TV CELEBRITY Esther Rantzen is visiting a Hampshire village to reopen a newly-refurbished hall with links to Neville Chamberlain and Alice in Wonderland.

The former That's Life! presenter will cut a celebratory cake at Emery Down Village Hall, which boasts a new kitchen, gas central heating and a fully-restored floor following a £10,000 facelift.

The single-storey facility in Mill Lane has been at the heart of the local community for more than 90 years.

The land for the hall and the building itself were given to the newly-formed Emery Down and Bank Women’s Institute by sisters Charlotte and Mary Chamberlain, whose cousin Neville was Prime Minster between 1937 and 1940.

The sisters, who lived in Bank, hired local builder Joseph Payne to build an arts and crafts centre complete with stage, scullery and grassy outdoor space.

It was opened on July 20 1927 by WI branch president Alice Hargreaves, who lived at Cuffnells House, Lyndhurst.

Alice was the former Oxford schoolgirl who inspired Lewis Carroll to write Alice's Adventures in Wonderland in 1865.

Following her marriage she moved to the New Forest and had three sons, two of whom were killed in the First World War and are commemorated on Emery Down War Memorial.

Over the decades the hall hosted a large number of functions including dances, social events and jam-making sessions, especially during the Second World War.

But WI numbers started to dwindle, largely as a result of more women going out to work, and the branch closed in 1997.

The trustees reformed as a charity called the Emery Down Hall Village Trust.

The building has remained largely unchanged for more 90 years, although the thatched roof was replaced by tiles in the 1960s.

During the war it was used by soldiers who were based in the New Forest during the build-up to the D-Day landings in 1944. Last month a film crew visited the hall and recreated a wartime dance for a forthcoming movie.

The trustees are holding a tea party on Saturday to mark the completion of the improvements.

Dame Esther, who has a weekend cottage in the area, will cut a celebratory cake. Hall users are hoping that members of the Chamberlain family and descendants of Alice Hargreaves will also be present.

Peter Power, chairman of trustees, said: "It's remarkable that this wonderful old hall is still in such great condition.

"After all these years it's an honour to bring together so much of its history and thank all those who have supported it in the past."