Newbury Artisan Market: Easter Sunday 27 March

Newbury Artisan is the town’s newest Sunday market with goods from local producers, and becomes a regular monthly feature from Easter Sunday, taking place 10am– 4pm.

Running along the pedestrianised Northbrook Street, look out for delicious edible offerings including sizzling street food to feast on there and then, and farmers’ market-style wares, such as artisan breads, local cheeses, fresh veg, hand-made pies and cakes, local beers and ciders … all great for taking home to enjoy later.

Alongside the food stalls will be original handcrafted goods and gifts from designers and craftspeople who aren’t usually on the high street. In addition, there will be fun for children, including craft activities and face painting.

Newbury Artisan was piloted in November and proved a hit with locals and visitors to the town. It offers a diverse, quality shopping experience that celebrates independent producers. Equally importantly, it creates a place where you can enjoy a day out, meet friends, eat, drink, browse and chat to the craftspeople, making for a social shopping experience.

Brought to you as a joint venture by Newbury BID and Newbury Artisan Market, the market will take place on the last Sunday of every month (with the exception of May, when it happens on the 22nd of the month).

More details from www.newburyartisanmarket.co.uk.

Newbury’s Giant Easter Egg Hunt 25 March–2 April 2016

The giant Easter bunny is hopping around Newbury delivering giant Easter eggs to secret locations in the town centre, which can only mean one thing … the Giant Easter Egg Hunt is back!

Taking place from Good Friday 25 March until Saturday 2 April, this is a fabulous event for all ages.

Head for the Easter Toy Workshop in Parkway (open every day of the event 10.30am–4pm, with the exception of Easter Sunday 27 March) where there will be activities for children, including free face painting, arts and crafts, treats and toys to play with.

To participate in the Giant Easter Egg Hunt, collect an entry form from the Easter Toy Workshop in Parkway or from the main square in the Kennet Centre. Follow a trail around town – all within easy walking distance – to find 15 giant eggs and work out clues which will help you crack a secret code. Crack the code and return your form to the Easter Toy Workshop in Parkway no later than 4.30pm on 2 April.

Correctly completed forms will be entered into a fantastic prize draw: 1st prize a £150 John Lewis voucher; 2nd prize a £50 voucher for The Entertainer toyshop; 3rd prize a ‘You Crack me Up’ Easter egg from Hotel Chocolat. Prize winners will be announced on Monday 4 April.

Now in its third year, the Giant Easter Egg Hunt is fun for all the family, brought to you courtesy of Newbury BID, Parkway Shopping and Rainbows of Inches Yard, Newbury.

Biddy on the Newbury Giant Easter Egg Hunt

A fine Bank Holiday Easter Monday … and I lured the husband into Newbury with the promise of breakfast before we hit the Giant Easter Egg Hunt trail.

Breakfast sitting outside in early April in England? Yes indeed – and at the Teashop by the Canal there are few finer spots. Fuelled by a full English with a side order of black pudding (for him) and a bacon and egg sarnie (for me), accompanied by tea in a proper teapot (leaf tea at that) and a good Americano we were fired up and ready to hit the town.

We collected our form from the special Easter Zone in Parkway (you can also get them from the Visitor Information Centre in the Market Place), where lots of children were enjoying activities and having their faces painted. Then off we went on the hunt for those Giant Easter Eggs. 

I must say it was good fun deciphering each of the 15 clever cryptic clues (most of which were not too difficult, thankfully) to find the eggs and, very importantly, the special letter displayed alongside each one. 

Without wanting to give too much away, the trail takes you all around the town centre, and follows a logical route so you don’t need to backtrack on yourself. 

The clues aside, the giant Easter eggs themselves are works of art and include a fabulous golden one, a stylish black and white one, a pretty rainbow one, even one that looks like a circus Big Top. However, there were a couple that I liked best of all. One was in … oooh I can’t tell you but it is big and yellow and covered in smaller eggs, cut out and coloured in by children, with my particular favourite being a drawing of an Easter bunny. The other was very cleverly and beautifully decorated in a découpage style, all pink and blue and pretty … the only clue I’m going to give you is: it’s on the bridge.

So … give me a C – C!  Give me a G – G! And that really is all the help you’re getting … if you want to find out what the other letters are that will help you crack the code you’ll have to go and hunt for them. There’s still plenty of time as the competition runs until Saturday 18 April, all through the school holidays, and is a great way to while away a morning or afternoon.

And as you could be in with a chance of winning a fabulous prize – a £250 John Lewis at Home voucher, a Hotel Chocolat hamper or a giftcard from The Entertainer toyshop – it’s a bit of fun that’s too good to miss.

Happy hunting!

Biddy x 

Giant Easter Egg Hunt: 3–18 April 2015

The Easter school holidays are on the horizon, and what better way to keep children of all ages (from 1 to 101!) amused than with Newbury’s Giant Easter Egg Hunt 2015? If it’s anything like the one in 2014, it’s going to be cracking good fun!

This year’s Giant Easter Egg Hunt starts on Good Friday (3 April) and runs for over two weeks, ending on Saturday 18 April, and as it incorporates three weekends this gives everyone plenty of time to get involved.

So, how does it work? It’s simple. All you need to do is collect an entry form from Parkway Easter Zone on East Street or the Visitor Information Centre in Market Place (available from 3 April). This will present you with a series of 15 clues about where in Newbury town centre you will find the giant Easter eggs, planted by Newbury’s very own Easter bunny. Follow the trail around town – it is all within easy walking distance – as you work out the crafty clues. When you find each of the 15 giant eggs you will also find a special letter that will go towards cracking a secret code. Once you’ve completed the trail and cracked the code, all entry forms need to be returned to the Easter Zone in Parkway – then keep your fingers crossed!

Everyone who works out the code correctly will be in with a chance of winning a fabulous prize, including a fantastic first prize of a £250 voucher from John Lewis at Home. It is expected that competition winners will be announced on 18 April, but no later than 20 April.

Which shops and businesses are involved? Well, that would be telling! But what we can do is thank Newbury BID, Newbury Building Society, Parkway Shopping Newbury, Pageant Party shop in Cheap Street and Rainbows in Inches Yard who are sponsoring the event and giving everyone this exciting opportunity.

Even if you don’t have time to complete the trail, while you are in Newbury over the Easter period you are sure to enjoy admiring the magnificent giant Easter Eggs – they really are enormous and hugely colourful. Many of them have been designed by local junior schools, giving the children a great time demonstrating their artistic talents. Others have been decorated by local craft shop Rainbows.

Many people who participated in the Giant Easter Egg Hunt 2014 voted it an out and out success, and this year it is anticipated that even more locals and visitors to the town will take part. We hope to see you there!