third fridays : events for the creative community

On the Third Friday of the month, Talking Birds hosts a programme of meetings, talks, walks, workshops and co-working devised by, and for, the creative community. (Programme listed below).

Creative Co-working happens every Third Friday afternoon – you can just drop in and use a bit of deskspace and avail yourself of the wifi, refreshments and company. We also offer a number of small workshops or discussions alongside this – in addition to our popular one-to-one funding, project and/or DYCP advice surgeries. All activities are free, but we ask you to please book in if you can, to help us manage numbers.

You’re also invited to Bring Your Own packed lunch on Third Fridays (or pop to the Sandy Lane chippy or other local takeout) – these open lunches are an opportunity to connect and chat with Talking Birds and anyone else who turns up. When the weather is nice, we get the pavement tables out. When it’s less nice, well, The Nest has heating and blankets so we make the best of it – we look forward to welcoming you to The Nest soon.

Places are free, but please book in to let us know you are coming!

Friday 19th June 2026

June 19th’s Third Friday activities will be guest curated by our friends at Media Mania.

In the morning will be the regular F13 Network Meeting for the CV-based creative community, and Lily Smith will be talking about her new book, The Grassroots Musician’s Guide To Coventry. Plus the usual Hive Mind (bring your creative conundrums) and PlugFest (promote your events/opportunities).

Doors: 10.30. Meeting starts 11am.

There’ll also be an opportunity to tour Media Mania’s Powerhouse recording studio.

In the afternoon Media Mania will be running a SoundMapping Workshop where you can try your hand at making some field recordings around the local area, then see how your sounds can be edited together into a soundscape. A chance to experiment with sound, no previous experience necessary. 2-4pm.

All activities are free but places on the Workshop are limited, please book in here.

Co-working will also be running as usual 1.30-4.30pm

Friday 17th July 2026

Towpath PhotoWalk led by Adele Mary Reed. 10.30am-12.30pm

Our now traditional end-of-term sociable photowalk exploring the canalside environs of The Nest, via Adele’s creative prompts. Dress for the weather and bring your camera (analogue and digital equally welcome).

Bring your own picnic and stick aound for a sociable post-walk communal lunchtime.

Places are free, but please book in to let us know you are coming!

Creative Co-working 1.30pm-4.30pm

Zine-making workshop 2pm-3.30pm

A drop-in workshop session exploring zine making, its history and some techniques that can be used for creating and printing zines. Resources will be available to make a 1 page zine from A4 paper. Led by Sarah-Beth.

August – Summer Break [Nest is Closed]

Friday 18th September 2026

F13 network gathering 11am-12.30pm

F13 peer support network open to all in the local creative community – will include regular features: Hive Mind (get help/advice/new perpsectives from those in the room when you share your creative conundrum) and Plug Fest (plug your upcoming projects, performances and events). Doors open at 10.30am for coffee and socialising.

Creative Co-working 1.30pm-4.30pm

Friday 16th October 2026

Nestival of Ideas Panel Discussion (subject TBA)

Creative Co-working 1.30pm-4.30pm

Friday 20th November 2026

F13 network gathering 11am-12.30pm

Creative Co-working 1.30pm-4.30pm

Friday 18th December

Creative Co-working 1.30pm-4.30pm

Festive Art Party 6pm-9pm

Coffee for the Curious

Everything in the programme is free (including our excellent tea & coffee), but we ask you to book in so that we know how many chairs to put out & how much coffee to brew. Morning programmes run 10.30am-12.30pm unless otherwise stated, and afternoon programmes 1.30-4.30pm (BYO lunch and eat together with us between 12.30 and 1.30pm).

If you are curious, but have never visited before, people often find that dropping in to an afternoon co-working session is a really good way to get the measure of The Nest (the space, the people and the vibe). You can ask us questions, chat to others or just park yourself quietly and get on with stuff – whatever works for you. We look forward to welcoming you to The Nest really soon.

Access

You can find full details for Getting to the Nest here.

We try hard to make The Nest as welcoming as possible to everyone who comes – there is step-free access to the building and accessible gender-neutral toilets. To give you an idea of what to expect, you can take a look at this video tour of The Nest, with BSL interpretation & captions.