This stunning winter event has previously brought the local community together in their thousands to take part in or watch the procession.
Hundreds of participants are expected to meander their way through the town centre toward the Market Place, with their hand made, hand held lanterns, creating a sea of twinkling lights as they go. Once there, the festivities will continue, with live music and festive food and drink.
In the lead up to the Procession, families in and around Newbury will get to work crafting their own willow and tissue paper lanterns in the Corn Exchange’s popular, drop-in lantern making workshops.
These free workshops will take place on Saturday 25 November at The Waterside Centre, Newbury, 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm, and at 101 Outdoor Arts Creation Space on Greenham Business Park on Saturday 2 December, 10am to 1pm and 2pm to 5pm.
Following the success of 2016’s new workshop initiative, Grandparents Lantern Making workshops will also make a return on December 3, offering grandparents the chance to get creative and spend some special time with their grandchildren ahead of the Procession, at the Corn Exchange’s Learning Centre.
These workshops are free, but booking is required. The sold out Lantern Making for the Brave workshops will also see local people come together to create larger, more ambitiously shaped lanterns to join the parade.
During the run up to the annual event, the Corn Exchange’s Learning and Participation Department will hold workshops with local schools and community groups across the county.
They will train teachers and leaders to make lanterns with their own groups, and work directly with participants so that more and more people can get involved in this amazing community project, producing the fabulous lanterns that make this event so special.
At 4pm on December 10, participants and spectators alike will gather outside the Methodist Church on Northbrook Street, before beginning the procession at 4.30pm, when the participants and their lanterns will form a river of glittering lights down Newbury’s high street to the Market Place.
Organised by the Corn Exchange and funded by Greenham Trust and Arts Council England, the Procession is now a firm tradition within Newbury’s annual outdoor arts programme.
The Corn Exchange also rely on donations to help fully fund their outdoor arts programme and to ensure that events like the Lantern Procession are free for all.
Keep an eye out for collection buckets on the night, or see the Corn Exchange website or Facebook page for information on other ways to donate.
