Corinium Musum Oct 26 Events

Cirencester History Festival

Fri 23 Oct – Sun 1 Nov
Walks, talks and activities at the Corinium Museum and other locations around Cirencester.
Visit: Welcome to Cirencester History Festival for full details and to book.

Walks and Talks

Corinium Afternoons: Roman Villas in the Cotswolds
Thu 1 October, 2pm – 3pm
£10

The Cotswolds is renowned for its Roman villas, with more than 60 known examples across the region. Join Phill as he explores a selection of these fascinating sites, from well-known classics to lesser-known discoveries. The talk will examine villa locations, remarkable finds, stunning mosaics, and the insights these sites provide into Roman life in the Cotswolds, while also highlighting the questions that remain unanswered.

Corinium Afternoons: Roman Villas in the Cotswolds – Corinium Museum

Haunted Cirencester Town Tour
Thu 8 October, Thu 15 October and Thu 22 October, 7pm – 8pm
£9-£10
A tour around the town exploring some of the haunted stories, urban legends and ghostly happenings associated with some of the historic buildings in Cirencester. Tour lasts approximately 1 hour. Please wear suitable footwear as we will be walking on hard terrain.
Meet outside the Corinium Museum. Age 16+
Booking essential as places are limited.
Haunted Cirencester Town Tour – Corinium Museum

Walking Roman Cirencester
Fri 9 October & 16 October, 10:15 am – 1:45 pm
£30 – £33
Corinium Museum, in collaboration with Cotswold Heritage Walks, is excited to offer a series of historic walking tours. The event will be led by archaeologist, Dr Alison Grierson-Brookes, former Head of Collections at Corinium Museum, who has begun a new venture combining her two great passions archaeology and walking!
Head out with Alison to explore what lies beneath your feet revealing the ancient town of Roman Corinium, parts of the wall and impressive amphitheatre. After a short break for refreshments, Alison will lead a tour of Corinium Museum to discover the treasures revealed on the walk. With each step you will connect with the historic landscape and gain a unique insight as you walk and talk along the way. With 20 years’ experience researching and curating the collection you will be in expert hands as Alison shares her passion and unique knowledge of Roman Corinium.
This half-day event will comprise a two-hour leisurely walking tour of the town and amphitheatre, entry to the Museum with refreshments, followed by a guided tour of the award-winning Roman galleries.
Wear good footwear as mostly flat but some uneven terrain. Walk experience lasts approx. 2 hours, museum visit lasts approx. 1 hour.
Booking recommended
Limited to 10 people
Walking Roman Cirencester – Corinium Museum

Cirencester in the Civil War Town Walk
Sat 24 October, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
£9 – £10

Ian Thomas will lead a walk around the town bringing to life the ‘storming of Cirencester’ in 1643. See where events unfolded and consider the significance of Cirencester in the English Civil War. The walk will explore the town centre, the Abbey Grounds and Cirencester Park. Please wear comfortable shoes and bring a raincoat!

Booking recommended

Limited to 10 people.

Cirencester in the Civil War Town Walk – Corinium Museum

Roman Cirencester Town Walk
Tue 27 October, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
£9 – £10

The remains of the ancient Roman town of Corinium lie underneath our feet as we walk around Cirencester. Join Ian Thomas as he discusses the Roman archaeology of the town and key discoveries that point to this being one of the most vibrant and wealthy towns in Roman Britain. The walk lasts no more than an hour. Please wear comfortable shoes and bring a rain coat or sun hat! Meet at the museum.

Booking recommended
Limited to 12 people

Roman Cirencester Town Walk – Corinium Museum

Votes for Women Town Walk
Wed 28 October, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
£9 – £10

This charming photograph of Emmeline Pankhurst in Cecily Hill, Cirencester, in 1911 is part of the story of the local fight for the vote for women. Join Sue Jones, author of Votes for Women: Cheltenham and the Cotswolds, on an illustrated walk to some of the key places in the town to learn more about the story involving inspiring personalities, opposing groups and violent scenes!

