Weston Carnival is Friday 13 November, then the free switch-on and Fireworks at Sea on the 14th, Clevedon's lights on the 20th, Christmas markets and the panto.

Weston’s biggest weekend of the year comes first: the carnival on Friday 13 November at 7pm, then the Christmas lights switch-on on Saturday 14 November, free in the Italian Gardens from 4pm with the lights on at 5.30pm, and Fireworks at Sea over the bay at about 7.30pm the same night. Clevedon switches on at 5.30pm on Friday 20 November with late-night shopping, eat:Weston fills the Italian Gardens on the 21st, Portishead switches on on the 23rd, and the Playhouse pantomime opens on 4 December.

Updated 12 November: Clevedon has published its switch-on programme (lights on at 5.30pm, not 6pm), and the Overtones, the Blakehay’s Sleeping Beauty panto and Dickens by Candlelight, Front Room’s The Snow Squirrel, the Grand Pier’s Grinch breakfasts and the museum’s Christmas concert are new on the list.

Everything below comes from the organisers’ own listings, read on 29 September 2026 and rechecked every week, most recently on 12 November. Each entry links to its source, so check it before you set off. A price is shown only where the organiser publishes one. For places that are open whatever the month, see our guide to things to do in North Somerset.

This week

  • Weston-super-Mare Carnival. Friday 13 November, 7pm, through the town centre and along the seafront (Weston-super-Mare Carnival). The council’s 2026 order closes the roads from 4.30pm, and Locking Road car park shuts from Wednesday 11 November. Our carnival page has the route and the car parks that are shut in.
  • Dom Joly: Trigger Happy TV, the 25th Anniversary Tour. Friday 13 November, 7.30pm, The Blakehay. Tickets from £29. The Giant Snail, the traffic warden and that big mobile phone, live on stage (The Blakehay).
  • ABBA Merry Christmas. Saturday 14 November, 7.30pm, The Playhouse. An ABBA tribute with a Christmas theme, 2 hours 10 minutes including the interval (The Playhouse).
  • Weston-super-Mare Christmas lights switch-on. Saturday 14 November, from 4pm in the Italian Gardens, with the switch-on at 5.30pm. Free. Calvos Street Performers, Weston Brass and live entertainment; the town council says the full programme is coming soon (Weston-super-Mare Town Council). Our Christmas lights page has all four towns.
  • Fireworks at Sea. Saturday 14 November, display due at about 7.30pm says the Grand Pier, subject to the weather (Visit Weston lists 6.30pm to 8pm), over Weston bay, free from the promenade, with ticketed viewing from The Grand Pier at £10 or £20; its restaurant tables have sold out (The Grand Pier).
  • Weston-super-Mare AFC v Farnborough. Saturday 14 November, 3pm, The Optima Stadium, so the football, the switch-on and the fireworks all fall on one day (Weston-super-Mare AFC).

Our fireworks page has the pier ticket counts and where to watch, and our carnival page has the road closures and bus diversions.

Next week

  • The Overtones: Jivin’ Home for Christmas. Wednesday 18 November, 7.30pm, The Playhouse. The vocal group’s Christmas show, about two hours including the interval; a meet and greet is sold as a bolt-on to a show ticket (The Playhouse).
  • Icescape ice rink opens. Friday 20 November, Puxton Park, Hewish, BS24 6AH, running to 3 January. Sessions from £8 a child and £10 an adult booked online, skate hire included (Icescape Puxton Park). Our ice rink page has the full price list.
  • Clevedon Christmas lights switch-on. Friday 20 November, 5pm to 7pm, with the lights on at 5.30pm. Free. The V-Dubs, Santa, songs from Phoebe Richards, carols from Clevedon choirs and food stalls in Queen’s Square, with shops open late across the town centre (Clevedon Town Council).
  • Trevor Horn: Adventures in Modern Recording. Friday 20 November, 7.30pm, The Blakehay. Tickets £30. The record producer behind Frankie Goes to Hollywood, ABC and Seal tells the stories behind the hits (The Blakehay).
  • Noah’s Ark Christmas Market. Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November, 10.30am to 5pm, the Farm Shop, Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm, Wraxall. Stalls from local artisans and Christmas tree sales, with free parking; well-behaved dogs are welcome (Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm).
  • eat:Weston Christmas festival. Saturday 21 November, 10am to 4pm, the Italian Gardens and the High Street. Free. Over 95 local food and drink traders, street food, entertainers and the Grinch (our story) (Visit Weston, eat:Festivals). Our Christmas markets page has the rest.
  • Pam Ayres: Doggedly Onward. Saturday 21 November, 3pm, The Playhouse. The poet’s afternoon show, 2 hours 10 minutes including the interval (The Playhouse).
  • Emilio Santoro as Elvis: Blue Christmas. Sunday 22 November, 2pm and 7.30pm, The Playhouse. An Elvis Christmas show, 2 hours 10 minutes including the interval (The Playhouse).

