Interview with Alison Radevsky, Chair of the Devizes Food and Drink Festival

“The Devizes Food and Drink Festival is all about local people, whether they’re the producers or the consumers. We want the whole community to have fun and enjoy the events, getting together over sharing excellent food and drink.  So our aim has to be to reach more people from all walks of life, and offer great events at an accessible price.“
– Alison

A Taste of What’s to Come… The festival boasts a variety of events, from foraging banquets to brunches with renowned food writers. Could you share some highlights that attendees can look forward to this year?

People often don’t know that our festival is quite different from most food festivals – others tend to be a one day thing, but the Devizes Food and Drink Festival runs for 9 days, with 20+ events, that’s at least 2 events every day.  So there’s loads to choose from. Among them, and new this year, we’re planning a Wiltshire Feast, showcasing traditional and unusual Wiltshire recipes – we’re loving doing the research for that.  There’s our ever popular Murder Mystery Dinner, a Teddy Bears Picnic, World Food and Tales and Food from Greece.  Foodies can show off their knowledge at the quiz or come along to Quizzine where the questions are about the meal you’re eating.  And of course, there’s our opening artisan street market, which will be even bigger and better this year.

 

Dining in Unusual Places…The ‘Dine Somewhere Different’ series offers meals in unique settings. Can you give us a sneak peek into some of the unconventional venues planned for this year?

This year, we’re heading to the Devizes Men’s Shed, St Mary’s church, Indigo Antiques and aboard the wonderful Water Gypsy barge, plus another venue which might well be music-related, but my lips are still sealed.  We’re also hoping to have a little cocktail party mainly for the ladies, somewhere you definitely wouldn’t expect……

We love ideas for unusual venues, so if anyone reading this can offer us somewhere exciting for 2026, we’d be super grateful!

For the Love of Local…How does the festival support local producers and artisans, and why is this focus important to the event’s ethos?

We’re definitely the Devizes Food and Drink Festival – it’s all about local people, whether they’re the producers or the consumers.  We’ve linked up with Wiltshire Marque,  we prioritise Devizes and Wiltshire traders at our market and we’re delighted that many of our generous sponsors are Devizes -based.  Wherever we can, we source local ingredients, and love working with local suppliers.

 

Family-Friendly Festivities …Do you have any events at the festival that will cater to families?

We are looking forward to our ever popular Teddy Bears Picnic in Hillworth Park on Sunday 21 September – there will be a storyteller, games, and a teddy-themed picnic.  And we’re working with Sustainable Devizes to repeat their Lovely Lunch, a 2-course vegetarian lunch on 20^th, featuring locally sourced ingredients, designed to get young and old mixing, perfect for families.

 

Sustainability on the Menu …In what ways is the festival promoting sustainability and eco-friendly practices this year?

We’ve signed up to the Town Council’s plastic free pledge and are doing our utmost to reduce waste all round.  Sustainable Devizes is being a tremendous help.  We’ve worked with other local organisations to develop best practice for sustainable events, re-using or recycling, and using local produce wherever we can to reduce food miles.

Community and Charity…The festival has previously supported local charities. Will there be any fundraising initiatives or community partnerships this year?

Yes, we’re planning a raffle (for which we’re very grateful that Heritage Fine Food has donated a voucher!) and a repeat of our popular “Blind Date with a Foodie Book” – you just make a donation to unwrap a mystery food-related book.  Last year we donated to Devizes Opendoors, the Food Bank and the Mayor’s Charity.

Personal Favourites…Do you have a personal favourite event that you’re particularly excited about this year?

I LOVE World Food!  It’s such a fun, busy event and it’s wonderful that so many people can come along to get a taste of the flavours of different countries.  We have around 20 volunteer cooks each year, who produce taster portions of the food of their heritage – 5 tickets for 5 tasters (£3 total) will fill most people up!  We’re still recruiting cooks for this year, so if you’re a keen cook with roots elsewhere, please get in touch.

 

Looking Ahead…What is your vision for the future of the Devizes Food and Drink Festival under your leadership?

We want the whole community to have fun and enjoy the events, getting together over sharing excellent food and drink.  So our aim has to be to reach more people from all walks of life, and offer great events at an accessible price.  If you’re reading this and you love food, sign up to our newsletter on https://www.devizesfoodanddrinkfestival.info/sign-up to make sure you’re first in line to book tickets in August.  And we’re always on the look out for new ideas – do get in touch if you’d like to get involved or have a suggestion!

Quick-Fire Questions

Country picnic or hotel afternoon tea?  Afternoon tea from a rucksack on a walk

Sweet or savoury? Sweet, especially for breakfast

Cooking at home or dining out?  Cooking at home, though don’t tell my husband that – he might not take me out to dinner again

Devizes Pie or cheese board?  I’m mainly vegetarian, so it’s the cheese board

Wine flight or cocktail tasting?  Cocktails

Farm shop wander or food market buzz?  Market, though I always come away with far too much to carry

Foraging in the woods or browsing the deli?  Foraging – such fun!

A quiet supper or a full-on feast?  Feast

Brunch with friends or dinner with a view?  Brunch is definitely my FAVOURITE meal

Tea in a proper cup or coffee in a takeaway mug?  Tea – loose leaf and made in a pot, of course

Baking bread or stirring risotto?  Risotto – I’m no good at bread

Spicy street food or classic British comfort?  British comfort – I panic at too much spice

Food festival goer or food festival organiser?   Definitely both!

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