The Royal Shakespeare Company (RSC) is searching for four choirs from the Midlands area to be part of an event to mark the Twelfth Night of Christmas on Saturday 6 January 2018.

Coinciding with the RSC’s forthcoming production of Shakespeare’s Twelfth Night, the Company is holding a Wassail in Stratford-upon-Avon.  Roughly translated as ‘be in good health’, wassailing is an English tradition taking place on the Twelfth Night of Christmas, which involves singing the health of apple trees in the hope that they might yield a good harvest.

Choirs of any size, whose members should be aged 18 or over, will be provided with the music for six wassailing songs in advance for them to learn for the big day.  The songs will be arranged by Paul Sartin, founding member of award-winning folk ensembles such as Belshazzar’s Feast, Faustus and Bellowhead.

On the day of the Wassail itself, the choirs will need to spend a full day in Stratford, arriving for rehearsals at 11am and singing between 2-5pm.  The choirs will perform in outdoor locations near the Royal Shakespeare Theatre, including Shakespeare’s New Place.

Louisa Davies from the RSC Events and Exhibition team said, “Given that we are performing Shakespeare’s great comedy, Twelfth Night, over the festive period, it felt the perfect moment to stage the RSC’s first wassail.  We are looking for choirs from within a 25 mile radius of Stratford to get involved, learn new arrangements of some rousing wassailing songs, and sing their hearts out here at this very special time of year.”

Wolverhampton will be celebrating the first-ever National Libraries Week with a host of activities across the City.

CILIP, the library and information association, is organising the week-long celebration of Britain’s much-loved libraries from Monday to Friday, 9-14 October, 2017 – and Wolverhampton’s libraries will be marking it with a wide-ranging programme for all the family.

As well as regular activities such as story times and children’s clubs, it includes author talks, poetry events and digital workshops.

It gets underway on Saturday 7 October with African Tales with storyteller Grace Bennett at Central Children’s Library at noon, which is also marking Black History Month. On the same day, Wednesfield Library will host a talk on the Second World War by Guy McElvery from noon-12.45pm.

Pop up poet Jane Seabourne will be on the prowl at Central Library on Monday 9 October from 11am-1pm as she completes a mini residency project, while volunteers from the Coventry Building Society will be offering help to job hunters about CV writing and online applications at Central Library from 2pm-4pm.

Also on Monday, writer and performance poet Emma Purshouse will be sharing entertaining anecdotes about her life as a professional writer at Warstones Library from 5.45pm-6.45pm.

Central Library will be marking World Mental Health Day on Tuesday 10 October as mental health practitioners hold a tea and talk from 10am-2pm, while a check and send service for people who wish to apply for or renew blue badges will be taking place at East Park Library from 9am-1pm.

Other attractions on Tuesday include storytime for under 5s at Warstones Library from 2.15pm-3pm, in which Peppa Pig will go to the dentist, while local author Guy McElvery will be talking about his latest publication, The Stranger at the Window, at Penn Library from 3pm-3.45pm.

Emma Purshouse comes to Central Library on Wednesday 11 October to host a workshop on creating “flash fiction” from 4pm-6pm. People will be able to take part in three fun activities which will introduce them to the art of writing short stories.

Children aged five and over can get creative at a Lego club at Finchfield Library on Thursday 12 October from 5pm-6.30pm, while digital champions from Lloyds Bank will be on hand to help people get online and improve their computer skills at Central Library from 10.30am-12.30pm.

The programme continues on Friday 13 October with an afternoon of tea and poetry at Ashmore Park Community Hub hosted by Marion Cocklin and Bert Flitcroft from 1pm-2.15pm, and concludes with three activities on Saturday 14 October.

They include a pop up workshop for 16 to 25-year-olds on writing haiku-sized poems for bookmarks led by Jasmine Kardos at Central Library from 11am-1pm, fun with magician Ronnie Cracker at Bilston Library from 1pm-2pm and a Diwali-themed storytime for younger visitors to Central Library from 12.15pm-1pm.

