Bath's biggest free party is back!

The city of Bath is getting ready to host the biggest free party of the year as The Bath Festival invites you to celebrate the opening of the 2022 festival with Party in the City. 

The fun kicks off from 5pm on Friday 13 May, when partygoers will find music in every kind of venue throughout Bath city centre – and it’s all free!

After two years away the tradition of coming together on the first day of The Bath Festival is back with a vengeance. Call your friends, get your dancing shoes on and head into Bath for a great night out. Whatever your taste in music, whether it be the pure tones of an acapella choir filling an ancient church, some cool jazz in a courtyard setting, a singer-songwriter performing in your favourite pub, or a rock’n’roll boogie outdoors in a park, there’ll be something for you.

Planning your evening’s entertainment is even easier this year: you can either pick up a Party in the City leaflet which lists all the venues, acts and times, or you can simply download the Pixie app and use the phone in your hand to help you decide where you want to be for Party in the City. Alternatively, visit The Bath Festival website: bathfestivals.org.uk/the-bath-festival/whats-on/

And if you would like to have a copy sent in the post every month, then we offer a postal subscription for just £30 for 12 issues, £15 for six issues or buy a copy for just £3.95. UK mainland prices. For Euro and World zone subscription prices – see our website. 

Win a £25 John Lewis voucher

This week's 10 letter word is made up using the above letters in green and blue. We’ve placed 2 letters to give you a start. The blue letters are used more than once.

Clue: to chew like a health-conscious Victorian...

Make sure to follow us on twitter ( @TheBathMagazine ) to see the answer: posted on a Wednesday afternoon. Winners picked at random.

This light springtime supper dish uses lemon juice, honey and mustard to revitalise an erstwhile humdrum chicken traybake to great effect, with preserved lemons, green olives and fresh parsley adding bonus notes of extra vibrance at the finish. If you don't have a jar of preserved lemons to hand you could use a tablespoon of lemon zest instead, but you'll miss out on the funky tang that the preserved lemons bring to the party. As for the chicken, I've specified bone-in, skin-on thighs for the best flavour, deliciously sticky skin and the juiciest end result.

If the weather's playing nice and you're thinking of using the barbecue instead of the oven you'll get a doubly-flavoursome reward, as smoke adds yet another dimension to the sweet/sour combo.

Ingredients (serves 2-3)

6 large bone-in, skin-on chicken thighs
The juice from 2 large lemons
4 tbsp runny honey
3 tbsp Dijon or wholegrain mustard
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2-3 preserved lemons
Handful of large green olives, pitted and chopped into chunks
Handful fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

Method

1. Put the chicken thighs in a single layer in a suitably sized roasting tin or ovenproof dish and, using a sharp knife, make small slashes all over the skin.

2. Mix the honey, mustard, lemon juice and garlic together and season well with plenty of black pepper. Pour the mixture over the chicken pieces and, if you have the time, allow to marinate in the fridge for up to 6 hours.

3. Preheat the oven 190°C/gas mark 5. Sprinkle the marinated chicken pieces with half of the chopped olives and a sprinkling of salt then roast for around 45 minutes, turning occasionally in the marinade until the chicken has cooked through and the skin is brown and sticky. 

4. Meanwhile, cut the preserved lemons open and discard the soft flesh. Cut the lemon skins into thin strips and toss together with the remaining olives and chopped parsley. When the chicken is cooked, sprinkle it with the olive, parsley and preserved lemon mixture while still hot and serve with mashed potato, creamy parmesan polenta or chunky bread to soak up all those lovely juices, perhaps with a handful of chargrilled asparagus on the side.

New Potatoes with Spinach and Capers (serves 4 as a side dish)

Rinse 500g new potatoes, chop each one in half and boil in plenty of salted water until just tender. Drain well and allow to steam dry. Heat 1 tbsp butter and 1 tbsp olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. As soon as the butter starts foaming add the potatoes (cut-side down) and fry, undisturbed, for around 5 minutes (or until golden). Add another tbsp butter along with 150g spinach, 2 tbsp drained, rinsed capers and the zest and juice of half a lemon. Stir over a medium heat until the spinach has wilted. Season to taste and serve immediately, perhaps to accompany grilled fish or barbecued chicken pieces.

