Coming up with new and unusual activities during the summer months can be a tough job but Brighton & Hove has it all offering you and your little ones a bottomless bag of fun and entertainment.
Check out our ideas below for a summer of fun and look out for the Kids Picks for the most usual summer fun that will keep your little ones busy all summer long.
18 July
Open Market’s 1st Birthday
Come and celebrate the Open Market’s first birthday on 18 July with the promise of music, fun, balloons and the Scalextric challenge! They will have entertainers, musicians, free gifts and a free face painter on hand, plus a host of exciting surprises all alongside the regular Saturday market plus over 50 permanent shops, cafes and galleries. www.brightonopenmarket.co.uk
1 to 2 August
Pride the 2015 festival marks 25 fantastic years of Pride in the City and is widely anticipated to be one of the biggest Pride celebrations in the city to date! This celebration of LGBT life in the UK’s ‘gay capital’ includes a huge, colourful Pride Parade through the city with floats, music and amazing costumes, and a big party in Preston Park. Great fun, Pride is open, accessible and suitable for all. www.brighton-pride.org
17 August to 20 September
Big Screen on the Beach is back for a summer of sport and blockbuster movies including, Frozen, Paddington and Big Hero 6! The event will include grandstand seating, a licensed bar and refreshments area. Entrance to this fab beach event is FREE and open from 17 August to 20 September. www.brightonsbigscreen.com
Until 31 August
SEA LIFE Brighton is hosting a special treat this summer…a chance to explore the secrets of the ocean and become a LEGO® City Deep Sea Explorer! The Centre features a LEGO® City Deep Sea Experience where visitors can take part in activities to become an official LEGO® City Deep Sea Explorer. Visitors will be invited to get hands-on and build a LEGO® sea creature. They will also embark on a novel treasure hunt to seek out LEGO® creations hidden amongst the colourful marine life in the displays! www.visitsealife.com/brighton
Events
JULY
4 July
The Sorcerer’s Apprentice – Royal Spa Nursery grounds, Queens Park Kids Picks
This summer’s outdoor theatre in Queen’s Park will be The Sorcerer’s Apprentice, a fun and magical theatrical production for all the family. The performance takes place at Queens Park, at 7pm on Saturday 4 July 2015, Tickets £12.50 adults, £6.50 children www.fqpbrighton.net
4 to 5 July
Paddle Round the Pier – Brighton & Hove seafront
A weekend of beach events which gets bigger every year, Paddle Round the Pier invites all kinds of vessels to take to the sea and spectators to enjoy the festivities on-land. www.paddleroundthepier.com
7 to 31 July
The Jungle Book – Emporium Kids Picks
An epic adventure live on stage, this musical adaptation of Rudyard Kipling’s classic and beloved story, follows the story of Mowgli who is left abandoned, and raised by the Wolves, and who is taught the laws of the Jungle by his dear friend, Baloo the bear. Tickets from £12 www.emporiumbrighton.com/junglebook
7 to 11 July
Hairspray – Brighton Corn Exchange
Following hot on the heels from their sold out production of West Side Story in February 2015, Brighton Theatre Youth Group return with Hairspray, set in Baltimore USA in 1962 the show stars Tracy Turnblad, a big girl with big hair and an even bigger heart who is on a mission to follow her dreams and dance her way onto national TV. Tickets £19 www.brightondome.org
9 to 11 July
The Journey Home – Brighton Dome Kids Picks
Join Polar Bear as he sets off in search of a new home when the ice starts melting. Travelling through storms, busy shipping lanes and across oceans, he picks up some exciting friends along the way. Meet all the animals on their adventure to find a new home; what else will they encounter on their journey of discovery and friendship? Tickets £7, suitable for ages 3+ www.brightondome.org
11 to 12 July
Kite Festival – Stanmer Park Kids Picks
A perfect family event, the Brighton Kite Festival is one of the longest running kite festivals in the UK, flying for over 35 years. www.brightonkiteflyers.co.uk
18 July
March of the Mermaids – Hove Lawns / Seafront
Flip those fins, shake those shells and twirl those tentacles for this fun day out for all the family. There will be prizes for the best costumes and see who will be crowned Miss Brighton Mermaid and King Prawn. www.facebook.com/mermaids.march
18 & 19 July
Pride Diversity Games – Citywide
