Falstaff is skint. Dismissing his band of reprobate followers is simply insufficient to shore up his finances. So he decides to seduce the wives of two merchants in Windsor in the hope of relieving them of some of their wealth. However Mistress Page and Mistress Ford are best friends who keep no secrets from one another – so when they receive identical love letters from Falstaff they are outraged, and vow to share revenge. Falstaff, led by an organ that isn’t his brain, endures humiliation, then terror, and even physical pain in his repeated amorous pursuits. Eventually the merry wives, their husbands and half of Windsor all unite to teach him a lesson he’ll never forget! Performed in the great outdoors by five phenomenal professional actors, this fast-paced production has been created using only the First Folio text – the most authoritative edition of Shakespeare’s plays. Join the sensational international-award-winning Illyria this summer for a night of laughter and hijinks under the stars.

We are delighted to be welcoming The Ragged Victorians to the Museum over the weekend of the 30 & 31 August. Dave Clark 25Photo by: Dave Clark “The year is 1851 and all of Britain, perhaps the world is in awe of the newly opened Great Exhibition in London, showcasing all that is new and innovative about Queen Victoria’s kingdom. But what was life really like for the ordinary, poor folk of the kingdom, away from the glitz and glamour? Experience how a market may have been held during this time period as the award winning living history group, The Ragged Victorians show what life was really like for the working classes living on the edge (and sometimes tipping over) of society”

Schools out for summer and the bell has rung for playtime. Explore the evolution of toys and games from the Medieval period to the Victorians over this 6 week celebration of play things from the past. 22 July to 3 August = Medieval Mayhem 4 to 17 August = Terrific Tudors 18 August to 2 September = Victorian Toys More information on the weeks activities will be added and updated later in the year.

The Wardour Garrison will be at the Weald and Downland Living Museum on Saturday, 16 and Sunday, 17 August. Come along and discover what life was like in the 17th Century as depicted by an English Civil Wars Royalist Garrison. Within the encampment many trades and crafts will be presented such as Lace Making, Embroidery, Crewel Work and other forms of Needlecraft, Rope & Candle Making, Coining and Pole Lathing. Period food will cooked over an open fire. Visitors are encouraged to come into the encampment to interact with the re-enactors and to ask questions and many artefacts may be handled. Re-enactors will describe the impact of the Civil Wars on domestic and rural life. Being a garrison the soldiers will be put through their paces with displays of the main weapons of the period, the Pike and Musket. Following these displays younger visitors may take part in a sword school learning the basic moves as taught in the period.

With her tongue firmly in her cheek, Jane Austen tells us “It is a truth universally acknowledged, that a single man in possession of a good fortune, must be in want of a wife.” Mrs Bennet certainly thinks so. So when Mr Bingley – single, young, handsome, and with £5000 a year – moves into nearby Netherfield Park, she devotes all her energy to contriving for Jane, the eldest of her five daughters, to meet him during rural Hertfordshire’s whirlwind of social balls. But even Mrs Bennet draws the line at Mr Bingley’s disdainful friend Mr Darcy despite his whopping £10,000 a year. Thank heavens Lizzy, her second daughter, finds him detestable too! Or does she…? Can she see beyond his pride – and could he overcome her prejudice – to consider a possible future together? Following seven sell-out seasons of this sparkling adaptation, award winning Illyria returns to celebrate Jane Austen’s 250th birthday in style. Bring a picnic and enjoy her at her vibrant, forthright, bitchy best!

The Three Inch Fools present a largely historical, totally hysterical, brand new Tudor comedie Elizabethan theatre is flourishing. But will a brand-new Tudor musical romp, in which Good Queen Bess takes to the stage herself, be the making of this heroine or spell the beginning of her downfall? The stage is set for regicidal rivalries, devious dramatics, and plotting playwrights. Beset by misunderstandings and a script that…let’s just say…needs some work, this production promises to be largely historical, totally hysterical. As the old saying goes…thy show must go-eth on!

Explore the Museum this October Half Term! Can you find the witches marks and hidden objects while learning about the folklore and superstitions of the past? Discover how these marks and objects were believed to protect homes from the evil spirits. Can you design your own protective symbol and mark it with air drying clay to take home as your own protective talisman. More information on the weeks activities will be added and updated later in the year.

Help keep our heritage crafts alive! Did you know that many heritage crafts are at risk of being lost forever? Join us for our third annual Heritage Crafts event, as we explore heritage crafts & skills from past to present and learn about how we can conserve these skills for our future. Over the weekend we will be demonstrating some of the many rural crafts and skills practiced at the Museum alongside visiting members of the Heritage Craft Association, who will showcase crafts from the Red List of Historic Endangered Crafts. There will also be an opportunity to speak to the Museum’s own courses team, to find out more about the traditional trades and crafts courses available at the Museum. You might discover a short course to help you learn a new skill and help keep one of our heritage crafts alive!