The Sherwood Forest Trust have two events coming up which they hope you will join them at.
Spirit of Wartime Sherwood Weekend
The Spirit of Wartime Sherwood event is on the weekend of 18th and 19th May at Thoresby Park, NG22 9EP.
The event celebrates the Sherwood Forest Trust’s National Lottery Heritage Funded project focused on the impact of World War II on Sherwood Forest’s landscape and communities. Entrance is free except for a £3.00 parking fee.
It will feature representatives from local heritage organisations as well as living history re-enactors and war-era vehicle exhibitors from across the country sharing the military and home front history of WWII.
The Lawns will be full, with over 110 individuals and groups exhibiting from a single period fire engine to a whole recreated outpost complete with officer’s quarters, field hospital and communication tent.
Indoor spaces will see exhibitions including the story of ‘Nellie’, the trench digging tank tested at Clumber Park, how the region contributed to D-Day, oral histories collected from local elderly residents, and the research undertaken throughout the project. The site is also home to the Royal Lancers and Nottinghamshire Yeomanry Museum who will be open and bringing additional exhibits outside to join their permanent Conqueror tank.
On each day there will be ration book cooking demonstrations (with taste testing!), 1940s dance lessons, a demonstration of battle tactics showing how Allied forces would recover an occupied building from Axis soldiers in Operation Market Garden, and Saturday afternoon will feature a Spitfire and Hurricane flypast.
Visitors can even experience flying a Spitfire themselves using a very special simulator on site and ride a land train reminiscent of the trains built at the Estate by the War Office during WWII.
A Vintage Village will provide a curated shopping experience featuring genuine and replica 1940s garments, military wear, WWII based books, vintage accessories and home décor, a hairdresser to perfect your victory rolls, and much more.
The weekend includes a ticketed dance on Saturday evening featuring the fabulous Kalamazoo swing band. Tickets are free but limited, so to book your place or to find out more about the weekend or the project, contact susie.johns@sherwoodforesttrust.org.uk.
The Sherwood Forest Trust Woodland Festival
The popular Woodland Festival – a celebration of woodlands and traditional crafts – marks its 10th year, hidden within the grounds of Thoresby Estate in the five-acre Walled Garden, on 15th and 16th June, 10.00am to 4.00pm.
Green woodworkers, makers of wooden toys and gifts, nature-inspired garments and prints, woodland wellbeing and mindfulness, blacksmiths and spoon carvers are amongst the many woody wonders to see and – in some cases – try yourself.
From children’s storytellers to The Wild Man of the Woods, you never know who you might meet. The event welcomes back many of its regular performers, including the ever-popular Sherwood Outlaws who tell of legends through performance, storytelling and inspiring encounters, as well as archery and combat demonstrations!
Thoresby’s Walled Garden has been closed off to the public for some time, so this is a fantastic opportunity to visit. The site is currently being restored to its former glory by staff and students at North Notts College.
The festival has been organised by the Sherwood Forest Trust, a Nottinghamshire charity focused on nature conservation and local heritage, working closely with (and by permission of) Thoresby.
Admission to the Sherwood Forest Trust Woodland Festival (NG22 9EP) is free. Car parking is £3.00 all day. For more details visit www.sherwoodforest.org.uk.