Upcoming events in the Wickford and Runwell Team Ministry

Here are the upcoming events in the Wickford and Runwell Team Ministry during January and February:

Fear not, for I am with you: An exhibition of religious paintings by David Sowerby

9 January – 3 April 2026

St Andrew’s Church, 11 London Road, Wickford SS12 0AN

View the exhibition and hear David speak about his work at ‘Unveiled’, the arts & performance evening at St Andrew’s Wickford, Friday 9 January, 7.00 pm.

St Andrew’s is usually open: Sat 9am-12.30pm; Sun 9.30am-12 noon; Mon 2-3.45pm; Tue 1-4.30pm; Wed 10am-12 noon; Fri 10am-1pm. https://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html 

David Sowerby

Born 24th October 1954

Studied Foundation at Middlesbrough Art College

BA (hons) Art and Design at The Central School of Art (London)

I worked as a freelance illustrator and teacher throughout my life and eventually retired as a Principal Lecturer at The University of the Arts London.

I now support a range of charities, both local and national, via my mutual interest and fascination with art and creativity. 

An earlier exhibition was just prior to the first lockdown which was held at The Transition, Chelmsford, with proceeds going towards The British Heart Foundation raised just over £6,000.

I continue to support local and national charities, contributing a large percentage of any sales to such charitable organisations and causes.  

My work can be viewed on my Facebook pages, search for David Sowerby with more available to view at Sowerbycreations (Facebook again) 

Unveiled

A regular Friday night arts and performance event
at St Andrew’s Church, 7.00 – 9.00 pm
11 London Road, Wickford, Essex SS12 0AN

See below for our Spring 2026 programme and http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html for more information.

Exhibitions, open mic nights, performances, talks and more!

Unveiled – a wide range of artist and performers from Essex and wider, including Open Mic nights (come and have a go!).
Unveiled – view our hidden painting by acclaimed artist David Folley, plus a range of other exhibitions.

Spring Programme 2026

• 9 January (7.00 pm) – ‘Fear not, for I am with you: An exhibition of religious paintings’ exhibition viewing evening. Meet artist David Sowerby, see his exhibition & hear him speak about his work. David worked as a freelance illustrator and teacher and was a Principal Lecturer at The University of the Arts London.
• 23 January (7.00 pm) – ‘Writing on the Arts’. A talk by Jonathan Evens reflecting on his experiences of writing on the Arts for publications including Artlyst, ArtWay, Church Times, International Times, Seen and Unseen and Stride Magazine, among others.
• 6 February (7.30 pm) – Meet film director Will Norman and see his acclaimed film My Brother Bob, which explores the meaning of quality of life and won Best Documentary at the UKFF. Will Norman is a London based director known for his surreal and playful approach to storytelling across commercials and music videos.
• 27 February (7.30 pm) – Rev Simpkins in concert. Rev Simpkins’ music mixes the colourful folk tradition of Appalachians Mountains with the melodiousness and carefully-observed lyrics of the Kinks. Close harmonies intertwine with banjo, French horn, and bass. “Melodious, chaotic, gloriously energetic, the fruit of the fevered musical imaginations of Matty Simpkins.”
• 13 March (7.00 pm) – ‘Nevendon to Wickford’. A talk by Geoff Whiter of Wickford Community Archive. Geoff’s talk will include a number of unseen photographs of Wickford Town centre.
• 27 March (7.30 pm) – Open Mic Night. Everybody is welcome to come along & play, read, sing or just spectate. See you there for a great evening of live performance!

These events do not require tickets (just turn up on the night). There will be a retiring collection to cover artist and church costs. See http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html for fuller information.

Rev Simpkins 

Suffolk-Essex musician, Rev Simpkins, presents an evening of acoustic music of great imagination and charm.

The Rev will perform songs from his acclaimed folk albums such as ‘Big Sea’ and ‘Saltings’, together with songs from his band album ‘Pissabed Prophet’. The gig will also feature songs from the Rev’s most recent album ‘Headwater’, a collection of fever dreams and reflections on awe and delirium, recorded in the aftermath of an extreme reaction to immunotherapy treatment for stage 4 cancer. These songs recreate sounds and visions experienced on the hospital ward.

The Rev’s sweeping melodies, rich harmonies, and fascinating lyrics have won him both a cult following and national acclaim. This is a rare chance to experience the breadth of the Rev’s  work in one evening.

