Chichester's lights go on at 5pm on 21 November, the festive market fills North Street on 4-6 and 11-13 December, plus fireworks, Remembrance and 50 more.

The six weeks from now to mid December are mostly Christmas. Before it, the fireworks: West Dean on Friday 6 November (now waiting list only), Petworth’s free Hampers Green display on Saturday 7 November and Heyshott on 14 November, with the city’s Remembrance service at 11am on Sunday 8 November. On Saturday 21 November the Christmas lights go on at 5pm at the Market Cross after free entertainment from 3pm, with the Starlight Trail and the Weald and Downland Christmas Market the same day. Then the city’s festive street market on 4 to 6 and 11 to 13 December, the Festive Family Day on 12 December and the council’s Priory Park panto from 12 December. Around them: Heathers, The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time and Present Laughter at the Festival Theatre, Chichester City at home on 7, 21 and 28 November, and candlelit concerts at the Cathedral most weekends.

Updated 2 November: Chichester District Council has published its full Priory Park programme. Added from its box office: storytelling for under-fives from 8 December, a Festive Sound Bath on 9 December and Deck the Guildhall on 12 December. The Festive Jazz Café (16 December) and an over-18s silent disco (17 December) follow.

Updated 31 October: half term and Halloween listings removed and every remaining entry re-checked against its organiser. Added: the festive market dates, Sounds of Home, the Starlight Trail, Vintage and Very Nice, Fishbourne’s Christmas weekend, a free Santa visit on East Street, three carol and Christmas concerts, the Seal Bay rink, the Festive Family Day and the panto. West Dean’s bonfire is down to a waiting list.

Everything below was read from the organisers’ own listings on 31 October 2026, and every entry links to the page it came from. Prices are shown only where the organiser publishes them; for Festival Theatre shows they are the seats still on sale that day. For places that are open whatever the month, see our guide to things to do in Chichester.

This week

Sunday 1 to Sunday 8 November, plus runs already open.

  • ChichestHER, to Saturday 17 April 2027, The Novium Museum, Tower Street. Free. An exhibition on 19 women from the district, from Tudor times to the present, told through objects, oral histories, film and photographs. Graylingwell Chapel has two companion displays for the same run. (The Novium Museum)
  • The Repair Shop: Sneak Peek Days, selected days to Sunday 1 November, 10am to 4pm, Court Barn, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. A look inside the barn where the BBC’s The Repair Shop is filmed. The last day is Sunday 1 November. It is included with museum admission and there is no need to book a slot. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)
  • October Half Term: Plagues and Potions, daily to Sunday 1 November, 10am to 4pm, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. A trail round the historic buildings, the last of the half term programme. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)
  • The Last Laugh, Tuesday 3 to Saturday 7 November, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. From £10. Tommy Cooper, Eric Morecambe and Bob Monkhouse share a dressing room, in a play that comes from the Noël Coward Theatre. £10 seats remain only at the Thursday and Saturday matinees; the other performances start at £15. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Juliet & Romeo, Thursday 5 to Saturday 7 November, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. From £10. Lost Dog’s dance theatre piece in which the couple survived, reached 40 or so and decided to stage a show about themselves. One hour 20 minutes with no interval, ages 13 and over. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • West Dean Bonfire Night, Friday 6 November, gates 6pm, fireworks 7.15pm, ends 9pm, West Dean Gardens, PO18 0RX. £6 an adult, under-16s free. Hot food and drink on sale; enter by the Gardens Gatehouse and bring a torch. Tickets are no longer on sale: on 31 October the box office offered only a waiting list. (West Dean)
  • Comedy at The Nest with Harriet Dyer, Friday 6 November, 8pm, The Nest, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £18. The theatre’s November comedy night in The Nest, headlined by Harriet Dyer. Two hours with an interval, ages 16 and over. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • The Music of Bruce Springsteen: The Candlelight Concert, Friday 6 November, 7.45pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £25 to £55. The Cathedral lists a second night on Saturday 7 November at 7.30pm on its own page. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Chichester City v Bath City, Saturday 7 November, 3pm, Oaklands Park, Chichester City FC, PO19 6AR. Southern League Premier South, at home. (Chichester City FC)
  • Hampers Green Bonfire and Fireworks, Saturday 7 November, 5pm to 8pm, Hampers Green. Free. The torchlight procession leaves at 6pm, the bonfire is lit at 6.15pm and the fireworks are at 7pm, all weather permitting. Park at the Petworth House car park only. Our fireworks page has the rest of the district. (Petworth Community Association)
  • Remembrance Sunday Service, Sunday 8 November, 11am, war memorial, Litten Gardens, Chichester. Chichester City Council’s annual service and wreath laying; the council has published the order of service, with Chichester City Band playing. Our Remembrance page has how the parade runs. (Chichester City Council)

