Weston Museum

Community Gallery Exhibition: The High Street Heritage Action Zone
2023-12-12 10:00 - 2023-12-16 16:00, 2023-12-19 10:00 - 2023-12-23 16:00, 2024-01-09 10:00 - 2024-01-13 16:00, 2024-01-16 10:00 - 2024-01-20 16:00, 2024-01-23 10:00 - 2024-01-27 16:00, 2024-01-30 10:00 - 2024-02-03 16:00, 2024-02-06 10:00 - 2024-02-10 16:00, 2024-02-13 10:00 - 2024-02-17 16:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
An exhibition to celebrate the community engagement work that has been undertaken as part of Weston’s High Street Heritage Action Zone. (HSHAZ) opens at Weston Museum on Saturday 4th November 2023 and finishes on Saturday 2nd March 2024. The exhibition celebrates the work that the Museum has carried out to deliver the High Street Heritage Action Zone engagement programme. The High Street Heritage Action Zone finishes in March 2024 and this exhibition showcases the work and legacy arising from the project.
Background to the HSHAZ:
The HSHAZ is a four-year programme of restoration work on buildings in Weston plus community engagement. It ends March 2024.
Restoration work has been carried out on Fork n Ale pub, 4,6,8 Walliscote Road, and The Kendall’s building (16-28 High Street and 40-42 Regent Street).
This equates to over £800,00 worth of investment by Historic England.
The £55,000 engagement programme funded by Historic England included:
• A schools engagement project run by Weston Museum
• Monthly talks organised by Weston-super-Mare Civic Society
• Memories Shared: A reminiscence project in Care Homes managed by NSC Library team
• Recruiting, training and managing ‘Culture and Heritage makers’ volunteers managed by Super Culture.
• Development of Heritage walks in Weston- published on Super Weston website
• Training for Retailers in marketing their shops
• Co-ordination of Heritage Open Days Sept 2018 to Sept 2023
• And two exhibitions- one in The museum Nov 2023-Feb 2024 and one in Sovereign centre 17 Jan- 11 Feb 2024

Craft Café
2023-12-12 10:30 - 12:30, 2023-12-19 10:30 - 12:30, 2024-01-09 10:30 - 12:30, 2024-01-16 10:30 - 12:30, 2024-01-23 10:30 - 12:30, 2024-01-30 10:30 - 12:30, 2024-02-06 10:30 - 12:30 (Europe/London) | Clara’s Café
Discover the joy of learning a new craft as our friendly volunteers guide you through the exciting world of creativity. Unleash your inner artist, and let your creativity flow in the company of like-minded individuals who share your love for all things handmade.
If you’re a seasoned crafter, we invite you to showcase your skills and be a part of our vibrant community. Bring your own craft to the museum and watch as your talent inspires others to embark on their creative journey. Craft Café celebrates the beauty of sharing knowledge and the magic of learning from one another.
Whether you’re a curious beginner or a seasoned pro, Craft Café is the place where inspiration thrives and friendships blossom. Every Tuesday from 10:30 – 12:30 in term time. See you there!

