WHAT A Little Water Can Do! is the title of a free talk at Cliffe Castle Museum on October 19.

Cliffe Castle Support Group will host the talk by Professor Mike Dixon about characters and developments that turned Ilkley from a minor spa town into the “place to be and to be seen”.

The rich and famous, writers and personalities, all flocked to Ilkley to take “The Water Cure” in the late 19th century. Prof Dixon will explain how the cure came to the great Ben Rhydding Hydropathic Hotel and changed the area for good.

More Hydros were built, the town’s reputation as a health resort flourished, and the arrival of the railway and the impetus to build houses increased, resulting in an elegant town

The richly-illustrated talk will be in the Learning Room at 2pm. Admission is free but booking is essential. Call at the museum, call 01535 618231, or email cliffe.castle@bradford.gov.uk.