Downton Abbey gets the floral treatment in new Vancouver garden show
Downtown Abbey fans are up for a floral treat as the Vancouver bespoke floral show producer Fleurs de Villes is bringing its new floral show — Fleurs de Villes Downton — to Vancouver 's VanDusen Botanical Garden May 23-June 1.
Article content
The Fleurs de Villes show is a fresh floral celebration that will transport visitors to early-20th century England and the world of the aristocratic Crawley family and their devoted staff.
Article content
Article content
Article content
'Fleurs de Villes has a global history of floral storytelling, and we couldn't be more delighted to share the story of Downton Abbey 'en fleurs' in our own backyard,' Karen Marshall, co-founder of Fleurs de Villes said in a statement. 'We know Vancouver audiences will be captivated by the detail, the history, the artistry, and the flowers that Fleurs de Villes Downton Abbey, beautifully supported by Oakridge Park, will encompass. With each installation created by talented local floral artists, we are fulfilling our mission of elevating the floral arts and sharing our florists incredible talent with the public in the most remarkable settings.'
Article content
Admission to the floral exhibit is included in the price of admission to VanDusen Botanical Garden or with a Garden Membership.
Article content
Article content
Additionally, visitors can sip botanical-infused gin cocktails from the Wildflower Distilling Co. There will also be daily floral talks and demonstrations in the Fleurs de Villes JARDIN marquee tent and can check out botanical inspired culinary talks by Shaughnessy restaurant executive chef Matthew Phillip.
Article content
After strolling through the garden and the exhibit visitors can vote for their favourite for a chance to win an Oakridge Park shopping spree worth $1,500.
Article content
The experience continues downtown at the Oakridge Park Gallery (1067 West Cordova) where three more Downton Abbey-inspired floral mannequins will be on display.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Style Blueprint
5 hours ago
- Style Blueprint
A Very Downton Tea at Cheekwood's Café 29
As the curtain falls on Downton Abbey, Cheekwood Estate & Gardens invites guests to celebrate in grand style with Downton Abbey: The Grand Finale Tea on Thursday, September 11. This elegant, themed tea experience will transport guests to the 1920s and '30s, complete with jazz music, regal table settings, and refined fare inspired by the beloved series. Guests will enjoy specially selected Downton Abbey-inspired tea blends, champagne, classic scones with clotted cream, and sweet confections worthy of Mrs. Patmore's kitchen. The celebration also includes themed giveaways in partnership with Focus Features. Tea seatings are offered at 10–11:30 a.m., 1–2:30 p.m., and 4–5:30 p.m. Tickets are $75 per person for Cheekwood members and $75 plus general admission for not-yet members. Learn more HERE. Cost: $75
Winnipeg Free Press
14 hours ago
- Winnipeg Free Press
What's up: Beer, Manitoba Museum, Sookram's, mix and mingle
Winnipeg Beer Festival Winnipeg Beer Festival The eighth annual Winnipeg Beer Festival is back this weekend, with a lineup of warm-weather brews as well as some fun small-batch surprises. Two dozen producers will be on hand at Fort Gibraltar pouring samples of more than 70 lagers, ales and more, with most breweries bringing a mix of core pours and small-batch brews — some made special for the fest. Most of Winnipeg's bricks-and-mortar breweries will be participating, including Barn Hammer Brewing Co., Brazen Brewing Co., Kilter Brewing Co., Little Brown Jug and Fort Garry Brewing Co. A number of contract breweries (such as Dastardly Villain Brewing Co. and FullGeek BrewLab) will also be on hand. As for what's being poured at the fest, don't expect too many rich, boozy stouts or the like (although you never know what the locals have been secretly brewing); for the most part, the lineups shared on social media so far seem to be celebrating the warm summer days. Good Neighbour Brewing Co., for example, will be pouring its staple House Lime and House Lite alongside a 'surprise sour' and a small-batch, festival-only brew. Contract brewer Namesake Brewing will be pouring a number of summer-themed beers, including a lemon ginger sour and the Pump Fake pineapple India session ale. FullGeek, meanwhile, is offering two Mexican-inspired cervezas (one infused with lemon and the other with lime), as well as a grapefruit radler. For those looking to sample drinks beyond beer, Winnipeg's Patent 5 Distillery, Brat Cat Mead and Shrugging Doctor Beverage Co. will also be sampling their wares at Fort Gibraltar. In addition to the beers, food can be purchased on-site, and certain products will be available for purchase to take home as well. The event also includes live music and more. Tickets for each of the Winnipeg Beer Festival's two time slots (5-7 p.m. and 7:30-9:30 p.m.) are $50 plus fees, and include all beer/drinks samples; for more information and to buy tickets see Winnipeg Beer Festival. The event runs rain or shine. — Ben Sigurdson MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES The bison diorama at the Manitoba Museum is the starting point for adventures. MIKAELA