English Heritage will hold the Grand Dahlia Show at Stonehenge this weekend, recreating the elegant events which took place in the 1840s. The heritage organisation says this year's spectacle will showcase stunning floral artistry and fashion, with teams of florists recreating the atmosphere of a grand day out. Emily Parker, English Heritage Landscape Historian, said: "People have been visiting Stonehenge for centuries, for all sorts of reasons.
"A flower festival might be one of the more unexpected things to draw people to the ancient monument but, in their day, these Dahlia shows would have been really spectacular." Emily continued: "To see them make a comeback after all this time is so exciting and it offers us a unique opportunity for us to step back in time to the Victorian elegance and grandeur of the 1840s." Last year's show was a great success (Image: Ben Birchall/PA Wire) The Victorian shows were magnets for crowds of up to 10,000 people at Stonehenge.
The Wiltshire and Devizes Gazette reported at the time: "Such a scene of gaiety was never before witnessed on Salisbury Plain [...
] Parties of gentlemen and elegantly dressed ladies were scattered about in all directions." One of the draws this year will be a free-standing Victorian skirt made of Dahlias and visitors will be able to step into the shoes of a Victorian lady for themselves and pose for an elegant photo. This year’s show will also feature the return of the giant floral trilithon and meadow which served as.
