Midsomer wine on display in literary exhibition

Curator Patrick Bourne said Leeds had a rich literary heritage

A wine bottle from the set of Midsomer Murders, an ancient Greek coin and a monk's stylus are on display as part of an exhibition about Leeds' literary heritage.

Abbey House Museum is displaying objects and stories that have inspired modern-day writers such as screenwriter Lisa Holdsworth and novelist Jennifer Saint.

Holdsworth, who has worked on Emmerdale, Call the Midwife and Fat Friends, also donated original scripts from her first paid writing job, signed by Liza Tarbuck and Ant and Dec.

Assistant community curator Patrick Bourne said Leeds was home to many talented writers.

He said: "There's perhaps something in the nature of many writers which means they often do their work behind the scenes and let others take the spotlight.

"That's why we're so pleased to be celebrating the efforts of all these imaginative, local people and to be giving visitors a chance to find out more about their work, the process behind it and some of the inspiration for the incredible stories and narratives they have created."

Abbey House Museum tells the story of Leeds' social history

Also on display is a dress created as part of theatre show and exhibition Corseted, about radical Leeds suffragist Alice Cliff Scatcherd.

The dress sits alongside objects chosen by writer and performer, Becky Cherriman, who writes about women's history and industrial working conditions.

Ariadne author, Saint, chose an ancient Greek coin featuring a fearsome snake-headed Gorgon for the exhibition, while author Chris Nickson chose a model of the Moot Hall, formerly on Briggate.

The hall features in his novel Them Without Pain, which explores the story of ill-fated Leeds silversmith Arthur Mangey.

Mangey created the Leeds Mace but was executed in 1696 after he was found guilty of forgery.

Finds from nearby Kirkstall Abbey are featured, including a series of Cistercian floor tiles and a stylus, which is the subject of a poem by Claire Wigzell.

Library tickets, ink pots, writing implements and a typewriter used by Yorkshire Post sports journalist John Wyatt are also on display.

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