Head back in time to the Swinging Sixties at Lotherton Hall in Leeds

The event, which takes place on Saturday (July 13) and Sunday (July 14) from 10am until 4pm, will look back to the decade when the historic site first became a public museum and opened its doors to the people of Leeds.

Throughout the weekend, visitors can enjoy live music, flower power activities, retro games and crafts, dressing up, jukebox music and family entertainment.

Celebrating the 50th anniversary of opening to the public as a museum and country park, members can apply for tickets by emailing [email protected].

The evening event will include a sixties inspired band, complimentary barbeque and birthday cake.

There will also be spectacular circus skills in a big top tent. Once home to prominent Leeds family the Gascoignes, the stunning Edwardian country house played an important role in the history of Leeds, including caring for injured soldiers during the First World War.

That continued until 1968, when the estate’s last private owner Sir Alvary Gascoigne, a noted diplomat and ambassador, gifted Lotherton Hall to Leeds along with its beautiful garden, parkland and art collection.

The following year, Lotherton opened as a public museum and welcomed its first visitors.

Today, the estate is home to the stunning fashion galleries as well as the spectacular Lotherton Wildlife World attraction, which conserves an extensive collection of endangered bird species and animals, including penguins, flamingos and porcupines.

To celebrate the anniversary, the site is currently hosting a new display entitled End of an Era has been curated by Lotherton volunteers which takes a closer looks at the last

members of the Gascoigne family to live at the hall.

A selection of letters written by Sir Alvary during his diplomatic career are also on display, including a letter describing a private meeting Sir Alvary had with Winston Churchill in 1943.

The hall will also be showcasing some of its extraordinary collection in the 50 Years in the Making exhibition.

Special displays of decorative arts and archive material expose the varied and fascinating stories of the collections left by the Gascoignes and those brought to

Lotherton in the last 50 years.

For more details about Lotherton, visit: www.leeds.gov.uk/museumsandgalleries/lothertonhall/lotherton-hall