Celebrate 2026
Next year, we will be celebrating 40 years since the Bridport community came together to raise the money to purchase Allington Hill. In true Hillbilly style, we will once again be bringing the community together. We have been overwhelmed by the generosity of people willing to give up their time in organising events and activities for all ages, from February, until our planned Country Fair on Sat 2nd of May 2026.
The Country fair will include stalls, speakers marquee, craft demonstrations and activities. We are inviting providers, stall holders, speakers, local musicians to email us giving some information on what you could provide for the festival, either on Friday, Saturday or both. In the coming months you will be able to reserve stall pitches, for a small fee. The speakers marquee, seems a very popular idea. I have already received two bookings. The 20 minutes slots will be on the hour and half hour, with a 10 minute change over period. Slots will be free of charge unless you are selling promotional material after your talk. You can reserve your slot now. to register an interest in taking part either on Friday and or Saturday, email allingtonhill@gmail.com.
Please see our planned schedule of events below. We are working closely with Bridport Town Council and Bridport Tourist information, who are supporting us with their knowledge and the logistics of holding multiple events. If you would like to get involved with any of our events please contact allingtonhill@gamil.com.
INFORMATION STALL: We will be at the Christmas Cheer event on Wednesday 3rd December, in the Bridport Art Centre, South St.
Celebrate 2026 events
| Column 1 | Column 2 | Column 3 | Column 4 |
|---|---|---|---|
"Living in the shadows of Allington Hill" Talk and afternoon tea, looking back through time and how Allington is today. Inviting people to share their memories and photographs |
Sunday 22nd February |
St Swithuns Church hall, North Allington |
Tickets available from Tourist Information. £5 |
"Living in the shadows of Allington Hill" exhibition. "Nature in Art" A series of workshops for all ages. Allington Hillbilly Volunteer shop. |
Dates between Thursday 26th March and 4th of April 2026 |
Allsop Gallery, The Art Centre, South Street, Bridport. |
Free entry to Gallery, donations welcome. Tickets for workshops available via providers. |
40th anniversary of the Allington Hillbilly Volunteers, community event. Live music, entertainment, food and bonfire. |
Friday 1st of May 2026 7pm-10pm |
Cooper's Field, Hospital Lane, North Allington |
Free entry, donations welcome. |
Country Fayre. Country crafts, have a go sessions, stalls, speaker marquee, food, entertainment. |
Saturday 2nd of May 10am-8pm |
Cooper's Field, Hospital Lane, North Allington. |
Free entry, £5 donation welcome |
Walk and Talk events, The history of Allington Hill. |
TBA |
Meet at the main gate Hospital Lane. |
£5 pp raising funds for Celebrate 2026 |
Our pre Christmas raffle will be drawn on Sat 6th December 7pm. All proceeds will go towards our Celebrate 2026 projects, helping us provide free activities as possible for all.
Lasting Legacy
The ethos behind the event is to not only Celebrate the legacy giving to us 40 years ago by the local community, but ensure the legacy continues.
Question: Why are the events only being held in the first part of the year?
Answer: The 15th anniversary of the Volunteer Group is on the 23rd of January 2026. We will be marking the anniversary with events for the volunteers during late January and February.
The 1st of May is the 40th anniversary of the official date, Allington Hill was purchased by the Woodland Trust, with funds raised by the local community.
Question: How will the events support the local community?
Our ethos is to ensure that there should be no financial barrier for people attending the event. Wherever possible, all stalls and providers will be local, supporting the local business's during the low season. We aim to inspire people to try different country crafts and connect with nature.
Question: How will the events support the wider local economy?
We are working closely with Bridport Town Council, Bridport Tourist information Centre, Airbnb providers and holiday rentals to promote the events, to maximise the amount of visitors to the events and the wonderful surrounding Countryside, increasing bookings through the low season.
Question: Are these events just for 2026?
The Country Fair, we hope would become an annual event, using different sites within Bridport and surrounding area. The volunteer group would continue to hold events and activities throughout the following years, welcoming people to our beautiful countryside.