Wheatland Farm
home t. 01837 83499, email info@wheatlandfarm.co.uk, Wheatland Farm, Winkleigh, Devon, EX19 8DJ.
Devon self catering cottage and eco lodges
What's on near our Devon self catering accommodation in February 2012
Things to do on your Devon holiday: live music and shows, walks, half term events...
On 4 February Reg Meuross is playing at the Plough Arts Centre at 8pm as part of the Tom, Dick and Harry Tour. Reg Meuross has earned a reputation as one of the most talented folk/roots musicians around, gigging everywhere from village halls to The Albert Hall. Songs of Tom, Dick & Harry explores events that influenced the lives of some extraordinary men and women through history including Tom (poet Thomas Chatterton), Dick (Turpin) and Harry (Farr), the WW1 soldier shot for 'cowardice'. Tickets Full £12.00 Concession £10.00. The Plough is in Torrington, about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On Sunday 5 February there's a book fair at the National Trust's Killerton House (about 21 miles from your self catering accommodation). No charge, but the house is closed apart from the book fair.
On Sunday 5 February at 7.30pm the Jacqui Dankworth Duo plays at the Plough. Jacqui Dankworth, an imaginative, moving, and adventurous vocalist returns to The Plough for a rare intimate evening as a duo. Already established as one the country's leading jazz vocalists, Jacqui's live concerts highlight her unique versatility as well as her acute sensibility as a songwriter and lyricist. Her latest album 'It Happens Quietly', featuring arrangements and performances by her father, the late Sir John Dankworth, was released in August 2011. Tickets Full £17.00 Concession £15.00. The Plough is in Torrington, about 13 miles from the farm.
On Wed 8 February at 11.00am & 1.30pm and again on Thursday 09 February at 11.00am & 1.30pm. Angel Heart Theatre presents Voyage of the Nutjellynana Space...the cuddly frontier? at the Plough. Alice, Melby and Fidge are three cuddly toys long since loved, left behind and now forgotten in an old attic. Life looks like it's lost its stuffing until Fidge has a banana-brained plan… Build a rocket ship, blast off, and boldly go where no toy has gone before!! "Easy." says Fidge. "Bonkers!" says Melby. "Ooooooh!" says Alice. Take an out-of-this-world voyage with Angel Heart's amazing puppets, fabulous storytelling, a cosmic soundtrack and some salutes to sci-fi classics! Comments on previous shows: "What a magical journey- my 2 children (10 & 3 yrs) were captivated throughout" Tickets Full £6.00 Concession £5.00 Family Tickets Available. The Plough Arts Centre is in Torrington, about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On 09 February at 8.00pm Xylophone Productions Presents Can You Dig It? Comedy songs about growing your own. After playing to packed houses and receiving rave reviews at the Edinburgh Fringe 2011, musical comedians, and real-life allotment holders, Jo Stephenson and Dan Woods, present the world's finest collection of comedy songs about growing your own vegetables. With 39% of people in the UK growing their own, this timely and topical show includes the ballad of Derrick The Evil Pigeon, a powerful love song to Alan Titchmarsh, and the world's first rap battle between a gardener and a slug. There's even a song for people who don't like vegetables, poor things. No filth (except mud). Jo Stephenson is perhaps the UK's best ukulele-playing comic singer-songwriter, whilst Dan Woods's comic songs have become popular across the globe, and his YouTube smash 'A Complete History of the Soviet Union', arranged to the melody of Tetris, has 1.9 million views and rising. Tickets Full £13.00 Concession £12.00. Torrington is 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On Friday 10 February at 8.00pm you can enjoy An Evening With Andy Kershaw at the Plough Arts Centre. Andy Kershaw truly has no off switch. Already he's lived ten lives to everyone else's one. He was Billy Bragg's roadie one day and presenting Whistle Test and Live Aid the next.Andy is among the UK's most-decorated broadcasters, working for Radio 4 and, for fifteen years, as a Radio 1 DJ, where he shared an office with John Peel and legendary producer John Walters. More recently a presenter on Radio 3, he has also worked for the Rolling Stones and Bruce Springsteen. Whether it applies to foreign adventures, romances, motorcycles or relationships with a piece of music, Andy has always lived by his most reliable maxim: if you're going to have one, have a big one. Full £16.00 Concession £15.00 Supporter £14.00
On 11 February there's a Working party at the Devon Wildlife Trust's Halsdon Nature Resere from 10am. Get stuck into some rewarding practical work in the reserve. Please contact Kevin New on 01837 811030 for meeting point and other details. Organised by Halsdon and Dolton Devon Wildlife Trust Local Group.
