Good Morning, locals!

Here's a number to wake you up: 59. That's how many days are left of 2026, including today.

Not in a panicky, “where-did-the-year-go”, kind of way. Rather in a "there's still loads of time to finish strong" one. Two months is enough time to tick off the thing you've been putting off, try the class you keep scrolling past, and squeeze in a few good nights out before the Christmas chaos lands.

And the Hertford Scoop’s making it easy. This week we've got comedy, jazz, a Dolly Parton sing-along, festive pottery and wreath making, a brilliant run of shows at BEAM and the Corn Exchange, plus some genuinely good news for Hertford North commuters.

The weather's playing nicely too: mostly dry all week, so fireworks night is on.

👇 Here’s what we’ve got for you this week:

• What’s On

• Town Talk: Four trains an hour are back + a new bakery is coming

• Kiddies Scoop: Dear Zoo, LEGO and farm-fit kids

• Eye Catching Deals: Pub Supper Club + £1.99 coffee

• Property Of The Week: The garden of dreams on Fordwich Rise

• Weather: Dry, cloudy and crisp for bonfire weekend

• Mind, Health & Fitness: Your 59-day finish-strong plan

• Extra Sprinkles: 102 years of Hertford North

What’s On

🎭 Arts + Entertainment

Cody Dahler: The State of This!
📅 Tue 3 Nov | 19:30 | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
The satirist with 2 million followers brings his "thicky thicky dumb dumb's guide to British politics" to BEAM, with special guests and a no-question-too-daft Q&A. Top-band tickets include a hardback of his book. 🎟 £35-£47.50 - Grab a seat

One Deck Wednesday
📅 Wed 4 Nov | 19:00-22:00 | 📍 Mad Squirrel, Hertford
Guest selectors, one turntable, whole records played start to finish. Reggae, funk, soul, Balearic and beyond, with wing deals at the bar. The perfect midweek wind-down. 🎟 FREE - More here

The Comedy Store
📅 Fri 6 Nov | 20:00 | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
The club that launched Eddie Izzard, John Bishop and Sarah Millican brings a fresh line-up of top stand-ups to town. Friday night, sorted. 18+. 🎟 £20 - Book a laugh

Big Love UK: Fleetwood Mac Tribute
📅 Sat 7 Nov | 19:30-23:00 | 📍 Corn Exchange, Hertford
Rumours, Tango in the Night and the best of Stevie Nicks, all played totally live. Post-fireworks plans? This is it. 🎟 £15 adv, £18 door - Go your own way here

Sing-along-a-Dolly
📅 Thurs 12 Nov | 19:30-22:00 | 📍 St Andrew's Church, Hertford
A crowd karaoke night celebrating Dolly Parton's biggest hits. Jolene, 9 to 5, Islands in the Stream... you know every word, don't pretend otherwise. 🎟 Book here

The Nature of Forgetting
📅 Wed 11 - Thu 12 Nov | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
Theatre Re's award-winning show follows Tom, living with young onset dementia, as memories flood back before his 55th birthday party. Over 200 performances worldwide, five-star reviews everywhere. Bring tissues. 🎟 £18-£25 - See it here

Lucy Porter: Let Yourself Go
📅 Thu 12 Nov | 20:00 | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
A brand new show about using your midlife crisis to reinvent yourself. Warm, sharp and very, very funny. Fitting, given the 59-day theme. 🎟 £25.50 - Let yourself go here

UK Pink Floyd Experience
📅 Fri 13 Nov | 19:30 | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
Songs from all 15 studio albums, from the Syd Barrett years to The Endless River, with a full light show. Money, Time, Comfortably Numb: they're all on the setlist. 🎟 £31.50 - Shine on here

Pottery Workshop: Tealight Houses
📅 Sat 14 Nov | 10:00-12:00 | 📍 Tewinbury Farm
Bryony Applegate shows you how to slab-build two ceramic Christmas houses with cut-out windows and snowy roofs. They're glazed and kiln-fired for you, ready to glow with a tealight. 🎟 £55pp - Book a spot

Christmas Wreath Workshop
📅 Sat 14 Nov | 14:00-15:30 | 📍 Tewinbury Farm
Hertford's own Flowered Up guides you through a full, fragrant wreath using fresh winter foliage, cones and berries. Your front door will thank you. Limited spaces. 🎟 £65pp - Get crafting

🎶 More live music: jazz tribute Ella Fitzgerald & Friends at Hertford Library (Wed 11 Nov), punk legends Ruts DC (Wed 11 Nov), Totally Blondie (Fri 13 Nov) and Imagine The Beatles (Sat 14 Nov) at the Corn Exchange, plus Marcel (Fri 13 Nov) and Abbie Gathard (Sat 14 Nov) by the fire at The Stable, Tewinbury. See who's on

🏰 Community + Family

🗓 Don't forget this weekend: Ware's big Firework Display (Sat 7 Nov), the 45-stall Christmas Winterfest Market at Southern Maltings (Sat 7 - Sun 8 Nov) and the Remembrance Parade and Service (Sun 8 Nov, gather at the War Memorial from 10:30). Roads around Millbridge, The Wash and Fore Street close 10:00-13:00 on Sunday.

