What’s On – Local events guide

10:00 am. Come and enjoy a coffee with the Oddfellows who have been part of the Bridport Community since 1881. The first coffee/tea is on The Oddfellows.

7:30 pm. Prize Bingo in aid of Chairman’s charity, Little Acorns. Members and non-members both welcome.

7:00 pm. Fun quiz and ploughman’s supper and a raffle.

Join experts from the Dorset Fungus Group for a fungi walk on Brownsea Island. Discover and identify fascinating fungi and learning more about the different species that grow on Brownsea. Novices and experts are all welcome to come and learn more about the role that fungi play in the ecosystem and how important they are on a global scale.

She Belongs Here, Find Your People is a free evening event for women in Dorchester on Saturday 3rd October at The Snug at Vivo Lounge. Think speed dating, but for finding your people not your partner. 30 women split into two teams. One team stays put. One team rotates every 5 minutes.

10:00 am. Come and enjoy a morning at Lower Muckleford Farm picking heritage apples. We have 120 trees and eight different varieties. This is a free event, coffee and ploughman’s lunch provided.

10:00 am. Walter Wagworthy our mascot had a wash and brush ready to meet everyone at Love Dogs West Dorset Big Beach Walkies. Sunday 4th October at 10am. He enjoys meeting everyone, please remember to give him High Paws our event is free and inclusive with or without a familypet.

You are warmly invited to our cathedral-style service of Choral Eucharist on Sunday 4th October at 10.30am in St Peter’s Church, Dorchester. The music includes: Stopford’s ‘God be in my head’, Mozart’s ‘Missa brevis in G K.140’ and Grieg’s ‘Ave maris stella’. All are very welcome to this free service. More information via the web link below.

2:00 pm. Come and get crafty at Crossways Village Hall, members and non-members both welcome. £5.00 per person to cover costs of materials and refreshments. There will be experienced crafters on-hand to help. Board and card games also available to play.

Come and enjoy a coffee and a chat together with a bring and buy at Crossways village hall.

7:30 pm. The band will be celebrating their 75th anniversary with a concert in St Mary’s Church, Bridport. Guest soloist Hannah Plumridge, principle cornet player of Grimethorpe Band, will play a number of solos throughout the evening. Tickets are available online via the band’s website.

Join experts from the Dorset Fungus Group for a fungi walk on Brownsea Island. Discover and identify fascinating fungi and learning more about the different species that grow on Brownsea. Novices and experts are all welcome to come and learn more about the role that fungi play in the ecosystem and how important they are on a global scale.

You are warmly invited to our cathedral-style service of Choral Evensong on Saturday 10th October at 4.30pm in St Peter’s Church, Dorchester. The music includes Stanford’s ‘Beati quorum via’, Natalie Burton’s ‘Preces & Responses’, Brewer’s ‘Magnificat and Nunc dimittis in D’ and Elgar’s ‘Great is the Lord’. The service is free to attend and is followed by a glass of wine.

Cerne Abbas Brewery collaborates with Noddys Cider, noddy himself will be demonstrating Apple crushing with local stalls in attendance and activities to kick start autumn!

Come and join The Oddfellows for an afternoon of table top games. Come and play or learn to play: Scrabble, Upwords, Bananagrams, Rummicub, mah jong, Cribbage and much much more at PIP cafe on Poundbury. This is a free event. Refreshments including homemade cake.

The film presents a clear, measured overview of how the climate and nature crisis is affecting everyday life in Britain, and what the evidence says about risks and responses. The purpose of the Briefing is to support informed democratic discussion and ensure that communities share understanding of the scale and urgency of the challenge.

7:30 pm. Military historian James Porter speaks about the Bayeux Tapestry and the Battle of Hastings with images describing the epic battle. In partnership with Dorset Museum and Art Gallery. DBS Members £6; non-members £7.50. Tickets available online from 1st September at www.ticketsource.com/dorchester-bayeux-society.

Bar open from 6.30 quiz starts 7.00. Bridport’s amateur theatre group brings you an evening of confounding conundrums, puzzling performances and quick fire questions, with hot grub to feed the brain. There will be live music and entertainment, artfully woven into a themed quiz. How well do you know your theatre, film and TV? £15 person to include food – main/dessert- veggie option available. Book via Tourist Info centre Bridport (see web link below).

The coffee, cake and stalls event has become a popular fundraiser for the Dorchester Committee of the Children’s Society. Entry is free, with coffee and delicious homemade cake for £3.00. There will be a variety of stalls and a tombola. It is always a warm, friendly atmosphere – we hope to see you there.

Join experts from the Dorset Fungus Group for a fungi walk on Brownsea Island. Discover and identify fascinating fungi and learning more about the different species that grow on Brownsea. Novices and experts are all welcome to come and learn more about the role that fungi play in the ecosystem and how important they are on a global scale.

Join us at St Peter’s Church Dorchester on Saturday 17th October between 12.30pm and 1.00pm for our monthly lunchtime concert. In a change to the published programme, former Assistant Director of Music at Exeter Cathedral David Davies is the soloist in an organ recital. Admission is free. More information via the web link below.

