All festivals take place over the weekend closest to Clare’s birthday of 13 July, other than for a short break during COVID. You don’t have to be a member of the Society in order to attend – and everyone is welcome. Staples remain the Friday midsummer cushion laying at the grave of John Clare by the children of the Helpston primary school and the prize-giving for their poetry competition. Also on Friday is a folk evening, previously at the Blue Bell but now at the John Clare Cottage. On Saturday, as well as the AGM and the President’s address, there are Morris Dancers, book stalls, walks, Helpston open gardens and readings in the church. The other key events of the days and the festival themes are outlined below.

Recent festival reports

John Clare Society Festival 2026

The annual John Clare Society festival will be held in Helpston from Friday 10th to Sunday 12th July 2026. The theme will be the family. There will again be a full programme of activities involving lectures, walks, entertainment and poetry readings. The John Clare Cottage will be open throughout the main day of the festival, Saturday 11 July. A highlight on that day will be … Continue reading

John Clare Society Festival 2025

Friday evensong and folk evening at the John Clare Cottage. Mike Mecham was elected as the new Chair of the Society. The Society’s new Clare selection, Clare’s People was launched along with the Ronald Blythe Fellowship and annual bursary. Saturday – Professor John Goodridge in conversation with Ronald Blythe’s biographer Ian Collins; Afternoon talk by Richard Astle of the Landyke Trust; evening concert by Cut-A-Caper, ‘A Musical Entertainment on the Life and Writing of John Clare’. Continue reading

John Clare Society Festival 2024

A fascinating talk by the Rector, Gary Alderson, entitled ‘Charles Mossop: The Good Vicar? The text in two parts can be found in the Newsletter, issues 152 (October 2024) and 153 (February 2025. The evening concert was given by the Black Smock Band from Brighton. Continue reading

2023 John Clare and the Poetry of Place
This year’s theme emphasised how important his immediate surroundings, especially Helpston, were to John Clare throughout his life. The keynote speech by Alan Franks, writer and Clare enthusiast, was appropriately titled, ‘The Poetry of Place’. The evening concert was again given by the Big Fiddle Band (see 2016 festival below).

2022 The Importance of Tradition (15 – 17 July 2022)
Speakers included Robert Hamberger (reading from his book A Length of Road: Finding Myself in the Footsteps of John Clare) and Professor John Goodridge. The Saturday evening concert was given by Milton Keynes based folk band and dance group Innocent Hare.

2020 and 2021 Festivals
Due to Covid, both these festivals were cancelled with our AGMs taking place electronically. However, there were some celebrations held in Helpston at the time of the 2021 festival should have gone ahead and Clare was celebrated by Mike Mecham at High Beach in Epping Forest,.

2019 Birds and Words
The popular folk group Pennyless provided the entertainment on Saturday evening, and Richard Astle from the Langdyke Trust gave a fascinating talk (accompanied by bird song!) in the afternoon. New to the festival, was a ‘Beginner’s Guide to John Clare’ mini workshop on the Sunday.

2018 The Wood is Sweet
The Saturday afternoon speaker was Fiona Stafford, author of The Long, Long Life of Trees, and pupils from Leicester Grammar School gave the evening concert.

2017 Influences on John Clare
The souvenir programme carried an article by Roger Rowe and Eric Robinson on the ‘Influences on John Clare. Professor John Goodridge was the afternoon keynote speaker, and he talked about Robert Bloomfield, another self-educated poet who had an influence on John Clare. The evening concert was given by The Decent Scrapers, a group of four musicians.

2016 Digging and Delving – Unearthing Clare
The festival celebrated 35 years of the John Clare Society. It was also the first with Carry Akroyd as the new President. On Friday, in the presence of the Peterborough Poet Laureate, a special midsummer cushion was laid in commemoration of Peter Moyse, one of the founding members of the Society, who had died earlier in the year. In February he had received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Mayor of Peterborough. It was therefore appropriate that the keynote talk at the Festival should be given by Marji Blunden, the daughter of the poet Edmund Blunden who had done so much to ‘unearth’ and celebrate the work of John Clare. In the afternoon there was a visit to Swaddywell to see the oak trees that had been planted as a tribute to John Clare, Edmund Blunden and Ronnie Blythe. The Saturday evening concert was given by the Big Fiddle Band, a renowned community fiddle group from Northampton.

