Last year the weather was poor, and despite William Perry’s raging at the heavens, spirits were not dampened.

The weekend of Saturday 21st – Sunday 22nd September 2019 is a busy old time for canal fans locally. Across both days of the weekend there are not one but two local canal festivals that span both days – the biannual Lichfield and Hatherton Huddlesford Heritage Gathering near Lichfieldthe biannual Lichfield and Hatherton Huddlesford Heritage Gathering near Lichfield and the Tipton Canal and Community Festival in the heart of the Black Country.

I’ve plugged the Huddlesford gathering several times already here this year and it’s a areal favourite of mine – you can find out about that one by clicking here, but today I think Tipton is worth a plug too – after all, if you’re keen, you can do both!

If you fancy a trip out to the Tipton Canal and Community Festival, it’s only a short journey to this  remarkable event held along the canal and in the park near the Owen Road island in Tipton, and it’s always packed with boats, stalls, food, entertainment and all manner of historic memories and fun for all the family. You can have a pint in the Fountain, enjoy a kangaroo burger like I did last year, dine on the finest Black Country scratchings or maybe see and buy all manner of canal and local history ephemera. There’s live music, comedy, chat and crafts – you can even take a boat tide.

The whole thing is open from 12 noon Saturday 21st until 8pm that evening and from 12 noon until 4the pm on the Sunday.

It really is a boster. I’ve been going for a few years now, and last year went on the Saturday, when the weather was truly atrocious, but it didn’t dampen spirits at all as can be seen in the gallery of images from that day below.

You can find out more at this link here or see the poster above. It’s really a wonderful thing, and confirms my belief that Tipton really is a wonderful place.

Sadly due to work commitments I won’t be able to make it myself this year, so if you go, please feel free to tell me what you think and share your photos. You can comment here, grab my attention on social media or mail me: BrownhillsBoba t google mail dot com.