Bacon, Blue Cheese and New Potato Salad (serves 4 light lunch)

Preheat the oven to 190°C/gas mark 5. Tumble 500g new potatoes into a roasting tray, drizzle with 1-2 tbsp olive oil, season well and roast for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, peel 2 red onions and slice into wedges. Remove the potatoes from the oven, shake them all about and add the onion wedges to the tin before roasting for another 20-30 minutes or until the potatoes have turned a deep golden colour and the onions have started to caramelise. While that's happening, whisk 1 tbsp wholegrain mustard with 1 tbsp red wine vinegar and a generous splash of olive oil and set to one side. Remove the potatoes from the oven and, while they're cooling down a bit, dry fry 200g smoked bacon lardons until the oil has rendered and the fat is turning golden. Add 150g sliced mushrooms to the pan and continue to sauté for around 5 minutes until the mushrooms start to brown. Divide 100g mixed salad bag (a watercress and spinach mixture works well here) across four plates or shallow bowls and top with the potatoes followed by the bacon and mushroom mixture and the dressing. Loosely toss all the ingredients together and serve topped with crumbled creamy blue cheese.

New Potato Bravas (serves 4 as part of a tapas selection)

Rinse 500g new potatoes, chop each one in half and boil in plenty of salted water until just tender. Meanwhile, peel and finely-chop 1 small red onion and sauté in a large, heavy-bottomed pan over a medium heat until soft (around 5 minutes). Add 1 finely-chopped red chilli (remove the seeds if you don't want too much heat) and 1 heaped tsp smoked paprika to the pan and continue to sauté for a couple of minutes before adding 500g halved cherry tomatoes (or 1 x 400g tin of chopped tomatoes) to the mix. Cook for around 5 minutes until the tomatoes have completely broken down before adding 2 tsp runny honey, 2 tbsp sherry (or red wine) vinegar to the pan. Season to taste, stir well and add the cooked new potatoes. Stir again until the potatoes are thoroughly coated in the bravas sauce and serve warm, sprinkled with freshly-chopped flatleaf parsley.

New Potato, Tuna and Caper Salad (serves 4 as a light lunch)

Rinse 500g new potatoes and boil in plenty of salted water until just tender. Meanwhile, peel 1 medium-sized cucumber, cut in half lengthways and scrape out (and discard) the seeds and pulp from the centre. Cut the cucumber into bite-sized chunks and place in a large serving bowl. Whisk 2 tbsp white wine vinegar with 2 tbsp Dijon mustard and a pinch of caster sugar. Season to taste and gradually whisk 2 tbsp olive oil into the dressing until combined. Add 4 tbsp chopped fresh dill and stir well before combining with the cucumber chunks. When the potatoes yield to a prod with a fork, drain well and chop each one into thick slices. Add them to the cucumber salad mix while still warm. Drain and 250g tuna in olive oil and crumble into big chunks, adding the chunks to the salad as you go and turning carefully so all the ingredients are evenly coated in the dressing. Serve immediately, scattered with black olives (you could, if you so wish, add quartered hard boiled eggs to the salad to make this dish even more substantial).

Bodegas Juan Gil

Enjoy a taste of Spain.

The iconic Juan Gil wines are an exceptional example of modern wines that over-deliver for money – and you really can’t get better than that. 

Cultivating excellence since 1916, the Juan Gil family strives for nothing less than perfection. The vineyards reach 850 metres above sea level in the Spanish regions of Jumilla and Rueda, and ancient terroirs of sand and limestone allow the wines to flourish and bloom.

What better way to kick off the rosé season than with Juan Gil’s excellent Rosado full of plum and cherry flavours with a beautiful nose. Then there’s the white. The fantastic Shaya Verdejo is especially exciting: “Like a Sauvignon Blanc, but better”. Summer may be on its way, but this white will certainly get you there sooner.

Each of the three rich reds offers amazing expression and value: starting with the Yellow Label Monastrell, offering balance and wonderful bright red fruits, and the Silver Label and Blue Label adding on extra layers of luxurious richness and sophistication. These wines will honestly become absolute favourites.

From left to right: 2019 Rosado – £17.50; Shaya Arindo Verdejo – £14.40; Yellow Label Monastrell – £12.95; Silver Label Monastrell – £18.75, and the super fine Blue Label Monastrell – £33

Explore the wines of Juan Gil at The Great Wine Co. below. 

Looking for more delicious foodie inspo?

Click through to browse our full Delicious Guide!

Carousel Fun Kitchen: a new modern restaurant, opening 14 May

carouselfunkitchen.com

Introducing the Black Bay Pro

Recently launched, Tudor presents this advanced technical model with a whole new aesthetic. Named Black Bay Pro, it has a 39-millimetre diameter, a fixed steel bezel, black dial with luminous markers and powered by a new self-winding Manufacture Calibre MT5652 with built-in GMT function which was specially developed by Tudor for the Black Bay Pro.

There’s a 24 hour angular yellow ‘snowflake’ hand (a hallmark of Tudor) and local time is referenced by the shorter ‘snowflake’ hour hand which can be set forwards or backwards.

