PLENTY? 2025 FESTIVAL 

Friday 3 - Sunday 5 October 2025

What is Plenty?

Plenty? festival returns! This year’s gathering brings together a diverse mix of talks, creative activities, apple pressing and more. Join us as together we ask, ‘how much is enough?’ through play, conversations and reflection.

Plenty? is a festival, that reimagines a traditional harvest celebration and focuses on the idea of ‘degrowth’ in a consumerist world that demands more and more.  At Plenty? festival, we aim to foster a hopeful, open, and exploratory atmosphere where diverse perspectives and ways of thinking can come together.

What is the purpose of Plenty?

To ask questions and to inspire action!

In a world where economic growth is favoured at the expense of people and the sustainability of the Earth, Plenty? aims to:

• Use the arts as a tool to engage and challenge people on life-changing issues (like climate change) that are a concern and discuss possible community-level solutions.

• Provide a creative learning space where curiosity is welcomed and questions are encouraged, to help foster behavioural change at the grassroots level.

• Help people gain a better understanding of ideas of 'degrowth' and a 'Just Transition' with a focus on climate change and our connection to the natural world

Who is it for?

Everyone! We are all citizens, and caretakers, of our beautiful Planet Earth!

Plenty? is a festival where everyone from all walks and stages of life, with our individual knowledge, unique perspectives and life experiences can come together and learn from each other.

This year is split into three different days:   

• Friday 3 October - Film Screening - Ash Rise: Woodland to Workshop
• Saturday 4 October - A Day of Discourse (and a shared meal)
• Sunday 5 October - Family Friendly Day

Friday 3 October  @  7.30pm  

FILM |  ASH RISE: WOODLAND TO WORKSHOP

The Scottish Furniture Makers Association presents a feature documentary that follows the ash tree from woodland to workshop and explores this wonderful material through stories of those who work with it.

Furniture makers are privileged to experience the sounds, smells and textures of the workshop; the processes that realise the potential in timber are fleeting but beautiful in their own right. The Ash Rise film was created not only to offer an insight into the world of the furniture maker, but also celebrate the ash tree from woodland to workshop, through stories of characters that influence, and are influenced by, the life of these great trees.

Tom Addy, featured in this film, is a panellist in the talk ‘Woodland to Workshop - realising the potential of Scottish timber through creative connections’ on Saturday 4 October, drawing in themes explored in this film.  

Saturday 4 October @ 12pm – 5.30pm

A DAY OF DISCOURSE

Throughout the day there will be a series of facilitated talks and discussions, followed by a shared meal:

• 12.00 - 12.30 | Welcome Address: 'Projects I have learned from. Four community plays and an orchard.' - with Mel Shand, The Far Orchard Lead Artist
• 12.30 - 13.15 | Session 1: 'Woodland to Workshop: realising the potential of Scottish timber through creative connections' - panel discussion with Tom Addy, Oliver Wilson and Jonathan Rose
• 13.30 - 14.15 | Session 2: 'Queering Ecologies: Towards an Attentive Future' - panel discussion with Dr Em May Armstrong and Helen Needham
• 14.30 - 15.15 | Session 3: 'Wild Plenty, Empty Plates: the paradoxical lack of local venison' - panel discussion with Sanjay Bhattacharya, Hedge Shand and Dr Linzi Seivwright.
• 15.30 - 16.15 | Session 4: 'The Shape of Becoming' - with Luke Devlin
• 16.30 - 17.30 | Shared Meal (separate booking required)

Click here for more info on the panellists and event programme.

Sunday 5 October  @  12pm – 4pm

FAMILY-FRIENDLY DAY

Suitable for all ages, a family-friendly day of exploration, discovery, and engagement with the ideas of degrowth and local action that will include hands-on activities from apple-pressing to art creation:

Daniel Serridge - Storytelling in the Wild Garden

Join Dan Story Man in the wild garden for pop-up storytelling all through the day. You'll find him springing up in all sorts of overgrown locations so keep your eyes peeled and your ears unclogged for tales to make you laugh and cry! 

