❤️ Hello Me ‘Ansomes,

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Savour Devon tastes from cheese to chutney

As food festivals go, this is the Devon biggie and a day out for all the family.

Now in it’s 10th year, Powderham Food Festival has more than 100 local food traders defining the tastes of the county as well as a providing a range of family entertainment.

Hear talks and watch demonstrations of cheese-making, honey production and the history of wine-making, and taste everything from cheese to chutney.

Entertainment includes a climbing wall, axe throwing, a chilli eating contest, face art, goat walking and pony grooming.

Tickets: Adult £5, child, carer, parking free

Saturday 5th and Sunday 6th October.

Powderham Castle, Kenton, Exeter EX6 8JQ

Find out what a T. Rex concert was really like

Marc Bolan and his band T. Rex were among the most flamboyant and charismatic stars of the glam rock era.

Tribute band T. Rextasy with Danielz have been performing around the world for more than 20 years, a career that is now ironically longer than Bolan’s.

The band is accepted as the world’s only official live T. Rex tribute band, endorsed and approved by Bolan’s family and ex-band members.

Playing for one night at the Exeter Northcutt Theatre, this is how you find out what a Bolan concert of the 70s was actually like with hits Jeepster, I Love to Boogie and Telegram Sam. Watch a video.

The Stage said: “Danielz is more than a career lookalike. Here we have a serious guitarist with the animal grace of early Bolan and the clear unequivocal love of the music”

Sunday 29th September. Tickets: £29.50

A grand celebration of the goose

Tavistock’s historic autumn party with 200 stalls and a traditional funfair is on Wednesday 9th October.

The geese don’t get driven down the roads for fattening any more but the more authentic side of Goose Fair can still be found at the Tavistock Livestock Centre.

At the market’s Open Day between 10am and 4pm on the day you can see cattle, sheep and Dartmoor ponies, and enjoy the auction of live geese and poultry.

Market traders come from all over the country to sell their wares and provide entertainment at Goose Fair, which has run since the early 12th century.

Parking can be tricky so plan ahead and consider using one of 3 park and ride schemes at Yelverton Aerodrome, Gulworthy, and Whitchurch Down, to ease congestion and frustration.

Arrival of the Queen of Sheba at Stoke Damerel Church

A 2-hour medley of well-known and not so well-known chamber orchestra classics comes to Plymouth on Sunday 13th October.

The Chamber Ensemble of London under Peter Fisher have a play list including Handel’s Arrival of the Queen of Sheba, Bach’s Air on a G String, and Marcello’s Concerto for Oboe in D minor.

You’ll also hear:

From 4pm to 6pm. Stoke Damerel Church, 85 Paradise Road, Stoke Damerel PL1 5QL

Tickets: Adult £20, under 18 £5

Spend an evening with singer Jane McDonald

Love, glamour and warm Yorkshire wit is pretty much guaranteed for Jane McDonald audiences on her latest tour entitled All My Love.

The singer, TV presenter and performer is best known for her powerful vocals and down to earth personality. She found stardom in 1998 in the BBC docusoap The Cruise and has never looked back, becoming a Loose Women host and presenting 8 series of a cruising travel programme.

The singer has had four top 10 albums in the UK and has appeared at the Royal Albert Hall and the London Palladium.

7.30pm, Saturday 19th October. Plymouth Pavilions

Tickets: from £51.90

Devon Curiosities #25: Bowerman’s Nose

A 20ft column of granite with a legendary past is one of the enduring images of Dartmoor, used to depict the region on tea towels, coffee mugs and websites.

Bowerman’s Nose is an awesome sight, not least as you wonder how the form can be natural and not a man-made construction to worship some god.

Situated not far from the village of Manaton on the eastern side of the moor, the outcrop is in fact the remains of an eroded tor.

The human-like features gave rise to the legend of Bowerman the Hunter who roamed the land with a pack of fearsome dogs. Having accidentally disrupted a coven of witches he suffered their wrath by being turned to a pillar of stone.

According to the tale, local people were so upset they drove every witch out of the county into Wales, explaining why there are no longer any witches in Devon.

Read a longer version of the legend here.

A short drive and walk from Manaton, TQ13 9XQ

WHAT ELSE IS ON

🌊 North Devon

SEPTEMBER

Sat 14th to Sun 29th

NATURE | 🥾 Mid Devon Walking Festival | A variety of walks throughout the beautiful mid Devon countryside | Prices vary per event | Find locations and prices for each event here

OCTOBER

Tue 1st

MUSIC | 🎙️ Gareth Gates sings Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons | Queens Theatre, Barnstaple EX31 1SY | Tickets from £39

Sat 5th and Sun 6th

HARVEST | 🌽 Festival of Flavours at RHS Rosemoor | RHS Garden Rosemoor, Torrington EX38 8PH | General admission required for entry - Adult tickets £15.85, child £7.95

Wed 9th

CRAFT | 🧺 Willow Basket Weaving Workshop | Quince Honey Farm, South Molton EX36 3RD | Tickets £40

