Picnic

Party

Arts & Crafts

Dress Up

Nottinghamshire

Bassetlaw

Celebrate Henry VIII's 535th birthday at Gainsborough Old Hall this year with some fantastic activities!

Bring a picnic, make a crown, take part in a joust and create your own royal portrait inspired by Tudor artist Hans Holbein.

Inside the Hall families can dress up, prepare a birthday feast for the king and re-enact his grand entrance into Gainsborough.

This event is included with general admission. Book early and save 15%. Members get free entry.

Craft activities will run in the Education Room from 10am - 2pm and are free to drop in and take part in.

King Henry Viii's Birthday Party At Gainsborough Old Hall

Come to Marble Hill on every second Friday of every month, from March - December 2026 and learn about our trees and the work we've done to allow them to thrive.

Our expert volunteer guides will lead you around Marble Hill Park, showing you our magnificent and varied collection of trees.

This is a free tour and no booking is required. Please meet your guide outside the Coach House Café.

Guided Tree Tours At Marble Hill

This summer, Belsay Hall hosts a new exhibition in partnership with Northumbria University.

Make and Mend brings together around 20 artists, inviting their creative responses to Belsay’s rich heritage through a range of disciplines, including textiles, furniture, photography, and architectural studies.

The exhibition blends traditional craftsmanship with contemporary techniques, celebrating both the history of making and the ongoing art of preservation.

This event is included with your general admission to Belsay Hall. Book early and save 15%. Members go free.

Make And Mend At Belsay Hall

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:

Enjoy a landscape walk, led by our knowledgeable volunteers. Learn more about Marble Hill's historic landscape and the changes made to it through time.

These tours run every first Friday of the month, all year round.

Please meet outside the front of house at 1pm.

Landscape Tours At Marble Hill

Join us on the first Friday of every month to our board game club in the café with exciting games, including English Heritage Risk, Chess, Snakes and Ladders, and much more.

You can drop in to the cafe at any time over the 2 hours or stay for the whole time, play or attend for the company.

This event is free to attend and there is no booking required.

It does not include admission to Gainsborough Old Hall. If you would like to explore the site as well after your visit, you can purchase general admission in advance online, or on site. Members get free entry.

Board Game Club At Gainsborough Old Hall

Join our experienced Deaf guide and historian, John Wilson for a British Sign Language (BSL) tour of Stonehenge.

Discover the incredible story of one of the world’s most famous places in BSL. The tour will cover the history of this unique monument, including theories as to how the stones were brought to Salisbury Plain, where the stones originated from, and the latest research.

This tour is included with your general admission to Stonehenge which you can book below. Please select how many tickets you need, then select the date of the tour. There will be an option to add on the BSL Tour afterwards.

British Sign Language Guided Tour Of Stonehenge

Spend a Sunday at Audley End House and Gardens listening to live music, plus a special opening on Saturday 4 July.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Audley End House And Gardens

Step back into the turbulent world of the Wars of the Roses at Middleham Castle. Once home to the young king himself, the castle provides the perfect backdrop for a weekend of living history, entertainment, and family activities.

Visitors can see history brought to life by historical reenactors, including the York City Levy, who will be recreating life with authentic tents, equipment, and demonstrations throughout the weekend. Families and younger visitors can enjoy a range of hands-on activities.

The festival will also feature performances from History’s Maid and their engaging show Top of the Chops — a hilarious and engaging look at some of history’s most infamous executions and the colourful characters who met their end upon the block.

More event details and timings will be announced soon.

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

Richard Iii Festival At Middleham Castle

Join renowned local historian Dr David Wright for a free guided talk and tour, uncovering the fascinating story of Reculver through the centuries, from its origins as a Roman fort to its role as a Saxon monastery and medieval church.

  The talk will take place in locations around the site. Access to the site is via a tarmac slope and across grass. If you have any questions about accessability, please feel free to email us or speak to one of our friendly volunteers on site before the talk begins.

Discover Reculver's Past With Dr David Wright

This summer we are proud to guide you into the delightfully chaotic world of The Pickwick Papers, where misadventure and merriment collide in a whirlwind of Dickensian absurdity!

Join the lovable Mr. Pickwick and his eccentric band of companions as they bumble their way through confusing courtships, courtroom shenanigans, questionable duels, and carriage rides gone terribly wrong. Expect fast-paced wit, slapstick, more multi-rolling mayhem, and a cast of larger-than-life characters in this brand new and hilarious adaptation.

Dickens has never been this delightfully unpredictable! Secure your seat, pack your picnic and prepare for an uproarious adventure with the Pickwick Society—where the only certainty is a thoroughly good time to be had by all!

Doors open at 6.30pm. Bring your own seating and picnics.

BOOK TICKETS TO THE PICKWICK PAPERS

The Pickwick Papers At Goodrich Castle

Spend a Sunday at Eltham Palace and Gardens listening to live music.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Eltham Palace And Gardens

Spend a Sunday at Wrest Park listening to live music.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Wrest Park

Spend a Sunday at Walmer Castle and Gardens listening to live music.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Walmer Castle And Gardens

Spend a Sunday at Bolsover Castle listening to live music.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Bolsover Castle

Spend a Sunday at Down House listening to live music.

Bring your chairs or blankets, grab a refreshing treat from our café and enjoy a wonderful day of music.

Book early and save 15%

Sunday Music At Down 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. 

King Henry Viii's Birthday Party At Gainsborough Old Hall

English Heritage

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