OH YES IT IS! YOUR HARPENDEN CHRISTMAS CRACKER OF A WEEK! 🎄✨

This week, our lovely town is absolutely bursting with festive activities! Jack and the Beanstalk is playing at the EMC (the panto you've all BEAN waiting for! 🎭), there are carol concerts galore, Christmas parties aplenty, networking breakfasts for the business bods, and even gong meditation for those seeking some zen amongst the seasonal chaos. So grab your diary, a cup of something warm, and let's dive into everything happening in our wonderful town this week! ☕🎅

THURSDAY 11TH DECEMBER

10am - 10:30am & 11:30am - 12pm: Baby Rhyme Time at Harpenden Library kicks things off nice and early – perfect for the little ones (and let's be honest, a lovely excuse for you to have a sit down). Donations welcome, guilt not required! 📚

10am - 11:30am: Harpenden Connect December Networking Meeting is happening at the Lewis Restaurant at Rothamstead. It's free networking with no fees and free parking – just grab a coffee and pastry and you're in! What's not to love? 💼

12pm - 2pm: The Athena Network meets online for those who prefer to network in their slippers. Second Thursday of the month vibes! 💻

7:30pm - 9:30pm: Harpenden Art Club is making cards and paintings inspired by Gustav Klimt at the Salvation Army Hall on Leyton Green. Non-members totally welcome for a fiver – come get creative! 🎨

8pm - 11pm: Mik & Anne are doing their open mic duo thing at The Plough & Harrow. Perfect for some live music midweek! 🎤

8pm: Quiz Night at The Harpenden Arms – gather your brainy mates (up to 6 of you) and prepare for battle! 🧠

FRIDAY 12TH DECEMBER

9:30am: Classes with Rachel - Body Tone at The Harpenden Trust (above the Co-Op in Southdown). Fitness fiends, this one's for you! Check out her full weekly schedule here 💪

11am: Ballet with Zoe for 2-3 year olds at The Harpenden Trust. Little dancers, assemble! 🎀

2pm: Ballet with Zoe for 3-4 year olds at The Harpenden Trust. More tiny tutus taking over! Email [email protected] for info👗

Friday evening: Top Hat Stage School wraps up their term at Roundwood Park School for ages 4-17. Free trial available, no experience needed – it's the last one of the term! 🎭

7:30pm - midnight: Gymtro Christmas Party 2025 at Bennet’s Club – time to jingle all the weights! Tickets are £15.34 for a festive celebration of fitness, fun, and holiday cheer! 🎅

SATURDAY 13TH DECEMBER

10:30am - 12pm: Outdoor Carols at Cornelia's on Church Green – grab a coffee and join in with the brass band. Nothing says Christmas like singing in the fresh air, right? 🎺

11am - 5pm: A Christmas Wonderland at Lea Grange Care Home with live music from Dave Duffy, performances from Harpenden Dance School and Mini Concerts, plus mince pies and festive cheer. Did we mention it's free? 🎁

1pm: Health Walk meeting outside Village Surgery on Amenbury Lane – everyone welcome for this 45-60 minute stroll. Post-walk refreshments available at Bennet's Club! 🚶‍♀️

2pm: Advent and Christmas Messy Church at St John's Harpenden Church Hall. It's free with a retiring collection – perfect for families! ⛪

3pm: Charity Concert at High Street Methodist Church – Music Makers are raising the roof with festive season songs while raising vital funds for Harpenden Community First Responders. What a brilliant cause! For tickets, email [email protected] or call 07775 652578. 🎵

6:30pm: The Salvation Army Harpenden Christmas 2025 – a wonderful evening of festive music and singing with free entry and retiring collection. Lovely! 🎶

7:30pm: Beati Christmas Concert at Southdown Performing Arts Centre promises traditional sacred anthems and carols in the first half and upbeat modern Christmas songs in the second, plus audience singalongs! Refreshments served. Tickets £10 (£8 concessions). 🎵

