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Something For The Weekend? MGM 2004 Continues!
By Corinne Field
12/05/2004
It's May and that means only one thing in the world of Britain's museums and galleries - Museums and Galleries Month (MGM). Each year organisers pick a theme and this year it's Travel and the Art of Travelling.
Throughout the month British museums, galleries and heritage sites will be putting on special events, workshops and exhibitions to celebrate MGM 2004.
Inspired by several big anniversaries this year, like the 200th anniversary of the first steam engine and the 10th anniversary of Eurostar, organisers decided on a travel theme.
"Museums and Galleries Month 2004 is a great opportunity to discover a new museum or gallery on a weekend trip or day out with friends or family," said Charles Saumarez Smith, Co-Chairman Museums and Galleries Month 2004 and Director of the National Gallery.
"The travel theme has captured the imagination of many museums and galleries to organise interesting and entertaining events that illustrate the richness of their collections and involve the local community, " he adds.
Photo: a fleet of Fifies heading off for the herring grounds in the North East of Scotland. Courtesy of the Scottish Fisheries Museum.
Museums and Galleries Month was launched in York on Wednesday April 28 when MGM Co-Chairman and 24 Hour Museum Chairman, Loyd Grossman, visited the National Railway Museum to preview Rail Fest, the biggest event celebrating the 200th anniversary of the steam train.
Museums and Galleries Month is organised by the Campaign for Museums with support from engage (National Association for Gallery Education) and other museum and gallery associations and organisations. It is funded by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA) and Arts Council England. This year’s sponsor is Eurostar.
There are literally thousands of events and exhibitions planned all across the UK throughout May. We have selected a few that have caught our eye but for the full list and to find out more about MGM click on this link to visit their website.
Photo: herring gutters and packers at Pittenweem, Fife. Courtesy of Scottish Fisheries Museum.
24 Hour Museum run down of the best that each region has to offer…
Scotland
The Museum of the Isles’ exhibition, Travel through the Ages, illustrates the development of travel & transport over the last 200 years to and on the Isle of Skye. Running until the end of October, it is a combination of photographs and archives.
The herring season starts in May so what better time to learn about The Herring Year, an exhibition at the Scottish Fisheries Museum in Fife, running until May 23. Charting the annual migration of fishermen and women to follow the herring, it concentrates on the height of the industry, between 1900 and 1914, and includes personal stories, photos and mementos.
Photo: herring Lasses at Yarmouth. While the women waited for the catch to be landed, they would knit jerseys and socks for the fishermen. Courtesy of Scottish Fisheries Museum.
The North East
Why not join Mr Fortune on a voyage of discovery across the Yellow Sea and beyond as he seeks to collect botanical riches from the Orient at Coldstream Museum. Fortunei, running until June 20, is a chance experience a hidden world of temples, tea and mandarins and see the many beautiful flowers and shrubs he introduced to Britain in the 19th century.
Image: Shows a photograph of a print which depicts a stem, bearing three yellow roses.
Photo: the Double Yellow Rose. Courtesy of Coldstream Museum.
For those of you interested in military history, a visit to the Military Vehicle Museum’s exhibition Then and Now Military Transport is an opportunity to see the vehicles and equipment used by the TA alongside vehicles of the last century.
Northern Ireland
At Ulster Folk & Transport Museum there will be an illustrated talk entitled Old Buses on May 23 by Mark Kennedy, Railway Curator & Acting Road Curator in the Irish Railway Collection.
Photo: maedb, the largest locomotive built and run in Ireland.Maedb is a 4-6-0 express passenger loco built in 1939 for the Great Southern Railway. Courtesy of Ulster Transport and Folk Museum.
On May 22 why not travel to the museum by steam train to celebrate the the 200th anniversary of the world's first steam locomotive. View the Irish Railway Collection & see a whole range of magnificent horse-drawn, historic vehicles displayed & driven in the great loughside meadow.
The North West
Photo: Water Wheel - Rossett by Lynne Bebb. From Spirit of the Place. Courtesy of Grosvenor Museum
OS117 is the Ordnance Survey map which covers the Chester and Wrexham districts. Five members of Group 75 have each taken part of this map and developed a body of work based on particualr aspects of their chosen area. Spirit of the Place: A visual reading of OS 117 is on at Chester’s Grosvenor Museum until June 27. On June 29 there will be a tour of the exhibition for visually impaired people.
