Banbury Canal Festival 2022

Weekend 1st -2nd October 2022 is the first 2 day Banbury Canal Festival held in the centre of town. Previously Banbury Canal Day, originated by the Inland Waterways Association to celebrate 50 years of the IWA in 1996, became an annual event. Canal Day was interrupted first by building work alongside the canal in Banbury and then by the epidemic. Banbury Canal Festival is run by the town council and is a welcome return of a popular event.

Tooley’s Boatyard is at the epicentre of events taking place along the canal. Tooley’s will be open throughout the festival (11am to 5pm each day)

Boat Trips departing on the hour every hour throughout the festival, but please remember to book your place. Watch out for the Muddy Waters trips with stories for children during the trip. Book Here

The Three Idle Women in the Dock. Music, song & stories of life on the Waterways and the Oxford Canal in the historic Dry Dock at Tooley’s Boatyard in Banbury. Book Here.

Visit Tooley’s Boatyard Museum.

Visit the Forge.

As part of the celebrations, Tooley’s has planned an exciting programme of 20-minute long events taking place on both days at the Dry Dock, including:

1 pm – The Building of Wooden Narrowboats with Ian Staples. Ian will share his expertise in traditional methods of building wooden narrowboats.

2 pm – A Banbury Boatwoman. Kate Saffin presents a one-woman show, telling the story of a woman working on the boats on the Oxford Canals.

2.30 pm – Tales from the Tillerman. Steve Hayward, writer and intrepid boater, will share a reading from his new book ‘Tales from the Tillerman’.

3 pm – Boat-time story-time. Author Dan Clacher shares tales from his children’s storybook series, Muddy Waters, about narrowboats along the Banbury waterways.

4 pm – Forging Ahead. Matt Armitage, Director of Tooley’s Boatyard and author of the book, Forging Ahead, talks about the historic boatyard and its 200-year heritage.