I moved here for university, and I stayed here after graduating. From my time as a student all the way to my current time as founder and editor of The Notts Edit, I’ve learned a lot about the area – and about myself.

These 10 cover things to do in Nottingham, places to eat, plus some very random things. For more features and guides, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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10 things I’ve learned about Nottingham after living here for 10 years

By Eve Smallman

1. Everywhere is uphill

I’ve lived around the city and been to all corners of the county, and let me tell you – everywhere is uphill. Every day is leg day, and my thighs are now made of steel (also helped by the fact I fell in love with running here, and have done the Robin Hood Half twice).

2. It’s a real food and drink destination

Nottinghamshire doesn’t really get shouted about as a food and drink hotspot on a national level, but my goodness it should. Raymond’s, Bar Iberico, Pogo, Kushi-ya, and Tough Mary’s are among my favourites in the city. I also love the Welbeck Estate over in Worksop (Primrose Creamery and DropWorks are doing exciting things!).

3. Robin Hood needs more love

Robin Hood should absolutely be made more of a deal of. You go anywhere in the world and say you’re from Nottingham, and they say Robin Hood. I’m talking more attractions, themed bars, hotel rooms, more everything. We should be shouting about our most famous export way more – and Maid Marian and the Merry Men too.

4. Mushy peas are a thing

I’ve never minded mushy peas – but here, musheh peas are a huge thing, especially around Goose Fair time. A hot pot with lashings of mint sauce, from the traditional stall, is an absolute dream. Whenever I mention it to people outside of Notts they’re always baffled – but Nottingham makes it make sense.

5. It has sparked so many innovations

The area is such a hub of creativity – so it’s no surprise that it has been home to amazing innovations. Invention wise, from HP Sauce to ibuprofen, and from traffic lights to tarmac. There are also some very cool brands that have set up here too – Sunspel, Tweezerman, and Warhammer come to mind.

6. It’s straight out of a movie

I had an interesting conversation the other day about Nottinghamshire being utilised more for film sets, à la Wollaton Hall in The Dark Knight – and I could not agree more, as it has so many cool and beautiful locations. Nottingham Castle, Newstead Abbey, Clumber Park, Rufford Abbey, Highfields Park (with its own waterfall). And of course, the stunning cave network – with over 1,000 within it.

7. Pronouncing names right is important

I am terrible about pronouncing words, but there are a few that I have picked up from the locals and taught how to say them properly (I’m told, anyway!). It’s Suthhell, not Southwell. It’s Snenton, not Sneiynton. It’s Got-ham, not Gotham. Am I missing any?

8. The sport scene is stellar

I never used to be into sport, but I have changed my mind living here. Nottingham Forest and Notts County for football (pie and mushy peas at half time), Trent Bridge for cricket (home of legends Harold Larwood and Stuart Broad), and the Nottingham Panthers for ice hockey (what an atmosphere!). Oh, and Herbert Kilpin, the founder of Italian football and AC Milan, was born on Mansfield Road.

9. It’s not its stereotypes

The city definitely gets a bit of a rep for being a student area and for being rough – and, with some recent events, I can see why this is. But the whole area just has such a warmth about it, from the people to the places, that stretches far between these identities. It has its own character and life. Oh, and there’s nothing like going into a shop and being greeted duck – that’s how you know you’re in Notts.

10. It’s home

I might not be from here originally, but I have fallen in love with Nottingham and Nottinghamshire. It’s not too big, it’s not too small. It’s bursting with creativity and passion. It’s my home, and I’m so proud to be here – and I hope flying the flag for it! I can’t wait for another 10 years.

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I’ve rounded up five of the biggest and brightest ones around the area, narrowing these down based on the uniqueness of the displays, the food and drink options, and the different activities. I have also compiled a list of events happening across the county, so you can easily find your nearest one.

If you’re looking for special seasonal October and autumn events, these are all worth checking out. For more events guides, sign up to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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5 of the best firework and Bonfire Night events around Nottingham

By Eve Smallman

1. Bonfire Night and Fireworks Display

When: November 1
Where: Norwood Park, Southwell
How much: From £14.50pp adult, £6.50pp child, £36 family

The elegant Norwood Park is a fabulous venue for an evening of fireworks. Head over to the glowing bonfire (lit at 5.15pm), before watching fire dancers warm up the crowd at 6.15pm. After this, the big display will begin at 7pm. You can also tuck into hot food from vendors across the cricket pavilion. Plus, drinks are available from the indoor gallery bar.

Do if: You’d like to see a truly sophisticated Bonfire Night display.

norwoodpark.co.uk

2. Newark Family Firework Show

When: November 1
Where: The Renaissance at Kelham Hall, Newark
How much: £13.50pp adult, £9pp child

Newark’s biggest fireworks show is back with bigger capacity and a bright display by Dynamite Fireworks LTD. Along with this, food and drink, fairground rides, and photo opportunities with glow dancers. To watch in style, upgrade to VIP (£27pp adult, £14pp child) for a private viewing area and complimentary tea and coffee. It’s worth noting that this is an advanced ticket only event, so be sure to snap up quickly.

Do if: You’re going just for the fireworks – this is by award-winners, so it should be particularly spectacular.

renaissance-kelham.com

3. Notts Street Food Fireworks Nights

When: November 6-8
Where: Trent Bridge, West Bridgford
How much: From £10pp adult, £5pp child, £25 family

The seated, open-air Trent Bridge is hosting its famous fireworks special once again, with three dates this year. These are all themed, with Friday’s set to a soundtrack of Ibiza Classics, Saturday’s A Night at the Movies, and Sunday’s with family-friendly songs. There will be 15 street food traders serving foods, including Neopolitan pizza from Pizzamici, loaded fries from Disco Fries, and sweet treats from Doughnotts and Wandering Tearooms. This event is often a sell-out, so you might want to be speedy in booking.

Do if: You’re looking for an all-encompassing display that’s easily accessible from Nottingham city centre.

trentbridge.co.uk

4. Bonfire Night

When: November 7
Where: The Garage Chilwell, Beeston
How much: Free entry

The Garage (as recently mentioned in Time Out) is known for its brilliant markets – but it also knows how to throw an excellent party. Its annual Bonfire event will be filled with cosy eats like hog roast, as well as plenty of street food and craft beers. You can enjoy all these while huddling around its Scandi fire pits and enjoying music. It’s also a breeze to get here, with it being located just by the NET High Road tram stop.

Do if: You don’t fancy the noise of fireworks, but you do still fancy bonfire fun.

fixr.co

5. Fireworks Extravaganza

When: November 7
Where: Nottingham Transport Heritage Centre, Ruddington
How much: £11.15pp adult, £6.65pp child

With all the sights, sounds, and smells of a traditional fireworks night, this is set to be a family-friendly evening with something for everyone. Take a ride on the miniature railway, have fun at the traditional fairground, listen to live music, and dive into delicious food and drink (yes, there is also a licensed bar). The gates open at 4.30pm and the fireworks start at 7.30pm, so plenty of time to enjoy the attractions before the display begins.

Do if: You’re looking for a show that’s especially great for little ones.

gcrn.co.uk

More Bonfire Night events and firework displays around Nottingham

Bingham

November 7, Bingham Town Sports Club, £5pp adult, £3pp child
tickettailor.com

Farnsfield

November 7, Farnsfield Cricket Club, from £7.50pp
@farnsfield_cricket_club

Jacksdale

October 31, Jacksdale Miners Welfare, free entry
facebook.com

Kirkby-in-Ashfield

October 30, Larwood Park Sports and Social Club, from £5pp adult, £2.50pp child
eventbrite.com

Mansfield

November 5, One Call Stadium, from £11pp adult, £7pp child
mansfieldtown.net

Radcliffe on Trent

November 1, Bingham Road Playing Fields, £6.50pp adult, £3,50pp child
tickettailor.com

Selston

November 7, Selston Country Park, £5pp adult, £3pp child
facebook.com

Sutton-in-Ashfield

November 7, Sutton Lawn, free entry
ashfield.gov.uk

Worksop

November 4, Worksop College, £12pp adult, £10pp child
trybooking.com

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A note from the editor

Last week, I definitely had the busiest 24 hours I’ve ever had as editor of The Notts Edit. On Wednesday I was delighted to attend the launch of Visit East Midlands (more on that below) – a moment that really made me feel proud to be flying the flag for the area.

Then on Thursday we had our first ever viral video, having filmed Prince Harry and Meghan visiting the city @thenottsedit. I was absolutely astounded at it getting nearly half a million views on Instagram (300k+) and TikTok (200k+ combined). The commenters were quite something to deal with, and definitely made me glad that our normal readers and scrollers are lovely.

Did I say something last week about hoping for a steadier one? Might have jinxed it there… but once again, there are some excellent reasons to go out and about. From murder mysteries to music festivals, get stuck in below.

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

The best events around Nottingham this week 🗓️

Murder Mystery Evening 🧛

When: October 23
Where: Norwood Park, Southwell
How much: From £56.50pp

Take part in a fully immersive dining experience at Norwood Park for an evening of deadly intrigue. Step into the shadowy world of the DeRussi Coven, with ambitious mortals and vampires – will you survive the night, or become its next victim? Fancy dress to match the event’s vampire theme is encouraged, but optional. Plus, a welcome drink and three-course dinner is included.

Do if: You’ve been watching The Celebrity Traitors, and like the idea of flexing your own detective skills.

norwoodpark.co.uk

Northern Ballet: Cinderella 🩰

When: October 23-24
Where: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
How much: From £18pp

The classic fairytale is being retold in a magical staging performed by Northern Ballet. With feel-good ballet, it have you dancing till midnight with breathtaking waltzes, tender duets, and laugh-out-loud characters. The show will also perform to Prokofiev’s classic music played live. Just make sure that you’re back home by midnight.

Do if: Something about ballet always enchants you or someone you love – this show is suitable for all ages.

trch.co.uk

Halloween Outdoor Cinema 🎃

​When: October 23-25
Where: Wollaton Hall, Nottingham
How much: From £17.37pp

Home to Batman, Wollaton Hall is a hauntingly beautiful venue that’s the perfect backdrop for Halloween cinema. This is hosting three films over three days – Scream (October 23), Hocus Pocus Spooktactular (October 24), and The Nightmare Before Christmas (October 25). You can bring your own snacks or pick up hot food and drink on-site.

Do if: You’d like to have a spooky film night – all the showings are now nearly sold out, so be quick if you do.

​adventurecinema.co.uk

The Bramley Apple Festival of Food & Drink 🍏

When: October 24
Where: Southwell Minster
How much: £3pp suggested donation, under 16s free

Whether you like them in cider, pies, or simply as they come, apples are a tasty treat – and our own variety is being celebrated during this fun festival. There will be these and more inside Southwell Minster, with food and drink including chutneys, chocolates, pickles, pies, sausages, and more. Basically, the perfect opportunity to stock up your pantry.

Do if: You’d like to indulge in our county’s history – the first ever Bramley apple tree was planted in Southwell in 1809.

southwellminster.org

Hockley Hustle 🎶

When: October 25
Where: Various venues across Hockley and Sneinton
How much: Wristbands from £22pp, £25pp on the day

​Our city’s own music and arts festival is celebrating 20 years of hustling this year. Big highlights include the Anniversary Exhibition, UFO Orchestra, Queer Hustle, Step n Groove, and The Hustle Parade. However, it’s always worth checking out the full line-up. Young Hustlers (£12.10pp adult, £4.40pp child) will also take on the same day place, with a range of creative workshops for families.

Do if: You’d like to discover more music from Nottingham’s talented artists – this is an especially special year to do so (find out more in our feature).

hockleyhustle.co.uk

More events:

Hot Property 🏡

If hotel-luxe is your kind of living, this four-bedroom home in The Park is a very elegant option. Step inside and you’ll be greeted by a chic entryway with monochrome tiling, before heading into the sitting room with a marble fireplace. The kitchen is open-plan, with a curved blue kitchen island, farmhouse cabinetry, and an extra area that could be used for dining. Head up the winding staircase and you’ll find spacious rooms and four sleek bathrooms. Outside might be our favourite part though, with a stylish swimming pool opposite the conservatory. The guide price is £1.15m and it’s marketed by FHP Living, West Bridgford. rightmove.co.uk

News 🗞

🏹 Flying the flag: A new regional partnership has been launched with the ambition of growing the East Midlands visitor economy by an additional £1 billion by 2035. Visit East Midlands brings together the East Midlands Combined County Authority (EMCCA), local authorities, destination organisations and businesses to give the region a stronger voice, attract new audiences, and help tourism and hospitality businesses grow. We went to the launch night on Wednesday, and are looking forward to seeing how this initiative grows. visiteastmidlands.org

👑 Royal wave: Prince Harry and Meghan visited Nottingham last Thursday, visiting three charities close to their hearts. These were the Community Recording Studio (CRS) in Sneinton, Himmah in Hyson Green, and Epic Partners in Sneinton. The pair attended these events not as working royals, but as public figures and supporters of the projects. We went down to their second stop, and can confirm there was a sizeable crowd. bbc.co.uk

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🌳 Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest were beaten 1-0 at home by reigning Premier League champions Arsenal. Noni Madueke's deflected finish was enough to beat Oliver Glasner's side, who find themselves in the bottom three after seven games.

🦌 Mansfield Town

Mansfield Town drew 1-1 with Oxford at home on Thursday night. After falling behind in the first half, Oxford had a player sent off in the 75th minute, and the Stag stook advantage. Michael Smith tucked the ball home to equalise, before Oxford had a second player sent off. Mansfield couldn’t capitalise further, and the point leaves them 13th in League One.

🐦 Notts County

Only goal difference keeps Notts County off the bottom of the table in League On, following a 2-0 defeat at Wycombe. Notts were second best throughout and are without a win since August. In the EFL Trophy they did, however beat Nottingham Forest U21s 5-1, in a local derby of sorts.

🏒 Nottingham Panthers

The Nottingham Panthers beat rivals Sheffield Steelers 3-2 in the Challenge Cup this weekend, before a 2-1 defeat in the shootout to Coventry Blaze.

🏍️ Motorcycle racing

Jacksdale’s Kyle Ryde has become only the second man ever to win three successive British Superbike titles after winning the Championship at Brands Hatch on Sunday. He held a 48 point lead over his nearest challenger Scott Redding going into the weekend, and was able to secure the title with podium finishes in the first two races.

