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Showground arena to hold first event in four years

Mariam Issimdar
Shariqua Ahmed/BBC Co-founders Dave Poulton and Kez Hayes Palmer pose in front of an upcycled white bathtub. They are in a large shop with lots of gifts and craft items on display.Shariqua Ahmed/BBC
Up the Garden Bath, run by Dave Poulton and Kez Hayes Palmer is behind the East of England Showground's first event in four years

The East of England Showground will host its first event in four years after permissions were granted by its leaseholders.

Peterborough-based community interest organisation, Up the Garden Bath, will hold a Christmas craft market comprising 100 stalls at the Atrium, based inside the showground's arena.

Up the Garden Bath co-founder, Kez Hayes Palmer, said: "The East of England Arena has been an important part of Peterborough for so many years. It deserves to be busy again, filled with people, activity, laughter and opportunity."

Kirsty Knight, a Peterborough City councillor, said seeing the showground host an event after so long was "absolutely fabulous".

Kirsty Knight Kirsty Knight wears a red top with a sparkly neckline and stands in front on a window with a curtain draped partly across it. Kirsty Knight
Conservative councillor Kirsty Knight welcomed plans for the showground's arena

She added: "Something needs to be done on that land. We need to start bringing events and leisure back into Peterborough."

The showground, off Oundle Road, Alwalton, is owned by the East of England Agricultural Society. Plans to put 1,500 homes on part of the 165-acre (67-hectare) site were rejected by Peterborough City Council in 2025, over infrastructure concerns.

In March, Asset Earning Power Group (AEPG), which has a 20-year lease remaining on part of the showground, invited businesses, residents and event organisers to help shape the future of the arena.

Up the Garden Bath proposed involving its community retail project Unity, based in Queensgate Shopping Centre, to create a seasonal craft fair.

Geograph/Ian Capper Large, windowless, single storey, box-like buildings adjoin each other with white-coloured masts standing proud of their flat roofs. The grass area nearby is brown from the sun. A small blue sign in the lawn says "ONE WAY" with a directional arrow. Geograph/Ian Capper
The Atrium in the East of England Showground arena will host its first event in four years

Dave Poulton, also a co-founder of the organisation said the fayre was "a chance to give back to the community and create a wonderful event at Christmas time".

AEPG chief executive, Ashley Butterfield said the event was "a great way to start a build up of community, music, live indoor and outdoor entertainment and leisure activity at the Showground again".

The company added that from early 2027 it would be utilising the site to deliver a year-round programme of live music concerts, festivals, motorsport and exhibitions.

The fayre will take place on 12 and 13 December.

Former England goalkeeper David James, who is Up the Garden Bath's formal ambassador, is also expected to attend the event.

AEPG Artist's impression of the future of the East of England Showground in Peterborough. Aerial view of hundreds of houses and other buildings ringed by fields and trees. AEPG
Plans to build 1,500 homes on the East of England Showground have stalled

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