What's on in August

August in Reading is about much more than just *that festival* – there’s plenty more festival fun to be had from our homegrown organisations and cultural communities! Plus live theatre in the Abbey ruins, live music in the Minster and, of course, lots to keep the kids busy during the school holidays! Check out our highlights of What’s On in August – and don’t forget to check whatsonreading.com for so much more!

Creative Summer Holiday Fun – various dates

Creative kids will be spoiled for choice when it comes to finding something to do this month. There are all “show in a week” summer camps from local theatremakers StageAbility and music from the Rock Academy. Plus music workshops for the very youngest thanks to Kindermusik with Sarah and Berkshire Music Trust, and performances from Bach To Baby. There’s outdoor cinema at The Museum of English Rural Life, summer crafts and theatre at Reading Libraries and plenty of fun activities at Reading Museum too!

Milk My Words Summer Party – 3 August

Milk My Words is a regular live music and spoken word event held at Milk – and this month host Sami Switch is back with a summer party, bringing some incredible talent from across the country to Reading’s finest boutique rum bar! Live music from Knight, Jazzi Sirius, Cameron Holmes, Ace Clvrk, and spoken word from Shocka. And your ticket includes a glass of prosecco on arrival, too!

Author Events – various dates

August is virtually bookended with a pair of author-in-conversation events, at two of our town’s great bookshops! On 4 August, Steve Cavanagh will be in conversation at Waterstones to talk about his new thriller “Kill For Me, Kill For You”. And on 29 August, Anita Frank and Essie Fox come to Fourbears Books to talk their respective new releases “The Good Liars” and “The Fascination”.

Reading Biscuit Factory's 2nd Birthday Weekend – 4-6 August

Reading’s independent cinema (and so much more) will celebrate it’s second birthday this month with a weekend of films and events. The team are putting on some of their favourite films, including John Waters’ “Hairspray” and Martin Scorsese’s “GoodFellas”, there’s a taster pilates workshop for adults and puppet-making for kids, and a big anniversary quiz!

Reading Dino Trail – 5-20 August

Get up close and personal with dinosaur models built from hundreds of thousands of toy bricks. Brought to Reading by Reading BID (Reading’s Business Improvement District) and BRICKLIVE, the Reading Dino Trail is a fun and free attraction taking place across the town centre, with 15 dinosaurs on display – including a nearly 3 metre-long Tethyshadros made of 89,000 bricks; Velociraptors measuring 3.6m long and 2.2m high and a Megalosaur head for selfies!

Reading Mela – 5 & 6 August

Reading’s biggest South Asian community event gets even bigger this year, spreading the fun and excitement over two days! Reading Mela celebrates the music, culture and artistic diversity of our local Southern Asian community in an event that’s open to all, taking place in Palmer Park. The Mela also boasts activities for kids, a fun fair, and plenty of food stalls to take your tastebuds even further!

Walks from Walk Reading – various dates

Discover the hidden gems of Reading on one of Walk Reading’s unforgettable walking tours. Their knowledgeable guides will lead you through the streets, towpaths and lost routes of Reading, regaling you with fascinating tales and local secrets covering everything from our lost railway to our ruined abbey, the town’s role in the history of photography and so much more!

Saturday Drag Day – 5 August

One day, two different but equally fabulous drag events! During the daytime, get stuck into Glitterbomb's ABBA Drag Bottomless Brunch at Revolution Reading, serving looks, lip syncs and lots of prosecco! Featuring Drag Race UK star (and former Reading regular) Sum Ting Wong and lots of ABBA floorfillers! And in the evening, sashay your way to The Rising Sun Arts Centre for their bi-monthly SOS Drag Cabaret, a grassroots DIY night of drag, showcasing performances from local acts curated and produced by local icon Sheer Obsession.

Carnival of The World – 12 August

Broad Street will be forecast a day of Caribbean sunshine as CultureMix return with the annual Carnival of the World, a spectacular free family event in the town centre. There’s a live stage, with a range of performances throughout the day, including award winning steel band Reading All Steel Percussion Orchestra (RASPO). And the Broad Street Parade will boast carnival costumes, dancers, percussionists and special guests!

Here Comes The Sun Festival – 12 August

The Rising Sun Arts Centre’s one-day festival of music and arts for all the family returns, once again opening all the doors and offering live performances, visual arts and plenty of fun for kids in every conceivable corner of the building! This year’s line-up includes Reading’s own Empress of the Blues Ma Bessie & Her Pig Foot Band, alt-rock from Jopy, alt-folk from WolfNote, showcases of several communities that call the centre home and much more.

60 Hour Shakespeare® presents Othello – 13 August

Back in Shakespeare’s day, his plays had only 60 hours of rehearsals before being performed. 60 Hour Shakespeare recreate this original theatre practice, and they return to the Abbey Ruins with this year’s open-air production, Othello – performed by an international cast, and this year raising money for Alexander Devine Children’s Hospice.

Concerts By Candlelight – 23/24 & 30/31 August

A new series of concerts comes to Reading Minster, where some of the best songs by the biggest artists are performed by a cast of West End Singers and an incredible live band – and all in the unrivalled atmosphere of candlelight. The series kicks off this month with the music of Meat Loaf on 23 & 24 August, and the Eagles on 30 & 31 August.