Photo: Natural History Centre at Liverpool Museum. Courtesy of National Museums Liverpool.
Animals are the subject of Liverpool Museum’s MGM offering. Introduced Animals, throughout May, looks at the huge range of creatures that have arrived in Britain from all over the world, either as stowaways, escapees or migrants.
Photo: Natural History Centre at Liverpool Museum. Courtesy of National Museums Liverpool.
Yorkshire
Get Off the Beaten Track at Yorkshire Sculpture Park. Running until May 16, this new exhibition of work is from the Arts Council Collection at Longside Gallery.
The show examines work from the collection with specific links to landscape and outdoor exploration. A number of specialist walks and guided tours have been organised during the exhibition period to consider the themes of travel and the 'great outdoors'.
Photo: St Mark’s Square, Venice by Louis Desire Thienon, (1812-1881). © Cooper Gallery Trustees, Barnsley.
Why not take a Grand Tour of Cannon Hall Museum this May. The new exhibition highlights objects in the museum linked to the Grand Tour. Find out about the family members from Cannon Hall who toured Europe's hot spots and how travelling the continent influenced the lives of the aristocracy.
West Midlands
The Midlands Arts Centre is putting on a great exhibition called Crossing Borders, which starts on May 29 and runs until July.
Crossing Borders is made up of four poignant responses to the movement of people between and across nations whether voluntary, necessary or forced.
Photo: Anatomy of Exiles by Emma Summers. Courtesy of Midlands Arts Centre
Dropka, meaning People of Solitude, by Diane Butcher running from May 22 to July 11 is a photography exhibition all about life in a remote Tibetan village. Barker was privileged to witness first hand the lifestyle of two families in particular. She learnt how they live and about the conflict they are facing - how to preserve their way of life in the face of Western influences. Barker is giving a talk about her experiences in MACs cinema on June 2.
Photo: nomad girls returning from pilgrimage to Mt Kawa Karpo, Yu Chu Valley, Kham Tibet by Diane Barker. Courtesy of Midland Arts Centre
Photo: Nomad girls returning from pilgrimage to Mt Kawa Karpo, Yu Chu Valley, Kham Tibet by Diane Barker. Courtesy of Midlands Arts Centre
If that all sounds too high brow how about a visit to some Smelly Railways. Abbey Pumping Station brings the county's longest narrow guage railway to life with trains originally used to move sewage around the sewage works in the late 19th and 20th centuries.
The Ironbridge Gorge Museums in Shropshire are holding a number of events to celebrate National Museums and Galleries Month. Visitors to Blists Hill Victorian Town over the late May Bank Holiday weekend will be able to witness the spectacle of a Victorian Bicycle Rally, as costumed characters ride their High Bicycles and Bone Shakers around the recreated Victorian streets.
Photo: Victorian Bicycle Rally held at Blists Hill Victorian Town. Courtesy of the Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust.
East Midlands
How about a trip round the Peak District courtesy of Constable and Turner at the Bakewell Old House Museum, running until the end of October. The exhibition includes copies of some 50 sketches and finished works made by the artists when touring Derbyshire’s Peak District accompanied, where possible, by modern photos of the same views.
East England
Photo: Maddie and Swaley Howell at Southend Carnival (Showmen). Courtesy of Hertford Museum.
Passing Places at Hertford Museum takes a look at Hertfordshire's travelling communities. Running until the end of October it includes stories and photographs with a display of Traveller art and crafts and interactives for visitors to discover more about Traveller communities in their local area.
A series of events and activities for all ages will run throughout May, including art workshops, talks and dancing workshops.
Photo: Amos Herne (Black Amos) and wife near Shenley, Herts, Feb 20, 1921. From the collection of prints at the Sydney Jones Library, University of Liverpool.
The British Schools Museum in Hitchin is mounting a display of items and photographs from the Jill Grey National Collection of childhood and education to celebrate MGM. It will show how the way we travel has changed from Victorian times to the present day.
South West
Find out what secrets the suitcases at Plymouth City Museum and Art Gallery hold at Secret Suitcases: The Art of Travelling, on throughout Museums and Galleries Month. It is a chance to hunt for lost luggage left around the museum and be surprised and inspired by its contents.
