I have a real soft spot for people building new places for us to go, so The Amp has immediately got my attention.
The Courtyard has basically plonked an enormous Big Top on its Hereford site for the summer and filled it with people you would usually expect to travel considerably further to see. The Amp, short for The Courtyard Amplified, holds around 1,400 people, making it Herefordshire’s largest live performance space. It is deliberately temporary too, appearing for the summer season and then disappearing again, which gives the whole thing a pleasing little-festival-that-came-to-town feeling.
And this Friday, Russell Howard is in it.
Howard is one of those comedians who feels stitched into a particular era of British television. If you watched Mock the Week in its Frankie Boyle, Hugh Dennis, Dara Ó Briain years, you’ll know him as the very energetic one looking permanently delighted to have thought of another joke.
His current live material is still very much Howard territory: global politics and general human absurdity mixed with much more personal stuff about becoming a dad. A recent review of his London Palladium show had him tearing through Trump, Prince Andrew and the Epstein papers before moving into fertility, family life and new fatherhood. So, quite a light evening.
There is a nice bit of timing here too. Howard has been at the Edinburgh Fringe from 5 to 12 August doing eight intimate work-in-progress shows, then turns up in Hereford on the 14th. I can’t promise what that means for Friday’s set, but there is every chance Hereford gets material that has only just been kicked around in front of Edinburgh audiences. His wider 2026 tour is called Don’t Tell The Algorithm, built around the appealing idea of putting the phones away and getting back to “just humans and jokes”.
And before anybody starts inventing a great-grandmother from Kington to make him properly ours, Howard is a West Country boy rather than a Marches one. He was born in Bath, grew up around Radstock and started doing stand-up while studying economics at UWE Bristol. Close enough that I’m prepared to welcome him across the border without paperwork.
Really though, I’m just as interested in The Amp itself. Its first summer has brought Jools Holland, James Morrison, Alfie Boe, Kim Wilde, ABC, The Shires, Al Murray, Chris Ramsey and a fairly surreal sprinkling of Harry Redknapp and Simon Reeve to Hereford. A 1,400-seat circus tent appearing for a few weeks and allowing the city to suddenly book acts of this size feels like a very good experiment indeed. More strange temporary venues, please.
Russell Howard at The Amp Friday 14 August, 7.30pm The Courtyard, Hereford Tickets £42.50 Last few tickets at the time of writing.
Maxine Peake is coming to Ludlow to perform an avant-garde electronic sound poem about the Pendle witches. I feel this is information we all need well in advance.
So I’m giving Ludlow History Festival a shout now, before the good stuff starts selling out and everyone realises at the same time that they should probably have made plans.
On Saturday 22 August, Peake joins Sheffield duo Eccentronic Research Council at Ludlow Assembly Rooms for a live performance of 1612 Underture, their atmospheric retelling of the Pendle witch trials. Synthesizers, tape manipulation, spoken word and storytelling revisit the lives of the people accused of witchcraft and executed in Lancashire in 1612, digging into the fear, prejudice and power that sat behind the trials.
Even better, the evening opens closer to home. Shropshire folklorist Amy Boucher will explore the county’s own history of witchcraft, folk belief and protective customs, including the story of Nanny Morgan, the so-called Wenlock Witch.
It is one of the headline events in the first Ludlow History Festival, which takes over the town from 21–30 August. Living here, I love that they haven’t confined “history” to a room full of lectures. It is happening all over Ludlow, in the castle, brewery, church, library, Assembly Rooms and out on the streets.
The whole thing starts rather magnificently with a Regency Ball at St Laurence’s. Guests begin with a drink at the newly reopened Castle Lodge, promenade through town, then eat and dance beneath the church’s huge arches to music from the band heard in Poldark. Only 100 tickets are available and period dress is encouraged.
