As the seasons change and with the leaves changing colour, it’s a natural time to reflect and celebrate the past year. Frome Town Council is inviting residents to a free Glow in the Park event on Saturday 30th October from 3:30pm – 6:30pm at the Old Showfield. The afternoon will have lots of autumnal, fun activities for young and old alike including apple pressing, tree planting, lantern making, pumpkin decorating alongside an appearance by Frome’s Rare Species and various food stalls hosted by local organisations. The event will finish with the South West’s very first audience attended drone show.
Autumn is the time to plant trees which will then flourish and grow in the following spring. Following feedback from residents, a commemorative blossom circle is being planted in the Old Showfield. Twenty-four trees will be planted to celebrate Frome, its communities, and the resilience they have shown over this extraordinary time. At the very centre there’ll be a single oak tree that was grown from an acorn by local tree enthusiast and author Julian Hight. This oak tree can be traced back to the historic Selwood oaks that grew in and around Frome and representatives from our community will be invited to plant the other trees in the blossom circle with the Mayor in a ceremony to kick off the afternoon at 3:30pm.
There will be lots of glow in the dark activities including face painting and glow in the dark pumpkins, and apple day activities which will set the atmospheric scene for the finale of the afternoon, an evocative drone display. The drone display will be performed by local company Celestial following their success at Hogmanay in Edinburgh. The company, based in Frome, specialise in aerial storytelling, performed by hundreds of brightly coloured drones taking to the air accompanied by music. Tony Martin, Founder of Celestial said: “Thanks to funding from Arts Council England we are thrilled to be able to bring on this show for Frome. It’s been a long time in the planning, and we are excited to provide this spectacular show, free of charge, for the people of Frome. The display will bring some glow in the dark magic to help commemorate this extremely difficult time.
There will also be contributions from Frome Schools, including the college who are being asked to create a design in a special animation workshop delivered by Celestial, which will appear in the final show. It will all add up to a spectacular and magical evening.
Mayor Andy Wrintmore said “As the nights are drawing in, let’s celebrate this time of year and our community by coming together for this unique, free event. From planting commemorative trees representing our town’s resilience in the past 18 months, to a whole host of fun, autumnal activities culminating with a spectacular, never seen before in the Somerset, drone show – it’s the event of the year so far. Think Fireworks without the scare!”
Whilst the event is free, Frome Rotary will be collecting for several charities including Active and In Touch, The Pod, Fair Frome, & Frome’s Missing Links. The event is funded by Frome Town Council and The Arts Council England.