Later in November

  • Portishead Christmas lights switch-on. Monday 23 November, from 5.40pm on the High Street, with the lights and fireworks at 6.45pm. The High Street closes to traffic from 5pm (Portishead Christmas Lights).
  • Weston-super-Mare AFC v Walton & Hersham. Tuesday 24 November, 7.45pm, The Optima Stadium (Weston-super-Mare AFC).
  • Santa Paws Grotto. Friday 27 and Saturday 28 November, The Grand Pier. A grotto visit for dogs, with a Grinch Paws version on the same days, booked through the promoter (The Grand Pier).
  • Weston Museum Christmas Market Weekend. Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November, 10am to 3pm, Weston Museum, Burlington Street, BS23 1PR. Free (Weston Museum).
  • Santa’s Library at Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm. From Saturday 28 November, 10.30am to 3.30pm, on weekends to 20 December and on 21 and 22 December, Wraxall. £13.95 a child, which includes a wrapped book; zoo admission is a separate ticket (Noah’s Ark Zoo Farm).
  • Weston-super-Mare AFC v Maidenhead United. Saturday 28 November, 3pm, The Optima Stadium (Weston-super-Mare AFC).
  • Christmas at Tyntesfield. From Monday 30 November to Sunday 3 January, Tyntesfield, Wraxall. The Nutcracker story told through the house and gardens, with normal admission and no need to book; closed on 24 and 25 December (National Trust). Our Tyntesfield Christmas page has the concerts and workshops.

