Let us entertain you!

Richard Wyatt,

There’s nothing new about ensuring visitors to Bath are duly entertained – especially if they’ve come to ‘take the waters’ and came during a historical period when visiting meant not a couple of days but anything from three weeks to three months.

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Entertainment in Bath continues through to March 14. Admission includes a free audio guide. There is no charge to Bathonians producing their Discovery cards.

A new exhibition at the city’s Victoria Art Gallery is based around the story of entertainment in Bath – from the city’s Georgian heyday until the present day.

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This is Richard Beau Nash. While he was Master of Ceremonies – from 1704 until his death in 1761 – Bath became the most fashionable resort in 18th Century England.

During the 18th century Bath was second only to London for the quality and variety of the music, art and theatre that were on offer. Although these and other high-minded activities were a vital part of Georgian Bath’s social scene, this was not the whole picture.

There was also a seedy side to the city. Gambling and prostitution were rife – and very much part of Bath’s appeal to those who came here for hedonistic reasons.

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During the 1960s and 1970s, the Roman Rendevous gave people an opportunity to bathe in hot spring water in the unique surroundings of the Great Roman Bath.

The exhibition looks at the events, activities and performances those former residents and visitors enjoyed. It also brings the story up to date, covering Bath International Music Festival, and infamous pop concerts and events that many local people will remember.

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Fireworks over the Royal Crescent as part of Bath Festival celebrations in 1981.

It gathers together the stories about the people, places and attractions that made Georgian Bath such a vibrant centre – with more recent manifestations like the Bath Festival that is to some extent a legacy from that time.

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Parade Gardens was formerly known as The Institution Gardens in the 19th century.

Entertainment in Bath celebrates the city’s cultural history with a huge variety of prints and watercolours from the Gallery’s own collection – alongside loans from the Royal Collection and the National Portrait Gallery.

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How British Railways prompted the city of Bath and its famous visitors and residents.

It has been curated by Katharine Wall who met Bath Newseum to tell us more.

Entertainment in Bath runs through to March 14th.

It includes special performances by Bath Spa University drama students who will be bringing ‘Entertainment in Bath’ to life Saturdays 10, 17 and 24 February and again on March 3rd. All from 12 pm to 2pm.

Published by Richard Wyatt

Freelance Journalist, broadcaster, columnist and local historian. Director of Bath Newseum. Married and lives in Bath. Interested in local history, architecture and visual display in museums and urban spaces.

1 Comment

  1. In 1978, a group of physiotherapist from the Min went to the Roman Rendevous with patients enrolled in the 3 week inpatient course for men and women with Ankylosing Spondylitis. A very different hydrotherapy experience!

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