The date, displayed through an aperture positioned at 3 o'clock, is coupled with the local time hand so that when setting the time and passing midnight in retrograde, it instantly jumps to the previous day. A highly unusual, sophisticated, and particularly practical function for the user.

It has a ‘weekend proof’ 70 hour power reserve - meaning you can take it off on Friday evening (if you want to) and it’ll keep going until Monday morn. As with a precision diver’s watch the Black Bay Pro is water resistant to 200 meters.

Shown here with the fabric Nato strap, although you can choose from a steel bracelet or a hybrid rubber and black leather strap. Model shown with fabric strap, £2,840

See the Black Bay Pro and other Tudor watches at Mallory.

Eve Lom: Foaming Cream Cleanser

Renewal starts with the perfect cleanse. This hydrating, enzyme-infused foaming cleanser uses the power of water to activate an innovative cream-to-foam lather which delicately wipes away make-up and impurities without drying skin or clogging pores. Effortless, efficacious, and safe for daily use, skin is left feeling soft, hydrated, and refreshed with a more radiant-looking glow. £45

Click here to shop the cleanser. 

Chanel: Sublimage L'essence Fondamentale Yeux

An innovative serum, designed to complement SUBLIMAGE La Crème Yeux, that restores eyes to their full expressive power.

Highly concentrated in rejuvenating polyfractioned Vanilla Planifolia and redensifying solidago, its formula is effective yet gentle on the delicate eye area. £210 

Click here to shop the eye serum. 

Brooks Women's Ghost 14 in Peacoat/Pink/White

Smoother and softer, this runner favourite just keeps getting better. The updated midsole is now 100% DNA LOFT cushioning for an even softer, smoother ride. The 3D Fit Print balances stretch and structure so the shoe adjusts comfortably to your foot. £120

Available from Running Bath: runningbath.co.uk

The Little Theatre Cinema – Downton Abbey: A New Era

In the much-anticipated sequel to the hugely popular 2019 film based on the beloved TV show, Dowager Countess Violet Crawley (Dame Maggie Smith) has some news to share with her son Robert (Hugh Bonneville): a mysterious man she met long before he was born has left her a villa. The entire family, along with some new arrivals, sets out on a grand journey to the South of France, all to uncover the secrets and lies behind their newly inherited home.

Downton Abbey: A New Era is at The Little from today (29 April). Tickets available from the Picturehouse website: picturehouses.com

Tuppance Middleton - Interview

Our sister publication, The Bristol Magazine, recently spoke to Tuppence Middleton, star of Downton Abbey: A New Era. 

You can read the full interview with Tuppence on The Bristol Magazine's website: thebristolmagazine.co.uk

Plus: watch Downton with Bath Operatic and Dramatic Society

Bath Operatic and Dramatic Society will be joining customers at The Little to celebrate the release of Downton Abbey 2: A New Era this Saturday, 30 April.

The cast will be dressed up to help greet and usher customers, ahead of their opening night of Crazy For You on the 3 of May. With the 1930s theme of Downton Abbey: A New Era, The Little feel that it's a perfect time to return to their roots, and step back in time with the help of the Crazy For You cast. 

Crazy For You will be playing at The Theatre Royal Bath from the 3rd to the 7 May.

Book Tickets for their production here: theatreroyal.org.uk/event/crazy-for-you

Curated by Daniel McCabe

Travel guides have undergone a serious transformation in recent years, not the least because we don’t – it could be argued – need them anymore when it’s possible to learn all we need from our phones. But as we go into the 2020s travel itself is no straightforward thing itself. Desired Landscapes is a small, bookish journal from Athens with a less rigid and more subjective approach to venturing abroad, instead gathering personal impressions, observations and experiences of cities (sky, pavements, aromas etc.) from writers and creatives that enable us to ‘travel without travelling’. I have no idea why this little journal is pocket-sized, but it’s clearly handy for right now. £14.50

If Opera presents Tales From Chez Bullier, Sunday 15 May, The Guildhall

The fabulous Banqueting Room of Bath’s Guildhall sets the scene for Chez Bullier’s, a faded Parisian speakeasy. Home to a cast of characters with tales of love and laughter, tragedy and loss, whose stories sadden and gladden the heart, or even break it. Bullier’s host and compère takes us on a journey through their lives as we meet Ruggero and Magda, Mimi and Rodolfo, Hannah, the widow and a whole tapestry of delicious characters from operatic history.

Featuring music by Puccini, Verdi, Lehar, Strauss and others, this fully costumed performance sees Oliver Gooch conduct a salon band alongside the If Opera ensemble and chorus, performing for the first time, as a prelude to the spectacular season at Belcombe Court in August.

