What's On in Wells is brought to you by the Wells Festival of Literature — celebrating words, ideas and the art of storytelling.

And if you've got an event in Wells that isn't listed here, don't panic – you can nub your event for free right here.

From dragons and drumming to cabaret with chips, this week is serving variety. Pick your lane or pinball between places — no judgment here.

Thursday 23 October starts with dinner and dancing at The Loft as the Motown and soul night with Eleazar King does the sequins-and-supper thing: doors 7pm, dinner 7.30pm, show 9–11pm. Earlier on Friday morning, unpaid carers get time out at the Glastonbury Carers Group from 10.30am to noon — tea, talk, and no need to pretend everything's fine.

Friday evening, Shepton decides the high street is a stage again. Expect pirates, plague doctors or something equally sensible at Shepton on Show 2025 from 6pm to 8pm, plus an after-party from 8pm because of course. If you prefer hitting things (musically), the sticks are out at the Ammerdown Centre for Drumming for Wellness Day — 9.30am for 10am to 4pm — group therapy, but with rhythm.

Saturday 25 October is full throttle. Glastonbury's monthly town-wide market spreads across town all day, so prepare to leave with soap that smells like enlightenment and bread you definitely didn't need. Writers can limber up at the Creative Writing Workshop at the Library of Avalon, 10am to noon — bring a notebook and bravery.

Later, it's drums, dancers and chaos as the Glastonbury Dragons Wild Hunt rolls from a noon market into a 4pm procession, 4.15pm "battle" and a 5pm ceremony.

Wells, meanwhile, swaps roar for requiem with the Brahms Requiem on Saturday night, 7pm to 10pm at the cathedral — three hours of choral calm after a day of cymbals and dragons. If you'd rather wander, Wells also has family options all week: the palace gardens and hands-on activities at October Half Term at The Bishop's Palace, and the museum's clue-chasing Spooky half-term Halloween trail. Art fans can drop into the cathedral cloisters for the Wells Art Contemporary exhibition, too.

Sunday 26 October, Shepton keeps the beat with the Day of the Dead at The Art Bank from 4pm to 10pm — live Latin grooves, DJs and an invitation to dress loud. Across Glastonbury, museum-goers can still catch A Life Outside: Hope Bourne on Exmoor during the week, 10am to 5pm, for a quieter kind of immersion.

Thursday 30 October signs off with mud and marshmallows at Rock Farm's October Half-Term Holiday Club — pick 10am to 3pm or 10am to 12.30pm; expect den building, pumpkin carving and a strong case for spare clothes. And if your vibe is introspection with incense, Earthspirit's Ancestral Healing Retreat – Sex, Blood and Bone opens that evening and runs through Sunday. Breathwork, trance dance and maybe a few home truths.

Planning ahead for Halloween? We've got you covered here, too. Bonfire night? Already on it.

Whether you're there for the requiem, the riddles or the reassurance that Wells does Halloween in Latin, this week proves the city can do spooky without losing its dignity.

Got an exhibition, show or delightfully niche talk coming up in Wells? You can nub your event here and let the locals in on it.

More local stories:

• Wells names new Town Crier as Len Swales prepares to bow out
• Free prostate cancer testing day to be held at Wells Town Hall in February

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