A LITTLE bit of everything. That’s the best way to describe Thursday night’s HowTheLightGetsIn trailblazer.

A taste of a festival which, over the next two weeks, will feature everything from talks about the mysteries of the universe to music from Mercury Prize nominees.

Thursday night’s Trailblazer kicked off with a debate about spirituality – what it is and whether it’s essential – which was hosted by Angela Saini and featured Eileen Barker, Phil Rickman and Ariane Sherine.

All offered very different takes on the subject but it was Phil Rickman, the Herefordshire author whose Merrily Watkins series was adapted for TV by ITV last year, who offered a unique perspective.

He questioned whether there was any spiritual aspect to football – a game which last week saw cause for 20,000 Herefordians to gather together to watch their city’s football team compete at Wembley.

His interest in mysteries - reflected in his books - was also discussed as well as mention that Herefordshire has the highest number of churchgoers in the country.

Music was on offer from the talented Kizzy Crawford and Scottish orchestral indie pop band Admiral Fallow and the evening was brought to a close by Afrocluster whose ‘afro-funk beats, bold melodies and rich harmonies’ saw revellers kicking off the bank holiday weekend early in the packed out Globe Hall.

Luck had it that the weather was fine for our visit, making the friendly, intimate nature of the festival even more enjoyable.

Also on offer on the evening was a 45-minute film narrated by David Attenborough about the ‘wild’ Singapore, which was an interesting perspective on the ‘other side’ to the wealthy city state in south-east Asia.

And perhaps changing perspectives is exactly what this festival is all about. It promises to be an ‘intoxicating and unique mix of ideas and playfulness’, challenging ideas and opinions so that maybe you leave feeling just a little bit different.

Visit howthelightgetsin.iai.tv for a full programme of events.