Bird is The Word Caged! Trowbridge’s New Music Venue Coming Soon It looks like fowlers have finally caught them! I mean, wildly flying around, daytime clubbing, karaoke cavorting, supporting and promoting local live music, who does that?!  Cracking Pair Claire and Chloe Grist do. They set up the…

Deadlight Dance New Single & Video New single from our gothic duo Deadlight Dance, taken from March’s album Vox Populi…. Second tune on the album, a ballad to the poisonous evergreen shrub Daphne odora, which I classed as “a poignant plodding shoegazer.” The video looks very botanical and…

Who’s Lovin a Devizes McDonalds and Tesco? For what it's worth, I'm impartial to the prospect of McDonalds, Tesco too. I've got viewpoints to waffle endlessly with no real conclusion, if you've nothing more important to be getting on with, but I'm certainly not all-out “lovin’ it”.... The initial…

Brian on FullTone Festival Our regular historian and Visiting Research Fellow of The Regional History Centre, UWE Bristol, Brian Edwards takes some time to sketch the FullTone Orchestra ahead of next weekend's festival.... I was blown away when attending one of the Fulltone Orchestra's practice…

CSF Professional Wrestling Returns to Devizes The larger than life superstars from CSF PROFESSIONAL WRESTLING return to Devizes, Wiltshire on July 11th for a very special edition of SATURDAY NIGHT SLAM, as WWF/WWE Legend: Scotty 2 Hotty will be live and in action! The former WWF Tag Team, World…

Update on the Update of a Postcard Fiasco as Untouchable Newsquest Joins the Party! Though I wish it would be dropped and faded into the archives, it’s got legs! We’re still on about “postcardgate,” but the trivia sometimes becomes the nitty-gritty when the persnickety board the good train…

CrownFest at Bishop's Cannings made a glorious return at the weekend.....

An Update on our Postcard Criticism Earlier today I published an opinion piece on the postcard sent by someone at Devizes Town Council to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, for the Town of Culture Award. Please read this first for relevance to this update….. This isn't an apology. I…

I Smell of Market Stall! Devizes’ Best Bid for Town of Culture Award Well, that's that then. In a bid to win a Town of Culture award, yesterday Devizes Town Councillors sent a digital postcard to the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, and, just like Mick Jagger and David Bowie duetting…

Slowly Burning the Midnight Oil with a New Single Midnight oil has been burning at Potterne’s Badger Set studio as Devizes’ most impressive and talked about upcoming band, Burn The Midnight Oil takes it to a whole other level with a new single, Slow Burn, and it’s out tomorrow….. In a relatively…

Perusing Through the Pews; Lawrence Arts Society at St Mary’s Devizes If you ever stopped to wonder how many artists live locally, drop into St Mary’s in Devizes, because you’ll be impressed by the annual exhibit of the Lawrence Art Society, currently running until next Thursday, the 9th July, and…

Boots and Braces, Get Ready for Devizes Scooter Rally We've been on about the other big Devizes events we're looking forward to across July, but on the 24th to the 26th it'll be time to get up on your feet, put your braces together and your boots on your feet, and give us some of that old…

There’s Lots happening in July in Wiltshire, With or Without Bradley Walsh! Please don’t get me wrong, I love that Bradley Walsh Cockney sparrow, and could imagine myself having a right laugh with him down any boozer he cared to drop into! But here we wouldn’t suggest you should wait for Brad to…

Mantonfest Magic Multiplies Mantonfest, the longstanding gem on Marlborough's event calendar, finalised for another fantastic year last night, with metal-driven mayhem, as the sounds of AC/DC ripped across Treacle Brolly…. Tribute act AC/DC UK had a challenge, to top Dan Budd, who unleashed a…

National Meadows Day: The Grass & Time Soundscape Lecture at Richard Jefferies Museum Part environmental lecture, part live performance, and part immersive sonic journey, The Grass & Time Soundscape Lecture offers a unique way to celebrate National Meadows Day, Saturday 4th July from 2 to 4:30pm…

Feed Your Head; new single for @George Wilding out tomorrow!

