The Katharine of Aragon Festival 2025

Cathedral Tudor Tour - 14.30 - 16.00
A costumed tour with a Tudor focus including the tombs of Katharine of Aragon and Mary Queen of Scots, Old Scarlett the gravedigger who inspired Shakespeare, the Tudor New Building and much more. Tickets: £10 + booking fee

Roman Catholic Mass - 8.30am
Conducted by the clergy of St Peter and All Souls Church, Peterborough.

Commemoration Service and wreath laying - 11.00am
The Very Revd Chris Dalliston, Dean of Peterborough, will lead a short service of commemoration with readings and prayers. During the service wreaths will be laid on Katharine’s tomb by school pupils and visiting dignitaries. All welcome. No booking required.

Cathedral Tudor Tour - 12.00 - 13.30
A costumed tour with a Tudor focus including the tombs of Katharine of Aragon, Mary Queen of Scots, Old Scarlett, the gravedigger who inspired Shakespeare, the Tudor New Building and much more. Tickets £10 + booking fee.

Katharine of Aragon Embroidery Workshop for beginners - 14.00 (duration 2-3 hrs)
Katharine of Aragon was a skilled embroiderer who was known for her blackwork and popularised this form of embroidery. This workshop will give participants the opportunity to learn how blackwork was applied to garments using simple running stiches to create complex motifs and borders. Using these stitches and following a printed chart you will be able to produce a piece of work inspired from designs 600 years ago. Tickets: £35 pp + booking fee.

Vespers - 17.30
The daily evening service at the Cathedral, this time in the form of Vespers, a form familiar in Tudor times, sung by the Cathedral Choir. All welcome.

Son et Lumiere - 19.30-21.00
An exclusive, atmospheric and beautiful evening; experience the Cathedral at night as stories will be spun and tales told. Each story will explore a period in the Cathedral’s history, accompanied by music of that period. The experience will end with mulled wine in the Tudor New Building and visitors are warmly invited to join with the service of Compline afterwards. Tickets: £35pp + booking fee

Compline - 21.30
A service at the close of the day, sung by adult members of the Cathedral Choir. Like Vespers, Compline would have been part of the daily Divine Office observed by the monks of Peterborough Abbey. All welcome.

At Court with the Tudors - 10.00 - 16.00
A drop-in event for families celebrating all things Tudor. We will be joined once more by the amazing Regal Rose Historical Portrayal – Katharine, Henry and the whole Court will arrive at 11.00am for visitors to pay homage, ask questions and take selfies. Impromptu dancing and game playing will be in store as well as Tudor craft makes for children and adults alike.

Monks, Mischief and Marauders Family Tours
10.30, 12.00, 13.30, 15.00
A costumed, guided tour aimed at a family audience. A unique and light-hearted take on the Cathedral’s history. Complete with keys, spade and skull, our guide, dressed as Tudor gravedigger Robert ‘Old’ Scarlett, will try not to scare you with his ‘grim visage’ and ‘mighty voice’ as he takes you round the building. Just keep up – he hates dawdlers! Children receive his personal guide and activity book to complete after the tour! Tickets: £6pp + booking fee or £24 per family (two adults + up to 3 children)

Tudor Talks
Tudor experts lead a series of fascinating and engaging talks in the
historic Knight’s Chamber
• Henry and Elizabeth: The Marriage That Made the Tudors
by Nathen Armin - 11.00
• Walking a tightrope: Catherine of Aragon’s ladies in waiting
by Dr. Nicola Clarke - 13.00
• Maiden, Mother Majesty: The Imagery of Mary I
by Dr. Peter Stiffell - 16.00
Tickets: £12per talk or £30 if booking all 3

Tudor Banquet 19.30
A Ladies and gentlemen, wear your finest Tudor gown or dust off
your codpiece and step back in time to immerse thyselves in the
grandeur of a Tudor banquet! Partake in a sumptuous feast, fit for the noblest of courtiers, whilst enjoying lively performances from skilled players and merry minstrels. Laugh, gasp, and groan as a jester brings fun and frolics before The King, and Defender of the Faith, Henry VIII.
Bask in the presence of Regal Rose royalty, as the magnificence
of Peterborough Cathedral transports thee into a realm of magnificence, elegance and awe.
Tickets: £70pp + booking fee or £400 for a table of 6

Tudor Talks

Join renowned Tudor experts for a captivating series of talks held in the historic setting of the Knight’s Chamber. Each session offers a deep dive into the intriguing world of the Tudors, bringing history to life through engaging stories and insights.

• Uncrowned Queen: The Fateful Life of Margaret Beaufort by Dr Nicola Tallis - 12.00

• Queen-Making: Catherine of Aragon, Princess Mary and the Reigning Queens of Spain

by Dr. Elizabeth Norton- 14.00

• Katharine of Aragon and the Tyranny of Henry VIII by Jackson Van Uden-16.00

Tickets: £12 per talk, or enjoy the full series for just £30 when you book all three.

Cathedral Tudor Tour - 14.30

A costumed tour with a Tudor focus including the tombs of Katharine or Aragon and Mary Queen of Scots, the gravedigger who inspired Shakespeare, the Tudor ‘New Building’ and much more. Tickets: £10pp + booking fee

An online reflection to mark the date of Katharine’s burial on 29th January 1536 - led by Canon Tim Alban Jones. Available soon.