Holly Richards (left) and Verity Clark help to make apple juice
This event has passed.
Pedal car races, food markets and street performers will bring all the fun of a village fair to Hammersmith as the newly refurbished St Peter’s Church hosts its third Harvestival event.
The street fair will take place in Black Lion Lane, St Peter’s Square and the church grounds on Saturday 1 October from 10.30am to 3pm.
A section of Black Lion Lane stretching from the Cross Keys pub to St Peter’s to will be closed to make way for the event’s bustling market stalls, race track and visitors.
Church warden and Harvestival co-ordinator Caroline Langton said: “It’s a very family-based event and has the feel of a traditional village fair with the church at the heart of it.
“We are trying to add something new each time, so this year we have introduced pedal car races for the first time.”
The races will run from noon to 2pm with prizes awarded for the fastest laps of the specially laid out race circuit.
Visitors will also be treated to toe-tapping live bluegrass music from the Hammersmith Hillbillies and breathtaking tricks from local magician Christian Grace.
A wide range of market stalls will sell homemade food, freshly baked cakes, jams and pickles, seasonal plants, books, pictures and prints. There will also be prizes galore at the new raffle and tombola stalls and exciting activities for younger children.
Hammersmith estate agents Horton and Garton are sponsoring Harvestival 2016, and all proceeds from the fair will help fund the church’s ongoing outreach and community work.
It follows two successful events in 2012 and 2014, which both raised money towards St Peter’s newly-completed building renovations.
This year’s Harvestival will be one of the first opportunities for local residents to see the results of the ambitious project, which included a £500,000 roof restoration for the Grade II* listed Georgian building after 15 years of dedicated fundraising.
The church’s ceiling, which had suffered water damage and was in danger of collapse, has now been repaired, painted and gilded, its windows have been restored and the interior has been spruced up with new chandeliers and a new sound system.
John Horton, director of Horton and Garton, who has regularly sponsored activities at St Peter’s, said he was bowled over by the church’s sparkling new interior when he visited last weekend.
“They have raised a significant amount of money for this project and it looks fantastic,” he said. “The church is more welcoming and homely, the acoustics are a lot better and there are some lovely new chandeliers in there too.”
The new-look St Peter’s will be officially unveiled and consecrated by the Bishop of Kensington during its Sunday service on 25 September at 10.30am.