9pm: Natural Right brings their unique blend of original reggae ska soul with indie and Balkan influence to The Wheatsheaf. This one's going to be interesting! 🎸

9:30pm - midnight: Soul Chain Band serves up soul, funk and disco at The Plough & Harrow. Get your dancing shoes ready! 💃

SUNDAY 14TH DECEMBER

9:05am: 905 Run Club at The park Harpenden near Brad and Dills – FREE 5km or 3km run followed by a social chat and coffee afterwards at Brad and Dills. What a way to start Sunday! 🏃‍♀️

3pm - 4pm: A Winter Wonderland! Harpenden Concert Band's Family Christmas concert at Katherine Warington School featuring original seasonal music by Rob Wiffin and Philip Sparke, Nigel Hess's Christmas Overture and plenty of festive favourites! Free admission with collection going to Luton and Dunstable Children's ward. Lovely stuff! 🎺

4pm: Bethany Church Carol Service at St George's School Assembly Hall on Sun Lane with traditional carol singing and a short message from Neil Chitty, p lus a children's party and refreshments afterwards. Perfect family afternoon! 🎄

5pm: Blue Christmas at St John's Harpenden – a special, quiet and contemplative service for those finding the season difficult for whatever reason. You're welcome here. 💙

7:30pm: Gong Meditation at Park Hall – discover how gong vibrations can guide you fast and easy into a deeply relaxed and meditative state. Perfect for beginners and anyone struggling to meditate. Tickets £20 for this unique experience! 🧘‍♀️

MONDAY 15TH DECEMBER

10am - 12pm: Bennets Coffee Morning with parents and toddlers at Bennet's Royal British Legion, 21 Leyton Road. Let the kids play in a safe, welcoming space while you take a break and grab a cuppa! ☕

10:30am - 12pm: Harpenden Library Coffee Morning – every Monday, as reliable as clockwork! ☕

3:45pm - 4:45pm: LEGO Club at Harpenden Library with fun challenges building problem solving, spatial awareness and creative thinking. Places limited so book ahead – £4.40 per session. Children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult! 🧱

8pm: The Hardynge Choir Celebrates Christmas at St John's Church on St Johns Road with a selection of carols for choir and audience, plus seasonal refreshments in the Church Hall afterwards. Tickets £18 (students £9, under 16s free). 🎵

TUESDAY 16TH DECEMBER

9:30am - 11:30am: THC Networking Breakfast at Red Gables – meet and connect with other local businesses in a super relaxed environment over a cuppa and delicious treat. Members free, non-members £15+VAT! 💼

2:15pm - 2:45pm: StoryTime at Harpenden Library – all welcome, donations appreciated! 📖

7pm - 9pm: Christmas Wreath Embroidery Workshop at The Harpenden Arms – fancy a relaxed and creative evening stitching a festive wreath over a drink or two? Perfect pre-Christmas crafting! Tickets £35. 🪡

7:30pm: Harpenden Choral Society Christmas Carols for choir and audience at High Street Methodist Church, conducted by John Andrews and accompanied by organist Roger Carter. The concert features many traditional favourites with seasonal refreshments included in the ticket price! Tickets £16 (adults) or £8 (children and students). 🎄

9pm: Weekly Quiz at The Engineer – max 6 per team, £1 entry, cash prizes! Get your thinking caps on! 🧠

WEDNESDAY 17TH DECEMBER

10:30am - 11:30am: Pilates 50+ gentle class with Push Me Fit Herts at The Harpenden Trust (above the Co-Op in Southdown). Perfect for a midweek stretch! 🧘

2:15pm - 3pm: Active Rhyme Time at Park Hall Community Hall – free 45-minute session of fun, active rhymes and songs for babies and toddlers. Older siblings welcome too! 🎵

7pm - 9pm: Sir John Lawes Christmas Concert at All Saints Church – welcome to the annual festive evening filled with music and holiday cheer. It's the perfect way to get into the holiday spirit with friends and family! 🎄

AND THROUGHOUT THE WEEK...

