Rye Arts Festival kicked off last Saturday with a talk by politician Ken Clarke amid tight security because of the underground train bomb in London the day before.
Security levels throughout the UK were at their highest through fears of multiple bombings and bags were searched before people could enter the Milligan Theatre in Love Lane for Ken’s chat.
Elsewhere though, love was flowing as wedding parties seemed scattered through the town – with guests snacking in the Kino cinema, others supping in The Standard and others just wandering around.
Rye News enquiries then established that there were three weddings (not four as in the popular film “Four Weddings and a Funeral) with two in the 18th century Town Hall in Market Street and one in the Roman Catholic church in Watchbell Street.
But there was no funeral. However in the preceding week Canon Frost from St Mary’s had officiated at two memorial services and one cremation. However, back to the weddings. If the guests wandered past the 12th century St Mary’s church to the Gun Garden, dating back to the days when the French had to be regularly fought off, the guests may have been confused to find the Flying Bazazi Brothers (far right) entertaining festival families.
On the other hand if they came into Church Square from West Street they might have stumbled upon an ice cream seller (above) plagued with rodents, otherwise known as “Rat Choc Chip”.
Those inside the Kino however would have walked past Radio Local, broadcasting news and comments (mainly kindly) about Rye and its inhabitants – but only to the audience inside the Kino’s courtyard.
Those interviewed by presenters Jenny Hunt and Holly Darton included winners of the Arts Festival short story competition. The winning short story will be read next Sunday afternoon, September 24, in the Methodist Church at 3pm as part of Claire Fuller’s talk on writing.
Rye News Editor John Minter was one of those interviewed about Rye along with Arts Festival chairman Mike Eve.
The Rye Ukulele Experiment band, who had also been performing in the High Street, gave Radio Local a quick strum.
One of Rye News‘s regular contributors (in the past, performer, gardener and cabaret queen Timberlina also made an appearance, introducing the town to shot yoga
This involved a number of exercises, some standing, and some lying, on the yoga mat. And the final exercise was for your neck muscles as you had to use your mouth alone to pick up a shot glass filled with rhubarb vodka and down it. And this reduced a member of Radio Local’s stage crew to a spluttering wreck.
So Andy Stuart, one of the Festival’s organisers and I decided to have a go too. Speaking for myself the “vodka” was very nice, though the exercises were not – and I have my suspicions about whether what I drank was as the label said on the bottle.
Elsewhere though the Festival was moving on to more serious business such as “The English Concert” chamber orchestra in nearby St Mary’s where Kristan Bezuidenhout was due to play Mozart’s Piano Concerto No.13 in C major on the forte piano and last Tuesday’s organ recital by Dr David Flood.
Photos : John Minter