From Farleys 1st Annual Surrealist Picnic in 2017 on a glorious sunny afternoon in the sculpture garden, to our most recent summer extravaganza in the garden in August 2026, our picnic guests have always really embraced the chance to celebrate Surrealism, not only with their amazing, brilliantly inspired costumes, but also with their creative, suitably surreal picnic food. The Surrealist Picnic includes live jazz bands; Jonathan Bailey’s Quartet, and Pam and de Femmes have featured at previous picnics, with The Hot Club, a jazz quintet celebrating Django Reinhardt and the Quintette du Hot Club de France, becoming the picnic’s much loved regular house band. And for the first time in 2025 Farleys welcomed Opera to the garden for a special appearance. The picnic also boasts various entertaining, and often hilarious, surreal performances, and showcases stunning contemporary dance from artists including; Found Dances, Sonia Sonalisa who shared her beautiful Kathak dancing and Lucy Bailey who graced the garden with her exquisite belly dancing.
For 2026, we welcomed Brad Monks of Very Magic to entertain you with his brilliant, magical performance. And Derek Adams happily returned, with pen in hand, as the picnic’s resident poet at the ready to whip you up some surreal verse to order!
All the surreal action is caught by the lens of hugely talented, local photographer Jim Holden. If you attended the picnic in 2026 and would like to view and order a selection of Jim’s images please email: galleries@leemiller.co.uk
Each year there are scrumptious gluten free cakes lovingly made by Toll House Treats to purchase on the day, alongside tea and coffee, from a little pop-up market stall on the lawn.
And in 2026, for the first time, absolutely delicious Surrealist Picnic Boxes were available to pre-order, for an additional cost, made with the creative expertise of Natalie Curran of The Lindfield Kitchen.
If consuming delicious food and drink while wearing a wild and wacky outfit, and celebrating the fun and freedom of expressing your artistic imagination among like-minded friends is your idea of an afternoon well spent, then please do join us next August. We look forward to welcoming and entertaining you!
The Annual Surrealist Picnics have been made possible over the years with the generous support of:
Much Ado Books Alfriston – New and old books for readers and collectors
Mayo Wynne Baxter Your specialist solicitors in Sussex. Life can throw all sorts at you, some good and some not so good. When it does, we are here to help.
