📰 ELY — What’s Happening This Week
(curated by Ely Online Editor)

Sunday 6 September 2026

Ely is moving firmly into its September cultural season. The summer’s big outdoor events are winding down, but the next few weeks have some genuinely interesting things coming up — particularly Heritage Open Days, the West Tower evening climb, a new waterfront restaurant announcement, Gryphon at The Maltings and Ely Sinfonia.

🗞️ Latest Local News & Developments

🍽️ A new waterfront restaurant is coming to Ely

This is the most interesting new-business story I’ve found this week.

Quay & Fen is planned for Quay House on Ely’s waterfront, with chef Lee Bye overseeing the restaurant. Bye is currently chef patron of the four-AA-rosette Upstairs at the Mill at Tuddenham Mill.

The Grade II-listed Quay House is undergoing a significant refurbishment, with a bar and dining area plus a chef’s-table experience built around the kitchen. The restaurant is planned to open in spring 2027 and will focus on ingredients sourced from the Fens.

Status: CONFIRMED project, but opening is still some way off.

This is potentially a pretty significant addition to Ely’s restaurant scene — and rather more interesting than simply another generic café opening.

🍽️ Recent opening: Grain Kitchen & Bar

Meanwhile, Grain Kitchen & Bar is now open at Ely Leisure Village in the former Mangiare premises. It opened on 7 August and is an independent all-day restaurant serving modern British food with global influences.

So Ely currently has two restaurant stories worth watching: one open now and one potentially quite high-profile opening next year.

🏛️ Council & Planning

The City of Ely Council has its next Planning B meeting on:

Monday 14 September, 6:30pm
📍 The Maltings, Ely

This is followed by a Full Council meeting at 7pm. A further Planning A meeting is scheduled for 28 September at 6:30pm.

🎭 What’s On in Ely

🎴 Ely’s Pokémon Fair

Sunday 6 September, 10am–4pm
📍 The Maltings, Ship Lane, Ely, CB7 4BB
🎟️ £2 entry; under-12s free

A specialist Pokémon trading fair with stalls buying and selling cards, a room for battles and potentially an official Pokémon tournament/judge.

This is a very local, specific event — and exactly the sort of thing that can easily disappear from the larger tourist calendars.

Status: CONFIRMED — today.

🎵 Music News

🎸 The Joneses Present The Smiths

Saturday 19 September, 7:45pm
📍 The Maltings, Ship Lane, Ely

A full live tribute to The Smiths and Morrissey, with the band recreating the original arrangements and incorporating hits, B-sides and solo material.

Status: CONFIRMED.

🎻 Ely Sinfonia — Dvořák

Saturday 26 September, 7:30pm
📍 Ely Cathedral

The autumn concert features:

• Martinů — Rhapsody-Concerto for Viola and Orchestra
• Dvořák — Symphony No. 7
• A world premiere by David John Roche

Tickets are £25, £20 or £10, with under-18s paying £5 in the £20 and £10 sections.

This is probably the strongest classical-music event in the next few weeks.

🏛️ Heritage Open Days — 11–13 September

This is probably Ely’s most interesting weekend coming up.

🏰 West Tower Experience

Friday 11 September
📍  Ely Cathedral

Two evening sessions:

• 6:30pm
• 7:15pm

You climb the 288 steps of the West Tower for views across Ely and the Fens.

🎟️ £9 adults / £7.50 children aged 10+
⏱️ Approximately 45 minutes
⚠️ Advance booking essential; spiral stairs and a reasonable level of fitness required.

🌿 Physick Garden Talk & Tour

Sunday 13 September, 1:30pm
📍 Ely Cathedral Physick Garden

A guided look at the Cathedral’s medieval medicinal garden and the historical uses of the plants grown there.

🏰 Prior Crauden’s Chapel

Sunday 13 September

A rare opportunity to visit the 14th-century chapel, with its medieval wall painting and tiled floor.

⚠️ Currently fully booked, so I’m mentioning it as a useful example of an event that has sold out rather than suggesting people turn up expecting admission.

🏛️ More Ely events to put in the diary

📜 Where Monks Walked — Historic Precinct Tour

16, 17 & 19 September

📍 Ely Cathedral precinct

• 16 Sept: 10:30am
• 17 Sept: 2pm
• 19 Sept: 10:30am

The tour explores Ely’s medieval monastic buildings and includes Prior Crauden’s Chapel.

👶 Little Explorers

Friday 18 September, 10am–12pm
📍 Ely Museum, The Old Gaol, Market Street

Creative activities, stories and songs for pre-school children.

🐾 Animal Service

Sunday 20 September, 1:30pm
📍 Ely Cathedral

A wonderfully Ely event: bring your pets or working animals for a blessing. Dogs, cats, birds, reptiles and other animals are welcome; photographs can be brought for animals that can’t attend. No booking is required and proceeds go to animal charities.

🛍️ Markets

The Ely Saturday Craft, Food & Vintage Market continues throughout September.

Next market:

Saturday 12 September, 8:30am–3:30pm
📍 Ely Market Place

Expect local makers, bakers, vintage traders, books, antiques, artisan produce and street food. The market is also confirmed for 19 and 26 September.

And today, Sunday 6 September, there is also the regular Sunday Market, 9am–3pm.

🚗 Roads & Transport

Nothing significant and Ely-specific has emerged this week that warrants a major travel warning.

The sensible travel note is that September’s event programme is now becoming much busier, particularly around the Cathedral and Market Place, so expect more pedestrian activity and potentially tighter parking around major event dates.

🌦️ Ely Weather

The week looks quite pleasant overall, but with a noticeable change towards cooler, more autumnal conditions later in the week. Today is the warmest day, with temperatures around the mid-20s, while Tuesday brings a little rain and Friday has another chance of afternoon rain.

Best outdoor days: today, Monday and Wednesday.
For the Heritage Open Days: Friday currently looks reasonably mild but potentially damp later in the day.