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We spoke to the farm shop director, Oliver Stubbins, about 20 years of championing local producers and what makes the estate such a wonderful place to visit.

If you’re looking for events this weekend, the shop (welbeckfarmshop.co.uk) is offering 20 products at 20% discount (October 16-18). Plus, visiting the farm shop is a lovely thing to do in Nottingham. For more guides and features, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Welbeck Farm Shop is celebrating 20 years of curating quality produce

By Eve Smallman

The farm shop is celebrating its 20th anniversary! How does this feel?

It’s a massive achievement. I’m the director and I’ve been here for 11 of those 20 years, so I haven’t been here from the start. We do have a member of staff, Sarah Braithwaite, who’s been here for the full 20 years, and she’ll be receiving her 20-year service award this week. We’ve also got a lot of staff who’ve been here for more than 10 years.

It’s been a staggered journey. Quite a few producers started up around the same time as the farm shop. The estate covers 15,000 acres, and the owners are really passionate about food and art, so a lot of the older estate buildings have been transformed.

The business really transformed around Covid. Before that, we were ticking along very nicely. We had a good local reputation and had won quite a few awards, but then Covid hit and demand changed overnight.

We didn’t know what was happening, and neither did the staff. Demand went really high, and we were being offered all sorts of products, including Polish chicken and Brazilian beef, because everybody was trying to sell everything. But we stuck to our ethos and our existing network of suppliers. We tried to be really consistent in what we did.

What have been some highlights over the years?

I’ve been here for 11 years, and I’ve been inside 10 Downing Street, been to Parliament, and visited places you’d never think you’d manage to get to when you work in a small business. I think that’s a testament to the reputation of the estate and what the team is achieving in a shop like ours.

Earlier this year, we went down to Parliament and won what they call a Rural Oscar from the Countryside Alliance. In 2021, we won UK Small Farm Shop of the Year. Then, in 2024, we won UK Large Farm Shop of the Year. We hadn’t laid another brick or grown by an inch – we’d simply reached the revenue criteria to qualify as a large farm shop.

It’s lovely when your peers around the country acknowledge what you’re doing. But seeing local customers and people buying things is always the best bit. It’s about building relationships with suppliers and customers, too.

What have been some of the biggest challenges?

Our biggest challenge at the moment is space. We’ve grown quite considerably over the years, and although we’re on this lovely 15,000-acre estate, we’re in a corner of it, in the old historic walled garden. Everything around us is listed, which makes opportunities to expand really difficult.

Another challenge is keeping up with developments in food. Everyone’s knowledge of food has improved so much. When I joined 11 years ago, the owner was talking to me during my induction about ultra-processed foods. I think that’s something that’s really come into the public eye over the last two or three years, but the family here have been beating that drum for a while. We’ve been ahead of the curve on some things.

Which products have been on the shelves for a long time, and why have they stood the test of time?

Stichelton cheese is certainly one of them. We’ve had a long-standing relationship with Neal’s Yard Dairy, which is a big distributor and was also involved in founding Borough Market in London. They’ve supplied us since day one, so we’ve been stocking their British farmhouse cheeses for 20 years, including Stichelton, which is made on the estate. Stichelton has a phenomenal reputation.

One story I like to tell is that it’s the only British cheese that’s ever been served at a French state dinner. King Charles was served Stichelton when he visited France. When you think that it’s made just two miles from the farm shop, it’s quite amazing how popular it is outside our little local network.

We’ve also got an amazing new cheesemaker on the estate who’s just passed his first anniversary. Jake Goldstein at Primrose Creamery has won two Golden Fork awards at the Great Taste Awards. Then Jake has come along and is making very different cheeses with the same milk. He only makes two products, and both won three stars at the Great Taste Awards, going on to win further awards. There’s a lovely contrast between the old and the new, just in cheese.

We’ve also had the brewery here for a long time, so we sell the full range from Welbeck Abbey Brewery, as well as products from Welbeck Bakehouse. Those have been on the shelves since we opened, really. We’ve got another baker, Sally James, who’s based in Norton, near Newark. She’s been baking for us for 20 years, too, and her cakes have been here all that time.

Do you have any personal favourite products you always return to?

Stichelton is one. I’m not a fan of blue cheese, so when I joined, I tried it because it’s an institution here. Like a lot of people who aren’t particularly keen on blue cheese, I found it’s so creamy because it’s made from raw milk that it isn’t quite as potent as you might expect. That was my surprise when I first got here. But you’ll normally find me at the butcher’s counter. A good steak – a nice rib-eye steak – is a regular haunt.

I also love the produce from the walled garden. We used to have the biggest walled gardens in the whole of the UK, and the shop and car park are actually based in just a small part of what those gardens used to be.

We’ve got a friend, Steve Rye, who started growing there again about four years ago. He’s growing vegetables galore, and they’re incredible when you compare them with mass-produced produce. The difference is quite scary.

Lots of people have allotments and grow their own, but I’m not particularly skilled and don’t have that much time. So I get the joy of having produce as fresh as someone might get from their own allotment, but I can buy it here.

20 products at 20% discount over the weekend (October 16-18)

1. Seasonal Squash

2. Stichelton cheese

3. Egglestone cheese

4. Lindley cheese

5. Welbeck Gin

6. Red Feather ale

7. Welbeck Bakehouse 4-seed sourdough crispbreads

8. Welbeck Bakehouse 4-pack cookies

9. Welbeck Tote bags

10. Welbeck Jute bags

11. Welbeck Hamper boxes

12. Cacklebean Eggs

13. Wooden chopping boards, handmade in Leicestershire

14. Lincolnshire Plum Bread

15. Corra Linn cheese

16. Ashcombe cheese

17. Parmesan cheese

18. Belvoir drinks

19. Northern Pasta

20. Edmonds cocktails

What makes the farm shop different from others around the region and the country?

The thing with farm shops is that they’re all different. You could pick one up and move it to another location, and it just wouldn’t work. I think every farm shop is brilliant in its own right and is right for its own supply network, customer base and demand.

What we pride ourselves on here is being more of a home chef’s larder. We sell things we love and try to source them locally where we can, but we don’t have mileage restrictions. If the best pasta is in Italy, we’ll buy Italian pasta. If the best charcuterie is Italian, we’ll buy that, too. We look locally and further afield, but quality and taste are always the benchmark.

The range is designed for somebody who wants to go home, cook passionately and be proud of what they’re serving. Being a home chef’s larder has always been the unspoken theme of the shop.

For someone who hasn’t visited before, why should they come?

I think we’re the front door to a lot of other things that happen on the estate. About 60% of everything we sell is either made or grown here, which is a big percentage, although it’s certainly not everything. We’re showcasing the work of the hardworking food growers and producers in our network.

Visitors can also book experiences such as brewery tours, rum tours and garden tours. There are certain times when you can go into the private areas of the estate, which is generally closed to the public. The passion is very much there, and we’re trying to pass that on to visitors.

We’ve also got some amazing neighbours. There’s a gallery next door, which houses a Michelangelo – the only one north of Cambridge – as well as a garden centre and beautiful countryside walks.

There’s far more to discover than just the farm shop when you come to visit.

welbeckfarmshop.co.uk

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Below, we share a letter from the team, which explains more about the festival and why this year means a lot to them.

If you’re looking for October events in Nottingham, Hockley Hustle is a real highlight of the 2026 events calendar (from £20pp, hockleyhustle.co.uk). For more guides and features, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Advertisement feature with Hockley Hustle

A letter from Hockley Hustle

Wow. Twenty years, two decades, thousands of artists, almost every venue in Hockley, international stars, local legends, and most importantly, a quarter of a million pounds raised for 27 local charities.

The Hustle has always been something that has evolved, grown, shrunk, stopped and started again. It is beautifully messy, gloriously chaotic and, although faces on the team have changed over the years, it still holds the same raw, DIY, grassroots energy it began with in 2006.

Raising money has always been at the heart of the festival, but the Hustle has grown into something more. It is now a year round, collaborative and colourful celebration of Nottingham’s brilliance. The people, the artists, the venues, the promoters, the families, the communities, the food and the art all play a part in making it feel so special.

We have seen 70 piece orchestras perform with world class vocalists, and tiny rooms packed with people listening to a single acoustic guitar. We have filled the streets with samba and silent discos, brought choirs to the steps of Broadway and hosted beatbox battles in The Bodega.

It has been a truly wonderful journey.

This year, let’s raise as much as we possibly can. Buying a ticket is a brilliant way to support the festival, but we would also love people to do some fundraising of their own for the charities we have chosen as a team.

At a time when life feels increasingly difficult and uncertain for so many, let’s pour as much love and support as possible into these brilliant local organisations.

Roll on the next 20 years of Hustling.

Tickets are out now via Gigantic, and are from £20pp. Swap your ticket for a wristband on the day and everything’s open to you.

With love, and gratitude.

Team Hustle

Grab your wristband

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A note from the editor

Last week was definitely a mixture of highs and lows. On Thursday, I was so excited to share my contribution to Time Out’s coolest neighbourhoods article. Plus, The Notts Edit celebrated its third birthday on the same day (I wrote a little something on Instagram).

However, it was tragic that independent restaurant Escobar was the victim of an alleged arson attack on Monday evening (more on the BBC). The restaurant has started a GoFundMe, which has a detailed description of what the money will be spent on.

Here’s hoping for a steady week this week… although there’s plenty to do in the county, so of course getting out and about is an excellent idea.

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

What’s On 🗓️

Sundown Adventures | AD 🌟

When: October 16-18, 23-31, November 1, 7-8
Where: Go Ape at Sherwood Pines, Edwinstowe
How much: £31.95pp

When the sun goes down, the lights come up during this atmospheric event, which takes Go Ape’s exhilarating experience up a notch. You’ll climb ropes, zip down lines, crawl through tunnels, and clamber across cargo nets, all with colourful glowing lights showing you the way. Dates are available across the season, including during October half-term and even on Halloween for a fun treat.​ Plus, there are adults-only sessions on October 16 and 23 – perfect for date nights.

Do if: You’d like to try one of Nottinghamshire’s most thrilling activities – this is it on a whole different level.

goape.co.uk

Print Fair Contemporary 🎨

When: October 16-18
Where: Nottingham Contemporary
How much: Free entry

We might be an online magazine, but we’ll always celebrate print. Over 35 stalls over two floors of the city’s art gallery will be filled with a wide range of printmakers and illustrators. This focuses on artists working across the wide variety of print specialisms, including screen print, lino print, and risograph. Local artists include Ellastrated, Deborah Panesar, and Annie Dornan-Smith. The launch event is on Friday, and from here it’s open 10am-5pm Saturday and 11am-4pm Sunday.

Do if: You like making an early start on (*gasp*) Christmas present shopping.

nottinghamcontemporary.org

Halloween Fun Size Trail 🎃

When: October 17-November 1
Where: Rufford Abbey Country Park
How much: Free entry

With thrills and delights for all ages, this spooky indoor exhibit in the Stables Courtyard has surprises waiting around every corner. With twists, turns, and eerie details at every step, this trail is the perfect way to soak up a little Halloween magic. This event is free, but Rufford Abbey also has Halloween afternoon tea, after-hours adventures, owl experiences, and more throughout half-term.

Do if: You’re looking for a budget-friendly activity that doesn’t rely on the weather.

ruffordabbey.co.uk

Halloween in Concert 🎃

When: October 18
Where: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
How much: From £31.50pp

With stunning visuals and state-of-the-art production, this brand-new concert spectacular is set to bring a thrilling crescendo of all things Halloween. Featuring Monster Mash, Highway to Hell, The Time Warp, Running Up That Hill, Hungry Like the Wolf, Thriller, and more, expect big vocals, killer moves, and maybe even some Dancing in the Moonlight. Just be sure to arrive dressed to impress, as there’s a prize for the best costume.

Do if: Music is your favourite way to get into party mode.

trch.co.uk

Framework 25th Anniversary Exhibition 🖼️

When: Until October 20
Where: Southwell Minster
How much: Free entry

Homelessness charity Framework has launched a 25th Anniversary Art Exhibition, bringing together paintings, installations, spoken word performance, real-life testimonies and a soundscape of noises heard by people experiencing rough sleeping. This is currently open at Southwell Minster, and will return to the county in November at St Mary’s Church in Nottingham (November 17-22), before a final stop at the charity music festival Beat The Streets on January 31.

Do if: You’d like a deeper understanding of the complex challenges faced by people experiencing homelessness.

frameworkha.org

More events:

In Case You Missed It

Hot Property 🏡

Anyone else think owning a cosy cottage is the absolute dream? If you do, this four-bedroom home in Lambley is a gorgeous choice. Inside it has been thoughtfully modernised, but with plenty of original features such as wooden beams, ornate radiators, and bright red post box. All the bedrooms are well-sized, with the principal having a dressing area and en-suite. It also has a separate annex – perfect for larger families. Outside there’s an abundance of greenery, with its own private grounds, woodland, and brook. The guide price is £795k and it’s marketed by Elite Homes, Nottingham. rightmove.co.uk

News 🗞

🐝 What’s the buzz?: Time Out named its 11 coolest neighbourhoods in the UK for 2026 – and Beeston made the list. Our editor Eve Smallman chose it and wrote about it for the publication, noting its new openings such as Marcello’s Pasta and Tiramisu and Co, saying how to spend the perfect day, and what to plan your trip around. timeout.com

🗣️ Tab hanging: From 'ey up me duck' to 'mashing' tea, Nottinghamshire has a wealth of words and phrases unique to the area that we love using. In this fascinating episode of BBC’s Notorious Nottinghamshire, Natalie Braber – a lecturer in linguistics at Nottingham Trent University – explains where 'Nottinghamese' might have come from. bbc.co.uk

🏅 Iron man: Nottingham’s Richard Whitehead MBE, who is a Paralympic gold medallist, has set a new world record for athletes with bilateral knee amputations. Crossing the finish line of the Bank of America Chicago Marathon today in 2:38:49, Richard has broken his own previous mark. Well done, Richard! @richard_whitehead_mbe

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🌳 Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest were beaten 3-1 at Crystal Palace in the first Premier League game after the international break. Dan Ndoye put the Reds ahead early, but despite having the lion’s share of the chances, they fell to defeat.

🦌 Mansfield Town

Mansfield Town lost 2-0 to Port Vale on EFL Trophy action last week before beating Bromley in League One on Saturday, with Stephen McLaughlin and Nathan Moriah-Welsh on the scoresheet.

