A new audio-visual presentation tells the story of the abbey and its monks; and on May 2 the Bishop of Winchester leads an open-air service within the original abbey.

A festival of floral art will be held in the abbey church and cloisters (June 11-13); there is a village fete with a medieval monastic theme (July 17); and there will be classical concerts (Aug.28-29), including a choral evening showing the abbey's history in sound and vision.

The National Motor Museum at Beaulieu - on the edge of the New Forest 85 miles south-west of London - has more than 250 vehicles, including world land speed record-breakers and cars from James Bond films. From May, there will also be an exhibition marking the 45th anniversary of that most British of cars, the Mini.