Welcome to the FREE
Totnes Heritage Festival!
Totnes Heritage Trust, in partnership with Totnes Town Council, is delighted to be presenting the 3rd TOTNES HERITAGE FESTIVAL, celebrating the remarkable heritage of our wonderful town.
Whether you choose to get involved in one of the many workshops, explore our historic buildings or enjoy a walk along the river, every event in this guide offers a unique insight into Totnes’ rich past. Best of all, they’re all FREE to attend - although donations will be warmly welcomed at some of the sessions.
In addition to the FREE daytime festival, we will be welcoming The Morley Players to the Guildhall for a special evening concert. This is the single event where you will need to buy a ticket which will be a contributon to the musicians’ expenses.
Totnes is a living community where history continues to shape our future. We hope you’ll join us and become part of that story by taking part in some of the festival events within this festival guide.
Saturday 19th September 2026
Free Daytime Events
TOTNES CASTLE OPEN DAY 11.00am – 4.00pm
Castle St, Totnes TQ9 5NU
FREE entry for anyone with a TQ9 postcode (proof of residence required). Don't miss a visit to English Heritage’s beautiful castle in the heart of Totnes town. Imagine being an 11th Century soldier practising your target skills in the castle bailey with wooden bows and arrows and crossbows, then take it easy in the Colouring Tent where you can create your own shield crest!
PUPPET WORKSHOP & SHOW 10.00am – 4.00pm
Town Mill, Coronation Rd, Totnes TQ9 5DF (Opp. Seven Stars bus stop)
Totnes, built by the legendary River Dart, is home to seals, salmon, gulls and many tales stretching back hundreds of years. Create your own tale of our watery town in this puppet workshop, where we will make puppets and devise a play to tell a brand-new amazing water tale of Totnes.
Places are limited to 20 children so BOOKING ESSENTIAL:
Further info: tonygeeauthor@gmail.com
TOTNES TRUST - EXPLORE THE TOWN MILL 11.00am – 4.00pm
Town Mill, Coronation Rd, Totnes TQ9 5DF (Opp. Seven Stars bus stop)
The trustees of the Totnes Trust will be welcoming you to the Town Mill to explore this unique building and see some of its original internal workings. The Town Mill was erected prior to 1588. Used for milling grist (corn), malt and also for cloth-making, it is the last survivor of many such mills having two undershot waterwheels.
TOTNES IMAGE BANK – FREE 1 HOUR WORKSHOPS Times shown below
Town Mill, Coronation Rd, Totnes TQ9 5DF (Opp. Seven Stars bus stop)
Don’t miss a unique opportunity for a hands-on experience at the Totnes Image Bank! Discover how to navigate the Image Bank’s exciting archive and choose and print an image to take away with you. Donations are welcomed.
Morning: 10.00-11.00 am; 11.00 – 12.00 midday
Afternoon: 1.00 – 2.00 pm; 2.00 – 3.00 pm.
DARTINGTON MORRIS DANCERS 11.00am
Elmhirst Lodge Square - Take the walkway opposite Hays Travel, Fore Street
Don’t miss seeing the much loved and ever popular and friendly Dartington Morris Dancers, an exciting new addition this year to the festival programme!
They’ll be bringing the newly furbished Elmhirst Lodge Square [at the Brutus Centre off Fore Street] to life with their music and dancing and who knows, weather and mood permitting, where else you may be lucky enough to catch them during the rest of the day?
‘BACK TO SCHOOL’ AT THE MANSION 10.00am – 2.00pm
The Mansion. 36 Fore Street, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 5RP
The Mansion sits on the site of The King Edward VI College, the old grammar school, and this Heritage Day we will be bringing it back to life! Come and join us as we open our spaces and host classes all over the Mansion: History, Art, Archaeological Jewellery making, Tai Chi, PE, Theatre and more.
Plan ahead - see the ‘Class timetable’ on the day or visit
EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY IN ACTION: PREHISTORIC SHELL JEWELLERY MAKING WORKSHOP Drop in: 12.00pm – 2.00 pm
Ceramics Studio, The Mansion, 6 Fore Street, Totnes, Devon, TQ9 5RP
Join Alexander Ringsmith, Totnes Heritage Trustee, for an experimental archaeology workshop producing prehistoric shell jewellery, the oldest known form of human ornamentation. Have a go at using replications of ancient techniques to make your own, and learn about their use and history.
TOTNES MUSEUM – EVERYDAY HISTORIES Times on museum website
70 Fore St, Totnes TQ9 5RU
Visit Totnes Museum and explore this remarkable Grade 1 Listed, 450-year-old Elizabethan Merchant's House. Find out how this year’s National Heritage Open Days’ theme of “Everyday Histories” is being celebrated here. Learn about some of the many famous local authors who have lived in Totnes over the centuries in our new display to mark the 2026 National Year of Reading. Donations welcomed.