MACKENZIE / FREE PRESS FILES The bison diorama at the Manitoba Museum is the starting point for adventures. There are approximately 26 days left before school starts again (not that we're counting), so get out of the house while you can and take advantage of the museum's excellent summer programs. They run until Sept. 1, which, as luck would have it, is also the date to which the Canada Strong Pass — which offers discounted admission to the museum — is valid. Kick off your day with a scavenger hunt, looking for Little Narwhal, who is lost somewhere in the museum. Pick up worksheets in the Welcome Gallery, next to the bison diorama, and keep your eyes peeled so you can tick as many things as possible off your list. The museum's rotation of activities run daily from 1 to 4 p.m. Step back in time on Mondays and Thursdays to the Cretaceous Period and compare dinosaur fossils to modern bird specimens. Explore how they evolved before searching through the sand in the museum's special Dino Dig to find the skull and deadly claws of the fearsome Deinonychus. Become a detective on Tuesdays and Fridays and examine the evidence left behind by people who lived in different historical periods in Manitoba. Learn the methods used by real-life archaeologists and get your hands on tools made thousands of years ago. On Wednesdays and Sundays, the Nonsuch Gallery will host fact sessions about whales, where you'll learn all there is to know about their biology, habitat and challenges facing their welfare. Looking for an awesome Arctic adventure? Then head to the Arctic/Sub-Arctic Gallery on Tuesdays and Saturdays to learn about northern wildlife, examine artifacts and play traditional Inuit games. You can also visit Parks Canada's interactive booth to explore how caribou shape Wapusk National Park's ecosystem. If you're tired out by all that activity then get off your feet for a well-deserved break at the Planetarium, which will be showing three films daily: Voyage of the Stars 10:45 a.m. and again at 1 p.m., Wilfred Buck's Star Stories at 11:45 a.m. and 3:15 p.m. and The Milky Way — Live at 2 p.m. Visit the website for more info. — AV Kitching People keep talking about South Osborne as the new Osborne Village. But what about that little enclave between Pembina Highway and the train tracks just beside Confusion Corner? With two whole breweries now, it seems deserving in a city like Winnipeg of some Instagram foodie influencer designating this 'best kept secret' with a marketable name. Iman Ali Dill the Giant (foreground) is among the artists featured at Sookram's today. Iman Ali Dill the Giant (foreground) is among the artists featured at Sookram's today. Little Osborne, Osborne Annex, Osborne Outpost. Anyway: its two breweries, Low Life and Sookram's, have been hosting more and more cultural events, giving this hamlet a growing sense of identity. Case in point: Fourth Quarter Records, which continues to be at the forefront of Winnipeg's hip-hop scene, hosts a live music showcase tonight at Sookram's. They've assembled a lineup of leading local hip-hop lights, including Ed Riley, LLEWE and Dill the Giant — who audiences can watch as they enjoy the bodega mini-market, with taste offerings from SnackXclusive, Intergalactic Sauces and Tot Wheels. (Fourth Quarter also seems to be sharing the DJ responsibilities with Frenchie's Records.) As for the live performers: Riley brings a charming lo-fi, acoustic vibe to his R&B stylings, reminiscent of Steve Lacy. LLEWE, from what we've heard from his more limited releases, makes emotional trap anthems with Caribbean elements. Meanwhile, Dill, who broke onto the scene as one-third of the 3peat trio, has made leaps and bounds as a solo artist in recent years. A few months ago, he released Ali Wan Kenobi Meets Mace Win Dill. The 20-minute collaboration with local producer Ali Wan Kenobi is without track breaks, running together like a DJ set. — Conrad Sweatman If you're a member of the autistic or neurodivergent community and are looking to meet new people, make new friends or maybe even find romance, this Mix and Mingle event is for you. Hosted by the aptly named Meaningful Connections for the Autistic and Neurodivergent Community, a local group that creates these kinds of opportunities, this event promises to be a chill evening where you can play some games and relax at Devil May Care's downtown location. This event is free, but those interested are asked to RSVP at the event page on Facebook or by emailing meaningfulconnectionswpg@ Note that this event is 18+. — Jen Zoratti
Winnipeg Free Press
30-07-2025
- Winnipeg Free Press
‘Downton Abbey' star Elizabeth McGovern brings Ava Gardner's tumultuous life to the stage
