FOOTWEAR spanning four centuries will go on show at a North-East museum later this month.

The Bowes Museum, in Barnard Castle, County Durham, opens its Fancy Footwear exhibition to the public next Saturday. More than 200 pairs of shoes from the 17th Century to the present day will be on display, many once belonging to the rich and famous.

Designs from around Europe will be on show, and staff at the museum are expecting plenty of visitors through the door.

Some of the highlights include eight pairs of slippers belonging to Empress Eugenie of France, and a pair of shoes once belonging to her husband, Emperor Napoleon III, dating from the 19th Century.

A spokeswoman for the museum said: "There will be some fascinating shoes going on display and it should be a wonderful exhibition.

"The vast majority of the items are from our own collection which is fairly vast."

The museum will be selecting 150 pairs from its collection, which the museum's founders, John and Josephine Bowes, bought during their travels around Europe in the 19th Century.

The exhibition will run until January. Further details are available by calling the museum on (01833) 690606.