FAT MOD Records Pop-Up Vinyl Shop
📅 Sat 7 Nov | 10:00-16:00 | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
Crates of vinyl to dig through, plus open decks for experienced and first-time DJs. Pair it with the Food Swap downstairs for a very Hertford Saturday morning. 🎟 Free entry - Dig in

Coffee Morning with Josh Dean MP
📅 Fri 13 Nov | 📍 Hertford (venue shared on sign-up)
Our MP is hosting a cuppa and a chat about the things that matter most to you. Potholes, trains, schools, whatever's on your mind. Places are limited, so sign up early. 🎟 FREE - Sign up via the link in his bio

Hertford Farmers Market + Meet Your Local Councillor
📅 Sat 14 Nov | Market 08:30-13:00, councillors 10:30-12:30 |📍Market Place & Salisbury Square
Local cheese, honey, preserves and more from the people who make them. Councillors will be in the Market Place too, no appointment needed, if you've got something to raise.

🌱 Health + Wellbeing

Yin Yoga & Reiki Healing with Abbie
📅 Sun 8 Nov | 19:00-20:30 | 📍 The Secret Space, 105 Fore Street, Hertford
Long, slow yin holds plus hands-on reiki (fully clothed) to calm the nervous system before the week starts. All levels welcome. 🎟 £25 - Reserve a mat

Ladies Day: Padel & Pilates
📅 Sun 8 Nov | 13:30-15:00 | 📍 Country Padel Club, Ware, SG11 1EF
Start with a feel-good Pilates session on court, then move into a social padel mix-in with a coach on the sidelines for tips. Free-flowing drinks are included. All equipment and coaching included. Only 12 spots. 🎟 £35 (members £28) - Grab your racket

Sound Bath with Loren
📅 Sat 14 Nov | 19:00-20:15 | 📍 The Secret Space, 105 Fore Street, Hertford
Lie back and let crystal bowls, gongs and chimes wash over you after a grounding meditation. Bring a pillow, a blanket and zero plans for afterwards. 🎟 £20 - Book in

📣 Town Talk

Four trains an hour are back at Hertford North. Great Northern is restoring a four-trains-an-hour service between London and Hertford North. The uplift is for the off-peak service, Monday to Saturday, and arrives with December's timetable change. Read more

A new artisan bakery is coming to town. The Village Bakery: a traditional artisan bakery is on its way to Hertford, with sourdough, fresh pastries, cakes and patisserie, sandwiches and savouries. Occasion cakes, bespoke catering and corporate lunches will be available to pre-order. Follow for opening news

Council shake-up on hold. The government has withdrawn its plan to replace Hertfordshire's district councils with four new unitary councils, so next May's local elections will go ahead on the existing boundaries. Reorganisation isn't cancelled, just paused, with new decisions expected from the end of this year. Full story

Could buses come under local control? Herts County Council has started a year-long assessment into franchising bus services across East Herts, North Herts and Stevenage, which could mean more say over routes, fares and reliability. A decision is expected in late 2027. Details

Last call: transport consultation closes Monday. The county's Local Transport Plan consultation (buses, trains, cycling, road safety and EV charging up to 2050) closes on Mon 9 Nov. Five minutes now, better journeys later. Have your say

Kiddies Scoop

LEGO Club
📅 Every Friday | 16:00-17:00 | 📍 Hertford Library
Building challenges that sneak in problem solving, spatial awareness and creative thinking. Ages 5-11; under-8s need an adult. Places are limited, so book at the library or call 0300 123 4049. 🎟 £4.40 per session - Info here

Dear Zoo Live!
📅 Sat 14 Nov | 📍 BEAM, Hertford
The much-loved lift-the-flap classic leaps onto the stage with puppets, music and lots of audience interaction. Just 55 minutes with no interval, ideal for little attention spans. Ages 1+. 🎟 £13.50-£17.50 - Book now

