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Dates for your diary

Please check the relevant websites and social media for confirmation and last-minute changes to the events listed here.

Chester House Estate

10, 12, 19 and 26 November Tours of the ARC (Archaeological Resource Centre), FREE but please book via the website.
7 and 8 November Heritage Workshop: Roman bone working.
7 and 8 November Heritage Workshop: Roman leather bag.
21 and 22 November Heritage Workshop: Roman jewellery.
7 and 8 November Heritage Workshop: Medieval book binding.

The Chester House Estate is near Irchester in Northamptonshire. Go to www.chesterhouseestate.org for more information and booking.

Delapré Abbey Events and Tours

Wednesday 11 November History Talk: Operation Exodus & the Fate of the Lancaster PD339.
Thursday 26 and Friday 27 November Victorian Christmas Tours.

Go to www.delapreabbey.org for more information and ticket details for the tours, talks and events. Delapre Abbey is on the outskirts of Northampton, NN4 8AW, car parking is FREE.

Oundle Historical Society Talks

Friday 13 November Peterborough & the Peasants Revilt of 1381 by Stuart Orme.
Friday 8 January 2027 Bannarenta, Romano-British fortified Town by Steve Young.
Friday 12 February What is Local History by Max Schurer.

Talks start at 7.30pm in Oundle Methodist Church, Drummingwell Lane, Oundle. Visitors £5. Go to www.oundlehistoricalsociety.org.uk for more information.

CBA EM Autumn Conference Community Archaeology in the East Midlands

Saturday 14 November 2026, 10.00am-4.20pm

Searching for the Late Glacial Hunters in the East Midlands beyond the caves by Lynden Cooper, Pre-Construct Archaeology.
Long-term research from short-term community projects: battles kings and castles in north-west Nottinghamshire by David Budge, Mercian Archaeological Services.
Dig Charnwood: community archaeology with the Charnwood Forest Geopark by Matthew Morris, University of Leicester Archaeological Services.
People of the Peak: Past, Present, Future by Catherine Parker Health, Peak District National Park Authority.
Creating a future for the past: how to engage young people in archaeology by Morgause Lomas, Derbyshire Scouts Archaeology Team.
Saving the cemeteries: community excavations in North Linclonshire 1984-1996 by Kevin Leahy, Portable Antiquitoies Scheme.

Allestree Woodlands School, Blenheim Drive, Allestree, Derby DE22 2LW. Tickets £25 for CBA EM members, £30 for non-members, £15 for students, booking essential. Refreshments and lunch included.

HiFARS AGM & Talk: The Watermill at West Cotton, Raunds: The watermill that couldn't be there

Saturday 14 November. Doors open at 6.45pm, AGM at 7.00pm, Talk at 7.15pm. Quick AGM followed by a talk by Andy Chapman in the Bede House in Higham Ferrers. The excavation of West Cotton was meant to run for only a year, not five. But the buildings of the medieval village were better preserved than anticipated. And beneath the village there were timber slot buildings: the residence of a late Saxon thegn, and a complete watermill system. The talk follows the progress of the excavations year by year to show how a modest excavation grew into one of the most important medieval sites in the county. HiFARS members £5, visitors £6, everyone welcome. Refreshments available.

Olney Archaeological Society Talks

Tuesday 17 November Where to keep your crops dry in the Fens by by David Ingham.
Tuesday 19 January Boudica by Paddy Lambert.

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.

Northampton Museum & Art Gallery Talks

Thursday 19 November Talk: Music, Musicals & Me Frances Coombs.
Thursday 3 December Talk: Operation Monet by Andy Tennet.
Thursday 17 December Talk: Rhyme nor Reason, Tis the Season by Alan Tumber.

Thursday morning talks start at 10.30am, price £4, booking essential. Go to www.northamptonmuseums.com for more information and tickets.

Northamptonshire Film Archive Trust

Thursday 19 November at 2.00pm Railway films at the Chester House Estate in the Courtyard, £6.

Films are shown at events around the county, go to www.northamptonshirefilmarchivetrust.co.uk for more information.

Wellingborough Civic Society Talks

Thursday 19 November Talk: Operation Exodus by Bill Lockerbie.

Talks start at 7.00pm in the Dulley Rooms, Wellingborough Museum, 12 Castle Way, Wellingborough NN81XB. Visitors £3.

