VARIOUS walks and talks taking place during the festival will be delving into the past of both the city and the country.

The Worcester Walks series, organised by the city’s expert team of green and blue badge guides, has been designed to take festival-goers on a journey through the ages.

Tomorrow they continue with a 90-minute tour celebrating the life of Dr John Wall (1708-1776). He was the first person to produce porcelain in Worcester, was a founder of the Worcester Royal Infirm-ary, a supporter and promoter of the Malvern Water Cure and he helped shape the Worcester of today.

The walk, taking in many sites associated with Dr Wall’s legacy, will set out from Huntingdon Hall at 5pm. Tickets cost £5.

A Worcester Past and Present walk will take place at 5pm on Saturday and the route will show how much the city has changed over the years.

On Sunday The Devil in Tudor and Stuart England will be the subject of a fascinating talk which is being held at St Swithun’s Church.

Dr Darren Oldridge, a history lecturer at the University of Worcester, will give the free talk – the first of the university’s new St Swithun’s Lecture Series.

He will talk about how the Devil was a commanding figure in 15th, 16th and 17th century England, playing a leading role in the religious and political conflicts of the age. Dr Oldridge he will also discuss the relationship between the Devil and God, and phenomena such as witchcraft and demonic possession.

The lecture series has been organmised by the university’s Early Modern Research Group as a way of bringing their work to the community.

Dr Andreas Mueller, co-director of the group, said: “These lectures will be scholarly, informed talks but accessible to members of the public and non-specialised audiences.

“The idea is to show people the interesting research we are carrying out and to share this with them.

“Dr Oldridge’s talk will not only be of interest to historians but anyone with an interest in how the Devil played such a hugely important role in this country at that time.”

The lecture will start at 2pm. For more details go to worcesterfestival.co.uk.