FarmFit Kids: Coming Soon
📅 Mondays & Wednesdays, after school | 📍 Farm Fitness
Farm Fitness (once voted the best gym in the world by Men's Health) is bringing its outdoor kids' sessions closer to home. Think farm-inspired workouts building strength, confidence and teamwork in the fresh air, plus HYROX Youngstars for older kids and daytime sessions for home-educated children coming soon. 🎟 Watch this space

👶 Little ones: BEAM's baby and toddler classes (Little Bees music, Jigsaw, Move & Meditate, Baby Massage and The Milk Bar for new mums) are all running this term. See the timetable

🔥 Eye Catching Deals

Supper Club at The College Arms
📅 Every Mon & Tue | From 17:00 | 📍 The College Arms, Hertford Heath
Midweek treat sorted: gather your friends and let someone else do the cooking. 🎟 2 courses £20 | 3 courses £25 - Book a table

☕ Quick win: Costa Express coffees are just £1.99 until Sun 8 Nov at participating machines (regular size, excludes syrups and limited editions). Find a machine

🏡 Property Of The Week

Fordwich Rise, Hertford, SG14

If you've ever walked past a Hertford garden and thought "who lives there?", this could be the answer. This four-bedroom detached home sits on a generous plot on popular Fordwich Rise, and the star of the show is out the back: a mature, private garden nurtured over many years, with a sweeping lawn, established borders, a planted pergola and a terrace with a water feature.

Inside, around 2,043 sq ft (including the garage) gives you a bay-fronted living room with an exposed brick fireplace, an 18ft dining room opening onto the terrace, a kitchen overlooking the garden, a utility room, a study and a ground-floor shower room. Upstairs, the 26ft principal bedroom has its own roof terrace with far-reaching views.

It's ready for a modern refresh, with scope to extend (subject to consents). Add parking for several cars, a 32ft tandem garage and an easy walk to Hertford North, just in time for those four trains an hour. Freehold. Marketed by Morgan Alexander.

🔗 Take a look inside

🌦 Hertford Weather: 3 - 9 Nov 2026

A grey but mostly dry week, with highs of 9-12°C and very little chance of rain. Today is the mildest day at 12°C, with a 24% chance of a shower. Thursday is the driest day of the lot (just 5% chance of rain), and the wind drops to a gentle breeze from Friday.

Fireworks Saturday stays dry and mostly cloudy with a light northerly breeze, but it's chilly, dropping to 5°C, so hats, gloves and a flask of something hot for the Ware display. Remembrance Sunday brings the brightest skies of the week with partly cloudy sunshine, though it starts at a crisp 4°C, so wrap up for the parade.

Best days: Thursday for staying dry, and Sunday for a bit of sunshine.

✨ Mind, Health + Fitness

🎯 The Final 59: Your Finish-Strong Plan

No resolutions, no guilt, no "new year, new me". Just three small promises to make the last two months of 2026 count.

1. Finish one thing. The half-read book. The spare room. The online course you paid for in March. Pick one, put a date on it, and enjoy the smug glow on 31 December.

2. Start one thing. Why wait for January when you could have a head start? Try a sound bath, an art class or a round padel. Doing something new, even once, gives the year a fresh memory to end on.

3. Enjoy one thing, on purpose. Book the comedy night. Go to the market without a list. Say yes to the coffee. A good year isn't just about what you achieve, it's also about what you actually remember.

💪 The simple weekly check-in: Every Sunday evening, ask yourself three questions. What went well? What's one thing I'll do this week? Who could I do it with? Two minutes, a notepad, done.

🧁 Extra Sprinkles

102 Years of Hertford North

With four trains an hour about to return, it feels like the right week to tip our hats to Hertford North.

The station opened on 2 June 1924, replacing an older station known until 1923 as Hertford Cowbridge, which sat on the branch line from Hatfield. The new station put Hertford on the Hertford Loop, the line that leaves the East Coast Main Line near Alexandra Palace and rejoins it just south of Stevenage, giving trains a handy diversion route and giving Hertford a direct line into London.

It sits 19.6 miles from King's Cross, about a ten-minute walk from the town centre on North Road. And it's busier than ever: it had more than 1 million passenger entries and exits in 2024-25.

So next time you're waiting on platform 1, spare a thought for the Cowbridge commuters who came before you.

🗓 Save the date: Mudlarks Christmas Craft Fair 📅 Sun 15 Nov | 11:00-16:00 | 📍 Mudlarks Café, Hertford

🎁 Stocking filler sorted: The Official Hertford 2027 Calendar is out now, featuring 12 of the best local photos from this year's competition. £12.99 from the Hertford Town and Tourist Information Centre. More here

You’re now fully up to date, Hertford.

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