What's new
Dates for your diary
Please check the relevant websites and social media for confirmation and last-minute changes to the events listed here.
The Higgins Bedford 2025
Wednesday 26 March 1.00pm-3.00pm Portable Antiquities Scheme for Bedfordshire session. FREE but booking essential.
The Higgins, Castle Lane, Bedford MK40 3XD. Go to www.thehigginsbedford.org.uk for more information.
CBA online talks 2025
Wednesday 26 March In Conversation: Introduction to Net Zero.
Wednesday 23 April In Conversation: Reconnecting Archaeology Mid Point Review.
Wednesday 21 May In Conversation: Introduction to Safeguarding.
Go to www.archaeologyuk.org for more information about the Council for British Archaeology online talks.
Northampton Museum & Art Gallery Talks 2025
Thursday 27 March My Life Amongst the Bells by Alistair Donaldson.
Thursday 24 April Blair Swannell: From the Gardens to Gallipoli by Graham McKechnie.
Thursday morning talks start at 10.30am, price £3.50, booking essential. Go to www.northamptonmuseums.com for more information and tickets.
Chester House Estate
Thursday 27 March at 2.00pm Tours of the ARC (Archaeological Resource Centre), FREE but please book via the website.
The Chester House Estate is near Irchester in Northamptonshire. Go to www.chesterhouseestate.org.uk for more information and booking.
Peterborough Museum 2025
Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday Priestgate Vaults Tours.
Go to www.peterboroughmuseum.org for more information about events and tours.
Higham Chichele Society Talks 2025
Friday 28 March The first women doctors by Dr Muncaster.
Friday 25 April Suffragettes and suffragists in Northamptonshire by John Buckenell.
Friday 30 May Steaming up the valley by Roy York.
Friday 27 June An alphabetical journey through Northamptonshire by Derek Blunt.
Friday25 July Northampton's Victorian inventors and inventions by John Paul Carr.
Friday 29 August Bog bodies by David Brown.
Friday 26 September Living in the Middle East by Paul Mackay.
Friday 31 October Six of Higham's men you may have forgotten by Richard Oberman.
Friday 28 November History of Christmas food by Ria Jefferies.
Talks start at 9.30am, doors open at 9.00am, in the Bede House, Higham Ferrers. Members £3, Visitors £4, includes refreshments, new members welcome. Go to www.highamchichelesociety.co.uk for more information. The annual subscription is £5 and due at the May meeting.
CBASM Spring Conference 2025: Revisiting the Romans
Saturday 29 March 10.00am-5.10pm.
The Irchester Field School: collaborative approaches to archaeological research at the Chester House Estate by Sarah Scott, Professor of Archaeology & Heritage Hub Director, University of Leicester.
The Roman Villa at Warkton: new evidence for settlement in the hinterland of Kettering Roman town by Chris Chinnock, Team Leader, MOLA.
Excavations at Nassington and Barnnwell Roman farmsteads 2016-2024 by Derek Roberts,Middle Nene Archaeological Group.
A LiDAR appraisal of the Roman roads of Northamptonshire by Wayne Kirk.
Stanton Cross, Wellingborough: Excavations of 2024 by Carol Simmonds, Project Officer, MOLA.
The Villa at Ketton, Rutland: the story so far by Jennifer Browning, Project Officer ULAS.
At Chester House Estate, Wellingborough, NN8 2DH. Go to www.cbasm.archaeologyuk.org for more information and booking. Price is £20 for CBA members and £25 for non-members, lunch is included, booking essential.
Exploring Archaeological Landscapes: Celebrating the Legacy of Derrick Riley and William Arnold Baker
Saturday 29 March 2025.
A day conference focussing on two significant areial photographers, and the evolving aerial archaeology techniques and research inspired by them to be held at the Creative Lounge, The Workstation, Paternoster Row, Sheffield S1 2BX. Conference organised by the Hunter Archaeological Society, the University of Sheffield and the Yorkshire Archaeological and Historical Society, supported by a grant from the Aerial Archaeology Fund.
