• The D.H. Lawrence Connection

Durban House, which stands on the corner of Greenhills Road and Mansfield Road, was built in 1876 as the offices for the Barber, Walker Coal Company. The building was put up for auction by British Coal in February 1987 and fell into a sad state of repair until purchased by Broxtowe Borough Council in 1995.

Now completely restored, Durban House is once again the "handsome red brick building almost like a mansion" described by Lawrence in Sons and Lovers. In Chapter 4, Lawrence (Paul Morel) relates the dreaded task of collecting his father's wages on Friday afternoons from this building
" ... with trembling fingers Paul got his money into the bag and slid out. He suffered the tortures of the damned on these occasions."

• The Exhibition

The Heritage Centre Exhibition is now open with a host of attractions. These include a school area with blackboards and desks, clothes to try on, and two walk-through coal areas. Visitors can also enjoy four audio tapes, a video, and a touch-screen information computer.

On the ground floor, there is a mannequin of a young boy waiting to collect his father`s wages, and upstairs an introduction to the Eastwood and Broxtowe areas awaits visitors. The rest of the exhibition includes many aspects of Lawrence`s life, including the fame, and notoriety, he achieved as a writer, his friends and homes.

Life in the area is depicted, including coal mining, framework knitting, pottery making, and agriculture. Canals and other transport as well as fairs, drinking and the countryside are also highlighted. Admission prices are: Adults £2.00, Concessions £1.20, Family £5.80.
Joint ticket (includes admission to The Birthplace Museum): Adults £3.50, Concessions £1.80, Family £8.00

Open daily: 10:00 until 17:00 April to October, 10:00 until 16:00 November to March
Closed 24th December until January 2nd inclusive

For more details on the opening ceremony and the exhibition, read this Exhibition Report from the Eastwood and Kimberley Advertiser.

• Meeting Rooms

Three meeting rooms of the highest standard, the Blue Room, the Gold Room and the Green Room, are available for both daytime and evening hire. Seating capacity is 15 boardroom style or 25 theatre style. The Green room and the Gold Room can be joined to provide a seating capacity of 30 boardroom style or 50 theatre style.

The rooms are available for hire by the hour. Prices start at £5.00 per hour for community use and £10.00 per hour for other organisations. TV and video, flip charts, slides or overhead projector and screen are all available for hire at a total charge of £3.50. A wide range of refreshments can be provided with tea or coffee at 75p per head (average 2 cups) or with biscuits at £1.10 per head. Menus are available for working lunches, finger buffets and sit-down lunches - prices range from £1.85 to £12.95 per head.

For further details please write or phone.

• The Restaurant

The Durban House Coffee Shop and Restaurant has a uniquely relaxing atmosphere, looking out over the Nottinghamshire countryside that Lawrence termed "the country of my heart". Decorated to reflect the Victorian splendour of the original building, a visit to the Durban House Coffee Shop, whether combined with the exhibition or for it's own merits, is always a pleasure.

Snacks and hot meals are available along with a wide range of special menus including Christmas meals, business lunches and Sunday lunch. All the food is freshly prepared and cooked on the premises using only the best local produce.

The Restaurant and exhibition at Durban House are run as a partnership between Broxtowe Borough Council and Broxtowe College. Catering students and Travel and Tourism students are trained on the premises to NVQ Levels 1, 2 and 3.

The Restaurant is also available for private hire, parties and receptions, contact the Catering Manager Richard Savage.

For reservations call 01773 717353.

• The Clock

The finishing touches to the building were completed in February 1998 when a new clock was fitted to the front of the building. Attempts to locate the original clock during the refurbishment of the house were unsuccessful and at the handover ceremony in 1997, John Burnett, Regional Managing Director for the contractor, John Mowlem & Company PLC, offered to donate a new clock.

The work was carried out by Lee Perkins from Eastwood who joined Beeston based Mowlem three years ago from school as a trainee foreman. Frederick Lamb of Beeston completed the electrical work.

The clock was supplied by Meadows and Passmore Limited of Sussex and has a 910mm diameter clock face made of acrylic with powder-coated copper hands. Illumination is controlled by photo electric cells. The clock mechanism is mains powered and includes an automatic device to restart the clock at the correct time in the event of power failure. This is also used to control Summer Time changes.