MantonFest This Weekend. Failing That, Park Farm Next Month! What do mean it’s a bit short notice for me to tell you about a festival happening this weekend? I’ve been banging on about it since winter and it’s all there on the event calendar, you know?! My first MantonFest experience was in 2021…

Chloe Hepburn’s Lullaby New single from Swindon soul diva Chloe Hepburn, under the rebranding CHLÖVER out last week, is worthy of your attention in my honest opinion. For if Oliva Dean is bringing back a retrospective soul sound to the upcoming generation, and Lola Young breathes some English…

McDonalds Coming to Devizes?! Okay, it was the April Fools joke I broke the Internet with in 2021, but it's not the 1st of April today….. Bishop's Cannings Parish Council announced that they are “aware” of a proposal for a new McDonald’s drive-thru restaurant on the site of the Murco garage at…

Using Fulltone as a Proper Noun To most, “full” and “tone” are two separate words, but around here it's been a portmanteau and a proper noun since 2019, conveying a unique musical experience where orchestral meets pop, thanks to The Fulltone Orchestra…. Yeah, they may play elaborate concerts…

Devizes’ Sammi Evans Features on Innereyefull Dub If I was pleased to hear the vocals of Devizes singer-songwriter Sammi Evans would feature on a single, I was even more delighted when I asked Sammi if it was an electronic dance track, and she replied “it’s reggae!” Well now, this is really…

Looking Back At Devizes Arts Festival 2026 Featured Image: Gail Foster. Features extracts from reviews by Andy Fawthrop, Ian Diddams and Madelaine Blake. Does it ever stop?! The weekend is upon us again. I think I might need to skip this one, not getting any younger, and besides I did enough…

Phil Beer to Perform at The Pump on Friday 4th December! “Mr Phil Beer needs no introduction to anyone,” says a spokesperson for The Pump in Trowbridge, our grassroots venue kicking up turf on Rolling Stone Magazine last week! Regardless of their mainstream coverage, thankfully The Pump hasn’t…

Award-Winning Circus Cortex BizZzar Comes to Devizes This July Get ready for an unforgettable family day out as Circus Cortex BizZzar brings its award-winning Big Top spectacular to Devizes from 9–12 July 2026..... Performing at The Green, Southbroom Road, Devizes, SN10 1LL, this thrilling…

Who are you most looking forward to seeing at CrownFest? CrownFest at The Crown in Bishops Cannings is making a fantastic comeback this July with a stellar lineup, particularly supporting local acts, begging the question, who are you most looking forward to seeing there? It's not as easy an answer…

“Don’t Drive to Stonehenge” Advises English Heritage! Summer Solstice in Wiltshire; it's a crowd-puller, but even forty years after the Battle of the Beanfield and decades of attempted commercialisation, it remains a tourism the authorities clearly don't appreciate….. Wiltshire Police and English…

Nothing Seems as Sweet as the Start; NRWO as Devizes Arts Festival’s Finale All Images: ©Gail Foster If last Saturday's Celtic punk band quipped if the Devizes Corn Exchange was a bingo hall, and Milton Jones jested “it's great to be here, in the past,” it took a band with roots to the town to…

Milton Jones; Deadpan in Devizes Mock the Week’s recurring panellist and Radio 4 comedian Milton Jones stood on the stage of Devizes Corn Exchange on Friday, with the setter, “it’s great to be here, in the past!” And thereafter, everything which came from his mouth was utterly hilarious. Thank you…

Andy's been Swinging in Paris.... via Devizes Arts Festival

Let’s Go Swimming with Poppy Rose Two years ago we fondly reviewed I’m Ready Now, a debut EP from Bath’s Poppy Rose. I praised her unique take, her thoughtful prose and intelligent metaphors, but it was a collection of songs each with separate thoughts. Poppy’s new EP, Let’s Go Swimming is on…

Wiltshire Air Ambulance’s Summer Behind-the-Scenes Tour Join the Wiltshire Air Ambulance team on one of their behind-the-scenes tours of the Charity's airbase at Semington on Thursday the 9th July…. By joining you will gain an insight into how they run this extraordinary lifesaving service. The…

Swindon Travel Hub Brings Cruise & Holiday Show to the County Ground Holidaymakers from across Swindon & Wiltshire are being invited to attend one of the region's newest travel events this summer as Swindon Travel Hub hosts its inaugural Cruise & Holiday Show at the County Ground on Sunday 5th…

A Monday Morning Devizes Arts Festival photography workshop with Bob Holman.....