Sue Jones, Votes for Women: Cheltenham and the Cotswolds (The History Press: 2018).

Tour of the Stores
Wed 28 October, 11am – 12pm
£9 – £10

Join our collections team for a tour of the stores. There are all sorts of objects behind those doors: from prehistoric to the 1950s, through stone, costume, pottery, rural life and social history. We have scythes and hoovers, pottery from all ages and Roman mosaics, carved column plinths and stone coffins, medieval tiles and corbels, smocks and horse collars. We will take you round and tell you all about what we have and what we do in the stores; then focus in on some of the Cotswold histories that can be told from some of our objects.
The store is full of surprises.
Tour of the Stores – Corinium Museum

Georgian Cirencester Town Walk
Thu 29 October, 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
£9 – £10

Cirencester is known as a Roman and medieval town, but what you see in Cirencester town centre today is the result of its Georgian successes. Out with the old order and in with the new with the rise of entrepreneurs and the middling sort. Hear about political shenanigans, riots, ruffians and religious non-conformity –  and not forgetting the entertainments!Please wear comfortable shoes and bring a raincoat! Meet at the museum.
Booking recommended
Limited to 12 people
Georgian Cirencester Town Walk – Corinium Museum

Cirencester Wool Walk
Sat 31 October , 11:00 am – 12:15 pm
£9 – £10

“The finest and most expensive wool was the English which came from the Cotswolds and, in particular, from Northleach and the great Abbey lands of Cirencester” Francesco Datini, 15th Century Florentine merchant.

Five hundred years ago it was noted that ‘half the wealth of England rides on the back of sheep.’ Join Ian Thomas for a walk around Cirencester, where the hustle and bustle of the medieval town will be brought to life through the lives and skills of the wool combers, the card makers, the dyers, the weavers and the wool staplers. Ian will share the role the Abbey played in trading wool and he will highlight the growth of the great ‘wool’ church of St. John the Baptist. Ian will take you to the sites that bear testimony to Cirencester’s glorious wool history.

The walk lasts just over an hour. Please wear comfortable shoes and bring a rain coat! Meet at the Museum. Booking recommended as places are limited

Cirencester Wool Walk – Corinium Museum

Cinema
Rural Cinema: The Devil Wears Prada 2
Sat 17 October, 2 pm – 4pm
£8 – £9

Andy Sachs (Anne Hathaway) returns to Runway magazine as the new features editor where she finds her formidable former boss Miranda (Meryl Streep) facing threats to her glossy print empire. Familiar frenemies and fresh faces join the catwalk in this stylish sequel.

Cert 12
The Devil Wears Prada 2 – Corinium Museum

The Metropolitan Opera: Macbeth
Tue 20 October, 6pm –9.30pm
£15.50 – £17.50
Following past triumphs in many of Verdi’s signature baritone roles, Quinn Kelsey is the Scottish king haunted by the ghosts of his murderous ascent to the throne, opposite Lise Davidsen—the world’s reigning dramatic soprano—as the power-mad Lady Macbeth, whose ruinous ambition damns them both. Met Music Director Yannick Nézet-Séguin takes the podium for a penetrating production by Louisa Proske, a brilliant young director making waves around the world. Rounding out the all-star cast are tenor Freddie De Tommaso as the heroic Macduff and bass-baritone Ryan Speedo Green as Macbeth’s friend-turned-victim Banquo. This production is part of the Met’s award-winning Live in HD series, bringing opera to cinemas across the globe.
The Metropolitan Opera: Macbeth – Corinium Museum

Royal Opera and Ballet: Manon
Tue 27 October, 7.15pm –10.30pm
£15.50 – £17.50
In the seedy underbelly of 18th-century Paris, money is king. Nothing is sacred – even love itself can be bought for the right price. A native of this hedonistic underworld, Manon is caught between twin desires when she falls in love with the student Des Grieux. Steadfast and devoted, he offers the possibility of an honourable life. Yet, the riches promised by the world of Parisian society remain tempting…
In this signature work of The Royal Ballet, Kenneth MacMillan’s nuanced understanding of human psychology makes for an unflinching look into the moral degradation of Manon’s Paris, while all its decadence and decay are brought to life through Jules Massenet’s score and Nicholas Georgiadis’s designs.
Royal Ballet and Opera: Manon – Corinium Museum

