AN EXHIBITION will feature the wartime diaries of the great-grandson of the man who forged Big Ben.

From May 18 Lowewood Museum in Hoddeson will show 'Stephen Warner: One Man’s Journey through War.'

As well as being the direct descendant of John Warner, who owned the museum when it was a domestic residence and whose firm cast the first Big Ben bell for Elizabeth Tower at Westminster, Warner was a prodigious diarist.

After serving time with the St John’s Ambulance Brigade Hospital in Étaples, France during WWI, he joined the Essex Regiment on the front line.

The exhibition highlights moments such as when he received the Military Cross on February 18, 1918.

He wrote: "I have had a proud day. A letter has just come from the adjutant telling me that I have been awarded the military cross! I do not feel that I did anything very wonderful, but I suppose the standard to gain the award is lower than it used to be.”

As well as being suitably underwhelmed with his own heroism, Warner had intellectual leanings and a great love of flora, specimens of which he pressed into his dairy.

Throughout the war and especially when he had days off from the St John’s Ambulance Brigade Hospital, he wandered through the countryside and villages. He also showed an interest in the local agricultural practises, comparing them to those in England.

It is through these off-beat interests and his attention to detail that Warner's diaries have become a unique artefact of war, which can now be shown at the Lowewood after Epping Forest District Council won £68,500 of funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund.

A museum spokesperson said: "The diaries offer a first-hand perspective of war, in a field hospital and on the front line. There are stories, drawings, pressed flowers, photographs and much more in them, which bring Stephen’s experience to life. Many quotes and images from the diaries have been shared on this blog in the past.

"In May 2018, as part of our First World War centenary celebrations, we will be launching an exhibition and series of events focusing on this unsung hero and his war diaries."