TORPOINT is set to host a week of activities celebrating Cornish arts and culture as Gorsedh Kernow takes place in the town. The festival week – Esedhvos – starts on Monday, September 1, and includes exhibitions, a book fair, Cornish dancing and a gala concert. The main open air ceremony will be held at Thankes Park from on Saturday, September 6, from 2pm. The theme of this year's Gorsedh Kernow conference is 'Brand Kernow'. Guest speakers, including comedian the Kernow King and Anna Pascoe of Cornish Orchards, will be discussing how to put the modern Cornish perspective at the heart of a brand for the county – and raise the profile of Cornwall's distinct culture. The conference will be held at Torpoint Council Chambers from 9.45am-3.45pm on Friday, September 5, and everyone is welcome to attend. The high point of the Gorsedh week will be the bardic ceremony. A procession from Torpoint Community College to Thankes Park and The Lawn will provide a spectacle of colour, as bards in their blue robes are joined by representatives of many Cornish organisations with their banners. A group of 23 new bards will be inaugurated in recognition of their work to serve Cornwall and the Celtic identity. Among those is Christine Stephens of Callington, who is receiving the bardship for her high level of proficiency in the Cornish language and her continuing work for Cornwall. The ever-increasing interest and activity around the Cornish language is reflected in the number of new bards recognised for work in this area, said Gorsesh Kernow communications officer Delia Brotherton. 'Music, drama and cultural heritage is also well represented among the new bards, as is the important work done by people from our sister Celtic nation of Brittany and from the Cornish diaspora, including Australia and New Zealand,' she said. The Cornish Gorsedh was established in 1928 with the aim of celebrating and promoting Cornwall's Celtic culture. 'We are especially proud this year because the Government has recognised the Cornish as a distinct group under the Council of Europe's Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities,' said Grand Bard Maureen Fuller. 'This recognition will give Cornish people the respect they deserve and the confidence to stand tall and be themselves, taking their place in the multi-cultural society that is Britain today.' Monday, Wednesday and Friday, September 1, 3 and 5 – 10am-4pm, 'Torpoint All at Sea', display of photos, documents and memorabilia at Torpoint Library Thursday, September 4 – At Torpoint Council Chambers 10.30am-3pm, Cornish Book Fair and photo displays 12 noon Book launch of 'Bards of the Tamar Valley' and 'Placenames of the Tamar Valley' Friday, September 5 – All at Torpoint Council Chambers 9.45am-3.45pm, Conference on 'Brand Kernow' 10.30am-3pm, Cornish books and old postcards 8pm Cornish Dance with Scoots Kernow and the Scoots Lyskerrys Band Saturday, September 6 – 11am Market stalls at Thankes Park/The Lawn 1.30pm Procession of bards from Torpoint Community College to Thankes Park 2pm Gorsedh Kernow bardic ceremony at Thankes Park 7pm Gorsedh Kernow gala concert at St James Church Sunday, September 7 – 10am-1pm, Myttin Lowender Cornish Language morning at Torpoint Council Chambers 3.30pm Cornerstone Church Evening Prayer in Cornish?