Rushden & District History Society

Friday 20 November Pioneering Women in Aviation by Debbie Land.
Friday 18 December Convalescing at Cottesbrooke Hall during WWI by Helen Frost
Friday 15 January Entrepreneurs who changed Rushen by Andrew Presland.

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.

Higham Ferrers 2026 Events

Saturday 21 November Sparkle townwide.
Saturday 28 November 9.00am-12 noon Farmers Market.
Saturday 19 December 9.30am-12.30pm Christmas Celebration Coffee morning in the Bede House.

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.

Current Archaeological Research in the Midlands and Abroad

Saturday 21 and Sunday 22 November, 10.00am-4.00pm

CARMA Conference 2026 hosted by Nottingham Trent University at Clifton Campus. Go to www.ntu.ac.uk for more information and tickets.

Next HiFARS committee meeting

Monday 23 November at 7.30pm. If any HiFARS member has something to raise with the committee please email hifars@proton.me

Finedon Local Historical Society Talks

Monday 23 November AGM and Talk: Philip Manfield, his life and contribution to Northampton by Izabela Robinson.
Monday 25 January 2027 Bridges of the River Nene by Dan Reid.
Monday 22 February The Local Volunteer Training Corps of World War One by Martin Jones.
Monday 22 March The Portable Antiquities Scheme by Eleanore Cox.
Monday 26 April The German Raid on Scarborough by Kevin Varty.

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 Chichele Society Talks

Friday 27 November A History of Comedy Music by Kevin Varty.

Note that from May 2026 talks start at 10.00am (doors open at 9.30am) 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 £7 and due at the May meeting.

British Museum Exhibitions

Now until 29 November 2026 Exhibition: Declaring Independence USA 250.
Now until 11 July 2027 Exhibition: The Bayeux Tapestry.
1 October - 31 January 2027 Exhibition: Korea.
8 October - 21 March 2027 Exhibition: Italian Renaissance Woodcuts.

British Museum, Great Russell Street, London, WC1B 3DG. Go to www.britishmuseum.org for more information.

Stanwick Lakes

Tuesday 1 December at 2.00pm Heritage Talk by Dr Michael Curtis: Northamptonshire Villas and Life in the Countryside. Booking essential, tickets from £8.

Go to www.stanwicklakes.org.uk for information.

Northamptonshire Record Society

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. Price £10 per person, sessions start at 10.00am.

Saturday 5 December Helping historians to read 17th century documents by Deborah Hayter.
Saturday 6 February History of health care in Northamptonshire by John Hall.
Wednesday 17 March An Introduction to GIS mapping for historians by Bill Franklin.
Saturday 3 April Northamptonshire's Industries by David Waller.

Sulgrave Manor & Garden

Saturday 5 December Candlelight Christmas

Sulgrave Manor, Manor Road, Sulgrave, Banbury, OX17 2SD. Go to www.sulgravemanor.org.uk for more information.

UNAS The Upper Nene Archaeological Society

The Museum is open on Sundays in Winter 2.00pm-4.00pm. Adults £5. The Piddington Villa Museum, 24 Chapel End, Piddington, Northamptonshire NN7 2DD.

Northampton Museum & Art Gallery

Until 6 December Exhibition: The Passage of Time, Brian Mutton - A retrospective.
Until Sunday 18 April Exhibition from the Collection: Architecture.

Go to www.northamptonmuseums.com for more information.

HiFARS Christmas Lecture by Professor Sarah Scott: Nene Valley adventures in archaeology

Sunday 6 December at 2.00pm in the Bede House, Higham Ferrers.

Archaeological research in the Nene Valley is thriving, demonstrating the power of archaeology to inspire curiosity, creativity and collaboration in our communities. From excavation at the Roman town of Irchester, to the remarkable story of the Thorpe Axe in Higham Ferrers, this talk explores how archaeological research is not only transforming our understanding of the past, but connecting people of all ages and from across the world with the rich history and archaeology of the Nene Valley. Such projects are reshaping the ways in which archaeological knowledge is created, shared and experienced in Northamptonshire and beyond.

HiFARS members £5, visitors £6, everyone welcome. Refreshments available.

Middle Nene Archaeological Group (MidNAG)

Friday 29 January at 7.30pm Talk: Excavations at a Roman Farmstead, Nassington, our 10th year of digging by Derek Roberts.

