Throughout October, Mole Valley is home to 135 artistic and cultural events for people to come and experience. Nearly half of these events will be either free, or under £5 to attend. More good news is that you won’t need to wait until October to get started! Arts Alive kicked off with two big launch events in Dorking and Leatherhead that were free to attend.

You can now browse and book sessions you would like to join via the Arts Alive website. There are plenty of activities for families as well as evening events, and there’s truly something for everyone whether you're looking to spectate or perhaps try your hand at something artistic! We want everyone to feel empowered to try something new at Arts Alive this year and find a passion that might grow into an exciting new hobby for years to come! Some interesting highlights for this year include:

• Come and Sing St John’s Passion at St Martin’s Church with Leith Hill Music Festival – 11 Oct

• The Magic of Bees - Rituals Workshop with The Wild Bee Company – 25 Oct

• Come and Try Acro, Ballet, Musical Theatre or Tap with Lisa Allen Dance & Arts (LADA) – 4 Oct

• A number of fascinating talks and events at the newly renovated Pippbrook House including a wine glass painting class and a talk on the work of Agatha Christie.

Helping to promote this year's festival is Magic Radio presenter, as well as Surrey local, Jack Pepper! One of the UK’s youngest commissioned composers, national radio broadcaster and featured in HM the King’s “35 under 35” list, Jack can now add “2025 Patron of Arts Alive” to his list of accolades, joining such luminaries as Dame Judi Dench, Lorraine Kelly and Gyles Brandreth.

MVDC’s Cabinet Member for Leisure & Community Assets Cllr Nick Wright said: “It’s great to see Arts Alive return in 2025 with a huge variety of cultural activities for people to experience. Supported by Mole Valley District Council, the Arts Alive Festival committee has worked hard to organise a packed itinerary of events for everyone in Mole Valley to enjoy. Whether you’re building on existing interests, knowledge or skills, or would like to experience something new, I highly encourage you to take a look at the programme online and book yourself a place!”