Naseby Battlefield Interactive Tours
Saturday 29 March
Saturday 12 and Sunday 27 April.
Saturday 17 and Saturday 31 May.
Saturday 7, Wednesday 11, Thursday 12, Friday 13, Saturday 14 and Sunday 22 June.
Walk in the footsteps of those who took part in the Battle of Naseby in 1645. Tours last 4 hours and prices start at £25, booking essential. Go to www.naseby.com for more information.
British Museum Exhibitions
Until 30 March 2025 Picasso: printmaker.
1 May - 7 September 2025 Hiroshige: artist of the open road.
22 May - 19 October 2025 Ancient India: living tradition.
Until 29 June 2025 War rugs: Afghanistan's knotted history.
British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG. Go to www.britishmuseum.org for more information.
Sulgrave Manor & Garden 2025
Sunday 30 March House reopens after Winter. Opens Sundays, Mondays & Tuesdays until 30 September, 10.30am-4.00pm.
Monday 21 April Tea & Talk.
July Exhibition: Tudor Gowns.
Sunday 6 July Independence Day Celebrations.
Sulgrave Manor, Manor Road, Sulgrave, Banbury, OX17 2SD. Go to www.sulgravemanor.org.uk for more information.
Delapré Abbey Events and Tours 2025
Sunday 30 March, Wednesday 30 April, Thursday 29 May and Sunday 22 June Medieval Tour.
Friday 6 - Saturday 7 June Divorced, Beheaded, Died An Audience with King Henry VIII - live theatre production.
Go to www.delapreabbey.org for more information and ticket details for the tours, Family Fun Days, Friends of Northampton Castle Play Days, and other events. Delapre Abbey is on the outskirts of Northampton, NN4 8AW, car parking is FREE.
Cinematic Showcase: Historic Film of Wellingborough
Monday 31 March at 2.30-4.30pm or 7.00-9.00pm
The Mayor of Wellingborough and the Northamptonshire Film Archive Trust are showing the film at The Swanspool Pavilion in Wellingborough NN8 2BZ. Tickets are £7.50, refreshments included and available from Wellingborough Town Council.
Oundle Museum 2025
Museum opens from March until October, Saturdays and Sundays only, 10.00am-4.00pm.
Oundle Museum is in Mill Road, Oundle PE8 4BW. Go to www.oundlemuseum.org.uk for more information.
Geophysical surveying for HiFARS members
March 2025. Replacement surveying equipment is still being sourced, this project will hopefully restart soon. If any HiFARS member wishes to join the team surveying the castle site in Higham Ferrers email hifars@gmx.co.uk for information.
Olney Archaeological Society Talks 2025
Tuesday 1 April Richard III: the king under the car park.
Tuesday 15 April South Caldecotte: Excavations on the periphery of Magiovinium Roman Town by Kathy Pilkington.
Tuesday 6 May Britains's Pompeii - 3 centuries of Fen Research by Dr Micholas James.
Tuesday 20 May The Harpole Burial: new discovery of a 7th century bed burial.
Lectures are at the Olney Centre, Olney in Buckinghamshire, 10.00am-12.00 noon. Note that some lectures are remote and will be shown on screen. Price £4 for visitors, go to www.mkheritage.org.uk/oas/ for more information and membership.
Raunds & District History Society Talks 2025
Thursday 3 April Like a Kid in a Toy Shop by Kevin Varty.
Thursday 1 May Lotions, Potions & Dubious Cures by Susan Copperwheat.
Talks start at 7.30pm in Raunds Library, £3 includes refereshments, all welcome.
Kettering Civic Society Talks 2025
Friday 4 Apil Barton Seagrave Moated Manorial Site by Dale Munn.
Friday 2 May Skeletons from a Medieval Cemetery at Newton near Geddington by Dale Munn.
Friday 6 June Wallis & Linnell film
Friday 4 July A Walk around Kettering Martin Rose.
Talks are at 7.30pm in Village Hall, Barton Seagrave. Visitors £6.
