Arriving by car
Buckden Towers is located in the beautiful village of Buckden in Cambridgeshire.
Located just off the A1, the full address for SatNav / Google maps is Buckden Towers, High Street, Buckden, Cambridgeshire PE19 5TA.
There is plenty of free parking at the venue, including designated disabled parking for blue badge holders. The vehicle access into Buckden Towers is clearly signed off the High Street but the entrance is quite a sharp turn so approach with care. Once inside the entrance, every performance has parking marshals to assist you in finding the best place to park.
Designated disabled parking is available just past the entrance, with general parking further into the venue – requiring a walk of approximately 5 minutes to the hospitality area. If any of your party have mobility issues we’d recommend dropping them off near the disabled bays and then going on to park your car.

Refreshments at Buckden Towers
To help all our audience members make the most of their visit, the catering team at Buckden Towers will be offering a well-stocked bar and hot and cold food before each performance, as well as teas, coffees, cakes and ice cream at the interval.
Enjoy a baked potato (from £6.50), a pulled pork bap (from £6.50) or a traditional mini Ploughman (£5) and finish your meal with a slice of homemade cake (from £2.50) or a jumbo homemade scone (with jam and cream at £4). There will also be a selection of ice creams from £2, a perfect treat to enjoy while exploring the grounds of one of Cambridgeshire’s hidden gems.
You are welcome to bring your own picnic but it is worth noting that, as well as very little room in the auditorium for storing cool bags etc., all the proceeds from the food and drinks served at Buckden Towers will go towards the upkeep of the venue itself. There are a number of deckchairs and picnic tables in the hospitality area – although you are welcome to bring your own picnic chairs. Please note; the license does not allow for the consumption of any alcohol on the premises that isn’t purchased from the Bar at Buckden Towers so please do not bring alcohol into Buckden Towers either on its own or as part of a picnic.
Both the food stations and bar will be open a couple of hours before each performance to allow you to make your trip a real day / night out, and whilst we ask that no food is brought into the auditorium in the Knot Garden, you are more than welcome to enjoy any drinks purchased from the bar at the venue from your seat.
accommodation / bars nearby
For those wanting more of a formal, sit-down meal before the show, there are several great local bars / restaurants a stone’s throw away – and both The George Hotel and The Lion Hotel offer rooms if you’re joining us from further afield and need somewhere to stay for the night.
The Lion Hotel
44-48 High St., Buckden, St Neots, Cambridgeshire PE19 5XA
The George Hotel
39 High St., Buckden, St Neots, Cambridgeshire PE19 5XA
The Vine
High St., Buckden, St Neots, Cambridgeshire PE19 5XA
FAQS
Below you can find the answers to the most frequently asked questions. If you have any other questions that will help you get the most out of your visit, email us at info@satt.org.uk (although we may not be able to respond immediately):
You can access Buckden Towers at any time, although the car park marshals will be on site two hours before the start of the performance. Likewise, the food and drink on-site will be available from approximately two hours before the performance begins.
You are welcome to bring your own picnic but all the proceeds from the food and drinks served at Buckden Towers go towards the upkeep of the venue itself so we’d encourage you to do try and support the catering team.
There are a number of deckchairs and picnic tables in the hospitality area – although you are welcome to bring your own picnic chairs.
Only drinks purchased at Buckden Towers are allowed in the auditorium and we ask our audience not to consume food at their seats.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The venue’s license does not allow for the consumption of any alcohol on the premises that isn’t purchased from the Bar at Buckden Towers so please do not bring alcohol into Buckden Towers either on its own or as part of a picnic.
You are welcome to bring bring water and soft drinks but all the proceeds from the food and drinks served at Buckden Towers go towards the upkeep of the venue itself so we’d encourage you to do try and support the catering team. In addition, only drinks purchased at Buckden Towers are allowed in the auditorium.
IMPORTANT NOTE: The venue’s license does not allow for the consumption of any alcohol on the premises that isn’t purchased from the Bar at Buckden Towers so please do not bring alcohol into Buckden Towers either on its own or as part of a picnic.
All of the grounds are open to the public, including all the areas around the buildings (although not the buildings themselves). Unfortunately, during our production dates, access to the Knot Garden is restricted to help manage audience, cast and crew safety.
Our stewards will always attempt to seat latecomers but that may involve waiting until an appropriate time in the production so as not to inconvenience the other audience members or the performers.
It is a short walk including some unpaved surfaces which, whilst level for the most part, may pose a little bit of a challenge for those with mobility issues.
In the finest traditions of British outdoor theatre, the show will go on unless it is dangerous for either cast, crew or audience to continue. Regardless of the weather forecast, we recommend bringing some kind of waterproof as we do not allow umbrellas in the auditorium (as this may impair the view of other members of the audience).
If there are still tickets available you will be able to buy them on the night (afternoon for the matinee) but we’d recommend booking in advance to avoid disappointment, particularly as most performances sell-out several weeks in advance.
There are plenty of facilities on-site, including disabled and step free toilets. We hire in additional toilets for the two week run and both toilets in the step-free St Stephen’s hall have recently been refurbished and a new disabled toilet is accessible from outside St Stephen’s Hall with a radar key.
Only drinks purchased at Buckden Towers are allowed in the auditorium and we ask our audience not to consume food at their seats. If you have brought your own picnic please allow sufficient time to store it back in your car before the start of the performance.
Many of our patrons bring their own seat cushion. In case of rain we recommend bringing some kind of waterproof as we do not allow umbrellas in the auditorium (as this may impair the view of other members of the audience).
The Whippet bus number 66 goes to Buckden from Huntingdon and St Neots, both of which have railway stations with direct services to London and Peterborough. Unfortunately the 66 bus service ends at 1900 which means that you would need to book a taxi for the end of the evening performance. Another option is Tiger On Demand but this also terminates at 19.00.
Absolutely. Tours of The Towers are available by prior arrangement and operate from the 1st March to the 31st October. Please go to https://friendsofbuckdentowers.co.uk/ for more details or email admin@friendsofbuckdentowers.co.uk
Yes. Every year we produce an award-winning, full colour, 24 page programme with everything you need to know about the show, the cast, the crew and everyone else involved in the production.
We have reserved parking spaces for blue badge holders and drop off can be organised for patrons with mobility issues. Step free toilets are available in St Stephen’s hall and a new disabled toilet is accessible from outside St Stephen’s Hall with a radar key.
We have the facilities to take both.
Absolutely – and in fact we offer a reduced ticket price for anyone 16 or under. In addition, what many parents have told us is that the captioned evening is particularly good for younger audience members as it helps them better understand what is being said. However, the majority of our productions are over two hours long with few opportunities to leave during the performance, except at the interval, and the evening shows tend to finish after 10pm. You know your young people best and the final decision has to be yours.
The run time for the production this year (The Comedy of Errors) is approximately 2 hours 20 minutes, including a 20 minute interval.

