Music includes the unmissable Brass Funkeys – an eight-piece brass band drawing on the traditions of New Orleans. Originally from Cambridge, they have played locations from Glastonbury and Wilderness festivals to the O2 and Ronnie Scott’s in London. The Brass Funkeys are set to deliver an open-air live show bursting at the seams with infectious energy.
The event also includes a samba band, the Junkyard Orchestra music workshop, and other artists throughout the day as well as a street food market featuring some of the region’s favourite food trucks and vendors, including Steak & Honour as well a licensed bar in the Thirsty bus.
Alongside the music and food, several talks and tours focus on Eddington’s ambitions for the environment, biodiversity, community and sustainable living. Visitors can discover how apartments receive heating without a boiler and witness a novel approach to waste and recycling – an underground waste system.
As a frontrunner in sustainable living, it comes as no surprise that this topic features in several events that showcase Eddington as a beacon of future living. These include guided tours of Eddington, during which Visit Cambridge and Beyond tour guides focus on the development’s contemporary architecture and sustainability features that help residents lead more sustainable lives. Visitors can also explore Eddington for themselves, via the self-guided tour of Eddington information sheet, which includes descriptions of the architectural and design features that showcase the quality of the development and the sustainability principles behind it. Also included is a family treasure hunt around the site.
Art is big feature of the Open Eddington day, with a range of events including a walking tour of the award-winning district, visiting major art installations – Richard of York Gave Battle in Vain, the Pixel Wall, Fata Morgana Teahouse and We Are All Under The Same Sky. Plus, hear how resident artist schemes and engagement have been a key part of the community’s development, such as the ArtScapers programme. This initiative has been connecting with young children, families, educators and neighbours living in and around Eddington since 2016. They have explored ideas such as friendship, future and what makes a community. This exhibition celebrates their work and ideas.
The award-winning Storey’s Field Centre, one of the city’s best new venues, also invites visitors to take a behind-the-scenes look at what it takes to put on a concert or performance, and learn more about Eddington’s community classes and children’s events.
Speaking ahead of this year’s Open Cambridge and the Open Eddington events, Heather Topel, Project Director of the North West Cambridge Development said: “We are thrilled to offer again a whole day of free public activities and events at Eddington that illustrate the depth and breadth of what Eddington has to offer. We had over 3,000 people visit Eddington at last year’s event and we hope many of our friends, neighbours and supporters – existing and new - will take the time to join us for this occasion.”
Madingley Hall also opens its doors on the same day for tours guided by local experts. Discover more about its rich history and explore the beauty of the 16th-Century country house. Visitors can also explore the medicinal garden and Madingley Hall’s beautiful eight-acre gardens. Discover cures, curiosities, tastes and essences and learn fascinating facts about herbs and medicinal plants with professional herbalists and the garden team at the Hall’s Medicinal Garden.
An event not to be missed during Open Cambridge is the moving ‘Stories of the Americans in Britain during World War II’ at the Cambridge American cemetery in Coton. Discover the stories of those young Americans who arrived here in World War II as part of the ‘Friendly Invasion’ and who are now commemorated at Cambridge American Cemetery and Memorial.
A further highlight is the annual Open Cambridge dinner on the evening of Friday 13th September. This year the three-course, fine-dining experience takes place in the historic splendour of the 19th-Century dining hall at Corpus Christi College. The evening starts with a sparkling pre-dinner drink followed by a delicious three-course meal ending with coffee and a short talk about the College’s history by a special guest speaker. Tickets are £40. Bookings for the dinner only: 01223 761539 / conferences@corpus.cam.ac.uk
The full programme of Open Cambridge events can be downloaded here. Most events are free to the public.
Open Cambridge is a busy weekend and many of the events require pre-booking in advance.
Places can be booked from 19th August online at www.opencambridge.cam.ac.uk or by calling 01223 766 766.
The phone-line is open between 11am – 3pm, Monday to Friday. There are also plenty of drop-in events for people to enjoy.
Twitter: @OpenCambridgeUK