A new historic courthouse attraction is looking for your memories and stories.

Managers of Shire Hall in Dorchester are looking to collect people’s memories and stories of the hall to turn them into a performance.

Shire Hall is currently being redeveloped into a courthouse museum and the performance will form part of the launch celebrations for the major attraction in February 2018.

Helping Shire Hall out will be the Gramophones Theatre Company which will be going to different locations in Dorchester with their tea tent, including Dorchester Market and the Dorset County Show, to hear tales from those who have experienced the hall’s historic old crown court and cells.

The Gramophones are a quirky all-female quintet who use experimental theatre to create unusual comedic performances and they will be going round Dorchester from Tuesday, August 29, to Friday, September 8.

They will not be performing on their little tour of Dorchester – instead they will be interviewing and recording people’s stories and use them to write a script, which they will perform at Shire Hall in February.

Organisers at Shire Hall are particularly looking for stories from those who worked at the hall when it was a court or council office, have a family story or any family history with the hall, or are descendants of the Tolpuddle Martyrs.

They also welcome stories from people who have conducted research on the building or been involved in its redevelopment.

Anne Brown, learning manager at Shire Hall said: “If you have a memory or story and would like to take part in this unique and exciting project, we would love to hear from you.”

Anne said she was excited to hear people’s stories of the historic building.

She added: “They are a really important part of Shire Hall’s history and we want to make sure we work with the local community and bring new audiences into Shire Hall to learn about its history.”

“It’s a grade one listed building of international importance where the Tolpuddle Martyrs were tried,” she said:

Contact Anne Brown at anne.brown@shirehalldorset.org or phone 01305252405 for details.