Elsewhere there are walks through Ludlow’s old crimes, mills, tanneries, geology and politics; vintage vehicles and craft beer at Ludlow Brewery; historical entertainment in Castle Square; talks on folklore and feminism; behind-the-scenes museum tours; medieval mystery plays; storytelling for families and even an immersive night recreating Ludlow in 1265.
Ludlow spends every ordinary Tuesday casually leaning against several centuries of history, so a festival that uses the whole town as its stage feels exactly right.
Have a look through the programme now, pick your favourites and get them booked. I suspect a few of these will disappear quickly.
I have a collie called Rudy, so I am already over excited about an event involving 150 of them. Admittedly, these dogs will be demonstrating levels of discipline, focus and useful employment that may create unrealistic expectations when I get home.
The Welsh National Sheepdog Trials arrive in Senni, near Defynnog, this Thursday for three days of some of the best sheepdog handling in the country. Around 150 dogs and handlers from across Wales will compete for the national title and, importantly, a place representing Wales at the International Sheepdog Trials in September. The Nationals move around Wales each year, and 2026 brings them to the Brecon area for the first time in around 20 years.
There is something completely absorbing about watching one person, one dog and a flock of sheep attempt to agree on a plan across an enormous field. Tiny whistles carry across the hillside, the dog works at ridiculous distances from its handler and suddenly a scattered group of sheep starts moving as one.
It is competitive sport built out of something that remains a real working skill on farms across Wales, which is precisely why I like it.
Rudy boy will remain at home, where his international selection prospects are currently unclear.
Thursday 13–Saturday 15 August. Senni National, Defynnog, near Brecon
Chepstow Castle has stood above the Wye for nearly a thousand years. Every August somebody plugs in the amps.
Castell Roc turns the lower bailey into an open-air music venue, with the castle walls wrapped around the audience and a run of gigs stretching across the month. I love these slightly improbable Marches venues where the place itself does half the work before anyone has played a note.
This weekend gives you four quite different reasons to go. Hayseed Dixie open things on Thursday with their bluegrass versions of rock classics, 2Rude bring a night of ska on Friday, independent alt-rock band As December Falls take Saturday, and Ultimate Eagles finish the first run on Sunday.
The castle closes to daytime visitors before reopening for the evening gigs, with gates generally opening at 6.30pm. It is outdoor and standing for most ticket holders.
You can make more of it too. There is wild camping in a nearby meadow overlooking the castle and Wye, around a six-minute walk over the old bridge, plus glamping for anyone whose relationship with camping requires soft furnishings.
I appear to be on a lifelong search for the nicest iced drink available within reasonable driving distance. It is serious work and I remain devoted to the cause. I am also an absolute sucker for good branding, so Riverbanc in Llangollen has been steadily wearing me down via Instagram.
It keeps serving me exactly the sort of cold, frothy, heavily iced thing I am powerless against. Add brunch, a riverside terrace overlooking the Dee and a handsome old bank building and I have already started trying to convince my girls that this should be the destination for my birthday trip (it's in September for anyone who's interested hint hint).
Fortunately, I organise the group, so democracy only goes so far.
And then I discovered Riverbanc is actually much more than a café. There are seven boutique hotel rooms upstairs, some overlooking the river, and Whitewater Active operates from the same building, offering white-water rafting, canyoning, gorge walking, climbing, open canoeing and aqueduct canoe tours.
I’ve canoed the nearby Pontcysyllte Aqueduct before and it is seriously spectacular. There is a guided trip follows the Llangollen Canal before paddling right across the UNESCO World Heritage aqueduct, high above the Dee Valley.
The café itself sits right in the middle of Llangollen, with decking above the river looking towards the historic bridge and weir. Rafters and kayakers pass underneath while you eat, which feels like quite aggressive advertising for the afternoon’s activities.
And this week there is yet another reason to go. Peregrine Circus, which I have already been banging on about because it was so completely magical, brings Belly of the Whale to Llangollen Pavilion from Thursday 13 to Sunday 16 August.
