See News and Events page for the next Courses and Walks in the Arnold Area.

Join my mailing list for all the latest details by sending an email to b.massey@gmx.com 

All my talks are also available via Zoom.

Courses

courses have been organised on subjects of local and national history interest as well as Technical theatre subjects for groups, organisations , universities, colleges and  local authorities around the country too numerous to list.

If you are interested in running a course please contact me for details.

Walks and Talks

Here are just some of the Local history walks around Arnold available

Industrial Arnold: a walk looking at the start of the industrial revolution

The Arnold Village to Town: Walk around Arnold town centre

Murder Mystery and Mayhem  in Arnold: walk around Arnold town centre

The History of Arnot Hill Park: walk around Arnot Hill parks history

The History of King Geoge V park: Walk around the park looking at its history

The Arnold Market: walk and talk about this central area of Arnold and its history.

The Pubs of Arnold: walk looking at the history of Arnolds pubs and clubs

Courses, Pub Talks and Walks

Bob at events at the Bread and Bitter Mapperley

Walks

Murder mystery walks

Bob in Hospital Blues as a convalescing soldier from World War One . Arnot Hill Park Walk

Talks carried out in a Pub 

Tales of Highwaymen,

Tales of Mayhem and Murder.

Redhill Robbery, Riots and Residence 

Murder, Ghosts and the like

Tales and Traditions of Christmas

and many more, ask for details

Comments on recent walks and pub talks

Walks in the park

Great talk today !

Paul Dury

Hi Bob, 

I'd like to say how much I enjoyed the talk at the park yesterday and I'll certainly be looking out for future events as well as locating and studying the content that you already have out there! 

Thanks again

Alan Green

We all Thank you for your great talk on Sunday. Great weather too!  Thoroughly enjoyed it and it makes you look at your familiar environment in a whole new light. 

Sally Smith

 I thought the park walks were brilliant

Elaine wyatt

Many thanks, Bob.

We thoroughly enjoyed your recent Arnot Hill House walk / talk.  As we'd attended your Friday evening series of Eagles Nest talks on the History of Arnold, the actual Arnot Hill House / Park visit and your map meant so much more to us.  We both enjoyed your King George V park walk a week last Sunday as well.

Tricia and Richard Turpin.

Thank you so much for the George V park walk . Dad, Ryan and Rozie thoroughly enjoyed it.

Andy and I were sorry to have missed it. look forward to joining you again. Best wishes.

Sally

Thank you for the walk last Sunday Bob, it was absolutely brill! Really looked forward to it.

Kind regards,

Jane Chadburn

Highwaymen talk at the Robin hood and Little John

Very Knowledgeable and well presented

Fascinating talk and evening.

 i will certainly keep my eyes open for more events like this.

Keep doing the presentations

Very interesting Really enjoyed it

Excellent treatment, excellent event, excellent well up to expectations

5 out of 5 on all counts

Christmas tales at the Bread and Biter Mapperley

Rosie Lambert

*Thank you, we really enjoyed it . Told the kids a couple of facts - about mince pies & church on Xmas morn! They were shocked.

*Christmas Tales ;Another excellent evening Bob  - glad we could both support you. Will put Jan date on calendar.... Paul and Nicky Dury

*Lovely evening lots about Christmas and good to feel Christmassy.

*Very informative delivered well

*Really excellent, never been to a talk like it - so informative.

*Great thank you

*EXCELLENT !! Would come to future talks and walks

A bit more local memories were great

Loved the stories

Great evening

Thanks, Brilliant

Great overview of Christmas Traditions

Very Informative

Really great would love to see you again

What a memory for very interesting facts and stories Fantastic!!

More similar events, please

Very interesting Event

Very enjoyable

Please put on more events they are most interesting and entertaining

Hi Bob - we really enjoyed last evening's talk and walk. We were so pleased that so many people turned up.  We heard many positive comments about the evening at the end - you must be really pleased with the way it went.

Here's to the next one!! 

Best wishes,

Christine Edwards

Arnold Local History Group

Thank u for the fabulous murder mystery and mayhem  talk and walk tonight Bob - loved it.

Kind regards,

Jane Chadburn

Arnold  History Course

Comments on Talk at Robin Hood and Little John at Halloween

1st time I have attended and will definitely look out for more events thank you,

more events, please

brilliant speaker. great had a break midway through talk so everyone could replenish drinks

thoroughly enjoyable evening

more, please

excellent presentation and very interesting local information.

 found all stories very interesting and informative

bobs talks are extremely interesting please keep coming back.

a  very well presented and research content excellent.

comments on the unknown Mapperley walk

excellent walk, please put on more of these wonderful, interesting talks and walks.

it was great

really enjoyed it and feel that I now know a lot more about buildings i pass every day.

very good event very interesting locations that could accommodate numbers had been considered.

excellent walk thank you

Arnold Murder accidents and the mundane walk

Very interesting walk Excellent guide

very interesting walk

Mapperley Talk

really enjoyed the talk, Bob was very engaging

more, a regular slot

excellent informative entertaining

thoroughly enjoyed the talk

great talk

excellent informative evening, great speaker

excellent, bob brilliant really knows his stuff and very engaging

brilliant talk fascinating stories could make good plots for novels

an awesome night, wanted to hear more

very captivating, entertaining, good venue

more talks like this please

extremely entertaining would definitely come again

was very enjoyable and I was disappointed when it finished

very interesting please come back

was interesting

Reprinted from the Nottingham Post

Murder walk was fascinating

I saw advertised a murder mystery walk in Arnold on  October 30.

I went along not expecting many others to be interested but as it was a fine night and it was free, I thought I'd give it a go.

When I arrived at the Robin Hood in Arnold, the starting point, I was surprised to find

that I had been joined by more than 100 other people.

The walk was led by Bob Massey, a local historian who coped very well with the large numbers and provided a fascinating incite into Arnold's somewhat murky past.

A lady had a few of Bob's books, which were very soon sold out. I did not manage to

get one but was told they were stocked by MSR News so went straight round the next

day and bought some volumes. The stories on the walk and in the books were

fascinating.

Thanks to everyone involved for a great night.

MARK ADAMS

Arnold

Feb 1, 2018

Pub talk delves into past of one of Arnold’s oldest venues

by Gedling Eye 

Historian Bob Massey will host the talk at the Robin Hood and Little John pub later this month 

People in Gedling borough are being given the opportunity to delve into the past of one of Arnold’s oldest pubs at a talk later this month. 

 Local historian and author Bob Massey is hosting the talk about the history of the Robin Hood and Little John pub at the venue on February 13 from 7pm. 

It’s the second talk the popular speaker has held at the pub on Church Street, with the first one proving to be a smash hit. 

Mr Massey said: “There were an estimated 120 people crammed into the bar for my last talk. Several people had to leave the pub as they could not get in.”   

The Robin Hood & Little John in Arnold has a rich history, dating back to the 1700’s making it one of the oldest pubs in the borough town.   

In 1940 the pub was purchased by Home Brewery, which traded from 1875 until 1996 in Daybrook.  It’s now owned by the Lincoln Green Brewing Company.