David Leslie - Bird Walk 2.30pm (booking required)

David Leslie, from Aberdeenshire Bird Tours, will lead a short walk around the gardens and grounds to highlight some of the species present and hopefully pick out some species that might normally be overlooked.  

Christian Stolte of Seider - Apple Pressing

Join Christian in pressing our apples into juice. He will show the processes involved and let you have a go and a taste. Bring along apples from your own garden and The Far Orchard trees to add to the mix as we share in the harvest.  Christian will also tell you about his processes of cider making from apples grown in Scottish walled gardens.   

Ros Studd - Repair What You Wear

Bring your clothing repair questions!  We will advise you how to fix your fashion and outdoor clothing (although not do the repair for you).  We can show you skills, resources, how to get going with hand repairs and even free educational resources for schools.  Everything that is kept in circulation for longer is a climate action, and saves money too. 

Vhairi Walker - Cardboard Garden

Explore our cardboard garden and had your own creations to it as we discover what a healthy garden needs to thrive.  

Hetty Haxworth - Communal Tree

Through creative collaboration, join printmaker Hetty Haxworth has she guides participants in printing a variety of lino-printed tree leaves to add to our communal tree. Opening up and stimulating conversation on the importance on maintaining native biodiversity and a healthy ecosystem.

Carrie Fertig - Health of the Sublime Workshop

Carrie Fertig will host a mini map making embroidery drop-in workshop, make audio recordings of your stories of nature, and share audio, video, digital and in real life maps, and virtual reality aspects of Health of the Sublime, a Creative Scotland funded project mapping the lived experience of wellbeing in the natural world through the lens of climate change. We invite you to share your voice as we count down to the exhibition at the Barn in Autumn 2026. 

Deeside CAN - Wee Forest and Waste Streams

Find out more about Deeside CAN’s Wee Forest project and the benefits it is bring to Banchory’s habitats and wildlife whilst mitigating the impacts of Climate Change. Also view their Ceramic Wee Forest. They will also be looking at our waste and how we can minimise the impact of this in our everyday lives.  

Leanna Fernandez - Butterfly Conservation's UK Ambassador

With Leanna you will explore what you can do to help the butterflies in all months of the year, as they act as important pollinators. She will have hands-on activities for you to take part in.

Soil Sisters - Sustainable Gardening

Local garden designers, Soil Sisters, will join us with their home-made, organic pesticides and insecticides. They will encourage you to explore the Wild Garden with a scavenger hunt and try out your hand at Happa Zome, the Japanese technique of leaf dyeing.  

Banchory Bikes - Electric Bikes

Banchory Bikes will be on hand to show you their selection of electric bikes. See how you can make active travel work for you!  

Cycling Without Age - Trishaws

The volunteers from Cycling Without Age Westhill branch, will be at the Barn with one of their Trishaws. See how they help everyone stay an active part of their local community and get up close to nature.  

ACCESSIBILITY

We understand that there are many voices not always heard in climate discussions. We want to remove as many barriers as possible for participating in Plenty?

Tickets to the festival are free. We have a limited number of access funds for those that find it difficult to meet everyday costs. You will not be asked for proof or ID all we ask is that you be honest with yourself and your financial situation.   

If you find it difficult to meet everyday costs and travel to the festival is a barrier, we have a limited pot of money available to reimburse these costs.  

Please indicate your access requirements at time of booking.

The Barn has extensive free parking on site. Accessible parking spaces can be found at the Barn entrance and in the lower carpark opposite the entrance to Buchanan Bistro. The top carpark at the Barn’s entrance may be closed to traffic for large events so please check the situation with the Box Office ahead of time.

Travel by bus  - Buses run regularly to Banchory from Aberdeen and Braemar. You can catch the 201, 202, or 203 buses and alight at the stop by Tesco

We have a fully accessible bathroom.

Assistance dogs are welcome in all areas of our venue.

If you require a carer to attend an event with you, please book your places by telephone to ensure you are not charged for their ticket. 

Click here for more information about accessibility.