Later in November

  • Heathers The Musical, Tuesday 10 to Saturday 14 November, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. From £20. The touring high school musical, set at Westerberg High, comes to the Festival Theatre for a week. Two hours 30 minutes with an interval, ages 14 and over. £20 seats remain only at the Wednesday matinee; the Friday 5pm and Saturday matinee shows start at £29 and every evening performance at £42. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Dark Hush, Thursday 12 November, 7pm to 8.15pm and 9.15pm to 10.30pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £38, £48 or £58. A live concert played around an audience sitting in complete darkness. Each performance has its own ticket link, and the Cathedral does not run the box office. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Heyshott Bonfire, Saturday 14 November, torches on sale 6.30pm, procession 7pm, fireworks about 8pm, Heyshott Village Green, GU29 0DL, near Midhurst. Free entry; the committee asks a suggested £5 an adult, children free, cash only. The road through the village closes at 5pm and marshals park cars on the verges. Our fireworks page. (Heyshott Bonfire)
  • Chichester Singers: A Sea Symphony, Saturday 14 November, 7.30pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £10, £20, £25 or £30. Vaughan Williams’ A Sea Symphony, with Elgar’s Enigma Variations and Parry’s Blest Pair of Sirens. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Louisa Maria Hubbard: Championing the Right of Women to Work, Tuesday 17 November, The Council House, North Street, PO19 1LQ. £8.50, booking essential. A Novium talk by Sandra Lowton, drawing on Hubbard’s memoir and her family, on the Victorian campaigner for the right of single women to work. (The Novium Museum)
  • The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-Time, Tuesday 17 to Saturday 21 November, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. From £18. Simon Stephens’ stage version of Mark Haddon’s novel, from Melting Pot and Birmingham Rep. Two hours 25 minutes with an interval, ages 10 and over. £18 seats remain only on Friday evening; the other performances start at £29. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • The Silence and the Noise, Tuesday 17 to Saturday 21 November, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. From £10. Tom Powell’s play about two neglected teenagers, Daize and Ben, from Papatango Theatre Company and Pentabus, directed by George Turvey. One hour five minutes, ages 13 and over; £10 seats remain at every performance. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Weald and Downland Christmas Market, Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November, 10am to 4pm, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. Adults £20, ages 5 to 17 £10, under 5s free. Up to 100 festive stalls across the open-air museum. Ticketed, advance booking essential, and not included in museum membership. Our Christmas markets page. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)
  • Alfred Wallis: An Artists’ Artist and Barbara Hepworth and Greece, both open Saturday 21 November and run to Sunday 2 May 2027, Pallant House Gallery, 9 North Pallant, PO19 1TJ. Gallery admission. Two new exhibitions: the Cornish fisherman who started painting at 70 and influenced Ben Nicholson and Hepworth, and the first show on how Hepworth’s 1954 journey through Greece changed her work, with her sculpture Curved Form (Delphi). (Pallant House Gallery: Wallis, Hepworth)
  • Chichester Starlight Trail, Saturday 21 November, 1.30pm to 4.30pm, starting at The Novium Museum, Chichester Cathedral or Pallant House Gallery. £12 a child, booked in advance. An afternoon of festive crafts across the four venues, with a passport and a star lantern to light the way; the library’s activities are at The Novium this year. It finishes half an hour before the lights go on. (The Novium Museum)
  • Light Up Chichester: Christmas lights switch-on, Saturday 21 November, entertainment from 3pm, lights on at 5pm, the Market Cross. Free. Host Dawn Gracie introduces dance schools, steel pan, Rock Choir and the Prebendal School Choir, then two local heroes switch on the lights; 13 city centre venues run an after party from 5pm. Parking at the Avenue de Chartres multi-storey is free from 4pm that day. Our switch-on page. (Chichester BID)
  • An evening with Rachel Portman: From film scores to choral music, Saturday 21 November, 7pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £20, £45 or £55. The composer of the Oscar-winning score for Emma, and of Chocolat and The Cider House Rules, talks about her film music with Julian Biggs, with clips, and plays the piano. A fundraising event. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Chichester City v Basingstoke, Saturday 21 November, 3pm, Oaklands Park, Chichester City FC, PO19 6AR. Southern League Premier South, at home on switch-on day. (Chichester City FC)
