Blue Peter star returns to Belton House to celebrate 40th anniversary of adventure playground
Former Blue Peter presenter Peter Purves returned to Belton House to help celebrate 40 years since he offically opened the adventure playground.
The celebrity, who in more recent years has played Steven Taylor in Dr Who, officially opened Belton’s outdoor adventure playground on Easter Sunday 1978 as Lord Brownlow’s guest of honour.
Last Thursday, the 79-year-old joined in celebrations at a family fun day, including puppet shows, children’s outdoor theatre, bushcraft activities and face-painting to mark the anniversary and kickstart the Easter Weekend at Belton House.
Play manager Leonora Harbord said: “He went on the first train ride of the day. He also blew out the candles on the cake. He held meetings with parents and children in the playground. He definitely enjoyed himself. We had a lot of parents excited to see him. The playground had a great atmosphere and everybody enjoyed themseleves.”
A Memories of Play event also received further support from parents keen to share photographs and other momentos from days gone by.