Daily Info's recommended events for the week ahead, Thursday 11th June - Wednesday 17th June
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Yet more lovely LGBTQIA+ events await you this week, alongside puppets, Vikings and karate masters...
Pride watch continues! After a slight soggy but nonetheless sensational Oxford Pride, Didcot hosts its own Pride this Saturday with some fabulous acts taking us from daytime to evening. A family friendly daytime event will bring together community organisers and charities alongside live entertainment from the Oxfordshire Drag Collective and headliner ABBA Stars. Then head to the Didcot Pride After-party , featuring a lovely lineup of burlesque, drag and comedy performers - including Daily Info’s very own Niamh Simpson, in their off-duty life as a stand-up. They share the stage with host Scarlett von Kok, Jack McMinn, Cream Tease, Pork Elizabeth Pie, Mild Peril, Cooper The Queen, finishing with Josh Gash as Freddie Mercury. Bring on the glitter!
Back in the centre, the parade may have passed but there’s still plenty of queerness to be found on Oxford’s streets. The Museum of Oxford’s Queer History walks take visitors on a tour of LGBTQIA+ landmarks and curiosities, from the city’s oldest queer pub to some colourful local legends (we’re particularly intrigued by one “lesbian, Indian princess, suffragette, refugee smuggler” - what a CV!).
Speaking of colourful local legends, Oxfordshire Drag Collective are back at the Old Fire Station with their annual Next Hot Spud competition ! The best and brightest in drag and burlesque talent from the show’s last three ‘seasons’ battle for the crown, hosted by queen of shade Vudejai and judged by Cairo Iman Ali, Sera Tonin and previous winners Henry VIII and Maxy Black.
And from the evening to late into the night, Oxford Uni’s LGBTQIA+ society join forces with the Oxford Psychedelic Society for Queer Ecstasy, an event that pays homage to queerness’ and psychedelia’s influence on nightlife culture. Set to a soundtrack of funk, disco and house, the theme is ‘ecstatic colours’, so leave the beige in the wardrobe.
Didcot Pride: Daytime: Northbourne Community Centre, (Didcot), Sat 13th Jun, 12 - 4pm. Free to attend.
Didcot Pride: The Party: Northbourne Community Centre (Didcot), Sat 13th June, 6 - 11pm. Tickets: £15 + £1.45 booking fee. Age restriction: 18+
Oxford's Queer History Walking Tour: meeting at Museum of Oxford Shop, Wed 17th Jun, 2pm - 3:30pm. Tickets £15.
Oxford's Next Hot Spud - Reheated: Old Fire Station, Sat 13th Jun, 8pm. Tickets £10 - 20.
Queer Ecstasy: The Bullingdon, Thurs 18th June, 11pm - 2am. Tickets £9.20 - £11.50.
Burford Festival opens this evening with the Mayor’s Reception at Warwick Hall (no tickets required). It is held every other year and seeks to promote local arts activities, professionals and craftspeople. This year, there are a wide variety of events planned: concerts, talks, socials, workshops, gardens and more. There are activities especially for children, events for all the family, skill-building workshops, lectures, and even a dragon parade, before closing with the world prèmiere of Chilcott and Bennett’s Five Acts of Human Kindness performed by Burford School Community Choir! Visit the festival website to browse all of what's on offer.
Each year, Asylum Welcome organises Oxford Refugee Week, which runs alongside the UK-wide Refugee Week festival, to raise awareness of and celebrate our city’s role in offering sanctuary to the displaced. The various events running are listed on our website as well as on Asylum Welcome’s own website, so do have a look to see what is happening across the week, but we would like to highlight the two-day community Sanctuary Fair , held this year at Florence Park Community Centre this weekend. There will be music, stalls, (free) food and more. All events are free to asylum seekers. Bus fares for the fair are reimbursed to refugees and asylum seekers on request.
The Indie Oxford Makers Market is happening this Sunday at The Up In Arms pub on Marston Road. There will be an array of hand-crafted pieces, products and edibles to peruse and purchase. Bring your four-legged friend along for a dog portrait shoot with Laura Greene Photography, grab a unique statement piece from Rainbow and Spoon Boutique or take part in a jewellery-making workshop with Amy Surman, to name just a few. Presumably, being in a local neighbourhood pub, you might also take this opportunity to stay for a drink and a bite to eat!
Abingdon Guildhall plays host to the Wear It Out sustainable fashion festival on Saturday. Activities and workshops dedicated to sharing skills and ideas will encourage us to think about how we can re-use or repair clothing and textiles. The day’s events are free to attend, but there will be a ticketed ‘Sustainable Fashion Show’ at 2.00pm. The organisers, One Planet Abingdon, hold workshops and events all year round bringing together the Abingdon community and speaking out on climate, ecological and social issues.
Burford Festival: various locations, 11th - 23rd Jun. Ticket prices vary depending on event.
Oxford Refugee Week 2026: various locations, 13th - 21st Jun.
Oxford Sanctuary Fair: Florence Park Community Centre, Sat 13th Jun (12.30-5.30pm) & Sun 14th Jun (10.00am-3.30pm). Free event.
Indie Oxford Makers Market: The Up In Arms, 241 Marston Road, Sun 14th Jun, 10.00am-5.00pm. Free.