Councillor John Reynolds, the City of Wolverhampton Council’s Cabinet Member for City Economy, said: “Through our Transforming Libraries Strategy we are responding to demand from customers for more events in our libraries, and we are delighted to present this wide-ranging programme for National Libraries Week.

“It celebrates the fact that libraries are no longer just about books, but are places where people can explore a hobby, brush up on their IT skills, find a job or simply have some fun.”

A local charity has created a new marathon challenge that everyone can get involved in – whether they’re a running novice or a busy, working parent.

Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice has launched the ‘i-Marathon’, a new sporting event which allows running enthusiasts to cover 26.2 miles across the month of October.

The unique challenge allows participants to choose how far, how often, when and where they run – so long as they finish the marathon distance within one month.

So whether that’s one mile on the treadmill for 26 days or six miles in the local park every weekend, the i-Marathon is perfect for beginners who want to get into running, people with busy lifestyles, or those who simply want to get more fit and active.

Measuring the distance is easy, which can be done via activity trackers on watches and phones, apps such as Runkeeper, and a paper progress chart which is available in the charity’s free welcome pack.

Those runners that cover the 26.2 miles and raise a minimum sponsorship will also be rewarded with their own commemorative medal.

Created by Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice, the DIY-style marathon will help raise crucial funds for the Selly Park-based charity which provides expert care to individuals and families living with terminal illness.

Lucy Watkins, events manager at Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice, said: “With Birmingham gearing up for its first-ever marathon this October, our very own i-Marathon is the perfect alternative for those who want to go the distance but do so at their own pace.

“Marathons are tough but by spreading the distance across the month of October, we hope that more people feel like they can take on the challenge.

“As well as the satisfaction of completing such a gruelling distance, participants will also be helping to make a big difference to local families living with terminal illness. It costs £22,000 to run our Hospice each day and so we rely on the generosity of local people to help us continue to provide our services. All sponsorship money will go towards the Hospice, helping us reach even more individuals, families and carers living in Birmingham and Sandwell.”

Birmingham St Mary’s Hospice offers a wide range of services in a number of settings, providing free care and support to over 1,200 local families living with terminal illness.

The Arenacross Tour is set to burst into 2018 with a bigger and better format for its seven-round action-packed UK indoor Motocross race series and Freestyle extravaganza - and the third leg of the Tour will take place at the Genting Arena, Birmingham, on Saturday the 20th of January.

AX is high-octane entertainment at its very best. It throws together an intoxicating mix of world-class indoor Motocross racing, high-flying Freestyle Motocross and a show to rival any music festival. In its five-year history, it has seen thousands of fans streaming through its doors every year.

Enthusiastic fans packed out the Genting Arena, when the 2017 Tour visited Birmingham earlier this year. They enjoyed a night of tense race action, high-air FMX antics, lights, lasers and music. The West Midlands fans were vocal in their support of the home riders and virtually raised the roof when a British rider fought off the charge of the internationals to take a podium position for the first time.

2018 promises to again deliver an electrifying Tour. A crammed agenda will cater for mini-racing gladiators from the age of seven – who manage to fit in school and homework around the gruelling AX races - right through to the most talented line-up of Arenacross Pro racers ever to place a wheel on UK soil.

Away from the racing line, the Freestyle MX boys never fail to impress with their electrifying, high-air whips and flips which keep the audience hollering for more. In its five-year stint, the UK Arenacross series has been revered for showcasing FMX at its very best and that’s why the big-hitters of the sport, the FMX royalty, have made the series a must-do affair and worked it into their busy schedules. When it comes to AX; X-Games gold medallists and Nitro Circus superstars abound with Spaniard Edgar Torronteras and the UK’s very own Jamie Squibb and the Bolddog Team at the fore, together with arguably the most spectacular double-flipper in the world, 6’ 4” Czech uber-cool superman, Petr Pilat.