"Bizarre Post-Punk mastery...Ludicrously cool" 8/10 Vive le Rock on ‘Pissabed Prophet’

“Headwater takes us into new ruminative territory with its industrial electronic soundscapes and use of drones and silences to bring us into contemplation.” International Times

Nazareth Community Gathering

Saturday 17 January, 2.00 pm

St John’s Church, Outwood Common Rd, Billericay CM11 2LE

A first meeting of the incipient South Essex Nazareth Community including: Study (Letter from Nazareth); Sharing (Wonderings); Staying With (Preparing a 7S’s Rule of Life); and Sacrament (Eucharist).  

A contemporary Rule of Life: Silence, Service, Scripture, Sacrament, Sharing, Sabbath, Staying With

All are welcome to find out more and take part in this initial Gathering to begin forming a Nazareth Community in South Essex.

WICKFORD AND RUNWELL 

PARISH STUDY DAY 2026 

THE BIG STORY: THE BIBLE IN FIVE ACTS 

Saturday 31st January 2026 

9.30am - 2pm in St Andrews church 

Lunch provided.

Explore the amazing story told through the Bible from Creation to Jesus and the Early Church and look into the future and what it means for us.

... discuss ...

Discuss is a youth discussion group meeting monthly on Fridays, 7.00 pm, St Andrew's Centre. All discussion topics chosen by the group. All teens and twenties are welcome.

Dates:

• 16 January
• 20 February
• 20 March
• 17 April
• 15 May
• 12 June
• 10 July

Pancake Party

St Catherine’s Hall

17th February 2026

Between 2.30 pm and 4pm

£5 for pancakes and tea or coffee

There will also be a raffle

Sign up lists coming soon, pay on the day

WICKFORD AND RUNWELL PARISH 

LENT 2026 

Inspired to Follow: Who is my Neighbour 

A journey through Lent 

A course from St Martin-in-the-Fields in conjunction with the National Gallery, exploring Art and the Bible Story. We are offering this six week course from week commencing 23rd February. The final week will be decided by each group. 

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Rev Simpkins - In The Marsh A Desert.

Unveiled Spring 2026 programme

A regular Friday night arts and performance event
at St Andrew’s Church, 7.00 – 9.00 pm
11 London Road, Wickford, Essex SS12 0AN

See below for our Spring 2026 programme and http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html
for more information.

Exhibitions, open mic nights, performances, talks and more!

Unveiled – a wide range of artist and performers from Essex and wider, including Open Mic nights (come and have a go!).

Unveiled – view our hidden painting by acclaimed artist David Folley, plus a range of other exhibitions.

Spring Programme 2026

• 9 January (7.00 pm) – ‘Fear not, for I am with you: An exhibition of religious paintings’ exhibition viewing evening. Meet artist David Sowerby, see his exhibition & hear him speak about his work. David worked as a freelance illustrator and teacher and was a Principal Lecturer at The University of the Arts London.
• 23 January (7.00 pm) – ‘Writing on the Arts’. A talk by Jonathan Evens reflecting on his experiences of writing on the Arts for publications including Artlyst, ArtWay, Church Times, International Times, Seen and Unseen and Stride Magazine, among others.
• 6 February (7.30 pm) – Meet film director Will Norman and see his acclaimed film My Brother Bob, which explores the meaning of quality of life and won Best Documentary at the UKFF. Will Norman is a London based director known for his surreal and playful approach to storytelling across commercials and music videos.
• 27 February (7.30 pm) – Rev Simpkins in concert. Suffolk-Essex musician, Rev Simpkins, presents an evening of acoustic music of great imagination and charm. The Rev will perform songs from his acclaimed folk albums such as ‘Big Sea’ and ‘Saltings’, together with songs from his band album ‘Pissabed Prophet’. The gig will also feature songs from the Rev’s most recent album ‘Headwater’, a collection of fever dreams and reflections on awe and delirium, recorded in the aftermath of an extreme reaction to immunotherapy treatment for stage 4 cancer. These songs recreate sounds and visions experienced on the hospital ward. The Rev’s sweeping melodies, rich harmonies, and fascinating lyrics have won him both a cult following and national acclaim. This is a rare chance to experience the breadth of the Rev’s  work in one evening. "Bizarre Post-Punk mastery...Ludicrously cool" 8/10 Vive le Rock on ‘Pissabed Prophet’ “Headwater takes us into new ruminative territory with its industrial electronic soundscapes and use of drones and silences to bring us into contemplation.” International Times
• 13 March (7.00 pm) – ‘Nevendon to Wickford’. A talk by Geoff Whiter of Wickford Community Archive. Geoff’s talk will include a number of unseen photographs of Wickford Town centre.
• 27 March (7.30 pm) – Open Mic Night. Everybody is welcome to come along & play, read, sing or just spectate. See you there for a great evening of live performance!

