A throwback to school summer holidays of yesteryear can be sampled at the North East’s living heritage museum over the coming six weeks.

Beamish is promising a “fantastic summer of fun for all” at the open-air museum site near Stanley, County Durham.

The Beamish summer 2023 offer includes everything from 1950s’ bands and map-making to UFOs and the nostalgic play-time experiences.

Visitors can take part in a host of hands-on activities during the Summer of Fun season, running from this week until August 30.

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Among allotted daily activities are traditional proggy mat making each Wednesday, bread making on Thursdays and pan polishing on Fridays.

There will be teddy bears’ picnics on Tuesdays and Thursdays, so young visitors are urged to bring their favourite teddies.

On weekends play-time activities, including skipping and quoits, will be staged in the back lane of Francis Street.

Visitors can also roll up their sleeves and help miners’ wives with their chores in The 1900s’ Pit Village.

Monday was traditionally wash day, using the old-fashioned poss-sticks, followed by ironing on a Tuesday.

Following mat-making Wednesdays and bread-baking Thursdays, there will be pan polishing on Fridays.

Map-making sessions will also be staged by visiting the emigration office in the Town Street to help learn about the countries people set off for to make new lives in the colonies in the early 1900s and also discover what they left behind when setting off on their new adventures.

Suffragette rallies will be staged each Wednesday to reflect on the campaign for women to get the vote.

There is also an Edwardian Fairground, with a small additional cost in place, with sandcastle making and weekend donkey rides on the Beamish Beach.

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Wartime code-cracking will be on the agenda at Orchard Cottage, on Home Farm, where there will be a flavour of life on the Home front.iscover what life was like on the Home Front during the Second World War and learn about wartime code-cracking each weekend in Orchard Cottage.

There will also be plenty to do in the 1950s’ welfare hall throughout the Summer of Fun event.

It includes exploring the unexplained each Monday with the Beamish UFO club, a test of knowledge with a 1950s-style quiz each Tuesday and Friday, while the birth of the NHS will be heralded each Wednesday at the hall, where teddy bears’ can be weighed at the baby clinic.

There will also be an exploration of the 1950s’ peace protests and marches on Thursdays and, each weekend of the Summer of Fun event, there will be a range of activities to enjoy, from bands and choirs to youth clubs.

Among its ongoing 1950s’ exhibits, Beamish has opened replicas of semi-detached council houses from Red House, in Sunderland, police houses and s, from Leam Lane in Gateshead, and a bowling green and pavilion from Billingham in its 1950s’ Town.

There will be a weekly picnic every weekend at Spain’s Field Farm, with costume try-on, hobby horses and other toys and games from the era.

In addition to the full programme of events, visitors can pick up a free copy of a sensory trail from the site entrance to allow a different way to experience the museum.

Celyn Gurden-Williams, assistant director of engagement at the museum, said: “We’re inviting families to enjoy unforgettable days out at Beamish this summer.

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“We’ve got a whole host of hands-on activities for visitors of all ages to take part in across the event.

“The Summer of Fun event is included in admission and is free to Beamish Unlimited Pass holders and Friends of Beamish members, making the event fantastic value for money!”

Daytime events are included in museum admission and are free to Beamish Unlimited Pass holders and Friends of Beamish members.