NEW YORK (AP) — For all of Elizabeth McGovern's acting career, someone else wrote her lines. Now it's her turn. The 'Downton Abbey' star pivots from British aristocracy to classic Hollywood royalty this summer to portray screen legend Ava Gardner in a play she wrote. 'It's an incredible feeling to see other people embrace these things that were in your head,' she says. 'My feet haven't touched the ground since we started working on this in New York. I am just loving it so much.' 'Ava: The Secret Conversations' examines the sometimes-prickly, sometimes seductive relationship between Gardner and Peter Evans, a journalist assigned to ghostwrite her memoir in the years before her death in 1990. Though Gardner pulled the plug on the project before its completion, Evans eventually published their conversations in 2013. That book is the basis of McGovern's play. She says she was intrigued by the idea of 'a star on the wane of her career, sitting with a guy trying to glean from her the story of her life, and the two of them battling it out to control the narrative.' About 'Ava: The Secret Conversations' Directed by Tony Award-nominee Moritz von Stuelpnagel, the production co-stars Aaron Costa Ganis as Evans, who also channels Gardner's three famous husbands: actor Mickey Rooney, bandleader Artie Shaw and performer Frank Sinatra. It begins performances off-Broadway at New York City Center starting this week. McGovern says she wasn't initially a huge fan of Gardner — famed for her green eyes, photogenic features and understated acting style — before she embarked on the project. It was more the idea of how a memoir can become a battleground for legacy and a way to explore Hollywood fame. McGovern made her screen debut at 20 in Robert Redford's 'Ordinary People' in 1980 and went on to co-star with Hollywood's leading men, including Robert De Niro, Brad Pitt and Sean Penn. She landed an Oscar nomination for Milos Forman's 'Ragtime.' It's a career with many similarities to Gardner. 'I feel like I do have a natural affinity for who she is. I feel like we would really like each other. I don't know, I'm flattering myself, but it's possibly because I had a kind of similar trajectory in my early life,' says McGovern. 'I mean, it was not on any level close to hers, but I understood the whole kind of mechanics of it.' Gardner's reputation as a sex goddess was fully launched in 1946 film 'The Killers,' in which she co-starred with Burt Lancaster. She also starred opposite Humphrey Bogart in 'The Barefoot Contessa' and Richard Burton in Tennessee Williams' 'Night of the Iguana.' McGovern says Gardner was caught in the impossibility of women's expectations at the time — be sexy but not sleep around. She had many lovers but also felt the shame society imposed. 'I think she was a kind of a feminist, in spite of herself, really,' says McGovern 'I hope people are inspired by that — by the fact that she just did whatever she wanted to do and lived with the consequences.' A screen siren at the end of her life By the end of her life and when the play is set, Gardner has been partially paralyzed after a stroke, had emphysema and lived in seclusion. She decided on a quickie memoir to keep the bills paid. 'All my life I was the Woman Men Dream About. That was the only job I ever had,' she wails in the play. 'Where does that leave me now?' The 90-minute play, which has had previous runs in Los Angeles and London, goes to Chicago and Toronto this fall after New York. McGovern initially took the idea to two different writers who failed to produce anything. So she turned to herself, watching movies and footage of Gardner to nail her speech patterns and reading whatever she could about the actor's inner life. 'I literally would act it out in my room to myself and then write it down. So it was natural to think of myself playing it, obviously, but then writing a part for somebody else to play, I couldn't think of a way to do it except by doing the acting of that part and then write it down.' Costa Ganis, her co-star, says 'she's doing something very bold and very daring and very scary' and he rarely meets a playwright so adaptable. 'I think the thing that's so fun about working with her is just that she's such a collaborator,' he says. Music helped McGovern the playwright McGovern developed the confidence to write her first play through songwriting. She is the lead singer and an acoustic guitarist for Sadie & The Hotheads, which released their debut album in 2007 and their latest in July, 'Let's Stop Fighting.' 'It kind of embraces a lot of different styles and then ends up with something of its own,' she says of the ethereal jazz-folk the band makes, which is waiting for an audience to catch up. 'We're still waiting. It's been quite a while, but I'm fine,' she says with a laugh. Weekly A weekly look at what's happening in Winnipeg's arts and entertainment scene. Costa Ganis hears McGovern's musicality throughout the play, an internal rhythm she understands: 'So if something doesn't play right, she has a great sense of what sounds good and what moves things along.' McGovern will be nearing the end of her New York turn as Gardner when the latest 'Downton Abbey' hits movie theaters Sept. 12 — subtitled 'The Grand Finale.' She admits that she and the cast initially dreaded returning after the death of Maggie Smith, an audience favorite. 'I think everyone was afraid that without Maggie, it's daunting to keep the thing going. But surprise, surprise, I think it's our best movie,' she says. 'It just kind of clicked.' McGovern, who like Gardner lives in London, does music, TV, and film but always finds room for theater, where the smartphones disappear and performers meet the audience. 'It's so healthy to have two hours where you only have one job and that job is basically just to be present and I really feel like it's good for the brain.'
