Film Clubs, Book Groups and Talks: Cultural Evenings in Totnes
Beyond the big-name nights at the Barrel House and Dartington’s flagship concerts, Totnes runs on a steady undercurrent of smaller cultural evenings. Book groups, film screenings, talks, illustrated lectures, folk sessions and quiz nights happen across town most weeks of the year. For visitors who want a quieter, more conversational evening, this guide collects the regular fixtures.
Totnes Cinema: the High Street independent
Totnes Cinema CIC, at 27a High Street, is the town’s independent picture house. Founded in 2014 by Jane Hughes and her film-industry husband William in a Victorian building that has been a cinema since 1946, it operates as a Community Interest Company with a programme that blends mainstream releases with arthouse, documentary and locally made films.
The cafe-bar on site is worth knowing about in its own right. Locally roasted Crankhouse coffee, loose-leaf teas served in vintage teapots, cocktails, beer and cakes are all available. The auditorium is small, deliberately so, and the whole experience leans towards a conversation about the film afterwards rather than the multiplex anonymity of an out-of-town chain. Programmes are listed at totnescinema.co.uk.
The Transition Town Totnes Film Festival
Each autumn, the Transition Town Totnes Film Festival programmes a focused series of screenings around themes of climate, food, community and economics, often hosted at Totnes Cinema. Discussion panels follow many of the films, and these are some of the most thoughtful evenings on the local calendar.
The Barn Cinema’s broadcast theatre nights
At Dartington, the Barn’s regular National Theatre Live, Royal Opera House and Met Opera broadcasts are an extension of cinema-going into theatre and music. They draw a serious audience and have become a fixture of the cultural evening landscape. Booking through dartington.org or the box office on 01803 847070 is essential for the bigger titles.
Book groups and reading communities
Book groups in Totnes range from informal pub gatherings to long-running structured clubs. The Totnes Women’s Institute First Book Club, for example, has been running for around six years and has worked through over seventy titles. Meetup.com lists several open book clubs in the area, and the Bay Horse Inn on Cistern Street hosts interest groups including a book club among its regular calendar.
For visitors staying for a week or longer, dropping into a public book group meeting is a friendly way to get into the local conversation. Email the group ahead, confirm whether they accept visitors, and read at least some of the chosen book before you arrive.
The Bay Horse Inn: music sessions and conversation
Just up Cistern Street, the Bay Horse is the most consistently warm pub on the calendar. Folk sessions run on Tuesday evenings, with a general session on first and third Tuesdays and the Totnes Irish Session on second and fourth Tuesdays for traditional jigs and reels in the lounge. Open Mic happens on Thursdays, and a jazz, blues and soul night runs on Sundays. The fourth Sunday of the month often hosts the Totnes Jazz Jam Session, run by John Walter and friends, kicking off after 8pm. Entry is free at all of these.
The Dartmouth Inn
Just off the Plains, the Dartmouth Inn hosts a monthly folk club along with weekly quiz nights. Entry to most evenings is free, and the pub menu is unfussy comfort food. Worth a check if you are planning a quieter evening that still has live music in it.
Talks, lectures and Dartington learning
Dartington Trust programmes talks and lectures throughout the year on subjects ranging from food and farming to music history, literature and ecology. Past visiting speakers have included international writers, musicians and academics, with talks usually held in the Great Hall, the Barn Cinema or one of the smaller estate venues. The What’s On calendar at whatson.dartington.org is the best place to track upcoming sessions.
In Totnes itself, the Totnes Fashion and Textiles Museum at Bogan House hosts illustrated talks on cultural topics during its open season. Tickets are usually around five to ten pounds and include access to the current exhibition.
Quiz nights and gentler evenings
Several Totnes pubs run quiz nights through the week. The Bay Horse runs a monthly Community Fundraiser Quiz. The Dartmouth Inn runs a weekly quiz. Both are good entries for visitors who want a low-pressure, friendly evening of conversation with locals.
Building a quieter Totnes evening
A typical quieter night in Totnes might be a film at Totnes Cinema followed by a late drink at the Bull Inn, or a Tuesday folk session at the Bay Horse with supper at Pie Street beforehand. None of these evenings require booking weeks ahead, and most cost very little. The pleasure is in the slowness of it, the conversation that follows, and the way a small market town manages to programme three or four things worth doing on any given evening of the week.