Wollo Park has gone all prehistoric on us...
Dinosaurs
Lock and bolt the doors and keep your loved ones close, folks. There’s pandemonium in the streets. Dinosaurs have invaded Wollaton Park. T. Rexes are lurking in the halls of the mansion. Megalodons have invaded the lake. Pterodactyls soar through the skies, pillaging magpie nests as they go. Well, not quite. But it paints a nice picture, don’t it? Wollo Park have jumped on the Jurassic bandwagon and have got a ton of dinosaur-related activities afoot, so round up the kiddywinks and get involved. There’s a trail to find the escaped creatures, you can make your own dino character, or even have a fiddle with some old fossils. All for around a pound a pop. Blinding. If it’s sunny weather, you could even take a picnic and have a lounge about on the lawns. School holidays have never looked so good.
Monday 20 July, 10am - 4pm, £1/£2, Wollaton Park
The cheapest meat there ever was...
The Murderburgers and The
Kimberly Steaks
Half-Arsed Promotions aren’t exactly living up to their name this month. The bleeders have only gone and booked the mad Scots that are The Murderburgers. Pop-punk to the brim, the three-piece band like to get gobby about being skint and going mental, with fast, high-energy tunes that’ll have you thrashing about like no man’s business. Joining them on their noisy endeavour are The Kimberly Steaks – likened to early Green Day, this lot make their tunes as loud and speedy as humanly possible. Support for the evening comes in the form of local punk trio Itchy ‘Arris, who’re coming out of retirement for a special, one-off gig. There’s also a dollop of seventies silliness from The Atoms, and power-pop melodies from The Rutherfords. A night of pure pop punk madness that’ll leave your face dripping with sweat and beer. Sort it out.
Monday 20 July, 7.30pm, £4, The Old Angel
Seasons: Summer
We’ve all gone a bit mad for a bit of the owd craft ale as of late. With crafty establishments sprouting up all over the shop, the leader of the pack has gorra be Broad Street’s Brewdog. The board game-stuffed bar are opening their doors for you lot to sample the delicacies that this slight raise in temperature complements down to a T. Described as a ‘sensory journey’ (oo-er), the bar will be open for those with a more refined pallet to sample the sunniest of ales and summer-time nibbles. You’ll need to book your tickets rapid, because this is an event expected to sell the hell out. Just remember to pace yourselves, Nottinghamites, we know how you lot get after a few bevvies...
Tuesday 21 July, 7.30pm, £22, Brewdog
Bamalamasingsong
A call to arms from the I’m Not From London boys for the ‘loudest, proudest and rowdiest’ singers in Notts to descend upon Rescue Rooms for a night of karaoke - with a difference. Send your drab working week out with a proper bang, in the form of a live band playing the backing track to all your favourite party tunes - the only thing you’ve got to do, is turn up and sing your absolute heart out. There’ll be songs you love, songs you hate, and songs you were positive you knew but the lyrics on the screen clearly reveal otherwise. Either way, you’re bound to have an absolute stonker of an eve. There’s a club night after, too, so it definitely won’t be early doors.
Friday 24 July, 8.30pm, £6, Rescue Rooms
Deerstock Festival
The baddest festival with the biggest heart is back this month, and it’s set to kick your summer into full swing. The not-for-profit charity is hosting the Newton music festival once again, with all the best local acts set to tear up your weekend. Ferocious Dog, Josh Wheatley and Funke and the Two Tone Baby are re-stringing their guitars in preparation for what’s to come. Nominated for the Best Family Festival Award last year, it’s the perfect way to introduce the kiddies to some good old-fashioned rock 'n' roll. This year, the festival will be raising money for The Alzheimers Society, Reach UK and The Lee Bonsall Memorial Fund.
