Heritage Open Days in Bakewell, Buxton, Chesterfield and Eckington

Bakewell Old House Museum is offering a behind-the-scenes look at the costume store and highlights of the textiles collection. There will be the opportunity to view items up close on Monday, September 11, from 11am to midday, on a day when the museum isn’t normally open to the public. Places must be booked by September 9 at 5pm via https://bohm.yapsody.com/

Members of the Bakewell and District Historical Society will be leading a free highlights tour of Bakewell on September 9, leaving the visitor centre at 11am and finishing by the church and Old House Museum at midday. The tour involves some walking on good pavements with some going uphill and will feature lots of stories you won’t have heard of before. Pre-booking required by September 9 at 10am via the above link.

Learn all about the historic Magpie Mine at Sheldon, near Bakewell, on September 10 with guided tours on the hour from 11am until 4pm. This site was the last working lead mine in the Peak District and finally closed in 1958. Visitors can walk around the site, look down the 729ft-deep main shaft and listen to the history of this piece of mining heritage. No booking required.

The 450th anniversary of the first visit to Buxton of Mary Queen of Scots who came to take the waters in 1573 whilst under the custody of George Talbot, the 6th Earl of Shrewsbury, will be marked with several events. will be held on September 10, from 1.30pm to 2.30pm. A re-enactor will offer an insight into Mary’s life and her visits to Buxton on September 10, from 1.30pm to 2.30pm at the Old Hall Hotel. Booking closes on September 9 at 3pm; reserve your free place at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/mary-queen-of-scots-heritage-experience-mqs-450-tickets-686506157397. There will be a dramatic reading of letter correspondence pertaining to Mary’s visits to Buxton on September 11 from 7pm to 8pm at The Crescent where the Elizabethan portrait challenge artwork will be on show; booking by September 9 at 3pm at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/dramatic-reading-of-letters-mqs-450-tickets-686515796227

Peak District artist Tamsin Cunningham will be giving a Mandala demonstration at The Pump Room in The Crescent, Buxton, on September 13 from 1pm to 4pm. No booking required. Mandala means 'circle' in the ancient Indian language of Sanskrit and also symbolises the universe in Buddhism and Hinduism. Discover how the intricate designs are hand drawn and hand painted and are created using pencil, inks and acrylics. Many of Tamsin's creative artworks feature heritage buildings including her design inspired by Buxton Opera House.

Explore Derbyshire’s oldest non-conformist chapel when Elder Yard Chapel in Chesterfield hosts its open days on September 8 and 9, from 10am to 4pm, and Sunday, September 10 from 2.30pm to 4pm (for the Sunday service). No booking required.

Backstage tours of the Winding Wheel Theate in Chesterfield will be held from September 11 to 15 at 10.30am to celebrate the centenary of the building which was constructed as a cinema in 1923. The tours are unsuitable for wheelchairs due to the split levels of the building. Book your place at https://chesterfieldtheatres.co.uk/shows/building-tours

St Peter and St Paul’s Church at Eckington is hosting a display of creativity by people past and present who were born or live locally, on September 12 from 10am to noon and September 16 from 11am to 4pm; no booking required. Creative folk with links to Eckington include the radical writer Joseph Gales, who emigrated to the USA in the 18th Century and is famous there, the three Sitwell family siblings, active in the 20th Century as writers and sponsors of art including the war poet Wilfred Owen, and the female trumpeter Joan Hinde, who played with many 20th Century big bands. The church is the oldest building in Eckington and is regarded as an architectural gem for its stained glass windows and fine carvings.

At Spencer’s Yard in Beeley there is a reconstructed cottage and outbuildings, furnished and detailing village life in the Peak District during mid-18th century. An early Victorian shepherd’s hut contains tools and artefacts of the time and an old local shepherd’s smock, recently donated, will also be on display. There will be costumed interpreters on hand at the open days on September 16 and 17 from 11am to 4pm. No booking required.

Leawood Pump at Lea Road, Lea, Cromford will be open to visitors on September 16 and 17 from noon to 4.30pm. The pumphouse was built in 1849 to pump water from the River Derwent into Cromford Canal and remains in pristine working condition thanks to the Middleton Top and Leawood Pump Volunteer Group. No booking required.