Bedfordshire

Central Bedfordshire

This summer, The Lord Chamberlain’s Men invite you to join them for a performance of Hamlet.

One of the UK’s finest touring theatre companies - with a history stretching back to William Shakespeare himself - present this great play as Shakespeare first saw it performed - in the open air, by an all male cast and with Elizabethan costumes, music and dance.

Bring a chair and a picnic and prepare to be entertained.

This event and associated ticketing and personal data capture is managed directly by The Lord Chamberlain’s Men. Book your tickets via the Lord Chamberlain’s Men website.

BOOK TICKETS

Tlcm Presents Hamlet At Wrest Park

Join us at Wrest Park for an exhibition commemorating 80 years since the end of the Second World War and to celebrate the people who worked here during that time.

Discover our history in a temporary display and enjoy volunteer-led talks. The displays will feature information about the WAAFS and links with Bletchley Park, The Home Guard and the Women’s Land Army.

Join us in the Library for free talks on 8, 9, 16 November at 1.30pm.

On 15 November a World War Two Choir will perform in the Dining Room.

Included in admission price to Wrest Park.

Book early and save 15%.

Second World War Exhibition At Wrest Park

Double Vision brings together two paintings both known as The Guitar Player. One painting, a treasure from Kenwood’s Iveagh Bequest, is signed by the great Johannes Vermeer (1632-75). The origin of the other, on loan from the John G. Johnson Collection at the Philadelphia Museum of Art, USA, remains a mystery.

Philadelphia’s painting depicts the same young woman playing a guitar, but with a number of small differences. Thought to be by Vermeer by John G. Johnson who bought the picture and eventually gave it to the city of Philadelphia, the question of who painted it and when has been the subject of intense debate for the past 100 years.

This new display, marking the 350th anniversary of Vermeer’s death aged 43 in 1675, sees the paintings side by side for the first time in over 300 years.

Double Vision:

Visit our kitchen garden, where we have a selection of fresh produce for sale. All produce is grown by our volunteer kitchen gardeners, and proceeds support our beautiful house and gardens.

Expect to find fresh vegetables, cut flowers, and other seasonal produced.

Our Kitchen Garden is in the northeast corner of the park, by the sports block.

Card payments only.

The Kitchen Garden At Marble Hill

Join Historian Andrew Hann and Curator of Collections Sabrina Villani for a whistle stop tour around the world with the fabulously wealthy Courtaulds. Discover the places they visited on their holidays in the 1920s and '30s, the different modes of transport they used and the people the met along the way, all meticulously recorded within the pages of their illustrated travel logs.

Find out more about their luxury motor yacht, Virginia, launched in 1930, which they used to cruise around Europe and South East Asia, and learn more about what happened to the vessel after the Courtaulds sold it in 1948. The talk will be followed by a short tour round Eltham Palace focusing on objects and features of the interior related to the Courtaulds travels. There will also be an opportunity to see collections objects not normally accessible to the public including some of the illustrated log books and cutlery made specially for the yacht.

This event has been graded as moderate access as the tour will last one and a half hours and attendees will need to walk up a set of stairs to get to the palace. However, the majority of the talk will take place within the Great Hall.

Members' Event:

Chatty Café

First Friday of every month from Friday 4th April - 10am-11.30am.

Join us on the first Friday every month from 10.00-11.30am for a chat and a cuppa. There will always be a volunteer on hand so a chat is guaranteed and there is a free cup of tea as well.

Gainsborough Old Hall has been at the heart of the town’s community for hundreds of years and is the perfect meeting place for locals and visitors alike.

Sometimes the best connections are made over a cup of tea and our Chatty Café days are the perfect way to bring people together.

Chatty Café At Gainsborough Old Hall

Enjoy a landscape walk, led by our knowledgeable volunteer! Learn more about Marble Hill's historic landscape and changes made through time. Please meet outside front of house at 1pm.

Free Tour, just come along!

Landscape Walk

Start the weekend energised with a spot of Community Yoga amongst the backdrop of Marble Hill and it's surroundings! Community based event, meet on the Oval Lawn (Behind House towards River) at 8am.

Community Yoga

Join us for an exclusive tour inside Framlingham Workhouse. Learn more about the history of this 18th-century workhouse and the conditions inside, including diet and work. Hear stories of some of the inmates' lives, which have been uncovered by our team of research volunteers.

