PROGRAMME: SUNDAY 11 JUNE
Welcome to the final day of the main Festival! We are continuing in our celebration of things Dickensian and our Finale Event is a very special reunion!
You will find information on the writers and events below.
Storytelling
1pm onwards - see boards for times
The Guildhall Museum, 17 High St, Rochester ME1 1PY and
Eastgate House and garden, High Street Rochester, Kent ME1 1EW (weather dependent)
Today our wonderful storytellers will be based at the Guildhall Museum, with an occasional visit to Eastgate House and gardens (depending on the weather).
​
Belinda the Steampunk Storyteller, has a wide range of traditional, folk, historical, personal, modern, original and commissioned stories to her repertoire. Her performances are described as quirky, passionate, intelligent and thought provoking.
​
Wilfred Lee (pictured) tells tales of the dark, the funny, and the strange – from the soaring sagas of the Norse myths and Arthurian legends to real-life ghost stories, taking in traditional folklore and Victorian narrative poetry on the way. The stage name of the writer A W Earl, they have performed at Strumpshaw Tree Fair, various venues in Norwich, and have worked with both Forest Schools and the Break Charity, bringing traditional tales to audiences of all ages.
Free, no booking required.
As historic buildings, some areas of the Guildhall Museum and Eastgate House have limited access, please check their Access Statements for full details.
Nearest bus stop: Rochester rail station
Great Kentspectations Steampunk Fashion Show
2-3pm.
The Guildhall Museum, 17 High St, Rochester ME1 1PY
'Steampunk' is a style of design and fashion that combines historical elements with anachronistic technological features inspired by science fiction. The essence of Steampunk being a homage to vintage fashion with a modern, sassy twist.
​
What exactly does this mean?
And how can you add elements of Steampunk into your everyday outfits?
​
The Great Kentspectations group will show us how!
Free, no booking required.
As an historic building, some areas of the Guildhall Museum have limited access, please check their Accessibility Statement for full details.
Nearest bus stop: Rochester rail station
(Photo of Katie Boorman by Paula Wilkins)
Icon Theatre
3.45-4.30pm.
The Guildhall Museum, 17 High St, Rochester ME1 1PY
'Reclaimed'
Devised and performed by Icon Young Company,
Reclaimed is a movement-based theatre piece that explores the notion of childhood in a world where the rich get richer and the poor are punished. When dreams are all you have, would you run away or stay for the fight?
​
Free, no booking required.
As an historic building, some areas of the Guildhall Museum have limited access, please check their Accessibility Statement for full details.
Nearest bus stop: Rochester rail station
Gerald Dickens
4.30-5.30pm.
The Guildhall Museum, 17 High St, Rochester ME1 1PY
Gerald Dickens, the great-great-grandson of Charles Dickens is a firm favourite with Medway audiences. Gerald is an actor, director and producer. A fascination with the works of Charles Dickens led him to write and direct one-man theatrical shows based on the author’s works, including 'Nicholas Nickleby', which he will be performing for us today.
​
Free, no booking required.
As an historic building, some areas of the Guildhall Museum have limited access, please check their Accessibility Statement for full details.
Nearest bus stop: Rochester rail station
(Photo of Gerald Dickens by Nikki Price)
Irina Fridman
AUTHOR TALK: 6-6.45pm.
Chatham Library and Community Hub, Dock Rd, Chatham ME4 4TX
Irina Fridman - an author, a local historian, an occasional poet. Irina has been based in Kent for the last two decades. Her main interest is the social history of the Medway Towns. Irina’s latest book 'Foreigners, Aliens, Citizens – Medway and its Jewish community, 1066-1939' was released in 2020.
The book provides a comprehensive history of one of the largest provincial Jewish communities of Victorian Britain and fills in a gap in both Jewish and local historiography.
​
Free, book with Medway Libraries in person, phone 01634 337799, or via your SPYDUS account.
Chatham Library is fully accessible.
Nearest bus stop: Chatham Bus Station
25 years of hunger
POETRY (18+): 7-9pm.
Chatham Library and Community Hub, Dock Rd, Chatham ME4 4TX
The finale of Medway River Lit!
​
It has been 25 years since Medway last had a region-wide literature festival. Back then an anthology came out featuring The Medway Poets and friends called ‘6 Days Of Hunger’. For one night at Chatham Library we will be reuniting some of the poets who featured in that book, including Billy Childish, Bill Lewis, Robert Earl, Philip Kane, Wolf Howard, Jane Ayres, and A.W. Earl.
​
This will be a never to be missed opportunity to see some of The Medway Poets (plus friends and relations) performing poetry in Chatham.
​
Free, book with Medway Libraries in person, phone 01634 337799, or via your SPYDUS account.
Chatham Library is fully accessible.
Nearest bus: Chatham Bus Station