🐦 Notts County

Notts County were beaten 2-1 at home by Oxford United. Notts fell behind in the first half after a mistake from James Belshaw, before James Gibbons had an equaliser ruled out. Rory Finneran’s late goal was scored, but Oxford were already 2-0 up.

🏒 Ice Hockey

It was two wins in two games for the Nottingham Panthers, who beat Manchester Storm 2-1 away after overtime before a 3-2 home win over Fife Flyers.

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We speak to festival director Tommy Farmyard, musician Nina Smith and photographer Nigel King to delve into its history, find out what makes it so special, and discover why you should visit this year of all years.

If you’re looking for October events in Nottingham, Hockley Hustle (October 25, from £20pp, hockleyhustle.co.uk) is not only a highlight of the month, but a highlight of 2026. For more features like this, subscribe to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Hockley Hustle is celebrating 20 years of championing Nottingham’s music scene

By Eve Smallman

Nottingham is full of creativity. From talented artists to bustling venues, it’s a wonderful place to be if you’re someone with passion. One area that particularly shines is Hockley, with its Rainbow Quarter, vintage shops and tucked-away stages. But it’s in October that it’s at its very best – and that’s because of Hockley Hustle.

The festival champions Nottingham’s music scene, bringing emerging artists to a host of locations, from cosy bars to gorgeous churches. In 2026, it’s celebrating 20 years of doing just that on October 25.

‘I’m feeling excited – it’s been quite a journey getting to 20 years, with all sorts of adventures along the way,’ says Tommy Farmyard, festival director of Hockley Hustle. ‘It hasn’t really sunk in – there’s a bit of separation from some of it because you’re so entrenched, you don’t really get to absorb it all quite as much.’

It’s hard to take a step back from something you’ve built. ‘It normally happens at about nine or 10 o’clock on the day of the event, when the evening is in full swing and everything that could have gone wrong hasn’t, and everything that’s gone right has. That’s the time when everyone’s smiling and you go, “This is amazing,”’ Tommy laughs.

This year’s 20th anniversary is happening at a particularly wonderful time, with there never being a better time to get to know Nottingham’s music scene. ‘I’m always telling (younger) people now that we are living in a golden age for music in Nottingham – it’s never been better, and it keeps getting better,’ explains Nigel King, a prominent music photographer in Nottingham. ‘We have to cherish and support it as much as we can to keep it going – what drives the scene is the diversity, and it is our strength.’

The idea for Hockley Hustle began in 2006, when Adam Pickering (who is now co-director of Green Hustle) approached Tommy, who was organising events at the time. ‘He was at one of my events and he came up to me and said, “Hello, I’m Adam. I’d like to do this.” And I said, “Goodness me, you’re going to need lots of help,”’ Tommy explains. ‘That’s how it started – teenager Adam pottering up to me with his big green eyes and charming me.’

The first event was such a success that they quickly got on with organising the next one. From there, it evolved naturally. Tommy says: ‘We’ve been conscious of keeping it relatively within the Hockley area – we do spread out a little bit these days into Sneinton and a little bit beyond sometimes, but geographically we’ve done as much as we can.’

In 2017, the team started Young Hustlers, which they wanted to create for children because there wasn’t really anything like it in the city centre at the time. ‘We were the first kids’ city-centre festival of that type during that era – that was a big change when we kind of started welcoming the families and the young people into the Hustle world,’ Tommy explains. The team also expanded over the 20 years. ‘Ben Welch started 10–15 years ago, and it has just been a slow accumulation of brilliant team members – none of whom have left, which is nice.’

Hockley Hustle also began receiving Arts Council funding around 2017, which has made a difference to what it can offer as an organisation, including Industry Day and Future Hustlers. ‘It’s just given us the opportunity to expand the festival massively, which has been really good, because for the first 10-plus years it was beg, steal and borrow,’ Tommy says.

Despite all this, the ethos has stayed the same. ‘We want to do really good things, and that’s been the ethos since the start – and I’m quite glad we’ve stuck to that, and we won’t change that,’ says Tommy. ‘We’ve said no to so many things that would have taken us off that path – we’re not guns for hire, and we don’t accept horrible sponsors.’

Other creatives in the area agree. ‘Hockley Hustle is the one event each year that gives the most people the chance to take part in and engage with such a wide range of cultural activities,’ says Nigel. ‘Local artists support each other’s gigs – and this is particularly true at Hockley Hustle. There are so many playing throughout the day, everyone is in town at the same time, so it’s a social event, too.’

Hockley Hustle’s community spirit is also special to its performers. ‘It feels like everybody’s sharing instruments, sharing musicians, just to put on a really good show and a good performance for music fans,’ says Nina Smith, a Nottingham artist developer, manager, and singer-songwriter who has been performing for nearly two decades. ‘I think it’s important for musicians in Nottingham because it does provide a platform for new music – there are a lot of festivals and other events that rely on more commercially active artists, whereas this is all Nottingham acts and it’s all new talent.’

The last 20 years have seen a range of highlights. ‘Working with the UFO Orchestra for the first time was stunning and a really special moment for us,’ says Tommy. ‘The first silent disco was also really, really fun – it’s just nice to see people having a good time, and that’s always a highlight. You remember one smiling face at the end of the day that you just glimpse in a moment, and the positivity that it spreads is the overall highlight.’

Major Nottingham artists such as Sleaford Mods, Jake Bugg, ALT BLK ERA, Natalie Duncan and Myles Smith have performed at the festival during the early stages of their careers. ‘Seeing Natalie Duncan with the string quartet was special,’ says Tommy.

The festival provides exceptional opportunities for local artists. ‘My first time performing was in 2009 at a bar called Shaws for BBC Introducing,’ says Nina. ‘I remember it being my first band experience, and the room was packed, which I couldn’t believe – I knew that Hockley Hustle was a good thing to play at, but I was very surprised at how many people attended.’ Another gig that was special to Nina was performing with the UFO Orchestra at Nottingham Contemporary and Metronome.

‘Back in 2018, there was an incredible show at Metronome with the Ultimate Flyby Orchestra, featuring guest vocalists Nina Smith, Chris Macdonald, Natalie Duncan and Rob Green. The orchestra filled the stage and some of the floor in front of it,’ says Nigel.

‘The following year, in 2019, there were some exceptional solo performances, in particular from the late Micki Warriner-Woods (as Wilted Flower) outside on Stoney Street – the stage there for Hockley Hustle is now rightly named after them,’ he continues. ‘Also that year, Jerub made his first appearance at Suede Bar on Heathcote Street – I knew from the first few bars that this was a huge talent. Also in 2019, Felix and Tiger, now of Divorce, played to a jam-packed Broadway bar as Megatrain.’

Other highlights for Nigel include 2022, which was memorable for the first appearance of ALT BLK ERA at Rough Trade (‘I think they were still at school then – the energy and the atmosphere in the room was just electric’), the return of the Ultimate Flyby Orchestra in 2023, and, in 2024, a special performance by Catmilk, backed by the Rob Rosa string quartet at Antenna (‘It was really special to hear Alex’s wonderful voice and lyrics accompanied by the strings’).

‘Last year, I particularly recall JayaHadADream and Zoutr ending the festival upstairs at Mimm Studio, with the crowd packed in like sardines, everyone hanging on every word of the set – I’m hoping to last until the end again this year to see Jaya at the Bodega!’ Nigel says. ‘I think JayaHadADream coming back to play this year is an example of the cohesion of the wider scene – Jaya has had such a busy year, with UK, European and Canadian festival appearances, but still has a connection to the Nottingham music scene.’

JayaHadADream is headlining at The Bodega, and Tommy is also excited to see her play. ‘She’s had such a good few years, and it’s just always nice that she comes back and plays for us and supports us, and we support her – it’s a really nice kind of ecosystem Nottingham has, with how people support each other. It’s nice when people get bigger as artists and they still want to support us.’

Tommy is also looking forward to the silent disco and the string quartet, which are both taking place at ARC Space. ‘As well as these, I’m really looking forward to our Dolly Parton hour – that hasn’t gone out yet, but we’ve got a wicked band to learn a load of Dolly Parton songs, and we’ve picked about eight or nine of our favourite Nottingham vocalists to sing Dolly Parton songs with this band,’ he continues. ‘Plus, the UFO Orchestra at St Mary’s will be amazing – we’ve got a few more vocalists this time, so it’s going to be our biggest orchestra show to date.’

The main thing Tommy wants is for it to be joyful. ‘We want it to be proud, and we’ve got such a strong line-up of Nottingham artists – some of whom played the first edition of the Hustle,’ he says. ‘We just really wanted to be loud and proud about Nottingham, and represent this culture and city as best we can.’

Nigel adds: ‘There’s every genre and style of music coming from Nottingham now, and it’s all high quality. We’re in a cycle now where success is encouraging more people to start bands and start performing – and, at the same time, we have a diverse and growing range of venues. The more opportunities there are to play, the more bands form and get better – the more bands and artists we have, the more venues open.’

Ticket funds also go towards local charities, with this year’s six being Impacd CIC, Al-Hurraya, Emmanuel House, Young Carers Notts, Shifting Your Mindset and The Harley Jae Trust. ‘Support the charities and check them out – even if you don’t come to the festival. If you’ve got a spare few quid, chuck it their way,’ Tommy says.

If you haven’t been before, don’t overthink it. ‘Don’t go in with too much – maybe check out a few bands in advance and see if there’s anything that you really like the sound of. But if you just turn up and have a good day, you’re going to be surrounded by some of the best creative energy in the city and probably the country,’ says Tommy. ‘Just come and absorb yourself in it and see where it takes you… It’ll take you on a magical journey.’

Nigel agrees: ‘I would urge everyone to go and enjoy Nottingham’s biggest party. Forget about streaming services, international billionaire megastars, major record labels and TikTok, and immerse yourself in Nottingham’s music, poetry and art scene for a day. We are as good as anywhere else in the world.’

Hockley Hustle is taking place across various venues across Hockley and Sneinton on October 25 (from £20pp, hockleyhustle.co.uk).

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I have curated a mixture of these, such as family-friendly activities, food and drink, and music. These have been narrowed down based on their originality​, the quality of their offering, and their value for money.

If October is one of your favourite months of the year, this guide has plenty of autumn tricks and treats to add to your calendar. For more guides like this, subscribe to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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8 of the best Halloween events around Nottingham

By Eve Smallman

1. Spooktacular Sundown

When: October 17-November 1
Where: Sundown Adventureland, Retford
How much: Included in admission – from £20.95pp, children under 90cm free

Head down to this family-friendly park to see it transformed into a playful world, complete with giant spiders, hundreds of pumpkins, colourful bunting, and a creepy carnival. The Scream Team Monster Hunt also invites families to follow a trail of clues for a tasty Halloween treat, whether or not they complete the full trail. Plus, the Four Seasons Area is hosting face painting throughout the day, alongside dancing and games at selected times.

Do if: You have especially younger children that you’d like to introduce Halloween magic to.

sundownadventureland.co.uk

2. Halloween in Concert

When: October 18
Where: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
How much: From £31.50pp

With stunning visuals and state-of-the-art production, this brand-new concert spectacular is set to bring a thrilling crescendo of all things Halloween. Featuring Monster Mash, Highway to Hell, The Time Warp, Running Up That Hill, Hungry Like the Wolf, Thriller, and more, expect big vocals, killer moves, and maybe even some Dancing in the Moonlight. Just be sure to arrive dressed to impress, as there’s a prize for the best costume.

Do if: Music is your favourite way to get into party mode.

trch.co.uk

3. Murder Mystery Evening

When: October 23
Where: Norwood Park, Southwell
How much: From £56.50pp

Take part in a fully immersive dining experience at Norwood Park for an evening of deadly intrigue. Step into the shadowy world of the DeRussi Coven, with ambitious mortals and vampires. Will you survive the night, or become its next victim? Extend your evening and make the most of your visit with an overnight stay in one of the park’s charming house bedrooms. Fancy dress to match the event’s vampire theme is encouraged, but optional. Plus, a welcome drink and three-course dinner is included.

Do if: You’d enjoy celebrating the spooky season in a stylish, grown-up way.

norwoodpark.co.uk

4. Halloween Outdoor Cinema

​When: October 23-25
Where: Wollaton Hall, Nottingham
How much: From £17.37pp

Wollaton Hall is a hauntingly beautiful venue that’s the perfect backdrop for Halloween cinema. This is hosting three films over three days – Scream (October 23), Hocus Pocus Spooktactular (October 24), and The Nightmare Before Christmas (October 25). Bring your own spooky snacks (strawberry laces and chocolate pumpkins, perhaps?), or pick up hot food and drink on-site. Don’t forget your blanket for staying warm/hiding under. These are all close to selling out at the time of writing, so be sure to be quick in snapping them up.

Do if: You’ve been thinking about having a Halloween cinema night – Adventure Cinema’s offering is an easy way to do that without needing to host.

​adventurecinema.co.uk

5. Halloween Afternoon Tea

When: October 26-31
Where: Hart’s Hotel and Kitchen, Nottingham
How much: From £25.95pp

Why have tricks when you can have treats? At the elegant Hart’s - one of our top staycation spots in Notts – you can enjoy bites from the iced manchet and coffin brownie to a meringue ghost and haunted mini Bakewell tart, all made by the Hambledon Bakery. As well as these, there will be the classic array of finger sandwiches and freshly baked fruit scones. For an extra treat, upgrade to a glass of prosecco (extra £10pp) or champagne (extra £14pp).

Do if: You’re looking for a chic way to celebrate Halloween.

hartsnottingham.co.uk

6. Nottingham Halloween Parade

When: October 28
Where: Starts and finishes at Nottingham Central Library
How much: Free entry

During this new Halloween parade, you can follow a troupe of ghosts, draped in illuminated and flowing capes, to pursue the Ghost Rider. This will take place three times on the day – at 1pm, 3pm, and 5pm. To get prepared for this, Nottingham Central Library will be hosting creepy craft sessions from 3-5pm on Tuesday and all day Wednesday. For more fun in the city, from October 26-31, It’s in Nottingham is also bringing inflatable monsters over rooftops, such as Cleaver and Wake and Bridlesmith Gate.