Saturday 6th - Tuesday 30th December: Jack and the Beanstalk pantomime at the EMC – Polka Dot Pantomimes and The Eric Morecambe Centre present the pantomime you've all BEAN waiting for! We can vouch for this one, it’s a great night out with singalongs and one of the best Dames we’ve ever seen! Check their schedule for showtimes! 🎭

ONGOING BITS YOU SHOULDN'T MISS

Wednesdays to Sundays, 10am - 5pm until 21st December: The Barn by Sarah Collins at Lamer Lane, Wheathampstead – a seasonal treasure trove of wonderful gifts, paintings, jewellery, accessories and more! Perfect for finding those special Christmas presents! 🎁✨

Mon - Sat, 10am - 4pm until 19th Dec: Charity Christmas Card & Gift Shop at United Reform Church on Vaughan Road. Stock up on cards and gifts while supporting good causes! 🎁

All ages: Harpenden Library Winter Reads Challenge – complete your free Winter Reads Challenge for a chance to win an iPad! Join in at the library! 📚

Until 11th Jan 2026: How to Train your Dragon treasure hunt and dragon design at Harpenden Library – design your own dragon for a chance to win 1 of 5 signed copies of Cressida Cowell's first 'How to Train your Dragon School' book! Collect from staff! 🐉

Until 15th December: Kings Pantry Foodbank Christmas hamper donations needed – they're providing 75-80 hampers to families they've supported this year. Drop items at the Salvation Army Hall, Coop Southdown or Coop Batford by Monday 15th December latest. Suggested goodies include Christmas pudding, nuts (whole or roasted), custard, tinned fruit, mince pies, jams, marmalade and boxes of chocolates! 🎁

Ongoing: Salvation Army Christmas Present Appeal – donate new, unwrapped toys and gifts for local children aged 0-18 years. Let's make Christmas special for everyone in our community! 🎁

Museum at the Eric Morecambe Centre (usually open 11am - 3pm Tues, Thurs, Sat): Check out the special exhibition "Everyday Life in Edwardian Harpenden" running until end of January 2026 – focused on Harpenden street views and how modern social and political change was brewing under that glamorous Edwardian surface! 🏛️

Also at the Museum: The George Hogg exhibition "Son of Harpenden, Hero in China, 1915-45" has been extended by special request! Learn about this local hero who became revered throughout China for his contributions to journalism, the co-operative movement, and education during the war. 🇨🇳

New Museum displays for December: The Lydekker Gifts – celebrating Richard Lydekker (1849-1915), world-renowned naturalist and author of beautifully-illustrated books about flora and fauna. Examples now photographed and enlarged! 🦁

Also new in December: Harpenden Schools exhibition returns with an updated display covering everything from the early days of British and Board schools to today! 🎓

Until 31st January 2026: Harpenden Memories competition – were you living in Harpenden in the 1960s or earlier? The History Society wants to know what day-to-day life was like! Did you go to Broadway Hall Market or the Regent Cinema? What was school like? The shops? The discos? The mini-skirt era? Share your funny stories and memories for a chance to win champagne and books, with the best memoires published on their website! 📝

COMING UP SOON

Monday 22nd December: Monkey Music Holiday music workshops for all the family at the EMC with various classes from 9:15am! 🎵

That's your week absolutely PACKED then! Get out there and enjoy everything this wonderful town has to offer – there's truly something for everyone! 🎉

Got a local event or special day you'd like us to feature? We'd love to hear from you! Just drop us a line at [email protected] and we'll shine our spotlight on your community happenings! ✨

P.S. Love staying in the know about local happenings? Spread the word! Tell your friends and neighbors about Harpenden Highlights so they don't miss out on the best events in town. Subscribe at https://harpenden-highlights.beehiiv.com/subscribe and never miss a local update again! 📱✨