Celebrate the revival of
British food culture
In Association with the Elizabeth David Estate
Exploring our past and championing our future with the finest food and drink of the South Downs & Coast.
At Stansted Park
Rowlands Castle, Hampshire, PO9 6DX
Starts at 10:30 AM to 5:00 PM
September, 2025 [Dates to be confirmed]
Launched by Dame Prue Leith along with Thomasina Miers, OBE
The South Downs Food Festival was launched by Dame Prue Leith in September 2024, bringing together food enthusiasts, chefs, food writers, campaigners and artisan producers for a weekend of gastronomic delight, stimulating talks, and delicious events. Scheduled for September 2025 by popular demand, this festival will feature a rich array of food and drink from across the South Downs and beyond.
A Feast for the Senses
Surrounded by the forests and parkland of the Stansted Park estate in the South Downs National Park, the festival will indulge in the finest Sussex and Hampshire produce, gourmet dishes, and locally brewed beverages. The festival will host a “street” of over 40 artisan producers, a ‘Stansted Arm’s Pub’, cookery demo tent, live music, wood-fired catering, picnics, chef’s table and Tea on the Terrace. The festival is a chance to explore local produce, from wild venison to hedgerow walks, pasture-fed beef to grilled corn-on-the-cob. It’s a celebratory harvest festival of local food and drink.
STALL HOLDERS
Wooden Boards
Peter Leslie
Petersfield
Ice Cream
Whippy Ice
Wooden Bowls
Adam Lafosse
Idsworth, West Sussex
Cheese
Ripe Cheese
Wimbourne
2024 Festival Themes
There was also a series of talks in the spectacular Travelling Barn on the ‘British Food Revival’ inspired by Elizabeth David, the post-war food writer, run by the journalist and author, Rachel Cooke. On day one, Cooke hosted discussions with the writers Diane Purkiss and Prue Leith. On day two, the ‘Future of Food’ looked at how we feed ourselves while protecting our environment. There was also discussions between Thomasina Miers, chef, restaurateur & writer, The Ellen MacArthur Foundation, Alex Briggs, Weald to Waves manager, and Peter Gladwin, chef, writer, restaurateur, and Nutbourne vineyard owner.
Exploring our past and championing our future with the finest food and drink of the South Downs & Coast.
Highlights of the Festival
The Big Lunch
Join us for the South Downs Festival THE BIG LUNCH in support of Rowans Hospice (all profits going to Rowans) on Saturday 14th Sept at 1pm in the Stansted Arboretum. Tickets are £70 and can be purchased at eventbrite.com with your festival ticket. More
Tastings
Charcuterie, English Sparkling, Sussex Cheeses, Organic wines – meet the producers, find out how the food and drink was created and taste what makes them special.
Sustainability Focus
How do we combine modern farming and creating food with protecting our environment? Discover the people who are making a difference to our local chalk streams while working with farmers, from the Western Sussex Rivers Trust to , Isle of Wight based Ellen MacArthur Foundation is working on a global scale to promote a circular economy for food. Any surplus food from the festival will be gathered and redistributed by UK Harvest.
Chef Demos
Thomasina Miers heads up the Demo tent, with wood-fired inspired cookery demos on the Big Green Egg and OFYR grill, a Hambledon Vineyard dish by Michelin-starred chef Nick Edgar, a venison butchery class and discussion on wild game, sourdough bread-making and a pickling demo, this will be delicious entertainment.
The Street
This is a truly South Downs market, with over 30 Sussex and Hampshire food and drink producers, from Chalkstream trout to farm charcuterie, vinegars to kimchi, Stansted honey to horseradish sauce, and of course, plenty of gin, beer and wine. Shopping has never been such fun!
Family-Friendly Activities
Hedgerow foraging walks, a dedicated kids’ zone with cooking, face-painting and a coconut shy; the festival is perfect for families looking to enjoy a day out together.
Local Lunch
Choose between wild venison, pasture-fed beef, wood-fired pizza, vegetarian salads, sushi, crepes and more with grills lit and charcoal smoking.
Elizabeth David Exhibition
Auberon Waugh once said that food writer Elizabeth David would get his vote as the single person most responsible for improving British life in the twentieth century. We can attribute the post-war British Food Revival to Elizabeth David and her cook books and the festival will bring her kitchen back to life at Stansted Park. We have brought in her furniture, personal objects and papers into the glorious Edwardian kitchen. Visitors can now be in just the sort of space and atmosphere in which Elizabeth conceived her books, tested the recipes, cooked and entertained her friends and family. Stansted House admission including the Elizabeth David Exhibition will be half price during the festival (£5).
Live Music and Entertainment
The festival atmosphere will be enhanced by live performances from local bands ‘Superstrings’ and ‘Lady and the Dukes’ ensuring a vibrant and enjoyable experience for all ages.