Amazing Artefacts - Home Educators Monthly Sessions
2023-12-13 10:30 - 13:00, 2024-01-10 10:30 - 13:00, 2024-02-07 10:30 - 13:00 UTC | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
Welcome to the Winter Season of Amazing Artefacts – Home Educators Monthly Sessions!
Each month, we will take part in a variety of different hands on activities inspired by an item from the collections. Each season, we will explore a new theme, which for the Winter Season will be ‘Transport’.
Winter season dates and times are as follows:
Wednesday 13th Dec (10:30-11:30 Juniors, 12-1 Seniors)
Wednesday 10th Jan (10:30-11:30 Juniors, 12-1 Seniors)
Wednesday 7th Feb (10:30-11:30 Juniors, 12-1 Seniors) (please note that February’s date is a slight change from the usual 2nd Wednesday and will be on the 1st Wednesday of the month instead)
Sessions are designed to be active and accessible for a mix of ages and abilities with 2 separate sessions for younger or older children. The morning session will be aimed at slightly younger children aged approximately 5-8, nicknamed our Juniors, and the afternoon session will be aimed at the slightly older children aged approximately 9+, nicknamed our Seniors. If you would like to attend as a family group with mixed ages, then just pick whichever session you feel would be most suitable for the group as a whole.
If you would like to let us know about any specific considerations for your children then we would welcome this, just get in touch.
Tickets need to be purchased for each child attending, but grown ups do not need to purchase a separate ticket. It usually works best for the younger or less confident children if grown ups stay and join in with activities. Whereas for older or more confident children it is usually fine for grown ups to not stay in the session, although they will need to stay within the museum building whilst the session is taking place. Tickets cost £17.50 per child for the 3 month seasonal block and can be booked via Ticketsource or by popping into or phoning the museum directly.
Attendees will be encouraged to continue their learning at home between sessions and the year will finish with a display of the children’s work from all of the sessions within the museum.
Rusty Club (YAC) Membership – Please note that we occasionally do the same crafts or activities in Rusty Club sessions as we do in Home Educator sessions, so if you decide to join in with both programmes there may be some sessions with duplicated topics.

The Doctor Who Scarf Project - Knitting Starter Day
2024-01-06 12:30 - 14:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
Help us make Weston-super-Mare a sea of colourful Doctor Who loveliness by learning to knit your own Doctor Who scarf and join us in knitting the longest ever community made Doctor Who scarf!
We’re so excited about our new exhibition – ‘ADVENTURES IN TIME AND SPACE – 60 YEARS OF DOCTOR WHO ART’, which runs from 21 October 2023 – 27 January 2024. We just want to wrap ourselves in Doctor Who fun, so we’ve decided to get knitting and you can join us too!
Grab one of our knitting starter packs from the museum shop (throughout the exhibition dates) and get going with your own scarf. You can even join us on one of our special knitting starter days (24/10/23 or 06/01/24), where there will be a team of knitting helpers ready to get you started and show you a basic stitch. There’s no charge to join this event and no need to book, you just need to purchase one of the starter packs and find an available helper in our Learning Space. Knitting is a great hobby for almost any age and you don’t need to know loads of complicated stitches; just one will enable you to make something to be proud of.
Ever wondered why the 4th Doctor (Tom Baker) had such a long striped scarf? – The story goes that the costume designer gave a knitter a big bag of wool and asked her to knit a scarf. He thought she would choose what she liked from the bag, but instead she used up the whole lot and an iconic piece of Doctor Who fashion was created! Some sources say that first scarf was 20 feet long and we want to beat that by knitting our own longest ever jointly made Doctor Who scarf. We’ve already started the scarf and we will be adding to it over the whole run of the exhibition (up until January 2024). Once we’ve had some fun wrapping up various things in our awesome scarf we plan to chop it down into standard lengths and finish these off to go towards our ‘Warm Bundles Project’. We’ve been working with other community organisations to gather bundles (scarves, gloves, hats etc) that are given to homeless people. This means that our long scarf will go to a good cause.
Have you got any spare wool or needles at home? If you’d like to donate them to our project to help out with making this amazing creation then we’d be very grateful for them. Just email the museum FAO Katherine Bell (Learning and Events Officer).
If you’d like to know more information or arrange dropping off some wool or needles, just email museum@wsm-tc.gov.uk

Heritage Talk and Video - A History of Crime and Punishment in Weston and Surrounding Area
2024-01-11 14:30 - 15:30 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
This free session looks at the history of crime and punishment in Weston-super-Mare and the surrounding area, through video and a PowerPoint illustrated talk. Find out more about a highwayman, a bear attack, murder and a witchcraft trial! Hear about the history of Shepton Mallet prison and much more.

