Farnham’s first Lantern Festival will take place on Thursday October 31st 2024. The inspiration for the Festival is the significant Celtic celebration which marks the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter, taking stock of the past and looking forward to the future.
The Lantern Festival will welcome all parts of our community, young and old, to express their creativity, get involved in making a lantern, and come together as a community to light up a dark October evening.
It will culminate in an outdoor gathering of groups and individuals with their lanterns at 6.00pm on Gostrey Meadow on October 31st, creating a gentle festival atmosphere on the last day of October Craft Month. We will then walk with our lighted lanterns to St Andrew’s Church, where the lanterns will be displayed as a large-scale communal craft endeavour.
Over the summer, community groups, faith groups, schools and informal groups of friends have been creating spectacular willow and paper lanterns, and there is still time to make yours! Look out for lantern kits that will be available throughout September and October. Community groups can request free kits from hello@farnhamcrafttown.com or individuals can purchase a kit for just £3.50 from Farnham Town Council and local retailers.