Friday 24 - Sunday 26 July, various prices, Newton Cross Country Course
Say Sum Thin 9
Mouthy Poets Carnival
We’ve got a lot of things to be proud of in Nottingham, and not just cos the bus stop says so. The bid to become a UNESCO City of Literature has finally been put forward and one shining example of why we deserve the title comes in the form of the Mouthy Poets. Massive in every sense of the word, this Nottingham poetry collective, fronted and formed by the BBC 1Xtra-featured poet Debris Stevenson, have got a fair few things to say. This will be the ninth Say Sum Thin event whacked on by the gobby lot, and this time they’re taking over the entirety of Nottingham Playhouse for the whole day, in a carnival of music, art and, most importantly, words. Of the spoken kind. There will be dancers, film, craft stalls, delicious food, interactive workshops and activities, live graffiti, battle rap from Nottingham league Clash Money, and face painting from Laura Decorum. All this, punctuated with two live shows from the wordsmiths. Expect a weaving of multi-faceted media through the performances, all with the theme of carnival tying the bow together. From bards to breakers, there’s some crazy talent coming from near and far to enjoy the day. Don’t miss out.
Saturday 25 July, 12pm - 10pm, £10.50/£12.50, Nottingham Playhouse
Vintage Bunting Workshop
Summer has finally graced us with its presence. The BBQs are out and the Arboretum is full of skinny chaps with their tops off, bunning up their skin and swigging warm cider straight from the plastic bottle. If you’re lucky enough to have your own back garden, you’ll need to kit yourself out with some state of the art summer decor, if you really wanna impress your mates. Luckily, Malt Cross have got it all sorted with their free bunting workshop. You’ll learn some nifty little tricks – like how to use a sewing machine – and create your own bunting out of vintage fabrics. You needn’t have any experience and you don’t need to bring your own fabrics, but if you wanna hit Laura Ashley and really show off, they ain’t gonna stop ya. There’s a free cuppa char in it for you, too.
Saturday 25 July, 1pm - 3pm, free, Malt Cross
Celebrate Pride in style this weekend...
Pride 2015: Kings of Queens
It’s the most fabulous day of the year, and one we’re all pretty proud of. Following the legalisation of gay marriage in America, you can expect this year’s Pride celebrations to be bigger and better than ever. We’re not doing things by halves in Notts, either. New Art Exchange will be screening Confetti’s finest Damien Ebanks’ film, Kings of Queens, following Nottingham’s finest drag queen and female impersonator. Following that, BBC’s Drag Kings of the UK will be throwing drag kings straight into the spotlight. NAE will be offering a selection of crackin’ cocktails for you to slurp away at, while you celebrate diversity, and feel pretty darn proud of how much can be found in our city. Following the screening, you can head down to Spanky's for the DirtyFilthySexy afterparty, hosted by Nottingham’s own Kitty Tray.
Saturday 25 July, 6.30pm, free, New Art Exchange
Gluttons Club: A Taste of Portugal
Be still, rumbling stomach. The way to your heart is through your belly, so start treading the path by taking on a culinary experience to end all others this weekend. Courtesy of the Gluttons Club, you’ll be dining on the finest four course menu money can buy, filled with traditional Portuguese dishes. Expect juicy prawns soaked in garlic butter, and all the succulent piri piri chicken found this side of the continent. Set aside a tenner for the taxi home, cos you’ll be far too full to walk to the tram. Treat yourself, and we’ll see you there.
Saturday 25 July, £25, Ukrainian Cultural Centre, Sherwood Rise
Future Bubblers Block Party
When you hear the name, what springs to mind? Tin foil clad folk blowing bubbles through time warps? Young dribblers blowin’ raspberries? Wrong on both counts, they're the team that have set themselves the challenge of hand-picking the soundmakers of the... future. To shout about what they're doing - and because they love a good time - they're chucking a block party for us lot. Get your butt down, shake it to the numerous DJS (including a very special guest... our lips are sealed), plus they've bagged a Crosley Cruiser to give to one lucky party goer, and there'll be a winning combination of street food, skipping and hula hooping, and vinyl-a-plenty. You have officially been informed. Go. Play.
Saturday 25 July, 3pm, free, The Irish Centre
For the motherload of everything else going on this week check out our comprehensive Nottingham events listings.
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