Outdoor Theatre If you prefer your theatre al-fresco, keep that raincoat handy for the British summer weather! On the North Yorkshire coast, the dramatic backdrop of Whitby Abbey provides an atmospheric setting to performances of ‘Dracula’. Another equally stunning English Heritage location – Tintagel Castle – hosts ‘Legends of King Arthur’ in August. Celebrate the 150th anniversary of Beatrix Potter’s birth as ‘Once upon a time there were Four Little Rabbits’ visits Bridgend whilst, elsewhere in Wales, ‘Peter Pan’ flies in to the National Trust site at Erdigg. National Trust attractions also provide the backdrop to a range of productions this summer, including ‘The Jungle Book’ in south London, ‘Gulliver’s Travels’ in Northumberland and ‘The Three Musketeers’ in Somerset. An adaptation of Julia Donaldson’s ‘The Smartest Giant in Town’ will be staged in Cheshire whilst the River Wey and Godalming Navigations provides a suitably aquatic setting for ‘The Water Babies’. For a fix of David Walliams’ humour, book your ticket for ‘Ratburger’ at Killerton in Devon.
Author Events It’s impossible to write about literary events over the summer without mentioning the literary behemoth that is Edinburgh International Book Festival. Among the Children’s Laureates past and present who will be appearing are Chris Riddell (delivering the Siobhan Dowd Trust Memorial Lecture), Malorie Blackman, Julia Donaldson and Jacqueline Wilson. For YA fans, don’t miss John Boyne and Simon Mayo exploring the role of moral responsibility, horror author Darren Shan and Branford Boase Award winner Annabel Pitcher. If you can’t get tickets to see Jacqueline Wilson, catch her at the
Foundling Museum’s ‘Hetty Feather Day’ in July. So whilst we can’t guarantee endless sunshine we’ve got the next best thing; a whole host of book-related activities to keep your children entertained over the next couple of months.
Clare Burkhill-Howarth organises author school visits through Book Events for Schools. For more updates about book-related summer activities, please follow @ChildBookEvents.
Take part in The Big Friendly Read
This year, libraries everywhere are celebrating 100 years of Roald Dahl and the Summer Reading Challenge 2016 is called The Big Friendly Read.
The Summer Reading Challenge is the UK’s largest reading challenge, involving hundreds of thousands of children each summer and is the perfect way to introduce children to their library and to encourage them to choose books freely and independently. Taking part is free, and a simple but fun collector scheme encourages children to read six or more books over the course of the holidays.
The Big Friendly Read will feature some of Roald Dahl’s best- loved characters and the artwork of his principal illustrator, Sir Quentin Blake. This year it will feature themes such as invention, mischief and friendship as explored in Roald Dahl’s books.
Children can sign up for the Summer Reading Challenge (the Tesco Bank Summer Reading Challenge in Scotland) at their local library as the school summer term ends and the holidays begin.
You can find out more at
http://summerreadingchallenge.org.uk/
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