Cheltenham Festivals
Cheltenham's mix of international jazz icons, up-and-coming new artists and unique festival performances has seen them host some of the world's greatest musicians over a Bank Holiday weekend each May.Past performers include Jamie Cullum, Hugh Laurie, Eartha Kitt, Imelda May, Van Morrison, Stephane Grappelli and Ornette Coleman.Artists in previous years include acclaimed violinist and Cheltenham 2014 Artist-in-Residence Nicola Benedetti, Marc-André Hamelin, Craig Ogden, Calefax, the Dante Quartet, Noam Greenberg, Ingrid Fliter, Danjulo Ishizaka, The Pavel Haas Quartet, Allan Clayton, Paul Lewis, Manchester Camerata, the Schubert Ensemble, Ailish Tynan, Gareth Hancock, Alekzandar Madzar, Sir Peter Maxwell Davies, John Potter, Kathryn Tickell, James Gilchrist and Taraf de Haidouks.Taking place over ten days in Cheltenham Town Hall, Imperial Square and Montpellier Gardens, the festival hosts talks, workshops, debates, and other entertaining events.Past guests have included Terry Pratchett, Toni Morrison, Ian Rankin, Kate Adie, Patrick Stewart, Richard Attenborough, Simon Schama, David Starkey, Antony Sher, Michael Parkinson, Terry Jones, Tony Robinson, Sandi Toksvig, Dawn French, Simon Armitage, Clive James, Ruth Rendell, Alexander McCall Smith, Bruce Parry, Ray Mears, Frank Skinner, Janet Street-Porter, Roger Moore, Tony Curtis, John Barrowman, Russell T Davies, Dave Gorman, Charley Boorman, Alexei Sayle, Mark Thomas, J. K. Rowling, Kofi Annan, Salman Rushdie, A. S. Byatt, Benedict Cumberbatch, Steven Moffat, and Jennifer Saunders.The students, supported by their teachers, prepare 3-minute presentations to explain a STEM topic in a dynamic and engaging way to a panel of judges whose assessment focuses on content, clarity and charisma.