Bressingham Steam and Gardens
Bressingham Steam and Gardens
Thetford Road Near Diss,
Norfolk IP22 2AB
Tel: 01379 686900
About Bressingham Steam and Gardens
Britain is unique for its combination of heritage and history when it comes to family attractions, and none are more devoted to the noble arts of yesteryear than Bressingham Steam Museum And Gardens, founded by the well-known gardener and horticulturalist Alan Bloom, who devoted his long and fruitful life to the study and preservation of these disciplines – to the continued delight of thousands of visitors every year.
Bressingham boasts over five miles of narrow-gauge steam railway, the famous Victorian ‘Gallopers’ and the official Dad’s Army exhibition, as well as acres of beautifully-kept gardens that offer something for all members of the family. Picnics are a popular option in the green areas or there are two restaurants to choose from, making a visit to Bressingham a true day with lots to offer. Situated in the small town of Bressingham, near Diss in Norfolk, the site is a mecca for steam fans, who have a choice of the Garden Railway (10.25 inch gauge), the Nursery Railway (2 feet / 610 mm gauge) or the Waveney Valley Railway (15 inch / 375mm gauge). There’s also a standard gauge track, which often offers rides to visitors.
The story of Bressingham is also the story of the late Alan Bloom MBE, a passionate fan of steam who applied his entrepreneurial skills to creating a venue that would preserve the technology for future generations. Bloom, who died at the ripe old age of 98 in 2005, had originally built a site for this purpose at Oakington in Cambridgeshire: however, this was compulsorily purchased by the Chesterton Rural District Council and Bloom shifted his operations to Bressingham Hall. As well as the steam museum and other public-access operations, the site contains the Dell garden (which features the renowned ‘island beds’) and the Foggy Bottom garden, built by Bloom’s son Adrian. There is also a commercial horticulture facility on the site, which trades as Blooms Of Bressingham and which functions separately from the Bressingham Gardens and Steam Museum.
The principal draw to Bressingham is, of course, the splendid collection of steam locomotives – over 40 in number. This includes steam locomotives, traction and stationary engines and vehicles, now restored to the standards of old, and each with its own history. The collection grew alongside the Museum and the larger operation, whose history goes back as far as 1946, when Bloom first bought Bressingham Hall. After increasing the size of the pond to almost a hectare in area and creating the first informal garden to emphasise the natural beauty of the trees in the park, Bloom set about adding the steam engines and other attractions while his son Adrian accompanied him. In 1967 the latter created the Foggy Bottom garden, a two-hectare zone renowned for its physical beauty, while the business expanded to include the aforementioned commercial gardens. This is now a large space enclosing almost 500 acres, with the Bressingham Garden Centre a popular destination for both visitors and those who live nearby.
In the spirit of its founder, Bressingham Steam Museum and Gardens never stands still: there is always something new coming up on its daily schedule, just some of which are open-air theatre productions, anniversarial celebrations for the various parts of the garden (for instance, the Foggy Bottom garden celebrates 40 years in existence in 2007) and events for gardeners that celebrate the many kinds of plant which thrive here.
What’s more, visitors have several locations to choose from. There’s the new Winter Garden, designed by Adrian Bloom and his team: this contains drama-filled juxtapositions of trees, shrubs, perennials, grasses and bulbs. Then there’s the Summer Garden, specifically designed to reach its maximum potential in the warmer months of the year with miscanthus, crocosmia, agapanthus, geraniums, eupatorium and asters, which made a bold impact when viewed from the entrance to the gardens. Next, the visitor can explore Foggy Bottom, a six-acre zone of plants from many different countries, set against paths, trees and shrubs to provide a whole experience for the horticultural fan. The Fragrant Garden, originally planted in 1963 and currently undergoing its final redesign, will be opened with spring to autumn plants, in particular those with scented flowers and foliage, and Adrian’s Wood – a three-acre space linking Foggy Bottom with the Dell Garden – is an ever-popular zone, with its five enormous specimens of sequoiadendron giganteum, or giant redwood, some of which exceed 80 feet in height. Over the 40 years since it was first planted, the Wood has become a beautiful home to North American species and cultivars of perennials, grasses, bulbs, trees and shrubs.
As well as the steam and garden elements of Bressingham mentioned above, a very popular attraction is the official Dad’s Army exhibition – a selection of memorabilia and objects used in the BBC TV series, housed in a recreation of the Walmington-on-Sea High Street. The series, which evoked memories of a previous generation so keenly in a nation of TV viewers in the 1970s and 80s, lives on in this expertly-managed collection of items which attracts thousands of annual visitors.
Bressingham also offers accommodation, either in a host of recommended locations nearby or at the Hall itself, which supplies a wide range of rooms to many sizes of party. For information on this or any other aspect of your visit, check the Bressingham website and you’ll be guaranteed a memorable stay. The Hall itself is an impressive structure, with history emanating from every corner – and as the home of the Bloom family it’s another cog in the Bressingham machine, designed to bring pleasure to thousands of fans of steam and gardening.
A unique home to a unique family, the Hall and its surrounding Gardens are something quite intrinsically British: an institution that celebrates the beauty of both nature and the achievements of mankind – a balance that is hardly found elsewhere. Keep the passion of Alan Bloom and his descendants alive with a visit to Bressingham, where you’ll have an experience that is simply not available elsewhere.