Travellers wanting to discover England's history would enjoy Kynren in Bishop Auckland, County Durham. Watch a 90-minute award-winning outdoor show featuring 2,000 years of history, myth and legend.
Kynren leads us on a spellbinding journey through the ages. A cast and crew of 1,000 men, women and children – all volunteers, dramatically re-create 29 different milestone moments from the past before an 8,000 seater amphitheatre known as the Tribune. These volunteers known as archers, aged from 5 to 85, undergo a complex and robust set of training programmes taught by highly-skilled performance industry specialists in order to produce this spectacle.
The show unfolds on a seven-and-a-half-acre stage starting simply with Young Arthur, a young boy from a mining family meeting Old Arthur who reveals the secret of time travel and sets the boy off on his quest for knowledge and to discover the meaning of 'Kynren'.
Exciting pyrotechnics
From a magical start, the excitement quickly builds as we witness spectacular scenes, stunts, explosions, galloping cavalry, villagers and warriors; hand-to-hand combat, flaming arrows, and so much more.
Through the Gateway of Time Young Arthur and the audience witness monumental events such as Boudica's uprising against the Romans, marauding Vikings clashing with Anglo Saxons at the Battle of Stamford Bridge. A Viking longboat sailing in ghostly fashion along the lake, and we even witness the future legendary King Arthur drawing the sword Excalibur from the stone.
We witness England's Civil War and King Charles' final journey to the executioner's block. Royal figures continue with King Henry VIII making a grand appearance and William Shakespeare aboard Queen Elizabeth I's royal barge where they discuss his characters and some of Shakespeare's immortal lines.
As the years roll by, we join in the celebrations of Queen Victoria's Diamond Jubilee and witness the start of the industrial revolution with a wonderful recreation of Stephenson's rocket.
Being in the north-east, Kynren pays homage to the mining communities and generations of hard-working men and boys, and the grief of families when disasters and tragedies occurred. Many moments through this spectacular show bring tears to the eyes, while other moments provide an awe-inspiring spectacle of colour, flags, banners and pageantry. We also witness moving moments in two world wars and pay homage to England's great leader Winston Churchill.
A whole menagerie of animals is also involved. Thirty-nine magnificent performance horses, carriage horses, donkeys, goats, sheep, geese, ducks and chickens. There's a dedicated cavalry team as horses often take centre stage riding into battle, jousting, flying flags and pulling carts.
Explore the Viking Village
A 9th century authentic Viking Village has also been created which visitors can – the perfect way to enter the atmosphere of times gone by in readiness for the explosive show.
Throughout the show original rousing music accompanies the action. Award-winning composer Nathan Stornetta has worked alongside film score master Hans Zimmer (Gladiator, The Dark Knight Rises, Pirates of the Caribbean) to create Kynren's epic soundtrack, that evokes drama and excitement as it tells the story of England's history.
Kynren takes place every Saturday evening from 27 July to 14 September. Tickets cost from £26 for adults and from £16 for under 18s. Children aged 3 and under are free when sat on an adult's knee. Dates for 2025 are on Kynren's website: https://www.11arches.com/kynren Enter main text of your feature here...
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