CBAEM Spring Conference 2025: Recent Archaeological Work in the East Midlands
Saturday 5 April, 10.00am-4.40pm.
The Archaeology of Nottingham's Caves Gavin Kinsley, York Archaeology.
Fieldwalkers and Fieldschools: Discovering a Roman Settlement at Laughton Adam Clayton, University of Leicester Archaeological Services.
Community fieldwork in Bradgate Park, Leicestershire by Datyl Garton & Lynden Cooper, Ice Age Journeys.
5,000 years by the River Witham Nigel Cavanagh & Mike Wood, Network Archaeology.
The Archaeology of the North-East Melton Mowbray Distributor Road Scheme Ben Turner, Archaeological Research Services.
Marshlands and Monuments, prehistoric floodplain interactions in the Trent Valley Kristina Krawiec, York Archaeology.
Hiding in plain Sight: the discovery and investigation of a prehistoric site near Sheldon, Derbyshire Tom Cockrell & Colin Merrony, Sheffield University.
Ashby School, Ashby-de-la-Zouch, Leicestershire LE65 1DT. Go to cbaem.archaeologyuk.org for more information and booking by 31 March.
Northamptonshire Records Society 2025
THE NRS hold document workshops in the NRS Library at Northamptonshire Archives, Wootton Hall Park, Northampton showcasing and explaining some of the records. Go to www.northamptonshirerecordsociety.org.uk for more information and to book a place as numbers are limited.
Saturday 5 April at 10.00am Enclosure Records by Dr Steven Hollowell.
Wrest Park 2025
Mondays 7 April, 19 May, 2 and 16 June, 7 and 21 July, 4 and 18 August, 8 and 22 September, 6 and 20 October. Archaeological Collections Store Tours starting at 11.00am and 1.00pm.
Wrest Park is in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, MK45 4HR. Go to www.english-heritage.org.uk for more information, prices and opening times.
Finds Day at Daventry Museum
Friday 11 April 2025.
Northamptonshire Finds Officer Eleanore Cox will be at Daventry Museum, free but you'll need to book a 15 minute time slot by email.
Rushden & District History Society Talks 2025
Friday 11 April Yvonne Fletcher and the Libyan Siege by Paul Barwick.
Talks start at 7.30pm at Whitefriars School, Boughton Drive, Rushden NN10 9HX. Visitors welcome, £2.50 on the door. Go to www.rdhs.org.uk for more information.
Stanwick Lakes, Tea & Talks 2025
Tuesday 15 April The agony and ecstasy of a canal boater by Barry Watson.
Tuesday 22 April Alice Hawkins: Suffragette
Tuesday 6 May Railway stations of the old East Northants District Council by Eric Franklin.
Tuesday 13 May Maritime Archaeology by Mike Curtis.
Go to www.stanwicklakes.org.uk for information and to book a place. Talks start at 2.00pm, prices £8-£18.50 dependent on refreshment option.
Next HiFARS committee meeting
Wednesday 16 April. If any HiFARS member has something to raise with the committee please email hifars@gmx.co.uk before the meeting.
Finedon Local Historical Society Talks 2025
Monday 24 April The Notorious Culworth Gang by Richard Blacklee.
Monday 19 May Suffragettes and Suffragists by John Buckell.
Monday 23 June Strawbear to Squirt by Susan Copperwheat.
Monday 28 July To the Manor Born by Derek Blunt.
Talks are at 7.30pm in the Mission Room, Well Street, Finedon, NN9 5JP. FLHS members £2.50, visitors £3.50. Go to www.tingdenetofinedon.co.uk for more information.
Higham Ferrers 2025 Events
Friday 25 - Sunday 27 April Arts Weekend with Tourism and the Friends of St Mary.
Thursday 8 May VE Day Beacon lighting on the Market Square at 9.30pm.
April tbc Quiz Night.
Saturday 31 May Chichele Garden Fair in Chichele College Garden.
Saturday 7 - Sunday 15 June Great Big Green Week.
Sunday 15 June Open Gardens.
Friday 11 July Music Night in Chichele College.
Saturday 13 September Horticultural Show in Chichele College.
