A free community event to celebrate 1,000 years of the Abbey of St Edmund

Everyone is invited to pop into the Abbey Gardens on Saturday 16 July (10am – 4pm) for a free community event to celebrate the 1,000th Anniversary of the Abbey of St Edmund.

Starting at 10am, you’ll be able to enjoy a day of festivity and fun with local performers, charities and community groups.

Picnic in the Park will so much more than a picnic; it will include a live music stage with performances from Rock Choir, the Bury St Edmunds Concert Band, the Bury St Edmunds Youth Concert Band and Mumford and Sons tribute show, Chasing Munford.

There are also lots of family friendly activities including: rides, combat archery, a climbing wall, storytelling with local storyteller and actress, Hatty Ashton and tours of the Abbey. They’ll also be food, drink and ice cream stalls available.

This event in the wonderful Abbey Gardens is part of the year-long occasion to celebrate 1,000 years of the Abbey of St Edmund.

Libby Ranzetta, Chair of the Abbey 1000 C.I.C which is organising the celebrations, said: “This is a fantastic chance for the whole community to come together to celebrate 1000 years of the Abbey of St Edmund at this free event for all the family.

"Visitors to our town are also warmly invited to come along and join in the festivities! The Abbey and Abbey Gardens mean different things to different people. For visitors it may remind them of fond memories of trips to Bury St Edmunds with loved ones, for others it may bring back memories of their childhood or hold a more spiritual place in their hearts. The Abbey Gardens has meaning for so many people and we want to celebrate that at Picnic in the Park. Picnic in the Park is one of the many events put on to celebrate the Abbey’s 1000 years. Some events have already happened but there is lots more to look forward to this year."

There will be goody bags for the first 1000 people at the event kindly provided by The Bury Society.

No pre booking is required, just pop into Abbey Gardens at your leisure.

For more information, visit our Abbey 1000 Guide.