Northumberland festival organisers call on residents to name their favourite tree

The innovative Festival is returning for its fourth year, with events across Northumberland between June 26-29 at venues in Alnwick and Rothbury and on June 21 at Hepple Wilds.

The Festival brings the arts and nature together to raise local awareness of the climate emergency and bio-diversity loss, asking what we can each do to tackle it. This year’s programme explores climate change through poetry, film, music, dance and topical debate.

One of the Festival’s themes this year is ‘Celebrating Trees’, with an exhibition of art from community groups guided by local artist Anna Corbett. The exhibition of their work in paint, textiles and print will be on display at the Playhouse from June 25 to July 5.

Continuing the theme of celebrating trees, the Festival will feature your nominations for favourite trees in the Northumberland Gazette and on social media.

Liz Anderson, Festival trustee, said “Trees are such a vital part of our landscape in Northumberland. We want to know your favourites and why. It might be a tree that has a special place in your heart or where you just sit and day dream, it really is up to you.”

Send your entry with a photograph and reasons for your choice to www.whataww.org/your-favourite-tree.

A high point of the Festival will be Earth Matters: a talk and debate about the future of Simonside on the afternoon of Saturday, June 28 at Alnwick Playhouse with international speaker Professor Alastair Driver, former Director of Rewilding Britain and Mike Pratt of Northumberland Wildlife Trust. He’ll be giving a national picture of the state of our countryside and busting some myths about rewilding in preparation for a panel discussion involving the audience.

Tom Burston, a Festival trustee, local farmer and ex-deputy director of the Food, Farming and Countryside Commission said: “We are sure to have a lively discussion at the Playhouse about what we can do as individuals and organisations to help restore nature for the planet and people.

"This is particularly relevant with the purchase of the Rothbury Estates by The Wildlife Trusts, and is of real concern to many people who live and work in the Coquet Valley”

World-renowned guitarist and song-writer Martin Simpson is giving a special show for this Festival featuring a song commissioned by Chris Packham about Hen Harriers. Poet and humorist Kate Fox will perform extracts from her book ‘On Sycamore Gap’.

The weekend long festival also has a wide range of events, including Poetry and Music at Rothbury Golf Club on Thursday, June 26 and Poets Go Wild - readings by local poets Catherine Ayers and Neil Hodgson at Hauxley Discovery Centre on Saturday, June 28.

Local singers will join Werca’s Folk and VoiceMale on Sunday, June 29 to ‘Sing for the Planet’ at Alnwick Playhouse, where on Saturday, June 28 there will also be a showing of the extraordinary film ‘Heart of Oak,’ which contemplates the world of a 210 year old oak tree and a talk on ‘Working Wood’ by Geoff Jackson.

Children aged 3-6 years are invited to a special Festival session about Julia Donaldson’s The Oak Tree at Alnwick Library on Thursday, June 26.

The What A Wonderful World Festival debuted proper in 2022 when leading entertainers and climate experts converged on Alnwick Playhouse and Alnwick Garden to put a creative spin on securing a sustainable future.

Tickets are now available from alnwick.playhouse.co.uk

Full details and updates about the Festival can be found at www.whataww.org