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Patron, Loyd Grossman says:-
'Treasure Your Treasures' in Merseyside
PATRON, Loyd Grossman has launched,
what he calls:- "the world's greatest heritage festival", rousing visitors to get
out and about and 'treasure your treasures' at 5000 free events taking
place across England during Heritage Open Days, between Thursday, 8 September
2016 and Sunday, 11
September 2016.
'Treasure Your Treasures' is the theme for this year's annual 4 day
festival, which calls on communities to champion their local heritage and show
their support for cultural and historic assets on their doorsteps. Visitors are
encouraged to capture themselves on camera with the objects, people or places
that they treasure and to share their stories online via social media using the hashtag
'#TreasureYourTreasures'. Specially made Heritage Open Days frames will be
positioned in each region at some of the free events for people to put
themselves in the picture together with or in front of their treasures.
The 'treasures' theme comes following the results of a straw poll by
Heritage Open Days, which showed that 95% of Heritage Open Days organisers had
fears about the future of places like museums, galleries, archives, theatres,
parks and historic sites in their own communities, which may be facing financial
uncertainty. 225 local organisers responded to the survey about their treasures
and their level of concern about the effects of funding cuts. They felt
overwhelmingly that Heritage Open Days had an important role to play in
supporting the future of their local treasures.
Loyd Grossman said the 5,000 free events held during the festival provided the
ideal platform to stand up and shout about local treasures. He encouraged people
to engage with heritage as visitors and volunteers, and to get behind campaigns
to retain access to places like museums, archives, libraries, galleries,
theatres, parks and historic sites.
In the last 22 years, Heritage Open Days has
grown from 701 events to over 4800 in 2015 with some 3.4 million visitors
enjoying free to access events and activities over four days in September. Over
40,000 volunteers help to run the festival making it the biggest grassroots
celebration of culture and heritage in the UK. It is coordinated centrally by
the National Trust with funding from Players of People's Postcode Lottery. The
festival provides an opportunity to showcase buildings and hidden histories in
communities.
The database for this year's festival is now
live.
A selection of highlights in Merseyside:-
► Liverpool Medical Institution, Liverpool is 1 of the oldest medical societies in the world,
traces its origins to the founding of the Liverpool Medical Library in 1779. The
present Grade II* listed building dates from May 1837. The tour of the old
building includes the unique Lecture Theatre, Council Room and Library. The tour
lasts approximately 1 hour.
► Mersey Tunnels, Liverpool...
George's Dock Building is Grade II listed and was completed in 1934. It was
built as the headquarters and ventilation station for the Queensway Tunnel. The
building is one of the finest examples of Art Deco architecture in the country
and will be open to the public for the weekend. There will be a small display of
photographs and artefacts on the ground floor which tell the story of the
construction and also King George V opening the tunnel. Guests will also have a
chance to visit the original Control Room. Tours to a Fan Chamber and down to
the tunnel itself will be held at 11:00, 13:00 and 15:00 each day on a 1st
come 1st served basis. Please note that the Tunnel tour will only allow a max 24 per tour and children over 10yrs
only.
► The Athenaeum, Liverpool... The Open Day will give members of the public a unique opportunity to view the
building and its treasures through a guided tour. The Athenaeum, founded in 1797,
is Liverpool's oldest social organisation. Its original purpose was to provide a
centre of information in the newsroom where a wide variety of newspapers and
periodicals were taken and a reference library which today contains over 60,000
volumes, many of which are rare if not unique. It also has an archive of
documents, pictures and artefacts on many aspects to Liverpool's history and
heritage. These are normally open only to the 500 Proprietors. |
