Events you shouldn't miss this June in Surrey

Music at Menuhin

A week-long celebration of classical music featuring clarinettist Julian Bliss and operatic bass-baritone Sir Willard White, along with the talented Yehudi Menuhin School pupils, opens on June 29. Don’t miss the popular Family Day which includes a performance of Holst’s The Planets, enhanced by lighting and projections and the Finale, with fabulous soundtracks from West Side Story, Charlie Chaplin and The Blue Danube.

June 29-July 5, tickets £10-£33, under 30s half price; themenuhinhall.co.uk

In Search of Mrs Dalloway

For Virginia Woolf fans, this one-off visit to Pyports in Cobham, the childhood home of Kitty Lushington, who was the model for Mrs Dalloway, promises an insight into the often tricky dynamics of representing living people in fiction. (Very topical for Netflix viewers of Baby Reindeer.) Organised by the London Literary Salon, it’s led by Cobham, author of The Remarkable Lushington Family, David Taylor.

June 8, £60, litsalon.co.uk/Studies/in-search-of-mrs-dalloway

Open Art STUDIO

Seven local artists will showcase their work at Esher’s BlueHouse from June 1 to 23 as part of Surrey Artists Open Studio. Browse, buy, or just enjoy the ambience of this lovely new art space.

See surreyopenstudios.org.uk/open-studio/blue-house-artspace

Buck Moon Festival

Top tribute acts Rob Lamberti as Perfectly George (Michael), Platinum – Abba Live and Totally Blondie are heading to Imber Court’s Buck Moon Festival. Prepare to party!

June 1, 12noon-10pm, tickets from £44.25; buckmoonfestival.co.uk

Queen’s Reading Room Festival

Inspired by Queen Camilla’s Instagram book club, the Queen’s Reading Room Festival returns to Hampton Court Palace for a second year to spread the joy of books with talks, poetry, performances and literary-themed tours.

There’s a starry line-up with Miriam Margolyes bringing Dickens to life and Dame Harriet Walker and Helena Bonham Carter talking poetry. Ken Follett, Harlan Coben and Mick Herron host a special session for thriller-fanatics, while Sir Ian Rankin, Ann Cleeves and Lee Child discuss the perfect crime. There’s more too from Mary Beard, Tracy Borman, Kate Mosse, Elif Shafak, Rev Richard Coles and many more.

June 8, from 11 am. Tickets £15 a session, all attendees must purchase a Hampton Court Gardens ground pass (£15) too. For booking info, see thequeensreadingroom.co.uk. Enter our competition to win tickets to the event here.

Guilfest 2024

Guilfest returns to Stoke Park!

GuilFest

After a decade-long break, GuilFest is back and will be taking over Stoke Park from June 29-30 with a fabulous line-up of acts, including Kiki Dee and Boyzlife, with local heroes, The Strangers headlining on Saturday and Eurovision star Sam Ryder on Sunday. We have a pair of tickets for the whole weekend to giveaway. Worth £100 each, the tickets will allow you to enjoy all the gigs, plus a host of local food and drink providers, a literary tent, a cocktail bar and an arts and craft village.

Click here to fill in the entry form before June 18. T&Cs apply.

D'Oyle Carte Island Weybridge

Music at D’Oyly Carte

Three days of live concerts, cocktails and crepes on a beautiful private island… what’s not to love? This year, D’Oyly Carte Island, the newly restored former home of Gilbert & Sullivan impresario Richard D’Oyly Carte, kicks off the Weybridge Festival with a summer spectacular of musical talent featuring comic opera from the Godalming Operatic Society, tribute band Abba Re-Bjorn, soul stars Flo Collective and Strictly’s resident vocalist, Lance Ellington.

June 14-16, doylycarteisland.com

The Weybridge Festival

The Weybridge Festival continues with ten days of community events, including a mid-summer street party on June 21 with a band and bar on Monument Green and a village fair on June 22, with live music, arts and crafts, dog show, farmers’ market and sports events.

