BlakeFest is BACK in 2025!
Blakefest 2025 celebrates the life of the great William Blake, radical poet, illustrator, visionary and one of the country’s greatest literary and artistic figures on 27th and 28th September. Blake Cottage Trust, The Blake Society, South Downs Poetry Festival & Local Creatives join the Big Blake Project in this celebration through a range of different genres and mediums.
Jazz, Comedy, Walks, Workshops & Blake
A weekend celebrating William Blake’s radical vision in Sussex.
Main Stage Bognor Pier : Headliners: BonzoBills
Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah songs, authentic early jazz, original music, magic, and just the right touch of chaos – all in celebration of William Blake’s comic vision.
A rare chance to experience this uniquely British comedy band, still bursting with wit and energy. Expect guaranteed good fun from these brilliantly eccentric musicians, featuring original Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah member Roger Ruskin Spear. Their appearance highlights Blake’s comic imagination and his influence on the counterculture of the 1960s.
Blake remains a true counterculture icon, inspiring Beat poets and artists alike. BlakeFest also salutes Allen Ginsberg and the much-missed Michael Horovitz, who headlined BlakeFest 2017 with his legendary Jazz and Beat Poetry Band.
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Daytime Highlights
• Jazz, Poetry & Music – plus a free sketching workshop with Saltwater Creations, exploring Blake’s notebooks.
• Romany Life & “KIN” – storytelling, poetry, harpist and song from acclaimed Romani Creatives touring the UK.
• Olivia Stevens & Stefan Rajic – uplifting jazz and blues fusions from singer-songwriter Olivia and exceptional guitarist Stefan.
• Blake & the Beats – fresh performances of Blake’s classics (Tyger Tyger, The Lamb, London, Ah! Sunflower) with jazz multi-instrumentalist Charlotte Glasson, poet-musician Chris Hardy, and poet-organiser Barry Smith.
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Finale: BonzoBills
Rising from the legendary Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah Band and Bill Posters Will Be Band, the BonzoBills close BlakeFest in raucous style. Expect irreverent humour, surreal songs, and cult classics – all coinciding with the launch of Still Barking (Madfish Music), a new box set of 1960s Bonzo hits.
Felpham - Saturday 27 September:
The celebration starts in Felpham, in conjunction with The Blake Cottage Trust who are restoring the cottage where William and Catherine Blake lived for three years and where Blake was inspired to write. Restoration continues and it is hoped that this important cottage will partially open in 2027, the bicentennial of Blake’s death.
At midday, come and join us just behind Blake’s cottage in the beautiful Old Rectory Gardens, to see Ruth Rosen’s ‘Inspired Theatrical Performance’ – ‘Man Without A Mask’ followed by a visit to the Fox pub, established in 1790. After refreshments, Jane Summerville, local resident and Ambassador of Blake Cottage Trust, will lead a Guided Walk of the village. In the evening there will be a free performance in St Mary’s Church by West Sussex Musician Jack Boyd. Donations are very welcome. Wine will be served!
Bognor Regis - Sunday 28 September:
Running Order
1pm Blake's Notebook and COASTAL SKETCHES WORKSHOP
2:00 pm KIN - ROMANY INSPIRATION
Romany musical & poetic story-telling of nomadic life vivifying Raine Geoghegan’s award-winning anthology, KIN.
3:00 JAZZ - OLIVIA STEVENS & STEFAN RAJIC
Pick up the beat with smoking hot jazz-infused blues and soul.
4:00 - 4:30 BLAKE & THE BEATS
Spotlight on Blake the Poet in brand new musical settings created by the guitarist from music/poetry ensemble Little Machine and the velvet-voiced South Downs poet, Barry Smith.
6:30 pm BONZOBILLS - Doors Open @6:15 pm
The stage is given over to an evening of comic musical entertainment as the spirit of the Bonzos lives again.