Thu 10th

CHARITY | 🔥 Fire Walk for Amber | Ashley Court, Chawleigh EX18 7EX | Single entry £33.22, Team entry (up to 5 people) £136.14

Tue 15th to Fri 18th

THEATRE | 🎭 Frankenstein | The Landmark Theatre, Ilfracombe EX34 9BZ | Tickets from £29

Sun 27th

REUSE | ♻️ Tiverton Salvage Fair | Tiverton Pannier Market, Tiverton EX16 6NH | Free

NOVEMBER

Fri 1st

MUSIC | 🎵 A Celebration of Young Bands | The Plough Arts Centre, Torrington EX38 8HQ | Tickets £7

Sun 17th

TRADITION | 🐟 Clovelly Herring Festival | Clovelly Harbour, Bideford EX39 5TF

Thu 28th

FESTIVITIES | 🎄 Barnstaple Christmas Light Switch On | The Square, Barnstaple EX32 8LN | Free

🐬 South Devon

SEPTEMBER

Sat 14th to Sun 22nd

FOOD & DRINK | 🍛 Taste East Devon Festival | Various locations, view the events map here and schedule here

Sat 14th to Sun 29th

NATURE | 🥾 Mid Devon Walking Festival | A variety of walks throughout the beautiful mid Devon countryside | Prices vary per event | Find locations and prices for each event here

Wed 18th to Sun 22nd

BOOKS | 📚 Budleigh Salterton Literary Festival | Almost 70 different events running throughout different venues in Budleigh Salterton | Find event information and prices here

Sat 28th to Sun 3rd Nov

AUTUMN | 🍁 Pennywell Farm’s Pumpkin Festival | Pennywell Farm, Buckfastleigh TQ11 0LT | Adult entry £21.95, U15s £17.95, U3s Free

OCTOBER

Thu 3rd

TALK | 🎤 An Evening with Sir Geoff Hurst | Exeter Northcott Theatre, Exeter EX4 4QB | Tickets from £32.50

Fri 4th to Sun 13th 

SCIENCE | 🧬 Sidmouth Science Festival | Variety of events throughout Sidmouth | To see the events, locations and prices follow the festival guide here

Thu 10th

TALK | 🗣️ The survival of the Amazon rainforest is under threat by Prof Sir Ghillean Prance | Plymouth Athenaeum, Plymouth PL1 2SW | Free

Thu 10th to Sat 12th

COMIC BALLET | 🩰 La Fille mal gardée performed by the Birmingham Royal Ballet | Theatre Royal, Plymouth PL1 2TR | Tickets from £37

Sat 19th

ECOSYSTEM | 🦀 Brixham Breakwater Beach Rockpooling | Learn all about aquatic wildlife from marine biologists | Bistro, Breakwater Beach, Brixham TQ5 9AF | Free

Tue 22nd

RELAX | 🧘‍♂️ Ashtanga yoga at the aquarium | National Marine Aquarium, Plymouth PL4 0LF | Tickets £10

🏆️ Win Devon prizes

We find Devon prize competitions so you don’t have to.

Closing dates in brackets. Terms and conditions apply, see individual websites for details.

You could win:

🛏️ A 3-night weekend break for 2 at a Torquay leisure resort including breakfast, live entertainment, pool and spa (No closing date given)

🌊 A 2-night stay for 2 at Waterfront House, Dartmouth (No closing date given)

NEW!  😄 Tickets to Su Pollard on 17th October at Exmouth Pavilion (23rd Sep)

NEW!  🍓 Tickets to Powderham Food Festival on 5th and 6th October (23rd Sep)

🏇 5 paddock enclosure tickets for Newton Abbot Racecourse (23rd Sep)

🪙 A £250 holiday voucher and some attraction tickets (30th Sep)

🏰 A 2-night stay for 2 including breakfast and a 3-course evening meal and spa at the Boringdon Hall in Plymouth (30th Sep)

🧀 A cheese lover’s dream, a delicious 10-cheese hamper (30th Sep)

🛏️ An overnight stay with dinner at a dreamy Salcombe coastal hotel plus a local brewery tour (30th Sep)

🛏️ An overnight stay for two at Cary Arms & Spa, Torquay including breakfast (8th Oct)

🍸️ A bottle of vodka and vodka liqueur set of blueberry, raspberry, caramel and elderflower (8th Oct)

NEW!  🏇 A fabulous West Country weekend bundle including 2 tickets to Exeter and Wincanton Racecourses, a hotel stay for 2, a spa package, £100 restaurant voucher, and afternoon tea for 2 (11th Oct)

🪙 A £500 voucher for a South Devon holiday park holiday (17th Oct)

NEW!  ⛱️ A 3-night break at a Brixham Holiday Park in 2025 (31 Oct)

👨‍👨‍👧‍👦 A 2-night stay for up to 16 family and friends at a Devon farmhouse (31st Jan 2025)

That’s all for this week, but…

With Devon love,

Andy, Esme, Lara and the Go Devon! team