Sward! DVD on sale in time for Cristmas!

In the tale, a young farmer called Jason Drysdale is out on his quad bike spraying thistles when he spots botany student Jemima Foxley studying the plants found in the grass verge at the side of a minor road. Mysteriously, fate then intervenes to take them both on a fantastic trip through time, from the Bronze Age into the 22nd century.  Sward! has plenty of laughs and songs but also delivers some powerful messages about the environment and our responsibilities towards it.

The play was written by Simon Corble and earlier this year was performed in village halls across northern England by Blaize Theatre Company in collaboration with Highlights Rural Touring Scheme.  The DVD is of the performance at the Victoria Hall in Settle on 16 June.

The idea for the play was inspired by the Hay Time projects run by the North Pennines AONB Partnership and the Yorkshire Dales Millennium Trust (YDMT). Don Gamble, YDMT’s Hay Time project manager, said, “As well as restoring meadows that had declined in quality, the Hay Time projects have been running events and activities to celebrate and raise awareness about the area’s superb meadows. This well-written and inventive play helped us to do this in an entertaining but thought-provoking way.”

The DVD was commissioned by YDMT and funding was provided by the Yorkshire Dales LEADER programme and the Yorkshire Dales National Park Authority’s Sustainable Development Fund, managed by YDMT.The DVD is suitable for children aged 8 and over and their families. It costs £1 to cover p&p and is free to schools and community groups but for other organisations and individuals there is an additional suggested donation of £4. Copies can be ordered from YDMT’s website www.ydmt.org or phone 015242 51002 or email info@ydmt.org.

An excellent stocking filler for any lover of the Dales!