Do if: You’re planning a half-term trip into town and are looking for something seasonal to do with the family.

itsinnottingham.com

7. Halloween Workshop

When: October 30-31
Where: The Sacred Ape Distillery, Sneinton
How much: £58pp

Can your bespoke rum break the curse of the black still? Find out at The Sacred Ape, which is hosting a fully immersive experience across selected dates. Create and distill your own rum, making use of its halloween-inspired botanicals in the terrifying transformed studio, as well as tasting four brand new and exclusive, pre-release Sacred Ape rums. We did the regular version of this rum making and loved it, so we can only imagine how fabulous this version will be.

Do if: You fancy going out for drinks on Halloween – making your own is even better.

thesacredape.com

8. Nottingham Samhain Pagan Market

When: October 31
Where: Sneinton Market
How much: Free entry

Take Halloween back to its Celtic origins of Samhain, which marks the shift from summer to the dark winter, by exploring over 100 craft, food, and drink traders. These include artists, makers, card readers, and purveyors of vintage goods, all with an emphasis on the unique, unusual, and occult. There will also be ritual and fire shows, live music, and even a dark version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And, of course, costumes and Goth or Pagan garb are very much encouraged.

Do if: You’re looking for something special to do on Halloween itself – the market doesn’t normally fall on this day, making it special indeed.

minoroak.com

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A note from the editor

September was such a fun, busy month (see our highlights on Instagram @thenottsedit), so I’m excited to jump into October. My diary is already filling up, but if there’s anything you’d like us to cover or to go to, please do email me at editor@thenottsedit.com for consideration.

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

What’s On 🗓️

Nottingham Beer & Cider Festival x Trent Bridge Wine, Champagne & Prosecco Festival 🍺🍷

When: October 7-10 and 8-10
Where: Trent Bridge, West Bridgford
How much: From £15pp early bird, from £18pp on the day​

Try a range of drinks from local and national vendors alike during these two festivals, with one showcasing proper good beer, and the other specialising in wine and bubbles. The beer festival kicks off Wednesday, and then they are both running Thursday-Saturday. Your ticket allows entry into both festivals – simply purchase a wine glass or beer glass to continue the party. As well as drinks, both of these will have food and drink and entertainment to enjoy.

Do if: You’d like to sample a variety of tipples, especially with the festive hosting season on the way.

Beer and Cider: trentbridge.co.uk
Wine, Champagne, and Prosecco: trentbridge.co.uk

Lucy Beaumont: Bad at Quiz Shows, Good with Weirdos 😂

When: October 9
Where: Nottingham Playhouse
How much: £26pp

During this special comedy show, BAFTA nominee Lucy Beaumont is delving into her year of spectacular quiz-show mishaps. From accidentally costing a gameshow contestant £79,000 to flopping on Mastermind, from going into hiding after Celebrity Traitors to creating cow-udder couture on The Great British Sewing Bee, she’ll transform these experiences into her signature stand-up. Expect plenty of cringe and all the giggles.

Do if: You have made a mistake recently – this will make you feel better about it.

nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk

Nottinghamshire Pick Your Own Pumpkins 🎃

When: October 10-11, 17-31
Where: Oaks Lane, Oxton, Southwell
How much: Free entry, pay for the produce

Truly immerse yourself in the spirit of the season by visiting the best pumpkin patch in the area. Here you’ll be able to pick your own pumpkins, as well as squashes and gourds, in a variety of colours and sizes, from mini to XL. As well as scooping up seasonal produce for decorating and cooking, there will be tractor rides, and food and drink – including from local legends Doughnotts.

Do if: You’d like to create special autumnal memory – this is a particularly lovely activity to do with the family.

nottinghamshirepickyourownpumpkins.com

Rapunzel 🎭

When: October 11
Where: Lakeside Arts, Beeston
How much: From £10.50pp

Golden-haired Rapunzel is trapped in a tower by a wicked witch, who cuts her beautiful locks and sells them for a tidy profit (eek!). Now it’s time for Rapunzel to take control. This bold adaptation of Bethan Woollvin’s witty twist version of the tale is brought to the stage by Wrongsemble in a theatrical adventure brimming full of music and magic. It’s 45 minutes long with no interval – so bear this in mind if going with little ones.

Do if: You’re looking for a fun yet impactful activity for the children this weekend.

lakesidearts.org.uk

Chutneys & Jam Cooking Class 🍅

When: October 11
Where: Pippley Walled Garden, Beeston
How much: £75pp

At Pippley Walled Garden’s fabulous Cookery School, you can learn how to make jams and chutneys with the school’s chefs, ready to take home later in the day. While the jams are bubbling down, you’ll tuck into your autumnally themed bagel selection and soup for lunch, before wrapping warm and joining the garden team on a foraging tour to discover how to scout out autumn’s best bounty.

Do if: You’d like to learn how to properly make chutneys and jams – here, you’ll find out all the skills for doing so for years to come.

pippley.co.uk

More events:

Hot Property 🏡

A colourful mansion with oodles of elegance, this six-bedroom home in Sherwood is uniquely beautiful. Step inside and you’ll find a sitting room with floor-length bay windows, a bright red dining room with lovely detailing, and a modern kitchen with four ovens (what a house for hosting!). Upstairs we really love the bedrooms, which all have their own character. Outside is just as stunning, with the home’s white and red painted exterior making the perfect backdrop for the manicured garden (complete with cow statues that we hope are included in the sale). It’s being marketed by Savills, which is looking for offers over £1.75m. rightmove.co.uk

In Case You Missed It 👀

News 🗞

🛩️ Winner, winner: East Midlands Airport has been declared Airport of the Year at the National Transport Awards. East Midlands Airport’s winning submission was based on a successful year in which passenger numbers were held at around 4m, while the express air cargo operation remained the busiest in the UK. ‘We’re so pleased to be recognised and rewarded in this way on a national stage,’ says Steve Griffiths, managing director of East Midlands Airport. ‘We have a fantastic team, who have earned us this prestigious accolade through their total dedication.’

💸 Extra funds: A project to refurbish Newark Castle is set to receive a £2.5m boost, which will fund works to open up underground spaces including three dungeons. Newark and Sherwood District Council said the additional funding – which is set to be allocated by the East Midlands Combined County Authority – would allow phase two of the project to take place. The authority said the work would open up the castle’s underground spaces and create safer routes into areas that have been ‘largely inaccessible to the public for some time.’ bbc.co.uk

🐶 Pup-tastic: We enjoyed this BBC feature on Danielle Marshall from Worksop, who races her dog Luna and is currently preparing to represent Great Britain in sled dog racing. After picking up Luna as a puppy and looking for new ways to tire her out, she now spends 12 hours every week racing a team around Nottinghamshire’s forests, and is currently preparing to take them to Sweden for the competition. bbc.co.uk

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🏒 Ice Hockey

The Nottingham Panthers won twice over the weekend in the Challenge Cup – first with a 4-3 win over Coventry Blaze, before a 6-3 win over Guildford Flames.

🏍️ Motorcycle Racing

Kyle Ryde won twice in his home race at Donington Park in the British Superbike Championship, before an engine problem caused him to fail to finish in Race 3 and ended a run of 89 consecutive finishes. He leads the Championship by 53 points, with 105 available in the final round.

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We delve into the events that unfolded on October 2 and 3, 1766, including why the riot happened, who was involved, and what they tell us about the past and even the present.

If learning about local history is one of your favourite things to do, read on for this fascinating account. For more features like this, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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The Nottingham Cheese Riot: The story of the city’s 1766 uprising

By Ashley Carter

It’s hard not to see Nottingham’s Cheese Riot as one of local history’s great punchlines. The image of wheels of cheese careering down cobbled streets, bowling over a befuddled Mayor, could have been lifted straight from a lost Monty Python sketch.

Behind one of Nottingham’s strangest historical anecdotes is a much more sombre reality – a story about hunger, inequality and what can happen when the price of an everyday necessity is pushed beyond the reach of ordinary people. What began with angry crowds seizing cheese from market stalls would end in violence, soldiers in the streets and at least one man dead.

At around 7pm on October 2, 1766, the Goose Fair began to come apart. A group of Lincolnshire merchants had purchased roughly three tonnes of cheese with a view to selling it for profit elsewhere. Disgusted at the prospect, the people of Nottingham answered with a common voice: not a single wheel of cheese should move until the town had been adequately fed. Within hours, cheese was disappearing all over the city, law had effectively broken down and the Nottingham Cheese Riot was in full effect.

The Nottingham of 1766 was a town in the middle of profound economic upheaval. Its population had grown to around 11,000 people, and manufacturing, particularly the hosiery trade, was expanding. Society had moved past the traditional method of producing your own food, and people increasingly depended on wages and markets for their survival. With the harvests of the mid-1760s particularly poor, those near the bottom of society were faced with a genuine crisis.

The rise in food prices had been dramatic. Wheat, a staple of a typical eighteenth-century diet, was roughly 50-60% more expensive in 1766 than at the beginning of the decade. Someone earning around 1-2 shillings per day (the average labouring wage) could expect to spend about two-thirds of their daily income on a single loaf of bread before rent, fuel, clothing or additional food like meat, or indeed cheese, had even been considered.

Nottingham was far from being alone in facing a crisis, as autumn 1766 saw food disturbances spread across large parts of England. Markets were invaded, carts stopped, warehouses searched, and supplies prevented from leaving towns. In the Midlands particularly, crowds repeatedly intervened in the movement and sale of provisions.

Ostensibly, the Lincolnshire dealers had done nothing particularly extraordinary under the law. They had bought cheese in a market. It belonged to them. They were well within their rights to take it away and sell it elsewhere. But history has no shortage of examples of a desperate, starving population taking an alternative view of how an economy should function. And five words from a contemporary account explain the Cheese Riot better than any image of tumbling wheels of cheddar, as the Lincolnshire merchants were warned not to remove their cheese until ‘the Town was first served.’

The argument stopped being theoretical as an irate crowd descended on the piles of cheese. Contemporary reporting records that much of it was carried away, particularly by ‘Women and Boys.’ The protesters weren’t stealing the cheese, but insisting that local need should take precedence over commercial freedom. If the people of Nottingham were struggling to afford food, outsiders should not be allowed to sweep into the town, buy provisions in bulk and carry them somewhere else. Other accounts suggest that cheese from commercial factions was specifically targeted, while farmers selling their own produce were largely left alone.

Large cheeses were rolled through the streets, particularly around Wheeler Gate and Peck Lane. A later Nottingham chronicle supplied the detail that has made the riot immortal: Mayor Robie Swann, attempting to restore order, was supposedly knocked off his feet by a wayward cheese wheel.

As magnificent as this incident seems, the first mention of the Mayor vs. Cheese showdown comes over a century after the events themselves. It may preserve genuine local memory – it may be, as all great stories are, improved and distorted over the years of re-telling. Either way, Swann had bigger problems than dodging cheese wheels.

As part of the crowd moved towards Trent Bridge searching warehouses for more cheese, others were arrested and taken before magistrates examining prisoners at a coffee house in Peck Lane. Hearing of the imprisonment of their fellow rioters, crowds surrounded the building, smashed its windows and screamed threats against those responsible. Faced with the very real threat of further violence, the authorities released the prisoners. For a few hours, Nottingham’s civic government had effectively lost control of its own streets.

Law and order looked very different in eighteenth-century Britain. Without a modern police force to summon, public order depended on constables, magistrates, and a social contract between the authorities and ordinary citizens to maintain peace. As soon as that system broke down, the only card left to play was military intervention.

At around 11pm, a rider was hastily sent to Derby with a simple but direct message: send soldiers. By 6am on October 3, forty light dragoons, armed with their traditional Carbine muskets, pistols and sabres, arrived under the command of Lieutenant Bain. After initially restoring something of an uneasy calm, the city once again descended into chaos by nightfall.

At 7pm, almost exactly twenty-four hours after the first seizure of cheese, another crowd formed around the Market Place. What began as a protest descended into violence as soldiers began to open fire on the crowd, who fired back in turn, injuring several people.

Among them was a farmer from Car Colston named William Eggleston, whose name will forever be responsible for elevating the Cheese Riot beyond a curious footnote in Nottingham history. The Nottingham Corporation’s accounts reveal his fate with grim simplicity. First, money was spent on treating the gunshot wound in Eggleston’s leg. Later, they recorded a further expense for his coffin.

Meanwhile, the struggle over food continued. Crowds again moved towards Trent Bridge, intercepting a boat carrying cheese. Disturbances continued in and around the town for several days – the dragoons continued in their attempts to impose order, and the authorities read the Riot Act, forbidding the gathering of twelve or more people, the punishment for which could mean death. Across the wider region, similar attempts were made to prevent provisions from being removed, and the River Trent itself had become part of the battleground.

Eighteenth-century Britain saw food travel through networks of fairs, carts, warehouses, roads and navigable rivers, and those who controlled those routes held enormous power over where provisions went and what prices they might command. The rioters tried to interrupt that system, exhibiting behaviour E.P. Thompson would later describe as the “moral economy” of the eighteenth-century crowd.

Historian Thompson argued that food riots were often not simply explosions of hunger or criminality, and that ordinary people carried with them ideas about how markets were supposed to behave. Profit was accepted as a natural part of the process, but profiteering in a crisis was not. Property mattered, but so did the obligation to feed a community. Traders could sell food, but hoarding it or removing it during scarcity could be regarded as an abuse of economic power.

Perhaps the most revealing detail is the prominent role of women in the riot. Eighteenth-century politics was overwhelmingly male – women could not vote in parliamentary elections and had little direct influence over government. Yet food provisioning was frequently part of women’s everyday responsibility within the household. When prices rose and children needed food, supposedly private domestic responsibilities could turn into public political action. When a newspaper reported that the Nottingham cheese was carried away chiefly by ‘Women and Boys,’ it inadvertently recorded a group largely excluded from conventional politics asserting itself through activism.

The riot also belongs to a larger Nottingham story. Over the following decades, the town would become increasingly industrial and repeatedly turbulent. Framework knitters fought over wages and working practices. Luddism spread through Nottinghamshire. In 1831, during the struggle for parliamentary reform, rioters would burn Nottingham Castle. In a small but telling event, when the revolutionary Napoleon Bonaparte was defeated for the final time at Waterloo, almost every city in England exploded in national celebration. Nottingham fired a solitary cannon to mark the event.

No straight line connects a woman carrying away a cheese in 1766 with a Luddite breaking a stocking frame fifty years later. The causes were different and so were the people involved. But the method and spirit are recognisable. When established authorities proved unwilling or unable to address economic grievances, Nottingham crowds repeatedly discovered that assembling in sufficient numbers gave them a political power they lacked individually.

