“It’s the best fete in town!” says Martin Clunes, as a new ‘Weld Record’ is set at our Summer Fete

14th September 2026

A bumper turn out at Weldmar Hospicecare’s annual Summer Fete has seen an incredible, record breaking total raised for the charity.

A new ‘Weld Record’ of £36,128 has significantly exceeded the previous record of £28,000, set at the 2024 event at the hospice in Herringston Road in Dorchester.

Actor Martin Clunes was once again a star attraction, who described the event as ‘the best fete in town’, and said, “It [Weldmar Hospicecare] is a real treasure in our county.”

Fete coffers were boosted by the introduction of a voluntary donation to have a selfie taken with Mr Clunes, whilst performances from Rock Choir, the Dorchester Ukes, The Studio dancers, C Star Cosplay characters, singer Tony Lowe and others entertained a crowd of local families and supporters who had come along to enjoy the event.

Watch the highlights:

“A brilliant day”

Corporate Partnerships Fundraising Manager at Weldmar, Fiona Heaton, says: “I am absolutely staggered by the amount of money raised by the support of the local community at our Summer Fete this year. There was such an incredible buzz around the place. Youngsters loved seeing the characters, the music and dancing was non-stop, there were the most amazing cakes being served, and of course Martin Clunes was as popular as ever. Thank you to everyone who came along and made it into such a lovely day.

“Another fantastic aspect of our fete is seeing all areas of our wonderful charity come together and work so hard to put on a brilliant day. Many of our staff and volunteers manned games and stalls and played a part, from our nurses and their prize draws and tombolas, through to our complementary therapists providing soothing treatments, the pop up charity shop run by our retail team, and the finance staff counting the money as it rolled in through the day. It was a real team effort.”

The Weldmar Hospicecare Summer Fete 2026 was proudly supported by Avenue Interiors in Dorchester, and thank you to First Bus for providing a free shuttle service between the town centre and the hospice grounds. Weldmar also extends thanks to the many local businesses and organisations who donation prizes for the Mystery Box draw and many of the other stalls and attractions.