Womble-mania: The Exhibition at the Heights of Abraham

The Wombles were dominating Top of the Pops and the hit parade back in ’74, when The Heights of Abraham’s current owners fell in love with the estate and purchased it.

Jump forward and, after a period of hibernation in their burrows on Wimbledon Common, The Wombles are back, this time as the star attraction at The Heights of Abraham this summer.

Last year the Estate celebrated its 50th anniversary. Over the years, many things have changed at Matlock Bath’s family-friendly visitor attraction, and it has become a much-loved and award-winning destination in its own right.

This summer, the antics of these furry, loveable characters will enlighten another generation with their community-spirited good deeds and environmentally friendly habits.

Who can’t be impressed by Orinoco’s love of litter picking and the family’s penchant for ‘making good use of the things that we find.’ This provides a fun and interactive way for grandparents and parents to reinforce messages of good manners, respect, community values, and sustainability.

The Wombles arrived at The Heights for their summer fun over Spring Bank Holiday weekend and Womble-mania: The Exhibition will open Friday July 18.

The Wombles are an ideal fit with The Heights, complementing the ‘Underground, Overground Experience’ The Heights is well known for.

As well as having Wombles characters daily at The Heights throughout the school holidays, visitors will love Womble Mania! – an exclusive exhibition which explores their origins in the children’s story book launched in 1968 and their stratospheric rise to national treasures of the ‘70s, no doubt evoking nostalgia in parents and grandparents from their own childhoods.

‘We believe in the Wombles as characters who can illustrate and demonstrate the values of kindness, tidiness, sustainability, caring for the planet and each other, as well as the recycle and reuse messages, and we want to do our part in sharing and amplifying that message to our visitors and everyone our messages come into contact with,’ says the Heights of Abraham’s David Thornton.

‘We also feel a sense of responsibility to tell the heritage story of how the Wombles came about, what ‘Womble-Mania’ was all about, how they never really went away, and how they have a new energy and vitality in the CGI world and through digital channels, new books, and other activities. We want all our visiting children (and adults too) to take the Womble pledge and become more Womble!’

Orinoco doing what Wombles do best at the Heights Photo: 2025 ©Copyright and Trademarks of, and Licensed by, Wombles Copyright Holdings LTD ‘As well as featuring meet and greet Womble characters, we’re building an amazing, exclusive exhibition. It’s a walk-through exhibition with seven scenes, starting with a portable Olivetti typewrite, once used by the creator of the original book Wombledon Common, by Elizabeth Beresford.

‘Also, discover stop-frame animation, what Womble-mania was like in the 1970s – including a musical trip down memory lane with their greatest hits which frequented the Top 10 – and explore how the story has continued with digital Wombles entertaining today’s youngsters; ending with modern music, and 21st century art and fashion.’

The exhibition is mainly being constructed in Leicester and will be shipped to the Heights for the official opening – after which The Wombles will be in residence daily.

One of the many highlights of the exhibition is a full-sized sculpture of Uncle Bulgaria, created by eco artist and designer Sarah Turner. In true ‘Womble style’, Nottingham-based Sarah was commissioned to create the sculpture from recycling what most would deem rubbish.

‘It was so rewarding to work on this project. I love the Wombles, so it was a lot of fun,’ says Sarah.

‘It really got my mind whirring about how to model the various aspects of Great Uncle Bulgaria. His fur was the most painstaking part, as it involved cutting strips from white plastic carrier bags, carefully slicing the ‘shaggy fur texture’ then hand sewing strips onto the sculpture. His smart plaid waistcoat and hat is from countless blue and green crisp packets!

‘The most fun part was creating his specs from an old tin can, and the pocket watch is my favourite, created from a jam jar lid, decorated with buttons! I’m sure Great Uncle Bulgaria’s proud of my efforts in ‘making good use of the things that we find!’ It was so satisfying to bring such a character to life in my own unique way.’

The model was initially displayed at Excel in London, so you could say it’s being re-cycled for ‘Womble-Mania’.

More of Sarah’s work appeared recently at The Chelsea Flower Show, where a zebra-inspired artwork was commissioned by Investec, and a collection of nine artworks was created to depict Rathbone’s compass logo, which was on display at the prestigious LAPADA fair in central London last summer.

You can visit Sarah at some of the summer festivals taking place, including Shambala in Nottinghamshire, and she recently attended Glastonbury Festival to share and sell her wares (sarahturner.co.uk).

On select dates in August, workshops on crafting and recycling ‘The Wombles World of Making’, take place in the woodland corner, adding to the Wombling ethos and encouraging children to participate in ideas for reducing waste, and recycling. There will also be a discovery trail, aimed at younger children, to help them learn more about each of the Wombles and their individual characters.

The Wombles may be the star attraction this summer, but there’s much more to see and do. New this year is ‘Seism!c’- a light and sound immersion in the Great Masson show cavern, telling the story of the geological phenomenon which gave rise to the incredible lead and mineral-rich deposits, laid down over millions of years.

Enter The Rutland Cavern to be led on an expedition through time, with actors in period costume sharing anecdotes of the lead miners and the odd spooky tale too of happenings below ground.

More entertainment is to be enjoyed with a traditional Punch and Judy show, performing up to three shows per day, created and performed by master puppeteer, Richard Coombs, whose mastery of his art was honed on programmes such as The Muppets and Spitting Image.

Along with Womble-Mania: The Exhibition there are other galleries where exhibits share beautiful examples of period costume, representing different eras during which tourists have flocked to Matlock Bath, including Lord Byron and his ‘It’ crowd of Romantics and poets in the Georgian days, when the Estate first started to diversify into the tourism.

The Heights is also a wonderful place to explore nature – with magnificent views over the Derwent Valley, woodland trails, willow sculptures, rose gardens, play and picnic areas, adventure playgrounds, a crystal emporium and gift shop. Places to rest, restore and soak up the lively atmosphere are plentiful, with a range of places to eat and drink – including the The Vista Restaurant and Café with incredible views, to the Tavern Bar, which boasts one of the longest established beer licenses in the Matlocks, dating back to the days miners would slake their thirsts after a long, hot shift.

Book online in advance for savings, and The Wombles will be especially proud of visitors using ‘Green tickets’ – those showing a bus or train ticket receipt are rewarded with a £5 discount per person.

For more, and a chance to win a family ticket, including a children’s breakfast with special guest Orinoco, visit heightsofabraham.com/see-and-do/the-wombles.