10 Reasons To Love... Horley

Horley’s townsfolk are so keen on their Surrey heritage that there was uproar in the 1970s when boundary changes suggested the town should become part of West Sussex. We love it for its independent cafés and close proximity to the airport

- Pete Gardner

1 GATWICK AVIATION MUSEUM

Vallance By-Ways, Lowfield Heath Road, Charlwood. RH6 0BT. Tel: [phone]. Web: gatwick-aviation-museum.co.uk

Situated near Gatwick, one of the busiest airports in Europe, what better place for a museum of aviation. Just north west of the village of Charlwood the museum houses some wonderful aircraft, mainly from the end of the Second World War and through to the 1970s, with names such as Avro, Hawker and Gloster in the collection. Planning the museum started in the early 1980s with the existing buildings being opened in 2016. If you are a real “aero-head” you can drool over displays of aircraft engines (many with beautiful evocative names – Turbomeca Artouste, de Havilland Ghost and Gipsy Queen) and the actual aircraft , including an ex-Swiss Air Force Venom FB4 and an Avro Shackleton Mk 3.

2 THE ARCHWAY THEATRE

The Drive, Horley. RH6 7NQ. Tel: [phone] (Box Office: 0333 666 3366). Web: archwaytheatre.com

As the name suggests, this delightful little theatre began life in 1952 under one of the arches created when the bridge was built over the railway line back in 1909. Extended in 1989 to provide more space and seating, the theatre puts on 10 varied plays a year – each with 10 performances, and produces musicals, drama and pantomimes. Enough of the history – this month we have Duet For One by Tom Kempinski from February 20 to March 3 or, if you’re very quick, you can keep that Christmas feeling going with catch one of the final performances of The Wizard of Oz (to Saturday January 27).

3 TULLEYS FARM AND ESCAPE ROOMS