Find out more at weybridgesociety.org.uk/festival-2024

Royal Canoe Club taster session

Outrigger Club is hosting taster sessions on June 1 and 8 at 11 am to introduce newcomers to outrigger canoeing, a racing form of canoeing with lateral floats. Founded in 1866, the Teddington Club is the oldest canoe club in the world and holds a Guinness World Record for the fastest paddle along the navigable Thames from Lechlade to Teddington (26 hours 46 minutes). Its members are a diverse bunch of people of all ages – and they are very sociable!

Find out more at royaloutrigger.com

Guildford Fringe Festival

Now, in its 11th year, the Guildford Fringe Festival will kick off three weeks of theatre, comedy, spoken word, music, cabaret, and family-friendly shows starting on June 29. There is so much to experience, including Opera on the Balcony (June 30) on the historic Guildhall balcony on Guildford High Street. The vintage close harmony trio, Bluebirds, will also perform there on July 6 – just bring a chair or blanket and enjoy the show.

Other highlights include: Comedy from Darren Walsh, Jake Baker, Nathan Cassidy and Jack Skipper. Theatre fans can look forward to: Stabbed From Behind – The Adult Murder Mystery, a double bill of new writing from Performance Preparation Academy (PPA) and The Regina Monologues by Rebecca Russell & Jenny, not to mention a whole host of cabaret, workshops and more at venues that range from Clandon Wood Nature Reserve to the The Keep, The Star Inn and The Stoke pubs.

For a full list of events, head to guildfordfringefestival.com or call the Box Office on 01483 361101.

Jazz in the Afternoon

The Buckland & Betchworth Choral Society will perform Jazz in the Afternoon with music by Will Todd, Bob Chilcott, and George Shearing at St Michael’s Church, Betchworth. They promise cool music, tea, and fizz!

June 22, 4 pm. Tickets: £10; bbcsinfo.org

Wild Food UK

Foraging for Wild Food UK heads to Banstead to uncover the incredible variety of edible treasures hiding in the great outdoors. From wild mushrooms to flavourful flora, its courses teach you to responsibly identify and harvest nature’s bounty. Meet at the Woodman Pub in Woodmansterne.

June 5 & 19, noon-3.30pm. Tickets: £60; wildfooduk.com

TIDES at The Star Inn

How do you navigate a world that operates on a completely different wavelength from yours? How do you figure out who you really are and who you’re really meant to be when your brain is wired differently? This funny and moving portrayal of autism, written and performed by Joe Dennis, is based on the writer’s own experiences.

June 8, 8pm. Tides, The Back Room, The Star Inn, Guildford. Tickets: £10. Book here.

Jesus Christ Superstar at NVT Woking

One of Andrew Lloyd-Webber and Tim Rice’s most iconic musicals, Jesus Christ Superstar brings its stellar vocals and show-stopping numbers to the New Victoria Theatre in Woking.

June 3-8, 7.30 pm. Tickets: from £21.50; atgtickets.com

Harp & A Monkey, Grayshott Folk Club

Harp & A Monkey are heading back to Grayshott Folk Club (in the Village Hall). The Mancunian outfit’s music has been described as “bold and brilliant” by The Observer, “fantastic” and “fascinating” by Mark Radcliffe on BBC Radio 2, so don’t miss out!

June 28, 7.30 pm. Tickets: £15; Grayshott Post Office (in person only) By phone on: 01428 607096, ents24.com.

Guildford School of Acting showcase

Future stage stars from the Guildford School of Acting showcase their talents at Yvonne Arnaud in The Hunchback of Notre Dame. This production is based on the timeless Victor Hugo novel and the Disney animated feature and includes some wonderful songs by Alan Menken.

June 1-8, evenings, 7.30 pm; Thu 6 & Sat 8 Matinees, 2.30 pm. Tickets: from £23 (concessions from £13); yvonne-arnaud.co.uk.