Glastonbury starts October with big questions and a closer look at the abbey’s past

What's On in Street and Glastonbury is supported by The Loft — your local spot for great food, live music and late nights.

Glastonbury's first week of October mixes present-day debate with a sizeable helping of history. CPRE Somerset opens proceedings on Thursday with a discussion about whether the Somerset Levels could become a National Park, while Monday sees Francis Thyer turn the attention to Glastonbury Abbey's West Gate and the building's changing role through the centuries. Two very different looks at the local landscape, and neither requires pretending October has suddenly become quiet.

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October gets going quickly in Wells, with PRP Gospel Choir on Friday followed by a Saturday featuring a free telescope clinic and the Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust Annual Evensong. The programme continues on Tuesday with six Wells Cathedral School specialist musicians performing in Wedmore, before an evening of mediumship at Wells City FC on Wednesday. It is a fairly broad definition of "something for everyone", but Wells appears willing to test it.

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On Thursday, 1 October, The Somerset Levels: our next National Park? takes place at Glastonbury Town Hall. CPRE Somerset is hosting a discussion chaired by Simon Murray, with guests representing the farming community, Somerset Wildlife Trust, Somerset Eel Recovery Project, Visit Somerset and Somerset Leveller magazine. The event is free, although donations are invited, and booking is advised. A start time is not shown on the event listing, so it is worth checking before heading along. It is certainly a fairly substantial question with which to open October.

On Friday, 2 October, PRP Gospel Choir at Wells Methodist Church returns for its first-Friday-of-the-month session from 7.30pm to 9pm. Musical director Emma Wheat leads three-part gospel harmony with accompaniment from the choir's live band, and songs are taught by ear, so there is no requirement to read music or have previous experience. People of any faith or none are welcome, and sessions cost £10 on a drop-in basis. Friday night plans: sorted, and no sight-reading exam required.

Saturday, 3 October is where the calendar really starts showing off. At Friars Oven Farm in West Compton, near Shepton Mallet, a Writers Retreat runs from 11am to 3pm. The £35 session includes an hour of guided writing exercises and meditation followed by dedicated time to work on individual projects, with help available. Previous writing experience is not required, which neatly removes the traditional excuse involving an unfinished novel and 17 years of procrastination.

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In Wells, the free Telescope clinic takes place at St Thomas Church Hall. Wells & Mendip Astronomers will have different types of telescopes on display, including digital smart scopes, with advice available on stargazing and astrophotography. Visitors can also bring their own telescope if they need help setting it up, while children's activities are planned too. A start and finish time have not been published on the Nub News listing, so those details should be checked before travelling. Sometimes the problem really is the telescope rather than the clouds. Wells Nub News

Also on Saturday, "George and the Drag Queen" by Pipeline Theatre comes to Whitstone School Hall in Shepton Mallet. The play is set at a village fete and follows first-aid volunteers George and Maddy alongside Lebanese drag queen Eliana Sultana, who has been booked to do the raffle. Tickets are £14 for adults and £7 for under-25s and people on low incomes. A performance time is not given in the supplied listing, so ticket-holders should confirm that before setting off. Bunting, cakes, oversized vegetables, wasps and a drag queen doing the raffle is quite a workload for one village fete.

At Wells Cathedral, the Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust Annual Evensong begins at 5.15pm, with people asked to be seated by 5pm. The service celebrates the work of the Trust and those who support it, with this year's event also recognising the Friends of Wells Cathedral Chorister Trust. The service is open to everyone and there will be a retiring collection for the Trust.

Saturday evening in Shepton Mallet also brings REGGAE IN DA BANK to The Art Bank on High Street. DJ Karl will be playing reggae, ska and Lovers Rock, while JAMROCK will be serving Caribbean food. Tickets are listed at £4 from the bar in advance or on the door, subject to availability, and licensing rules mean there are no under-18s after 9pm. One way or another, Saturday does not appear to be planning an early night.

One event supplied for Saturday has been left out of this week's main diary because the published dates currently conflict. Nub News lists Rising Stars Recital Series – Nurry Lee for 3 October, while Cedars Hall's own current programme lists the recital for 10 October. Rather than choose a date and hope for the best, readers should check with the venue before making plans.

On Monday, 5 October, the RAFA-MSB Informal Fun Games Day starts at 11am at the Bell Inn on Bruton Road in Evercreech. The informal gathering includes skittles, darts, pool, cards and board games, with coffee available to buy on arrival and the option of ordering lunch from the pub menu. There will be no formal branch business, leaving considerably more time for the important matter of who is mysteriously good at pub skittles.

Later on Monday, Glastonbury Abbey: The West Gate takes place at Glastonbury Town Hall's Festival Hall. Francis Thyer will discuss the history of the abbey's West Gate, drawing on his research into the building, its surroundings and its uses through the centuries. The talk follows the Glastonbury Antiquarian Society AGM, which begins at 7pm; a separate start time for the talk has not been confirmed. An AGM followed by medieval architectural history is, admittedly, an impressively Glastonbury Monday night.

On Tuesday, 6 October, architectural historian Jonathan Holt will give an illustrated presentation on Somerset Follies at Chilcompton Village Hall. Doors open at 7pm and the talk runs from 7.30pm to 8.30pm, looking at unusual ornamental buildings around Somerset, including surviving examples, ruins and structures which have disappeared. Admission is £5, with a raffle raising money for Somerset Coalfield Life at Radstock Museum. Buildings created largely to look interesting rather than do anything practical have somehow secured an entire architectural category, which feels wonderfully indulgent.

Also on Tuesday, the Wells Cathedral School Soloist Concert starts at 7.30pm at St Mary's Church in Wedmore. Six specialist music pupils from Wells Cathedral School's Upper Sixth will perform solo repertoire as they prepare for conservatoire auditions. Tickets are £12 for adults and £6 for under-16s.

On Wednesday, 7 October, the NHS Somerset Armed Forces Outreach Service comes to Mind at 57c High Street, Shepton Mallet, from 1pm to 3pm. The drop-in service is open to veterans, serving members, reservists, dependants and family members from the Armed Forces community. People can simply come along for a brew and some company or speak to Armed Forces Link Workers about practical support and advice. The next Shepton Mallet dates are also already scheduled into 2027. Free tea and useful help is a combination requiring very little salesmanship.

Wednesday is also The Dairy Show 2026 at the Bath & West Showground. The event includes dairy cattle competitions, agricultural trade stands, expert speakers and displays of new technology. The official show information gives opening hours of 8.30am to 5pm, with advance adult tickets at £22, student tickets at £15 and free admission for under-15s. Dairy cattle remain at the centre of proceedings, as they would presumably insist upon.

And in Wells that evening, Evening of Mediumship with Nikki Kitt begins at 7.30pm at Wells City FC Function Room. Tickets cost £14, with the event forming part of Nikki Kitt's programme of mediumship evenings around the UK.

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