The Banbury Canal Festival returns for another year of entertainment, history, and heritage. This year’s line-up of events and activities has been made possible thanks to a joint effort between organisations including Banbury Town Council, Banbury BID, Banbury Museum, Castle Quay, Tooley’s Boatyard, Bridge Street Community Gardens, The Village Butty, Lock 29, The Light, The Mill, and Chiltern Railways.
Banbury owes much of its history to the canal ways that run through it. Since work was completed in 1778, Banbury experienced unprecedented growth, with the canals helping to build its reputation as a market town throughout the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The canals continue to benefit Banbury, bringing in tourists and leisure seekers from far and wide.
Banbury is now a key stop along the Oxford Canal, considered by many to be one of the most scenic canalways in the world. Travelling through the rolling green hills of the Oxfordshire countryside, those travelling northwards will arrive at Banbury before moving onto Fenny Compton, Napton on the Hill and other villages on their way up to the Grand Union Canal, a historical and intrinsic link between London and Birmingham.
The Canal Festival sees the area around Castle Quay, Banbury Museum, and Tooley’s Boatyard transformed into a hub of community events, historical displays and exhibitions, and activities for both young and old. Taking place over the course of both the 5th and 6th of October, the Banbury Canal Festival is one of the most popular events, both among Banbury residents and the wider Oxfordshire population.
The festival will see dozens of narrowboats, both modern and traditional, docked along the canal. These will demonstrate the evolution of the British canal boat, as well as their designs, uses, and capabilities. Some of these craft will be local to the Banbury area, while some will have journeyed from much further afield to be present at the festival.
Just some of the highlights of this year’s event include performances and demonstrations from the Sealed Knot, a variety of historical canal boats, boat tours, food and drink, and live music performances. There will be fairground rides for children as well as face painting and a number of different workshops.
Running before, during and after the festival will be various live performances, screenings, and crafts at the historic Tooley’s Boatyard, hosted by the Village Butty. Tooley’s is the oldest canal dry dock in the world, and as such is one of the most popular sites at the Canal Festival. In addition to music and an open mic night, comedic routines will also be performed.
The Canal Festival is a fantastic opportunity for Banbury residents to learn more about the town’s fascinating history, as well as experience some of the best modern and future talent exhibited by the performers, organisations, and local businesses present at the event. A great day out for the family, it is definitely not to be missed.
