It’s a Bramley Feast!

WITH the original Bramley apple tree, planted more than 200 years ago, attracting recent media attention, Southwell’s popular Bramley Apple Festival has increased significance this year.

The annual celebration, which takes place on Saturday 22nd October, focuses attention on all things Bramley, from the annual WI apple pie competition, to arts and crafts as well as the major Festival of Food and Drink in Southwell Minster.

Valued support from Veolia Envirogrant as well as Nottinghamshire County Council, Southwell Town Council, the NFU and Kenwood, is enabling the Festival to increase its appeal with events for all the family in and around the town.

These range from apple-themed activities at the National Trust’s Southwell Workhouse to the popular Festival of Food and Drink with cookery demonstrations in the Recycle for Nottinghamshire Cookery Area and 30 stalls representing the best of local produce in historic Southwell Minster as well as a Young Bramley Chef of the Year competition.

The live, sustainable, cookery demonstrations are designed to change habits, develop new skills, save money and help the environment. The Recycle for Nottinghamshire Cookery Area is brought by Veolia working with Nottinghamshire County Council

A large display of different varieties of apples from John Hempsall’s Heritage Orchard can be seen in the Minster and the recently refurbished Archbishop’s Palace and Education Centre will host apple related children’s craft and cookery demonstrations.

The WI’s Annual Apple Pie Competition and Apple Day Stalls can be visited in the Bramley Centre. The library, which is organising its own apple-themed activities and displaying the Painting Exhibition, will host prize giving ceremonies for the WI competitions on the Saturday and for the Painting and the Poetry competitions on the Sunday afternoon. The Bramley Apple King and Queen will be crowned on the Saturday afternoon.

Visitors can admire apple-themed shop windows or follow one of the Southwell Bramley Apple Heritage walks. There will be performances of music and dance by the Lord Conyers Morris Men and the Minster School Ceilidh Band.

For more information about the Southwell Bramley Apple Festival 2016, contact the Tourist Information Centre, tel 01636 819038 or visit www.visitsouthwell.com