The start of BAG
It is likely that Buckfastleigh has had arts societies in the past but the present arts group started in 1995.

There were various factors that brought this about: at the time there were many working artists with studios in and around the town, and it was felt that regular open studio 'Arts Trails' would be a nice idea.

Also there were many local musicians and performers looking for an outlet for their talents, so the creation of a cabaret club was something of a priority.

BAG's inception came about around the same time as the ending of the hugely successful Bucaneers group who had been successfully serving parents with young families in the town for a number of years. Although not wishing to cater exclusively for children, many of the original BAG members felt that providing workshops and events for the younger members of the community was of particular importance.

Year-round events
Although right from the beginning we knew that staging week-long summer festivals would be an important aim for BAG, we were also keen to provide year-round happenings such as the Club Gorgeous cabaret nights at The George pub (now sadly demolished!) as well as regular bookings from the Villages in Action 'menu' programme. Many BAG events were self-funding and also helped raise money for the summer festivals.

The summer festivals
For three years in a row from 1996 to 1998, BAG staged fantastically diverse and ambitious festivals. There was so much it is hard to remember everything that we put on! But highlights include:

• the very first Poetry Picnic in the ruins of Holy Trinity Church
• an evening of Indian classical music
• a rock concert in Buckfast Community Hall featuring local bands compered by alternative comedian, Tony Allen, from London's Comedy Store
• and art exhibiton in Queen Victoria's railway carriage at Buckfastleigh Steam Railway
• a street theatre procession through the town telling a tale based on the legends of the evil squire of Buckfastleigh, with specially composed music from an 8-piece chamber ensemble
• Poetry Slams hosted by Radio 4's Matt Harvey
• and many, many arts and crafts workshops for both children and adults

Nine Days of Art
Because of the great working relationship that had developed between BAG and Teignbrigde District Council's Arts Officer, Doff Pollard, it was agreed that BAG should proceed with the creation of an open studio arts trail scheme that resulted in the now well established and successful Devon-wide Nine Days of Art venture (updated in 2008 to become the Devon Open Studios project).

Post millenium years
Although immensely proud of playing such a major part in the creation of Nine Days of Art, the large amount of taxing administrative work involved seemed to take the wind out of BAG's sails and left the group rather burnt out. Fortunately other Buckfastleigh community members such as Tim Stacey (who would later benefit BAG greatly) had energy and enthusiasm to help create festival events to fill the gap left by BAG's temporary absence.

BAG - Mk2
BAG came back to life in the summer of 2006 and has been greatly aided by Tim Stacey arranging donations of both money and equipment remaining from previous projects in which he was involved, including the Wool & Leather Festival of 2005.

So far the group has concentrated on creating public awareness by taking a stand at the annual Lamb Pie Day where a survey was conducted to gather information on the town's residents' wishes regarding the arts in Buckfastleigh. Also a special BAG Party was held in the Town Hall to guage interest in a proposed 'Summer of Love' Festival theme.

Along with the regular Open Mic Nites and Artists' Home Groups, BAG has also put on a successful Villages in Action event, an art exhibition in the Baker's Oven pizza restaurant, and with much more in the pipe-line for 2008 and beyond.