  • Present Laughter, Tuesday 24 to Saturday 28 November, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £18 to £55 on the Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday evenings; the matinees and Friday evening start at £26 or £29. Tracy-Ann Oberman plays Geri Essendine, a star actress “who has been 39 for the best part of a decade”, in Noël Coward’s comedy, directed by Lindsay Posner. Two hours 40 minutes with an interval, ages 14 and over. The £10 band has gone. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Mark Thomas: 40 in Stand-Up Years, Tuesday 24 November, 8pm, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £26. Mark Thomas marks 40 years at the mic with “a taster menu of mayhem, jokes and rants”. Ages 16 and over. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Burt Bacharach: His life story in music and theatre, Wednesday 25 November, 2.15pm and 7.15pm, and Thursday 26 November, 7.15pm, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £36. His four wives gather at the Brill Building at Hal David’s invitation to share memories of Bacharach, with a cast of five and an 11-piece live band. Two hours 20 minutes with an interval. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • American Thanksgiving Choral Evensong, Thursday 26 November, 5.30pm, the Quire, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. Free, no tickets. A Thanksgiving service from the Cathedral’s American Patrons; all are welcome. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Sounds of Home, Friday 27 and Saturday 28 November, 4pm to 6pm, starting at The Novium Museum, Tower Street. Free. A live music trail commissioned by Chichester District Council: face painting and crafts at the museum, then 20 minute performances repeated through the evening at city centre landmarks, so you make your own route. (The Novium Museum)
  • G4 Christmas, Friday 27 November, 7.45pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £19.50 to £89.50. The vocal group’s Christmas tour. The Cathedral does not run the box office for this one; ticket queries go to G4. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Zoe Rahman: Hull Suite Live, Friday 27 November, 7.15pm, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £26. The jazz pianist and her trio play music from her album Hull Suite Live. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • West Dean Christmas Market, Friday 27 November 2pm to 8pm and Saturday 28 November 9am to 6pm, West Dean College, PO18 0RX. £12.50, under-16s free. A makers’ market, entry by pre-booked time slot. The page heading says 28 to 29 November, but its own times and the box office both give Friday 27 and Saturday 28. Our Christmas markets page. (West Dean)
  • Three Tenors by Candlelight, Saturday 28 November, 7.30pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £25 to £60 plus booking fees; the £25 band has a very restricted view. London Concertante’s new show of operatic arias. The Cathedral does not run the box office. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Chichester City v Uxbridge, Saturday 28 November, 3pm, Oaklands Park, Chichester City FC, PO19 6AR. Southern League Premier South, at home. (Chichester City FC)
  • Vintage and Very Nice, Saturday 28 and Sunday 29 November, 10am to 4pm, the Assembly Room, The Council House, North Street, PO19 1LQ. Free. Vintage finds, handmade gifts and makers’ stalls; a Christmas Special follows on 12 and 13 December. Our Christmas markets page. (Chichester BID)
  • The Greatest Gift: Festive Family Trail, Saturday 28 November to Sunday 3 January, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. Free, self-guided. Wilfrid the Seal, back for his second Christmas, leads children and their grown-ups round the Cathedral and the Christmas story. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Advent Procession, Sunday 29 November, 4.30pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. Free, no booking. The candlelit service that opens Advent, moving from darkness to light. Our carol service page has every Christmas service. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Advent Season, Sunday 29 November to Wednesday 23 December, 10am to 4pm, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. Daily demonstrations across the museum’s historic buildings of how Advent was prepared for and celebrated in different periods. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)

