Our guide to some of the best things to do in Norfolk this month
GARDENS
SANDRINGHAM FLOWER SHOW
One of the most prestigious horticultural events in the country returns to Sandringham on July 27.
Traditionally members of the royal family tour the display gardens and competition marquees of the Sandringham Flower Show and there is also plenty of entertainment for all the family, including gardening talks by experts, a craft marquee, trade stands and stalls, arena events, children’s activities and a military band.
ONE-DAY-ONLY INVITATION
Enjoy beautiful gardens, home-baked cakes - and the chance to help charities too as 16 Norfolk gardens open for the National Garden Scheme (NGS) this month.
Gardens opening for the NGS for the first time including in neighbouring Waverley Road and Branksome Road in Norwich on Sunday July 3, The White House, Ridlington, near North Walsham on July 10 and Ferndale, Upper Stoke Holy Cross on July 17.
Other gardens open for NGS this month include Hoveton Hall and Walcott House on July 3; Swafield Hall on July 9 and 10; Dunbheagan, Westfield, near Dereham and Tyger Barn, Aldeby, near Beccles, on July 17; Lexham Hall on July 20; 26 Ipswich Road, Norwich, Dale Farm, Dereham and Salle Park on July 24; 30 Hargham Road, Attleborough, 61 Trafford Way, Spixworth and The Long Barn, Newton Flotman on July 31. Book at ngs.org.uk and most gardens sell tickets at the gate too.
BISHOP’S GARDEN
The Bishop’s Garden in Norwich will be open 1-4.30pm on July 24 in aid of the National Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Children. The afternoon includes free activities for children.
ARTS AND CRAFTS
ANIMAL ART
Six stunning new pictures by Norfolk animal artist Lucy Boydell are at the Red Dot Gallery in Holt from July 23 to August 7. Freedom is the result of Lucy’s encounters with majestic stags, wild boar, hares, a great bustard and capercaillie. Each of the huge pictures, created in charcoal and chalk, are the result of months of observation and research.
Colin Rawlings of The Red Dot Gallery said; “I know of no other artist who can capture in chalk and charcoal, animals and birds in the way that Lucy does. The extent to which Lucy explores her subject helps to explain why the end results are so arresting.
Noble Gunton Stag is a portrait of the finest red stag at Gunton Park, near North Walsham. Lucy also drew a white hart the herd at Houghton Hall at said: “Being weighed up by this ghostlike yet, shining animal, almost dropped me to the grass. His magic moved me. His eyes looked into my soul. It was unforgettable.”
She went out to see hares at dawn and dusk and visited the Watatunga Wildlife Reserve near King’s Lynn to find great bustard and capercaillie. The reserve is part of a great bustard breeding and release project to bring the heaviest flying birds back into the English landscape after they was hunted to extinction in the 1800s.
AVANT GARDENERS
The work of the Norfolk artists and craftspeople of Contemporary and County is on show as Avant Gardeners in the stables at Houghton Hall, until September 25.
PICASSO
See some of Picasso’s earliest paintings in a major exhibition at the Sainsbury Centre, UEA, until July 17. Pablo Picasso: The Legacy of Youth focuses on his teenage years to his 30s, comparing his work with that of artists he admired including Monet and Gauguin.
MUSEUM ART
City life is the inspiration for The World We Live In: Art and the Urban Environment at Norwich Castle until September 4.
A textiles exhibition exploring age and dementia features portraits in fabric and thread at Gressenhall Farm and Workhouse near Dereham until October 30.
CRAFT
The Norwich Creative Craft Fair at the Halls, Norwich, on July 17 will include art, craft, food, music and workshops for adults and children.
OUT AND ABOUT
HISTORY
Journey through time from the Bronze Age to the 20th century at Sheringham Park on July 9 and 10. The history weekend includes a chance to explore an ancient tumulus, meet Victorian and Second World War living history reenactors, see a sawmill in action and a charcoal burning experiment and have a go at making Bronze Age style pottery.
YARMOUTH RACES
Ladies Night at Great Yarmouth Racecourse on July 13 features Rylan DJing live after the racing. The evening includes high fashion and food and drink as well as lots of horses.
NORFOLK DAY
Its Norfolk Day on July 27, when the whole county celebrates all things Norfolk. Look out for flags, fun, community events and lots of special offers, including free entry to the Museum of the Broads at Stalham – which has a new exhibition From Sails to Blades – How Wind Power Shaped the Broads.
NORWICH PRIDE
Norwich Pride on July 30 is a celebration of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT+) community with a carnival-style march and family friendly events.
THEATRE
NORWICH THEATRE ROYAL
The musical Chicago is at Norwich Theatre Royal from July 11-16. Set amid the razzle-dazzle decadence of the 1920s it tells the story of a housewife and nightclub dancer who kills her lover after he threatens to leave her.
The Theatre Royal programme this month also includes: Here Come The Boys on July 17 with dancers including Strictly finalist Karim Zeroual; Good Vibrations - Classic Beach Boys with the English Philharmonic Orchestra bringing the 1960s surfing sound to Norwich on July 20; Stand up with Omid Djalili: The Good Times Tour on July 21; and dance show On Before devised, directed and performed by Carlos Acosta, on July 29-30.
NORWICH PLAYHOUSE
Priscilla, Queen of the Desert is the feel-good story of three friends who hop aboard a battered old bus searching for love and friendship. July 5-10. The Lion, on July 22 and 23, is a one-man folk musical autobiography.
NORWICH ARTS CENTRE
Travel writer and adventurer, Simon Parker, shares his experience of cycling 3,427 miles around pandemic Britain in A night of adventure: Cycling 3,500 miles around pandemic Britain on July 14.
Simon passed through 55 counties on his epic journey interviewing hundreds of people including farmers, fishermen, artists, musicians, lifeboatmen and charity workers. Locally, he loved cycling through the Norfolk Broads and along the county’s coastline.
DREAM DESTINATION
See A Midsummer Night’s Dream, with the Festival Players International at Bylaugh Hall, in aid of the Friends of Bawdeswell and Bylaugh churches, at 2pm on July 31. Refreshments and stalls from 12. Tickets from ticketsource.co.uk
MUSIC
Wymondham Jazz Picnic on July 2 features Simon Nelson’s DixieMix at Becketswell Meadow, 6-9pm.
Eight-piece Elvis tribute act The Fabulous Blue Sueders will be at Blakeney’s Harbour Room at 9pm on July 2.
See Bryan Adams at Blickling Hall on July 8, followed by Michael Buble on July 11.
Before the Ending of the Day is a concert of piano and choral music for midsummer, including pieces by Chopin, Debussy and Tallis performed by Sheringham and Cromer Choral Society at Salthouse Church at 7pm on July 2 and at St Peter’s Church, Sheringham on July 16.
A Platinum Jubilee programme of concerts and events raising money for the village charities in Bergh Apton, near Loddon, continues with Christian singer songwriter Andrew Peterson on July 23. Proceeds shared with The Matthew Project.
Folk singer Nick Hart will perform songs from his native East Anglia at the Norfolk Wildlife Trust visitor centre in Cley on July 30.
