This month we have the opportunity to visit more than 50 venues in Coventry with free tours, events, and activities, giving people a chance to take a look behind the scenes. It’s a great opportunity to learn about Coventry’s history, heritage, and culture.
Heritage Open Days runs from Friday 12th September – Sunday 21st September 2025.
The theme for 2025 is ‘architecture’. You can find a list of all of the events and activities on the Council Website.
This year the Coventry Society will be having a stall at the River Festival at Fargo Village on Saturday 20th and Sunday 21st September 2025, from 11 a.m. – 4 p.m. Come and see us there and receive a FREE Sherbourne newsletter.
This year there are some new venues and activities to visit. The ones that we have spotted are:
Coventry Cross – meet the costumed interpreters
Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 September: 11am – 3pm
Top end of Cross Cheaping (side of Primark), Coventry CV1 1HL
Join two costumed interpreters from 1459 when Coventry briefly served as the capital of England, with the royal court of King Henry VI residing here.
Meet the WW2 Fireman – Coventry Cathedral Ruins
Saturday 20 and Sunday 21 September: 11am – 3pm
Coventry Cathedral Ruins, Priory Street, Coventry CV1 5AB
Using authentic accounts, a 1940s fireman retells the story of the burning Cathedral during the Blitz of 14 November 1940 and the other raids on the city during the Second World War. The Ruins stand today as a reminder of the city as a phoenix from ashes and as a symbol of peace and reconciliation. Organised by Coventry City Council and Coventry Cathedral.
Holy Trinity Church – Aural Histories’ Concert and church tours
5A Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EX
Concert: Friday 12 September: 7.30pm
Self-guided tours: Friday 12 – Sunday 21 September. View full timings.
The ‘Aural Histories’ project explores music from 1451-1642 at Holy Trinity, performed by the Binchois Consort and others, with visuals of historic Coventry churches from that era.
[CovSoc members will have a preview of this at their meeting on Wednesday 10th September}
St Mary’s Guildhall – A Cultural Conversation with Sandra Godley OBE
Bayley Lane, Coventry CV1 5RN
Saturday 20 September – 12.30pm – 2.30pm
Celebrate Coventry’s diverse voices through talks, dance, poetry, and performances by The Elizabeth Singers, alongside exploring the historic St Mary’s Guildhall.
University of Warwick Maths Houses
Gibbet Hill campus, University of Warwick, Coventry CV4 7AL
Sunday 21 September: 12noon – 4pm
Celebrate the university’s 60th birthday by exploring the Grade II listed Maths Houses, featuring innovative design, craft activities, and historic displays showcasing the university’s pioneering spirit.
Spirit Bridge Studio – guided tours
Canal Warehouse Basin, Studio 19, Leicester Row, Coventry CV1 4LH
Tuesday 16 September: 10am – 12pm
Enjoy guided tours of the studio space, highlighting the building’s industrial past and how it’s been repurposed as a space for creativity. Visitors can also try animation techniques and flip book drawing.
Irish Heart, Coventry Home Oral History Exhibition
Eaton House, 1 Eaton Road, Coventry CV1 2FJ
Friday 12 September and Monday 15 – Friday 19 September: 2pm – 4pm
Enjoy the Oral History exhibition, telling the true and fascinating experiences of Irish families settling in Coventry over three decades.
Trinity House (formerly Old Blue Coat School) – guided tours
5A Priory Row, Coventry CV1 5EX
Saturday 13 September: 11am – 3pm
Step into the past and explore the fascinating history of this building, originally the north-west tower of Coventry’s first cathedral, founded in 1043 by Leofric and Godiva.
‘Rags to Riches’ Patchwork Exhibition – Russell’s Garden Centre
Mill Hill, Baginton, Warwickshire CV8 3AG
Saturday 13 September: 11am – 3pm
An exhibition of vintage and modern quilts from the Jane Cobbett Collection of Historical Textiles, displayed in the Library Garden at Avondale Nursery.
Coventry Central Hall
Warwick Lane, Coventry Central Hall CV1 2HA
Saturday 13 – Sunday 14 and Saturday 20 – Sunday 21 September: 11am – 3pm
Enjoy a tour of 1930s Coventry Central Hall that survived the Blitz. Tour includes key areas of the building and civic spaces as well as a tour of the roof showcasing views over
Coventry city centre.
Partial wheelchair access, on-site disabled parking, on-site accessible toilets, assistance dogs welcome.
Warwick University Modern Record Centre
Modern Records Centre, University Library, University of Warwick, Coventry, West Midlands, CV4 7AL
Friday 12th September – 13:00-15:30 and Wednesday 17th September – 10:30 -13:00
Explore 60 Years of the University of Warwick and Discover Your Roots at the Modern Records Centre. Celebrate 60 years of the University of Warwick at the Modern Records Centre’s Heritage Open Days 2025. Enjoy an archivist-led talk on the university’s founding and evolution, plus a new session on family history research using the MRC’s collections.
Link to find out more and to book:
Books, Bricks & Building Blocks!
Frederick Lanchester Building, Gosford Street, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 5DD
19 Sep 2025 In person Pre-booking preferred
Explore the history of the largest deep plan naturally ventilated library building in Europe and possibly the world.
Coventry University Archives holds a repository of collections housed at the Frederick Lanchester Library.
Visitors will be able to view the plans and items from the photographic catalogue of its construction. Take part in a short guided tour of the building hosted by students currently studying architecture. Delve into the artefacts relating to Frederick and Henry Vaughan Lanchester who were pioneers of planning and construction.
Timings & Tours: Friday 19 September: 1100-1500
Frederick Lanchester Building, Gosford Street, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 5DD
Coventry Cathedral: The women who wove the largest tapestry in the UK – A Micro Photography Exhibition
Coventry Cathedral, Priory Street, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 5AB
Multiple dates available In person Pre-booking not required
A micro exhibition of Archive Photography of some of the French women who wove and bought Graham Sutherland’s design to life. Runs throughout the festival. Open during Cathedral opening hours: Monday to Saturday 1000-1600, Sunday 1200-1500.
Measuring 23 metres tall the tapestry at Coventry Cathedral is the second largest tapestry in the world. The tapestry was woven in one continuous piece by hand on a 500 year old loom woven by women in France, using over 900 colours at the French factory of Pinton Freres of Felletin, near Abusson. The twelve weavers were occupied for over two years.
Timings & Tours: Friday 12 and Saturday 13 September: 1000-1600
Sunday 14 September: 1200-1530
Monday 15 – Saturday 20 September: 1000-1600
Sunday 21 September: 1200-1530
Club MotoFest BreakFest meet & Shakespeare Run Revival
Broadgate, Coventry, West Midlands, CV1 1FQ
13 Sep 2025 Pre-booking not required
A Display of Historic Vehicles in Broadgate, Coventry City Centre from 8 until 12:00. Vehicles will then leave for the Shakespear Run Revival 2025, a revival of a historic vehicle run through south Warwickshire ending near Stratford Upon Avon.
You can see all the events in Coventry by clicking on this Coventry search link on the Heritage Open Days website.