These events do not require tickets (just turn up on the night). There will be a retiring collection to cover artist and church costs. See http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html for fuller information.

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Rev Simpkins - Speak Low.

 

Unveiled Spring 2023 Programme

The regular Friday night Unveiled arts and performance event at St Andrew’s Church, 7.00 – 9.00 pm, (11 London Road, Wickford, Essex SS12 0AN), begins again from Friday 13 January, with exhibitions, open mic nights, performances, talks and more!

• Unveiled – a wide range of artist and performers from Essex and wider, including Open Mic nights (come and have a go!).
• Unveiled – view our hidden painting by acclaimed artist David Folley, plus a range of other exhibitions.

Spring Programme 2023

• 13 January – 'From Rettendon Turnpike to Halls Corner: A Journey in Time'. A talk by Geoff Whiter of Wickford Community Archive.
• 27 January – 'The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you)': Exhibition viewing evening. See this exhibition of Last Supper images and works about belonging or feeling welcomed. Hear from artist Alan Stewart, project lead Celia Webster (co-founder of WAVE), and Revd John Beauchamp, Disability Ministry Enabler for the Diocese of London.
• 10 February – An evening with composer Silvio Bartoli. Numerous performances of his pieces have been done during the last years in London, by The Hermes Project, The Explore Ensemble, different solo pieces, and the RCM Philarmonia. In addition to his career as a composer, he teaches composition, harmony, piano, theory and solfege.
• 17 February – 'God Gave Rock and Roll to You': a talk by Jonathan Evens about the religious influences in Rock, Pop, and Soul music.
• 3 March – Open Mic Night with John Rogers. Everybody is welcome to come along and play, sing or just spectate. Hope to see you there for a great evening of live music!
• 17 March – St Martin’s Voices, one of the UK’s most versatile professional vocal ensembles, performing concerts on the international stage as well as giving regular BBC broadcasts and special services at London’s iconic St Martin-in-the-Fields. The ensemble performs regularly alongside the Academy of St Martin in the Fields and London Mozart Players and is featured in the Church of England’s online worship resources that have attracted over 4 million downloads.

These events do not require tickets (just turn up on the night). There will be a retiring collection to cover artist and church costs.

See http://wickfordandrunwellparish.org.uk/whats-on.html for fuller information.

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Silvio Bartoli - After, for String Quartet.

Next Step Creative: The Encounter

On Friday our first term of Unveiled events at St Andrew's Wickford ended with a wonderful evening in which Next Step Creative's Steven Turner performed The Encounter, a show that explores the story of Christmas in a fresh way using dance and mime. Through the show we experienced a variety of Christmas stories in contemporary and engaging ways for the whole family. The performance was a creative mix of multi media and physical theatre appealing to a variety of ages. This was a great community event with a range of dynamic and engaging pieces, including Mime, Contemporary, Ribbons, Ballet, and Banners combined with bespoke video graphics. 

Steven Turner has trained in a variety of dance styles, including contemporary, street, mime and moving with props. He attended a Laban boys course, as well as attending summer schools with companies including Springs Dance Company, Movement in Worship and Chantry Dance Company. In recent years Steven has founded his own organisation, Next Step Creative, to promote collaboration between dance and other creative arts. Regularly choreographing and teaching for Dance 21 (a dance company for children and young adults with Down’s syndrome). He has performed at Project Dance Paris and travelled to Rotterdam to teach in connection with his role as ICDF Refresh Coordinator. He has performed across the UK and Europe including Switzerland, Netherlands, Denmark, Germany, and France.

Next Step Creative is a relational organisation with a vision to create a platform to support creative people. Working within the UK and internationally using multi media, live performances, workshops and teaching; making their artists work more accessible through a collaborative online shop.

2023's Unveiled events will begin with:

• From Rettendon Turnpike to Halls Corner: A Journey in Time, A talk by Geoff Whiter of Wickford Community Archive, Friday 13 January, 7.00 pm.
• The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you): Exhibition viewing evening, Friday 27 January 2023, 7.00 – 9.00 pm. See this exhibition of Last Supper images created by: Alan Stewart; (Still) Calling from the Edge conference; WAVE (We are All Valued Equally); & Schools in Hampstead and Barnet. Hear from artist Alan Stewart, project lead Celia Webster (co-founder of WAVE), and Revd John Beauchamp, Disability Ministry Enabler for the Diocese of London. The Blind Jesus (No-one belongs here more than you) has been commissioned as part of a project in which it seeds other images of the Last Supper that are truly for everyone. Schools, churches and community groups are invited, as part of this project, to create their own Last Supper images.

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Steve Taylor - Innocence Lost.