Wear It Out: Guildhall, Abingdon, 13th Jun, 10.00am-4.00pm. Most events free, Sustainable Fashion Show (2.00-3.00pm) tickets: £4-10.
The hit film The Karate Kid was one of the most celebrated movies of the 1980s, spawning an entire movie and TV franchise, and teaching children around the world that the motor skills used in painting fences and waxing cars are transferable. At its heart is the bond between the new kid in town Danny LaRusso and the wise old Mr. Miyagi. It was adapted as a stage musical in 2022 and is now making its UK debut this summer, playing this week at The New Theatre with Gino Ochello and Adrian Pang in the starring roles.
While many Shakespeare plays have also been adapted as musicals, some of them spawned a “prequel”. The legend goes that The Merry Wives Of Windsor was written at the request of Queen Elizabeth, who wanted to see Sir John Falstaff in love. The Merry Wives Of Windsor: Abingdon Edition sees the comedy relocated further up the river Thames where the buffoonish knight tries to woo Mistresses Page and Ford…with inevitable hilarious consequences.
One actor whose portrayal of Falstaff earned him a BAFTA is Simon Russell Beale. He'll be at The Oxford Playhouse next week to narrate Sir Greg Doran’s adaptation of Shakespeare’s great narrative poem Venus & Adonis . The work, thought to be Shakespeare’s first publication, tells the story of the goddess of love’s attempted seduction of the handsome young man and is brought to life by a team of world-class puppeteers with live musical accompaniment.
If you want to catch a brand new show before it hits the Edinburgh Fringe then head to The Michael Pilch Studio for the world premiere of On Some Far Shore. A new musical by Louis Benneyworth about storytelling, love and the choices that shape our lives, the show uses shadow theatre and puppetry to elevate the story being told and examines the way stories shape our lives.
The Karate Kid: The Musical: New Theatre. Tuesday 9th – Saturday 13th June. 7.30pm (plus 2.30pm matinee on Thursday & Saturday). Tickets from £15.60.
Merry Wives Of Windsor: Abingdon Edition. Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon. Wednesday 10th – Saturday 13th June, 7.30pm. Tickets £14.
Venus & Adonis: Oxford Playhouse. Wednesday 17th- Saturday 20th June. 7.30pm (plus 2.30 matinee Thursday & Saturday). Tickets from £15. Age restriction: 14+.
On Some Far Shore: Michael Pilch Studio. Wednesday 10th – Saturday 13th June. 8pm (2pm matinee Saturday). Tickets from £7.59
It’s just the time of year for a late night hangout in a basement dive, a sort of comedy noir. The New Theatre’s sumptuous piano bar is no dingy dive, but it is taken over on Fri 12th by the ATIC team’s Summer Comedy Club , bringing you four comedians, including Michael Fabbri who wrote and performed Dyslexicon on Radio 4, and Kate Pinchuck, who draws on her experience as the South African daughter of two psychologists, ahead of her appearance at the Oxford Comedy Festival. Jack Kelly and Doug Carter complete the lineup.
The OFS is a great place to hunt comedians, and two shows this week grab our attention. James Rowland brings a special 10th anniversary edition of Team Viking , a personal and heartfelt story about trying to give his best mate the send off he wanted: a full Viking burial. This is the show that launched Rowland as a storyteller and comedian: it runs the full gamut of grief and hilarity, and features a genuine Viking helmet.
The Awkward Actors are no stranger to the OFS either, having founded the Oxford Improv Festival which happily swamps the OFS for a spring weekend each year. Now they’re back to celebrate their 3rd birthday, and A Thousand Days of Awkwardness. They’ve done A LOT of shows in that time, and introduced A LOT of new people to improv, both watching and performing - and you can find some of their insights on our latest blog. Bring your best, or possibly worst, ideas, and see the Awkward Actors spin them into comedy gold, in the form of sketches, stories or possibly even songs. Improv’s unpredictability means the age limit is 15+.
Summer Comedy Club: New Theatre, Fri 12th June, 10pm. Tickets £17.50. Age 18+.
James Rowland: Team Viking: The Old Fire Station, Fri 12th June, 7.30pm. Tickets: Standard £15 | Pay more £20 | Pay less £10 . Age guidance 15+.
A Thousand Days of Awkwardness: The Old Fire Station, Sun 14th June, 7.30pm. Tickets: Standard £15 | Pay more £20 | Pay less £10 . Age guidance 15+.
We’ve an And Finally double-bill this week, with a toofer of call-outs for local creatives wanting to share their art with the world. First up, Cornerstone Arts and Beacon Wantage team up for their emerging artist scheme, Ignite. Providing up to 50 hours of free room hire, opportunities to connect with other artists, and mentoring resources, the scheme is an ideal path for new artists to get their project off the ground.
And Modern Art Oxford seeks artist collectives for their 60th anniversary programme , asking the probing question, “how can collective practices help us to embrace uncertainty and complexity?” You’ll receive an artist fee, mentorship from the MA team and four months of public exhibition display including promotion and production support; there’ll be a briefing session on Monday 15th June if you want to learn more about the application process. Best of luck!
Image credits: Oxfordshire Drag Collective, Asylum Welcome, Natasha Pszenicki, Manuel Harlan, Cornerstone Arts