Meetings and talks held in The Glapthorn Room, Fletton House, Oundle, PE8 4JA. Go to www.midnag.com for more information and applications forms for the excavation.

Northamptonshire Heritage Forum

Tuesday 9 February 2027 Forum meeting at the Sir Henry Royce Memorial Foundation in Paulerspury.

Go to www.northamptonshireheritageforum.co.uk for more information about events and membership.

Peterborough Museum

Every Tuesday, Wednesday and Saturday Priestgate Vaults Tours.

Go to www.peterboroughmuseum.org for more information about events and tours.

Wellingborough Museum

Friday 26 February 5th Wellingborough Transport Fair

Wellingborough Museum, Dulley's Baths, 12 Castle Way, Wellingborough, NN8 1XB. Museum open Monday to Saturdays 10.00am-4.30pm. Go to www.wellingboroughmuseum.co.uk for more information.

The Higgins Bedford

Until 18 April Exhibition: A Brewery in Bedford: Wells & Co.
Until 9 May Exhibition: Rhyme & Reason.
Until 13 June Exhibition: Edward Bawden: Snails for All.

The Higgins Museum, Castle Lane, Bedford MK40 3XD. Go to www.thehigginsbedford.org.uk for more information.

HiFARS Talk

Friday 14 May 2027. Talk in the Bede House, Higham Ferrers. Details nearer the time.

Oundle Museum

Date tbc for Summer 2027 reopening, Saturdays and Sundays only, 1.00pm-4.00pm.

Oundle Museum is in The Courthouse, Mill Road, Oundle PE8 4BW. Go to www.oundlemuseum.org.uk for more information. Theme for 2026 is 'More of Oundle's villages'. FREE entry but donations welcome.

Naseby Battlefield Tours

Next date tbc

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.

Wrest Park

Archaeological Collections Store Tours on tbc.

Wrest Park is in Silsoe, Bedfordshire, MK45 4HR. Go to www.english-heritage.org.uk for more information, prices and opening times.

Northampton Central Library

Next date tbc Carnegie Talk

Northampton Central Library is in Abington Street, Northampton NN1 2BA. Go to the Facebook page for more information.

Northamptonshire Battlefield Society

Next date tbc

Talks start at 7.30pm at Delapre Abbey, on the outskirts of Northampton, NN4 8AW. Go to www.delapreabbey.org and www.northantsbattles.com for more information.

CBA Council for British Archaeology

Next date tbc Online talks

Go to www.archaeologyuk.org for more information about the Council for British Archaeology online talks.

Kimbolton Castle

Next date tbc Public Open Day.

Kimbolton Castle, Kimbolton, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire PE28 0EA. Go to www.kimboltoncastle.com for more information and tickets.

Rushden Historical Transport Society

Next date tbc

Heritage Railway, Transport Museum, Station Bar, Goods Yard, Shop & Buffet Carriage at the junction of Rectory Road and John Clarke Way in Rushden, Northants. Go to www.rhts.co.uk for more information and events.

Sharnbrook Local History Group Talks

Next date tbc

Talks held at 2.00pm in the Methodist Church, Sharnbrook but go to www.slhg.org.uk for more information.

Northamptonshire Industrial Archaeology Group Talks

Next date tbc

Talks are held in Garden Room at St Matthews Church Hall, off Kettering Road, Northampton at 7.30pm. FREE to NIAG members, visitors welcome £3. Go to www.niag.org.uk for more information.

Rockingham Castle

Next date tbc

Rockingham Castle is near Corby, LE16 8TH. Check www.rockinghamcastle.com for 2026 opening times and events.

Abington Park Museum in Northampton

Next date tbc, starts at 2.00pm Guided tour.

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.

Bedford Guided Walks

dates 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.

NAS Northamptonshire Archaeological Society

Next date tbc

Go to www.northants-archaeology.org.uk for information.

Raunds & District History Society Talks

Next date tbc

Talks start at 7.00pm in Raunds Library, £3 includes refereshments, all welcome.

Kettering Civic Society

Next date tbc

Go to www.ketteringcivicsociety.net for more information.

Earls Barton

Earls Barton Heritage Group meet in the Library & Community Centre NN6 0ND at 7.30pm, visitors welcome.

University of Leicester Heritage Hub

Next event date tbc

Go to www.le.ac.uk for more information.

ISE-Dig Talks

Next date tbc

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.