What’s On in Abingdon – August 2025

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August can be a quieter month for events as lots of people are away, but the board in the Abingdon Information Centre has a variety of events.

Here are two highlights and some other events:


VJ Day 80th Anniversary – 15th to 17th August Abingdon will mark 80 years since VJ Day — the end of World War II — with a series of commemorative and community events organised by the Abingdon Royal British Legion and supported by the Town Council.

Friday 15th August: A ceremony will take place at the war memorial at 12 noon, honouring the 56 local men and 47 Abingdon School alumni who lost their lives.

Saturday 16th August: “Party on the Pitch” at Abingdon Rugby Club will feature Aunt Sally, a rifle range, bun-throwing, food, drinks, and live music. Bring your own picnic (no dogs allowed). To enter the bun-throwing contest (teams of four), email: abingdonrblvevj@gmail.com.

That evening, Wildflower Whisky will perform country music at the Royal British Legion on Spring Road from 9pm.

Sunday 17th August: A VJ commemorative tea dance will take place at Preston Road Community Centre, 2:00–4:30pm.


West Side Story – 22nd & 23rd August DIY Theatre Co, a youth theatre group based in Sunningwell and East Oxford, will perform West Side Story at the Amey Theatre. This production brings together young performers from DIY with dancers from Grenoble, actors from Bonn, and a 36-piece orchestra including musicians from Leiden and Oxfordshire — reflecting Oxford’s twinning connections.

The musical — based on Romeo and Juliet — features music by Leonard Bernstein and lyrics by Stephen Sondheim, including songs like Maria, Somewhere, and I Feel Pretty.

Also in August:

Wednesday 6th August from 7pm Hiroshima Exhibition and Lantern Floating at St Ethelwolds House and St Helen’s Wharf.

Saturday 16th August from 7:30pm: The tribute band Strictly UB40 will be playing at the Northcourt Centre.

Sunday 17th August from 10am: There will be a community litter pick in Southern Town Park.


Sunday 17th August at 3pm: The Tessera Viol Consort will give a concert of early English music at St Michael’s Church, Park Road.

Tuesday 19th August from 7:00pm: Atom Society Talk – Dr Andrew Molyneux will give a talk titled “Granny’s had a Stroke; shall we call the Doctor?”, informing people about what can be done to treat a stroke.

Thursday 21st August from 7:30pm: A monthly live music event (3rd Thursday) at the Loose Cannon Tap Room — an evening of local bands hosted by Make Music Abingdon.

Saturday 23rd August from 2:30 to 4:30pm: Cream Tea at St Michael’s Church, Park Road.

The board also looks ahead to a few events already planned for September, including Heritage Open Day and the Breast Walk Ever in support of Against Breast Cancer.

Over the Weir – Despite the Signs

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This Sunday afternoon brought only a warm breeze under an overcast sky. Storm Floris is due tomorrow but is expected to affect mainly the North.

Setting out from Abingdon Bridge towards the lock, we hadn’t expected to cross the weir — diversion signs still warned it was closed. Music drifted from the Nags Head as we followed the Thames. A longboat selling Hasbeen Handbags was moored beside Happy Heron, a Viking cruiser up for sale.

Contractors were repairing two sections of riverbank — one unstable, the other worn into an inlet by flood flow. Several swimmers, a couple of generations older than those seen a month ago, were steadily crossing the river and back.

At the lock, three rowing boats from the Weyfarers Rowing Club in Weybridge passed through with a long way to go.

Further on, quite a few people were crossing the weir walkway. The warning boards had been pushed aside again. I don’t know how unstable the walkway is, but the Environment Agency, who put the diversion in place, clearly didn’t think it safe. (The fish pass has become overgrown since its closure).

Beyond it, the mill stream was clogged with reeds and bent trees. Large rhubarb-like leaves grow along the banks. It seems to be getting more overgrown year by year. Carry on like this, and the district council won’t need to repair the wooden bridge (featured on the blog a few weeks ago) — we’ll be able to walk across on dry land.

Morris Dancing and Peace Group on the Market Place

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There was Morris dancing on Abingdon Market Place this morning. The Abingdon Traditional Morris Dancers welcomed the St Albans Morris Men and Women.

St Albans are on a 95th anniversary tour. They are visiting well-known Morris teams in the Cotswolds tradition, including Bampton, Headington, and Abingdon. Their tour began here in Abingdon.

The Abingdon dancers were on their way to the Ed Fest in Didcot, but met up with St Albans first.

Each team did two dances. Then they danced one together. Many people stopped to watch.

Also in the Market Place were the Abingdon Peace Group. Next Wednesday, they will mark 80 years since the bombing of Hiroshima. There will be a lantern float from St Helen’s Wharf, and a short time of reflection round the Peace Pole at St Ethelwold’s House.

St Albans Morris wear blue and yellow, the same colours as Ukraine. That is a coincidence — just as Abingdon’s green and yellow are the same as Brazil’s.

Summer Reading Challenge at Abingdon Library

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Have you joined the Summer Reading Challenge yet? There’s still time! It’s free to join the library, get your Story Garden booklet, and take part.

From now until 6 September, students aged 4 to 11 can take part in this year’s challenge, called Story Garden. All you need to do is read six library books — any kind you like: stories, facts, picture books, joke books, audiobooks or e‑books. Every book gets you a sticker for your booklet, and when you finish, you’ll earn a medal, a certificate, and a chance to win a prize!

Why does an elephant use her trunk as a bookmark?
Because she nose where she stopped reading!

There’s also a Mini Challenge for under-4s, with their own sticker folder.

At Abingdon Library, older readers aged 11 and up — including local secondary school students, town councillors, and other volunteers — are helping at the desk, handing out booklets and stickers and cheering readers on.

The Summer Reading Challenge runs in libraries all over the UK. Last year, nearly 600,000 children took part.

And if you’re over 11, you can still join the library and read books for your own enjoyment — you won’t need stickers.