Jenny Agutter to feature as Hastings community festival comes to a close today

This year's chosen book is E. Nesbit’s The Railway Children, in which Jenny featured in the popular 1970 film adaption.

Jenny will give a video address to everyone in St Leonards who has explored The Railway Children through the school spring holiday. The actress played the eldest child, Roberta in the film.

The free closing event will also feature Louise Camby, granddaughter of the composer of the The Railway Children film music, who will give a talk about Johnny Douglas and his music.

Anyone wishing to play the music is invited to attend a scratch orchestra rehearsal at Christ Church, London Road, with their instrument at the venue at 2pm on 14th April to rehearse the theme tune and other melodies that feature in the film.

The scratch orchestra will play in the closing event which begins at 4pm with a short festival film by local filmmaker, Rod Morris, that features the Four Courts community’s creative responses to E. Nesbit’s book.

The audience will be also able to enjoy personal photographs and film posters shared by Dinah Sheridan’s daughter. Dinah Sheridan played the mother in the 1970s film

Community groups including Hastings and Bexhill Mencap’s Active Arts, Seaview Project, Stitch tlc, Zoom Arts and 3000 children have explored what relevance this heritage book has in life today. The festival has been supported by Hastings Voluntary Action ‘Making it Happen’ funding, Sussex Community Foundation and Cabaret Mechanical Theatre who created a festival exhibition of work made with school children. The National Lottery Heritage Fund and Chalk Cliff Trust additionally supported Southeast Communities Rail Partnership to create a Platform Panel Project exploring local rail heritage with ExploreTheArch and partners Southeastern Rail and Network Rail. Artists ARRAN and Jules Earl also took part in this project which opened at the highly successful Kings Road street party.

The festival is delivered by the ExploreTheArch arts collective and partners and overseen by the voluntary ATEAB Funds team.

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