Bentley Priory Museum

Friday Morning Talks: Research and Records using the CWGC Archives - With Chris Leach
2023-06-16 11:00 - 12:00 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Join us for our Friday morning talk about the Commonwealth War Graves Commission archives, with Chris Leach.
The presentation will begin by introducing why the CWGC was founded with particular focus on the contents of their archives during the conception of the commission. It will then explore the contents of their archives today and how they are accessible to anyone wishing to research the casualties they care for. They will then round the things off by showing you some of the incredibly special items stored in their archives, that provide a fascinating insight into the task of ensuring casualties of both world wars are never forgotten.
This talk will take place onsite in the Museum’s Learning Centre and is included in Museum admission or Annual Membership.
Advance booking required – please reserve your seat via the link below.
Reserve Your Place

Forgotten Force: Art & Memory
2023-06-17 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-06-21 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-06-23 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-06-24 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-06-28 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-06-30 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-01 10:00 - 17:00 UTC
Forgotten Force was an oral history project by the Piłsudski Institute of London giving first-hand evidence of the past by audio and video recording stories of Polish women survivors of the Second World War who have been residing in the UK for the past seventy years. To help bring these stories to life the Institute invited a London based artist and art conservator, Zofia Wyszomirska-Noga, to interpret the assembled tales and translate them to image.
Ephemeral, monochromatic, charcoal drawings that define the distant memory of a dramatic journey. Marbled paper bursting with splashes of colour embedded in the background; droplets of the past reimagined through an artist’s compassionate eye. Mothers shielding their children, railway tracks, snowy landscapes and angels emerge from the work of Zofia Wyszomirska-Noga to find a way into our hearts and memories.

Temporary Exhibition Gallery.
Included in Museum Admission and Membership.

Father's Day Lunch
2023-06-17 12:30 - 14:30 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Treat a loved one this Father’s Day with a special Ploughman’s Lunch in the Museum’s café.
£15 per adult with gift for fathers / £20 with Museum admission
£10 per child / £13 with Museum admission.
Pre-booking required by Wednesday 14 June

Friday Morning Talks: Flying up the Edgware Road -With Mark Amies
2023-06-30 11:00 - 12:00 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Join us for our Friday morning talk, where historian Mark Amies will be talking about the important early aviation history taking place locally, which forms the basis of his book ‘Flying up the Edgware Road’.
Flying up the Edgware Road tells the story of how an area of what is now north-west London became a hub of the British aircraft industry in the very early years of the twentieth century. From the Edwardian suburb of Cricklewood out towards the semi-rural hamlets of Colindale and Kingsbury, a collection of factories were established to produce some of the most important warplanes that served in the First World War.
Mark takes the reader through the early days of flying at Hendon, introduces the owners and workers of once-mighty companies, such as Airco, Handley Page and de Havilland, and chronicles the decline and reuse of the factories for a new post-war economy. It is a book that will appeal to those keen to know more about London’s industrial, social and economic past, as well as those with an interest in early aviation history.
Mark will use the contents of his book as the basis of what will be an enjoyable talk. Though the locations are not in the immediate environs of Bentley Priory, it is worth noting that one of the key players in the story, Frederick Handley Page, lived in a sizeable house called The Limes, near Stanmore Common.

This talk will take place onsite in the Museum’s Learning Centre and is included in Museum admission or Annual Membership.
Advance booking required – please reserve your seat via the link below.
Reserve Your Place

Bushey Festival Tours 2023
2023-07-01 11:00 - 12:00, 2023-07-05 11:00 - 12:00 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
We are delighted to be taking part in this year’s Bushey Festival!
Join us for a special Museum tour, Bentley Priory: From Where The Battle of Britain Was Won
This tour is available at 11.00am on Saturday 01st July and Wednesday 05th July 2023. The tours will start promptly at these times, so please arrive 15 minutes in advance to check in at reception. The tour is bookable for children but is aimed at an adult audience.
Tour Duration: approx. 1 hour.
The Museum galleries, gardens, temporary exhibition, shop and cafe will be available to visit following your tour. The Museum closes at 5pm.
Please note: Pre-booked tickets are required. Places are booked on a first come, first served basis.
Book here

Dowding System Day - Fully booked
2023-07-08 13:00 - 15:30 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Event fully booked
Join us on Saturday 8 July from 13.00—15.30 (doors open 12:30) when we will be joined by speakers celebrating different aspects of the Dowding System.
Speakers will include Gp Capt (Ret’d) Tim Willbond OBE, Historian Dr Sarah-Louise Miller and Independent Researcher Sharon Ward.
As part of our National Lottery Heritage Funded project, Clerk Special Duties, our new exhibition highlighting the role of women within the Dowding System will also be on display.
This is a free event for pre-booked ticket holders and is now fully booked. Please note the Museum is closed to non-ticket holders.

Clerk, Special Duties
2023-07-12 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-14 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-15 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-19 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-21 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-22 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-26 10:00 - 17:00, 2023-07-28 10:00 - 17:00 (Europe/London) and 2 more dates | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Since February 2023, project volunteers have been researching some of the incredible women who served in Clerk, Special Duties roles within the Dowding System and have curated a temporary exhibition which is now on display in the Museum.
This project has been made possible thanks to National Lottery players.

Summer Holidays: "Clerk, Special Duties" Top Secret Training
2023-07-21 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-07-22 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-07-26 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-07-28 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-07-29 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-08-02 10:00 - 16:00, 2023-08-04 10:00 - 16:00 (Europe/London) | Bentley Priory Museum, Mansion House Drive, Stanmore, HA7 3FB, United Kingdom
Friday 21 July – Saturday 2 September, 10am – 2pm.

On Museum Open Days: Wednesdays, Fridays, Saturdays and Bank Holiday Monday 28 August.
Complete the Top Secret Training activities to collect your prize!
This activity is included in Museum Admission and Annual Membership.
Drop-in activity, no pre-booking required.
Children must be accompanied by an adult.