This event is graded moderate access, due to some parts of the tour requiring the climbing of stairs, navigating uneven ground, as well as minimal rest stops. Some of this tour may take place outside, so please wear suitable footwear and dress appropriately for the weather.

Join us for an exclusive experience down Greenwell Pit, a mining pit in its original archaeological state that is only open for access by special arrangement ten times a year. Join expert Dickon Whitewood for a talk on the archaeology and history of the site, then take an exclusive descent into the Greenwell Pit itself, escorted by trained members of the site team.

This tour is graded as challenging access. Descent into the pit will require harnesses and a period of time spent underground in low light, uneven terrain, and surrounding some may find claustrophobic. Maximum weight for the winch system is 300lbs (136kg).

Join English Heritage historian Dr Al Oswald at Wharram Percy, one of the best-preserved deserted medieval villages in England, nestled in a remote valley of the Yorkshire Wolds. Over 40 years of pioneering archaeological research took place here, uncovering the everyday lives – and eventual disappearance – of the people who once lived in this now-silent village.

As you walk among the earthworks, Dr Oswald will share the story of this unique site, from its medieval origins to the cutting-edge archaeological techniques used to uncover its secrets.

This tour is graded as moderate access due to uneven terrain and a steady uphill walk back to the car park. This guided tour follows a 1.5-mile (2.4km) route and lasts approximately 1.5 hours.

Join us on the second Saturday of every month for our FREE open day. Explore the fort, bring a picnic and hear about the history of this fascinating site and see the Fort Cumberland Guard display.

Children under 16 must be accompanied by an adult.

There are loud bangs on open days when the Fort Cumberland Guard are on site.

Last entry 30 minutes before closing.

Fort Brockhurst Open Day With Fort Cumberland Guard

Free outdoor sessions to help you feel better, move more, connect with nature, and meet new people—no gym needed!

Come and join us for relaxed, friendly group movement sessions at Dover's Western Heights.

Hike, stretch, breathe, run, and enjoy nature together. It’s all about feeling good in your body and mind, with no pressure and no cost.

Sessions are led by Primal Runners – friendly coaches trained to support all abilities and backgrounds.

  WHO?

Everyone is welcome—especially if you:

Feel stressed, lonely, or stuck indoors

Want to get moving but don’t like gyms

Are new to Dover or new to speaking English

Just want to try something different

Please note: These are active sessions. The walk to the Western Heights is steep and requires good mobility. If you have any questions about accessibility, please get in touch. We're happy to help you work out if the sessions will be suitable for you.

  WHAT?

Each session includes:

A welcome chat

A walk or run through nature

Simple body movement (no equipment needed)

Breathing and calming exercises

Time to talk, share, and connect

No experience or fancy gear is needed. Just wear some trainers and comfortable clothes to move in.

  WHERE?

Meet us at The Rings in Dover's Market Square. We’ll head up to the Western Heights together.

There is pay-and-display parking available in Dover town centre. The nearest railway station is Dover Priory, a 5-minute walk from the Market Square, and Stagecoach buses stop nearby in Pencester Road and Priory Street.

Postcode | CT16 1NU

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  WHEN?

All sessions run from 10am - 2pm on the following dates:

Autumn 2025

Spring 2026

Sun 7 Sep 2025 Sun 15 Mar 2026

Sun 28 Sep 2025 Sun 29 Mar 2026

Sun 12 Oct 2025 Sun 19 Apr 2026

  THIS EVENT IS PART OF ENGLISH HERITAGE'S REACHING GREATER HEIGHTS PROJECT.

Using money raised by National Lottery players, The National Lottery Heritage Fund supports projects that connect people and communities with the UK’s heritage. Reaching Greater Heights is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Thanks to National Lottery players, we have been able to restore historic chalk grasslands at Dover Castle and Western Heights, protect rare wildlife and heritage, and empower local communities through volunteering, learning, and activities.

Heights Not Weights:

English Heritage

English Heritage cares for over 400 historic buildings, monuments and sites - from world-famous prehistoric sites to grand medieval castles, from Roman forts on the edges of the empire to a Cold War bunker. 

Through these, we bring the story of England to life for over 10 million people each year. 

Tlcm Presents Hamlet At Wrest Park

English Heritage

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