YOUR WEEKEND STARTS HERE: Top ten things to do in the area this week

From a family festival to a fire-breathing dragon, here is our top ten essential guide to events taking place this weekend and beyond across Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire...
Mr Bloom is just one of the many kid's favourites appearing at Gloworm festivalMr Bloom is just one of the many kid's favourites appearing at Gloworm festival
Mr Bloom is just one of the many kid's favourites appearing at Gloworm festival

WORKSOP: The picturesque Clumber Park, near Worksop, will welcome the launch of a brand new family friendly festival of music, art and entertainment on Saturday and Sunday. Gloworm is aimed at families with children of all ages, and aims to inspire your imagination and invite you to play in a warm, friendly and creative environment. What makes it that little bit more wonderful is that once you have a ticket there are no hidden costs, apart from the obvious food, drinks and market stalls. The rides are free, the workshops are free, and the activities are all free once you are in. The line-up features a host of fantastic music artists, even before you get to headliners Toploader and Dick and Dom—plus some of the best loved children’s TV characters and entertainers on the circuit including Mr Bloom. Day tickets cost £8.25/£24.75, the whole weekend £13.20/£49.50, and camping spaces are available. To book, or find out more details, visit www.glowormfestival.co.uk.

DERBY: International arts festival FIGMENT makes its European debut on Cathedral Green on Saturday, 12noon to 5pm. Billed as a free, inclusive, participatory, community event, expect an afternoon of playfulness and creative energy. Volunteers have been piecing together a ginormous patchwork picnic blanket in recent weeks. Other local creatives and makers will be showcasing their latest projects and leading activity sessions. Take it as an opportunity to explore new ways to create art, share art, experience art and dream. For more details on the line-up, visit www.derby.figmentproject.org.

NOTTINGHAM: Nottingham Glee Club welcomes four more top comics through its doors this weekend to perform stand-up sets.

In action there on both Friday, August 19, and Saturday, August 20, will be Junior Simpson, Anthony J Brown (pictured), Jason Patterson and Andy Robinson.

As if all that wasn’t enough, there will be visits to the venue from Mark Olver, Rob Hughes and Andrew Watts on August 27 , to round off another busy month of comedy at Nottingham Glee Club.

Doors open for this weekend’s comedy shows at 7pm and more information is available by calling 0871 472 0400 or at glee.co.uk/nottingham-comedy The venue is based at The Waterfront, off Canal Street.

It also plays host to many music shows throughout the year.

The next one of these is to be Bama Lama Sing Song, which can be seen on Friday, August 26.

This starts at 8pm and admission is £7.

CHATSWORTH: This year marks the 300th anniversary of Lancelot Brown’s birth. Better known now by his nickname, “Capability” Brown became the pre-eminent landscape architect of his era, having designed more than 170 parks throughout the country, hallmarking a classic English style which is still celebrated today. One of his most famous commissions was the estate of Chatsworth, with its sculpted rolling hills, tree-lined perimeter and naturalistic water features. On Saturday, 9.30am to 12.30pm, a guided tour and talk will highlight hidden details of his genius. Tickets £25, including park admission, booking advised via www.chatsworth.org.

BUXTON: Dinosaur Zoo is fast becoming a world-wide phenomenon, and it comes to Buxton Opera House next week. From cute baby dinos to teeth-gnashing giants like the Tyrannosaurus Rex, the show brings these awesome prehistoric creatures to life as you’ve never seen them before. Offering guaranteed fun for all the family, ages three and up, marvel and interact with extraordinary life-like dinosaurs in an imaginative and surprisingly hilarious live show. Performances on Tuesday, 1.30pm, and Wednesday, 11am and 2pm, tickets cost £14.50/£16.50 or £40-£62 for a family via 01298 72190 or www.buxtonoperahouse.org.uk.

NOTTINGHAM: If summer is the season of romance, Save the Last Dance for Me is the perfect story to tell. At the Theatre Royal in Nottingham for eight shows from Monday until August 27, it stars Antony Costa and Lola Sanders, has a script by television masters Laurence Marks and Maurice Gran and the music of Elvis’ favourite songwriters Doc Pomus and Mort Shuman. A nostalgic, feelgood tale of young sisters on holiday and a charming airman, it has just enough trouble to tug the heartstrings. Tickets £14-£35 via 0115 9895555 or www.trch.co.uk.

CRICH AND MATLOCK: Crich Tramway Village goes miniature on Saturday and Sunday, with a huge model tram and railway exhibition. Among the 15 layouts, local enthusiasts will love the Midland Railways Ripley Station which was once served by branches to Little Eaton, Langley Mill and Butterley. Other star attractions draw from bygone days in Reading and Hampshire and a scale version of the Forth Bridge. The exhibit opens 10am to 5pm both days, standard village admission applies, £6-£16 or £39 for a family of four. See www.tramway.co.uk for more details. If you need a double fix, Cromford Mills in Matlock is holding an exhibition by the Wingfield Railway Group throughout August, 11am to 4pm, closed Mondays. See www.cromfordmills.org.uk.

CHESTERFIELD AND NOTTINGHAM: Outdoor movie screenings make the most of summer nights, and this weekend there are four to choose from. At Hardwick Hall on Friday, shake a martini and slip into a dinner jacket with James Bond in Spectre. On Saturday, bring the tissues for the classic romantic comedy Ghost, starring Patrick Swayze, Demi Moore and a potter’s wheel. Screenings start at 7pm, tickets £11/£13. Call 01332 290606 to book. Also on Saturday, down at Nottingham Racecourse, Nottinghamshire Hospice hosts its fundraising Alfresco Film Festival. At 12.30pm, it’s a double bill of Despicable Me and it’s all conquering spin-off Minions. Then at 7.30pm, take to the skies with Top Gun. Tickets £5/£10,£23 for a family, via www.nottshospiceevents.org.

SOUTHWELL: Walking up the paupers’ path towards The Workhouse it is easy to imagine how the Victorian poor might have felt as they sought refuge here. On Tuesdays and Wednesdays to the end of August, 12noon to 5pm, there is a new way to discover what they found on the inside. The National Trust is trialling a new smartphone app which brings the building alive through the eyes of a workhouse character— follow their journey and hear about their experiences through carefully researched audio and video. Admission £4-£8.80, families £12-£22, which covers all exhibitions. To find out more, call 01636 817260.

ASHBOURNE: Sudbury Hall and the National Trust Museum of Childhood has something to offer youngsters every day through the summer break. But on Wednesday, 11am, there will be a very special visitor starring in her own piece of outdoor theatre. Dotty is a baby fire dragon who lives in a dusty old castle with her grumpy dad. She loves to watch the children playing and wishes she could play with them too. Brought to life by acclaimed Blunderbus Theatre, this big-hearted adventure is told with magical songs,lots of laughs, plenty of surprises, and exquisite fire-breathing puppetry. Tickets £10/£14, families £40-£52, book via 0844 2491895.