Bournemouth Beach © Bournemouth Tourism
Make the most of the last of the summer with our guide to some of the best things to see and do in Bournemouth, Stratford-upon-Avon and Newcastle.
Check out the annual Bournemouth Air Festival taking over the seafront from 30 August to 2 September. The Red Arrows will zoom majestically across the sky, the Royal Navy’s Black Cat Helicopters will spiral up high to perform daring feats and Breitling Wingwalkers will show off their best acrobatic manoeuvres while strapped to the wings of a Boeing Stearman. This dizzying spectacle will have you gasping and gawping all the way through while Rizzle Kicks, Newton Faulkner and many other top names in pop will have you dancing all night on Boscombe Pier as part of the Night Air at the Piers.
YesYesNo’s Connecting Light: Hadrian’s Wall © Roger Clegg
Newcastle: Connecting Light at Hadrian’s Wall
See one of England’s most ancient landmarks in a new light, literally, thanks to New York-based artists’ collective YesYesNo from 31 August to 1 September. Using hundreds of large, light-filled balloons that transmit colours along the entire length of the wall, YesYesNo have transformed a mighty Roman frontier into a dazzling spectacle symbolising a line of communication. That may sound a little strange, but the LED-lit balloons are in fact controlled by messages entered onto the connectinglight.info website from all across the world, making this a truly interactive artwork on a mammoth scale.
Stratford-Upon-Avon: Flight and the Artistic Imagination
Carrying on with the aircraft theme, the Compton Verney gallery is hosting a major exhibition until 30 September on all things with wings. From the Greek legend of Icarus flying too close to the sun to innovations in space travel, the exhibition explores man’s relentless desire and attempts to fly and the famous artworks that have been created as a result. Ponder over masterpieces by the likes of Leonardo de Vinci, Paul Nash, Francisco Goya, Hiraki Sawa and Peter Lanyon, all of which give you a fascinating overview of artists’ interpretations of man’s obsession with sprouting wings and reaching for the sky.