TOTNES GUILDHALL Drop in 11.00 am – 4.00 pm
5 Ramparts Walk Totnes Devon TQ9 5QH
Discover a hidden gem with over a thousand years of rich history waiting to be explored. View the boards of Totnes mayors dating back to 1359. Don’t miss the historic Council Chamber where Oliver Cromwell is said to have sat while planning the final stages of the English Civil War in 1646.
TOTNES TOWN SAXON BOAT BUILDING PROJECT AND TRADITIONAL WOODCARVING Times shown below
St Mary’s Church, 9 High Street, Totnes, TQ9 5NN
Come and have a go at traditional woodworking and be part of building a longboat from green oak! Reconnect with the boatbuilding skills from Saxon times in Totnes, with The Orchard Carving Studio. Come for the whole thing, drop in or just come and have a look! Full details at www.stmarystotnes.org/events
9:00am - 12:00pm Woodcarving Taster (local woodcarver William Barsley) and longboat demonstration (Totnes Town Saxon Boat Building Project)
12.15 - 1:45pm Early History Informal Picnic Lunch Discussion (bring your own picnic) Free tea/coffee. Informal discussion about Totnes’ early history, early boats and crafts – St Mary’s Churchyard (in church if wet)
SPECIAL FESTIVAL TOURS OF ST MARY’S CHURCH, TOTNES
St Mary’s Church, 9 High Street, Totnes, TQ9 5NN
Details at www.stmarystotnes.org/events - or look out for signs outside the church.
BRINGING THE MUSIC OF THE PAST TO LIFE 2.00 – 3.00 pm
St Mary’s Church, 9 High Street, Totnes, TQ9 5NN
An informal HANDS ON workshop with the Morley Consort on seventeenth-century music-making, presenting excerpts from the coming evening concert in a more hands-on context. Participants can expect to get up close with unique, historical instruments, learn a few steps from Playford's English Dancing Master, and gain familiarity with the tools used in helping bring the music of the past to life.
TOTNES AND THE DART, AN INTERESTING RELATIONSHIP! 10.00am – 12.00pm
A TWO HOUR GUIDED RIVER WALK WITH KATHY ALEXANDER, TOUR GUIDE
Meet At Totnes Railway Station – 10.00 am
Station Road Totnes Devon TQ9 5JR
Take a slow walk along the River Dart with Kathy and see how the settlement of Totnes has changed the river over the centuries, and how the river has affected life in the Town.
(Meet at Totnes Railway Station. Level walk with one set of steps. Can be muddy, uneven and narrow in places, sensible footwear advised. Approximately 1.7 miles).
Places are limited so BOOKING ESSENTIAL: katourguide365@gmail.com
TOTNES TOWN TOUR 2.00pm – 3.30pm
A 90 MINUTE GUIDED HISTORY WALK WITH KATHY ALEXANDER, TOUR GUIDE
Meet Bellchambers' Square (outside Totnes Castle) 2.00 pmBellchambers Square, Castle St, Totnes TQ9 5NU
From Saxon Burh to Tudor powerhouse and beyond. A top to bottom stroll, taking in Totnes' most important historic buildings and sites. (Downhill all the way, some steps and uneven surfaces. Under 1 mile)
Places are limited so BOOKING ESSENTIAL: katourguide365@gmail.com
SPECIAL FESTIVAL SCREENING AT TOTNES HISTORIC CINEMA 4.00pm (90 mins)
All Things to All People, Part 1: 100 Years of Dartington Hall History
27A High St, Totnes TQ9 5NP
Enjoy afternoon tea in the cinema’s stunning surroundings from 3.15 pm, ready for the film at 4pm. All Things to All People is a feature film that tells the story of Dartington estate’s past, present and future through the voices, words and ideas of those who shaped it. Featuring rare, beautifully restored archive footage from the 1930s and ’40s, this film commemorates Dartington’s centenary and brings to life the story of Dartington and the Elmhirsts.
Places are limited so BOOKING ESSENTIAL
‘FROM KING ARTHUR TO VIKING RAIDS’
AN EVENING CONCERT at THE GUILDHALL - 7:30pm
FEATURING THE MORLEY CONSORT LONDON BASED EARLY MUSIC ENSEMBLE
The Morley Consort presents an evening concert exploring the history of Devon - from King Arthur to Viking raids, civil war and climate change - performing music on historical instruments with narrations from period first-hand accounts. Performance made possible by funding from the Continuo Foundation and the Totnes Trust.
TICKETS £8 - BOOKING ESSENTIAL
This event does not form part of the FREE daytime festival. Your ticket purchase will contribute to the musicians’ expenses. Thank you.
