8th May 2021 • Secret Location, Sussex

Enjoy an evening in nature and listen to the remarkable song of the nightingale.

Each year, for a short period mid-April, a few thousand nightingales fly to southern UK from Africa. They can be heard in just a small number of special locations, taking up songful residence after dusk. The territorial males serenade loyally each night for no more than six weeks among the blackthorn and forest margins, giving unbelievable privilege to those who know where to go.

Your ticket gives you:

• An early-evening guided nature walk, where you’ll learn about the local habitat and wildlife
• A delicious vegan dinner and drinks provided beside the campfire with Sam Lee, your nightingale expert
• A late-night trek into the woods to find the nightingale and listen to his extraordinary song

On-site camping options are available – please see ticketing for more information.

This event is not the same as our Singing With Nightingales evenings, which feature live performances by Sam Lee and guest musicians, including a duet with the birds themselves. For more information on those events please click here.

In this modern age, with biodiversity in decline and habitats being eroded, the Nightingale has become representative of all that we have to lose. The nightingale is a small, brown, unremarkable looking bird, but it possesses one of nature’s finest singing voices. The bird winters in Africa but spends April to July mating and nesting in Europe and the Middle East. Worldwide, the population is healthy but the numbers visiting England have declined so sharply that it is now on the UK’s Red List of species of the greatest conservation concern.

One of the most memorable features of the nightingale’s song is its rich variety – taking in mellow tones, flute-like sequences and a wide array of chatters, rattles and whistles. A typical singer may use 180 different riffs while a truly accomplished performer may incorporate around 250.

This event will be following all the latest Covid-19 guidelines. We will all ticket holders with more information on what to expect.