Visitors flock to fort’s summer open days
Heritage site has tripled it’s visitors
A HISTORIC fort in Gosport has tripled visitor numbers across its summer open days as its final event of the year draws thousands – with plans for a range of festive events.
Volunteers at the English Heritage site Fort Brockhurst welcomed more than 2,000 visitors on Saturday, with the Fort Cumberland Guard and the 13th Surrey Rifles re-enactment groups put on a range of displays.
It marks this summer’s third open-day where the public can enjoy the Victorian site for free, with 200 visitors attending the first event in July and 600 attending last month.
Jo Forbes, territory volunteer manager at English Heritage, said: ‘We’ve had an amazing day today.
‘We’ve had 2,000 or more visitors which is absolutely fantastic.
‘We’ve got lots of festive activities in the planning stage ready for Christmas and next year a lot more open days.
‘Next year, we’re hoping to open twice a month.
‘Of course, none of that could happen if it weren’t for our dedicated volunteer team here at the fort.’
The team at the fort aims to hold a festive craft fete on site on November 21, as well as another festive event in partnership with the Gosport Passport scheme.
Jo said: ‘We want to work with lots of community groups.’
Re-enactment group 13th Surrey Rifles would love to come back and hold a ‘big’ re-enactment event to wow a larger crowd, according to the group’s coordinator, James Dix.
The Guildford resident said: ‘It’s a magnificent site – I’ve not been down here before, but I’m hoping to come again.
‘I think with the space and the facilities, there’s a lot of potential for an event. We’d definitely like to come back down, maybe bring more people down and some other groups, and put on a bigger performance.’
The open-days have been well-worth a trip out according to Gosport resident Jane Martin, visiting with her husband James and their one-year-old and three-year-old daughters.
The 35-year-old said: ‘I came here as a kid – the open-days are a good idea. We would definitely come down again. The fort definitely could be used more.’