A RANGE of events exploring Space is being organised at Hereford Cathedral, including an ‘out of this world’ sound and light show in October hosted by Luxmuralis.

The show from Wednesday, October 16, to Saturday, October 19 marks the cathedral’s first sound and light installation, promising “a truly immersive experience”.

Space is part-funded by the UK Government through the UK Shared Prosperity Fund.  

The ‘Space & Other Worlds’ season will start with a special Gala Organ Concert performed by John Challenger on Tuesday, September 17 at 7pm.

Former Hereford chorister John, who is now assistant director of music at Salisbury Cathedral, will be performing his own transcription of Holst’s The Planets on the great Father Willis organ. 

Continuing in September, the cathedral will host a public lecture, ‘Space, Other Worlds, and God: The Search for Aliens’, on Friday evening, September 27, followed by a workshop entitled ‘Wonder, Wisdom, and Worship: The Christian Understanding of Creation’ the next morning on Saturday, September 28.

Both events will be led by the Revd Professor David Wilkinson, Director of ‘Equipping Christian Leadership in an Age of Science (ECLAS)’.

The Luxmuralis Space show will be the first sound and light experience put on at Hereford Cathedral
The Luxmuralis Space show will be the first sound and light experience put on at Hereford Cathedral (Luxmuralis)

The cathedral’s library and archives team will also be hosting an ‘out of this world’ event on Thursday, October 24, as they invite guests to view a selection of items from their own collections which come from unexpected worlds.

Artist and sculptor Peter Walker will also give the cathedral’s annual Cantilupe Lecture on Wednesday, October 2, as he discusses his work and introduces the Luxmuralis Space show.  

On Saturday, October 10, Peter Dyke (assistant director of music at Hereford Cathedral) will boldly go where few organists have gone before, as he takes his regular Afternoon Music concert ‘beyond the final frontier’.

He will perform a selection of music known from film and television, alongside the Revd Canon James Pacey who will provide a series of short reflections during this free concert on sci-fi and spirituality.

The cathedral’s regular Lego Club session on Tuesday 8 October will also be receiving an intergalactic makeover! 

The Space & Other Worlds season will conclude with the cathedral stepping into Narnia for a week of special lectures and events inspired by the CS Lewis classic, starting on Friday, October 25.

The week will begin with the former Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr Rowan Williams, delivering a talk on ‘CS Lewis, Narnia and the Theology of Storytelling’ in the cathedral nave.

This will be followed by Dr Jem Bloomfield, author of recent Narnia book Paths In The Snow, delivering an online talk exploring the ways that Narnia weaves together literary and theological meanings on Monday, October 28.

There will also be two opportunities for families to discover the stories of Narnia for free, at a storytelling night on Tuesday, October 29, and Messy Church on Thursday, October 31 (12 noon to 2 pm).  

For full details on all events and to book tickets, visit the Hereford Cathedral website: www.herefordcathedral.org/news/space-other-worlds