Early December

Tuesday 1 to Saturday 12 December.

  • Christmas Concerts, Tuesday 1 to Saturday 5 December, 7.30pm, with 2.30pm matinees on Thursday and Saturday, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £22 to £45, with £10 seats left only on the closing Saturday evening. The Band of His Majesty’s Royal Marines Collingwood with Chichester Cathedral Choir. Two hours 20 minutes, ages 7 and over. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Vivaldi Four Seasons at Christmas by Candlelight, Friday 4 December, 7.30pm, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £21.60 to £54. Piccadilly Sinfonietta, with a violin soloist still to be announced, play The Four Seasons alongside Corelli’s Christmas Concerto, Pachelbel’s Canon and Elgar’s Nimrod. The Cathedral does not run the box office. (Chichester Cathedral)
  • Chichester Festive Market, Friday 4 to Sunday 6 December and Friday 11 to Sunday 13 December, North Street and East Street. Free to browse. Chichester District Council’s outdoor Christmas market of independent traders and makers; opening hours are not yet published. A third hour of parking is free through MiPermit at Avenue de Chartres on all six days. Our Christmas markets page. (Chichester BID)
  • Christmas at Fishbourne Roman Palace, Saturday 5 and Sunday 6 December, 10am to 4pm, Fishbourne Roman Palace, PO19 3QR. Adults £5, children free. A Christmas market of local makers, bands and choirs, and living history. (Sussex Past)
  • Breakfast with Father Christmas, Saturday 5 to Friday 11 December, 9am to 10am, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. Child £12.50 with breakfast and a gift, adult £10, under-2s £10 (gift, no breakfast). Our Santa page. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)
  • Hey Christmas Tree, opens Saturday 5 December, 10.30am, and runs to Sunday 27 December, Minerva Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, PO19 6AP. £10 to £25; the opening weekend starts at £20. A funny festive story created by Michael Morpurgo for children aged 3 to 7, about an hour long. (Chichester Festival Theatre)
  • Santa at Cathedral Wealth Management, Thursday 10 December, 4pm to 7pm, 59 East Street, PO19 1HL. Free, registration essential. A festive visit for families with children under 12, with refreshments, activities, a lucky dip and a raffle for My Charity UH Sussex. (Cathedral Wealth Management)
  • Carols by Candlelight evening, Thursday 10 December, 5pm to 8pm, Weald and Downland Living Museum, PO18 0EU. Adult £10, child £5, under-4s free. Carols by candlelight, with the museum shop open late for Christmas shopping. (Weald and Downland Living Museum)
  • Christmas Carols with La Diva Choir, Thursday 10 December, 6pm to 7pm, Pallant House Gallery, 9 North Pallant, PO19 1TJ. £7.50, under-18s free. Bishop Luffa School’s choir sings round the gallery’s Bösendorfer piano, during the December Thursday Late (5pm to 8.30pm, half-price admission). (Pallant House Gallery)
  • Seal Bay ice rink, opens Friday 11 December and runs to Friday 1 January, White Horse Complex, Seal Bay Resort, Selsey. Visitors: adult £12, under-14 £8, under-5 £5. A real ice rink: weekdays 5pm to 10pm, weekends and school holidays 12pm to 10pm. Our ice rink page. (Seal Bay Resort)
  • Chichester Festive Market, second weekend, Friday 11 to Sunday 13 December, North Street and East Street. Free to browse. Hours not yet published. (Chichester BID)
  • Chichester Festive Family Day, Saturday 12 December, 10am to 4pm, five stops across the city centre. Free. Candle making at Jam Café, Never Land crafts in the Cathedral, treasure map making at the library and a Play Café at the Festival Theatre; collect four stamps and claim a gift from V2 Radio on East Street. Samba band 12pm to 1pm, stilt walkers at 11am, 1.30pm and 3pm. Our Festive Family Day page. (Chichester BID)
  • The Priory Park Pantomime Experience, opens Saturday 12 December (11am, 1.30pm, 3.30pm) and runs to Tuesday 22 December, The Guildhall, Priory Park, PO19 1NS. Adult £11, child £8, carers free. Chichester District Council’s one-hour panto with Santa, Mrs Santa, Fairy Sparkle, Norman the Elf and Uncle Holly; the Sunday 13 December 11am show is relaxed. Our Christmas shows page. (The Novium Museum box office)
  • Festive Storytelling for under-fives, Tuesday 8, Wednesday 9, Wednesday 16 and Thursday 17 December, The Guildhall, Priory Park, PO19 1NS. £4 a child; the adult stays and needs no ticket. Storyteller Chris North tells Christmas stories, with the children making the sound effects. (The Novium Museum box office)
  • Festive Sound Bath, Wednesday 9 December, 7pm to 9.30pm, The Guildhall, Priory Park, PO19 1NS. £20. A sound and gong bath; bring a yoga mat, a cushion and a blanket. (The Novium Museum box office)
  • Deck the Guildhall, Saturday 12 December, 7.30pm, The Guildhall, Priory Park, PO19 1NS. £15, including a glass of wine and a mince pie. Seasonal songs and poetry led by the cast of the Priory Park panto; Christmas jumpers encouraged. (The Novium Museum box office)
  • Christmas at the Movies by Candlelight, Saturday 12 December, 7.30pm, the Nave, Chichester Cathedral, PO19 1RP. £25 to £60 plus booking fees; the £25 band has a very restricted view. London Concertante’s candlelit Christmas film music. The Cathedral does not run the box office. (Chichester Cathedral)

