The 24th Bolsover Lantern Parade wowed the town on Saturday as thousands of people lined the streets to watch the magical parade light up the cold winter night. Over 900 people participated in the parade itself, carrying lanterns large, small, colourful and steaming! From William Cavendish and his dancing Cavalier horse, to unicorns, comic heroes and a steam train with passengers inside, the hard work and talent of local residents did not disappoint, it amazed!
“We are delighted to see so many people parade their wonderful lanterns through the streets of Bolsover once again. The size and scale of the lanterns on display showcase the unique creativity of the people of the town and make for a truly magical event.” Paul Steele, Managing Director of Junction Arts.
From 4:15pm, hundreds of lantern makers proudly brought their lanterns into the Castle ready for the most competitive lantern competition yet. There were 6 prizes including the Derbyshire Police Crime Commissioner, Hardyl Dhindsa’s Best Pick, Best Pro Lantern, Best Standard Lantern, Best Small Lantern and two staff picks: Most Magical Lantern and Most Memorable. Prizes were generously gifted by local Bolsover businesses who all came to celebrate this annual event.
Needless to say, it’s been a busy November once again for Junction Arts and our fantastic team of volunteers and artists, with 86 hours of lantern making workshops, across 4 local schools and 7 workshops at Bolsover Assembly Hall. 650 school children and residents participated in our workshops this year, with many more lantern makers crafting their stunning lanterns at home. We love this event but it would not be the success that it is without the brilliant people of Bolsover so thank you to our talented community of lantern makers!
A big thank you also goes to all our funders and business sponsors, who all helped to make this year’s event the biggest and bestest it could be: Old Bolsover Town Council, Derbyshire Police Crime Commissioner Community Grant, Bolsover Rotary Club, Mansfield Building Society, Foundation Derbyshire, Derbyshire County Council, The Bolsover Post Office, The Bolsover Coop, Wilkins Vardy, Wilson Estate Agents, Designs by Daykin, Ultima Hair, The Photoshop, J.D Wetherspoon, K F Comfort Zone and The Castle Oven. Special thanks to our partner, English Heritage who allow us free use of the Castle for the event.
There was a fantastic array of Lanterns at this years 2017 Bolsover Lantern Parade. This year the competition hosted 6 categories including: the Derbyshire Police Crime Commissioner Hardyl Dhindsa’s Best Pick, Best Pro Lantern, Best Standard Lantern, Best Small Lantern and two staff picks: Most Magical Lantern and Most Memorable. The talent shone bright and with many stunning lanterns to choose from, it was hard to choose a winner. Our guest Judges Hardyl Dhindsa (Derbyshire Police Crime Commissioner), and Councillor Pat Cooper were definately spoilt for choice!
Prizes were generously gifted by local Bolsover businesses who all came to celebrate this annual event.
Heavy Metal Detector
Artist Steve Maher brought his Heavy Metal Detector playful walking tours to Bolsover Castle during our Lantern Parade event. Over 40 people took part of all ages, exploring Bolsover Town and the Castle in a way they have never done or heard before. Steve contacted local hard rock and metal bands who donated a song from their catalogue of music. Using these tracks, whenever surface level metal was located, and that could be anything from lead windows, to Santa’s sleigh bell, the detector would then inform the listener that they had found something interesting by playing part of a metal track. Participants could share detectors and guided each other around these unique places, seeking out metal in a fun and humorous take on metal detecting. This activity was a great artistic addition to our main event and provided an important partnership for Junction Arts with Abandon Normal Devices. It was great to see Steve even joining in with the local tradition that is the lantern parade in Bolsover with his HMD flag!
Heavy Metal Detector at Bolsover Castle is produced by Abandon Normal Devices and Junction Arts, delivered in partnership with English Heritage. Supported using public funding by Arts Council England.