2015 John Clare and the Seeds of Change – July 2015
The theme of the seeds of change encompassed the different ways in which changes impacted on Clare’s writing, not just enclosure but also the changing seasons. The festival souvenir programme carried a short article on the theme by Hazel Carlin. The Saturday afternoon keynote talk focusing on Clare and change was given by Dr Robert Heyes. The evening concert was given by Chris Harrison drawing on the songs and poems of his great-great-grandfather, the Northumberland miner Joseph Skipsey (1832-1903)

2014 Clare’s new headstone
The evening concert was given by the impressive Greenwood Quire. On Sunday, a new headstone was dedicated at Clare’s grave. It is a clearer version of the wording on the grave (which is so heavily covered with lichen that it can be difficult to read).

2013 A bumper crop of book signings

The 2013 festival saw a bumper crop of book signings, including, the Society’s latest publication, This Happy Spirit – a companion book to The Wood is Sweet – selected and edited by Kelsey Thornton and Carry Akroyd. Wildlife artist and illustrator John Davis was also signing his book in the Annakinn Gallery, Jewel Beyond the Plough: A Celebration of Britain’s Grasslands. He also spent the afternoon sketching the village and chatting to passersby. Finally, Professor John Goodridge signed copies of his book, John Clare and Community.

The opening Friday also coincided with the Torpel Summer Festival, taking place on Torpel Manor Field, involving music, theatre, poetry reading, photography and displays from the John Clare Cottage and the Langdyke Countryside Trust. Afterwards there was John Clare’s Birthday Music and occasional song session at Clare’s Cottage. The annual lecture on Saturday was given by Dr Sara Lodge on John Clare’s Sonnets: Talking Back to Tradition’. This was followed by a coach trip around the local countryside looking at Clare’s flora, with commentary by members of the Langdyke Trust, while in the church The Greenwood Quire sang. The Saturday evening concert featured harpists Mark Harmer and John Dalton, with Stef Conner on vocals, in an original performance of songs and music from John Clare’s songbook.

2012 John Clare and Birds
While there were still stalls in the school, the main events took place in a marquee in its grounds. There was also ‘An Artists Quarter’ in Boltoph’s Barn. The keynote talk was given by Carry Akroyd on the theme ‘Birds with Everything in John Clare’. The evening event involved something different when ‘Vercoe’ the Clown with ‘Professor Forte’ presented ‘The Clown and John Clare’. This was followed by music from the group Pennyless entitled ‘Bringing Folk to the Folk’.

2011 John Clare Society 30th anniversary
Events in the marquee included the President’s address followed by a short presentation by storyteller Hugh Lupton. The context, landscape, language and texture of Clare’s life are reimagined in enchanting detail. In the afternoon there was Changing Seasons, Changing Communities when Bernard Rapson and poet Patrick Bond presented their major project ‘Mad About the Seasons’ through music, poetry and photography. The evening concert was something special. The Sussex Downs Singers performed ‘The Lark has Raised his Song’, songs of the countryside. This was followed by ‘Clare’s Journey, composed by Terence Deadman.

2010 The Music of What Happens: John and Patty
There were poetry workshops for children and a talk by Judith Allnatt on The Poet’s Wife, a reimaging of the life of John Clare through the eyes of his wife Patty. It was followed by a coach trip to Great Casterton taking in the church where John and Patty were married. The evening concert, ‘John Clare and the Music of What Happens, contemporary resonances of John Clare’s poetry’ was performed by poet Malcolm Guite and Jazz Poetry Collective, Riprap.

2008 Poets and Fiddlers
Dave Townsend, founder and leader of the Mellstock Band, presented an illustrated talk entitled ‘Poets and fiddlers: musical traditions in the poetry of John Clare, Hardy and Barnes’. Later in the evening his Mellstock Band performed ‘A Midsummer Cushion: Songs and Music of John Clare. There was an afternoon coach trip to Glinton, Northborough and Maxey Mill. Val Pedlar described home and family life from the Helpston cottage to the time of ‘the flitting’ to Northborough, where a visit was made to the graves of Clare’s wife Patty and their children. Rodney Lines then continued the tour to the old watermill at Maxey.