Christmas

Essex

Uttlesford

Join Father Christmas at Audley End House and Gardens this December for a magical way to start the festive season.

 

Father Christmas is taking time out of his busy festive schedule to tell some of his favourite seasonal stories. After the group storytelling session, you and your children will meet the man himself, with the chance to take photographs and make memories to treasure. Father Christmas will also give every child a traditional present to unwrap.  

 

To help ensure there’s enough room for everyone, places are limited to one accompanying adult per child. Please arrive at least 15 minutes before your session, as Father Christmas will need to start promptly.

Tickets cost £12 per child for non-members and £9.50 for members and must be booked in advance. Non-members will also require admission to Audley End House and Gardens.

 

Session times: 10.20am, 11am, 11.40am, 12.20pm, 1.40pm, 2.20pm and 3pm.

Father Christmas At Audley End House And Gardens

Audley End is celebrated for its magnificence: beautifully furnished rooms and fine objects, carefully arranged and presented for visitors. Yet above these showpiece interiors lies another, lesser-known world.

Running from May to November 2026, Behind Closed Doors is a new exhibition that offers a rare glimpse into the hidden second-floor rooms, long closed to the public. Once guest bedrooms and servants’ quarters, they now function as store rooms, revealing a quieter side of life within the house.

Through the photographs of Lachlan French and Clive Downes, these interiors evoke a faded splendour, carefully preserved as if a moment frozen in time.

In contrast to the rooms below, they offer a more subtle beauty, shaped by memory, atmosphere, and the traces of lives once lived behind closed doors.

This event is included with general admission. Book in advance to save 15%. Members go free.

Behind Closed Doors:

Step into the fascinating story of Audley End and discover the people and events that helped shape this wonderful house.

To mark the 400th anniversary of the death of Thomas Howard, an exhibition of five paintings tells the story of three generations of a family who played a significant part in the development of Audley End. Two of the paintings have never previously been displayed at Audley End.

Alongside the exhibition, our volunteers invite you to enjoy a special performance, ‘Monasteries, Mansions, Marriage and Mayhem’. Hear the stories of the characters behind the house and discover how each played their part over the years.

Performance dates:

9 September at 11.30am

14 October at 11.30am and 1.30pm

21 October at 11.30am and 1.30pm

22 October at 11.30am and 1.30pm

Sign up at the Visitor Information Centre on the day of your visit. You will need admission to Audley End House and Gardens which you can purchase here. Members go free.

Monasteries, Mansions, Marriage And Mayhem

Join a community of crafters for a weekly knit and natter in the Coach House Cafe at Marble Hill.

We’re a friendly and encouraging group, who work on our own independent projects alongside each other.

Open to all adult ages and abilities.

There is no booking required. For more details please contact chloe.cooke@english-heritage.org.uk

Knitting Group At Marble Hill

Join Drawn Heritage for a relaxed and creative watercolour workshop set within the beautiful gardens of Marble Hill.

Drawn Heritage was created by Mihai Lupu and Bianca Mierlea, a creative couple with backgrounds in architecture and fine art and a shared passion for historic houses, gardens and heritage places. During our visits, we began creating our own postcards as a way of slowing down, noticing overlooked details and keeping a personal memory of each place. We created these workshops to share that experience and help others connect with Marble Hill through art, observation and storytelling.

The Marble Hill programme is a series of three creative workshops: Nature’s Canvas, exploring the gardens and natural surroundings; The House in Detail, discovering the façade and exterior architecture; and Hidden Interiors, observing the rooms, furnishings and decorative objects inside the house.

During each two hour workshop, participants will receive an envelope containing a map and photographic clues. They will explore Marble Hill through a gentle treasure hunt, find the details shown in the photographs and choose one discovery as inspiration for their artwork. Mihai and Bianca will then guide participants in creating their own hand painted postcard.

No previous artistic experience is required, and all materials will be provided. The workshops are suitable for adults and children aged 7 and over. Once completed, each postcard will be marked with our personalised handmade stamp, carved using the lino printing technique, before being taken home as a unique memory of the day.

Participants who complete all three workshops will receive a special Artist of Marble Hill certificate, celebrating their creative journey and the deeper connection they have developed with the house and gardens.

