MORE than 50 people packed into the Shop at Bromsberrow to attend the celebration following the publication of the book, The History of Bromesberrow Place.

The café area was transformed into theatre style seating with screen and projector for three excellent presentations. Local historian and author of the book, Marie Forsyth, gave a superb account of the rich history of Bromesberrow Place, how and why the book had been written adding some amusing anecdotes. She kindly signed copies of the book during the interval when refreshments were served. Formerly the head gardener and horticulturist David Myers showed his slides and these evoked fond memories from members of the audience who had known Miss Albright, a "grand lady" and benefactress who had previously owned Bromesberrow Place. Orchidologist Alan Greatwood was able to talk about the famous orchid house, his successes, the many awards and medals won at international level from cultivating and showing Miss Albright’s prize plants. A surprise conclusion to the evening was when local metal detectorist, Andy Frape, displayed a button he had found in Dymock and careful examination revealed the provenance through the coat of arms on it. The gold button belonged to the Osman Ricardo family, who had at one time been the owners of Bromesberrow Place in the 1800s. This exciting item was a perfect way to round off the evening with enthusiastic and appreciative applause from the audience.

Spokesperson Jan Long said: "This was an entirely new venture for the shop where the volunteer staff were able to showcase the versatility of the cafe area for future events. Anyone wanting to use this flexible space can contact us for reservations. We are delighted that so many people attended and book sales were brisk, as were sales of the Ragged Stone Perry and Cider, which is made at Bromesberrow Place, making this event a local and historic triumph."