Public Events at Canterbury Cathedral

Below you will find details of our main public events. To see details of all events and services, check the Calendar View, which can be viewed per day, week or month. For news items, see the News & Newsletter section.

August 2017

Drawn to Light: The Hidden Cathedral

15 May-15 October 2017 09.00-17.00

An exhibition of paintings and drawings by Cathedral stained glass artist Grace Ayson.

14 Aug - 1 Sept, 11.00-16.00 (Mon to Fri only)

Enjoy a trail of discovery around the Cathedral

21-25 August, 11.00-16.00 daily

Join us for a week of discovery at the Cathedral

25 August, 14.30-17.15

Afternoon tea and a tour of the Cathedral Archives

St Anselm’s Crypt talk and tour

8th September 18:00 - 21:00

A talk on the organisation and decoration of the Crypt followed by a tour to explore the extraordinary creatures carved into its columns and architecture.

9th September 11:00 - 13:15

Service followed by dancing in the Precincts to celebrate the Kentish harvest festival.

16th September - 17th September

An exhibition of paintings by retired GP Peter Livesey in the Canterbury Cathedral Shop.

16th September 10:00 - 20:00

Come and join "Messiah-in-a-day" under the musical directorship of Cathedral Organist and Master of the Choristers Dr David Flood.

20th September 13:00 - 21:00

Join us on The Canterbury Journey and find out more about the Cathedral's largest restoration project for more than 100 years at this open to all event.

29th September 10:00 - 16:00

Free training day with Cathedral conservators and international silver expert Dr Timothy Schroder.

300th anniversary of Kentish Gazette

11th October 17:30 - 18:30

During Evensong the 300th anniversary of the Kentish Gazette will be celebrated.

14 Oct - 19 Nov 10.00-16.30 daily

The Cathedral's Chapter House is a dramatic setting for artist Irene Barberis' glowing tapestry. Following the end of the Canterbury Festival the tapestry will not be available to see between 4 November and 8 November but will be on display again between 9 and 18 November.

14th October 17:30 - 18:45

Choral Evensong to include the Royal School of Church Music Festival Service.

15th October 15:15 - 16:00

A week of talks and Evensong at Canterbury Cathedral focussing on the five central themes of the Reformation.

23rd October 17:30 - 18:30

One of Britain’s best-loved art historians and BBC television presenters Dan Cruickshank lives in a house in Spitalfields first occupied by French Huguenot silk weavers in the 18th century. His talk will draw on his love of the area and the Huguenot influence in Spitalfields, Canterbury and beyond.

23rd October 20:00 - 22:00

Can we conquer the last taboo to achieve a ‘good end'? Join a panel of experts chaired by Andrew Thorns, Medical Director for Pilgrims Hospices, for a warm and sometimes even light-hearted debate about this important human topic.

25th October 17:30 - 18:30

Two remarkable sisters, now in their nineties, recall their father Colonel Owtram and his fascinating secret war diary – published this spring – kept hidden while British Camp Commandant of a Japanese POW camp.

26th October 17:30 - 18:30

Prolific, droll and always entertaining, AN Wilson casts his waspish eye on the Queen, painting a vivid portrait of ‘Lilibet’ the woman, while examining the recent history of the monarchy and how and why the Royal Family has survived.

26th October 20:00 - 22:00

Why did Agatha Christie use poison so often to dispatch characters, and why do their poisons of choice provide such important clues to the identity of the murderer? Kathryn Harkup explores the fascinating background to the novelist’s detailed chemical knowledge, illustrated by the use of poisons in her classic crime novels.

27th October 17:30 - 18:30

Tom Kerridge has all the ingredients of a national treasure-in-the-making. He is known and loved for his west-country burr and meteoric rise through the culinary world (his gastro pub, The Hand and Flowers, won a Michelin star a year after it opened, and a second star a few years later; it is the only pub to do so).

