Great Stuff from Our Sponsors & Advertisers (Oct 19)

Cavendish Cancer Buddies

Cavendish Cancer Care are growing their popular Cancer Buddies scheme to support more people in Sheffield. In 2018, the scheme was highly commended for the Volunteering Award at the Sheffield Making A Difference Awards. Now it's expanding and aims to connect more people in need.

The scheme trains volunteers, who have either had cancer themselves or cared for someone with cancer, to support someone else in a similar situation. Volunteers are guided by the highly qualified cancer support staff at Cavendish, ensuring a high standard of support rooted in therapeutic principles.

"The purpose of Cancer Buddies is to pair you with someone who's totally removed from your life, but also gets what is happening. It's a non-judgemental support network, and one that so many people desperately need," said Kim Scott, who oversees the scheme.

The Cavendish Cancer Buddies scheme is welcoming applicants. If you think you might benefit from having a Cancer Buddy, contact Kim Scott on 0114 278 4600 or K.Scott@cavcare.org.uk.

Sheffield Philharmonic Orchestra

Sat 9 November, Victoria Hall

Next month the Sheffield Philharmonic launches its 74th season with the first event in a series celebrating the work of women composers. On 9 November the orchestra will play work by the innovative Clara Schumann and the lesser known but no less important Louise Farrenc.

2019 marks the 200th anniversary of Schumann's birth, so in celebration the Philharmonic will showcase the world premiere of a new orchestral arrangement of her '4 Pieces Caractéristiques', which was originally written for solo piano. Opening the event will be Farrenc's 'Overture no. 1 in E minor', her first overture and widely considered an 18th-century masterpiece.

Conducted by George Morton and featuring Charlotte Pinder on violin, the SPO will also give renditions of Tchaikovsky's 'Sérénade mélancolique' and Brahms' 'Symphony no. 2 in D major'. The event runs from 7pm to 9:30pm.

Event tickets and season tickets are available on the website, with plenty more concerts to come. Discounts on season tickets are also available on the Now Then App.

Dry Wit Comedy Night

Tue 19 Nov, Theatre Deli

Can you have a laugh without having a drink? That's the serious question posed by this upcoming comedy night at Theatre Deli.

Hosted by Drink Wise, Age Well, a programme encouraging healthier choices as people age, Dry Wit (brilliant name) is positioned mid-week, in part because an alcohol-free night poses less of a challenge to the morning rise. As the promoter rightly notes, there's also no need for a designated driver.

A £10 deposit puts you in front of sets from veteran stand-up Jo Caulfield, Archie Kelly (perhaps best known as Kenny Senior from Phoenix Nights, but well respected on the live circuit too), and 'lolternative' rockstar and musical comedian Christian Reilly.

Tickets are available via Eventbrite and doors open at 7pm. Go on, give it a shot (no, not that kind of shot).

University of Sheffield Concerts

As evidenced by their regular appearances in our monthly Live Picks, University of Sheffield Concerts offer high-calibre events at reasonable price points. Their recently announced 2019-2020 season encompasses folk, contemporary classical and international sounds, including some big names alongside up-and-coming stars.

Aidan O'Rourke and Kit Downes come to Firth Hall on 17 October, playing tender folk music from O'Rourke's 365: Volume Two. Closely afterwards on 24 October, Now Then favourites Ligeti Quartet take the stage to provide modern contemporary music, with vocals from Sheffield-based soprano Ella Taylor.

On 31 October, Jonathan Best of Yorkshire Silent Film Festival plays a piano score for Nosferatu, and on 16 November the baton is passed to Propellor, whose current live show, 'Loom', takes in folk, jazz, classical, field recordings and electronics for an 'in the round' experience like no other, with a guest appearance from Bellowhead's Jon Boden.

Gatling Guitars

Hoyland Ind Estate, S3 8AB

As we so aptly put it in a recent profile of the business, "Music should be about rocking out, not selling out" - and that's very much the ethos behind Gatling Guitars.

A family-run venture based in Neepsend, Gatling has its USP nailed - friendly, no-pressure service combined with electric and acoustic instruments from specialist brands you might not find elsewhere, including Duesenberg, Art & Lutherie, Baton Rogue and Godin. They also stock basses, ukeleles, accessories and amps.

There's an on-site workshop for repairs and they offer free set-up to cater to your own playing style. There are also 12-month interest-free finance options available.

If this has piqued your interest and you're free on 26 October, get yourself down to Gatling for their D'Addario String Day. If you book in, you'll get a free set of strings installed by D'Addario. Sign up on their website from 1 October.

Festival of Debate 2020

Call for event proposals

Since 2015, the company behind Now Then has hosted Festival of Debate, an annual series of events exploring politics and society in the 21st century. This year Opus hosted 60 events in collaboration with over 50 local partners, from universities to interested individuals, and next year will be no different.

Planned to take place across a six-week period in late April and May, FoD 2020 is being mapped out as we speak. As ever, we are really keen for anyone who is interested in running an event as part of the festival to get in touch. We are comfortable with all approaches to co-working, from light-touch event delivery support to sitting down with you to talk over your proposal in detail.

If you're interested, fill in the form which is pinned to the top of our Twitter and Facebook pages and we'll be in touch.