Photo: Cotswold Motor Museum and Toy Collection have a collection of caravans. Courtesty of Cotswold Motor Museum and Toy Collection.
From what people pack in their suitcases to how they equip their caravans. Caravan Call at Cotswold Motor Museum and Toy Collection is an exhibition of period equipped caravans accompanied by period accessories and costumed owners taking place on the last bank holiday in May.
Wales
Journeys is the theme of the art exhibition by Art North Wales on show at the Royal International Pavilion Gallery in Llangollen on until June 15. The work includes ceramics, painting, jewellery, print and photography.
Photo: Children Returning from Pilgrimage, Croagh Patrick, Ireland. By Graham Hembrough, one of 35 archival black and white prints.
Learn about the European connections of the Ladies of Llangollen and design your own artwork with the artist in residence at Plas Newydd’s exhibition European Travels on May 31.
South East
The Campaign for Museums is, like last year, supporting Printemps des Musees and has invited museums and galleries in the UK to develop events with a French flavour and Emsworth Museum has done just that.
Celebrate 100 years of Entente Cordiale at the museum throughout May, which includes a display of items donated by Emsworth's twin town. The exhibition was set up by the St.Aubin-sur-Mer/Emsworth Twinning Association.
The Museum of Farnham is celebrating the car at its exhibition On the Move, until June 5. Highlights include a photographic archive for the inventor of the first petrol driven motor car, John Henry Knight and exhibits about motor racing hero Mike Hawthorn.
London
A tour of London’s travel highlights would not be complete without reference to the underground. At Brunel Engine House until May 30 the story of The Oldest Section of the Oldest Underground in the World is brought to life using models, watercolours, computer graphics and prints.
At London's Transport Museum, on May 22 and 23, Abe Gibson, Museum Writer in Residence will perform a new piece, telling the true story of Joe Clough, a black bus driver employed by the London General Omnibus Company just before WWI.
Photo: writer in residence Abe Gibson performing the part of Joe Clough. Courtesy of London's Transport Museum.
London’s Theatre Museum is hosting Stage Struck where you can create your own West End map every Saturday in May and find out all about the crazy colourful maps on display and what they mean.
The Pump House Gallery is hosting Trading Places until May 29, a programme of events in connection with Trading Places, an exhibition exploring issues of asylum and immigration.
This is just a sample of what is on offer. Take a trip to your local museum to see how they are celebrating or click here to visit the MGM website to find out what is going on near you.
Museum of the Isles, Isle of Skye
Clan Donald Visitor Centre, Armadale, Sleat, IV45 8RS, Isle of Skye, Scotland
T: 01471 844305
Open: April-October
Daily 0930-1730
Closed November-March
Scottish Fisheries Museum
St. Ayles, Habourhead, Anstruther, KY10 3AB, Fife, Scotland
Open: April-October
Mon-Sat 1000-1730
Sun 1100-1700
November-March
Mon-Sat 1000-1630
Sun 1400-1630
last admissions 1 hour before closing
Closed: Christmas and New Year - contact the museum for details
Coldstream Museum
12 MARKET SQUARE, Coldstream, TD12 4BD, Scottish Borders, Scotland
Open: Mon-Sat 1000-1600
Sun 1400-1600
July-August till 1200
October 1200-1600
Beamish, The North of England Open Air Museum
Beamish, DH9 0RG, County Durham, England
Open: Until 30th March 2007 - open 1000 to 1600, last admission 1500. Closed Mons & Fris.
31st March to 28th October 2007, open daily, 1000 to 1700, last admission 1500.
29th October 2007 to 14th March 2008, open 1000 to 1600, last admission 1500. Closed Mons & Fris.
Closed: Mon and Fri in winter.
Also closed 10th December 2007 to 1st January 2008 inclusive.
Military Vehicle Museum, Newcastle Upon Tyne
Military Vehicle Museum, Exhibition Park Pavillion, Newcastle Upon Tyne, NE2 4PZ, Tyne & Wear, England
Open: Daily 1000-1600
Ulster Museum
Ulster Museum, Botanic Gardens, Belfast, BT9 5AB, Antrim, Northern Ireland
T: 028 9038 3000
Open: Open: Mon-Fri 10.00-17.00, Sat 13.00-17.00, Sun 14.00-17.00
Closed: The Museum will be closed for 2 years from the end of August for major building/redevelopment work.
