Museum From Home

A big thank you to all our teams of hardworking and dedicated curators who have helped us celebrate the nation's treasures today:

Fast x Slow Fashion is another exhibition that opened shortly before lockdown but can now be visited online. Discover how shopping in Leeds has changed in the last 300 years, and see how handmade and preloved fashion has made a resurgence in the age of Climate Change action.

Visit Fast x Slow: Shopping for clothes in Leeds 1720 - 2020 from Leeds Galleries and Museums

Leeds City MuseumCopyright: Leeds City Museum

The International Slavery Museum has a 360 virtual tour, allowing you to explore the history and legacy of the slave trade.

You can visit the West Africa gallery, displaying the magnificent cultures, empires and civilisations before the arrival of Europeans, then proceed to the Enslavement and Middle Passage gallery which challenges preconceived ideas on Empire, imperialism and colonialism. The Legacy gallery celebrates resistance and the many achievements of members of the African Diaspora, and highlights the legacies of transatlantic and contemporary forms of slavery.

Dr Richard Benjamin, Head of International Slavery Museum said: “These are trying times for everyone, but staying at home doesn’t mean you have to miss out on the museum experience."

Liverpool MuseumsCopyright: Liverpool Museums

For more inspiration from the Hepworth Wakefield gallery, take a virtual tour of its Bill Brandt/Henry Moore exhibition. There are 13 installation images of the works - watch a personal video introduction below from curator Martina Droth to get in the mood.

• Tour the exhibition

Quote Message: A coruscating chronicle of British life from The Guardian review ⭐⭐⭐⭐

A coruscating chronicle of British life

The Hepworth Wakefield GalleryCopyright: The Hepworth Wakefield Gallery

Visitors might not be able to take in the view overlooking the River Calder from inside the gallery just now, but the Hepworth Wakefield gallery (Museum of the Year 2017!) has been encouraging virtual visitors to share their creations using #THWCreates with a series of creative challenges. We were very impressed by this effort from Year 5 pupils Libby and Michael.

But before we go, we've got a few resources we'd like to highlight

The Science Museum Group is researching stories and objects that will help document the medical and scientific responses to the Coronavirus outbreak.

The collecting project is wide-ranging: the team is identifying everything from innovations in respiratory equipment and research into Covid-19 vaccines, to the apps, data and statistics that are helping biologists modelling the spread of the virus. Curiosities such as the magnets that became stuck up this ‘virus-fighting’ Australian doctor’s nose are also being donated.

The collection project is also sourcing ephemera such as letters, signs, leaflets and digital downloads. This might include anything from public health posters to invitations to weddings that were due to take place this spring and have now been cancelled.

The collecting project also demonstrates the vital role museums play during global threats such as this pandemic – from leading public engagement with the science and personal stories behind it.

Find out more

Dan and Sacha have overcome their technical problems to talk to their final three guests of the day. Watch now to see:

• Sir Ian Blatchford, Director of the Science Museum Group, is going to tell us more about how the Group has begun collecting objects on the nation’s behalf to document the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on science, culture and society for future generations.
• Michael Mosley - who can be seen in Pain, Pus and Poison: The Search for Modern Medicines - will be talking about the huge strides currently being made in medical science
• Miranda Lowe, Principal Curator, Crustacea at the Natural History Museum also joins us to offer something of a message of hope...

And again while we're waiting for the stream to come back, a reminder that the museums have been doing brilliant work suggesting activities for children to try during lockdown.

While we're waiting for the live stream issues to be resolved, here's some completely different, but equally brilliant, museum content...

Four decades after London Calling's release, the Museum of London holds a showcase of memorabilia and insights including rare studio footage, photos and performance.

And, from the Sainsbury Centre, the design behind the transformation of the British seaside in the 1920s and '30s.

These are specially commissioned 15-minute films for BBC iPlayer film for Museums in Quarantine. Don't miss them!

Please be assured we're working hard to resume the live stream with Sir Ian Blatchford, Michael Mosley and Miranda Lowe as soon as possible

BBCCopyright: BBC

In 2019, The Science Museum and the BBC joined forces to explore some of the artworks that have been inspired by science and technology.Find out how a pioneering photographer settled a 25,000 bet, or listen to more stories from The Art of Innovation.

Apologies for the live stream - service will resume shortly

Dan and Sacha are being joined by three fantastic guests at 4pm:

• Sir Ian Blatchford, Director of the Science Museum Group, is going to tell us more about how the Group has begun collecting objects on the nation’s behalf to document the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on science, culture and society for future generations.
• Michael Mosley - who can be seen in Pain, Pus and Poison: The Search for Modern Medicines - will be talking about the huge strides currently being made in medical science
• Miranda Lowe, Principal Curator, Crustacea at the Natural History Museum also joins us to offer something of a message of hope...

Since 2014, The Royal Pavilion and Museums in Brighton & Hove been inviting people to come into their museums and remix their own weird and wonderful animations. You can see a compilation of some of the best creations here.

You'll also find access to over 21,000 digital images that you can use free of charge to create your own digital masterpieces.

The Royal Pavilion and Museums in Brighton & HoveCopyright: The Royal Pavilion and Museums in Brighton & Hove

For more iron bridges, see @Profdanhicks' highlights from 28 April when #MusuemsUnlocked visited our industrial museums and landscapes:

More highlights here

Shropshire in England is widely considered to be the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution, and is home to the Ironbridge Gorge World Heritage Site. The Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust have filmed a guided tour through a Victorian town, introducing characters along the way.

Ironbridge Gorge Museum TrustCopyright: Ironbridge Gorge Museum Trust

Shortly before lockdown, the Royal Museums Greenwich brought together the three surviving versions of the Armada portrait of Queen Elizabeth I. The portrait commemorates the most famous conflict of her reign – the failed invasion of England by the Spanish Armada in summer 1588.

It was the first - and perhaps only - time in history that the three were hung side by side. You still have a chance to see the three portaits hung together in the Queen's House, on the site of the original Greenwich Palace, in this recent Facebook live.

Discover more about this iconic portrait's symbolism and the causes of the Armada alongside Mary Beard's review of the portrait.

National Museums GreenwichCopyright: National Museums Greenwich

Feeling inspired? Why not try your hand at colouring in the portrait with this outline you can print at home! Share your portraits with us using the hashtag #MuseumFromHome

Throughout April, #MuseumsUnlocked has been taking a virtual tour of the UK. Here are some highlights from Wales...

See more highlights from the virtual trip to Wales here