From 11 February to 19 February the National Trus'ts Castle Drogo has its Early Season Opening from 11:00am to 4:00pm. Castle Drogo is about 17 miles from the cottage and lodges on the Northern edge of Dartmoor.
On 11 February the National Trust's Lydford Gorge has a Children's trail around the orchard. Discover and learn all about February's customs and traditions. Why did the Anglo Saxons call February 'Sol-Monath' ? Find out about the legends of the Snowdrop and the weather-lore beliefs and sayings for February. The Gorge is open from 10-4. Normal admission charges apply with £1.50 for the trail. Lydford is about 20 miles from your self catering accommodation.
On 13 and 14 February there's a Orchard & Fruit Tree Master-class at Killerton House. A practical hands on workshop on keeping an orchard and fruit trees. A one day master-class with one of Killerton's wardens, Simon Garland. Get professional advice on planting, pruning, tools of the trade and care of fruit trees. Includes a two course lunch, Q&A and tools are provided. Suitable for ages 16+. Costs £60. Runs 9.30 to 16:00. Killerton is about 21 miles from your holiday accommodation.
From 11-19th February the National Trust's Arlington Court Needs Ewe! They've lost some of their sheep! See if you can race around the grounds to find and name them all in record time. Expect some mud! Also, Monsters Under the Microscope. Discover a disgusting world of microscopic monsters and tiny terrors that spend all their days chewing up precious objects. The conservation scene investigation laboratory is open! Arlington Court is open from 11 til 15:00 and is about 27 miles from our Devon farm.
On Saturday 11 February at 8.00pm Show And Tell present John Peel's Shed by John Osborne at the Plough Arts Centre. In 2002, John Osborne won a competition on John Peel's Radio One show. His prize was a box of records that took eight years to listen to. This five-star, sell-out smash theatre hit of the Edinburgh Festival, broadcast on BBC Radio Four in December 2011, is an ode to radio, those records and anyone who's ever sought solace in wireless. Inspired by Osborne's acclaimed book Radio Head (Radio 4's Book Of The Week) and featuring records previously owned by Peel. Script edited by Joe Dunthorne (Submarine). Tickets Full £12.00 Concession £11.00. The Arts Centre is in Torrington, about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On 14 February at 7.00pm take your loved one to The Alternative Valentine's Experience at the Plough Arts Centre, Torrington. In the early 1930s, in the basement cabaret club of a fading European city, financial storm clouds hang heavy overhead as currencies crumble, but lovers of all ages meet to sip a cocktail, play the tables, listen, watch and enjoy a taste of decadence for just one night…..Valentines Night. Their tastebuds are tempted by a delicious meal for two served in the club, before The Moscow Drug Club take to the stage with their django guitar, jazz accordion, double bass and sultry chanteuse, Katya Gorrie who leads their highly fashionable gypsy swing, when, quite slowly, their eyes are drawn to Keda Breeze, the Queen of Burlesque…………Fortune favours the brave. Will you be the one who plans the Valentine surprise? Tickets £30 Full £27Conc to include a two course meal. Balcony seats available at 8.30pm without food: £15 Full £13 Conc. Torrington is about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On 17th February you can Learn how to lay a hedge on a one-day course at Dexbeer Farm, Pancrasweek 10am-4pm. Further details provided on booking, contact Becky Aston, Working Wetlands Advisory Officer on 01409 221823. Organised by Devon Wildlife Trust's Working Wetlands team.
If you're heading to Dartmoor on 18 Feburary drop by the Okehampton Farmers' Market in St James' Chapel Square, centre of town, from 09.00. Sometimes small, sometimes big, you should always find fresh local food. Okehampton is about 11 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On Saturday 18 February at 8.00pm you can enjoy An Evening with Ann Widdecombe at the Plough Arts Centre, Torrington. Spend an evening in the company of larger-than-life politician, novelist and TV celebrity Ann Widdecombe. Anne has delighted audiences across the land with her witty and controversial speeches, and is no less compelling on the dance floor where she proved that personality and panache are as important as fancy footwork in the BBC's Strictly Come Dancing. Her foray into the world of ballroom dancing is a world away from her political career, which has spanned more than more than three decades, including time as a minister under John Major's government and spells on the front bench. In this unmissable evening Ann will share anecdotes from her life in the limelight and take questions from the audience. This is a charity fundraising event with 100% of the ticket income going to The Plough Arts Centre. A special auction will take place during the evening. All tickets £17.00. Torrington is about 13 miles from your self catering accommodation.