Ulster Folk & Transport Museum
Ulster Folk & Transport Museum, Cultra, Holywood, BT18 0EU, Down, Northern Ireland
T: 028 90 428428
Open: The Museum opens at 10am Monday to Saturday, and at 11am on Sunday. Closing times vary from 4pm to 6pm according to the season.
Closed: The Museum is open all year except a few days at Christmas.
Grosvenor Museum, Chester
Grosvenor Museum, 27 Grosvenor Street, Chester, CH1 2DD, Cheshire, England
T: 01244 402008
Open: Mon-Sat 1030-1700
Sun 1300-1600
Closed: Closed 24-26 December 1 January & Good Friday
World Museum Liverpool
William Brown Street, Liverpool, L3 8EN, Merseyside, England
T: 0151 478 4399
Open: Mon-Sat 1000-1700
Sun 1200-1700 Call first to avoid temporary closures
Closed: 24 December, from 2pm.
25, 26 December
1 January
Yorkshire Sculpture Park
West Bretton, Wakefield, WF4 4LG, West Yorkshire, England
T: 01924 832631
Open: Sumertime: Daily 10.00am - 6.00pm, Galleries 11.00am - 5.00pm.
Wintertime: Daily 10.00am - 5.00pm Galleries 11.00am - 4.00pm.
Closed: 27 - 31 December 2007
Cannon Hall Museum, Barnsley
Cannon Hall Museum, Bark House Lane, Cawthorne, Barnsley, S75 4AT, Yorkshire, England
Open: April to October
Wed-Sat 1030-1700
Last Admission 1615
Sun 1200-1700
November, December and March
Open Sundays only
1200-1600
last admissions 3.15p.m.
Closed: January and February, but open for school visits, conferences and weddings
mac (Midlands Arts Centre)
Cannon Hill Park, Birmingham, B12 9QH, West Midlands, England
Open: mac is open from 9am - 11pm, seven days a week
(Box Office 9am - 8.45pm)
Abbey Pumping Station, Leicester
Abbey Pumping Station, Corporation Road, Abbey Lane, Leicester, LE4 5PX, Leicestershire, England
Open: Open February - November, Saturdays - Wednesdays: 11.00am - 4.30pm; Sundays: 1.00pm - 4.30pm.
Open on certain Thursdays and Fridays for children's activities during school holidays.
Open December - January for special events and private hire.
Closed: Closed Thursdays and Fridays, and all of December and January.
Blists Hill Victorian Town
Blists Hill Victorian Town, Legges Way, Madeley, Telford, TF7 5DU, Shropshire, England
Open: Open daily 10.00 - 17.00
Bank Holiday Sun & Mons 10.00 - 18.00
Closed: 24 & 25 December and 01 January
Harborough Museum, Market Harborough
Council Offices, Adam & Eve Street, Market Harborough, LE16 7AG, Leicestershire, England
Open: Open: Mon-Sat 10.00-16.30, Sun 14.00-17.00
Closed: Closed Good Friday & Christmas
Bakewell Old House Museum
Bakewell Old House Museum, Old House, Cunningham Place, Bakewell, DE45 1DD, Derbyshire, England
Open: March 21st til October 31st, everyday 11 - 4pm
Closed: Closed November to March
Hertford Museum
Hertford Museum, 18 Bull Plain, Hertford, SG14 1DT, Hertfordshire, England
Open: Tues-Sat 1000-1700
Closed Sun Mon & public holidays
British Schools Museum
British Schools Museum , 41/42 Queen Street, Hitchin, SG4 9TS, Hertfordshire, England
Open: Easter to November: Tuesday 10 am to 4 pm, Saturday 10 am to 1 pm, Sunday 2 pm to 5 pm
Schools groups, clubs, societies and private groups are accommodated by arrangement at these and other days/times.
Please telephone for details.
Portsmouth Historic Dockyard
Visitor Centre, Victory Gate, HM Naval Base, Portsmouth, PO1 3LJ, Hampshire, England
Open: Portsmouth Historic Dockyard is open daily.
