this month
top events to put in your diary
The great outdoors has so much to offer – opera at Glyndebourne, open-air theatre in Brighton, and those fabulous autumn leaves
December
■ 5-6, 12-13 December
Glyndebourne is the fabulous venue for a concert of opera highlights and Christmas classics. You could also make an afternoon of it by booking in at one of the restaurants. All seats are booked in pairs – discover more about its Covid-19 precautions and book tickets at glyndebourne.com.
■ 8-24 December
If you’re staying at the Caravan and Motorhome Club Brighton site, there’s a treat in store at Brighton Open Air Theatre, in Hove.
Wrap up warm to enjoy family performances of The Snow Queen (suitable for two-year-olds upwards) and Hansel and Gretel, which is billed as a postmodern pantomime for eight-year-olds upwards
(and includes a rapping dragon).
The shows run simultaneously and last about an hour. There’ll be mulled wine for the grown-ups! Find out more at brightonopenairtheatre.co.uk.
From now
■ Have you heard the expression ‘Leaf Peeping’? It’s a term from the US, which means travelling to special places to enjoy and photograph the changing seasons.
The Forest of Dean and Wye Valley has created a 50-mile Leaf Peeping drive, starting at Symonds Yat (1) and taking in The Kymin, Tintern and the Devil’s Pulpit, Eagle’s Nest, Wintour’s Leap, Puzzlewood, Mallards Pike,
Cyril Hart Arboretum and Cannop Ponds, and ending at Goodrich Castle.
Find out more at www.wyedean tourism.co.uk/leafpeeperswelcome.
A stay at Lucksall Caravan and Camping Park (lucksallpark.co.uk) should put you at the heart of things.
■ This Leaf Peeping idea is clearly catching on with the tourist boards! Never Normal Brighton (visitbrighton. com) lists a host of places where you can participate, including Wakehurst, Borde Hill Garden, Stanmer Park, the South Downs and Devil’s Dyke.
■ Until 24 May
As part of its Refugees season, the Imperial War Museum in London is running an interesting project on facial recognition and AI.
‘A Face to Open Doors’ is an interactive experience set in an imaginary world, where borders are policed by intelligent machines. An assessment of your face is made by an AI border guard; where you are sent depends on how you use your face. The concept is designed to show just one of the problems facing refugees, but might it become the passport of the future?
You can find out more by visiting www.iwm.org.uk/events/a-faceto-open-doors-iwm-london.
2021
■ 3 July 2021
Nothing says summertime quite like the sight of sailing boats skimming across blue water, and there will be plenty of them taking part in the Isle of Wight Round the Island Race, which was moved to 2021 after the cancellation of the 2020 event. The race, taking place over 11 heats, will start and finish at Cowes.
For more information about the best vantage points and start times, go to www.roundtheisland.org.uk.
NOTE All event details were correct as we went to press, but please check before making any journey