2014
Illustrator:
Emma Metcalfe
SHAW HOUSE Events diary
February
Mini Exhibition – Love at Shaw
Sat 15, 11am-4pm – those who have
lived and loved at Shaw House, from the
philanthropic Henry and Isabella, who raised
eight children at Shaw House to the servants,
Rowland and Rose, who found love below
stairs. The exhibition runs until Sun 16 March.
Family Garden Trail
Sat 15-Sun 23 – during February half term
we will be trying out the garden trail which will
be one of the activities alongside our garden
exhibition that opens on 22nd March. If you
would like to help us make sure it is great fun,
please come along, try it out and tell us what
you think.
Family Activity Day
Weds 19, 10am-3.30pm – create your
own Scratch Art Heart Magnets. Activities are
aimed at children aged 4-11 years old. There is
no need to book, just drop in. Under 15’s must
be accompanied by an adult at all times. An
additional charge applies for this activity.
March
Lecture: First Battle of
Newbury 1643
Sat 8, 7.30pm, doors open
6.30pm – Jon Day will talk about the
decisive campaign and Battle of Newbury in
1643 that marked the start of the decline in
royalist fortunes during the first Civil War. He
will explain why and how the battle was fought
and its importance to determining the future
outcome of the war. This is a fundraising event
in partnership with The Battlefield Trust to
improve the public interpretation of the Second
Battle of Newbury. Tickets: A – see over
New Special Exhibition opens –
Secrets beneath the grass: the
lost garden of Shaw House
Sat 22, 11am-4pm – join us on a journey
to find this remarkable and almost forgotten
garden. With 433 years of history there are
tales aplenty of glamour, beauty, innovation,
ingenuity, hard work, daring and bravery. We
invite you to unearth its stories: discover voices
from the past, explore its nooks and crannies
and even rifle through the Head Gardener’s
desk! This exhibition is inside and out! This
exhibition runs until Sunday 2 November 2014.
April
Lecture: Second Battle of
Newbury 1644
Sat 12, 7.30pm, doors open
6.30pm – historian Chris Scott, author of
a number of books on early modern warfare
including The Battle of Newbury, will discuss
how King Charles I narrowly avoided losing
his main army in the fields north of the River
Kennet in late October 1644 and the profound
impact parliament’s failure to achieve a victory
there had on its future conduct of the war.
This is a fundraising event in partnership with
The Battlefield Trust to improve the public
interpretation of the Second Battle of Newbury.
Tickets: A – see over
Family Activity Day
Weds 9 & Weds 16, 10am-3.30pm
– Eggsperiments – an assortment of egg craft
activities and challenges. Activities are aimed
at children aged 4-11 years old. There is no
need to book, just drop in. Under 15’s must
be accompanied by an adult at all times. An
additional charge applies for this activity.
May
Shaw House Garden Fair
Sun 4, 11am-4pm – in conjunction with
our 2014 special exhibition, come and enjoy
our first ever garden fair. £1 entry for adults,
children free (includes admission to the house).
Lecture: The Sieges of
Donnington Castle and the
Third Battle of Newbury 1644
Sat 17, 7.30pm, doors open
6.30pm – Simon Marsh, co-author of Battle
for London and active member of Battlefields
Trust, will explain the background and conduct
of the three sieges at Donnington during the
Civil War, bringing to life the experience of
siege warfare during the 17th century. He will
also talk about the often overlooked Third
Battle of Newbury in November 1644. This
is a fundraising event in partnership with
The Battlefield Trust to improve the public
interpretation of the Second Battle of Newbury.
Tickets: A – see over
Open Air Theatre – George’s
Marvellous Medicine by Roald
Dahl adapted by David Wood
Sun 18, gates open 4pm,
performance starts 4.45pm
– IIIyria perform this classic – George decides
to concoct his own medicine which he gives
to Grandma with hilarious results! Created with
larger than life characters, plenty to join in with
and just a twist of malicious fun! Suitable for
ages 5+. We are delighted to welcome Illyria, an
Equity Outdoor Touring Guidelines compliant
company, to Shaw House for the 2014 season.
Feedback from their shows is outstanding,
including “Brilliant doesn’t come anywhere
close”. Gates open at 4pm so please bring a
picnic or enjoy some of our lovely New Forest
ice cream before the show starts! Tickets: B –
see over
Family Activity Day – Make your
own bumble bee or ladybird bug
windmill!
Weds 28, 10am-3.30pm – activities
are aimed at children aged 4-11 years old. There
is no need to book, just drop in. Under 15’s
must be accompanied by an adult at all times.
An additional charge applies for this activity.
June
Open Air Cinema Night –
Mamma Mia
Sat 7, gates open 7.30pm, film
starts approx 8.45pm – come and enjoy
this musical romantic comedy in which a bride
to be tries to find her real father, told using
hit songs by ABBA. PG certificate, 109 mins
running time. Gates open at 7.30pm so please
bring a picnic, enjoy our barbeque, Pimms tent
and other light refreshments including some
of our lovely New Forest ice cream before the
show starts! Tickets: C – see over
Visit www.shawhouse.org.uk or ring 01635 279279 for more information
SHAW HOUSE Events diary
June – cont’d
Cromwell Singers Concert
Sat 28, doors open at 7pm,
performance starts 7.30pm – in aid
of the Friends of West Berkshire Museum.
