Brading Wax Museum closed more than 15 years ago, but people on the Isle of Wight and visitors still remember it fondly as one of the Island's best loved and unusual attractions.
Graham Osborn-Smith opened the museum at Rectory Mansion in 1965 - a historic High Street building said to have once been owned by Henry VIII.
Generations of Islanders and visitors remember the attraction, which featured its iconic Chamber of Horrors and waxworks of figures including Alfred Lord Tennyson, William Shakespeare, Winston Churchill and Queen Victoria.
The refurbished museum relaunched as Brading The Experience in 2005.
As well as an extensive range of wax figures, the attraction had a taxidermy area, gift shop and cafe.
The museum closed in 2010. Rectory Mansion has since housed several businesses and is now home to Cardinal's Restaurant.
The Remembering The Isle of Wight Wax Works Facebook group has nearly 3,000 members sharing photos and anecdotes to keep the attraction’s memory alive.
In 2024, five Island women saved the waxwork of chimney sweep Valentine Gray, whose death at the hands of his master helped drive the fight against child labour.
They bought the original Valentine Gray figure for £650 at an auction in Brading, alongside an Osborn-Smith's Wax Museum pamphlet and an old-man mask.
Fragments of the museum also live on across the Island, including at The Castle Inn in Sandown.
King Charles I and Sir John Oglander are now on display at The Smuggler's Cat on Lind Street, Ryde, after owner Tony Jones added them to his Island nostalgia collection.
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