Spotlight put on Newark’s architecture for Heritage Open Days festival of history and culture

The country’s largest festival of history and culture returns this September — with plenty of opportunities to get involved in Newark.

From the parish church re-awakening project, to the queen’s sconce, and the town’s timber framed buildings, visitors will get a chance to delve deeper into the history of the town’s architecture.

The Heritage Open Days festival runs across the country from September 12 to 21, and this year the theme is architecture.

The free festival is delivered by thousands of organisations and volunteers, in conjunction with the National Trust and the People’s Postcode Lottery.

Laura Chow, head of charities at the People’s Postcode Lottery, said: “Heritage Open Days bring communities together in a truly unique way, shining a light on the stories, spaces and skills that shape our shared history.

“I'm delighted that support from players of People’s Postcode Lottery helps make this vibrant celebration of culture and creativity accessible to everyone, inspiring new generations to connect with the heritage all around them.”

In Newark, the free experiences include a guided tour with architect Bernard Martin, who will explore the less obvious, well-disguised timber-framed buildings in the town centre.

Unlike their well-known counterparts such as the Prince Rupert pub and The Governor’s House, many of the buildings are now hidden behind more recent brickwork and rendered facades.

The tours will take place on September 14 and 21.

A civil war tour will also take place on the same dates, led by Kevin Winter. It will visit some of the buildings that played a part in the towns Civil War history, and conclude at the Queen's Sconce fortification.

400 years of history will be explored in an exciting trail ‘If Walls Could Talk’ into the hidden corners of the National Civil War Centre and Palace Theatre, telling the stories of the buildings on September 14 and 20.

For a chance to get more hands on, on September 20, Nottinghamshire Buildings Preservation Trust, Newark Civic Trust, and Guy Taylors Associates Architects have joined forces to run a heritage building skills demonstration and participation session.

In the market place, there will be demonstrations of the skills and techniques required, the chance to get hands on with some of the skills, and an opportunity to look at photographs and plans of some of the town’s historic buildings.

As part of the festival Newark Heritage Barge, Newark Masonic Hall and Museum, and Newark museum’s reserve collection, will also open their doors to visitors, while talks will take place about the timber framed buildings of Nottinghamshire, The Reawakening of St Mary Magdalene project, and the Medieval Stories of Newark Castle.

Full timings and booking requirements can be found at www.heritageopendays.org.uk.

In nearby Southwell the original Bramley Tree will be open to visitors, the National Holocaust Museum in Laxton will host a talk about the history of its architecture and Holocaust survivor stories, Lowdham Signal Box will hold signalling demonstrations, and Fulbeck’s Mannakin Hall will open to share its rich history as former dining quarters for American soldiers during the second world war.