Tickets: D – see below
July
Open Air Theatre –
Midsummer’s Night Dream
Thurs 3, Fri 4 & Sat 5, gates open
6pm, performance starts 7.30pm –
performed by local amateur theatre group, The
New Era Players. It is a complex contraption
that involves two sets of couples (Hermia and
Lysander, and Helena and Demetrius) whose
romantic cross-purposes are complicated still
further by their entrance into the play’s fairyland
woods where the King and Queen of the Fairies
(Oberon and Titania) preside and the impish
folk character of Puck or Robin Goodfellow
plies his trade. Gates open at 6pm so please
bring a picnic or enjoy some of our lovely
New Forest ice cream before the show starts!
Tickets: B – see below
Shaw House Summer Fair
Sun 20, 11am-4pm – craft stalls, garden
games, bouncy castles, BBQ and more.
£1 entry for adults, children free (includes
admission to the house).
Family Activity Day
Weds 30, 10am-3.30pm – please
check our web or social media site for further
details. Activities are aimed at children aged
4-11 years old. There is no need to book, just
drop in. Under 15’s must be accompanied
by an adult at all times. An additional charge
applies for this activity.
August
Family Activity Day
Weds 6 & Weds 13, 10am-3.30pm
– please check our web or social media
sites for further details. Activities are aimed
at children aged 4-11 years old. There is no
need to book, just drop in. Under 15’s must
be accompanied by an adult at all times. An
additional charge applies for this activity.
2014
Open Air Cinema Night – Dirty
Dancing
Sat 16, gates open 6.45pm, film
starts approx 8pm – it’s summer, 1963.
Frances, 17 and innocent, is on holiday with
her parents in the Catskills. She meets Johnny,
the hotel dance instructor, and is mesmerised
by him and his dance style. She soon becomes
Johnny’s prize pupil, in dance and in love.
Certificate 12, running time 100 mins. Gates
open at 6.45pm so please bring a picnic,
enjoy our barbeque, Pimms tent and other
light refreshments including some of our lovely
New Forest ice cream before the show starts!
Tickets: C – see below
Family Activity Day
Weds 20 & Weds 27, 10am3.30pm – please check our web or social
media sites for further details. Activities are
aimed at children aged 4-11 years old. There is
no need to book, just drop in. Under 15’s must
be accompanied by an adult at all times. An
additional charge applies for this activity.
Open Air Theatre – Robin Hood
Sun 31, gates open 4pm,
performance starts 4.45pm – in
this second Illyria production of the summer
at Shaw House, Robert Fitzooth, Earl of
Huntington, is arrested for disrupting the
peace on the day of his marriage to Marian
Fitzwater. But he evades capture and hides
out in Sherwood Forest with a band of outlaws
under the assumed name of Robin Hood. You’ll
definitely laugh, you’ll probably cry. Suitable for
ages 5+. Illyria, are an Equity Outdoor Touring
Guidelines compliant company. Gates open
at 4pm so please bring a picnic or enjoy some
of our lovely New Forest ice cream before the
show starts! Tickets: B – see below
September
Heritage Open Days
Sat 13 & Sun 14, 11am-4pm –
enjoy free entry to Shaw House as part of this
national celebration of England’s fantastic
architecture and culture. We have welcomed
over 2,000 visitors to Shaw House on Heritage
Open Days – if you have not been before, come
and find out about this wonderful Elizabethan
manor house and the people who have lived
and worked here in the past.
Open Air Cinema Night – Les
Miserables
Sat 13, gates open 6.15pm, film
starts approx 7.30pm – in 19th-
century France, Jean Valjean, who for decades
has been hunted by the ruthless policeman
Javert after breaking parole, agrees to care
for a factory worker’s daughter. The decision
changes their lives for ever. Certificate 12,
running time 170mins. Gates open at 6.15pm
so please bring a picnic, enjoy our barbeque,
Pimms tent and other light refreshments
including some of our lovely New Forest ice
cream before the show starts! Tickets: C – see
below
September & October
Autumn Lecture Series
Dates and details are to be arranged for an
autumn series of public lectures on the theme
of historic gardens. Please check our web or
social media sites for further details.
October
Family Activity Day – Halloween
theme
Weds 29, 10am-3.30pm – activities
are aimed at children aged 4-11 years old.
There is no need to book, just drop in. Under
15’s must be accompanied by an adult at all
times. An additional charge applies for this
activity.
Halloween Party Night
Fri 31, 6.30pm-8.30pm, (ticket
only event) – come and enjoy an evening of
Halloween fun at Shaw House. Apple bobbing,
spooky trail, story time and trick or treating
throughout the evening. Come in fancy dress
and bring a torch. Suitable for ages 4+. Please
note tickets must be booked in advance of the
evening. Tickets: E – see below
December
Shaw House Christmas Fair
Sun 7, 11am-4pm – Christmas crafts,
carols and children’s parties. £1 entry for
adults, children free (includes admission to the
house).
Ticket information
TICKETS A: £12
per person or all 3
lectures for £30
TICKETS B: IIIyria
performances – £15
per adult and £8
per child. New Era
Players Performance
– £10 per adult and
£5 per child
TICKETS C: £12.50 per
adult or £8.50 per child/
student
All of our events tickets are available from:
TICKETS D: £10 per
person or £8 in advance
Open Air Cinema – also available from www.summerscreens.co.uk
Shaw House – 01635 279279,
Newbury Visitor Information Centre – 01635 30267
TICKETS E: £5 per child –
tickets in advance only
Shaw House, Church Road, Newbury, Berkshire RG14 2DR
Visit www.shawhouse.org.uk or ring 01635 279279 for more information