5 Wonderful Things To Do In Bristol This Weekend (January 9-11)

January is a little drab, dark and depressing, isn’t it? Take a trip to Longleat for one last spectacle of colour, light and ‘British icons’ this weekend. The legendary lantern trail, The Festival of Light, returns to Europe’s first safari park with a little help from Bristol’s very own Wallace and Gromit.

Meet your favourite characters from the much-loved Aardman animations, as you see the UK’s most famous landmarks remade in lantern form. Plus, celebrate one of the GREATEST Britons of all time, Jane Austen, with a focus on writers, British native wildlife and landscapes, as well as iconic singers through the decades.

Robert Louis Stevenson’s classic tale has been remade as a brand-new musical featuring Jayde Adams’ professional stage acting debut at the Bristol Old Vic. Treasure Island: A New Musical Adventure is “a story of friendship, hope and reaching for dreams just beyond the horizon.” Expect heart, joy, and showstopping musical numbers to warm you up this January weekend.

BBC Radio 4’s flagship political discussion programme, Any Questions?, is coming to M Shed on Friday evening. Since 1948, the programme has broadcast live straight after the 8pm news, as it visits a different part of the UK every week with a panel of four speakers who answer questions from the audience. This is your chance to put your question to politicians, policy makers, writers, and thinkers.

If the world were ending, what would be the one thing you’d want to survive? This improvised post-apocalyptic adventure comedy sees a twisted and talented cast of wastelanders take a single suggestion from you and craft an entire narrative show with no pre-prepared characters, story or dialogue. Tales From The Wasteland is for fans of Mad Max, The Last of Us and Fallout.

Bristol’s live tribute to the legendary Buena Vista is back. And this time, they’ll perform an exclusive new tribute set to one of Bristol’s most celebrated bands, Massive Attack! Buena Bristol Social Club is a unique collaboration of Cuban and Bristol‑based musicians, with a 10‑piece ensemble featuring some of the UK’s finest Latin musicians. You can learn more here.