Events and Festivals in Dorchester

Are you searching for a place that buzzes with events all year round?

Well get ready to fill your days with festivals, fairs, shows, carnivals and concerts as Dorchester has them all!

Festival Fever

Dorchester has a vibrant mix of festivals; the popular Thomas Hardy Victorian Fair in June, the Cider Festival in August and the Dorchester Literary Festival in the Autumn.

But the highlight of Dorchester’s calendar year has to be the Dorset County Show, an annual agricultural show featuring over 450 tradestands and a fantastic array of attractions. Drawing in the crowds are the spectacular main ring performances, the show jumping, the rousing scurry racing, the funfair and not forgetting of course all of the delicious food and shopping there is to be done.

Seasonal events

No matter what the weather is doing, there’s always somewhere to go in Dorchester.

In February, welcome the newborn lambs into the world at Kingston Maurward’s Lambing weekend and at Easter, hunt throughout the Dinosaur Museum to spot the dinosaur eggs and solve the mystery.

In the Summer, take the family and a picnic down to the Borough Gardens or Maumbury Rings and enjoy the live music events.

And at Christmas, the town is lit up and filled with the wonderful aroma of roasted chestnuts for the Christmas Cracker, Dorchester’s Christmas shopping event.

Market Days

Wednesday is Dorchester’s market day so come and enjoy the lively atmosphere, pick up some fresh produce, clothes, plants, flowers, antiques, collectables and gifts.

A Country Market is held every Friday in the Corn Exchange and a Farmers’ Market is also held up at Poundbury’s Queen Mother Square on the first Saturday of the month. So time your visit to Dorchester well and you’ll be in for some tasty treats!

Events coming soon

Dorchester Piano Quartet Mar 21

Dorchester Piano Quartet

Brahms - Piano Quartet in A major. Schubert was one of the clearest influences on this magnificent work, in particular, his skillful development of melodies. This piano quartet is brimful of fine...

Cracking - with Shon Dale-Jones Mar 22

Cracking - with Shon Dale-Jones

A completely made-up true story...... When the world goes mad, do we inevitably go mad too? When Schon playfully cracks an egg on his mother's head, he has no idea real-life internet trolls will...

Choral Evensong for Passiontide Mar 23

Choral Evensong for Passiontide

You are warmly invited to our monthly, cathedral-style service of Choral Evensong on Saturday 23rd March at 4.30pm in St Peter's Church, Dorchester. The music includes Lotti's 'Crucifixus...

The Great Art Giveaway Mar 23

The Great Art Giveaway

One hundred original pieces of artwork by local artist, Kim Sibley, will be given away on Saturday 23rd March, 1-4pm at Maiden Newton Village Hall. The aim is to help her daughter raise money for a...

Aled Jones - Full Circle Mar 24

Aled Jones - Full Circle

Prepare to hear Aled Jones as you've never heard him before! He was the boy treble who captivated the world with his angelic voice. Selling over seven million albums, Aled was the original,...