Devizes Town Council’s Oversight on Pride Flag Corrected Today A lot has happened since last week's article on the decline of local Pride events. Not all of it has been positive, but I'm pleased to say in Devizes, it is…. If Essex has seen Prides banned by Reform-run councils, Chippenham Pride…

Manning Lifeboats, In Devizes! Manning the lifeboats with Devizes Arts Festival in landlocked Devizes last night, and I didn’t even get a sticker. I did shake a tailfeather out of my system, more importantly. For if all-originals London-based Celtic folk-punker five-piece Man the Lifeboats seemed…

Andy again, on Robert Vincent last night at Devizes Arts Festival. Thanks Andy!

Mindful Stitching Workshop with Dollies Dimples Would you like a new hobby? To meet new friends? Or, maybe you are looking for a gentle way to slow down and quieten a busy mind. The Mindful Stitching Workshop is a creative textile journey happening at St Andrew’s Church, Devizes, organised by…

REVIEW – Devizes Arts Festival– “Collecting – An Art, A Hobby Or A Compulsion?” with Clare Durham and Paul Martin @ Wiltshire Museum (Friday 5th June 2026) Going, Going, Gone by Andy Fawthrop As I keep going on about, Devizes Arts Festival continues to bring up these little treats from its…

Devizes; Full of Scummy Mummies!

Ben took at trip out to Swindon to see St Fian at SoP Live's Thursday Music Club at The Castle.... and came back enlightened!

REVIEW – Devizes Arts Festival– “Behind The Lens – My Life in Wildlife Film-Making & Photography” with Nick Upton @ Assembly Room (Thursday 4th June 2026) It’s Not As Easy As It Looks by Andy Fawthrop The Devizes Arts Festival continued on a very wet Market Day this Thursday, and continues to…

Local performer Grace Sheridan to Share Stage With Jason Donovan at Fulltone Festival A talented local performer from Devizes is set to share the stage with international star Jason Donovan this summer as part of Fulltone Festival ’26. .... Grace Sheridan, who will appear alongside Jason Donovan…

A Devizes Arts Festival Lunchtime Recital with Fábio Fernandes Andy’s topping the leaderboard for Devizes Arts Festival reviews; if I pull my socks up and attend a lunchtime recital at least I’ve chalked my name on it. Classical guitar at St Andrews Church, how bad could it be? Just a handful of…

Pride Where Pride is Needed Pride month finds me wondering if Pride events are actually needed more in our smaller market towns where awareness and acceptance is perhaps lesser than in larger towns where diversity is tolerated more, but Prides are already established. Then I ponder deeper, if…

Devizes Arts Festival Reviews: Steve Tuffin’s Have-A-Go Workshop on Memoir-Writing, Anthony Horowitz – “A Life In Murder”, and Becky Grey’s “How I Became A Ghost Writer” It’s All In The Writing Andy Fawthrop The Devizes Arts Festival is now in its 40th year and, as ever, seems to be in robust…

Make Music This Summer Launches at Wiltshire Music Centre; 19 Days of Musical Activities for Children and Young People Wiltshire Music Centre is launching the Make Music This Summer programme, a vibrant 19-day programme of musical activities for children, young people and families..... Designed…

After Ruby, Barrelhouse and RowdeFest 26 Images by Jess Worrow A busy late spring weekend across the county, with major events from Bradford-on-Avon to Swindon, but I'm bringing quality acts I find elsewhere on my adventures into my village. Rowdefest was, again, a great success, if I do say so…

Sir Tony Robinson, Nigel Planer, T’Pau, and Timmy Mallett… and More at Frome Festival in July Tickets are now on sale for Frome Festival’s silver anniversary year, taking place between the 3rd – 12th July, 2026. Three hundred events are scheduled in 58 venues in and around Frome during the 10-day…

The Wharf Acting Company's Whose Play is it Anyway and Lou Cox's Having a Baby and the Sh!t They Don’t Tell You in Books are both showing at the Wharf Theatre on Friday 29th and Saturday 30th May, before heading to the Edinburgh Fringe....

Phil, Jamie and Tamsin Return to The Fold With duty calling in the wee hours of each Saturday, it’s got to be something special to drag me off the sofa on a Friday evening, and whilst I’d rather not provide only half a gig review, this has to be said. Phil Cooper invited some friends along to The…