SOLD OUT Pub Quiz
2024-01-17 19:30 - 22:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
PLEASE NOTE THIS EVENT IS SOLD OUT
🎉 Join us for our Monthly Pub Quiz! 🎉
Looking for a fun-filled evening of trivia, laughter, and local history? Look no further! Our monthly pub quiz is back, and we can’t wait to challenge your wits and tickle your funny bone.
📅 Date: Wednesday 17th January 2024
⌚ Time: Doors open at 19:00 for a 19:30 start
📍 Location: Weston Museum
🧠 Test your knowledge: Gather your friends, family, or colleagues and form a dream team of up to five members. Together, you’ll delve into a range of intriguing questions covering various topics, including your community’s fascinating history. Sharpen your pencils and get ready to impress with your local expertise!
😂 Laughs guaranteed: Our pub quiz isn’t just about flexing your grey matter; it’s also a night of laughter and good times. Our talented quizmaster will keep you entertained with their witty banter and hilarious trivia challenges.
🎟️ Prebook your tables now: To ensure you secure a spot, we highly recommend pre-booking your tables. Don’t miss out on the chance to be part of the ultimate pub quiz experience!
💰 Cost: Participation is only £5.00 per team, making it an affordable and fantastic way to spend an evening with your friends. Split the cost and have a blast without breaking the bank!
Join us for our monthly pub quiz and let the games begin!
Ticket Link:
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/westonmuseum/t-earalpg

Heritage Talk - History of Crime and Punishment in Weston-super-Mare and Area
2024-01-25 14:30 - 15:30 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
This FREE illustrated heritage talk takes a look at historic crime and punishment in the Weston-super-Mare area. Come along and hear about a dangerous highwayman, gruesome murders and a witchcraft trial! Watch our video with a former governor of Shepton Mallet Jail!

Environment Agency Flood Risk Management Presentation and Q&A
2024-02-01 19:00 - 20:30 UTC | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
Join the Environment Agency for an informative presentation and Q&A session on how flood risk is managed in Weston-super-Mare and how to prepare for flooding.

As part of Defra and the Environment Agency’s Weston super Mare Flood Awareness Campaign, a Coastal Engineer from the Environment Agency will be giving a presentation on the background to why the Severn Estuary is at risk and the history of past flood events. We will cover the defences that have been built and how they are managed, as well as what the future might hold with the impacts of climate change. Come along and learn what you can do to prepare for and become more resilient to flooding. We will be joined by a representative from North Somerset council and there will be time at the end for your questions.

Times:
19:00 – 19:45: Presentation by an Environmental Agency Coastal Engineer
19:45 – 20:30: Q&A Session
Cost:
All are welcome, but please do book your free space by visiting the link here: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/environment-agency-flood-risk-management-presentation-and-qa-tickets-781253870357?aff=oddtdtcreator
Guest Notice:
Weston Museum is the host venue for this talk, any questions or queries in relation to this evening must be sent to the Environment Agency.

Heritage Talk - Mosaics Through Time
2024-02-08 14:30 - 15:30 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
This free illustrated talk takes a look at the very first mosaics, from ancient Mesopotamia, Greece and Roman periods, to the Cosmati pavement in Westminster Abbey, shell grottoes and the controversial contemporary mosaics of artist Carrie Reichardt.

Civic Society Talk – Clough Williams-Ellis: The 1947 Weston Master Plan
2024-02-12 19:30 - 21:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
Join the Civic Society for their monthly talk. This month’s speaker is Councillor John Crockford-Hawley.
The 1947 Development Plan was so radical, so car orientated and so dismissive of Victorian architecture that nothing short of starting anew was deemed appropriate for the town’s future prosperity.
“A Garden City By The Sea” had an airing but this hugely controversial plan never left the drawing board (apart from one residential property which was built).
And who were the great national figures behind this plan? The Hon Lionel Brett (Rector of the Royal College of Art and President of the RIBA) and Sir Clough Williams-Ellis (of Portmeirion fame).
The story has never really been told and few plans remain in existence but Councillor John Crockford-Hawley has researched the fascinating and controversial subject, recreated plans from the old documents and produced a fully illustrated PowerPoint presentation especially for Weston Civic Society.
Part of the Heritage Talk series thanks to support from Historic England and the High Street Heritage Action Zone.
Times:
doors open 19:00
talk starts 19:30
Cost:
All are welcome – entrance is free to members, and £2.00 for non-members.