This summer the city of Brighton & Hove will come together for a truly unique event, an event that will see community groups, businesses and individuals united by sport, regardless of sexuality, race, age or ability. This fabulous event will be a weekend for the entire city to enjoy with fun activities including the 5K Rainbow Run, those must-do Fun Day classics Egg & Spoon, Sack Race, Tug Of War challenge and Three-Legged race plus great entertainment and sporting demonstrations for all to enjoy. www.brighton-pride.org
25 July
Brighton Yoga Festival – St Georges Church FREE
A free-to-all, family-friendly festival of yoga in and around St George’s Church, Kemptown, with free yoga classes and demos all day, plus therapies, food, live music and more. Any proceeds will go to charity. All ages and beginners welcome. www.brightonyogafestival.org
26 July
Doggy Pride – Hove Recreation Ground
Woof woof… It’s time to fetch those pooches and paw your way to one of Brighton Prides most wonderfully accessible events. Celebrate our four-legged best friends with a day of fun and barking frolics, as dogs and dog lovers come together and shine with pride. www.brighton-pride.org
28 July
Hetty Feathers – Theatre Royal Kids Picks
ROLL UP and join Hetty on her escape from the Foundling Hospital. TREMBLE as she faces Matron Stinking Bottomly. THRILL as she discovers the squirrel house and Tanglefields Travelling Circus. GASP as she endures a night locked in the attic. QUAKE as she braves the scary streets of Victorian London and CHEER as she overcomes all in the search to find her real mother and a true family of her own. Tickets from £18.50 www.atgtickets.com
31 July
BBQ & Live Music Evening – Yellowave Beach Sports
Join Yellowave for an evening of yummy BBQ food and cool acoustic tunes. Tickets cost £10 and your BBQ plate will include a selection of delicious food. What a perfect way to spend a summers evening. The BBQ will also be taking place in August so check the website for more details. www.yellowave.co.uk
AUGUST
1 & 2 August
Brighton Pride – Citywide and Preston Park
This year makes the 25th anniversary of Pride Festival. The celebration of LGBT life in the UK’s ‘gay capital’ includes a huge, colourful Pride Parade through the city with floats, music and amazing costumes, and a big party in Preston Park. Great fun, Pride is open, accessible and suitable for all. www.brightonpride.org
4, 11, 18 & 25 August
Here comes the summer – Hove Museum FREE
Drop in to one of the summer fun workshops at Hove Museum. Create a picture or pattern using objects in the museum to inspire you or build your own magical machine or crazy contraption.
Session times 10.30am – 12pm & 1.30 – 3pm www.brightonmuseums.org.uk
15 August
Shakedown Festival – Waterhall, Brighton
On Saturday 15th August 2015, Shakedown returns to Waterhall in Brighton – with four huge international bands hosting stages: Defected, Hospitality Cirque Du Soul and Supercharged. Tickets £45 www.shakedown.co.uk
15 to 16 August
The Brunswick Festival – Brunswick Square FREE
The festival is a celebration of the community of Brunswick in Hove. The weekend includes a range of free activities including live music, dance, street theatre, food & drink and craft stalls. www.visitbrighton.com
17 August to 20 September
Big Screen on the Beach – Beach by Madeira Drive
Brighton’s Big Screen on the beach is back for a summer of sport and blockbuster movies including, Frozen, Paddington and Big Hero 6! The event will include grandstand seating, a licensed bar and refreshments area. www.brightonsbigscreen.com
18 August
Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles – Drusilla’s Kids Picks
New for 2015, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, Leo and Raph will appear at Drusillas Park for one day only. Join the dynamic duo in the Events Arena as they meet visitors and pose for pictures at intervals throughout the day. www.drusillas.co.uk
22 & 23 August
The Thai Festival – Preston Park
Experience the taste of Thailand this summer and enjoy with all the family. Thai beer garden, traditional music and dancing, world class food, children’s play area and not forgetting the world class Miss Lady Boy World beauty contest you’ll be kept busy all weekend. www.magicofthailand.co.uk
23 August
Flyaway Katie – Long Nose Puppets – The Old Market Kids Picks
Katie is all alone and feeling grey. The birds in the picture on her wall look so colourful if only Katie could be as bright as them, who knows what might happen? The show is bursting with colour, movement and surprises, with puppets of varying scales acting the story. Tickets £8 suitable for ages 2-7 years www.theoldmarket.com
28 to 30 August
Mod Weekender – Various Venues
The Mod Scene will return to its spiritual home this August. Don’t miss the opportunity to re-live the mod days with a scooter competition & cruise, Live Music, Market and record fair, vintage and bespoke clothes and art and memorabilia. www.newuntouchables.com
