Chiswick’s ‘Spectacular September’ 2026

Leader of Hounslow Council Cllr Shantanu Rajawat at the opening of Chiswick House Learning Hub with Mayor of Hounslow Cllr Ranjit Gill and Representative Deputy Lieutenant for the London Borough of Hounslow Rosie Prescott; Chiswick House Dog Show – photograph Abbie Elliott; Freshly squeezed apple juice and children painting at Abundance London’s Apple Day; Cllr Ranjit Gill at the Chiswick Flower Market 6th birthday – photograph Anna Kunst; Vintage & Antiques Market – photograph Juliet McDonald

Guest blog by Torin Douglas

What shall we do next month?

It’s a matter of record that Chiswick has enjoyed a cultural and commercial renaissance in recent years. But September this year has been spectacular by any standards – and not just because of the lovely weather!

Chiswick House & Gardens, the iconic heart of Chiswick, completed its five-year regeneration project, opening its new Learning Hub and public spaces alongside the previously opened Artists Studios and much-loved Kitchen Garden.

READ ALSO: Leader of Hounslow Council opens new Learning Hub at Chiswick House

It’s a huge achievement by the director of Chiswick House & Gardens Trust Xanthe Arvanitakis, head of development Sue Sandle and their dedicated team of staff and volunteers – with strong financial support from Hounslow Council and its Cabinet members, who attended the opening on Thursday 17 September.

Chiswick House Dog Show; photograph Abbie Elliott

A few days later, on Sunday 20th, the Trust held its Open Day for the new buildings, alongside the ever-popular Chiswick House Dog Show on the cricket ground.

Under beautiful blue skies, this was a huge success again, raising thousands of pounds from dog-lovers and more than 30 stall-holders, to maintain and improve Chiswick House and Garden. Congratulations to ‘top dog’ Jan Preece and her great team of volunteers.

READ ALSO: The best of Chiswick House Dog Show 2026

The day before this, outside Turnham Green tube station, the gardens charity Abundance London unveiled the latest vibrant artwork on its W4Plinth, capping another busy month that began with its annual Apple Day, held outside Chiswick Library on Saturday 5 September.

“Fern Girl” – artwork by Cristina Schek at the W4th Plinth – Photograph of the day

‘Fern Girl’ by Cristina Schek

Both events were attended by the new Mayor Cllr Ranjit Gill, on his way to chalking up more than 100 events since he took on the post in May!

On the first Sunday of the month, 6 September, Chiswick Flower Market celebrated its sixth birthday, having more than fulfilled its founders’ ambition to help revitalise the High Road, turning Chiswick into a Sunday destination for people throughout London and beyond.

Chiswick Flower Market – photograph Anna Kunst

READ ALSO: Chiswick Flower Market celebrates its sixth birthday

READ ALSO: Objects.Atelier at Chiswick Antiques Market

There are now markets every Sunday:

Second Sunday – Chiswick High Road Antique and Vintage Market
Third Sunday – Chiswick Cheese Market
Fourth Sunday – Chiswick Food St Market
Fifth Sunday (occasional) – Open Art Spaces

Chiswick Flower Market – photograph Anna Kunst; Vintage & Antiques market – photograph Juliet McDonald; Cheese Market – photograph Fran Warde; Cheese Market orgnisers – Abi, Pip, Donna, Lucy, Fran and Lucinda; Sophie Ellis Bextor at the FoodSt market

Meanwhile, down on the river near Kew Bridge, the Thames Tidefest was being combined with the Strand on the Green Association party for the first time.

Last but by no means least, from 9 – 14 September, the 18th Chiswick Book Festival went extremely well, with a terrific lineup of authors and events. You can relive some of the highlights on the ‘2026 Chiswick Book Festival in Pictures’ and in reports and interviews on The Chiswick Calendar’s Chiswick Book Festival 2026 page.

I’d like to give personal thanks to all the authors, publishers, audiences, volunteers, venues and partners who made it possible. It was one of our best-attended and most enjoyable Festivals yet.

Local Authors’ night at the Chiswick Book Festival

We kicked off with a terrific Local Authors Showcase in the George IV Boston Room where 20 writers of all ages and genres had just two minutes each to discuss their books – see reports of each one here:

READ ALSO: A wealth of life experience and fun on display at the Chiswick Book Festival 2026 Local Authors night

We were delighted to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Beatles recording their historic Paperback Writer video in Chiswick House Gardens.

The Beatles at Chiswick House

Our Beatles walk with Guy Fairbank was oversubscribed and repeated three times; Samira Ahmed chaired a terrific panel of Beatles experts at Chiswick House; and ahead of the Festival we partnered with the ActOne Cinema in Acton (later to welcome Prince William as part of its fifth birthday celebrations) to screen A Hard Day’s Night.

READ ALSO: Guy Fairbank traces Chiswick’s rock and roll history for the Book Festival

In St Michael & All Angels Church, which runs and hosts the Festival, there were sell-out sessions with Nick Clegg, Ben Macintyre and Fergal Keane and hugely popular events with Jacqueline Wilson, Mary Portas, Anthony Seldon and Lord Alf Dubs.

READ ALSO: Nick Clegg taken to task by the audience at the Chiswick Book Festival

READ ALSO: Fergal Keane talks at the Chiswick Book Festival about the personal impact on him of years of war reporting

Fergal Keane at the Chiswick Book Festival; photograph Roger Green

The Tabard Theatre, ‘London Pub Theatre of the Year’, hosted great sessions on cricket poetry and history with Peter Oborne, Richard Heffer, Tim Beard and Rishi Dastidar; Karma Capitalism with James Reed and Kamal Ahmed; and fiction writers Essie Fox and Georgina Moore.

READ ALSO: Dame Jacqueline Wilson at the Chiswick Book Festival 2026

READ ALSO: Georgina Moore talks about her new book River of Stars at the Chiswick Book Festival 2026

The Chiswick Cinema screened Quartermaine’s Terms as part of the Simon Gray season which closed on Sunday with Alan Bates’ remarkable performance as Butley.

September also saw the launch of the cinema’s ‘Shakespeare on Screen’ season curated by Michael Billington, who interviewed Ralph Fiennes and Kenneth Branagh to introduce Coriolanus and Much Ado About Nothing.

Finally we were delighted that Chiswick resident and former broadcasting executive Dawn Airey was appointed as the new chair of the Arts Council of England.

In her first interview this month, in The Guardian, she highlighted ACE’s first Creative Young Lives survey, looking at how children and young people engage – or don’t – with arts and culture.

Next year, I may invite Dawn to present the prizes in our Young Poets Competition. You can see this year’s winners here. chiswickbookfestival.net

Torin Douglas is director of the Chiswick Book Festival and former media correspondent of BBC News.

On 12 September 2026 talking to Charles Cumming (r) at the 18th Chiswick Book Festival which took place during 9-14 September 2026. The annual Chiswick Book Festival (chiswickbookfestival.net) is a non-profit-making community event, raising money for St Michael and All Angels Church, which hosts the event, and three charities.

Chiswick House Dog Show – photographs Abbie Elliott; Chiswick Book Festival  – photograph Roger Green