8 of the best things to do at Bristol Open Doors 2021

Bristol Open Doors is back this weekend. With more than 60 different adventures to choose from, and booking up fast, here are our top picks with tickets still available.

1. The Changing Harbour Audio Tour
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/the-changing-harbour
What do you know about Bristol’s harbour? Voyage through time on the premiere of this immersive audio tour made with Show of Strength Theatre. Starting at SS Great Britain, head west and off the beaten track to hear from boat-builders, historians, our harbour master and artists about this fast-changing area of the harbour. Facing flood risk, a climate emergency and a housing crisis, share your hopes for our city’s watery heartland.

2. Redcliffe Caves
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/redcliffe-caves/
Did you know there are CAVES in the centre of our city? Hidden behind a small door in the banks of the harbour are the Redcliffe Caves. A new audio tour reveals the secrets and stories of the caves as you venture underground, from their excavation to their role as a shelter during the second world war, dispelling a few urban myths along the way. Navigate your way through a complex network of tunnels that extend beneath Redcliffe.

3. Ashton Court Mansion – Mansion Through Time
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/ashton-court-mansion/
For Covid-safety lots of the adventures are outdoors this year, and this is one of the best. Outdoor theatre comes to Bristol’s beautiful Ashton Court. All is revealed about the family who lived there for 400 years – the Smyths, in this outdoor family show, created by Show of Strength Theatre Company. Follow the Smyths and their servants through 400 years of English – and Bristolian – history. The Mansion Through Time is full of family secrets, buried treasure and an impostor so notorious Charles Dickens put him in a book. This show promises to ‘change your view of Ashton Court — forever’.

4. Queer Bristol Audio Tour
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/queer-bristol/
Enjoy Channel 4’s It’s a Sin? How much do you know about our own city’s queer history? When was Marlene Dietrich in Bristol? What happened at The Elephant? Setting off from the Queenshilling on Frogmore Street, journey through secret doors and scandal, through danger and disco, to the present day. Battling the law, an AIDs epidemic and Section 28, hear stories of an irrepressible community uniting in Pride. Discover the LGBTQ+ people and places that shaped a city. Created with Bristol Archives, Outstories, Kiki, Pride, Bernie Hodges and artist Tom Marshman.

5. The Mount Without
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/the-mount-without/
The fire at St Michael on the Mount was a sad day for Bristol, this adventure follows the mammoth journey of bringing the building back into use. This is a rare opportunity to see the renovation progress that has been made in the last year from a new roof to new floors and a new Crypt. The walls still retain the scars of the fire, adding to the history of this wonderful church that has been a gathering space since Norman times.

6. Kings Weston House
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/kings-weston-house/
It’s not just the city centre with jewels to share. This Grade 1 listed architectural gem was designed by Sir John Vanbrugh and is now being carefully renovated on the inside, back to its beautiful Georgian appearance. You can discover the long and colourful history of this historic house with tours led by Kings Weston Action Group and local historians.

7. John Sebastian Lightship
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/john-sebastian-light-ship/
Everyone has passed by the smart red and black ship moored in Bathhurst Basin, near the Ostrich pub. This tour takes you round the John Sebastian, Light Vessel 55, the last remaining wooden lightship still afloat in the world, and a vessel that has survived for over a century and through two world wars. She was built by Charles Hill and Son in 1885 in the Albion Dry Dock and remained in service as a lightship (floating lighthouse) protecting mariners from hazards at sea until 1954.

8. Motion
bristolopendoors.org.uk/events/motion/
What happens in a club in the daytime? Take a peek inside the biggest nightclub in the South West, recently voted 11th in the top 100 international nightclubs. This tour covers the history of the Motion site, including the Marble Factory, how the building was made and how the space changed from a factory, via a skate park to an events space.

To take part in Bristol Open Doors this year, book an Explorer Wristband online, and receive a special code that allows you to book into four adventures. For Covid safety, all adventures must be pre-booked this year, and are first-come, first-served. Wristbands are £10 for adults, and £2 for children for the whole weekend. You can also use your Explorer Wristband to get free travel on First buses in Bristol over Bristol Open Doors long weekend.

To book an Explorer Wristband, visit www.bristolopendoors.org.uk

Main photo by Martin Booth; Tik Tok video by Mersina Booth

Read more: Bristol Open Doors is back – but not as you know it

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