March 2006 to October 2006 - 9.30am to 17.30 (last ticket sold 4.30pm)
November to March - 10.00am to 17.00 (last ticket sold 4pm)
Last ticket is sold 1 hour before closing.
Closed: Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and Boxing Day.
Please call for details of individual attraction Christmas opening hours.
Milestones - Hampshire's Living History Museum
Milestones - Hampshire's Living History Museum, Leisure Park, Churchill Way West, Basingstoke, RG22 6PG, Hampshire, England
Open: Tue-Fri and Bank Holidays 10.00-17.00
Sat & Sun 11.00-17.00
Closed: Mons
Christmas Day, Boxing Day & New Year's Day
Royal Cornwall Museum, Truro
Royal Cornwall Museum, River Street, Truro, TR1 2SJ, Cornwall, England
Open: Open 10:00am - 4.45pm Monday - Saturday
FREE ADMISSION
Closed: Closed Sundays & Bank Holidays
Plymouth City Museum & Art Gallery
Plymouth City Museum & Art Gallery, Drake Circus, Plymouth, PL4 8AJ, Devon, England
Open: Tuesdays-Fridays 10am to 5.30pm
Saturdays & Bank Holiday Mondays 10am to 5pm
(Please note that the Museum is currently undergoing a refurbishment programme and not all the galleries will be open - please check the website for details)
Closed: Sundays and Mondays
Cotswold Motor Museum and Toy Collection
Old Mill, Bourton-on-the-Water, Cheltenham, GL54 2BY, Gloucestershire, England
Open: February - November
10am - 6pm
Royal International Pavilion Gallery
Abbey Road, Llangollen, LL20 8SW, Denbighshire, Wales
Open: Mon-Fri & occasional weekends 1000-1600
Closed 19 June-16 July
Denbigh Library Museum and Gallery
Hall Square, Denbigh, LL16 3NU, Denbighshire, Wales
Open: Mon Wed 0930-1900
Tues Fri 0930-1700
Thurs 1030-1700
Sat Museum 0900-1300 Library 0900-1200
Plas Newydd, Llangollen
Hill Street, Llangollen, LL20 8AW, Denbighshire, Wales
T: 01978 862834
Open: 1 April-31 October
1000-1700
Last entry 1615
Winter by appointment only
Emsworth Museum
10B North Street, Emsworth, PO10 7DD, Hampshire, England
Open: Easter-October
Sat 1030-1630
Sun 1430-1630
Groups by appt during weekdays
Brooklands Museum, Weybridge
Brooklands Museum Trust Limited, Brooklands Road, Weybridge, KT13 0QN, Surrey, England
Open: Winter: Tues-Sun 1000-1600
Last Admission 1430
Summer: Tues-Sun 1000-1700
Last Admission 1530
Guided tours of the Museum given by well informed stewards are available on request. Tour groups of 10 maximum of 50 are available.
Please contact: Mike Duvall on e-mail:
Museum of Farnham
38 West Street, Farnham, GU9 7DX, Surrey, England
Open: Tues-Sat 10.00-17.00
Closed: Christmas and New Year
London Transport Museum
London Transport Museum, Covent Garden Piazza, London, WC2E 7BB, England
T: 020 7565 7299
Open: Sat-Thurs 10:00-18:00 (last admission 17:15)
Fri11:00-21:00 (last admission 20:15)
The Brunel Museum
Brunel Engine House, Railway Avenue, Rotherhithe, SE16 4LF, London, England
Open: Everyday: 10am to 5pm
We open the Engine House outside these hours for pre-arranged visiting parties and also visit schools by arrangement.
The ever popular Floodlit Tube Tours are suspended during closure of the East London Line but will resume in 2010. Meanwhile there are self guided riverside tours on sale.
Closed: 25 December to 27 December & 31 December to 2 January 2009
Theatre Museum, London
Russell Street, Covent Garden, London, WC2E 7PR, England
T: 020 7943 4700
Open: Open Tues-Sun 1000-1800. Closes permanently on Sunday January 7 2007.
Pump House Gallery, London
Battersea Park, London, SW11 4NJ, England
Open: Wednesday, Thursday,Sunday and Bank Holiday Mondays
11am - 5pm
Friday and Saturday 11am-4pm
Closed: Closed Monday and Tuesday and during exhibition installation.
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