The Urbane Forager project

Alan Gibson is running a workshop on urban foraging at Turner Sims on Thursday 17 September, starting at 3:00 pm. It's part of The Urbane Forager project, which he also calls the Urbane Fruit Project, and it's built on the idea that foraging can change how you see your city. He talks about the different types of fruit growing just down the road from where you live and shows how produce gathered locally can be turned into juice.

The session isn't just a talk. It includes a 30-minute walk around Southampton Common, roughly a mile across grass and tarmac, where you'll learn to identify and taste what you find. Gibson is with the University of Southampton, and the workshop runs from the Turner Sims foyer.

The whole thing is part of the British Science Festival 2026, which the British Science Association and the University of Southampton announced will run for five days from 16 to 20 September. There will be around 100 free events, exhibitions, performances and installations across the city. It's Europe's longest-standing science festival, and it moves to a different place in the UK every year.

So, if you've ever wondered what's actually growing in the hedges and gardens you walk past every day, this is a good way to find out. It's free, it starts at 3:00 pm at Turner Sims, and you'll spend half an hour out on the Common.