What's on: Plenty of fun for children and adults in Shropshire as half-term holiday starts
From family boardgames at your local library to adventures with the Swallows and Amazons, there's plenty on this weekend to ease you into half term.
There's lots of goings-on for Shropshire kids this weekend, as our littlest residents ready themselves for a week of freedom.
Christmas was expensive and January long, so if you're still a little cash-strapped this half-term look no further than your local library for some ideas on how to keep the kids busy for free.
A boardgames club in Oswestry encourages visitors of all ages to get involved, while over in Bridgnorth, children over seven are invited to Dr Val’s STEM club for fun experiments and science-based workshops.
If you're after a bargain, children's tickets are only a fiver for the Swallows and Amazons' Winter Holiday's stage debut at Shrewsbury's Theatre Severn.
And it's impossible to ignore the return of the Shropshire Kids Festival at the Telford International Centre.
The event, running on Saturday and Sunday, brings hundreds of activities into one place for a jam-packed day of excitement, inflatables, foam, bubbles and more.
There's that and much, much more to be had across the county this weekend:
Friday, February 17
The Buttermarket, Shrewsbury, 6.30pm: The longest running homage to the music of Kate Bush, Cloudbustin,g has been championed as one of the most authentic tributes in the world. Tickets from £22. Booking at thebuttermarket.co.uk/event
Telford Theatre, Oakengates, 7.30pm: All Star Superslam Wrestling. The two-hour action-packed wrestling spectacular returns with an extravaganza of high-flying action that will feature all of your favourite heroes and villains of the ring. Tickets £16 adults, £12 children. Booking at telfordtheatre.com
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, 7.30pm: Swallows and Amazons' Winter Holiday. The family adventure is being brought to the stage for the very first time. An authentic and highly imaginative re-telling of the wonderful 1930s story. Tickets £15 adults, £5 children. Booking at theatresevern.co.uk
Oscars, Ludlow Assembly Rooms, 7.30pm: Five-piece Telford band The Endings play a mix of Celtic folk and punk rock with a taste of Ireland. Tickets £8. Booking at ludlowassemblyrooms.co.uk
Alberts Shed, Shrewsbury, 9pm: Hiphop, funk and rock inspired four-piece Doghouse Derelicts play with support from Old Glory and The Black Riviera hammering out Americana-inspired rock from Stoke. Free when booked ahead at albertsshed.co.uk/shrewsbury-gigs
Alberts Shed, Telford, 9pm: Female-fronted rock and pop band The Weekend play a range of covers. £5 entry, booking at albertsshed.co.uk/southwater-gigs
Percy's Cafe Bar, Whitchurch, 9pm: An evening of punk presented by bands Wasted Life, Rise Up and Jifnotcif. Free entry.
Saturday February 18
Telford International Centre, 9am to 5pm: Shropshire Kids Festival, with trampolining, human table football, obstacle courses and Nerf wars. Tickets £25 for children, £12.50 for adults, family tickets available. Booking at shropshirefestivals.co.uk
Oswestry Library, 10am to 1pm: Boardgame club, suitable for all ages. Free entry, no booking required.
Bridgnorth Library, 11am: A monthly science, technology, engineering and maths session for children aged seven years upwards. Book at the library.
Shrewsbury Library, 10.30am: Book signing by author Sally Knight. Sally's book about her grandmother, a pioneering aviator in the 1930s, will be available to buy. Free entry.
Shrewsbury Library, 2pm: Shrewsbury Lego club, children of all ages welcome. Free entry, no booking required.
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, 3pm & 7pm: Swallows and Amazons' Winter Holiday. Tickets £15 adults, £5 children. Booking at theatresevern.co.uk
Telford Theatre, Oakengates, 7.30pm: Oh What a Night! takes you back in time on a musical journey through the incredible career of Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons. Tickets £25.50. Booking at telfordtheatre.com
Ludlow Assembly Rooms, 7.30pm: Irish folk band The Jeremiahs play a mixture of newly composed folk tunes and a catalogue of older folk songs, sure to rouse emotion. Tickets £20. Booking at ludlowassemblyrooms.co.uk
The Buttermarket, Shrewsbury, 6.30pm: Whitesnake UK play tribute to the very best of David Coverdale’s Whitesnake, from the early classic line-up to the present day US incarnation. Tickets from £19. Booking at thebuttermarket.co.uk/event
Alberts Shed, Shrewsbury, 9pm: Multi-award winning rock and indie band The Review, play high energy genre-mashing medleys. Tickets £5. Booking at albertsshed.co.uk/shrewsbury-gigs
Alberts Shed, Telford, 9pm: Hard rocking four-piece The Darker My Horizon play with support from Leicester's Passive Fix. £5 entry, booking at albertsshed.co.uk/southwater-gigs
Percy's Cafe Bar, Whitchurch, 9pm: Hard rock four-piece band Raised By Wolves, from Liverpool, play with Nottingham-based Smoke Over Elsewhere. Free entry.
Saturday February 19
Telford International Centre, 9am to 5pm: Shropshire Kids Festival. Booking at shropshirefestivals.co.uk
Smalley Hill, Telford, 11am to 4pm: Telford Rangers in Training, for 14-30 year olds to gain conservation skills, tackling the invasive crassula growing in the pools. Booking required by emailing bethl@shropshirewildlifetrust.org.uk
Theatre Severn, Shrewsbury, 7.30pm: The sound of Springsteen brings to the stage some of the greatest hits from Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band with a fantastic eight-piece tribute. Tickets £28. Booking at theatresevern.co.uk
