June 2025 Nottinghamshire Heritage Events
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- GetInvolved
With summer on its way, June is a great chance to get out and get involved in some Nottinghamshire heritage! There are plenty of heritage events happening, check some of them out below:
Thursday 5th June: At Retford Library, local author and historian Adrian Gray will be presenting ‘Heritage Talk: Historical Highlights from Bassetlaw’. This talk ‘brings together some of the most interesting places in the historic landscape of this area - great scenery, romantic old houses and stories of the people who lived there’. Tickets are £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.
Sunday 8th June: A talk, titled ‘Green Man? The Myth of Robin Hood’, by Jonathan Pageau at Southwell Minster will explore the myths and identity of our famous legendary Robin Hood. Booking is not required. For more information, visit the event page here.
Monday 9th June: ‘Join one of [the Inspire] librarians for a small group session to talk about the history of Nottinghamshire's parish registers and look at some of the fascinating stories they contain’ at Southwell Library. ‘Parish registers of baptisms, marriages and burials are a major resource for anyone beginning their family history’. This event is free, but booking is required. Book your free place here.
Wednesday 11th June: At the Lakeside Arts, ‘Helen Sharp, Curator of Archaeology at Leicestershire County Council Museums, discusses the Roman cavalry helmet from the Hallaton Treasure – a collection of stunning finds buried at an Iron Age ritual site in Leicestershire – alongside two new replica recreations. She’ll discuss what the helmet reveals about religion, propaganda, status and Roman-native relationships. Following the talk, you will have the chance to view 3D prints of the Hallaton Treasure’. Booking costs up to £3 per person (under 30’s go free) and booking is required. Book your place here.
Wednesday 11th – Friday 20th June: The ‘Victory Nottinghamshire’ exhibition at Mansfield Central Library will be showcasing ‘the war effort made by those on the home front and frontlines’ to ‘celebrate the 80th anniversary of the Second World War’. ‘From the darkest days of the Nottingham Blitz to playing its part in training the aviators of Bomber Command, Victory Nottinghamshire tells the story of the people and county of Nottinghamshire and how they helped the Allies achieve victory. Included is the story of the unique Home Guards Patrol Boats to the bravery of the Boots George Cross medal winners, as well as American Paratroopers and Bevin Boys; this exhibition will give visitors an insight into how all came together and played a vital role in the allied victory’. This event is free, and booking is not required. For more information, visit the event page here.
Thursday 12th June: ‘Join Collections Officer Dr Anja Thompson-Rohde as she reveals how to read coins like a historian, unlocking the news, propaganda, and political spin hidden in plain sight’ at Mansfield Museum. This talk, ‘Money Talks: Coins as the First Mass Media’ is only £1 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.
Above: Threepence of Elizabeth I. Image rights holder: Derby Museums Trust. Image taken from: Portable Antiquities Scheme. (Record ID: DENO-DE8606)
Saturday 14th – Sunday 15th June: Head to Southwell Workhouse and Infirmary ‘for an interactive historical re-enactment by living history group Foreign Field. Discover the history of bodysnatching and the role workhouses played in the process. Learn about pauper funerals and how changes to the anatomy act affected the trade’. This ‘Dead and Destitute: Body Snatching at The Workhouse’ event is free but normal admission to the Workhouse is required. Booking is not required. Book your place here.
Monday 16th June: Join Dr Lara González Carretero (University of York) for the online talk ‘Unlocking Prehistoric Culinary Records through the Analysis of Food Remains’ in association with Creswell Crags. ‘This talk will focus on some of the earliest examples of food remains recovered from archaeological sites around the world, providing an overview of early culinary traditions from the Epipalaeolithic to the Neolithic’. It will explore the advances of scientific methodologies, such as Digital Microscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy, along with Organic Residue Analysis, to detect food remains which sheds light on ‘past food choices and cuisine’. This event is free but booking is required. Book your free place here.
Tuesday 17th June: Head to Mansfield Central Library to hear about ‘Adrian Gray’s new book ‘The Scandalous Lives of the Sherwood Forest Nobility’ which tells the story of their illicit love affairs and disastrous gambling habits, and in this talk, he focuses on some of the disastrous marriages they contracted’. For example, ‘did you know that modern divorce laws originated with a Sherwood Forest case? Find out how, and who was to blame, in this fascinating talk!’. Tickets cost £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.
Wednesday 18th June: At Beeston Library, NCC’s Jason Mordan will be giving ‘an illustrated introduction to the range and variety of historic designed parks, gardens and landscapes of the county’ in association with the Nottinghamshire Gardens Trust. ‘From the oldest allotments, to the largest historic parklands, through monastic deer parks and the boating lakes of public parks, Nottinghamshire has a wonderful selection!’. Tickets are £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.
Wednesday 18th June: Lakeside Arts will also be hosting the lunchtime talk ‘Health and the Countryside’ which is ‘connected to the’ Country Lives: Exploring the English Countryside from 1800’ exhibition. ‘The countryside was often thought of as a healthy place during the 19th and 20th centuries. However, this could mask the realities for those living and working there. In this talk, Dr Sarah Holland, Associate Professor of History at the University of Nottingham, will explore ideas and lived experiences relating to health and the countryside’. Tickets cost up to £3 per person (under 30’s go free) and booking is required. Book your place here.
Tuesday 24th June: West Bridgford Library will be hosting the talk ‘Heritage Talk: History of St Anns Allotments’. ‘St Anns Allotments are the largest Victorian gardens in the country. Today they provide an oasis of peace and a fantastic resource for local people and children. Learn how the site developed from burgess parts, to leisure gardens, and how the gardeners saved their allotments from development’. Tickets cost £3 per person and booking is required. Book your place here.
Wednesday 25th June: Lakeside Arts will also be hosting ‘a talk exploring ideas and lived experiences relating to health and the countryside in the 1800s’. In this ‘Folk Custom and Rural Communities’ talk, ‘Jessica Lloyd-May explores what a case study of the Randwick Wap, a May custom that takes place in the village of Randwick, Gloucestershire, tells us about different aspects of folk customs. Using a variety of sources, connections between rural community, folk custom and wider interest in folklore studies will be made’. Tickets cost up to £3 per person (under 30’s go free) and booking is required. Book your place here.