That is what makes the Cheese Riot much more than an isolated, peculiar part of the city’s past. The image of runaway cheeses is why the story has survived, but the rioters were protesting something much bigger.

Who has the first claim on food during a crisis? Does ownership give someone the right to remove an essential commodity from a community that needs it? At what point does profit become profiteering? What obligations do governments have when the market price of necessities puts them beyond the reach of ordinary people?

The language has changed, but the argument has not entirely disappeared.

In October 1766, Nottingham’s answer was delivered with remarkable clarity: the cheese could leave, but only after the town was served.

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We went and reviewed it on its press night at the Royal Concert Hall in Nottingham. It’s currently on a UK and international tour, with the last UK date in January 2027 (mamma-mia.com).

If you’re looking for October events in Nottingham, Mamma Mia! is playing at the Royal Concert Hall until October 10 (from £31.50pp, trch.co.uk). For more reviews like this, subscribe to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Mamma Mia! at Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham theatre review
★★★★

By Charlotte Brudenell
Photos by Brinkhoff-Moegenburg

Who doesn’t love two and a half hours of pure camp fun with loads of ABBA? Mamma Mia! has to be one of the most iconic musicals out there – it has been running in London for over 27 years, making it the third longest-running musical in West End history. In addition, it has had a successful 15-year run on Broadway and has also embarked on multiple international tours.

Mamma Mia! has won an Olivier Award, as well as being nominated for multiple Tony Awards. The 2008 film won 16 awards, including a Grammy and a Golden Globe.

Written by the two male members of ABBA, Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus, alongside Catherine Johnson, the musical follows the story of Sophie (Hazel Baldwin), who lives on a Greek island with her mum, Donna (Jenn Griffin). Sophie is about to get married, but wants her dad to walk her down the aisle. The only issue is that she doesn’t know who her dad is, so she invites all three possible fathers to her wedding. And, to make it even more fun, all of the music is ABBA’s greatest hits.

From the start of the show, you instantly know you’re in for a treat. Sophie Sheridan enters the stage and starts singing I Have A Dream, which then quickly melts into the bubbly and fun Honey, Honey. The songs are really what make the show. I think because they’re such well-known, loved songs, it makes it all the better. Even those who aren’t a big fan of musicals would enjoy this show because the songs are so beloved. I’d even say it’s a good introductory musical for those who haven’t really seen one before.

It could be argued that some of the songs seem crowbarred into the show, just so they could fit a particular song in because the writers wanted it there. At some points, it also feels like it’s just one song after another, and you don’t really get a chance to breathe and take a break to take in the song that’s just been performed. It doesn’t flow as well as sung-through musicals due to the style of the music, and the dialogue breaks are necessary to the plot. Apart from this, I think it adds to the overall ‘campness’ of the musical; it doesn’t take itself seriously, and the show is just a bit of silly fun regardless.

This moves on to the work of the ensemble. Words cannot describe how impeccable the ensemble was. They really stood out to me. The big numbers requiring the entire ensemble were my favourite. Not only did their singing give me chills, but Anthony Van Laast’s choreography made their dancing look seamless, and they filled the stage perfectly.

The casting overall was so good. Everyone fit their roles so well, and the cast has clearly gelled wonderfully. In particular, the casting of Tanya and Rosie (Sarah Earnshaw and Lauren Woolf), Donna’s best friends, was impeccable, and they were so funny whenever they were on stage, especially during Dancing Queen and Chiquitita.

Additionally, the costumes were perfect. They fit the Greek Island Y2K aesthetic perfectly, and I love how they haven’t been changed since the show opened in an attempt to modernise the musical. It’s perfect as it is and made me reminiscent of the clothes of my childhood, which seem to be coming back into fashion now!

One of the things I didn’t love so much was the set. The background is a garish blue wave backdrop, made to mimic the sea, I assume. However, it hurt my eyes throughout the whole musical, and I found it distracting due to the bold colours. It also seemed to make the show feel darker.

In my opinion, a show set on a Greek island should be bright and sunny, not a bit dark and dingy. The actual set was also a bit lazy, in my opinion. Usually I do like a minimalist set, but this time round it just didn’t work well enough. Maybe it would have looked better if the backdrop and wings were brighter overall.

This show really is a blast. It’s a great night out and is the perfect way to forget your worries for a couple of hours and be immersed in a whimsical and lighthearted world of ABBA, lycra, and platform boots.

Mamma Mia! is playing at the Royal Concert Hall until October 10 (from £31.50pp, trch.co.uk) and is currently on a UK and international tour, with the last UK date in January 2027 (mamma-mia.com).

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I have curated a range of these, from wine festivals to ballet and from pumpkin patches to murder mysteries. These have been narrowed down based on uniqueness, seasonality, and value for money.

If you’re looking for autumn events in 2026, these are all worth checking out. We have also published a separate Halloween guide. For more guides like this, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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10 of the best events around Nottingham this October

By Eve Smallman

1. Trent Bridge Wine, Champagne and Prosecco Festival

When: October 8-10
Where: Trent Bridge, West Bridgford
How much: From £15pp early bird, from £18pp on the day​

During this first edition of Nottingham’s biggest wine festival, you’ll be able to visit an array of bars by local wine merchants and established brands alike, as well as sampling nibbles, street food and musical entertainment. A complimentary glass is provided, which you are free to take home. This is running at the same time as Nottingham Beer and Cider Festival (trentbridge.co.uk), which your ticket will also allow entry to – just be sure to pick up a festival beer glass to carry on the party.

Do if: You’d like to try new tipples, especially with the festive hosting season on the way.

trentbridge.co.uk

2. Nottinghamshire Pick Your Own Pumpkins

When: October 10-11, 17-31
Where: Oaks Lane, Oxton, Southwell
How much: Free entry, pay for the produce

Truly immerse yourself in the spirit of the season by visiting the best pumpkin patch in the area. Here you’ll be able to pick your own pumpkins, as well as squashes and gourds, in a variety of colours and sizes, from mini to XL. As well as scooping up seasonal produce for decorating and cooking, there will be tractor rides, and food and drink – including from local legends Doughnotts.

Do if: You’d like to create special autumnal memory – this is a particularly lovely activity to do with children.

nottinghamshirepickyourownpumpkins.com

3. Chutneys & Jam Cooking Class

When: October 11
Where: Pippley Walled Garden, Beeston
How much: £75pp

At Pippley Walled Garden’s fabulous Cookery School, you can learn how to make jams and chutneys with the school’s chefs, ready to take home later in the day. While the jams are bubbling down, you’ll tuck into your autumnally themed bagel selection and soup for lunch, before wrapping warm and join the garden team on a foraging tour to discover how to scout out autumn’s best bounty.

Do if: You’d like to learn how to properly make chutneys and jams – here, you’ll find out all the skills for doing so for years to come.

pippley.co.uk

4. Sundown Adventures | AD

When: October 16-18, 23-31, November 1, 7-8
Where: Go Ape at Sherwood Pines, Edwinstowe
How much: £31.95pp

When the sun goes down, the lights come up during this atmospheric event, which takes Go Ape’s exhilarating experience up a notch. You’ll climb ropes, zip down lines, crawl through tunnels, and clamber across cargo nets, all with colourful glowing lights showing you the way. Time slots normally run from 4.30-6.30pm, so you can easily choose a time that suits you. Dates are available across the season, including during October half-term and even on Halloween for a fun treat.​

Do if: You’d like to try one of Nottinghamshire’s most thrilling activities – this is it on a whole different level.

goape.co.uk

5. Print Fair

When: October 16-18
Where: Nottingham Contemporary
How much: Free entry

We might be an online magazine, but we’ll always shout out print. Over 35 stalls over two floors of the city’s art gallery will be filled with a wide range of printmakers and illustrators. This focuses on artists working across the wide variety of print specialisms including screen print, lino print, risograph, etching, photography, digital print and other print techniques or original art pieces. The launch event is on Friday, and from here it’s open 10am-5pm Saturday and 11am-4pm Sunday.

Do if: You like making an early start on (*gasp*) Christmas present shopping.

nottinghamcontemporary.org

6. Northern Ballet: Cinderella

When: October 23-24
Where: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
How much: From £18pp

The timeless tale is taking centre stage in this magical staging of Cinderella, performed by Northern Ballet. Originally choreographed by Michael Pink for Milwaukee Ballet, this feel-good ballet will have you dancing till midnight with breathtaking waltzes, tender duets, and laugh-out-loud characters. The show will also perform to Prokofiev’s classic music played live. Just be sure to ensure your slippers are firmly fastened and that you’re back home by midnight.

Do if: Something about ballet always enchants you or someone you love – this is suitable for all ages.

trch.co.uk

7. Murder Mystery Evening

When: October 23
Where: Norwood Park, Southwell
How much: From £56.50pp

Take part in a fully immersive dining experience at Norwood Park for an evening of deadly intrigue. Step into the shadowy world of the DeRussi Coven, with ambitious mortals and vampires – will you survive the night, or become its next victim? Extend your evening and make the most of your visit with an overnight stay in one of the park’s charming house bedrooms. Fancy dress to match the event’s vampire theme is encouraged, but optional. Plus, a welcome drink and three-course dinner is included.

Do if: You’d enjoy celebrating the spooky season in a chic, grown-up way.

norwoodpark.co.uk

8. Halloween Outdoor Cinema

​When: October 23-25
Where: Wollaton Hall, Nottingham
How much: From £17.37pp

Home to Batman, Wollaton Hall is a hauntingly beautiful venue that’s the perfect backdrop for Halloween cinema. This is hosting three films over three days – Scream (October 23), Hocus Pocus Spooktactular (October 24), and The Nightmare Before Christmas (October 25). Bring your own spooky snacks (jelly worms and chocolate eyeballs, perhaps?), or pick up hot food and drink on-site. Don’t forget your blanket for staying warm/hiding under.

Do if: You’ve been thinking about having a Halloween cinema night – Adventure Cinema’s offering is an easy way to do that without needing to host.

​adventurecinema.co.uk

9. Hockley Hustle

When: October 25
Where: Various venues across Hockley and Sneinton
How much: Wristbands £20pp early bird, £25pp on the day

​Our city’s own music and arts festival is celebrating 20 years of hustling this year with 400 acts playing across 50 bars, pubs, cinemas, chapels, and galleries. Big highlights include the Anniversary Exhibition, UFO Orchestra, Queer Hustle, Step n Groove, and The Hustle Parade. However, it’s always worth checking out the full line-up, finding a couple of must-do events, and letting the flow of the day carry you through. Young Hustlers (£12.10pp adult, £4.40pp child) will also take on the same day place, with a range of creative workshops for families.

Do if: You’d like to discover more music from Nottingham’s talented artists – this is an especially special year to do so.​

hockleyhustle.co.uk

10. Nottingham Samhain Pagan Market

When: October 31
Where: Sneinton Market
How much: Free entry

Take Halloween back to its Celtic origins of Samhain, which marks the shift from summer to the dark winter, by exploring over 100 craft, food, and drink traders. These include artists, makers, card readers, and purveyors of vintage goods, all with an emphasis on the unique, unusual, and occult. There will also be ritual and fire shows, live music, and even a dark version of A Midsummer Night’s Dream. And, of course, costumes and Goth or Pagan garb are very much encouraged.

Do if: You’re looking for something special to do on Halloween itself – the market doesn’t normally fall on this day, making it special indeed.

minoroak.com

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

What’s On 🗓️

Mamma Mia! 🎭

When: September 29-October 10
Where: Royal Concert Hall, Nottingham
How much: From £31.50pp

Set on a Greek island, this story of love, friendship and identity is cleverly told through the songs of ABBA – hello Dancing Queen, The Winner Takes It All, and (of course) Mamma Mia. Follow Sophie’s quest to discover the father she’s never know, which brings her mother face to face with three men from her distant romantic past on the eve of her daughter’s wedding. Dance, jive, have the time of your life – you know the drill.

Do if: You just need a good pick-me-up.

trch.co.uk

Brush Painting with Feng-Ru Lee 🎨

When: September 30
Where: Lakeside Arts, Beeston
How much: £10pp

This beginner-friendly introduction will guide you in using soft brushstrokes and fluid ink to paint gorgeous flowers, butterflies, and dragonflies. You’ll also explore the art of Chinese brush painting and be inspired by the tradition of flower-and-bird painting. The aim is to learn to observe with calmness, and to come away with new confidence. Don’t worry if you haven’t done the first class – this is for new and returning students.

Do if: You’d like to do a relaxing workshop where you’ll come away with an impressive skill.

lakesidearts.org.uk

An Orchestral Tribute To Tim Burton, Danny Elfman & Beyond 🎶

When: October 2
Where: Albert Hall, Nottingham
How much: From £22.25pp

Experience a hauntingly beautiful celebration of the music that has defined the extraordinary worlds of Tim Burton and beyond, brought to life by The Great British Film Orchestra. For more than four decades, Danny Elfman has been the musical voice behind Tim Burton’s most beloved creations, such as Beetlejuice, Sleepy Hollow, Corpse Bride, and The Nightmare Before Christmas. As well as music from these, there will be other haunting tunes, such as from Casper and E.T.

Do if: You’d like to jump into the spookiest month of the year with a special treat.

boxoffice.xperiencelive.co.uk

Fungi Day 🍄

When: October 3
Where: Sherwood Forest, Edwinstowe
How much: Free entry

You’ll want to make mushroom in your diary for this one. UK Fungi Day takes place on October 10 – and Sherwood Forest is kicking off a little earlier with a visit from the Nottinghamshire Fungi Group on Saturday. During the free guided walks, they’ll share their expertise and with a variety of specimens for you to see up close. Spaces on these walks are available on a first-come, first-served basis, and you can sign up on the day.

Do if: You’d love to find out more about what grows in our county’s famous forest.

visitsherwood.co.uk

Wheelgate Family Halloween Spooktacular 🎃

When: October 3-November 1
Where: Wheelgate Park, Farnsfield
How much: Included in admission, from £15.89pp

This week marks the start of October – and this Halloween Spooktacular has literally everything you’ll need to get into the spirit of it. Carve your own pumpkins, see monster pumpkins, and take part in the spooky silhouette hunt. For those who are brave/fancy even more scares, you can even meet reptiles and handle bugs and creepy crawlies. Finish with a visit to the Witches Wagon (extra £4.49pp) to see magical tricks and have delectable treats.

