Installation view, ‘Into Abstraction: Modern British Art and the Landscape’ at The Burton at Bideford, 2025. Photography by Jim Wileman.
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ABOUT THE BURTON AT BIDEFORD
Installation view, ‘Into Abstraction: Modern British Art and the Landscape’ at The Burton at Bideford, 2025. Photography by Jim Wileman.
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ABOUT THE BURTON AT BIDEFORD
Artist Biography>
Liz’s books can also be ordered post-free from her website www.lizshakespeare.co.uk
A haunted castle with a twisted maze of horrors … This October, be first to experience Watermouth Castle’s first-ever immersive scare attraction: ‘Descend into Darkness’
Get ready to be spooked! Watermouth Castle, located in North Devon, is hosting a hair-raising Halloween scare event, promising thrills and chills for all those who love a good fright.
With event dates set for October 25, 26, 27, 30, 31, and November 1 and 2, brace yourself for bone-chilling attractions, live scare actors, and heart-pounding themed areas. This event is not for the faint of heart! Join us if you dare for a night of spine-tingling fun, and unforgettable scares.
The castle’s multiple different immersive scare zones include:
Run by Catfish Productions, in partnership with Watermouth Castle.
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WATERMOUTH CASTLE MEDIA RELEASE
About Watermouth Castle
Midnight Kitchen by Sue Luxton © Sue Luxton
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A Burton at Bideford Media Release
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A haunted castle with a twisted maze of horrors… This October, be first to experience Watermouth Castle’s first-ever immersive scare attraction:‘Descend into Darkness’…
Watermouth Castle has a new owner. His desire: to create an amusement park for local people to come and enjoy and share his wonderful new home. Little is known about this mysterious benefactor. Some say he is eccentric. Some say he is mad. Some say he is… INSANE.
Get ready to be spooked! Watermouth Castle, nestled in the heart of North Devon, is excited to announce its hair-raising Halloween scare event, promising thrills and chills for all horror lovers, fright fiends, and all those who love a good fright…
Do you dare to come face-to-face with terror...? With bone-chilling attractions, live scare actors, and heart-pounding themed areas, this event is not for the faint of heart. Join us if you dare for a night of spine-tingling fun, and unforgettable scares.
Do you dare to come face-to-face with terror…?
The castle’s multiple different immersive scare zones include:
Run by Catfish Productions, in partnership with Watermouth Castle.
Not suit able for under 12s or wheelchair users. Under 16s must have an accompanying adult.
The experience lasts approximately one hour, For tickets and early bird rates. Contact www.watermouthcastle.com
Water Mouth Castle Media Release
About Watermouth Castle
Watermouth Castle is a beloved attraction in Ilfracombe. The Castle offers a one-of-a-kind experience for visitors of all ages. From thrilling rides to enchanting play areas, Watermouth Castle is where memories are made and adventures begin.
Watermouth Castle is part of The Escapade Group which comprises indoor and outdoor play attractions including Hobbledown adventure park in Surrey, Hobbledown Heath in London, Gripped aerial adventure park in London, and indoor play centres Kidspace Adventures in Croydon and Romford.
A Devon author who specialises in breathing life into true stories from the past has chosen a remarkable Torrington story for her latest book, The Ordeal of Miss Lucy Jones.
In 1879, the effigies of
two local people were tarred, feathered and burned on Torrington Common by a
disorderly crowd of three thousand people. Who were the two victims, and why
were they being publicly shamed?
‘I was fascinated by a
report of the event in a nineteenth century newspaper,’ said author Liz
Shakespeare, who lives near Bideford, ‘so I decided to find out more.’
Incidents of ‘rough
music’ were not uncommon at the time. A
crowd of people, often in disguise, would march to the houses of those who had
committed an offence against society, often a couple who were believed to be
having an illicit affair. The crowd would make a terrible racket by banging
pots and pans and blowing horns, and sometimes effigies of the couple were
burnt. However, this event in Torrington was on an unprecedented scale.
‘One of the effigies was
of Miss Lucy Jones, the daughter of a Torrington doctor who lived in Castle House,’
said Liz. ‘As a church visitor to the poor, she had to meet regularly with the
curate, Reverend Francis. He was very unpopular, so when someone claimed to
have seen him and Lucy ‘acting improperly’ together on the Common, the people
of Torrington seized the opportunity to be rid of him.’
The ensuing enquiry,
culminating in the burning of the effigies, was reported in no less than
fifty-two newspapers throughout Britain, and all included the name of Lucy
Jones.
‘It would have been a
terrible time for her,’ said Liz. ‘The investigation into Reverend Francis’
behaviour was reported in great detail in the local newspaper. I studied this
carefully, and although there were plentiful reasons for his unpopularity, I am
convinced that Lucy was innocent of any wrongdoing.’