It's not just Ludlow showing off it's history. Hereford has got some serious stuff to talk about too. The cathedral has stood at the heart of the city for centuries, the Mappa Mundi was created around 1300, and this weekend some of that medieval world spills back into Cathedral Close and High Town.
The first Medieval Hereford Festival brings two days of armoured battles, archery, blacksmithing, horse displays, crafts, music and a living medieval village showing how people actually worked and lived. Saturday starts with a procession through the city from Old Market to the cathedral, with musicians, re-enactors and medieval characters leading the way.
It looks especially good for families. Children can try on armour, have a go at archery, investigate the stocks, listen to stories and get involved with craft activities inside the cathedral. There are arena displays and a medieval photo spot too, which should give anyone currently going through a knight phase plenty to work with.
The cathedral is opening up more of its own story throughout the weekend, with extra tours, access to the Mappa Mundi Museum and the chance to meet its Library & Archives team.
I like that the history gets to feel noisy and lived-in again. For two days, the middle of Hereford becomes somewhere to stumble across battles, horses and blacksmiths while you’re supposedly just popping into town.
Saturday 15 & Sunday 16 August, 10am–4pm | Hereford Cathedral Close & High Town | No ticket required.
Ferrets at the ready
Monmouthshire Show takes over 96 acres beside Monmouth this Sunday, with livestock, local food, crafts, classic vehicles and, most importantly, ferret racing.
I love a country show anyway, but there is something especially compelling about a day that asks you to admire prize cattle, watch falconry, inspect a few vintage tractors and then stand at the side of a tiny racecourse shouting encouragement at a ferret.
There are sheep and cattle classes, live demonstrations, food and drink, a Home & Garden marquee and the usual lovely chaos of everyone wandering around with dogs, children, ice creams and very strong opinions about livestock.
It feels like one of those days where you go for a couple of hours, get distracted by six completely unrelated things and somehow leave with chutney.
Sunday 16 August | Monmouthshire Showground, Redbrook Road
World Mountain Bike Chariot Racing Championship | Llanwrtyd Wells | Saturday 15 August Two mountain bikes, one Roman-style chariot and the chance to become an actual world champion in one of those magnificent sports that could only have been invented in Mid Wales. Find out more.
Summer Cider Cycle | Llanwrtyd Wells | Saturday 15 August Choose a 14-to-25-mile ride through the hills around Llanwrtyd, then collect your deserved cider and perry at the finish, with a barbecue waiting for anyone who has accidentally exercised. Book here.
Caldicot Pride | Caldicot Castle | Saturday 15 August Caldicot Pride moves into the castle for a day of performers, stalls and general colourful revelry, with an afterparty carrying things on later. Find out more.
Minsterley Show | Cruckton | Saturday 15 August Shropshire’s oldest one-day agricultural show returns to Manor Farm with livestock, horses, vintage tractors and all the serious business of judging who has brought the finest sheep. Book here.
Montgomery Show | Montgomery | Saturday 15 August The carnival parade leaves town at 11.30am before everyone follows it down to Lymore Meadow for competitions, displays and a properly local afternoon show. Find out more.
Wine tasting at The Dell Vineyard | Raglan | Saturday 15 & Sunday 16 August Walk the vines with the owners of this small family vineyard before settling in at the cellar door to taste four of their Welsh wines. Book here.
Veddw Open Garden | Devauden | Sunday 16 August Veddw opens for one of its limited Sunday afternoons, giving you three hours to nose around its wonderfully idiosyncratic garden near Chepstow. Find out more.
Neuadd Stone Barn | Gilwern | Sunday 16 August A recently established flower farm on a working farm near Abergavenny opens its garden, with masses of annuals and perennials grown for cutting. Take a peek.
Falconry at Raglan Castle | Wednesday 19 August Raptor Wales bring their birds of prey into the ruins of Raglan Castle for flying displays and close-up encounters from 11am to 3pm. Frankly, castles improve most things. Find out more.
