'Bijou' Sark festival marks start of summer
Elliot MariessLive music, dancing and sword fighting demonstrations will be on offer at Sark's May Day celebrations.
The La Beltane Festival will kick off at midday at La Seigneurie in what organisers describe as a "modern re-imagining of an ancient Iron Age Celtic ritual, and the only celebration of its kind in the Channel Islands".
The event, which is in its fourth year, is supported by the States of Guernsey and Guernsey Arts and marks the arrival of summer.
Russ Fossey from Guernsey Arts said it was "fast becoming a bijou highlight of the British festival season". He added: "La Beltane celebrates the magic of Sark and the creative community of the wider bailiwick."
The 2026 event is also marking the 160th anniversary of Victor Hugo's Toilers of the Sea about the life of a reclusive Guernsey fisherman.
Taking the novel as fancy dress inspiration, festival-goers are being invited to "embrace mythical marine life and sea legends, and to arrive adorned in imaginative oceanic finery".
Co-creator Jolie Rose said: "Each year the festival continues to grow, welcoming an ever expanding community of artists and performers from across the Channel Islands, France and the UK, who help transform Sark into a living celebration of myth and seasonal ritual."
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