20 August 2007
Tudor activities at Henry VIII’s hunt grandstand
As part of the City of London’s annual Forest Festival on
Chingford Plain, from 11.00am - 5.00pm on Sunday 2 September, Queen
Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge (Ranger’s Road, Chingford) will be
hosting free family activities with a Tudor theme.
Having enjoyed the spectacle of re-enacted jousting on Chingford
Plain, visitors are invited to come to the Hunting Lodge where
children can to have a go at hobby horse jousting! Between 1.00pm
and 4.00pm, you will be able to make your own mini paper jousting
tent to take home. Throughout the day, ‘The Theatre of the Small’
will be holding performances of a lively Tudor puppet theatre,
while authentic musical entertainment will be provided by ‘The
Colchester Waits’. Follow the flags marking the pathway from the
Plain to the Hunting Lodge or give your legs a rest and take the
dray horse cart ride up the hill.
The festivities will be set against the backdrop of the only
remaining timber-framed Tudor ‘standing’ which was originally built
for Henry VIII. Explore this beautiful remnant of a bygone age of
royal hunting and pageantry.
For further information about the Tudor activities at Queen
Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge on 2 September, please telephone 0208 529
7090. Please telephone 0208 508 0028 to find out more about the
Forest Festival.
Ends
Notes for editors
Queen Elizabeth’s Hunting Lodge was originally called the Great
Standing. It was built for King Henry VIII in 1543. It was used as
a grandstand to watch the hunting of deer or possibly from which to
shoot deer, with crossbows. During the summer, the Lodge is open to
the public 1.00pm-5.00pm Wed-Fri and 11.00am-5.00pm weekends. The
Lodge is owned and managed by the City of London for the free
enjoyment of visitors.