Commenting on the growth and popularity of Arenacross, ArenaSports Live (the company behind AX) boss Matt Bates said; “I believe we have a massive future! As well as ramping up the AX experience for our UK based fans, we’re extending into Europe next year and I’m set on making sure we develop both the riders’ rewards, team support and take the entertainment of AX to a whole new level.”

Arenacross 2018

20 January 2018, Genting Arena

Primary schools in Birmingham have joined thousands of UK children to take part in a whale sized schools project throughout October.

ORCA, a leading UK marine conservation charity, is launching its first ever Whale Education Month to coincide with World Animal Day on the October 4^th.

The new marine conservation scheme aims to inspire pupils about the wonders of whales and dolphins, pointing out that a third of all whale and dolphin species can be found in European waters and many around the coast of Britain.

The charity’s expert conservationists have produced free resources for teachers to help them inspire the next generation of marine biologists.  Teachers are encouraged to deliver the materials throughout October.

Birmingham schools have already signed up to take part and ORCA are hoping many more will sign up to use their educational and exciting lessons packs.

The project provides three hour-long sessions about the rich wildlife that lives in UK & European waters, shining a light on the wonderful whales, dolphins and porpoises that live right on our doorstep.

The teacher’s pack includes interactive presentations, activities and games to inspire students about the creatures that live in the oceans around us and ways that we can protect them.  The packs will be available free to all teachers that sign up and all activities have been specifically designed to link in with the national curriculum.

Anna Bunney, ORCA Education Coordinator, said: “We felt a special month was the ideal way to highlight these amazing animals to youngsters.  Inspiring students about the fascinating marine wildlife around them is crucial.  Not many people realise a huge range of different species of whale, dolphin and porpoise live in and visit waters around the UK.  With these new education packs, we are reaching a whole new group of children and inspiring students all around the country about how they can help protect whales and dolphins for the future.  Hopefully these materials will inspire a whole new generation of marine biologists!”

Over 4,500 stores have signed up to the National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour. Autism Hour is the UK’s first major week-long event where shops and businesses across the UK will dim their lights, turn down music and share information about autism for 60 minutes on the week of 2 October.

The National Autistic Society is encouraging autistic adults, children and their families to attend Autism Hours in their local area by using the interactive map which shows which shops and businesses will be taking part throughout the week. The map allows users to zoom in to where you live, filter by category and start planning your visit.

Marks and Spencer, Clarks, Superdrug, John Lewis, Toys ‘R’ Us, Sainsbury’s and Mothercare are also among the 4,500 individual stores that have signed up, and Lloyds Banking Group will be supporting by educating their colleagues about autism during Autism Hour to support customers.

Mark Lever, Chief Executive at the National Autistic Society, said:

“The National Autistic Society is proud to be launching the first ever UK wide Autism Hour event and is thrilled that it’s involving such a vast number of shops and businesses.

“A National Autistic Society survey found that 64% of autistic people avoid going to the shops, and 28% have been asked to leave a public place for reasons associated with their autism. We are confident that the National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour will provide an opportunity for autistic people and their families to use shops and services that the general public take for granted.

“We are encouraging autistic adults, children and their families to head to the interactive map on our website so they can plan visits to local shops and businesses and enjoy a break from the overload of too much information.

“It is incredible to see that over 4,500 stores across the UK are taking part in this new event and we hope to build on this year on year.”

More than 1 in 100 people are on the autism spectrum which means that someone sees, hears and feels the world in a different, often more intense way to other people. Autistic people often find social situations difficult and struggle to filter out the sounds, smells, sights and information they experience which means they feel overwhelmed by ‘too much information’ when out in public.

The National Autistic Society’s Autism Hour is supported by shopping centre owner intu and will take place in 14 of their shopping centres across the UK including intu Trafford centre, intu Lakeside and intu Metrocentre. Staff at intu centres already receive training to provide autism-aware customer service and autistic people also benefit from guides that allow them to plan and prepare a visit to each intu centre.