Do if: You’d like to do something fun with the kids – this event has it all, and it’s on all month, too.

wheelgatepark.com

More events:

Photography 📷

Hot Property 🏡

We had to double check the address on this one – yes, this seven-bedroom house really is in Sneinton. Downstairs you’ll find the cosiest dining room with a wood-burning stove with dark wooden beams and a kitchen with shaker-style cream cabinetry. Upstairs is another kitchen, a lounge with a chandelier, and a bright conservatory. All the bedrooms are plenty spacious, and the five bathrooms have hotel-style fittings. There is also a separate cottage on the property. The guide price is £525k and it’s marketed by Woodstead Sales & Lettings. rightmove.co.uk

Bake-Off 🧁

News 🗞

🗞️ In the city: The Times named Nottingham as one of its top city breaks, with it making number 5 on the list. Writer Ben Aitken named it as ‘Queen of the Midlands’, and recommended breakfast at Yolk, Bear for brunch, and Bustler for street food. Activity-wise, it suggested Hopkinson for antiques and art. Nottingham Playhouse for drama, and Broadway for arthouse cinema. thetimes.com

🎡 Roll up, roll up: Goose Fair is officially back in town, with the fairground being at the Forest Recreation Ground until October 4. If you’re wondering what rides and attractions are worth getting on (there is a lot of choice!), BBC Nottingham has put together a handy guide of the ones not to miss. Ride-wise, these include Elevate 85 and the Ferris Wheel, while attraction-wise these (naturally) include cocks on sticks and musheh peas. bbc.co.uk

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🌳 Nottingham Forest

Morgan Gibbs-White was a late call up to Thomas Tuchel’s first England squad after the World Cup, replacing Cole Palmer. The Forest midfielder came on as a substitute in England’s 3-2 home defeat to Spain at Wembley.

🏏 Cricket

Nottinghamshire finished 4th in the County Championship after a dramatic loss to Yorkshire. Notts’ title defence ran out of steam with back-to-back defeats at the end of the season. Joe Clarke did, however, finish top of the division scoring charts, with 1,288 for the season.

🏒 Ice hockey

The Nottingham Panthers were beaten 5-3 away at Cardiff Devils in the Challenge Cup before a thumping 5-1 win over Manchester Storm, with Ben Corbeil scoring his first professional hat-trick.

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We spoke with photographer Alan Lodge about the event that captures his 50 years of photography, from facing off against the police to shining a light on communities and movements that were – and still are – misrepresented.

If you’re looking for autumn events in Nottingham, this is on from September 25-December 12 (free entry, boningtongallery.co.uk). For more features like this, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Alan Lodge has been capturing counterculture and confrontation for over 50 years

By Eve Smallman
Photos by Alan Lodge

There’s one thing being a photographer who captures events. A snapshot here. A close-up there. But it’s another thing entirely immersing yourself in the events, the happenings. Getting to know the people, the places, the causes. And sometimes that even means turning the camera to the faces and to the actions of those who don’t want it capturing.

Alan Lodge has been doing just that for 50 years.

‘The very first time was when I was about 14 in a school darkroom under the stage, and I think I vaguely remember having an interest for a few months – but then that evaporated with other interests of a teenage kid,’ says Alan. After leaving school in 1972, he went to a few free festivals, and was enamoured by the people there. ‘We just wanted to hang out, but policing was quite central to all of this because of how we were committing offences, probably minor offences, probably interfering with trespassing with Windsor Great Park – we were in the Queen’s back garden, for example.’

With policemen being so front and centre in this lifestyle, he started to photograph their operations. ‘Very often they exceeded the law or the powers that they had, and I think it was necessary to get some evidence of this from the late 70s to the early 90s, when they started to apply the screws to this community – I started to photograph their operations, and they didn’t like it one bit.’

While doing this, he’d look over his shoulder and see interesting bunches of people. ‘Nobody else was doing this apart from the mainstream press, who had a bit of a downer on these groups – and so I started to be a bit more positive in my representation.’

For Alan, this was important to do – as he says, ‘If not you, who?’ He continues, ‘The thing about history I’ve discovered over these years is that winners write history – somebody wins, and they write an account of how great they are,’ he explains. ‘If you read a newspaper, the media, listen to the police now, what the government says about alternative groups and so on… they have crushed us in the field and have put their narrative on what happened.’

He began by, along with others, forming the charities Festival Welfare Services and the Travellers Aid Trust, which maintained a presence at festivals and travelling communities. ‘The free festival scene collapsed because of police oppression, which then developed into the free party and waves and rave scene – but of course that was combated by the police and the Criminal Justice and Public Order Act, which said that you don’t just need to be a traveller anymore to commit an offence,’ Alan explains. ‘If 20 people bring with them 12 vehicles to a place and if 20 people listen to music that is characterised by a succession of repetitive beats, that’s it… and so the law continues to twist on it.’

The change in narrative is what happened to the first of his communities. ‘They crashed us in the field and changed the narrative to how that happened and whose fault it was,’ he says. ‘I’ve read a newspaper description of that festival while I sat on my log drinking a cup of tea – my eyes have gazed up, looked from left to right, and I’ve compared what I see with what I see in the paper, and there is no correlation at all.’

As Alan says, unless you’re present at an event, you have to rely on some journalism. ‘I wanted to try and make a mark in this with the accuracy of the representation that was documenting us,’ he explains. ‘Some of those old newspaper headlines, which will be displayed in the exhibition, are in my mind, but they’re not in the public’s anymore because they’re 40 years ago – they’re the chip wrappers that have evaporated, aren’t they?’ He hopes that some of his work survives history, and that it revises that view of history and that record of history that the ‘winners’ have made.

‘In the 50 years that I’ve done this, there are other photographers that I look up to, and I think they’ve covered that aspect of things so much better than me – I look up to them, I wish them well, and I’ll try and learn from them,’ Alan says. ‘But there aren’t any that – well, I can’t think of anyone else – that started in 1976 and carried on to last week on the themes that I see connected between each other.’ This is his ‘claim to fame’, if you like. ‘Not because of my excellence, but because of my staunchness and keeping up with it.’

Alan is quite modest in saying this. Looking at his photos, you can see the colour, the passion, the raw emotion from people, captured with intention – not by chance. One of these is the ravers having it large at Castlemorton from 1992, which Alan named as his best photograph in The Guardian. ‘There’s a bunch of ravers on top of a truck, including a couple in the foreground where I could see as I was photographing the scene that they were clearly into each other,’ Alan explains.

‘They liked each other a lot, kissing and cuddling and things while all this was going on around them – and then the man produces his index finger and shoved it in the face of this lass.’ What was on the end of that? ‘I would suspect it to be MDMA – it’s an intimate motion,’ he continues. ‘Lots of people have commented about it to me that it’s not just the drug in the centre – it’s the expression and countenance of those around him, around them, that’s so recognisable to so many people, of the attitude that they say they go to those sort of parties for.’

For Alan, it’s a great shot. ‘It reaches the people that I had photographed, who, by the hundreds, have told me this encapsulates the scene and why I’m in it,’ he says. ‘I’m honoured by that feedback – that they got what I was trying to say, and they agree.’

However, what’s his actual favourite? ‘I rather admire a picture at Stonehenge I took of a chap called Sid Rawle who was described by the media at the time as king of the hippies – which, for a bunch of anarchists, is a bit unusual, isn’t it?’ Alan explains. ‘But there’s a gathering in Stonehenge that I took a picture of in 1984, and Sid has got his arms outstretched, and I believe he’s saying something like, “Behold, O sun”, or something like that, as the sun rises.’ It’s a little bit of showmanship. ‘You look out the corner of your face and you see the sun’s about to rise, and then you do something mystical, don’t you? I’m rather pleased with that picture.’

If you’re wondering what to expect from the exhibition, you can expect an enormous amount of striking work. I walked around before it opened and was struck by the sheer vastness. ‘Because of the volume of the exhibition, we’ve had trouble with the title to try and encapsulate the work within the title [Common Grounds: Counterculture & Confrontation since 1976] – but the work does stretch well beyond the title,’ Alan says.

He continues, ‘I don’t want to be regarded as this historical curio, the chap that took all those pictures years ago – I was working right up to last weekend and I want people to know that.’ In Nottingham, he has covered multicultural events, protests, happenings in Old Market Square, and even just individual aspects of city life.

‘It’s predominantly police activism – those communities that I’ve been describing are the main thrust of the exhibition – but because I carried on into Reclaim the Streets, environmental protest unions, workers’ rights of different sorts, all of those things seem to have some kind of relationship with each other,’ Alan says.

There’s also an interview that Alan conducted that goes round in a 48-minute loop to explain all the background. ‘I’m famous for doing a slideshow at events to show the work back to people – by doing a slideshow, both in clubs, at free parties and festivals, I was able to show people what I photographed – so there’s going to be an installation of slideshow transparencies on one of the boards as well.’

As well as this, there will be two film showings – Operation Solstice and Free Party: A Folk History – both of which reinforce the contents of the exhibition and give an idea of the entirety of what it’s trying to explain. ‘It will be quite multimedia and multifaceted,’ Alan adds.

I ask why Alan thinks people should go and see it. ‘Because it’s bloody excellent,’ he laughs. ‘It’s in a university setting, and I’m grateful for the university setting because it does seem as though a lot of young folks at university engage in a lot of these activities and have done for the last 50 years,’ Alan continues. ‘The alternative culture is something that has informed mainstream culture in the shape of music, style, fashion – and I think people need to know that, especially for the students that are studying a variety of courses to do with social matters, to see that society doesn’t have to be organized as it currently is. There are other possibilities.’

Alan doesn’t claim the exhibition provides answers – it just aims to unlock thoughts within people. ‘If you’re a student, if you’re staff, if you’re learning anything, or you are inquiring, then I say that you need to see exhibitions that show not just mainstream or arts that you understand, but things that you don’t necessarily understand or have been misled about in the past,’ he finishes by saying. ‘So if you’re interested in keeping yourself informed… Go and have a look.’

Common Grounds: Counterculture & Confrontation since 1976 is on at Bonington Gallery from September 25-December 12 (free entry, boningtongallery.co.uk).

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Gary shares with us his first impressions of the show (no spoilers!) ahead of his appearance. Bake Off is on Tuesdays at 8pm from September 22 on Channel 4.

If you’re looking for things to do, supporting one of our own by watching the show is a lovely idea. For more interviews and guides, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Q&A: The Great British Bake Off’s Gary from Nottinghamshire

Photos by Patch Dolan / Channel 4 / Love Productions

Gary, 67, is a retired garment technologist who discovered his love of baking later in life. He bought his first cookbook in a gift shop five years ago and hasn’t looked back, developing a traditional yet creative style with a focus on impeccable presentation and bold flavours, particularly citrus.

Born and bred in Chesterfield, Gary now lives on a smallholding in Nottinghamshire with his wife of over 30 years, Donna. Their countryside home is filled with animals, including sheep, horses, chickens and miniature pygmy goats and Shetland ponies.

Having beaten prostate cancer himself, Gary is passionate about raising awareness and funds for cancer charities through bake sales and coffee mornings. When he’s not baking, Gary is usually out walking with his two border collies, Ollie and Alfie, who are his pride and joy.

Did you ever dream that you would actually get into the Bake Off tent, and what was your reaction when you got the call confirming your place?

I dreamt about it and getting on it, but I always thought it was going to be difficult because of the thousands who apply to get on. My reaction was emotional and disbelief. It took me a few days to believe I actually got picked.

Can you describe seeing the big white tent for the first time, and walking in towards your workbench?

It looked exactly how it looked on TV. I was excited and nervous – it all felt very familiar. As I walked up to the bench for the first time the nerves kicked in. It felt really real when Paul [Hollywood], Nigella [Lawson], Alison [Hammond] and Noel [Fielding] entered the tent. It also felt very special and I felt very lucky to have Nigella as a judge for the first time.

What was it like meeting the judges and hosts?

When I met Noel, we were joking about the resemblance between me and Paul, and how we could be connected at birth. The funniest thing that happened in the first week was when I said to Paul he had competition, as the bakers thought we looked alike.

When I met Alison I was concentrating on baking and noticed her big friendly smile when she came towards me. I also did some Northern Soul dancing with Alison, which was an experience! I showed her how to do this as I love Northern Soul.

Plus, I was apprehensive about the first judging from Nigella and Paul, and wondered whether they would like my flavours or not.

Can you describe the bakers as a group this year? When and where did you first meet, and what was it like when you all met for the first time?

They are all different personalities and all friendly and kind to each other. We met for the first time at the hotel. It was all very relaxed and we felt like we had known each other for ages.

What did you enjoy most about filming the first week and what did you miss most about being away from home?

I was surprised how friendly and helpful the production team were, and it was a new experience. I did miss my dogs, though.

What excuse/white lie did you tell friends/family when you were away the first weekend of filming?

I said I was doing voluntary work for prostate cancer.

You are cast away on a desert island, which cookbook would you take and why?

Nigella’s! I love the variety of her recipes.

What was it like having the team clean up for you after all your bakes? Are you a tidy or messy baker?

I felt quite guilty as I am a messy baker!

Describe your baking style in three words

Traditional, varied, perfection.

The Great British Bake Off is on Tuesdays at 8pm from September 22 on Channel 4.
@garybakes

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A note from the editor

This is the last week that Till the Stars Come Down is on at Nottingham Playhouse – and if you haven’t been yet, I highly recommend it. The show is penned by Mansfield’s own Beth Steel, and is set in the Nottinghamshire town. It’s funny, heartbreaking, gut-punching, and has a real Nottingham feel that locals will appreciate. nottinghamplayhouse.co.uk

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

What’s On 🗓️

The People’s Hall: Heritage Talk and Tour 💬

When: September 24
Where: The People’s Hall, Nottingham
How much: £25pp

Learn more about this fascinating regeneration project, set in the heart of the city, during this tour. The Nottingham Historic Building Trust is redeveloping this historic building into a new space for the people of Nottingham. Originally a Georgian townhouse, today the building stands empty, ready for its next chapter. Arrival is at 3.30pm for a presentation, before you have a guided tour of the building, with time for Q&A.