History Week 2024 - Romans Workshop
2024-02-13 10:00 - 14:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
🛡️ Unleash your inner Roman Emperor or Empress with our fantastic Roman Invasion Workshop! 🛡️
Join us for a range of Roman activities; including creating your own coin, dressing up in a toga and designing your own Roman mosaic! All the necessary equipment will be provided – all you need to bring is yourself!
Workshop Times:
10:30 – 11:15
11:30 – 12:15
13:00 – 13:45
Cost: £6.00 per child (accompanying adults go free)
🎟️ Limited Spaces Available: To ensure a comfortable and enjoyable experience, we have limited spaces available. Click the link below to book your spot today to secure your place in this Roman Invasion Workshop!
Ticket Link:
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/westonmuseum/e-mdzzay
We also have FREE Reenactment Groups taking over our Courtyard.
More information on these can be found on their individual events listings – either on Facebook or on our website. No tickets are required for the Courtyard.
Please note the Museum does have a maximum capacity, and once this has been reached, entry to the Museum will be first come first serve on a one in one out basis. We thank you for your understanding and patience!

History Week 2024 - Courtyard Reenactment!
2024-02-13 10:00 - 15:00, 2024-02-14 10:00 - 15:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
🔥 FREE – Our action-packed History Week is BACK for 2024! 🔥
Immerse yourself as the Museum Courtyard travels back in time to explore the past; from the Romans up to the Second World War! Join us for an unforgettable experience that will transport you to eras gone by. Our fantastic reenactment will be taking over our cobbled courtyard all week from 10:00 – 15:00.
🛡️ Tuesday 13th February 2024 🛡️
Romans – Ermine Street Guard
📜 Wednesday 14th February 2024 📜
Anglo-Saxons – The Independent Kingdom of Wessex
⚔️ Thursday 15th February 2024 ⚔️
Medieval – The Freemen of Gwent
🪖 Friday 16th February 2024 🪖
World War II – WWII 4th Battalion Somerset Light Infantry
💷 FREE, FREE, FREE: No pre-booking required! Just turn up and enjoy the fun!
We also have supporting workshops taking place in our Learning Space on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. More information on these can be found on their individual events listings – either on Facebook or on our website. Tickets for these workshops must be prebooked as each slot has limited tickets available.

History Week 2024 - Anglo-Saxons Workshop
2024-02-14 10:00 - 14:00 (Europe/London) | Weston Museum, Burlington Street, Weston-super-Mare, Somerset, BS23 1PR, United Kingdom
📜 Explore life as a founder of Wessex, an Anglo-Saxon ancestor! 📜
Learn about the Saxon origins of place names, play a historical game, then dress up and imagine yourself as King Alfred fighting off the Viking raiders in our action-packed workshop! All the necessary equipment will be provided – all you need to bring is yourself!
Workshop Times:
10:30 – 11:15
11:30 – 12:15
13:00 – 13:45
Cost: £6.00 per child (accompanying adults go free)
🎟️ Limited Spaces Available: To ensure a comfortable and enjoyable experience, we have limited spaces available. Click the link below to book your spot today to secure your place in this awesome Anglo-Saxon Workshop!
Ticket Link:
https://www.ticketsource.co.uk/westonmuseum/e-xgeeql
We also have FREE Reenactment Groups taking over our Courtyard.
More information on these can be found on their individual events listings – either on Facebook or on our website. No tickets are required for the Courtyard.
Please note the Museum does have a maximum capacity, and once this has been reached, entry to the Museum will be first come first serve on a one in one out basis. We thank you for your understanding and patience!
