The Henley Living Advent Calendar is based on an original idea from Stockholm and began here in 2011. One of the first events of it’s kind in the UK, and certainly the first locally, it runs every evening from December 1st to 24th. Like a children’s Advent Calendar, a different window or door is opened at 6:15pm promptly each evening and a 30 minute performance is given to the audience assembled. This can include songs, carols, music, poetry, book excerpts, notes from local history or folklore, sketches, dance etc, all with a Christmas or winter focus to them. Each Venue is matched, by the Organising Committee, with a local performer or group of performers and a collection is made, and Raffle tickets sold, every evening for selected local Charities.
The Artwork for the Calendar was completed by Linda Layhe Nugent of Pixel Vista with a brief of local and “Chocolate Box” fun.
It is a collaborative project between the Henley Living Advent Calendar Trust, the Henley Partnership & Henley Town Council, bringing together nearly 100 local businesses and organisations to provide entertainment on each of the twenty four days leading up to Christmas. In 2013 it won Awards with ‘Towns Alive!’ and been a national Finalist in the prestigious Association of Town Centre Management Awards for ‘Most Attractive Location’, and was also awarded a ‘Big Society’ award by David Cameron.
The Living Advent Calendar website is sponsored and maintained by Chris Welling, Richard Young and Susan Butler with the graphic design done by Linda Layhe… and what a great job she has done! Collections will be made and raffle tickets sold, with monies being shared equally among our local good causes and charities.
Make sure you bookmark this site, and follow us on Twitter and Facebookto keep up to date with news, and for photographs and videos of the event. The Henley Living Advent Calendar will again be a truly memorable series of events this December.
