor numbers soared following the cancellation of the Northampton Carnival due to safety concerns. Many of them took the chance to ride boats into the famous one three quarter mile Blisworth Canal Tunnel and were given a glimpse of what life would have been like on the historic waterway with a display of working narrow boats, canal craft demonstrations, children’s storytelling workshops. There was even a one woman theatre show about life on “the cut” from Roundham Theatre’s Kate Saffin.
As usual the weekend kicked off with an evening performance on the canal side by the waterborne Mikron Theatre Company on Thursday evening and a get-together with a musical jam session and bar on Friday evening. The weekend continued with live music, model boats, , champagne and strawberries, -and trade stalls, children’s games and face painting, vintage canal films, guided heritage walks and a real ale bar. Stoke Bruerne’s new blacksmith Bob Nightingale also gave demonstrations in his forge at the tunnel entrance.
David Blagrove, chairman of organisers The Friends of the Canal Museum thanked Northants County Council, South Northants Homes and the Co-operative Society who helped cover costs, allowing more proceeds to go to the museum.
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Weather for Buckingham
Monday 20 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 11 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 6 C to 15 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: North
