Follow Along Friday | Posted on August 14th, 2026 | return to news
Follow Along Friday
Welcome to a new regular online column that eases Dorset into the weekend. It captures what’s on, what’s making the news and our favourite stories from the week. It is also your chance to get involved, sharing your weekend takes or plans. Let’s begin.
Speed-reading the week
As Dorset View’s new editor, I’ve survived my first week on the job and met some charming and inspiring people, and the team has published some great stories.
- The biggest story remains the ongoing dedication of the firefighting teams and related services tackling the New Forest fire. A hearty well done to all of them.
- My biggest local ‘win’ is the end of the Loch Fyne eyesore at Canford, soon to be replaced by the coastal and local flavours of Outlaw House.
- But the event of the week had to be the solar eclipse that got all of Dorset outside to (carefully) view the event, and perhaps the meteor shower later in the night.
Things to do this weekend
Some of the big and small events that you might want to head down to:
- Visit Poole Quay for the Working Boat Weekend and take a trip on the steamship SS Shieldhall.
- The Jurassic Fields Festival kicks off today and rolls over the weekend with the likes of Scouting for Girls, Feeder, and more of Bez (you’ll know if you were at Poole Harbour) rocking Bridport.
- If you want to hear more melodic voices, SOBO is hosting The Beach Sing on Saturday from 2PM. The mini-festival features the Funky Little Choir and Chicken Soup Choirs, all raising money for Julia’s House.
Lessons learnt locally
The perils of peanut butter
Local reporters MadeGood race around the supermarkets (Castlepoint gets a lot of their business) explaining the pros and cons of products we use every day.
From food to health products, poor packaging and other environmental issues, we can all learn in minutes some useful ways to save money or the planet.
In their latest short video, they explain all about the complexities of peanut butter. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lhSqHYbNYWc
Making good with wild mushrooms
Late August sees the first mushrooms popping up in the local woods and wilds, depending on the impact of summer.
As autumn arrives, there will be plenty, and everyone wants to know which we can eat, and which are dangerous.
We saw a huge mushroom on a recent walk, and Bridport’s Grown Up Mushrooms explained what it is.
Going on one of his Dorset foraging courses is probably the best way to learn what’s edible if you want to explore the local wilds for food.
NOTE: Dorset View accepts no responsibility for health issues arising your peanut allergy or choice of mushrooms.
If you have some locally sourced wisdom to impart to the Dorset View audience, let us know.
Talking point
The AFC Bournemouth kit kerfuffle continues
The reveal of AFC Bournemouth’s third kit dragged on the debate about the circular Vitality sponsor logo longer than most of us care for.
To add some balance, ultimately, Vitality pays lots of money to get their brand in front of UK (and European) football fans. And we can largely agree the Vitality brand is of higher quality than the previous Asian-focused gambling organisations, representing a local employer.
However, it would be good to think that the sponsor would pay attention to the fans and change the logo to a less ‘Teletubbies’ design. After all, a company is more than its brand colours.
What are your thoughts on the third ‘marshmallow’ kit design? And the overall sponsor furore? Let us know on Facebook.
The Friday photo
Today is World Lizard Day (thanks, National Trust, Brownsea Island for the reminder), so here’s one of a feisty pair captured from Pinecliff Gardens at Canford.
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