The Friends of Foster Hill Road Cemetery host a number of themed talks during the year, which are open to the public and always prove very popular. The Cemetery records are available at the Chapel during the Heritage Weekend in September and an annual carol concert is held near Christmas. Other events are held to mark special occasions.
Members of the Friends lead several guided walks during the summer months. Each walk is themed and covers topics such as the Cemetery’s spectacular graves, its history, its wildlife, tales of those buried there and more. Walks are also included during the Heritage weekend. The walks last approximately 1.5 hours and the pace is gentle. However, the cemetery grounds are uneven so a pair of stout walking shoes is recommended.
We are also happy to arrange bespoke walks for interested groups, please contact us for details.
The times and dates of our events vary, so please see our events calendar for more details.
Nancy Wake had it all. Intelligent, beautiful, and married to a wealthy French industrialist, living in grand style in the South of France. But in June 1940 when the Nazi war machine rolled into France, Australian journalist Nancy knew she had to fight back.
Ruth Hogan is one of Bedford's best-selling authors and her book, 'The Wisdom of Sally Red Shoes', includes many scenes set in our cemetery, where one character walks her dog and imagines what the lives of some people buried here were like. In this walk, Ruth will point out some of the graves that inspired her, detail the lives she made up about those people and will read short extracts from the book
Foster Hill Road Cemetery has its share of policemen and Chief Constables, a Prison Governor, criminals, murderers and their victims. Bob Ricketts will share the stories and following the talk Cemetery Tour Guide Anni Berman, will take you on a guided walk through the cemetery to identify the key graves.
Perhaps the most remarkable person buried in Bedford Cemetery was Mabel Bartltrop, founder of the town's millenarian community known as the Panacea Society. They were known internationally for her Healing Mission and campaigns to have Joanna Southcott's Box of Prophecies opened.
Heritage Open Days is England’s annual celebration of local history, architecture and culture. Foster Hill Road Cemetery Chapel will be open for anyone who would like to study the cemetery records from 1855 to date.
Did you know the story of Bedford's Victorian spiritualist leader? Or what about the Scottish invasion of 1914, or the brave WWII freedom-fighter, or Bedford's messiah, or the Suffragette activist, or the Tennis Court Murder?
By popular demand back again, for Heritage Weekend, is Jo Roberts, to lead her fascinating walk about some of the magnificent trees in the cemetery.
Over the course of one weekend in mid-August 1914, around 17,000 Scottish territorial soldiers arrived in Bedford where they would spend the next 9 months getting ready to join the fighting on the Western Front. This fascinating and engaging talk, supported by a wealth of contemporary photographs, examines the impact of the Scots’ friendly invasion of Bedfordshire during the early months of the First World War.
You are invited to join with Bedford Pipe Band for their Remembrance Service for all service personnel, and especially to commemorate the young men of the Highland regiments who died in Bedford from a measles epidemic whilst under training, and awaiting departure for the Front. The pipers will be present, together with representatives of the Services.