Autumn Equinox: Day 6

It's the penultimate day of us celebrating the beginning of autumn, and oh boy! we've got a lot going on today.

Crumpsall Park Autumn Equinox Walk

This morning, I led a gentle, social walk for Friends of Crumpsall Park to enjoy the changing seasons in the park (especially the trees!).

Hannah’s Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special

This afternoon was my Hannah's Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special on North Manchester FM, where I shared some folklore of the season, but also played a selection of original, seasonal flash fiction from some fantastic writers who contibuted to the show. Also... I brought in apple pies for the volunteers at the community centre where the radio station is based.

Cherry Pie

I've had a LOT of apple pie so far this autumn, so I thought I'd mix it up and have cherry.

Bailey’s Wood Autumn Equinox Walk

After the radio show, I led a seasonal walk for Friends of Bailey's Wood, sharing folklore and stories of the season and enjoying the woods getting its autumn clothes on.

Autumn Equinox Dinner

Tonight was our Autumn Equinox Dinner, and Rob made us the traditional meal of meatloaf and root vegetable rice, followed by blackberry crumble (made with blackberries I picked when I went mad for brambling at the end of the summer).

Autumn Equinox Gifts

After dinner, we shared our traditional Autumn Equinox cards and gifts. Two more whiskies to add to the tasting set we'll be enjoying in December.

Dark Night of the Scarecrow

For the past couple of years, we've struggled to find a film that could be our regular seasonal film (we've got one for all the other seasons). But... the quest is over! Our (newly) traditional Autumn Equinox film is Dark Night of the Scarecrow!

Autumn Equinox: Day 3

Day 3 of our autumn celebrations, and it was a bit of an outdoorsy day today.

Walk and Talk in the Woods

I led an Autumn Equinox Walk and Talk session for Friends of Bailey's Wood this morning. We shared some stories about the season and went mushroom spotting, before apple pies and cherry squash.

Autumn Equinox Poetry in the Park

In the afternoon, I took residents from Castlerea Care Home to Crumpsall Park for a seasonal Poetry in the Park session. We had some seasonal poetry (Keats is compulsory on this annual trip, of course), and then we went for a sensory autumn walk, finding little signs of autumn in the natural world. Me and one of the residents got pelted with acorns by some squirrels! Then we came back to the Visitors Centre for more poetry, dandelion and burdock, and some apple pies.

Cat Walk

This evening, Rob and I did another of our Roam for Cats walks for Cats Protection. It was a lovely autumnal walk with some very pretty trees, but we massively misjudged the timing and ended up having to quickly exit the park as they were locking up!

Events in September 2024

Poetry at the Pank (Heritage Open Days event)
Friday 6th September
11.00–1.00pm
Pankhurst Museum
I'll be running a creative writing workshop as part of my role at the Pankhurst Museum
Booking Link

Poetry at the Pank (Heritage Open Days event)
Thursday 12th September
6.00–8.00pm
Pankhurst Museum
I'll be running a creative writing workshop as part of my role at the Pankhurst Museum
Booking Link

Robin Hood Walk in the Woods (Heritage Open Days event)
Saturday 14th September
11.00–12.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a fun, creative walk in the woods with a Robin Hood theme
Booking Link

Medieval Romance Walk in the Woods (Heritage Open Days event)
Saturday 14th September
6.00–7.00pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a walk in the woods with tales taken from medieval literature
Booking Link

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 15th September
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Autumn Equinox Walk and Talk
Wednesday 18th September
11.00–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Autumn Equinox Poetry in the Park
Wednesday 18th September
2.00–5.00pm
Castlerea House
I'll be running a seasonal poetry and storytelling workshop session in the park for residents at Castlerea care home
Private Event

Autumn Equinox Walk in the Park
Saturday 21st September
11.00–12noon
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the park to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Hannah's Bookshelf Autumn Equinox Special
Saturday 21st September
2.00–4.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf / North Manchester FM
I'll be hosting a special seasonal edition of my regular radio show on North Manchester FM, including Autumn Equinox-themed flash fiction
Submission Link

Autumn Equinox Walk in the Woods
Saturday 21st September
5.30–6.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle, social walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Park Write - Autumn Writing
Saturday 28th September
2.00–5.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be running a creative writing workshop in the park with a seasonal writing theme
Booking Link

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Lammas: Day 5

Another day of celebrating the season. I was at work today, and then out in the woods for a seasonal walk. Not a bad way to enjoy the high point of summer!

