Experience '˜the war that never was' in Portsmouth

On February 2 and 3, Royal Armouries Fort Nelson will be hosting interactive tours taking visitors through events that may have taken place, had the French been successful in adding Great Britain to its empire in the 1870s.

Head of education and events at Fort Nelson Tristan Langlois said: ‘When I first explored Fort Nelson, it struck me as a slightly sad place.

‘There it sits, the pinnacle of Victorian military engineering, and never used for its intended purpose.

‘Some historians avoid speculative history.

‘This event will help visitors experience the answer to that question at first-hand.

‘Not just the re-imagined historical events that might have led to invasion, but the real practicalities of getting the Victorian technology to do what it was designed for.’

Tickets for the event cost £15.75 per person and are available by visiting royalarmouries.org.