Tooley's Boatyard prepares to take centre stage at upcoming Banbury Canal Festival

The boatyard, which has been working continuously for 245 years, has prepared its boats, the Dancing Duck and Comet, for a busy schedule of trips along the Oxford Canal this Saturday (September 30) and Sunday (October 1).

Alongside the boat trips, the boatyard’s historic forge, dry dock, and machine shop will be open for demonstrations and theatre productions.

On Friday evening, the Three Idle Women will perform a varied programme of songs and music inside the yard's dry dock.

Saturday will see the celebrated Alarum Productions Company perform their original story of the 14-week strike by boatmen 100 years ago.

The boatyard will also display tools, artefacts, and pictures from Tooley’s rich history, and visitors will be able to see the Banbury Model Engineers wonderful scale models of the canal boats.

Visitors to Tooley’s will also be able to get up close with the 83-year-old wooden narrowboat Hardy, which is currently undergoing restoration work at the boatyard, and learn about the restoration process.

For more information or to buy tickets for the boat trips visit ticketsource.co.uk/Tooleys-Boatyard-Trust

For more information on the theatre performances or to buy tickets visit eventbrite.com/cc/live-theatre-comedy-music-tooleys-boatyard-2514979