Cerne Giant Festival
8th April to 9th May

The Cerne Giant Festival consists of a variety of events to encourage participants to gain a deeper understanding of the nature, landscape, history, and culture of Dorset and the Cerne Valley in particular.  This year the history events are exploring the Anglo-Saxon roots of Cerne Abbey which are slowly being revealed through the last 3 summers of archaeology.  The archaeologists have literally dug through centuries of history and are now turning up some intriguing objects from its earlier history.
This 'Giant' figure is the inspiration for the Cerne Giant Festival, whose strapline is 'Celebrating Humanity in the Landscape'.  Every year there are several weeks of events in the Cerne Valley whose purpose is to get us looking more deeply into the landscape and the role of human beings in it.  
The events cover a wide range of interests:  Nature, History, and Literature & Culture.: There are several events which families will particularly enjoy, including Nature Photography for Families, River-dipping and Fly-casting (hands-on with nets), Giants and Kings (poetry and storytelling, performed by Bards of Dorset), and Kith & Kin (a touring show about a Saxon housewife by professional actor historian Leela Bunce).

www.cernegiantfestival.org

On Sunday 17 May at 7.00pm, St Mary’s Church will resound to the glorious music of Handel, Bach and Mendelssohn when The Occasional Singers present a concert of short choral pieces for choir with chamber orchestra. 

They will be joined by the outstanding young Soprano Sumei Bao-Smith as they run the gamut of emotions from the joyful, energetic vigour of Handel’s ‘Let God Arise’ to the tender romantic passion of

Mendelssohn’s Psalm 42. The programme includes the famous soprano aria ‘Scherza Infida’ from Handel’s Ariodante.

Entrance is FREE. There will be a retiring collection for Weldmar Hospicecare. 

Everyone is most welcome.