September tbc Heritage Day at Rushden Lakes 11.00am-5.00pm.
Autumn Fashion Show.
Sunday 9 November Service of Remembrance on the Market Square at 10.45am.
Saturday 22 November Sparkle 11.00am-6.00pm, lights switch on at 5.00pm.
Go to the Higham Ferrers Tourism website, Facebook and highamferrers-tc.gov.uk for for more information about these events. Farmers' markets on the last Saturday morning of the month on the Market Square.
Next HiFARS Talk
Friday 25 April tbc. More details will follow soon.
Northamptonshire Heritage Forum
Sunday 27 April 2025, 10.00am-4.00pm Heritage Fair Northamptonshire North at Chester House Estate.
Go to www.northamptonshireheritageforum.co.uk for more information about events and membership.
Abington Park Museum in Northampton 2025
Sunday 27 April at 2.00pm.
Volunteer-led tours of the Museum, £3.50 each person, booking essential. Go to www.northamptonmuseums.com for more information about tours and exhibitions at Abington Park Museum.
Waendel Walk
Friday 9 - Sunday 11 May 2025
The 44th International Walk hosted by Wellingborough. Go to www.wellingboroughtowncouncil.gov.uk for more information.
UNAS Spring Conference 2025: The Craft and Manufacture of Goods in Ancient Britain
Sunday 11 May 2025 10.15am-4.30pm
Sticks and Stones: A geologists view of tool-making by Jill Eyers, Chiltern Archaeology.
Pottery for the Masses: the Romano British potters of the Upper Nene Valley by Adam Sutton, Aurelius Archaeology.
Roman Glass by Caroline Jackson, Sheffield University.
Moneta: the coinage of Roman Britain by Paddy Lambert, Oxford Archaeology East.
At Hackleton Village Hall, Chapel Lane, Hackleton, Northampton NN7 2AH. Go to www.unas.org.uk for more information, £25 for UNAS members, £35 for non-members, booking essential (please book by Tuesday 6 May).
ISE-Dig Talks 2025
Wednesday 14 May Murder and Mayhem in Medieval Leicester by Matthew Morris.
Talks start at 7.30pm and are held in St Andrew's Church Rooms, Crown Street, Kettering, NN16 8QA. ISE members £4, visitors £5, all welcome. Go to www.ise-dig.co.uk for more information.
Discover Northamptonshire Visitor Hub at Rushden Lakes 2025
Friday 16 May, Friday 15 August and Friday 17 October, 10.30am-1.30pm Finds Day with Northamptonshire Finds Liaison Officer Eleanore Cox.
FREE drop-in session at the Tourism Hub near the entrance to Cineworld, Rushden Lakes.
Northampton Museum & Art Gallery
Saturday 24 May - Sunday 7 September 2025 A British Museum Touring Exhibition: Gladiators of Britain.
Starts in September 2025 A History of Northamptonshire in 100 Objects.
Go to www.northamptonmuseums.com and www.britishmuseum.org for more information.
Great Fire of Northampton anniversary
Thursday 29 May Oak Apple Day Parade, followed by a service at All Saints Church, Northampton.
It has been 350 years since the Great Fire of Northampton, see local press for more information nearer the time.
Jousting and Medieval Living Village
Sunday 15 June at Rockingham Castle.
Go to website for more information nearer the time.
Irchester Field Schhol Learning Programme 2025
Monday 16 June - Friday 4 July
Go to www.chesterhouseestate.org.uk for more information about the Irchester Field School run in partnership with the ARC and the University of Leicester. Bookings already being taken.
Burton Latimer Heritage Society
Until Saturday 28 June Exhibition: Hitting the Right Note, a history of music in Burton Latimer.
At the Harold Mason Centre, 120 High Street, Burton Latimer, NN15 5RH. Every Thursday and Saturday 10.00am-1.00pm, free entry.
Roman Fest 2025
Saturday 28 - Sunday 29 June
Go to www.chesterhouseestate.org.uk for more information about 2025 events.
