Our pick of what's happening in and around Milton Keynes (2023)

1 GALLERY OPENING

MK Gallery, Midsummer Blvd

MK9 3QA, Saturday 16 March

The new MK Galleri opens its doors to the public on Saturday after a major expansion designed by 6a Architects. The new building will feature large new gallery spaces, the Sky Room - a self-contained cinema/performance space - workshops, classrooms, an outdoor art garden, cafe and bookstore.

To celebrate the opening on Saturday there will be free activities and performances throughout the day including dance and street performances as well as a tea party 15 in the new cafe/bar, music from 4pm in the Sky Room auditorium and free badge making, Printing on bags and face painting in the learning studio.

The museum's inaugural exhibition, 'The Lie of the Land', shows how changes in leisure and leisure activities radically altered the British landscape as hunting and shooting, the pastimes of the aristocracy, were enjoyed on the rolling hills of their private estates. Drawing a line in part between the aristocratic gardens of Capability Brown in Stowe and the social urban experimentation of neighboring Milton Keynes, the exhibition illuminates the aspirations underlying our built environment.

It features work by 85 artists from all five galleries, including Thomas Gainsborough, Rachel Whiteread, JMW Turner, Yinka Shonibare MBE, Jeremy Deller and Bridget Riley, with new commissions including a 60-channel sound portrait of Milton Keynes from the sound artist and composer Caroline Devine, a new film commission in collaboration with Ed Webb-Ingall's Society and an immersive installation by Project Art Works.

Lennon Retrospective, MK11, Kiln Farm, Saturday March 16 at 8pm

The aim of the John Lennon Tribute UK show is to take audiences on a journey through John Lennon's most popular songs, from his solo work to early Beatles classics.

John Lennon UK aims to faithfully recreate John's soulful singing, passionate guitar playing, simple but beautiful piano work, looks, mannerisms, accent and scathing wit.

The Lennon Retrospective is a two-hour, fully costumed show. The band's frontman is Gaz Keenan, who also performed

on ITV reality show The Big Audition to claim Best John Lennon, shown October 2018.

Mark Thomas: Check out Staldene Thursday March 21 at 8pm

After a groundbreaking tour of his last show, Showtime From the Frontline, during which he and two Palestinian comedians took the time to start a comedy club in Jenin, Mark Thomas turns his attention to our own National Health Service.

Mark re-sold his Fringe series last year to critical acclaim. Mark's unique style of theatre, comedy, investigative journalism and reportage earned him another prestigious Scotsman Fringe First Award in August and he ran the show for two weeks. sold out at London's Arcola Theater.

Mark is 54, the NHS is 70 and the average life expectancy in the UK is 84. When Mark turns 84 the NHS is 100. What will they both look like?

Ninebarow, Stowe School, Thursday March 21 at 8 p.m

After their explosive rise on the national folk roots scene over the past two years, the duo is

Ninebarrow arrive at Stowe School as part of their extensive national tour.

In just a few short years, the Dorset-based duo have carved a significant niche for themselves

The folk roots scene is known for its superb harmonies, delicate instrumentation and stirring songs.

In 2017 they were nominated for Best New Artist for the BBC Radio 2 Folk Awards in the Horizon category.

Just months earlier, Jon Whitley and Jay LaBoucherdiere quit their teaching jobs

a GP in favor of a full-time music career.

Named after Nine Barrow Down in the Purbeck Hills, their first release, While the

Blackthorn Burns was named Best Debut Album of 2014 by FATEA Magazine, while their 2016 album Releasing the Leaves received critical acclaim including five-star reviews in Maverick and EDS Magazine and nominations for Best Duo in FATEA and Folking. com awards.

Ninebarrow's new album The Waters and the Wild has been awarded five stars by both the Morning Star and the English Folk Dance & Song Society's EDS Magazine.

The album was described by folk musician Mike Harding as "absolutely monumental".

5 LITERATURE

Margaret Atwood: Live,

Broadcast live from The Roxy, Stowe School, Tuesday 10th September at 7.30pm

This live broadcast celebrates the September 10 release of The Testaments, Margaret Atwood's long-awaited sequel to The Handmaid's Tale.

The release of The Handmaid's Tale in 1985 and the current Emmy Award-winning television series created a cultural phenomenon as maids have become a symbol of women's rights and a protest against misogyny and oppression.

Live from the London stage, Atwood will be interviewed by broadcaster and author Samira Ahmed. A conversation explores the length of Atwood's remarkable career, her diverse body of work, and why she's returned to her groundbreaking Maid story 34 years later.

HMS Pinafore with Trial By Jury, Royal & Derngate, 18th to 23rd March

The Northampton Gilbert & Sullivan Group returns to Northampton's Royal Auditorium

its 65th anniversary production. HMS Pinafore with Trial By Jury tells the story of Captain Corcoran and his daughter Josephine in love. Captain Corcoran awaits the arrival of Sir Joseph Porter KCB and hopes the love between the two will blossom. Unfortunately, Josephine only has eyes for one member of her father's crew, Ralph Rackstraw. To impress Sir Joseph, the crew performs their version of Trial by Jury.

Director Leon Berger combines Gilbert's wit and satire with some of Sullivan's most beloved and unforgettable music, bringing his unique vision to this anniversary production, carefully merging both shows onstage.

Elvis Tribute at Calcutta Brasserie, Thursday March 21st

Stony Stratford's award-winning Indian restaurant, the Calcutta Brasserie, welcomes an award-winning artist tasked with recreating the magic of the King of Rock 'n' Roll.

Officially Britain's top Elvis tribute act, Mark Goddard has appeared on television countless times.

Guests can enjoy exceptional live music and a three-course curry banquet for £27.95, as part of a series of live music events that will also include tributes to Michael Buble in May, and to Frank Sinatra and modern day icons in the coming ones months belong .

The restaurant recently won the award for Best Asian Restaurant at the prestigious MK Food and Leisure Awards and celebrated its 10th anniversary.

Alden, Patterson and Dashwood, The Song Loft, Stony Stratford, Friday March 15 at

Norwich-based folk trio Alden, Patterson and Dashwood weave rich vocal harmonies, fiddle, dobro, guitar and mandolin around beautifully written original songs and melodies. Their music draws inspiration from folk traditions on both sides of the Atlantic, with uplifting instrumentals and original songs that tell tales of young travelers, sleepy seas and their love of home.

Queens Avenue Car Park, Newport Pagnell, Sunday, March 17 at 9:30 a.m. to

Willen Hospice is holding its first flea market on Sunday. Both sellers and buyers are invited to the event, which will raise money for the local hospice.

Shoppers can sell their loved items for as little as £10 each. Buses. Buyer's entry £2.

Chantel McGregor & Erja Lyytinen, Staldene, am 20. März um 20.00

A great guitar prodigy, Chantel McGregor, was told by a major label that she had a "good voice, but girls don't play guitar that way". She wisely ignored their comments and enrolled at Leeds College of Music. She became the first student in college history to pass BTEC with 100 percent and 18 honors.

Chantel is currently writing her third album.

"Finnish Slide Goddess" (The Blues Magazine) Erja Lyytinen is a singer, slide guitarist and songwriter who plays more than 100 shows a year. In 2017, Erja won the European Blues Award for Best Female Guitarist and was voted seventh best blues guitarist in a poll by The MusicRadar. In June 2018, she performed as the opening act for Santana at their show at Kaisaniemi Park in Helsinki.