Within about a half hour’s drive from Harrold there is an amazing wealth of entertainment and cultural events and facilities. The local area boasts more than twenty local museums and art galleries. Some of these preserve, not only local, but national heritage, such as those found at Bletchley Park and at The Bunyan Museum.
Abington Museum, Abington Park, Northampton
Military and social history display, dating from 1500 onwards, in a manor house set in Northampton’s finest park. The house was once the home of Shakespeare’s granddaughter.
Tel: 01604 838110
Bletchley Park, The Mansion, Bletchley
Home of the codebreakers, Bletchley Park is a place of exceptional historical importance. It played a major role in WWII, producing intelligence which had a profound influence on the conflict.
Tel: 01908 640404
Cowper and Newton Museum, Market Place, Olney
The home and garden of the poet William Cowper, including the summer-house where he met his neighbour, the preacher and former slave trader John Newton, author of the hymn Amazing Grace.
Tel: 01234 711516
Elstow Moot Hall, Elstow, Bedford
Elstow Moot Hall is a picturesque 15th century building of brick and timber which now houses a museum of 17th century life with a focus on the life and career of John Bunyan.
Tel: 01234 266889
John Bunyan Museum, Mill Street, Bedford
The Bunyan Meeting House was founded in 1650 during the time of Oliver Cromwell’s Protectorate. Today it includes a museum presenting the life, times and works of John Bunyan.
Tel: 01234 270303
Kettering Heritage Quarter, Sheep St., Kettering
Explore Kettering’s history at the Manor House Museum. Temporary exhibitions, regular activities, and a ‘hands-on’ approach to history, make this a lively and vibrant place to visit.
Tel: 01536 534381
Alfred East Gallery, Sheep Street Kettering
Kettering has its own centrally-located art gallery, housing a rich collection of paintings, ranging from 19th-century works to 21st century works, by contemporary artists.
Tel: 01536 410533
Bromham Mill, Bridge End, Bromham
There has been a mill on the site of Bromham Mill since before the Domesday survey in 1086. The Mill once again grinds flour and visitors can once again watch flour milling at close quarters.
Tel: 01234 824330
Earls Barton Museum of Local Life, Station Road, Earls Barton
The museum contains permanent exhibitions of a shoe worker’s cottage at the turn of the century, a lace case and corner shop. There is also an exhibition of Earls Barton footwear manufacture.
Tel: 01604 811735
The Higgins Bedford, Castle Lane, Bedford
The Higgins Bedford unites on one site three previous cultural venues : Cecil Higgins Art Gallery, Bedford Museum and Bedford Gallery. The buildings themselves date back 200 years and have their own rich history.
Tel: 01234 718618
Military Intelligence Museum, Chicksands, Bedfordshire
The Military Intelligence Museum displays key elements of the history of British Military Intelligence from the Boer War forwards. The central Collection in the Museum is the Intelligence Corps Collection.
Tel: 01462 752896