Loughborough - Arts and Heritage

Arts and Heritage

Loughborough has four museums, the largest being the centrally located Charnwood Museum, which houses a range of exhibits reflecting the natural history, geology, industry and history of the area. Nearby in Queens Park is the Carillon and War Memorial, home to a small museum of military memorabilia from the first and second World Wars. Loughborough Library is in Granby Street.

Also to be found in the town centre, near the fine medieval All Saints parish church, is the Old Rectory. Dating back to 1288 the remaining portion of the Great Hall has been restored and houses a small museum run by the Loughborough and District Archaeological Society.

Loughborough has for more than a century been the home of John Taylor & Co bell founders and the firm has a museum—the Bellfoundry Museum—located on two floors telling the story of bell making over the centuries.

A walk around the town reveals a mix of architectural styles and there are several interesting examples of Victorian and Art Deco buildings, while the oldest buildings are to be found clustered around the parish church and the Church Gate conservation area.

Although it has no dedicated art gallery, fine pieces of sculpture can be found in the town’s environs, including the ‘Sock Man’, a bronze statue celebrating Loughborough’s association with the hosiery industry. This can be found in the Market Place near the Town Hall, which itself contains a number of art works.

The Town Hall Theatre is the venue for a wide range of events, including concerts, exhibitions, musicals, comedy shows and a Christmas pantomime. The town also has a thriving amateur dramatic community, and many groups make use of the town hall for their shows.

Events are also organised by Charnwood Arts, a voluntary managed and professionally staffed body, which promotes a year round programme of professional performances across the borough. The organisation is responsible for The Picnic In the Park event, which was inaugurated in 1980 and is held in Queens Park in May. Streets Alive, jointly organised by Charnwood Arts and Charnwood Borough Council takes place at a similar time of year.

The Loughborough Canal Festival, which started in 1997, is an annual event in May centred around Chain Bridge. The event attracts around 10,000 visitors.

Great Central Railway is a heritage railway based at Loughborough Central Station, which is south of the town centre. It is operated largely by voluteers and trains run every weekend of the year and bank holidays, as well as daily during the summer.

Every November, the street fair takes over the centre of the town and closes the A6 and other roads. The fair runs from Wednesday afternoon until Saturday night. The fair has many rides, amusement arcades, food stands and games.

The town has an Odeon cinema. There are six screens in the theatre, which is built to an art deco style. The cinema was built in 1936 and over the years it has been named the Palm Court and Ballroom, Empire, Classic, Curzon and Reel.