On Sunday 19 February at 3.00pm the Plough Celebrity Concert Series brings you YUKA ISHIZUKA, Violin, NADAV HERZKA, Piano. SCHUBERT - Sonatina in A minor BEETHOVEN - Sonata in F Op.24 "Spring" SAINT-SAENS - Introduction and Rondo Capriccioso BRAHMS - Violin Sonata No.3 in D minor. Full £12.00 Concession £10.00. Torrington is 13 miles from your holiday accommodation.
On 22 February at 11:00 there's a 2hr Children's Dartmoor Discovery Trail around the Haytor area, starting from Haytor Lower Car Park. Follow the map and clues to claim your prize. Small charge. Haytor is about 30 miles from the cottage and lodges, in the centre of Dartmoor.
On 23 February at 8.00pm Studio Theatre present The Cherry Orchard by Anton Chekhov at the Plough Arts Centre. Directed by Lee Baxendale. Chekhov's final comic play is set in Russia at the turn of the 20th century. Madame Ranevskaya, a once wealthy landowner returns home almost impoverished after five years abroad. Her vast and beautiful cherry orchard is to be sold off against her crippling debts. Struggling with the uncomfortable reality of the present, Ranevskaya ignores the insistent warnings and advice of Lopakhin, a peasant's son turned wealthy businessman, and instead seeks solace in the past. Full £10.00 Concession £8.00. The Arts Centre is in Torrington, about 13 miles from your holiday accommodation.
On Friday 24 February at 8.00pm The Wiyos are playing at the Plough Arts Centre. American roots music sensations The Wiyos made a huge impact when they first appeared in the UK alongside Seasick Steve at London's Barbican Theatre (televised by BBC). After a sell-out headline show at Glasgow's big Celtic Connections festival, they embarked on their biggest-ever UK tour, playing to capacity crowds and picking up rave reviews wherever they went. Few bands are given the honour of touring with Bob Dylan but that's what happened when he invited them to open for him at 27 baseball park shows across the USA. Tickets Full £13.00 Concession £11.00 The Arts Centre is in Torrington, about 13 miles from your holiday accommodation.
On 25 February get stuck in to some rewarding practical work when a work party meets at the Devon Wildlife Trust's Halsdon Reserve at 10am. Please contact Kevin New on 01837 811030 for meeting point and other details. Organised by Halsdon and Dolton Devon Wildlife Trust Local Group.
On 25 February at 10:00 a 5hr Dartmoor Guided Walk will show you Dartmoor Through the Ages. Walk sets off from Shapley Common. Meet at map ref SX 698 834 in the car park on north side of B3212 between Moretonhampstead and Warren House Inn (about 22 miles from your holiday accommodation). Dartmoor has an amazing aray of archaeological features - discover more on this walk. You'll need to be fit and well equipped. Guide J Coles. Costs £8.
On Saturday 25 February at 8.00pm catch Nancy Kerr & James Fagan at the Plough Arts Centre. One of the most established and respected duos on the folk scene, Nancy Kerr and James Fagan are winners of the 2011 BBC Radio 2 Folk Award for Best Duo. As well as being great exponents of their instruments (fiddle, viola and guitar-bouzouki) both are regarded as fine and influential singers. 2012 marks the 17th year of this electrifying duo. In that time they have toured full-time and headlined festivals throughout the UK, Ireland, Europe, Australia, Japan and Canada. Wherever they play, Kerr and Fagan make new friends and fans, as their love of live performance is tangible and affirming. Tickets Full 12.00 Concession £10.00. The Plough is in Torrington, about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
On 26th February at 11am you can Learn how to identify trees and bushes with the Devon Wildlife Trust. Meet at Rock Park in Barnstaple (about 25 miles from our Devon farm). There is a small car park just past the bowls club. Contact Joyce Dignam on 01271 374324 for further information. No need to book. Organised by Barnstaple and District Devon Wildlife Trust Local Group.
On Sunday 26 February a 3hr Dartmoor Guide Walk leaves Haytor, Lower Car Park at 10;00. Entitled 3,000 years of Dartmoor, you'l explore the remains of human activity in this area. Guide A Partridge. Costs £5.50. Turn up in good time and pay the guide. Meet in Haytor lower car park, below the rocks on the B3387 Widecombe-Bovey Tracey road. That's about 30 miles from your self catering cottage or lodge.
On Wednesday 29 February the Plough Arts Centre in Torrington have a special free day! On this extra day in the calendar they are offering something extra to all who live in the area of Great Torrington. Pop in for a free film screening, a free workshop, even a free tea or coffee! All events are free all day. See press and leaflet at the box office for details. If you've never been into The Plough before you are especially welcome! (29 Feb is also a special day for the Plough patron Joss Ackland who celebrates his 21st birthday today - or 84 years. Happy birthday Joss!) Cost? Nil, zip, zilch, nada... Torrington is about 13 miles from the cottage and lodges.
