HAVERFORDWEST town centre is expected to be busy today as Haverfoodfest 2026 returns for a full day of food, drink, music and family entertainment.

The popular food and drink festival is taking place today, Saturday, May 2, from 10:00am until 4:00pm, with free entry.

This year’s event is being promoted as “the big one”, with artisan produce, street food stalls, busker stops and live entertainment planned across the centre of town.

Organisers say high-quality food and drink stallholders from Wales will be based around Quay Street, Castle Square, the Old Bridge and Riverside, with tasters and special offers available throughout the day.

Among the stalls listed for this year’s festival are local and Welsh food producers, hot food traders, sweet treats, drinks, cheese, chocolate, vegan food, crêpes, barbecue and other artisan produce.

The event is also set to include music, choirs, buskers, free face painting and family activities, helping to bring a festival atmosphere to the county town.

Haverfoodfest has become one of Haverfordwest’s best-known town centre events, drawing visitors into local streets and supporting existing shops, cafés, pubs and businesses.

The festival website says: “Haverfoodfest is back on May 2nd 2026 with high-quality food and drink stallholders from Wales on Quay Street, Castle Square, The Old Bridge and Riverside with lots of tasters and offers of great food and drink.”

Visitors are being encouraged to head into town during the day, enjoy the stalls and entertainment, and support local traders.

More information is available at www.haverfoodfest.co.uk.

Bill Hamblett’s father helped write the 1956 film script — and his childhood brought him into the orbit of Gregory Peck

THE MAN helping bring a giant lantern parade to life at Fishguard and Goodwick’s Ar Ymyl y Tir/On Land’s Edge Moby Dick-themed festival in September has a remarkable personal connection to the great white whale itself.

Bill Hamblett, director of Cardigan’s Small World Theatre, was a near-neighbour of Hollywood star Gregory Peck during his childhood in California. Even more unusually, Bill’s father, Charles Hamblett, was one of the screenwriters who helped shape John Huston’s classic 1956 film Moby Dick.

“Basically, dad was one of the guys employed to turn Herman Melville’s prose into screen dialogue,” said Bill, who has run Small World Theatre with his wife Ann since 2008.

“He’d decided to go from being a journalist and poet in the UK to trying to crack Hollywood.”

Bill remembers growing up in Santa Monica during the late 1950s and being aware of famous names passing through his family’s world — even if he didn’t fully understand their importance at the time.

“As a kid in Santa Monica I remember being dropped round at Gregory Peck’s house,” he said.

“And I’m pretty certain that John Huston’s daughter, Anjelica, came round to ours for my sister’s birthday party.

“But I’m afraid I don’t have strong memories of Gregory Peck – I wasn’t a particularly starstruck little boy!”

The experiences Charles Hamblett gained during the 1954 Moby Dick shoot off Fishguard later inspired him to write the surreal fantasy novel The Crazy Kill. In the book, Peck becomes ‘Gregory Pinch’ and Huston is reimagined as ‘John Simpson’, in a story that draws on real events but twists them into fiction.

“The Crazy Kill is essentially a pastiche of Moby Dick written in the slang of the 1950s,” Bill explained.

He added that his father’s life was filled with unusual encounters and unexpected chapters.

“You could say dad had a varied and interesting career – he used to hang out with Dylan Thomas, Brendan Behan and all those guys,” he said.

“He also dropped acid as part of the CIA’s secret experiments and later wrote an article about the experience.”

Charles Hamblett later teamed up with journalist and poet Jane Deverson to publish the influential 1964 book Generation X, exploring the emerging mod and beat youth culture.

For Bill, his father’s work remains a striking behind-the-scenes snapshot of the era — and a rare insight into how a major Hollywood production came to west Wales.

“The Crazy Kill’s insight into Huston and Peck is absolutely spot-on and a remarkable snapshot of how Hollywood came to west Wales to make a film about a whale in the middle of the ocean,” he said.

“Huston got that film completed through sheer grit, guts and tenacity and looking back it was a remarkable cinematic achievement – they lost three of those bloody model whales during the filming!”

Bill says it feels strange that, decades later, the story of Moby Dick has returned to his life through the festival.

“And, as a three-year-old child, I was on the periphery of it all,” he said.

“Now that I’m 73, Moby Dick is once again coming back into my life. I mean, you couldn’t make it up, could you?”

For more information about the Ar Ymyl y Tir/On Land’s Edge festival, visit onlandsedge.co.uk.

CAREW TIDAL MILL will offer free admission after 3:00pm on Saturday, May 9, and Sunday, May 10, to mark National Mills Weekend.

The special offer gives visitors the chance to step inside one of Pembrokeshire’s most distinctive historic buildings and discover more about Wales’ only intact tidal mill.

For anyone who has enjoyed a walk around the Millpond but never been inside, the weekend provides an ideal opportunity to explore a rare piece of industrial heritage.

National Mills Weekend is the UK’s annual celebration of milling heritage, coordinated by the Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings. Each May, hundreds of windmills and watermills across the country open their doors to the public, helping to raise awareness of the importance of conserving these historic landmarks.

Grade II* listed Carew Tidal Mill is one of only five restored tidal mills in the UK and is regarded as a nationally significant survivor of early renewable industrial technology.

Although milling at the site ended in 1937, the original machinery remains in place, giving visitors a fascinating glimpse into the past.

Visitors can explore the Mill’s history through interactive displays, exhibitions and audio commentary, learning how water power was harnessed for centuries as a source of sustainable energy.

Daisy Hughes, manager of Carew Castle and Tidal Mill, said: “Carew Tidal Mill is a remarkable example of Wales’ industrial heritage and an important reminder of how natural resources were once used to power local communities.

“National Mills Weekend is a wonderful opportunity to welcome visitors inside and share the story of this unique building.”

Free entry to Carew Tidal Mill will be available from 3:00pm to 4:30pm on both days. Last admission is at 4:30pm and the Mill closes at 5:00pm.

Free admission applies to the Mill only and does not include entry to Carew Castle.

Visitors are advised that access to the Tidal Mill is via steps.

More information is available at www.carewcastle.com.