EDITOR'S NOTE
The school holidays start this week, and Reading has planned accordingly: from Saturday, 19 brick-built dinosaurs take over the town centre for a month. One warning note — the Heritage Live concerts at Englefield House are cancelled. If you had tickets, check your refund.
FEATURED THIS WEEK
Reading Dino Trail — launches Saturday 25 July, runs to 23 August
Nineteen dinosaurs built entirely from toy bricks land across the town centre — from a stegosaurus made of more than 180,000 bricks down to baby dinos and a selfie-ready interactive model. Pick up a free trail map from The Oracle, Broad Street Mall, the station tourist information stand, Reading Museum or Central Library, hunt the hidden letters and enter the prize competition. Spend £3.50 with participating independents and you get a foil pack of Dino Trail trading cards — 25 to collect. Buggy-friendly and completely free. More info →
BEST FOR KIDS
Build-a-Saurus Workshop — Dino Trail launch day, Saturday 25 July, 11am–2pm in the town centre. A free brick-building drop-in to go with the trail; just turn up.
NEW THIS WEEK
Shake Shack is coming to Broad Street. Illuminated signage for the US burger chain was approved at 121–122 Broad Street this week — the clearest sign yet that a Reading branch is on the way.
HEADS UP
The Heritage Live weekender at Englefield House is OFF. Faithless (23rd), Richard Ashcroft (24th), Ministry of Sound Classical (25th) and UB40 (26th) are all cancelled after the promoter's rescue deal collapsed. Refunds come via your ticket agent — many are automatic, but keep your booking confirmation.
👨👩👧 Things To Do
Kids & Family
Reading Dino Trail, town centre — from Saturday 25 July. The summer's big free family fixture: 19 brick dinosaurs, a prize competition, and trading cards from local independents. See Featured above.
Build-a-Saurus Workshop — Saturday 25 July, 11am–2pm, town centre. Free drop-in brick-building session to mark the trail's launch. No booking needed.
Adults · Date Night
Hamlet in the Abbey Ruins, Progress Theatre — final week, runs to Saturday 25 July. Open-air Shakespeare in the 12th-century Abbey Ruins, and the reviews have been glowing — Reading Today called it "triumphant". Warm, dry evenings forecast all week; take a cushion. Book at ticketsource.com →
Edinburgh Preview Double Bill: Hannah Byczkowski & Cecily Hitchcock, South Street — Thursday 23 July, 7:30pm. The second of South Street's pre-Fringe double bills — Byczkowski won the first series of BBC's The Traitors. Fringe-quality comedy at a fraction of Edinburgh prices. More info →
Weekend Events
Sat 25 July: Reading Dino Trail launches, town centre — free, all day.
Sat 25 July: Build-a-Saurus Workshop, 11am–2pm — free drop-in.
Sat 25 July: final performance of Hamlet in the Abbey Ruins.
Sun 26 July: no trains Reading–Basingstoke — buses replace trains all day. Check before you travel.
Looking ahead: New York absurdists Xhloe and Natasha bring "Bigfoot Ripped My Dog In Half I Saw It" to South Street on 30–31 July; the Dino Trail runs right through to 23 August.
🏙️ What's New in Reading
Shake Shack signs for Broad Street. Advertisement consent for internally illuminated Shake Shack signage — fascia lettering, logo and projecting sign — was approved this week at 121–122 Broad Street. No opening date yet, but chains don't order signs for units they aren't fitting out. One of the biggest names to commit to the high street this year.
A 24-hour gym is cleared for Broad Street Mall. The council has confirmed that round-the-clock indoor sport, recreation and fitness use is lawful at the mall — paving the way for a 24-hour gym operator to move in.
🚧 Useful Reading Updates
Buses — the new network starts Monday. From Monday 20 July: Pink 22 (Caversham Heights) and Route 12 (Twyford) are withdrawn, Aqua 28/28a switches to a faster Henley route via Reading Bridge, and Little Berries 29/29a doubles its Sunday frequency. First week of new timetables — allow a few extra minutes. Details at reading-buses.co.uk.
Rail — no Basingstoke trains on Sunday. Buses replace trains between Reading and Basingstoke on Sunday 26 July, with Reading–Salisbury services starting from Basingstoke. The ongoing Swindon–Bristol Parkway works (until 2 August) also still divert London–South Wales trains through Reading, adding around 25 minutes. Check gwr.com before travelling →
Caversham's homelessness pods are being phased out. The council announced this week that the temporary accommodation pods in Caversham will be wound down, with a new homelessness strategy going to the housing committee later this month.
Planning — a big week for once. The headline: a full application has gone in to demolish the former Thames Valley Police station on Castle Street and replace it with a residential-led scheme of 205 homes plus ground-floor commercial space and new public realm — one of the largest town-centre proposals this year, now under consultation. Also validated: a bid to turn the restaurant at 18 Prospect Street, Caversham into a bar. Among the week's 31 decisions: Shake Shack's signage (above), the Broad Street Mall 24-hour gym use, and the withdrawal of a five-house scheme at 58 Bath Road.
COMING UP THIS WEEK
Mon 20 Jul: new bus network starts — check your route
Thu 23 Jul: Edinburgh Preview Double Bill, South Street, 7:30pm
Thu 23 – Sun 26 Jul: Heritage Live, Englefield — CANCELLED; refunds via ticket agents
Sat 25 Jul: Dino Trail launches + Build-a-Saurus Workshop, 11am–2pm
Sat 25 Jul: Hamlet's final night in the Abbey Ruins
Sun 26 Jul: no trains Reading–Basingstoke — rail replacement buses
HIDDEN GEM OF THE WEEK
The Harris Garden, Whiteknights
A 12-acre botanic garden hidden behind the Biological Sciences buildings on the University of Reading campus — open to everyone from 8am to dusk, every day, free. Winding woodland paths, a wildflower meadow, formal borders and barely another soul most days. The university keeps it beautifully and hardly anyone in town knows it exists. Entrance behind the Harborne Building; pair it with a lap of the Whiteknights lake.
Harris Garden - University of Reading © visit-reading
WEATHER THIS WEEK
Dry, settled and very warm all week — mid-to-high 20s every day, peaking around 28°C midweek, with no meaningful rain before next week. UV is high most days: sunscreen for the Dino Trail launch, water for open-air Hamlet. A textbook first week of the school holidays.
👀 WORTH KNOWING
Reading Festival wants a fourth day. Festival Republic has applied to add amplified music on the Thursday of festival weekend — 5pm to midnight, main stage only — from 2027. If the council agrees, the August ritual effectively becomes a four-day event.
A Reading match ticket just sold for £1,000. A ticket stub from Reading v Manchester United at Elm Park — the 1955 FA Cup third round — fetched £1,000 at auction this week. It cost 2/6 on the day, and the last one to surface sold for £1,400.
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