Liz’s novel draws on
extensive historical research to tell the story from Lucy’s point of view. Lucy
Jones liked to walk on the Common and to take excursions by train to Bideford
and Instow, and the novel describes Torrington and the surrounding area as it
was in the 1870’s.
Reverend Francis had to
leave the town as a result of the scandal. ‘But after the burning of the
effigies,’ Liz said, ‘Lucy was afraid to leave the house. Knowing that her name
would be forever associated with the scandal, she despaired of ever being able
to marry her childhood sweetheart.’
While researching the
book, Liz particularly enjoyed walking on Torrington Common, as Lucy had done.
‘As I studied the history
of the Common, I came to understand what a powerful influence it has had on the
people of Torrington. Their grazing rights gave them an independence and a
determination to unite and organise which enabled them to get rid of Reverend
Francis, and I believe that determination still survives today.’
Torrington is famous for
its Mayfair, and for the hugely successful bonfires organised by the Torrington
Cavaliers which raise a lot of money for local charities, and take place on the
same spot as the burning of the effigies in 1879.
Liz Shakespeare has been
writing for more than thirty years, this is her seventh book. All her books are
set in North Devon and are based on true stories.
The Ordeal of Miss
Lucy Jones will be launched at The Plough Arts Centre in Torrington at 2pm
on Thursday 25th April. Booking is essential, tickets are £6 to
include tea and cake. Liz will give a talk on the background and writing of the
novel, and there will be the opportunity to buy signed copies.
Liz will also be speaking
at Parracombe Arts and Literary Festival on May 6th, Bude Literary
Festival on May 17th, RHS Rosemoor on May 18th, and
Torrington Library on June 13th.
After 25th
April, The Ordeal of Miss Lucy Jones can be purchased
from local outlets, or ordered post-free from www.lizshakespeare.co.uk.
Bourgeois’s art was closely bound up with her life, and she used artmaking as a way to make sense of her experiences. Her sculpture, drawing, and writing are characterised by emotional honesty, and she reworked her ideas in different forms and materials including marble, bronze, latex, and fabric, compelled by the need to make and re-make.
This exhibition focuses on works produced during the last 20 years of her life, a period of extraordinary creativity, during which Bourgeois re-examined many of her lifelong concerns to create a body of powerful new work exploring identity, gender, childhood, family and motherhood. Personal, provocative and raw, Bourgeois’s work reaches us with a powerful immediacy more than a decade after her death.
ARTIST ROOMS presents the work of international artists in solo exhibitions drawn from a national touring collection jointly owned by Tate and the National Galleries of Scotland. This exhibition is drawn from the ARTIST ROOMS collection and includes works on loan from The Easton Foundation and Tate. This is the Burton at Bideford’s third collaboration with Tate and National Galleries of Scotland through the ARTIST ROOMS programme, and follows presentations of internationally renowned artists Richard Long (2014) and Diane Arbus (2018).
Warren Collum, Interim Co-Director of the Burton, said:
“Working in partnership with Tate and National Galleries of Scotland through the ARTIST ROOMS programme for the third time to present one of the twentieth century's most influential female sculptors, Louise Bourgeois, is a unique opportunity.
This show not only celebrates art but also emphasises the need to bring culture to rural areas, as well as putting a light on the strength and ingenuity of women in the creative world.”
The ARTIST ROOMS programme provides support for young people to get involved in creative projects, discover more about art and artists, and learn new skills. A Burton Youth Collective will be supported through ARTIST ROOMS by Art Fund and Henry Moore Foundation, providing local teenagers with the opportunity to explore a career in the arts, experience life behind the scenes of an arts organisation, and work alongside practising artists. Sessions are open to young people aged 13-19 years. Places are limited and anyone interested is advised to contact the gallery to check availability and register their interest.
French-American artist Louise Bourgeois is widely recognised as one of the most important and influential figures of modern and contemporary art, with a career spanning eight decades from the 1930s to 2010.
ARTIST ROOMS Louise Bourgeois brings together works which she made during the last twenty years of her life, a period of extraordinary creativity.
Bourgeois’s art was often autobiographical, exploring themes such as childhood, family, motherhood, identity and gender. She reworked her ideas in different forms and materials, creating large-scale sculpture and installation, painting, printmaking, drawing and textiles. Both biographical and universal, Bourgeois’s work reaches us with a powerful immediacy more than a decade after her death.
This is the Burton at Bideford’s third collaboration with Tate and National Galleries of Scotland through the ARTIST ROOMS programme, and follows presentations of internationally renowned artists Richard Long (2014) and Diane Arbus (2018)
Exhibition launch: Friday 17 November, 6-8pm
Join Burton at Bideford and special guests from Tate to celebrate the exhibition opening
The Burton Art Gallery & Museum, Kingsley Road, Bideford, Devon, EX39 2QQ
Current & upcoming exhibitions >