This is a perfect event for anyone wanting to try their first opera experience.

There will be two performances of this production on Sunday 15 May: the first at 5pm, the second at 7.45pm. Tickets £36-£65, available from the Bath Box Office website: bathboxoffice.org.uk

Elaine Pamphilon: New Paintings

Adam Gallery is pleased to announce a show of new work by Elaine Pamphilon. The artist, who lives in Cambridge and Cornwall, follows in the St Ives tradition of naïve British painting with a beautiful selection of still-life paintings and landscapes.

In Elaine's own words: “The more I paint, the less I need on the canvas. Colours excite me and inspiration comes from the things I love – everyday objects, souvenirs from travels, patterns and walking the romantic, wild countryside around our home.”

This exhibition will take place from 7-28 May at Adam Gallery, 3 Northumberland Buildings, Bath. 

adamgallery.com

Painting: Farmers’ market, St Ives by Elaine Pamphilon

Japanese Tea Ceremonies at The Museum of East Asian Art, 4 and 12 May

Experience the wonders of a Japanese tea ceremony in the Museum of East Asian Art galleries with Yukie Williams.

Set in the Museum of East Asian Art's tranquil gallery space, this intimate demonstration will give you an insight into the cultural traditions surrounding the Japanese tea ceremony and the chance to taste Japanese matcha tea.

Yukie has over 10 years’ experience practising the tea ceremony, known as sadō (茶道), inspired by her early years in Japan. You will learn about the details and meaning behind each step of the tea ceremony.

This opportunity also includes admission to the Museum so you can discover the attraction's exquisite collections, including tea-ware from East and Southeast Asia, and the two current exhibitions Judo: A Cultural History of Martial Art and Global SinoPhoto Awards 2021.

This event is suitable for anyone age 13 or above.

Featured image: Yukie Williams 

Team Bath Netball host Mavericks in play-off crunch clash

It promises to be a Friday thriller as Team Bath Netball go head-to-head with old rivals Saracens Mavericks in a match which will have a huge bearing on this season’s Vitality Superleague play-off race.

Both teams are level on 24 points, with Haines Watts-sponsored Team Bath currently occupying the all-important fourth position on goal difference. However, Mavericks have a game in hand and were the only team to do the double over the Blue & Gold during the 2021 Superleague campaign. Anna Stembridge, Team Bath Netball Superleague Head Coach, said: “The old cliché is that every match is important, and that’s certainly true, but there’s no denying this is a really big game for both teams with the league being as tight as it is. There is no room for error and it’s not just about us gaining points but also taking points off others.

“There is so much history between the two clubs and I know this is a match the fans always look forward to. The girls are really fired up too, as you would expect, and the big games are the ones that have brought out the best in us this season.

“Four of our last six fixtures are against sides in contention for the top-four places and two of those games are against Mavericks. Some might look at that as being a tough run-in but it is the kind of challenge you want if you are going to make the play-offs – every game is going to be a like a final and we are ready for it.”

There will be a 1,000-strong crowd in the Team Bath Arena for Friday’s crunch clash (7.30pm centre-pass), which was rescheduled from last month due to Covid, and fans will also be able to watch the action live on YouTube courtesy of Sky Sports.

Team Bath, who are also supported by Rengen, will then head north on Monday to face undefeated league leaders Manchester Thunder in a match being televised on Sky Sports Mix (5.30pm).

Thunder passed 1,000 goals for the season during last weekend’s 88-57 win at Wasps but Team Bath went mighty close against them in the reverse fixture, being edged out 57-53 after leading for the first three-quarters of a high-quality contest.

“We were really disappointed not to come away with the win that day given how well we played,” said Stembridge. “The teams have been on different journeys since in terms of results but we always enjoy going up to Belle Vue, there’s a great atmosphere there, and we’re looking forward to seeing where we are against a team that many think will be champions.”

Read the full list of fixtures by clicking here. 

teambath.com

Picture credit: Morgan Harlow

Cox & Cox: Delphine Reclaimed Wood Armoire

Embodying all the romance of chateau life, Cox & Cox's Delphine Armoire will make a stately piece in any home. Crafted in reclaimed pine for an heirloom feel, this piece has classic carved details including a curvaceous pelmet, scrolls across the door frames and elegantly shaped feet.

The wire insets on the doors and adjustable shelves make this perfect for storing neatly folded clothes, freshly pressed bed linen or favourite glass and chinaware. There are also two handy internal drawers with traditional looking iron handles.

This tall cupboard is both versatile and beautiful and sure to give a lifetime of pleasure. £2,395

coxandcox.co.uk