Devon has so many weird and unusual places and events that for a while I considered calling this newsletter Devon Peculiar.

There’s a particularly offbeat streak this week. A pub with two ancient standing stones INSIDE the building, eccentric music you won’t hear anywhere else, and moonlit swimming and rock-pooling on the moor.

Intrigued? Read on to satisfy your curiosity.

Yours in Devon,

P.S. And don’t forget our ever-popular prize competition section where you can win a 3-night stay for up to 10 people in Beer.

Saturday is the last regular opening this year at The Italian Garden at Great Ambrook, near Totnes.

With the weekend weather looking dry, it’s a chance to explore this restored 4-acre walled garden that was neglected from the 1960s.

The unique and extravagant architecture includes grand terraces, a sunken dell and elaborate water systems.

Saturday 26th September, Ipplepen. Entry £6, booking not required. Location

There are telescope sessions including laser-guided viewings from Dunster Castle.

But don’t miss some of the even more unusual offerings from the Exmoor Dark Skies Festival next month.

🌕 Take a moonlit pool dip

🚵 Ride an e-bike across the dark moor

🐸 Go UV rock-pooling

🍖 Sit down for a stargazing supper

Choose from 70 events from Friday 16th October to Sunday 1st November. Download the full programme

I’d be surprised if you’ve heard anything like it.

Three odd bands, specialising in experimental music, play a 2.5-hour concert at Barnstaple Guildhall.

The Last Highway is a mixture of “dark jazz, industrial abrasion and eerie soundscapes”.

Slow Slow Loris make “industrial noise melodies” and Sieben features a live-looped Kevlar violin sending out “dark folk, punk and electro-pop”.

7pm, Saturday 10th October. Tickets: £10 online or £12 on the door.

If you’re looking for an intimate local festival in a typical thatched Devon village on the edge of Dartmoor, this is it.

Dunsford, just west of Exeter, is running its community beer and music gathering in the village hall for a third year.

Enjoy real ales, folk rock from Five Finger Eddie and blues by Jeff Horsey.

Friday 16th and Saturday 17th October, Dunsford Village Hall. Location. Free parking. Details and tickets: £10 online, £12 on the door.

James Wright crawls through cellars and climbs into lofts to find the truth about old buildings.

He’s an architectural detective, uncovering clues that prove the history of some of Britain’s 500,000 listed buildings, many of which are wrongly identified.

Meet him at Plympton St Maurice Guildhall at the launch of his new book, The Buildings Archaeologist.

7pm, Friday 16th October. Tickets: £8.83

NEXT WEEK: The Go Devon! Newsletter guide to Arts & Crafts Workshops Autumn-Winter 2026.

Do you remember Wishbone Ash and did you like them?

Verdict: A surprisingly large number of you knew and loved this progressive rock band playing in Plymouth soon.

Steve said: “They formed in Torquay where I live. I saw them supporting Deep Purple ”

Gaynor commented: “Saw them at a festival in the 70s. Making me feel ancient ”

rsclarke said: “Brilliant band and music. Have all of their albums”

A medieval North Devon village has a weird claim to fame: not one but two ancient standing stones in the local.

The larger South Zeal menhir rises through the Oxenham Arms, with 7ft of granite visible in the snug and more in the room above. No one seems to know how deep it goes into the ground.

In another room, another great pointed rock, possibly Roman or early Christian, props up the ceiling.

HISTORY: Benedictine monks are said to have built a monastery around the big one, but there’s little known about the second.

Some say the ancient menhirs give off energy, but the Oxenham is worth a visit anyway for low beams and log fires.

Combine your visit with a wander through the village, a walk towards Cosdon Beacon or visit the water-powered Finch Foundry at Sticklepath.

*Closing dates in brackets

FEATURED: 🎉 A bumper bundle of hotel stays and goodies worth £1,500, including a 2-night stay and 3-course meal at The Bull Inn, Totnes, a 1-night stay for 2 at the Idle Rocks in St Mawes (Cornwall we know, but we’ll make an exception), a champagne vineyard tour in Hampshire, a £230 Lalique perfume and 2 VIP tickets to a London jewellery fair (27th Sep)

🌳 A 2-night mid-week stay in a treehouse near Dartmouth, including a local goodies welcome hamper, logs for the wood burner, hot tub and a late check-out (28th Sep)

NEW! 🌊 A 3-night stay for up to 10 people at Sea Holly House in Beer (30th Sep)

🛳 A return trip to the Scilly Isles (Cornwall creeping in again!) for 2 people on the new Scillonian IV from March 2027. Entrants must have EX or TQ postcodes (30th Sep)

NEW! 🦌 A 2-night stay at the Gidleigh Park hotel near Chagford (13th Oct)

NEW! 🏖 A £400 holiday voucher for Ladram Bay Holiday Park near Budleigh Salterton (13th Oct)

NEW! ♨ A spa experience at Shaldon including a 1-hour skin treatment and use of gym and sauna facilities, worth £105 (17th Oct)

Want more competitions? Click here

Did you win something? Let me know

⛵ 2,000 people. One greasy pole

🦌 Wild game, vodka and fudge

🛟 Sink or swim

🌼 Private Devon gardens open in September and October

That’s all for this week. Thanks for being a member.

NEXT ISSUE Autumn and winter craft workshops

Andy, Esme and Lara