THIS WEEKEND
FRI 16 - SUN 18 JUNE 2017
Waddesdon Feast, Waddesdon Manor, nr Aylesbury, Sat 17 & Sun 18 June
Free entry for dads at Batsford Arboretum – on production of a valid child of course; at Bucks Railway Centre up to 60 historic vehicles will be on display, plus unlimited free steam train rides and the miniature ride-on steam trains (£1 per person); at Bletchley Park, there’s a traditional Father’s Day Barbecue with Forties’ Swing Band, The Bevin Boys. Swing Dance MK will also be on hand to demonstrate some 1940s dance moves for those you too tired to lock n pop.
Matthew Bourne’s The Red Shoes, Wycombe Swan, Tues 13 – Sat 17 June
Another dazzling production from enfant terrible of the ballet world, Matthew Bourne. This brilliant adaption of the 1948 Powell and Pressburger film is in High Wycombe all week as part of a national tour.
Wycombe Swan Theatre, St Mary St, High Wycombe, wycombeswan.co.uk
Giffords Circus – Any Port in a Storm, Oxford University Parks, Thurs 15 – Mon 26 June
This year the inimitable Giffords Circus is recreating a 17th-century Spanish court and putting on a candle-lit international gymnastic show with dancing horses, a live band and everyone’s favourite clown Tweedy.
An immersive interactive exhibition on tour from Science Projects of London, whose work is featured in major science centres around the world. Visitors can experiment with odd musical instruments such as the light lyre with its light beams instead of strings and the theremin played by moving your hands close to two aerials. Sounds fun for kids, who can also find out how their vocal cords work, watch their voice on a computer screen and try to work out sound illusions.
Oxfordshire Science Festival 2017, Fri 16 – Weds 21 June
Hear like an insect, build a star or watch a contagious cabaret at the Oxfordshire Science Festival. The hands-on Explorazone will open in the evening on Saturday 17 June for adults only, so grown-ups can play at being a paramedic, a plasma physicist or prevent a Polio pandemic (I don’t know about you, but that’s always been on my bucket list). Open to all the family on Fri and Sat so kids can get enthused about everything from solar plasmas to insect’s knees.
Nocturne Live, Summer Concerts, Blenheim Palace, Thurs 15 – Sun 18 June
Garsington Opera- Pelléas et Mélisande, Wormsley Estate, Stokenchurch, Fri 16 & Sun 18 June
Debussy’s only opera, Pelléas et Mélisande opens this week at Garsington. Grounds are open from 3.30pm on each performance day so get there early to have a snoop around the Walled Garden, Deer Park or afternoon tea overlooking the beautiful Wormsley Cricket Pitch.
Holy Batman! Wear your big pants with pride, swing your capes over your shoulders and prepare for an action packed Superhero Family Fun Day at Beale Park. It’s Father’s Day too, so show the old man how much you love him by entering him into the 5km Fun Run and meet him at the finish line with a pint. Then simply load the kids up with candy floss and let them blow the sugar rush on the bouncy castle and funfair. Entry: £5 adults, £2 kids and free entry for under 12s. All registered runners will enter free of charge.
