Good Museums.

Discussion in 'WW2 Museums. Events, & places to see.' started by von Poop, Jun 4, 2006.

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  1. Bodston

    Bodston Little Willy

    Unmemorable. I think this was one of the darkest(unlit) galleries.
     
  2. Dieppe

    Dieppe Senior Member

    I went there, with my dad, when it first opened and was not impressed.

    When we entered the building we had a feeling that those who ran it were embarrassed by it's contents; we actually thought we'd walked into a conference centre.

    Although the items we went to see were there, and seeing we were interested in them and required photos, we weren't impressed by the lighting or the quality of the layouts.

    I did go again, with Jean (she'd never been & I need photos of targes, dirks and basket-hilts), but we agreed we'd never go again.
     
  3. marcus69x

    marcus69x I love WW2 meah!!!

    Cheers for the comments. I'll have to go and take a peeky for myself and tell you what I think.

    ta
    marcus
     
  4. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    Don't forget Marcus, most importantly... It's free.
    I think it's worth a shufti, relatively complete small-arms collection, early machine guns & air guns, and lying on the floor looking up the 'tower of arms'. Bit 'corporate' feeling but fun can be had there and one or two exhibits are absolutely exquisite.

    Just remembered the Elephant armour, James the first samurai stuff that used to terrify me as a kid, Royal Henrican Armour... and the punt-gun too...

    And yes, 'Frank' was strangely memorable.
     
  5. marcus69x

    marcus69x I love WW2 meah!!!

    Nice Adam. I think we're going in a couple of weeks so it should be good fun. I'll let you know how it was once I've been.

    cheers for the comments.

    marcus
     
  6. kfz

    kfz Very Senior Member

    Hack green secret bunker.

    Hack Green

    Really good. Good value (6 quid adult and under 5's free). Great collection of cold war stuff. Communications kits, radios. post nuclear war stuff. Really interesting. Good collection of small artifacts, geiger counters, commuters, radios, etc. Complete Polaris nosecone, and a real re-entry vehicle, amazing stuff. I loved it.

    Well worth a trip. Our little one (18 months) was a bit bored, but the 3 year old quite enjoyed it. So maybe not one for the tiny ones. Stairs too.


    Kev
     
  7. marcus69x

    marcus69x I love WW2 meah!!!

    Went to that Royal Armouries in Leeds yesterday. It was ok, but we got pretty bored and left after an hour and half. It was just full of coats of armour. I wanted to see more guns and stuff. The WW2 section was good but small. It was the first time I've ever seen WW2 weapons up close, and to see them in their true size was quite good.
    Just as you walk in they've got a deactivated Bren, Lee Enfield, a Vickers and some modern sport rifle, all hooked up to a simulated firing range. £1 per go. I had a go of the Bren and the Vickers. Really good. The bren wasn't as heavy as I thought but it gave a little recoil when fired which was good.

    Overall rating: 6/10
     
  8. WHITLEYMAN

    WHITLEYMAN Junior Member

    aust. war memorial;looked after me.great staff ,great museum
     
  9. Capt.Sensible

    Capt.Sensible Well-Known Member

    The Wellington Aviation Museum, Moreton in the Marsh.

    The Wellington Aviation Museum - Moreton-in-Marsh

    Lovely example of an enthusiasts museum. A not very large place crammed with memorabilia, documents and bits of hardware. Run by a cheery old duffer with a handlebar mustache, a real gentleman. Lots of local resonance, too, with drawings and documentation of the local area in WW2. About a quid to get in. Go and see this little gem before Ginger moves on - he has to be in his mid 70's. Other half etc could easily spend a hour or two wombling around this pretty Cotswold market town.
    H
     
  10. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    Here's some more photos from the RAF Museum at Hendon.
    Didn't take very many as the camera is clapped out.
    Just a taster for anyone who not been there.
    The other Halls are very, very dark, not too good for photography.
     

    Attached Files:

  11. WHITLEYMAN

    WHITLEYMAN Junior Member

    great shots,thanks owen d. do you know if an armstrong whitworth whitley survives intact anywhere?
     
  12. Bodston

    Bodston Little Willy

    I've just discovered while googling that the Science museum has a large object storage facility at some disused airfield near Swindon. I can't seem to find any opening times however. Does anyone know if it is open to the public. It looks like an interesting day out.
     
  13. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

  14. von Poop

    von Poop Adaministrator Admin

    My old man says Wroughton's good Bod (lot of firefighting gear, which you'd no doubt like). We intend to visit this year sometime. I don't think it's yet open on a regular basis (??), and functions via an 'open day' system or just calling up to arrange being let in.
    :
    Science Museum - About us - Science Museum Swindon
    BBC - Wiltshire Days Out - Science Museum Wroughton Open Day
    Science Museum - Wroughton
    Sure we had a bit on here about them sorting lottery funding to enable proper opening/display. That might be bound up with why there's no info on the main site anymore, there was a page dedicated to the attempts to get Wroughton fully set up, hopefully by now it's a work in progress.
    A phone call couldn't hurt.

    Cross-posted with the above :rolleyes:.
     
  15. Owen

    Owen -- --- -.. MOD

    We intend to visit this year sometime.

    Let me guess to coincide with my holiday so you can visit Swindon without bumping into moi?
     
  16. Bodston

    Bodston Little Willy

    Thanks for that. I'll have to arrange a visit sometime. It was a fire engine related search that threw it up, good guess Adam.
     
  17. Martin Bull

    Martin Bull Member

    I've looked all through the thread and no-one's mentioned it, so I'll just post a quick 'plug' for The Mosquito Museum ( aka De havilland Heritage Centre ) near St Albans ( just off the M25 and 15 minutes' drive from the RAF Museum ).

    A chance to get very up-close to the exhibits.....

    [​IMG]


    [​IMG]
     
  18. Rich Payne

    Rich Payne Rivet Counter Patron 1940 Obsessive

    I've just realised that I'm going to be on holiday within a reasonable distance of Saumur. Is the French Tank Museum worth a visit or are the exhibits inaccurate and gaudily painted ? (slightly the impression that I had from a few photos I've seen).

    How is the split between post-war and earlier ?
     
  19. Trincomalee

    Trincomalee Senior Member

    CANTIGNY at Wheaton , outside Chicago .
    Beautiful gardens {with tanks) , lovely house that's open to the public , and the Cantigny WW1 exhibits .
     
  20. Trincomalee

    Trincomalee Senior Member

    Nothing to do with the war , but , the Pergamon Museum in Berlin .
    It has parts of the walls of Babylon . Really impressive !
     

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