December

  • Nailsea Christmas tree light-up. Friday 4 December, town centre. Free. The Barn Owls, Nailsea’s dementia choir, from 5.15pm, the light-up at 6pm, then the Christmas Vee Dubs parade along the High Street from 6.10pm; the council says the full programme is still to be confirmed (Nailsea Town Council).
  • Aladdin. Friday 4 to Thursday 31 December, The Playhouse. The pantomime stars Jaymi Hensley of Union J (The Playhouse). Every performance time and the prices are on our pantomime page.
  • eat:Nailsea Christmas Festival. Saturday 5 December, 10am to 4pm, the High Street and Crown Glass shopping centre. Free entry (Nailsea Town Council).
  • A Posset Christmas Market. Saturday 5 December, 2pm to 6pm, Portishead High Street. The street market run by the volunteers behind the town’s Christmas lights (Portishead Christmas Lights).
  • Santa’s Grotto at The Grand Pier. From Saturday 5 December, 10am to 4pm, on 5, 6, 12 and 13 December and every day from 19 to 24 December. £19.95 a child with a gift, £2.50 an adult (The Grand Pier).
  • Santa’s Grotto at Weston Museum. Saturdays 5, 12 and 19 December, slots from 10am to 2.45pm, Burlington Street, BS23 1PR. £5, with a gift for every child. Tickets went on sale at midnight on Sunday 1 November (Weston Museum). Our Santa’s grotto page compares them all.
  • Santas on the Run North Somerset. Sunday 6 December, 12 noon to 2pm, Charlton Farm, Wraxall, BS48 1PE. A 2k fun run in festive fancy dress for Children’s Hospice South West. Entry £12 for adults and £6 for children aged 3 to 15 until midday on 2 December (Children’s Hospice South West).
  • Moulin Scrooge. From Wednesday 9 to Wednesday 23 December, 7.30pm, except 13, 14 and 20 December, Front Room Theatre, 13 Central Walk, BS23 1FF. A comedy Christmas musical mash-up from The Wardrobe Theatre and Front Room (Front Room Theatre).
  • Sleeping Beauty, Gala Night. Saturday 12 December, 6pm to 8pm, The Blakehay, 20 Wadham Street, BS23 1JZ. £13 to £15. The Blakehay’s own family pantomime, its first of 16 dates (The Blakehay). Both Weston pantos are on our pantomime page.
  • The Snow Squirrel. Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December, then every day from 19 to 24 December, Front Room Theatre, 13 Central Walk, BS23 1FF. A new festive family show from the makers of Yara in the Wild Wood, at 2pm on 12 December and 11am and 2pm on the other days (Front Room Theatre).
  • Christmas Cracker 10K. Sunday 13 December, on Weston beach by the Grand Pier. Juniors at 10am for £3, the 10K at 11am for £18 or £20. Entries close on 11 December, with none on the day (Weston AC entry). More on our Christmas Cracker page.
  • Christmas Ho Ho Ho’pen Cockpit Day. Sunday 13 December, The Helicopter Museum. Climb aboard the helicopters and Santa’s Sleigh, with arts and crafts, at standard admission and no need to book (The Helicopter Museum).
  • Dickens by Candlelight. Sunday 13 December, 2.30pm, The Blakehay. £15. Barry North plays the spirit of Dickens in a solo show with characters from Oliver Twist and A Christmas Carol (The Blakehay).
  • Vee Dubs Christmas Cruz. Sunday 13 December, 5.30pm from Queensway Retail Park, Worle, past the Grand Pier to The Range at about 6.15pm, with up to 170 Volkswagens covered in lights (Visit Weston, Christmas Dubs). Our Cruz page has the route.
  • Weston-super-Mare AFC v Billericay Town. Tuesday 15 December, 7.45pm, The Optima Stadium (Weston-super-Mare AFC).
  • Breakfast with The Grinch. Saturday 19, Monday 21 and Tuesday 22 December, Tiffany’s Restaurant, The Grand Pier. £20, under-2s £5; on 12 November the pier’s booking page showed one standard ticket left for 19 December (The Grand Pier).
  • Christmas Concert with Costanzi Consort. Monday 21 December, 7.30pm (doors 7pm), Weston Museum, Burlington Street, BS23 1PR. £15. The chamber choir’s annual Christmas concert, with limited spaces (Weston Museum).

Regular events

  • Clevedon Salthouse Fields parkrun. Every Saturday at 9am, Clevedon Salthouse Park, BS21 7TU. A free 5k to walk, jog or run; register once before your first (parkrun).
  • Nailsea Farmers Market. The third Saturday of every month except January, on the High Street around 65 High Street, BS48 1AW, so 21 November and 19 December. About 50 food, drink and craft stalls, with the road closed to traffic (Nailsea Town Council).

Getting there

Most of the Weston listings are within a ten-minute walk of each other: the Playhouse on the High Street, the Blakehay on Wadham Street, Front Room on Central Walk, the museum on Burlington Street and the Grand Pier on Marine Parade. Our parking page has the car parks and tariffs, and the roadworks and travel page has the closures to plan around.

This page is rewritten as organisers confirm new dates. Dates can still change, so use the links before you travel. More in our What’s On section.

Send us your event

Running an event in Weston-super-Mare, Clevedon, Portishead, Nailsea or the villages? Email hello@northsomersetpost.co.uk with the date, time, venue, price and a photo. Listings are free of charge, and yours goes on this page and in the diary on our What’s On section.

Sources