Families

Henry Tudor: The Incredible Diaries of Me Family Gallery Trail
Based on the new novel by Danny Wallace and illustrations by Tor Freeman.
Saturday 23 October, 2026, until Friday 12 February, 2027
£2.50

Meet Henry Tudor (the future Henry VIII) when he was just eight and a half years old and convinced that he is the best at absolutely everything

Discover six facts that explore Henry’s favourite activities, that the Tudors believed demonstrated someone’s strength, speed, wealth and intelligence. Find all six in the Corinium Museum galleries, complete the trail and then claim your prize.

Creepy Corinium Cupcakes
Wed 28 October, 10.30am-12pm
£10- £12.50

Back by popular demand, our Creepy Corinium Cupcakes workshop allows you to make art that you can eat! Create a monster cupcake and hear about some of the monsters in our collections. This is a food-based activity, so please inquire about any allergies.

Suitable for age 5 and up.

Creepy Corinium Cupcakes – Corinium Museum

Gruesome Gargoyles
Thu 29 October, 10.30am-12pm
£10- £12.50

Join us for a gruesome, glorious, gargoyle gala. We will meet at the Parish Church to investigate the gargoyles and grotesques that grace the building. Once we have our inspiration, we will head back to the museum to create our own gruesome gargoyles! All craft materials will be provided.
Suitable for ages 6 and up.

Gruesome Gargoyles – Corinium Museum

Make your own Curse Tablet
Fri 30 October, 10.30am-12pm
£10

Did you know that the Romans wrote secret curses on lead tablets and threw them in springs to hex their enemies? From stolen cloaks to chariot race rivals, no grudge was too small! Come & learn how to inscribe your own spooky curse tablet just in time for Halloween.

Make your own Curse Tablet – Corinium Museum

Adult workshop

An Introduction to Prehistoric Textiles
Sat 3 October, 10am – 4pm
£75

Join Sally Pointer, award-winning experimental archaeologist and heritage educator – for a fascinating hands-on introduction to Prehistoric Textiles.
We will start by exploring the evidence for prehistoric textiles and discussing the challenges of reconstructing techniques where so much of the original material has not survived. We will then use this inspiration to help us explore different types of cordage in flax and lime bast, splicing vs spinning, and looped, braided and twined textiles.

You will also make an antler needle (from naturally shed antler) using flint tools to take home and will usually have the opportunity to either begin a larger project to continue later or make a number of sample swatches using a range of techniques.
All materials supplied.

Tea & coffee provided. Lunch excluded but recommendations can be provided.

An Introduction to Prehistoric Textiles – Corinium Museum

Exhibitions

Conker the cat and other tales

Thu 15 October to Sun 15 November
Free

Lesley Davies is a Cotswold native and has successfully exhibited her work in various galleries. Having taken a break in recent years, she has picked up her brushes once again, with this exhibition being the first since resuming. In watercolour, pen and ink, Lesley’s work has an illustrative style and has many inspirations, with this collection mainly inspired by the imaginary past adventures of her ex-stray cat Conker. There is a maritime flavour here and there, along with oriental influences following a recent stay in Japan. ‘Art for me is about fun and enjoyment’, she says. ‘I hope to make people smile.’

Conker the cat and other tales – Corinium Museum

Wellbeing
Movement at the Museum

Mondays, 9.45am to 10.45am and 11am to 12pm

Join us for gentle movement, a blend of low-impact fitness and Tai Chi, with a qualified instructor, in the beautiful surroundings of the Corinium Museum. Ideal for those looking to start or get back into exercise. The class is 45 minutes long, with refreshments available afterwards.

• Mindful movement
• Balance & strength support
• Relaxation
• Optional chair-based exercise

Movement at the Museum: Tai Chi – Corinium Museum

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