History

Tour

Isle of Wight

Join us for a very special 45-minute tour offering the chance to step behind closed doors and discover a lesser-known chapter in Osborne’s history.

Hear the remarkable 100-year story of Osborne as the Edward VII Convalescent Home for Military Officers — a period of history that spans nearly twice as long as Queen Victoria and Prince Albert’s time at Osborne.

Please note that the tour involves climbing 49 steps from the basement to the first floor. A lift is available for those who require it.

This event is part of Members’ Appreciation Week. To book, please email POQ@english-heritage.org.uk Please note spaces are limited and will be on a first come, first served basis. Booking is required.

We will be inviting voluntary donations following the tour, with all contributions gratefully received.

Members’ Event:

Join us at Gainsborough Old Hall for a Teddy Bear's Picnic on Sunday 16 August!

You are welcome to bring your own refreshments (or you can purchase lunch or cakes from our cafe). Bring a blanket, your child's favourite teddy and sit out on the lawn for a summer picnic.

There will be games to play and crafts to make, and if the weather is poor we can move into our Education Room for shelter.

This event is free to attend, and there is no need to book. Normal admission applies for entry to the Hall, which is optional. If you would like to explore the Hall, please click here to book admission. Members get free entry.

Photograph by Jess Codd.

Teddy Bear's Picnic At Gainsborough Old Hall

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Halloween half-term at Pendennis Castle this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Pendennis Castle

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Framlingham Castle this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Framlingham Castle

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Halloween half-term at Whitby Abbey this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Whitby Abbey

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at 1066 Battle of Hastings, Abbey and Battlefield this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At 1066 Battle Of Hastings, Abbey And Battlefield

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Dover Castle this October half-term. 

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Dover Castle

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Eltham Palace and Gardens this October half-term. 

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Eltham Palace And Gardens

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Bolsover Castle this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Bolsover Castle

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Halloween half-term at Wrest Park this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Wrest Park

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Belsay Hall, Castle and Gardens this October half-term. 

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Belsay Hall, Castle And Gardens

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Halloween half-term at Scarborough Castle this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Scarborough Castle

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Halloween half-term at Kenilworth Castle and Elizabethan Garden this half-term.

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Kenilworth Castle And Elizabethan Garden

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Brodsworth Hall and Gardens this October half-term. 

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term At Brodsworth Hall And Gardens

Gather your little monsters for a ghoulishly good day out at Audley End House and Gardens this October half-term. 

Join the Great Pumpkin Party as we celebrate the season with family activities and entertainment. There'll be interactive storytelling, spooky games and devilish disco fun, as well as themed trails and seasonal selfie spots around the site.

And it wouldn't be Halloween without costumes, so don't forget to come dressed for the occasion. Join in the daily fancy dress competition and you might just win a prize.

Keep your eye on the website for more details.

The event is included in the standard entry price, book in advance and save 15%. English Heritage members get free entry.

Halloween Half-Term 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:

Join us at Kenwood for a guided tour focussing on William Murray, (Lord Mansfield) Lord Chief Justice of England and owner of Kenwood, and the role he played in the abolition of slavery in this country.

This wide ranging talk and tour highlights one of his most important rulings (The James Somerset case) and also charts the rise of the abolition movement in the 18th century, as well as discussing London’s black community, some of its extraordinary characters, the lives they led and the difficulties they faced.

The tour will be running only on the selected dates listed above and is free of charge.

The tour will begin at the front of house (under the portico) at 10.30am, please meet at this location at 10.25am to join the tour.

Lord Mansfield:

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

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. 

Members’ Event:

English Heritage

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