North Country Theatre - The Wish House, The Forum, Northallerton, on Saturday, 7.30-9.30pm
A sinister story of superstition sacrifice and dirty laundry Grace Ashcroft might be seen by some as a poor old lady, "a dear old soul", but the tale she tells of her younger days as a lusty farm girl and the strange sacrifice she made to keep "her" man is by turns hilarious and chilling. Cold Comfort Farm meets Chaucer's Wife of Bath meets A Picture of Dorian Gray in this tongue-in-cheek version of Kipling's story of obsessive love. This comedy of rural superstition and urban myth is brought to the stage by the company celebrating their 20th anniversary year whose adaptations have ranged from the hilarious The 39 Steps to the scary The Rocking Horse Winner, and most recently the poetic and thought-provoking The Gift of Stones. Tickets £10 (in aid of Macmillan Cancer Support). Tel 01609-776230 or www.forumnorthallerton.org.uk.
The Northern Echo:

Heritage Skills Festival, Auckland Castle, Bishop Auckland, this weekend, 10-4pm
See demonstrations, talk to the experts and try your hand at a range of building and hand crafts, then grab a unique gift from one of our stalls. Kids can get in on the fun too in this family friendly event. This is a free event so please drop in and have a go. 01388-743797. 
Shelf Life – The Ornaments Are Talking To Me, The Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle, opens on Saturday, and runs until February 12
Mark Clarke’s latest piece of work, a collection of five painted, crowded shelves explores and examines the themes of life, love and loss. 
The shelves created by Clarke are not a literal translation, but a poetic interpretation of his mother’s homemade shrine; a tribute to vanished memory and impermanence that question our individual notions of value, worth and meaning. A melee of modern day memento mori layered with suggested nuance, heartfelt sentiment and some wit. 

An Evening with TV antiques expert David Harper, Holy Trinity Church, Darlington on Saturday, 7pm
An evening of anecdotes from the antiques world and David's tv work, which includes BBC's Bargain Hunt, Put your Money where your Mouth is and Antiques Road Trip. Bring along an antique and David will give you a valuation. 01325-485252. 

Family Friendly Films, National Centre for Early Music, on Sunday, 11:30am-12:30pm.
See Suzie Templeton's award-winning animated film Peter and the Wolf (U Certificate), set to music by Prokofiev. Peter lives in the forest with his grumpy grandfather. When his only friend, a duck, persuades him to go into the forest, he plays with the creatures there. They are attacked by a fierce wolf but Peter shows great courage and then compassion. This delightful film will be preceded by three short animated films, presented by the BAFTA Qualifying Aesthetica Short Film Festival, encouraging younger audiences to explore the delights of short film. 01904-658338.