28th October 20:00 - 22:00

To mark their fifteenth anniversary, Tenebrae is reviving its first major commission – Path of Miracles by Joby Talbot. Based on the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela, the work received dazzling reviews when it premiered in 2005.

30th October 17:30 - 18:30

The history of Britain has traditionally been defined by its conflicts, its conquests, its men and its monarchs. It’s high time that it was defined by its women. In her most recent book, Woman’s Hour presenter Jenni Murray tells the stories of women who refused to succumb to the established laws of society.

31st October 17:30 - 18:30

Colourful posters for advertising, travel, entertainment and propaganda have shaped and documented our lives for 150 years, combining design and social history in a dramatic and often memorable way. Antiques Roadshow presenter Paul Atterbury, who has been a poster enthusiast all his life, tells the story of the poster from the the Victorian era to the creation of the modern multicoloured image.

31st October 20:00 - 22:00

The way we understand the past has been radically altered by the introduction of DNA as an historical text. Adam Rutherford, one of the country’s most engaging broadcasters and presenter of Inside Science, Radio 4’s flagship science programme, explains how history can be revisited using the map that we all contain, and all its revelations.

Canterbury Festival Talk – James Alexander-Sinclair

1st November 17:30 - 18:30

James designs gardens all over the place, from the Western Isles to the outskirts of Moscow, and most recently the Listening Garden for Radio 2’s Feel Good Gardens at Chelsea Flower Show. He will give a whistlestop tour of his life in horticulture – from Peckham to adjudicating on some of the world’s most beautiful gardens.

2nd November 17:30 - 18:30

‘At heart, I’m a walker – it’s just you, a backpack and a pair of boots’. Writer and broadcaster Nicholas Crane never leaves home without a map, a compass and his trademark umbrella – and has written books and presented television series based on his explorations.

3rd November 17:30 - 18:30

Operation Garbo and Kent. Author Nigel West gives an intriguing account of his 12-year search for the most successful double agent of World War II – Juan Pujol García, Codenamed Garbo - and how he went to Buckingham Palace in 1984 to receive a medal in recognition of his contribution to the liberation of Europe.

3rd November 20:00 - 22:00

The Dean of Canterbury, the Very Revd Dr Robert Willis has long been an admirer of the works of the Irish composer Stanford (1852-1924). In a special concert to mark the visit to Canterbury by the Stanford Society, the Dean introduces a selection of his favourite pieces including the Te Deum Laudamus in B flat.

4th November 19:30 - 21:30

An evening of expectation, harmonic beauty and reflection in a programme which comprises a world premiere, Tasmin Little - one of the country’s best-loved violinists, the world-renowned English Chamber Orchestra and Canterbury Choral Society.

15th November 2017 09:45-17:00

A free one-day conference for 16-25 year-olds, exploring the life and influence of the Black Prince

16th November - 17th November

Exploring the following and fascination around Edward Woodstock, Prince of Wales - "The Black Prince" 1330 -1376.

Friday 17 November, 19.00

Closing our Black Prince conferences, a talk from lawyer and historian, Jonathan Sumption, followed by a 3-course dinner.

18th November 19:30 - 22:00

The Girls and Men of Canterbury Cathedral Choir give their debut performance of Handel’s famous oratorio, Messiah. They will be joined by critically-acclaimed period instrument orchestra The Harmonious Society of Tickle-Fiddle Gentlemen and internationally-renowned soloists for the performance in the Cathedral’s Nave.

Festive lunches and Christmas parties

1st December - 22nd December

Enjoy the festive season with family, friends or colleagues at the Canterbury Cathedral Lodge.

6th December 20:00 - 21:20

The annual carol service of the 3PWRR Battalion.

16th December 19:00 - 20:30

Canterbury Choral Society and Canterbury Choral Society Youth Choir. Doors open at 18.30. Tickets go on sale late September from 01227 787787 or Canterbury Ticket Shop .