Spooky House Family Mornings
Tuesday 28 – Thursday 30 October, 10.30am – 12noon | The Commandery
Where better to be in the October half-term holiday than one of Worcester’s oldest buildings?!
In these fun family mornings, children can decorate their own spooky doorway to take home. Who lives behind it and what would their door be like? From witches’ cottages to Dracula’s den, we can’t wait to see what everyone comes up with.
Delve into the messy play tables, create a bubbling cauldron picture and make a spooky puppet too!
Then, explore the rest of The Commandery with the Spooky House trail which will take you through Medieval, Tudor, Georgian and Victorian eras, and more.
Every session includes a spooky story, drink, and a biscuit. Aimed at children from pre-school ages to 11 years.
Admission info
The family morning is £5 per child. General admission also applies and can be paid for on arrival or booked online.
You can get free admission to The Commandery if you have a season or Worcester Residents’ pass (£5 for crafts still applies) – find out more and plan your visit.
Potion Bags of Fun
Saturday 25 October – Sunday 2 November (closed Mondays) | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum
This October half-term holiday is all about potions at the Art Gallery and Museum!
Pick up an activity bag and get creative in the Activity Space. From creating your potion ingredient garden, magical power spinner wheel, and a fantastic potion book for your own recipes, there’s plenty to get stuck into.
Each activity bag has multiple themed activities inside along with colouring and puzzle sheets. The Art Gallery and Museum is fully equipped for young creatives to get going on their making.
£2.50; purchase from the shop. Free entry to Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum. Plan your visit.
You might also enjoy…
Potion Panic! Family trail on all week
Potion Making – family sessions on Saturday 25 October
Body Snatching and Grave Robbing in Worcestershire
Saturday 15 November, 4 – 5pm | The Commandery
Hear from medical historian Kevin Goodman in a fascinating talk at The Commandery this autumn.
The body snatchers and grave robbers: their trade was to keep the ever-demanding medical schools supplied with the bodies of the recently deceased. But they weren’t confined to Edinburgh and London. They ranged across the West Midlands including Worcestershire. Discover the secrets behind their trade, the doctors who supported them, and their identities.
About Kevin Goodman
Kevin Goodman is an author and medical historian who has appeared in documentaries for the Smithsonian Channel (Mystic Britain), Channel 5 (The Great Plague and The Black Death) and History Hit, and specialises in the history of health and disease in the West Midlands.
£8. Book your spot.
Pikelets: Tots Through Time (early years sessions)
Wednesdays, 10.15 – 11.45am | The Commandery
Pikelets: Tots Through Time is The Commandery’s first early years programme designed to encourage little ones to explore, play and learn.
Each week, the session will take place in a new area of the museum and gardens, with the activities tailored to the space. Be a shape detective in the Great Hall, join in a tea party in the Georgian rooms, take part in sensory scavenger hunts in the beautiful walled gardens and much more. 🌻
Pikelets: Tots Through Time has been carefully designed for crawlers to pre-school children, with fun activities each week to help develop fine motor skills, counting, play-based learning and creative thinking – all within The Commandery’s unique museum setting.
Sessions end with drink, biscuit and a story.
Facilities include a baby change, lift access, and onsite café Little Al’s at The Commandery, all in a convenient city centre location (WR1 2HU) with parking nearby.
£5 per child (£2.50 per additional sibling).
If you wish to visit the museum after the session, you can enjoy a 50% discount on day admission (£4.50 for adult day ticket instead of £9).
Christmas Makers’ Fair 2025
Friday 5 and Saturday 6 December, 10am – 6pm | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum
It’s the weekend of Worcester’s Victorian Christmas Fayre! 🎄
Step inside the cosy Art Gallery and Museum as you leave the chilly outdoors behind. Enjoy browsing a range of stalls dotted around museum, a beautiful Victorian building in itself.
Check out a whole variety of unique and exquisite gift opportunities for your loved ones – or yourself – in the lead-up to Christmas. Explore the work of local designer-makers and crafts people, each hand-picked for their quality products.
Browse the fabulous Museum Shop which has an excellent range of cards and gifts, and enjoy cosy coffee or lunch in Little Al’s Kitchen at the Balcony Café.
Free entry. Plan your visit to Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum.
While you’re here, check out exhibitions Designing Terry Pratchett’s Discworld: 30 Years of Paul Kidby’s Illustration (tickets required) and Jilly Oxlade-Arnott – A Celebration of Worcester (free entry, sales support the artist and Art Gallery and Museum).
Would you like a stall? We’d love to hear from you! Get in touch with event organiser Tracey Ayre at tracey.ayre@worcester.gov.uk.
