Priddy Folk Festival 2026: Dervish Leads Mendip's Biggest Folk Weekend
Issue #10 | Thursday 2 July 2026
Good morning, Mendips! The lineup's set for Priddy Folk Festival on the hill above us, Wells gears up for three nights of Party at the Palace this weekend, and Palace Farm's Italian Festival returns on Sunday. There's also a fond farewell for one of Wells's longest-serving officers, a giant duck heading for Glastonbury, and a big barn blaze near Pilton that had crews from right across Mendip on scene.
🪕 Priddy Folk Festival 2026 — Featured event
📅 What's On This Week — across the Mendips
🎬 This Week at Wells Film Centre
👮 Wells officer's final patrol becomes a family affair
🦆 Giant duck set to land in Glastonbury
🚜 Firefighters tackle barn blaze near Pilton
🥊 CCTV appeal after unprovoked assault outside Wells pub
🌡️ Weather — Wells BA5 forecast
🪕 Priddy Folk Festival 2026 — 10–12 July, Priddy
At Priddy Folk Festival 10 - 12 July
Priddy Folk Festival returns to the Mendip village green for its 2026 edition, running Friday 10 to Sunday 12 July. Now a fixture of the summer calendar up on the hill, the volunteer-run, registered-charity festival packs seven stages onto the green and surrounding fields for a weekend that's equal parts family day out and serious folk pilgrimage — and it's proudly one of the Mendips' own, rather than a trip down into town.
This year's headliners are Irish folk stalwarts Dervish, alongside The Melrose Quartet, Dallahan, Kasai Masai, Malin Lewis and Henry Girls. Sunday's traditional procession will be led by the Lost Giants of Cornwall, and a 30-piece Brazilian youth orchestra joins the bill — a sign of how far the festival's reach has grown while staying resolutely local and charitable in spirit.
Some stages are free to wander into, others are ticketed — early booking is recommended for the headline sets. It's a short hop from Wells, Wookey and Westbury-sub-Mendip, so no need to camp unless you fancy the full festival experience.
All week (2–8 Jul)
Frome Festival 2026 — venues across Frome. 25th anniversary — launches Friday 3 July, runs to 12 July, 300+ events. fromefestival.co.uk
Hilliard Society Miniaturists Exhibition — Wells Town Hall. Sat 4 – Fri 11 July (closed Sun), free admission, 10am–5pm. hilliardsociety.org
Party at the Palace 2026 — Bishop's Palace, Wells. Three nights, Fri 3 – Sun 5 July (see each night below). bishopspalace.org.uk
Thursday 2 Jul
Little Discoverers: Wildlife in the Abbey — Glastonbury Abbey, 10:30–11:30am. Free, under-5s. More info
Friday 3 Jul
Party at the Palace — Country Show — Bishop's Palace, Wells, gates 7pm, show 7:30–10:30pm. £25 adult / £15 child. Country Superstars Theatre Tour, with tributes to Dolly Parton, Kenny Rogers and Johnny Cash. Booking
AutoFest UK 2026 (10th anniversary) — Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet. Runs 3–5 July, doors 8:30am–5pm daily. bathandwestshowground.com
Afriquoi x BCUC — Cheese & Grain, Frome (Frome Festival), 7:30–11pm. Booking
Saturday 4 Jul
Party at the Palace — 90s Night — Bishop's Palace, Wells, 3–10:30pm. £35 adult / £25 child. Headlined by East 17, with Dave Finnegan's Commitments and Sonia. Booking
Frome Festival Food Feast — town centre / Cheese & Grain, Frome, from 5pm.
Hilliard Society Miniaturists Exhibition — opens today at Wells Town Hall, 10am–5pm.https://www.hilliardsociety.org/
MSO: Summer Serenade (Elgar, Schumann & Borodin) — Strode Theatre, Street. See website for time and price. Booking
Sunday 5 Jul
Party at the Palace — Kids Pop Party — Bishop's Palace, Wells, gates 4pm, show 5–7pm. £18 child / £12 adult / £50 family. Pop Queens Live. Booking
Wells Italian Festival — Palace Farm, Wells, from 12:30pm. £15 adult / £10 child (10–16) / under-10s free. wellsitalianfestival.co.uk
Monday 6 – Wednesday 8 Jul
Hilliard Society Miniaturists Exhibition continues — Wells Town Hall, 10am–5pm daily. hilliardsociety.org
Sir Tony Robinson: Bob Morris Lecture — Cheese & Grain, Frome (Frome Festival), Tue 7 July, 7pm. Booking
🗓️ Coming Up
Priddy Folk Festival 2026 — Priddy village. Fri 10 – Sun 12 July. priddyfolk.org
WOWFest 2026: Carmina Burana — Wells Cathedral, Sat 11 July, 7pm. Booking
Giant Flea Market — Bath & West Showground, Shepton Mallet, Sat 12 July, 250+ stalls. bathandwestshowground.com
🎬 This Week at Wells Film Centre
Toy Story 5 [PG]
Supergirl [12A]
Minions & Monsters [U] — new from Wednesday 1 July
🎟️ Children's tickets £4.38 all summer (until 1 September).
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📰 In Other News . . .
👮 Wells officer's final patrol becomes a family affair
PC Darren Pearson marked his final shift with Avon and Somerset Police after 25 years' service — joined on patrol by his son, also a serving Wells officer. Mendip Neighbourhood Policing called it a "very special father and son team" moment as one chapter closed and another began. The send-off has been warmly received locally as a fitting tribute to a long policing career in the city.
🦆 Giant duck set to land in Glastonbury
A giant inflatable duck will appear near The George & Pilgrims in Glastonbury on Tuesday 21 July as part of The Coaching Inn Group's "Wish You Were Here" staycation road trip. Visitors can enjoy free photo opportunities and instant prizes, with a chance to win a year of UK hotel breaks. The free, family-friendly stop marks the hotel group's 30th anniversary tour of historic towns.
🚜 Firefighters tackle barn blaze near Pilton
Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue crews battled a large agricultural barn fire near Pilton, close to Shepton Mallet, with five engines, a water carrier and an incident support unit called in. Crews from Shepton Mallet, Wells, Glastonbury, Street, Castle Cary, Bridgwater and Martock all attended, using ground monitors and foam systems to bring the blaze under control. It's a reminder of the scale of mutual aid firefighters draw on across rural Mendip.
🥊 CCTV appeal after unprovoked assault outside Wells pub
Avon and Somerset Police have released a CCTV image of a man they want to speak to following an unprovoked assault outside a pub on Priory Road in Wells, which left the victim with a fractured eye socket. Officers say the man pictured, described as in his thirties and wearing a distinctive Hawaiian shirt, may have information to help their enquiries. Anyone who recognises him is urged to come forward.
🌡️ Wells BA5 Weather — Week of 2 July 2026
High pressure keeps things settled and largely dry across the week. Thursday's a pleasant 21°C with sunny spells, and it stays dry and increasingly warm right through — 23°C by the weekend, 25°C on Monday and up to 27°C by Wednesday. UV stays high throughout, so pack the sun cream for anything outdoors, from Party at the Palace to the Wells Italian Festival.
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Paul Branston, Editor
Hi, I'm Paul Branston and I publish the Mendiplodocus every morning, Monday to Saturday. Each issue goes out to a growing base of thousands of local residents who want to keep up to date with events and local news. If you have events or news to share or you have a local business to promote, please get in touch.
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