Reading
Properties and events in Reading
Before heading out for your Heritage Open Days visit, please check entries for last-minute changes.
"Interwoven Tales: Embracing Diversity in Diaspora" Exhibition
A profound exploration of displacement depicted by refugees. Shared stories, forged bonds, and redefined safety through embroidery, each piece tells a unique story, forming a narrative of resilience and unity.
17 Castle Street Reading
Rooms which are not normally open to clients with interesting beam construction, Diamond chimneys, carriage mounting block and Victorian staircase.
A new garden at historic Hillside House, Allcroft Road.
The new garden at Hillside House was created in 2020-21. It was opened to the public for the first time during Heritage Open days 2023. This is an opportunity to see how it has changed. The house itself is not open.
About Your House - discover the families who lived in your house
Who lived in your house? Ask our experts how to find out who occupied the premises and when. See the changes caused by the creation of the Inner Distribution Road in Reading. Find out what Broad Street looked like in the past.
Basildon Park
From its origins connected to the East India Company, to an army base in WWII, and onto a glamourous home used to entertain in the 1950s, the history of Basildon Park is a rich and interesting one.
BBC Monitoring's place in Caversham
From 1943 to 2018 BBC Monitoring was an integral part of Caversham. Over the years, employees came from across the world and enriched the local community. Join Sarah Stuffins to look at this fascinating slice of local history.
Brock Keep
Come for a tour around the historic former armoury and gatehouse which is now home to artist studios and contemporary art gallery.
Caversham Court Gardens
Take a journey round the world tracking the origins of plants in Caversham Court Gardens! Test your plant knowledge and your geography with our fun facts and learn the fascinating history of plant collecting. Activities for all ages.
Caversham Road: An area shaped by Victorian aesthetics and innovation
A guided walk around a Victorian townscape that still has many traces of its rich industrial past as well as plenty of original architectural features.
Cemetery Junction by candlelight
For this year's Heritage Open Day, JAHA invite you to step through the Arch and experience Reading Old Cemetery in a different light.
Christ Church, Reading
Church Open Day and Festrival Evensong
Fantastic Beasts and Mythical Monsters
The Ure Museum's collection of ancient Greek, Roman and Egyptian archaeology depicts a menagerie of incredible creatures! People used these fabulous beasts for storytelling and to make sense of their world. Come along to learn more!
Grade II * Watlington House A hidden gem of a house and garden in the heart of Reading.
We invite you to join us at Reading's oldest domestic building. You will hear about its history from the Tudor Period to today , the garden restoration and have the opportunity to meet some of the tenants.
Greys Court
Greys Court, is an intimate family home and peaceful estate set in the rolling Chiltern Hills. It has been modified over the centuries, creating a patchwork of medieval, Tudor, Georgian, Victorian and 20th century influences inside and out.
Katesgrove area 'Bricks, Iron, Sails, Education, Potts & a Meadow' Walkabout
NEW Katesgrove ‘Walkabout’ (Guided Walk) Bounded - North by IDR. East by London & Whitley Sts & South Waterloo Rise & to West by River Kennet. Covering its wonderful History, Culture, Heritage, Industry, People, Places, Victorian Brickwork & more!
Meet the Father Willis Organ
Just how does an organ work? And who was Father Willis? Learn this, be astounded by the sound and maybe even have a go for yourself.
Reading Abbey Gateway Tour
A special opportunity to visit the Abbey Gateway and learn about this listed building’s fascinating history and its role in the Abbey Quarter.
Reading Library - six degrees of separation, from the Zinzan family to Kevin Bacon
Based on the parlour game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon, this film tries to do that from a local history perspective.
Reading Minster
Reading Minster, or the Minster Church of St Mary the Virgin, is the oldest ecclesiastical foundation in the town of Reading, with a history dating back to the 10th century. Church and parish records will be on display during open times.
Reading Museum Store Tours
Join us behind the scenes at our store in Whitley. This year’s theme is Roman Silchester, looking at objects connecting the regional capital to the wider Roman empire.