Ginger Bread Tea Break

Little tea break, finishing off the Elizabeth Botham's Whitby Ginger Heritage Loaf!

Bailey’s Wood Lammas Walk

After work, I led a Lammas Walk in the Woods for Friends of Bailey's Wood. We talked about bindweed, ragwort, butterflies and John Barleycorn. In fact, we talked about John Barleycorn a lot. Even though we were celebrating the high point of summer, nature's cycle never ends, so we finished the walk by looking for the early signs that summer will, eventually, give way to autumn.

Events in August 2024

Walk in the Woods with Woodland Friends
Wednesday 7th August
11.00–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle walk in the woods with a fun woodland craft activity
Booking Link

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 18th August
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Walk in the Woods - My Bailey's Wood Journey
Wednesday 21st August
11.00–12.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a gentle walk in the woods with a fun woodland art activity
Booking Link

Park Write - Place Writing
Saturday 24th August
2.00–5.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be running a creative writing workshop in the park with a place writing theme
Booking Link

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Lammas: Day 2

A bit more Lammas-y fun today, on the second day of our annual seasonal celebrations.

Breakfast in the Woods

Cinnamon swirl in Bailey's Wood for breakfast!

Litter-Pick in the Woods

It was the monthly Friends of Bailey's Wood litter-pick in the woods this morning. Not strictly speaking a seasonal thing, but I took the opportunity to enjoy the many late summer flowers (which are already attracting plenty of butterflies).

Hannah’s Bookshelf Lammas Special

This afternoon was the Hannah's Bookshelf Lammas Special on North Manchester FM. I played a few seasonal songs, and some Lammas-themed flash fiction from nine fantastic writers. And then we had scones and Welsh cakes at the studio to celebrate!

Events in July 2024

Park Write - Nature Writing
Saturday 20th July
2.00–5.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be running a creative writing workshop in the park with a nature writing theme
Booking Link

Virtual Writing Retreat
Sunday 21st July
10.30–5.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf
I'm hosting an online writing retreat for creative writers with writing exercises and structured writing sessions
Members Event

Hannah's Bookshelf Lammas Special
Saturday 27th July
2.00–4.00pm
Hannah's Bookshelf / North Manchester FM
I'm hosting a special seasonal edition of my regular radio show on North Manchester FM, including Summer Solstice-themed flash fiction
Submission Link

Late Summer Walk in the Park
Monday 29th July
6.00–7.00pm
Friends of Crumpsall Park
I'll be leading a sociable walk in the park to enjoy nature and the changing seasons
Booking Link

Lammas Walk in the Woods
Tuesday 30th July
6.30–7.30pm
Friends of Bailey's Wood
I'll be leading a sociable walk in the woods to enjoy the changing seasons
Booking Link

Lammas Stories
Wednesday 31st July
2.00–4.00pm
Castlerea House
I'm running a seasonal poetry and storytelling workshop session for residents at Castlerea care home
Private Event

Interested in booking me for an event? Click here to find out more.

Midsummer: Day 2

It's the second day of our Midsummer celebrations, and I've got a few events on today! The weather this morning looked a little bit unpredictable, so I wasn't sure if it was all going to be a bit cloudy. I shouldn't have doubted though!

Bailey’s Wood Walk and Talk

This morning was the regular Friends of Bailey's Wood Walk and Talk session, and it had a Summer Solstice theme this week. I led the walk with some folklore and stories about the changing seasons, and we had cupcakes and cherry squash afterwards!

Summer Solstice Poetry in the Park

I took the residents of Castlerea Care Home to Crumpsall Park this afternoon for our Summer Solstice Poetry in the Park session. We had seasonal poetry, a gentle walk around the park looking at signs of summer, daisy chains and dandelion clocks, plus refreshments in the Visitors Centre. It was a resident's birthday, so we had birthday cake too.

Bailey’s Wood Summer Solstice Walk in the Wood

And then it was back to the Friends of Bailey's Wood for the early evening Summer Soltice walk, enjoying the changing season in the forest with tales of nature and folklore from yours truly. I was worried it was going to be a bit overcast, but oh boy, did the sun get his hat on for us! Welcome to Summer!

Midsummer Mugs

When I got home, Rob and I got out our new Midsummer mugs that we bought while we were on holiday in Whitby.