Gap Festival paints the town pink (…well the villages at least)

Pink wheelbarrows liven up streets of Goring and Streatley

The villages of Goring and Streatley are taking on a pink hue in the lead up to next week’s Gap Festival (June 14 to 17). Businesses throughout the villages have bought bright pink wheelbarrows which they will fill with florally themed decorations as part of a promotion for the arts festival and the Open Gardens event on the festival Sunday. Twenty local business have adopted a wheelbarrow and their creations are already springing up around the villages. The wheelbarrows will gather in the Gardiner Recreation field on Sunday, June 17, where they will be auctioned, with funds going to the festival.

This year’s Gap Festival has a strong garden-related theme with Joe Swift inspiring the audience on the Friday. This will be followed by Local Gardening Experts Question time with a panel that includes Root-One Garden Centre founder Jeremy Brudenell, local garden designer Rob Jones, cottage gardener and author Claire Hastings and National Trust head gardener Tim Martin. The morning will open with a floral masterclass from flower farmer, floral designer and author, Rachel Siegfried of Green & Gorgeous.

The GAP Festival is the biennial cultural event and celebration in the villages of the Goring Gap, four days of music, literature, visual and performing arts, talks, demonstrations, workshops and exhibitions that bring internationally-acclaimed artists and speakers to the Goring Gap and showcases young and aspiring local musicians and artists. This year’s headline acts include Mica Paris, Val McDermid, Joe Swift, Pasadena Roof Orchestra, Eric Knowles, Chamberhouse Winds and Gyles Brandreth.

Tickets available at www.thegapfestival.org and The Care Hub in Goring Arcade.