The Winter Gathering 2025
Saturday 13 December 2025 | 4pm - 6pm | Queen’s Park, Longton, Stoke-on-Trent
Join Urban Wilderness CIC for a spectacular Winter Gathering 2025. This is a FREE EVENT, family-friendly, and open to everyone!
Enjoy an afternoon of live entertainment and festive performances, leading up to a breathtaking parade of giant illuminated puppets and a mesmerising fire show that will bring the park to life.
The Mystery Singers Choir perform: 4pm - 4:30pm Domesday Morris perform: 4.30pm - 5pm
Parade begins: 5pm
Fire show: 5.45pm
Accessibility:
Queen’s Park is step-free and wheelchair accessible. Toilets are available onsite. It takes place outdoors, so wrap up warm and prepared for the weather.
Location and Parking Information:
The Winter Gathering takes place in Queen’s Park Longton, Trentham Road, Dresden, Stoke-on-Trent, ST3 4AZ. Parking is on-street, so you’ll need to find a space on the roads surrounding the park.
Please check for parking restrictions and signs before leaving your car, as rules can vary.
Alternative option: The Longton Exchange Car Park and all local council car parks are free on Saturday 13th December
programme
KiLNE
Our favourite drum and brass 20 piece band KiLNE, lead The Winter Gathering parade!
Formed by professional musicians Danny Shaw & Ben Oakes, KiLNE is a contemporary nu-marching band made up of equal parts brass and drums, with a mission to spread positivity and inclusiveness through the joy of electronic music.
Watch them lead the parade from 5pm.
Asterion the minotaur & Echo the Eagle
We created beautiful giant lantern puppets this summer, carefully trained and guided by puppet masters Thingamajig Theatre. Get a front row view to watch these magical, mystical creatures in The Winter Gathering parade, a retelling of The Story of Ariadne.
The parade starts around 5pm.
The Prometheans
Join The Prometheans on a legendary journey through a flaming tableau inspired by Greek mythology.
Our intrepid adventurers traverse imaginary labyrinths and fight fiery foes, story telling through movement, fire arts, and a bit of bravado. Watch as they wind their way through a world of legend and fable as flame-wielding folk heroes.
Fire show takes place at the Bandstand at the end of the parade, around 5:45pm
Domesday Morris
Back by popular demand, Domesday Morris return to The Winter Gathering with more dancing and fire!
Domesday Morris perform from the Bandstand around 4:30pm. Travel with them to the start of the parade.
Get involved
Join the Parade
Owl Teen Squad - If you are aged 13 - 18 and would like to be part of the parade at The Winter Gathering, join our teen squad to make your own owl mask and carry a beautiful owl lantern. The owl mask making workshop takes place on Wednesday 26 November, 7pm - 9pm at The Moony Club in Longton Exchange Shopping Centre. Sign up here for free - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/1974242914703
Family Flock of Birds - If you would like to take part with your family, you can collect a light up bird kit from us to make at home and join in on the day. Kits can be collected on Tuesdays, Wednesdays or Thursdays from The Moony Club in Longton Exchange Shopping Centre. Email us at info@urbanwildernesscic.com to arrange.
Parade Performer - if you are eager to join in the parade in another way, send us an email to info@urbanwildernesscic.com to discuss.
Volunteer
Be part of something fun and inspiring and help us to make the Winter Gathering 2025 a great success by volunteering with us. We need enthusiastic stewards, lighting operators and helpers.
Come along to volunteer training on Saturday 6 December, 10am - 12midday to find out all the information you need and assign your role. Sign up here - https://www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/the-winter-gathering-volunteer-training-tickets-1818488029649
the Winter Gathering 2024
Winter Arts Festival | 14 December 2024
Is back for 2025! Saturday 13th December, 4.pm - 6pm, Queens Park, Longton.
The Winter Gathering was a town centre arts festival in Longton, Stoke-on-Trent on 14th December 2024. It was a day filled with family-fun activities, free street theatre, music performances and Morris dancing, storytelling in local cafes and Longton Central Hall, craft workshops and a finale parade and fire show.
The programme included performances from local and national arts organisations, including KiLNE, Thingamajig Theatre, Pif-Paf Theatre, Restoke and Eye of Newt and was created alongside the community of Longton and Stoke-on-Trent through 8 weeks of workshops with Urban Wilderness CIC.
The Winter Gathering was produced by Urban Wilderness CIC , funded by Stoke Creates with funding from Arts Council England, and UK government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund administered by Stoke-on-Trent City Council. Many partner organisations and indivduals supported this event, including Longton Central Hall, Longton Victorian Market, Longton Exchange, The Morrocan Cafe, Britannia Cafe and Longton Fire Service.
Film by Picta Productions. Soundtrack by KiLNE.
THreads of kindness
Alongside The Winter Gathering, Urban Wilderness CIC developed the Threads of Kindness Challenge alongside cafes in Longton Town Centre.
Town centre visitors were invited to collect a friendship bracelet kit from cafes in town to create and gift to someone special to share some kindness.
Each cafe had it’s own colour scheme and a total of 215 kits were collected!
At The Winter Gathering on Saturday 14th December, there were storytellers at The Moroccan Cafe and Britannia Cafe to spin a yarn for patrons.
We also installed signs with positive affirmations such as ‘You’re Amazing’ along footpaths in the town centre to spread some joy and kindness to visitors. The positive affirmations were written by our Art Club members, aged 8 - 17.