BOOK YOUR SPOT

Make Your Own Postcard At Marble Hill

Join our team on a walking tour of the service yards and servants' areas at Witley Court, a behind-the-scenes look at how the servants here lived and worked.

Access to these areas have only just been reintroduced and these spaces are usually not accessible to regular visitors.

This tour is graded as moderate access due to covering some uneven terrain and few places to stop and sit down.

Bookings will open on Wednesday 15 July at 9am.

Members' Event:

Join the team in the Flaxmill Café as they are hosting regular Supper Clubs at Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings.

This event will then run once a month with upcoming dates to be confirmed soon. Join us on Friday 16 Ocotober for our next Supper Club.

You can choose from 2 or 3 courses of dishes cooked by the inhouse chef Steve. You can have 2 courses for £22.50 or 3 courses for £29.95.

Places are limited for this exclusive opportunity. Booking is essential. Please book in person at the Flaxmill Cafe. Booking is essential. You can also ask about future dates in person too.

View the October menu, (PDF, 271KB)

Supper Club At Shrewsbury Flaxmill Maltings

Visit our kitchen garden every Thursday, where we have a selection of fresh produce for sale.

All produce is grown by our volunteer gardeners, and proceeds support our house and gardens. Expect to find fresh vegetables, cut flowers and other seasonal produce.

Join us at the North East corner of Marble Hill Park.

Kitchen Garden Sale At Marble Hill

Bridgewater Primary School, Scotswood, is proud to present a vibrant exhibition of artwork inspired by the beauty and wonder of nature at Belsay Hall and Gardens.

Bringing together the creativity of children aged 2–11, the exhibition celebrates life in the garden through colour, texture, photography and collage. Every piece reflects the children’s unique perspectives and their exploration of the natural world.

Celebrating Sunflowers

Across the whole school, children explored the sunflower — a flower that reaches towards our star — using a range of artistic techniques and materials. Inspired by a variety of artists and their distinctive styles, the children created their own joyful interpretations of sunflowers: artworks designed to make them smile.

A Rainbow of Trees

Year 2 pupils took inspiration from the ever-changing colours of the leaves on the trees around them. They created vibrant rainbow trees representing the changing seasons. Like the trees in the gardens of Belsay, each of their creations is wonderfully different in shape, size and colour.

The Main Exhibition: Belsay Hall

The centrepiece of the exhibition is a collection created by current Year 6 pupils, inspired by Belsay Hall itself. Working alongside local artist Lindsey Robinson, the children explored the glory of nature through photography. Examples of their photographs can be found throughout the exhibition.

They then transformed their photographs into striking collage artworks, inspired by the work of Brazilian artist Beatriz Milhazes. Using geometric shapes alongside an exciting combination of colours and textures, the pupils created their own artistic visions of Belsay Hall.

Bridgewater Primary Art Exhibition At Belsay Hall

Join AJ in the beautiful grounds of Audley End House & Gardens, Saffron Walden, for authentic, inclusive yoga in a truly unique setting. This is a third-party event, independently hosted by AJ and taking place at Audley.

On dry days, classes take place on the lawns beneath the shade of magnificent oak trees. If the weather isn't on our side, we'll move indoors to the elegant Cipriani Room within the stately home, ensuring a welcoming space whatever the forecast.

Classes run at 11:00am and 12:00pm, with each session lasting 50 minutes.

Please enter through the main gate and let the team know you're attending yoga. Then make your way to the North Lobby, where AJ will meet you five minutes before the start of your class.

Bring a yoga mat, towel or blanket to practise on, along with any props that help you feel comfortable. Cushions, scarves and jumpers can all make excellent supports.

AJ's classes are rooted in traditional yogic teachings, creating a welcoming environment to explore movement, breath and mindfulness. Open to all levels, each session encourages you to connect with your body in a way that feels supportive, accessible and authentic.

Book your tickets here.

Yoga At Audley End

Join the Keeper of the Wellington Collection for a specialist guided tour of the first Duke of Wellington’s home and outstanding collection of art.

Tours run on the first Thursday of each month at 11.15am.

Tickets for the tours are available on the door on a first come first served basis. You can book your general admission in advance below to save 15%. Members get free admission.

Tours cost £8 for members and £10 for non-members.

Curators Tour At Apsley House

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. 

Father Christmas At Audley End House And Gardens

English Heritage

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