The night sky will be lit up once again when the Radstock Winter Lantern Parade returns for 2025.

Organised by Radstock Town Council in collaboration with Lamplighter Arts CIC, this much-loved community event invites people across the community to carry a lantern through the town to bring light to the depths of winter.

This year’s theme is ‘cygnus and the stars’, inspired by the folkloric traditions connecting Brigid, the goddess of early spring, with swans, snowdrops, and star constellations.

Cygnus is one of the many constellations in the night sky, gaining its name from the latin name for ‘swan’.

The parade will take place on Saturday, February 1, and will with the traditional gaelic festival Brigid’s Day or Imbolc, a festival celebrating renewal and hope.

To prepare for the event, community members are invited to create their own lanterns during free, open-to-all workshops at Trinity Hub (Radstock, The Street) on:

Saturday, January 25th, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM

Sunday, January 26th, 10:00 AM – 4:00 PM

These drop-in sessions require no booking and it takes about an hour to complete each lantern.

Younger participants are welcome but may need assistance from an adult or older child. Lanterns take an hour or more to dry. Those crafted late on Saturday can be collected the following day.

Participants will gather at the Trinity Hub at 4.30pm before setting off at 4.45pm to follow the parade route through Radstock. The event will culminate in a spectacular circus and dance performance at St. Nicholas Church Field, offering a magical close to this community celebration.

For those attending the Midsomer Norton Wassail earlier in the day, Trinity Hub will open from 3.00pm as a designated warm space, with hot drinks available to welcome visitors.

For further details, contact: [email protected]