A PROGRAMME of events organised by the Friends of the Bowes Museum starts with a picture gallery tour tonight, at 7pm.

Tickets are available for £6, which includes a lecture, wine and canapes, and a tour of the gallery with the museum's keeper of fine art, Amy Barker.

The Friends will also be holding a visit to Blackwell House and Gardens on Sunday, May 14, between 9.30am and 3.30pm. Tickets cost £20 for Friends, and £22 for non-members, which includes a guided tour, lunch and travel.

The following afternoon, at 4pm, there will be a talk at the museum, illustrated with slides, by Stephen Twining, managing director of the Twinings tea company.

This will be followed by tea tasting in the museum's Cafe Bowes, from 4.30pm to 5pm. Numbers are limited to 45 and tickets cost £3.

On June 11 there will be a visit to Durham Cathedral from 9.30am until 3.30pm. The cost is £12 for Friends and £14 for non-members. This includes a guided tour and time in the library.

For details of all events call (01833) 690606. Ticket applications can be made to the Friends' secretary at the Bowes Museum, Barnard Castle DL12 8NP. Cheques should be made payable to The Friends of the Bowes Museum.