Conference: Voices of the Marginalised in History
Friday 7 and Saturday 8 July Keynote speaker: Dr Liam Liburd, Durham University.
University of Northampton centre for Historical Studies, Waterside Campus, Northampton, NN1 5PH.
CBA Festival of Archaeology 2025
Saturday 19 July - Sunday 3 August
Theme: Archaeology and Wellbeing. Go to www.archaeologyuk.org for more information nearer the time.
HiFARS Archaeology Allsorts 2025
Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 July in Chichele College, Higham Ferrers.
Heritage Open Days 2025
Saturday 13 September Lamport Hall.
Go to website for more information.
CBAEM Conference 2025: Fieldwalking: past, present ... and future?
Wednesday 24 September at Grantham's Guildhall.
Stanwick Lakes 2025
Saturday 4 October 10.00am-4.00pm Workshops Ancient Craft: Flint knapping.
Saturday 4 October 10.00am-4.00pm Workshops Ancient Craft: Bronze Age jewellery.
Go to www.stanwicklakes.org.uk for more information, prices and to book a place.
CBAEM Autumn Conference 2025
Saturday 25 October in Leicester.
Irchester Parish Historical Society Talks 2025
Society usually meets the second Thursday of each month, members £2, visitors £4. Go to www.irchester.org for more information.
Middle Nene Archaeological Group (MidNAG)
Next date tbc
Meetings at 7.30pm in Fletton House, Fletton Way, Glapthorn Road, Oundle PE8 4JA. Go to www.midnag.org.uk or Facebook for more information.
Brixworth Lecture 2025
November tbc
Go to www.friendsofbrixworthchurch.org.uk for more information and tickets which are £15.
Sharnbrook Local History Group Talks 2025
Next date tbc
Talks held at 2.00pm in the Methodist Church, Sharnbrook but go to www.slhg.org.uk for more information.
Northamptonshire Film Archive Trust 2025
Next date tbc at Chester House. Tickets £6, includes tea/coffee, go to www.chesterhouseestate.org for information and booking.
Films are shown at events around the county, go to www.northamptonshirefilmarchivetrust.co.uk for more information.
Northamptonshire Archaeological Society 2025
Next date tbc
Go to www.northants-archaeology.org.uk for information.
Northamptonshire Industrial Archaeology Group Talks 2025
Next date tbc Northamptonshire's Ironstone Railways by Mick Dix.
Talks are held in Garden Room at St Matthews Church Hall, off Kettering Road, Northampton. FREE to NIAG members, visitors welcome £3. Go to www.niag.org.uk for more information.
Bedford Guided Walks
Dates for 2025 tbc
Walks start at 11.00am and are between 90 minutes and 2 hours long, 1-2 miles in length. Walks are £4 and must be pre-booked. Go to www.bedfordtourguides.org for more information and booking.
Friends of Kettering Art Gallery & Museum 2025
Next date tbc Town Walk, £5 per person.
Kettering Museum and Gallery remain closed, go to the Friends Facebook page or www.friendskagam.org for information about their events, or visit ARTworks Creative Space in the Newlands Centre Kettering.
Northamptonshire Battlefield Society 2025
Next date tbc
Delapre Abbey, on the outskirts of Northampton, NN4 8AW, car parking is FREE. Go to www.delapreabbey.org for more information.
Sywell Aviation Museum and Sywell Aerodrome 2025
Next date tbc
Talks are £5 and are held in the Cirrus Room at the Aviator Hotel, go to www.sywellaviationmuseum.org.uk for more information.
Kimbolton Castle: Public Open Days
Next date tbc. Go to www.kimboltoncastle.com for more information.
Northampton Central Library 2025
tbc Carnegie Talk: tba.
Northampton Central Library is in Abington Street, Northampton NN1 2BA. Go to the Facebook page for more information.
Oundle Historical Society Talks 2025
Next date tbc AGM
Talks start at 7.30pm in Oundle Methodist Church, Drummingwell Lane, Oundle. Visitors £2. Go to www.oundlehistoricalsociety.org.uk for more information.
