A Century of Amateur Opera

As part of their first co-operative project for many years, Leatherhead Museum and Leatherhead Theatre will host a remarkable special exhibition from 6 November until the start of the December pantomime season. The show will cover the town's historic amateur operatic society, based on a unique album of photographs, cuttings and other memorabilia from the distant past. The album has been donated by a direct descendant of the Hooker family which helped to found the operatic society well over a century ago and held leading roles for decades afterwards.

The exhibition will also coincide with the talk on 17 November by TV personality Bamber Gascoigne on the restoration of his magnificent West Horsley Place house and estate. This now hosts the Grange Park Opera which opened this summer at the country's latest new opera house, modelled on La Scala, Milan. See Society News.

Leatherhead Museum itself marked this year's Mole Valley Heritage Open Days from 7-10 September with its own transport-related items including the story of Venthams Motor Cars. A highlight of the weekend was the restored open top horse-drawn bus which passed by on its way into Leatherhead from Dorking.

The Museum will continue to be open from now until mid-December. 1pm to 4pm on Thursday and Fridays and 10am to 4pm on Saturdays.