Dozens of heritage and cultural venues in the West Midlands are set to welcome visitors for free as part of the annual Heritage Open Days event, running from 11-20 September. The initiative, organised by the National Trust with Postcode Lottery, aims to celebrate local histories and provide access to sites that typically charge or are not open to the public.
Among the attractions, visitors can take a guided tour to see 14,000-year-old woolly mammoth remains at the Shropshire Museums Collection Centre in Ludlow on 12 September. These remains include the most complete adult male skeleton found in Britain, discovered 40 years ago in Condover.
Other sites include Dodford Children's Farm in Worcestershire, which is marking its 75th anniversary with a photo and document exhibition. The farm, founded in 1951, will be open on 15 and 16 September. In Staffordshire, the Gnosall Lock-Up, a Grade II listed 19th-century cell, will open on 12 September.
The Museum of Royal Worcester will host a live painting demonstration by a former Royal Worcester artist on 15 September. Additionally, a walking tour in Birmingham on 14 and 17 September will commemorate the 1926 General Strike, and the CEMEX Cement Plant in Rugby will offer tours, including a climb up its 90-metre pre-heater tower, on 17 and 18 September.