Regular events

  • Chichester Farmers’ Market: the first and third Friday of each month, 9am to 2pm, in the city centre. The remaining 2026 dates are 6 and 20 November, and 4 and 18 December (Chichester District Council).
  • Cathedral lunchtime concerts: Tuesdays at 1.10pm in the Nave, free, about 50 minutes. Connor Heraghty (piano) on 3 November, Timothy Stewart (organ) on 10 November, William Lui (cello) with Kwanyee Chan (piano) on 17 November and the Mikeleiz Zucchi Duo (saxophone and accordion) on 24 November (Chichester Cathedral).
  • Chichester parkrun: every Saturday at 9am in Oaklands Park, PO19 6AP, free (parkrun).

Getting there

The Cathedral, the Council House, Pallant House Gallery and the farmers’ market are all inside the city walls and a few minutes’ walk from each other. The Festival Theatre, The Nest, the parkrun and Chichester City’s ground are all at Oaklands Park, just north of the walls, and the theatre puts the railway station a 20 minute walk away. If you are driving, our page on parking in Chichester has the car parks and tariffs. For rail, see train times to London, and check the roadworks and travel page before a weekend trip.

This page is rewritten as organisers confirm new dates. Dates and times can still change, so use the links before you travel. More in our What’s On section.

Send us your event

Running something in Chichester or the district? Email hello@chichesterlive.co.uk with the date, time, venue, price and a photo. Listings are free of charge, and yours goes on this page and in the diary on our front page.

Sources