Autumn Makers’ Fair 2025
Saturday 4 October, 10am – 4pm | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum
Enjoy browsing a range of stalls dotted around the Art Gallery and Museum offering a broad selection of unique and exquisite gift opportunities for your loved ones – or yourself!
Explore the work of local designer-makers and crafts people, each hand-picked for their quality products to help you get prepared for Christmas early.
Browse the fabulous Museum Shop which has an excellent range of cards and gifts, and enjoy morning coffee and cake or lunch in Little Al’s Kitchen at the Balcony Café.
Free entry. Plan your visit to Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum.
While you’re here, check out exhibitions Designing Terry Pratchett’s Discworld: 30 Years of Paul Kidby’s Illustration (tickets required) and Jilly Oxlade-Arnott – A Celebration of Worcester (free entry, sales support the artist and Art Gallery and Museum).
Would you like a stall?
We’d love to hear from you! Get in touch with event organiser Tracey Ayre at tracey.ayre@worcester.gov.uk.
Museum after Hours: On the Shoulders of Elephants
Friday 24 October, 6.30 – 9pm | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum (The Mended Drum, Filigree Street, Ankh-Morpork)
Get your friends together on a Friday night as Museum After Hours steps into fantasy this October!
Enjoy music, themed cocktails, and get free entry to the autumn exhibition Designing Terry Pratchett’s Discworld: 30 Years of Paul Kidby’s Illustration.
In an evening inspired by Terry Pratchett’s brilliant Discworld, set foot on the flat planet and take part in the fantasy in ‘The Mended Drum’, Ankh-Morpork’s “reputable disreputable tavern”, at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum.
Have a drop of scumble and dance to Discworld DJs Le Grande Fromage. Even Rincewind himself may put in an appearance. It’s a splendiferous way to start the weekend!
Free entry (including free entry to the exhibition during the event). No booking needed. Card and cash payments accepted at the bar.
Museum After Hours is aimed at adults, 18+.
Bite-size Talk | Unveiling Deception: Exploring Forgeries in the Egyptian Collection
Tuesday 14 October 2025, 2 – 2.30pm | Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum
Can we be sure that all the objects in the collection are authentic?
Hear from curator Kerry Whitehouse about some of the fake objects that have been discovered in Worcester City’s Egyptian collection.
This seated talk takes place in the Committee Room.
£4.50; book via the link below.
Check out the full programme of Bite-size Talks 2025.
Heritage Open Day | free entry and talks
Sunday 21 September, 10am – 3pm | The Commandery
The Heritage Open Days Festival returns for 2025!
Enjoy free entry to The Commandery on Sunday 21 September.
Enjoy free talks
This year’s festival theme is architecture, so you can join one of the Midlands’ leading architects specialising in building conservation, Nick Joyce. Hear about his work with The Commandery over the decades and his expertise which has helped keep this incredible building in such good repair and open to the public.
Talks are at 10.30am and 1pm, lasting up to an hour.
Booking information
If you would like to join a talk, please book this in advance due to limited numbers. If you can no longer make it, please let us know by calling 01905 361821 or emailing commandery@museumsworcestershire.org.uk. Thank you.
If you are enjoying a general visit to The Commandery, there is no need to book – just come along on the day.
After-dark Tours at The Commandery 2025
After-dark Tours at The Commandery 2025
Various dates and times in October | The Commandery
After-dark tours are back at The Commandery for 2025!
Explore one of the oldest buildings in Worcester by torchlight this October…
The Commandery is once again opening its gates on autumn nights for you to discover its ghostly secrets.
Hear about strange sightings and mysterious rumours as you uncover the history of the building in a guided tour with a Halloween twist.
Keep your eyes peeled and make up your own mind about the paranormal activities said to have taken place over the years – if you’re brave enough!
| DATES | TOUR TIMES | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Tuesday 14 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Thursday 16 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Tuesday 21 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Thursday 23 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Tuesday 28 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Thursday 30 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | |
| Friday 31 October | 6.30pm | 8pm | 9.30pm |
Tours take approximately 1 hour and are for ages 14+.
£15.50 per person; please book via the link below.
Top tips
You may wish to check out the nightlife on the historic Friar Street in Worcester, a short way from The Commandery, before or after your tour. The restaurants and bars in beautiful timber buildings will set the tone perfectly.
Please arrive 10 minutes before your tour – bring along a torch if you have one!
Access requirements
Please get in touch if you have any access requirements by calling 01905 361821 or emailing commandery@museumsworcestershire.org.uk.
When it is necessary for a visitor to be accompanied by a carer we will give free admission to the carer – this can be booked on Art Tickets.