Do if: You have walked past this building in town and wondered exactly what’s going on in it.

eventbrite.co.uk

Goose Fair 🎡

When: September 25-October 4
Where: Forest Recreation Ground, Nottingham
How much: Free entry

For ten whole days, Forest Rec will be lit up with the iconic annual Goose Fair, with hundreds of brightly lit stalls and rides. Think hook a duck, ferris wheels, and ghost trains. Oh, and getting a pot of mushy peas with mint sauce is absolutely mandatory. We highly recommend going in the evening, when the fair truly lights up.

Do if: You’d like to experience a real Nottingham tradition.

visit-nottinghamshire.co.uk

Alan Lodge: Common Grounds: Counterculture and Confrontation Since 1976 📷

When: September 25-December 12
Where: Bonington Gallery, Nottingham
How much: Free entry

This exhibition brings together a range of Alan Lodge’s remarkable photography capturing travelling communities, free festivals, rave culture, environmental campaigns, and anti-war protests. Now he is one of the most significant chroniclers of British counterculture – and he still resides in Nottingham today. Keep an eye out for our feature with him.

Do if: Seeing a visually powerful exhibition with thought-provoking themes sounds fascinating to you.

boningtongallery.co.uk

Robin Hood Half Marathon 🏃

When: September 27
Where: Across Nottingham
How much: Free for spectators

The city streets will be filled once again with runners pacing through The Park, Wollaton Park, The Embankment, and more. While it’s definitely too late to start training, standing on the sidelines and cheering on all the runners is still a lovely thing to do. And, if you’re feeling particularly generous, putting up water bottle stands and handing out sweets is always appreciated.

Do if: You’d like to support the city and wider community by helping motivate the runners along.

robinhoodhalfmarathon.co.uk

Autumnfolk Market 🍂

When: September 27
Where: The Nest, Nottingham
How much: Free entry, but tickets needto be booked

From cosy autumn comforts and rich seasonal colours to playful Halloween magic, this market brings together over 45 talented independent makers, bakers and creatives from Nottingham whose work perfectly captures the spirit of the season. There will also be a street food line-up offering tasty bites and sweet snacks, as well as a bar and a tea and coffee truck. Tickets for the first slot are sold out, but the other times still remain as of the time of writing.

Do if: You’d like to embrace autumn by shopping for seasonal, locally-made treasures.

gigantic.com

More events:

Food & Drink 🧀

Hot Property 🏡

Beeston is a highly desirable place to live – and if you’d like to do that in style, this six-bedroom home really is stunning. Step inside and you’ll find a luxe kitchen diner with floor-to-ceiling windows, a chic hallway with monochrome tiles, and a living room with a stone feature wall and fireplace. Upstairs, the principal bedroom with walk-in wardrobe and spa-style en-suite is particularly gorgeous (the feature bathtub looks heavenly!). Outside there’s a sizeable lawn and patio for relaxing. It’s being marketed by The Avenue, which is looking for offers over £2m. rightmove.co.uk

Last-Minute Tips 🏃🏼‍♀️

News 🗞

🎭 In the running: Nottingham Playhouse has received four UK Theatre Awards nominations. These are for best new play for The Last Stand of Mrs. Mary Whitehouse, best play revival for Small Island, best performance in a play for Katie Redford and Benedict Salter in Scenes From a Friendship, and for UK’s most welcoming theatre. The awards ceremony will take place on October 12 – fingers crossed for this fabulous city venue! @nottmplayhouse

🧀 Cheese, please: Primrose Creamery, based at the Welbeck Estate, won two Golden Forks last Thursday. The Eggleston cheese was crowned best product in England, while the Lindley cheese won outstanding bursary winner. This came after both cheeses won three Great Taste Awards stars. You can read more about the creamery in our long-read feature, which came out this weekend. gff.co.uk / primrosecreamery.com

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🌳 Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest were beaten 1-0 at the City Ground in the last Premier League game before the international break by Coventry. After going 1-0 down, Forest had an Igor Jesus goal ruled out after a VAR review, leaving the Reds 15th in the table.

🦌 Mansfield Town

Mansfield Town came from a 2-0 downtown draw with Burton in League One. Michael Smith and Lukas Akins scored either side of half-time, making it 2-2 at full-time and giving them a point away.

🐦 Notts County

Notts County were beaten away 2-0 by playoff-chasing Reading to make it back-to-back defeats in League One. Manager Martin Paterson extended his contract with the club, extending his deal to 2029.

🏏 Cricket

Nottinghamshire’s County Championship hopes took a blow going into the final round with defeat to Hampshire. The Blaze secured their third trophy of the season with a dramatic last ball win over Hampshire in the One Day Cup.

🏒 Ice Hockey

Nottingham Panthers were beaten twice over the weekend, with an overtime 3-2 defeat to Sheffield Steelers followed by a 4-1 defeat to Guildford Flames.

🏍️ Motorcycle Racing

Jacksdale’s Kyle Ryde picked up a win and two podiums in the Assen British Superbike round as the Championship enters the final ‘Showdown’ phase towards the end of the season.

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We speak to founder and cheesemaker Jake Goldstein about starting up the business, crafting quality cheeses, and what his first year has been like, including winning Great Taste Awards stars and Golden Forks.

If you love trying different food in Nottingham, Primrose Creamery’s range is worth checking out. For more features like this, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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‘You’ve got to have a certain mindset to be a cheesemaker’ — Jake Goldstein’s Primrose Creamery is making the best cheese in the country in Nottinghamshire

By Eve Smallman
Photos by Primrose Creamery

If there’s one food that can bring people together, it has to be a gorgeous cheese. Whether shared on a board or simply nibbled out of the fridge, it really is a thing of beauty. At the Welbeck Estate, there is a very exciting new wave of cheese being made. Two of them already have three Great Taste Award stars each – and one of them is even the best product in England.

Primrose Creamery is masterminded by Jake Goldstein, who set it up in October 2025. ‘I love feeding people – I love cooking for friends and family and, without wanting to over-romanticise it or seem too cliched, knowing that someone is just sat around a dinner table with their family enjoying our cheeses, when we get that feedback directly from customers, or even just see them enjoying it… That is the most satisfying part of the job,’ he explains.​

Before opening the creamery, Jake ran cocktail bars in Brighton for 12 years, which specialised in simple but seasonal ingredients. When COVID hit, they had to shut down and move into his mum’s summerhouse – and he decided it was time to change careers. ‘I couldn’t be bothered to stay up until three o’clock in the morning anymore – I wanted to do something that was related to food and drink and something that excited me.’

After looking at butchery briefly, he decided to look at cheesemaking – and after reading a few books, he did an Academy of Cheese course. From here, he moved to Herefordshire for family reasons, and emailed local cheesemakers. He started off at Monkland Cheesemakers, making hard cheddar and blue softs. After this, he worked at Neal’s Yard Creamery, which makes similar style cheeses to what Jake makes today. ‘They were predominantly goat cheeses, but they were fresh, lactic set cheeses,’ he explains.

Soon enough, an opportunity came around at the School of Artisan Food at the Welbeck Estate – which came at a useful time for Jake, with him wanting to build something of his own. ‘They historically taught a cheese-making diploma out of the school, but there wasn’t as much demand for it – so they said, “Why don’t you lease it, and then you can come in?”’ Jake explains. This meant that the school could have a cheesemaker on site, and he could become the dairy tutor for the school. ‘It’s all more symbiotic and integrated – we have lunch together, and getting school lunches is definitely a bonus.’

He continues, ‘I’ve got quite a unique opportunity here to be in a space that is surrounded by like-minded foodie people.’ For example, when testing the new butter, Jake went out and handed it out to everyone with feedback forms. ‘I don’t think I would have gotten the same level of feedback if I was handing it out to a bunch of plumbers,’ he laughs.

Working at the Welbeck Estate, Jake is neighbours with Stichelton Dairy, which produces a raw unpasteurised blue cheese. ‘I was moaning to Joe [Schneider] and said we were trying to sort teething problems, and he said they’re just regular problems forever,’ he says. ‘You’ve got to have a certain mindset to be a cheesemaker, because you’re always going to encounter curveballs and variables that you can’t control – so we just try and control the ones that we can.’

Raw milk changes all the time based on the seasons and seasons based on where you are, so it’s important to be reactive with it, such as how active the milk is, how long it takes to set the curd, and what temperatures and humidity are being used. ‘I come from a food and drink background, and you always talk about quality and consistency, quality and consistency – but when you start making cheese, everyone’s like, “Quality, sure – consistency, eh, not so much,” – and that’s quite a hard pill to swallow when you want to control it and make it as good as you can,’ Jake explains. ‘I had to learn to find beauty in the variation and lean into it a little bit.’

Being on the estate also shapes the way the cheese tastes. Jake says they have been incredibly lucky to come into a farm used to making high quality milk specifically for raw milk cheese, with Stichelton being established for over 20 years. ‘There’s also its own microclimate – possibly more relevant to hard cheeses – with your native moulds in the air,’ he continues. ‘But that sense of terra, that sense of place – isn’t just transferable. I could make the cheese here and age it over in someone else’s maturing room in Derbyshire or whatever, and it would result in different cheese. That’s not necessarily the temperature or the humidity – it is literally the fact that the air is physically different.’

Currently, Primrose Creamery produces two cheeses. One is Lindley, which has Jersey cream from a herd in Yorkshire, and is enriched to the best point possible. ‘In France, you get cheeses like Chaource and Brillat-Savarin with a really moosey, bright creme fraiche flavour and a ridiculous, decadent texture – it’s almost like ice cream texture, and in the UK we don’t really have anything like that.’ This ended up being its ‘own beast,’ with the yeast cultures Jake used taking on a winey, bready, fruity character.

On the Welbeck Estate, the fifth Duke of Portland built underground tunnels and turned them into a ballroom – which actually ended up being a dairy. ‘They had chandeliers in the milking parlour with beautiful tiles on the floor – so on the front of our cheese label, you’ve got a chandelier with a little mouse hanging off of it,’ Jake explains. ‘But it’s named after Elizabeth Lindley, who was the woman that lived above the cows, and cared for them night and day.’

The other cheese is Eggleston – named after William Eggleston, who died in the Nottingham Cheese Riot of 1766. ‘He wasn’t even rioting – he was just trying to sell his cheese and got killed,’ Jake says. ‘I like that he died defending the cheese that he loved.’ This is a small, soft cheese with an orange, delicate rind. When young, it’s firm and fresh, with clean, bright flavours of lemon zest, crisp apple, and cultured cream. But, as it matures, the edges begin to soften, revealing a rich, spoonable layer beneath the surface.

These two very distinctive cheeses may be new to the cheese scene, but they’ve already scooped up a host of accolades. ‘Awards are crucial to get our name out there – so we did the British and Irish Cheese Awards first, with Lindley getting silver and Eggleston bronze.’ From here, they swept the Artisan Cheese Awards in Melton Mowbray. ‘We got five golds, four silvers, and three bronzes,’ Jake explains. ‘I also got this big trophy for – don’t laugh – the young cheesemaker of the year. I’m not sure what the cut-off is because I don’t describe myself as young, nor do many of the people in the room,’ he chuckles.​

But for Jake, the proudest moment came from the Great Taste Awards, from which he received a bursary for Lindley enter, and paid for Eggleston. ‘When I was 18-19 years old, first getting food and drink, those stickers were like the coolest thing in the world – I would go to farm shops and spend seven quid on a cheese or a bit of butter, just because it looked cool and tasted good,’ Jake says. ‘They called in advance before they announced it, and they had done the tasting – one of the big customers wasn’t liking it, but he ended up subsequently stocking the cheese and said he just wasn’t feeling great.’

Then, 20 minutes later, he got another phone call. ‘They said we’d been given three stars for both products – and because of my history of how much I love those stickers and how much they mean to me, to get one star on one product was going to be the end goal, and it would be so special. But three?!’ he smiles.​

Only 306 received the highest three-star rating in 2026. From those entries, just 33 products were selected as Great Taste Award Golden Fork nominees. In September, Primrose Creamery’s Eggleston won the Golden Fork for England (aka the most delicious product from England), while Lindley won the Great Taste Golden Fork for Outstanding Bursary Winner. Lindley and Eggleston are both available at Essen General Store in Beeston (essen-generalstore.co.uk).

If you are thinking about trying some locally made cheese, there are plenty of reasons you should choose a small producer’s makes over blocks simply from the supermarket. ‘It’s easy when you’re running a small business to go down the route of supporting small and local – which I do agree with, but I don’t think that is the reason you should give,’ Jake says. ‘The reason you should give to people buying your products is because it’s better, and I genuinely believe that – not just for our own cheese, but for pretty much every small batch cheesemaker across this country.’

He continues, ‘Whether you get someone that has no experience of cheese or an aficionado, and put supermarket cheese next to small batch artisan cheese, they all choose the small batch cheese every time and – even with that variability – it just stands up better. I think it’s more complex and more interesting.’​

In terms of the future, Primrose Creamery has just launched its own butter, as well as working on a project to bring back Colwick cheese. ‘It was made from the early 1600s through to 1993 without breaking production, and then it ceased,’ Jake explains. It was picked back up in 2011 by Belvoir Ridge Creamery, but this again ceased production in 2018 when the owners retired. ‘We’re planning on bringing that back at some point.’

It is also planning on launching The Tasting Table next year. ‘This will be four cheeses released a year that are made once, never to be made again, that are made in line with the seasons, and so we’ll release them in line with the equinoxes and solstices, and they’ll be made in a super limited quantity,’ he explains. ‘We’re also looking at local trees that grow edible leaves outside and the walled garden at the Welbeck Estate, as well as possibly looking at doing some Neapolitan-style ice cream cones next summer – and just really push the boat out.’​

While Jake admits he can occasionally be guilty of chasing success, the most important thing for him is that everyday people like it and enjoy it. ‘It’s everything we want this company to be about,’ he finishes by saying. ‘We don’t want it to be pretentious – we just want it to be achievable, delicious… and nothing more than that, really.’

primrosecreamery.com
@primrosecreamery

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We were kindly invited to see its new look and try its new menu, going for starters, mains, and desserts, as well as a glass of wine (or two). This was gifted, but these are our honest thoughts.

