Celebrate the District’s Heritage with a Week of Free Events

The Heritage Open Days are your chance to discover everything that makes the Newark and Sherwood District so special. Running from Friday 6 September through to Sunday 14 September, this year’s events will give you the opportunity to discover your local heritage and culture like never before!

The theme for this year, is routes, networks and connections and it will be brought to life through exciting exhibitions, sensational shows and terrific tours specially created to celebrate this fantastic week. You’ll be taken on a journey to parts of incredible buildings not normally open to the public and you’ll hear lots of intriguing stories that lay behind our wonderful towns, villages, and landmarks.

There are over 44 different events taking place in Nottinghamshire, with 23 taking place across Newark and Sherwood alone. Whether you’re interested in discovering the rich culture of river life through the ‘Art on the Move’ exhibition or finding out how the historic buildings in Newark are maintained, there are practical demonstrations, tours and exhibitions that will appeal to everyone.

Giving you a glimpse of some of the fantastic events, come along and discover the National Civil War Centre’s hidden Tudor Courtyard on Saturday 7 September, 10am until 4pm where you can meet a cavalry soldier and his horse and find out what it was like to be the fastest soldier on the battlefield. You can learn how to use a pike to defend your cavalry and enjoy cavalry-themed creative activities for the whole family throughout the day too!

You can also enjoy the rare opportunity to look behind the scenes at the museum’s reserve collection. Join Collections and Exhibitions Officer, Kevin Winter, to explore thousands of years of Newark’s history through the 90,000 objects held at the Newark Resource Centre on Wednesday 11 September, 6.30pm to 8.30pm.

If theatre is more of an interest to you, a pop-up exhibition telling the story of the Palace Theatre’s history will be available from Tuesday 10 to Saturday 14 September. Learn how it went from a 1920’s cinema built by a female entrepreneur to the beloved cultural hub it has become today.

Other fantastic events include “Migration and Evacuation” at the National Holocaust Centre and Museum, lots of jam packed guided historical tours around our fantastic historic market town in Newark, Choral events at St.Mary Magdalene Church, tours of Southwell Minster and “Routes and Connections” at The Workhouse and Infirmary.  These are just a snapshot of the fantastic events available across Newark and Sherwood!

Councillor Rowan Cozens, Deputy Leader and Portfolio Holder for Heritage, Culture and the Arts at Newark and Sherwood District Council said, “I am delighted we are able to be part of this amazing programme to celebrate how special the place we live really is!”

“The Heritage Open Days programme has a variety of events for the whole family, from art exhibitions to guided tours, it’s a fun and interactive way to learn all about our towns history.”

The Heritage Open Day programme is a really important initiative, especially in Newark and Sherwood, aiming to provide residents with free activities that will encourage footfall to attractions and town centres in the district to help further support a thriving local economy.  A full list of events, activities and places taking part in this year’s celebration are available at www.heritageopendays.org.uk or you can collect a Heritage Open Days booklet from shops and venues across Edwinstowe, Ollerton, Newark and Southwell sponsored by Newark and Sherwood District Council.

A digital copy of the booklet can also be found on the National Civil War Centre website: www.nationalcivilwarcentre.com/whatsnew