10:00 am. Come and enjoy a morning at Lower Muckleford Farm picking heritage apples. We have 120 trees and eight different varieties. This is a free event, coffee and ploughman’s lunch provided.

You are warmly invited to our cathedral-style service of Choral Eucharist on Sunday 18th October at 10.30am in St Peter’s Church, Dorchester. The music includes: Parry’s ‘My soul there is a country’, Palestrina’s ‘Missa brevis’ and Ole Gjeilo’s ‘Ubi caritas’. All are very welcome to this free service. More information via the web link below.

2:00 pm. Come to our whist drive at St George’s Church Hall. Members and non-members both welcome. £5.00 per to cover costs. Both experienced and novice players welcome. Come and have a go! Refreshments included.

2:00 pm. Come to Poppies Tea rooms in Bovington, choose your own pot to decorate, once decorated enjoy cream tea for £6.00. Cost of pots vary between £15.00 and £30.00. Your pot will be returned to you having been glazed and fired.

(doors open at 7:00 pm). The fabulous Chris Jagger is playing with Eliet Mackrell on fiddle & David Hatfield on double bass, helping to raise money for urgent repairs to the church. It’s going to be a fantastic concert!!! Contact Susana for tickets £25 p.p. Cash Bar

7:00 pm. Fun Quiz evening with all proceeds going to ‘The Leprosy Mission’. £5 person which includes coffee/tea and cake. Please pre-book if possible, come as a team of 4-6 or join a team on the night. To book contact Gill on 07503 177699 or email as per link below.

Brownsea Island is a haven for bird enthusiasts and nature lovers alike. Our guided walks, led by an expert Dorset Wildlife Trust ranger, take you through the island’s beautiful wetlands. Brownsea Lagoon is one of the best birdwatching sites in England. The lagoon’s shallow, nutrient-rich waters draw in thousands of birds annually, creating an ever-changing avian spectacle.

You are warmly invited to our cathedral-style service of Choral Evensong on Saturday 24th October at 4.30pm in St Peter’s Church, Dorchester. The music includes Biebl’s ‘Ave Maria’, Reading’s ‘Preces & Responses’, Dyson’s ‘Magnificat and Nunc dimittis in D’ and Bob Chilcott’s ‘Te lucis ante terminum’. The service is free to attend and is followed by a glass of wine.

2:00 pm. Come to our whist drive at St George’s Church Hall. Members and non-members both welcome. £5.00 per to cover costs. Both experienced and novice players welcome. Come and have a go! Refreshments included.

10:00 am. Come and enjoy a coffee on The Oddfellows at The Bull Hotel, Bridport.  The Oddfellows have been part of the Bridport community since 1860.  Members and non-members both welcome.

All are welcome to the annual musical meditation for All Souls at St Peter’s Church Dorchester. This is an opportunity to remember friends and loved ones who have died. Three poignant musical works — John Tavener’s ‘Song for Athene’, Vaughan Williams’s ‘The Lark Ascending’ (performed on violin and organ) and Morten Lauridsen’s ‘Lux aeterna’ — are framed by words of scripture and poetry. Free

You are warmly invited to our cathedral-style service of Choral Eucharist on Sunday 1st November at 10.30am in St Peter’s Church, Dorchester. In this special service, the setting is Bob Chilcott’s ‘Little Jazz Mass’, accompanied by jazz ensemble. Other music includes: Chilcott’s ‘O nata lux’ and Lauridsen’s ‘Ubi caritas’. All are very welcome to this free service.

7:00 pm. Come and enjoy a traditional bonfire at Lower Muckleford Farm. Fireworks and refreshments provided. £10.00. Please contact Rosemary for catering purposes.

Lots of local, handmade unique items for sale. Hand-knitted hats and scarves, jewellery, cards, bags, toys, glass and wood items. Christmas things include unique Christmas cards, plus quirky Christmas decorations, banners and Advent Calendars (and where else could you find one for dogs?) Ideal for Christmas presents, especially those stocking fillers. Refreshments featuring homemade cakes.

Come and join The Oddfellows for an afternoon of table top games. Come and play or learn to play: Scrabble, Upwords, Bananagrams, Rummicub, mah jong, Cribbage and much much more at PIP cafe on Poundbury. This is a free event. Refreshments including homemade cake.

Playing on a Robin Jennings Flemish Reproduction harpsichord, Royal College of Music scholar Markus Sadler performs Bach’s Goldberg Variations in the evocative, candlelit setting of St Peter’s Church Dorchester. The 75 minute programme will be performed without interval and tickets, priced £15 are available online. Early booking is advised. Tickets via web link below.

An Evening of Swing, Carols & Christmas Cool presented by the well known Julie Dunn Jazz Quartet. Bar opens at 18.30 and the performance starts at 19.00.

Raising money for Dorset Nightstop for a 2nd year, we are holding our final fundraiser of the year. FREE ENTRY, lots of local craft stalls, refreshments available, fantastic raffle, plus at 11 am a performance of Christmas songs by the Encore Singers. Please come along and support us.