Things to do in Glastonbury and Street this week: live music, wellness and writing retreats

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

Glastonbury and Street are balancing creativity and wellbeing this week with acoustic sessions, wellness meetups and a writers retreat in rural Somerset.

It is all very mindful and productive, right up until someone opens a second oat flat white and starts discussing their novel idea.

Things begin on Thursday 7 May with Kitchen Garden Show Day at The Old Vicarage in Leigh-on-Mendip from 10am to 4pm. It is free to attend, with heritage varieties growing across beds, glasshouse, polytunnel and orchard, plus talks, garden tours, refreshments and plants available to buy. Basically, it is plant shopping with educational cover. Very respectable.

Friday 8 May is where the diary starts getting ideas above its station. In Street, Avalon Wellness Community meetups takes place at Crispin Community Centre from 10am to noon, priced at £14, with Debbie Davidson speaking about archetypes in coaching. A tech clinic follows at Coffee #1 from 12.30pm to 1.30pm, for health and wellbeing workers with questions about newsletters, websites, forms and other digital gremlins.

Also on Friday 8 May, The Leisure Society - Glastonbury comes to Avalon Acoustic Sessions at Avalon Club, 50 High Street, Glastonbury. The band, founded by Nick Hemming, has received two Ivor-Novello nominations and praise from The Line Of Best Fit, Financial Times and Clash Magazine, so yes, this one comes with proper music credentials.

Friday 8 May also sees sheppey: Electic Disco night at The Sheppey Inn from 8pm to 12.30am. DJ Dr. Ammaqueen will be bringing an eclectic mix of electrified disco remixes, and entry is free, which is always the best kind of entry.

From Friday 8 May to Sunday 31 May, Art Behind Bars - Prisoner Art Exhibition runs daily at Shepton Mallet Prison from 10am to 5pm. The exhibition, in collaboration with Albaré, features artwork created by prisoners, with 50% of sales credited to the artists. Entry is free, with pre-booking requested.

Saturday 9 May is, frankly, overbooked. Writers Retreat with The Write Assistant takes place at BA4 4PD, offering guided exercises, writing time and support with notes, ideas, proofreading and editing. It is aimed at beginners and experienced writers, so no one needs to pretend they have already finished their novel. We see you.

The RNLI Mendip Plant and Garden Sale starts at Winscombe Community Centre at 10am, with greenhouse plants, beans, courgettes, bedding plants, shrubs, garden items, tools, guest stalls and refreshments. Meanwhile, the Grand Annual Plant Sale takes place at the Community Orchard in Bagley, near Wedmore, with vegetables, shrubs, perennials, annuals and succulents sold in aid of the orchard, plus barbecue food, tea, coffee, homemade cake, music and tombola.

Saturday also brings Botanical casting one-day workshop to Leigh-on-Mendip. Led by ceramic artist Clare Mahoney, with historical insights from Neil Crump, the £220 workshop includes tuition, materials, two plaster plaques, refreshments, lunch and afternoon tea. It is limited to eight guests and no experience is required, which is a relief for anyone whose last craft project involved PVA glue and regret.

In Shepton Mallet, Shepton Mallet Repair Cafe is open at The Art Bank from 11am to 1pm. People can bring electrical appliances, radios, TVs, mechanical items, wooden items, jewellery, clothing, bags and belts. The clock repairer is not there this month, but is expected back in June, so time will have to heal itself for now.

Shepton Mallet outdoor cinema set for Collett Park will bring a full day of free films to Collett Park. Screenings start with Zootropolis 2 at 11am, followed by Encanto at 1.30pm and Bohemian Rhapsody at 5pm. Visitors are encouraged to bring a picnic, although food trucks selling hog roast, popcorn, pizza, hot dogs and pick-and-mix sweets will also be on site, which may test even the strongest picnic commitment.

Also on Saturday, Crossfest UK South 2026 takes place at The Bath and West Showground. The event combines a mixed sixes functional fitness competition with music festival elements, with the option to arrive on Saturday morning or camp from Friday evening until Sunday morning.

Sunday 10 May brings Start Archery Taster Sessions to Wells City Archers on Rowdens Road, with adult sessions at 11am and 1pm. Sessions for ages eight to 18 follow on Saturday 16 May at 1.30pm and 3pm. Places are limited, so this is not the moment for a "maybe later" approach.

Also on Sunday 10 May, Lemn Sissay OBE brings Let the light pour in to Wedmore Village Hall. The listing says only a few tickets remain for the evening with the BAFTA-nominated author, activist, performer and Sunday Times number one bestseller, with readings, stories, questions and book signing.

Monday 11 May offers a triple helping. The Missouri Baptist University Chorale performs a free concert at St Cuthbert's Church in Wells, with donations taken for the Wells Skate Park Project. Thirty singers will perform American spiritual, gospel and traditional music, finishing with Handel's Hallelujah chorus, because apparently going out quietly was never the plan.

Also on Monday, the Royal Air Forces Association Mid-Somerset Branch May meeting takes place at Wells Golf Club at 11am, with a presentation on The SS Great Britain by Brian Aston, followed by branch business and optional lunch and drinks.

Monday also brings Adannay's Home is where you make it to Wedmore Village Hall. The South London soul artist combines live music, storytelling and poetry in a show exploring home, belonging and community, with tickets from £12 plus booking fee.

On Tuesday 12 May, Saxon hands, current hands takes place at Wedmore Village Hall. Goldsmith Erica Sharpe will discuss the Cheddar Brooch and Wedmore Ring through the eyes of a maker, with adult entry at £10 or £25 with lunch.

Also on Tuesday 12 May, Kith and Kin comes to St Mary's Church in Wedmore. Written and performed by Somerset-based Leela Bunce, the solo show follows the world of a ninth-century Saxon woman, with cows, Viking raiders and feast preparations all involved. Honestly, relatable, apart from the Viking bit. Probably.

Wednesday 13 May brings the second Avalon Wellness Community meetup to Fondo Lounge in Street from 10am to 11.30am. The listing says this session is free, with a tech clinic following at the same venue from 11.30am to 12.30pm.

Also on Wednesday 13 May, Dr Helen Frisby gives A history of royal funerals at Wedmore Village Hall. The lunchtime talk explores royal funeral customs from Anglo-Saxon times to the funeral of Queen Elizabeth II, with book signing afterwards and an optional lunch at Beggar's Roost.

Finally, because Shepton Mallet was clearly not going to let the week end quietly, Supernatural Meets the Courtroom - Evening Behind Bars takes place at Shepton Mallet Prison on Wednesday 13 May from 6pm to 8pm. Criminal barrister Naomi Ryan will explore strange legal cases involving witches, ghosts and other supernatural beliefs. Tickets are £10 including an arrival drink, and pre-booking is required.

To add your own event for free, use the Nub News pages for Wells, Glastonbury and Street, or Shepton Mallet.