If you’re looking for Italian restaurants or places to eat in Nottingham, Piccolino is worth a visit. For more reviews and guides, subscribe to The Notts Edit to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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Piccolino Nottingham food review

Words and photos by Eve Smallman

Sitting on the cusp of the Lace Market, Piccolino is one of those restaurants that I have walked past thousands of times, but never been properly into, apart from a quick bite as part of The Restaurant Tour (@thenottsedit). I’m not sure if the previous sharp logo and crisp white tablecloths used to intimidate me slightly – but these have been replaced by a new handwritten font, bright blues, and polished wooden tables.

For the unfamiliar, this is an Italian chain with plenty of restaurants across the country, serving up pizza, pastas, steaks, and more with a refined feel. The menu is very much what you might expect from a chic Italian restaurant – which is good, as if you’re going with a group, it will make it easy to find something you’d like. It also has an excellent drinks menu, with all the spritzes (Aperol, Hugo, Sarti, limoncello), as well as its signatures like hot honey margaritas and sour cherry negronis.

I’m a big believer in Italian food pairing with a good glass of wine, so I go for my beloved pinot grigio – a Trovati, with oak-aged grapes (£12 for a medium. The wine menu is truly extensive, with many of them under sections useful explanations of what the flavours might entail – handy for those who might not know a wine by name, but knows what they like. My partner Sam goes for a beer.

We begin with pitted Gordal olives (£6.50) – gorgeously plump and juicy, and perfect for getting the appetite going. I have been known to eat these out of the tin before, but having them in an white bowl with toothpicks just feels that little bit more elegant.

From here, we split tartare di tonno (£16.50) and bruschetta con gamberoni (£15). Both of these were really gorgeous in different ways. The tartare was fresh, flavoursome, and soft. Meanwhile, the bruschetta with king prawns on top was crunchy and garlicky. A mouthful of the soft middle, with a juicy prawn and butter, was absolute bliss.

Usually when we go out to dinner – especially for the Edit – we try and have two completely different things, to get a broader sense of the menu. However, on a cosy autumn evening, we just couldn’t resist two comforting bowls of pasta,

Mine was the rigatoni alla vodka (£19.75), which is also available as a sharer (£30) – a lovely option if you go for a few small plates and want a main to share, for example. The sauce for this was gorgeous – warm and hearty, with just the right kick of spice. While the rigatoni didn’t taste quite as fresh as I’d have expected, it was cooked al dente to perfection, and was the perfect size and shape vehicle for the sauce.

Sam had the ravioli granchio (£26), with hand-picked Devonshire crab filling and lobster sauce. This was really beautifully presented on a satisfyingly oval plate, and topped with fresh chilli and basil. The rich pockets of ravioli complemented the silky sauce, with the herbs and spice breaking this up for balance. Speaking of balance, we had a small tricolore salad (£11.75) on the side (yes it’s a sin in Italy to have a side salad!). This was like a caprese salad, but with extra flavour thanks to the different tomato colours and the dollops of pesto.

Because the pastas were both saucy, I thought it would be a good idea to order focaccia (£6.75) topped with olive oil and sea salt to have on the side, rather than the starter it is intended to be. This was hot, crunchy, and delicious – but a little too much to go with a main, as the board was piled high with slices. Instead, I would recommend actually having this as the ‘for the table’ it is intended to be, and just having it throughout.

I just don’t go out for dinner without dessert and, as a tiramisu obsessive, I knew I had to try Piccolino’s (£11). While sweet and fluffy, this wasn’t particularly boozy and didn’t have much coffee either – so ideal for those who like cake, but not so much for those who like a stronger tiramisu like me. Sam and I also split some truffles, which were so decadent and delightful alongside a little espresso.

I would say it’s comparable in price to The Ivy Nottingham Brasserie, which is also a chain, and is similar in price point, but offers plated food with a British touch. While The Ivy’s interior and service is a slight step above, I would definitely say Piccolino has a stronger offering in terms of the quality of the food and the value for money it offers.

I came away from Piccolino thinking what a pleasant surprise it was. I couldn’t believe I hadn’t been in for a proper meal, and now it’s firmly on my list as a lovely option for special occasions like dates and family gatherings. For crowd-pleasing food and drink and a chic yet comfortable atmosphere, it’s a fabulous option – and I’ll certainly be back.

piccolinorestaurants.com

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We went and reviewed it on its press night at the Theatre Royal in Nottingham. It is touring the UK until June 2027 (silenceofthelambsplay.com).

If you’re looking for September events in Nottingham, The Silence of the Lambs is playing at the Theatre Royal until September 19 (from £22pp, trch.co.uk). For more reviews like this, subscribe to receive our articles in your inbox for free.

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The Silence of the Lambs at Theatre Royal, Nottingham: “Deliciously dark” — theatre review
★★★★★

By Charlotte Brudenell
Photos by Marc Brenner

“I do wish we could chat longer, but I’m having an old friend for dinner.”

The Silence of the Lambs is an absolute triumph. It is a near-perfect stage adaptation of the 1988 novel of the same name by Thomas Harris, and subsequently the 1991 horror film.

The plot follows FBI trainee Clarice Starling (Mollie Gallagher), who must interview Hannibal Lecter (John Partridge), an imprisoned cannibal, to help catch a serial killer nicknamed ‘Buffalo Bill’ (Sam Jackson).

I went and reviewed this show on its premiere national tour, and I sure hope that it gets a permanent residency somewhere when the run is over. I was on the edge of my seat throughout the whole performance. There is never a dull moment; it’s spine-chilling the whole way through, and I was absolutely gripped.

I truly believe anyone with a taste for horror would love this. There are plenty of jump scares and gory moments, and for those who are fans of the original movie, yes, it stays true to the plot. I was delighted to be able to see one of my favourite films on stage.

Gina Gionfriddo, who adapted the piece, wrote the script wonderfully. Nikolai Foster, the director, certainly made sure to recreate the film (or book) that all horror fans know and love. I must admit, though, I am rather sad they cut the famous line from the film: “I ate his liver with some fava beans and a nice Chianti.” It really would have made it for me, in a not-too-morbid way.

One thing I love about the production is that it was created by the team at The Curve Theatre in Leicester, who create and produce many amazing shows. I love how somewhere so close to the city can create theatre which can go on to be a national (and sometimes international) success.

It cannot go without saying that John Partridge’s portrayal of Hannibal Lecter was deliciously dark. Of course, Anthony Hopkins made the role so iconic, and I loved how Partridge channelled all that creepy, unsettling energy into his own version of the character. If I may say so myself, he somehow made the character almost seductive and suave, making the audience realise just how easily Clarice was drawn to him. His line delivery was pure perfection, speaking his comedic lines just well enough to give that fleeting moment of comedic relief.

As if it couldn’t get any scarier, Sam Jackson hit the jackpot. His portrayal of ‘Buffalo Bill’ was absolutely frightening. Whenever he was on stage, I was gripping the arms of the chair; his presence on stage was enough to give me the shivers. In the film, I never felt frightened by his character, so Jackson clearly hit the mark in delivering every note in his portrayal of a spineless serial killer. As well as that, he also perfectly showed how broken that character was, but not so much that the audience would feel remorse.

The set design was stunning. Michael Taylor did a wonderful job. Having just one major set piece but managing to utilise it for every scene was executed incredibly well. Lecter’s cell was the set piece that stole the scene, though. It worked so well – it didn’t feel as though it took up too little or too much of the stage, and how they got the sound to work perfectly with Hannibal locked in the cell, I don’t know.

Another thing I loved about the staging was managing to condense different plot points into one scene. For example, when Clarice was interviewing Hannibal, there would be scenes including Buffalo Bill happening simultaneously. This ensures that the whole original plot could be put into this stage adaptation without missing any major details. This is great because with some adaptations, they do tend to leave parts out to condense it for the stage, but this method worked surprisingly well. It isn’t distracting; you can easily focus on both points that are happening.

This show may not be for everyone. For those who may have sensory issues, there are a lot of loud bangs and unexpected noises, such as gunshots and bangs during dramatic moments and scene changes. It is also quite gory in parts, showing dead bodies and being rather graphic with Hannibal maiming people. The subject matter is not light either, so take care to research the show if you do intend on seeing it.

However, for those who love horror, crime, or thrillers, this show is most definitely for you. For those who are fans of the movie, it’s like watching the film but with the added joy of it being in a theatre, a live re-enactment of an iconic piece of media. This is not one to be missed; I can see it becoming a staple of British theatre. For someone who generally sees musicals over plays, this was truly captivating, and I look forward to seeing where it goes after this tour.

The Silence of the Lambs is playing at the Theatre Royal until September 19 (from £22pp, trch.co.uk) and touring the UK until June 2027 (silenceofthelambsplay.com).

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A note from the editor

I love the sun, but it has been so nice having regular cups of tea, crunching through leaves, and feeling a chill in the air. Autumn is here, and I’m excited to get stuck into the season in Nottinghamshire. If you want to do the same, our mega autumn events guide is brimming with things to do.

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Notts Going On

By Eve Smallman and Sam Swain

What’s On 🗓️

The Silence of the Lambs 🎭

When: September 15-19
Where: Theatre Royal, Nottingham
How much: From £22pp

Come face to face with this chilling cultural phenomenon as it makes its world stage play premiere. Based on Thomas Harris’s literary masterpiece, it follows FBI trainee Clarice Starling as she’s sent to interview the psychiatrist and infamous murderer Hannibal Lecter, when it’s hoped his mind will help catch new serial killer Buffalo Bill. Showcasing the story’s chills in a brand new way, you’re sure to be gripped.

Do if: You’re just as intrigued as we are about a Silence of the Lambs play.

trch.co.uk

Bat Hunt at Bennerley Viaduct 🦇

When: September 17
Where: Bennerley Viaduct, Awsworth
How much: £16.96pp

Head to the stunning Bennerley Viaduct for a fascinating evening of searching for bats. After being briefed by the ranger, you’ll head into the night to see what you can discover, all while using bat detectors in groups. The ticket includes a pie and peas supper of Derbyshire lamb hotpot (but you can email to switch to veggie, vegan, or gluten-free). Plus, be sure to wear sturdy shoes, as some of the paths are uneven.

Do if: You’d like a cosy evening exploring nature (even better fuelled with a comforting meal!).

eventbrite.co.uk

Fabulous Places Autumn Market 🍂

When: September 19
Where: Norwood Park, Southwell
How much: From £6.50pp, under 18s free

Fabulous Places – which is known for its thoughtfully curated markets – is returning to Norwood Park for a special autumn edition. Explore over 50 thoughtfully selected stalls showcasing stylish home décor, handmade creations, seasonal flowers and plants, artisan food, vintage treasures, jewellery, gardenware, and more. There will also be food and drink vendors to keep you fuelled up while shopping.

Do if: You’re looking to give your home an autumn refresh and would like to pick up lovely local pieces.

norwoodpark.co.uk

Festival of Food & Drink 🍽️

When: September 19-20
Where: Thoresby Park, Newark
How much: £12pp adult, £8pp child

Showcasing oodles of award-winning food and drink, TV chef favourites, and gifts, this is a foodie treat set in the lovely grounds of Thoresby Park. This year’s guest chef line-up includes Saturday Kitchen’s Matt Tebbutt, Bake Off’s Jasmine Mitchell, and Masterchef’s Claire Syrenne, who will teach you how to cook up a storm, before you dive into street food bites and browse shopping stalls.

Do if: You like cooking and trying a variety of different foods – this has stallholders both local, national, and international.

festivaloffoodanddrink.com

LagosPhoto: Stories of Movement and Belonging 📷

When: September 19-January 10
Where: Lakeside Arts, Beeston
How much: Free entry

This thought-provoking exhibition brings together artists from across the African continent and the diaspora, alongside a selection of international practitioners, who are part of the LagosPhoto Festival network. Through diverse photographic practices, the featured works question who can move freely, whose stories gain visibility, and how photography might resist reductive narratives. The exhibition will be in Djanogly Gallery, as well as having outdoor works around Lakeside and across University Park campus.

Do if: You like thinking differently about things – the exhibition invites audiences to rethink travel and tourism.

lakesidearts.org.uk

More events:

Theatre 🎭

Top tips 💡

Hot Property 🏡

With period character and thoughtful modern touches, this three-bedroom Victorian home in Radcliffe-on-Trent is absolutely stunning. We love the statement blue and white kitchen (pictured), which elegantly leads into the dining room and living space with exposed brickwork and sunroof. There’s also a beautiful grey snug with a marble-clad fireplace, complete with a wood-burning stove. Upstairs are three bright bedrooms, as well as a bathroom with a bath right in the middle of it. The guide price is £580k, and it’s marketed by eXp UK, East Midlands. rightmove.co.uk

News 🗞

📺 Winner, winner: Nottingham royalty Vicky McClure scooped up an NTA (National Television Award) last Tuesday. She won best drama performance for her role in Trigger Point, from the first all-female shortlist in the category’s history. “I feel honoured to be amongst those wonderful women,” she told the BBC. “Over the years it has not been our space, and here we are dominating that category.” bbc.co.uk

📚 Get reading: Beeston-born fashion designer Sir Paul Smith published his autobiography Threads: My Life in Style on Friday. This follows the humble beginnings of his first tiny shop in a Nottingham alleyway, to London success, to international conquest. He also shares memories of dressing rock stars, actors, and athletes, giving a unique perspective on fashion, art, music and culture. worldofbooks.com

Scores on the Doors 🏆

🌳 Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest picked up their first win of the season with a 2-1 win away at Aston Villa. Summer signing Liam Delap put the Reds ahead in the first half before Villa equalised. Igor Jesus came off the bench to score his first goal of the season and secure three points for the first time under Oliver Glasner.

🦌 Mansfield Town

Mansfield Town held promotion-chasing Huddersfield Town to a 0-0 draw at home, despite playing most of the second half with ten men. Owen Dodgson was sent off for the hosts for a late tackle just after coming on as a substitute, but the Stags were able to keep Huddersfield at bay and earn a point.

🐦 Notts County

Notts County were beaten for the first time this season by Bradford City. The visitors picked up a 1-0 win with a second-half goal, despite Notts having the lion’s share of chances in the first half.

🏏 Cricket

Nottinghamshire kept up the pace in the County Championship with a win over Hampshire. Olly Stone took nine wickets in the match to put his name in England contention for the winter, and the result keeps Nottingham just four points behind Somerset in 2nd place. The Blaze reached the One Day Cup final with a thumping nine-wicket win over Hampshire. The final is on September 19.

🏒 Ice Hockey

The Nottingham Panthers won their season opening match – a 4-3 shootout win at home over Manchester Storm.

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