Director’s Diary: The Gimlet Hole
We are a small museum with a big story, and we are preparing grant applications! This is an important site – an International Landmark Site – and the next crucial development will provide a new gallery for our recently acquired collection of Brunel drawings. We also need to improve facilities for our growing visitor numbers. …
Director’s Diary: Illuminate Rotherhithe! and Illuminate Rotherhithe
In 2020 the Mayflower sailed from Rotherhithe on an historic voyage. For some on board it was a mission, a mission to illuminate, the word often used by their preacher and teacher William Bradford, first Governor of Massachusetts. Later Joseph Conrad famously wrote about the lights springing up along the shore. And today, illuminate is also the …
Director’s Diary: Sophia Brunel does the engineering
With the onset of warmer weather the effect of the gas in the tunnel began to be felt more acutely. There is a greater number of disabled men than at any time before. During the night the gas burned fiercely and with a roaring like distant thunder. Heywood died of typhus and Page is evidently sinking very …
Director’s Diary: The most rhymed about, danced about, sung about and painted about construction site in the world
The amazing Totally Thames Festival has ended for another year, and so have summer evenings in the roof top garden with Midnight Apothecary. But the entertainment continues: this week A Piano in the Amazon, Choral Favourites from Collegium Musicum, and in the chilly weather cocktails and Cabaret Down the Shaft with Tricity Vogue. Abigail Collins dances Swan Lake …
Director’s Diary: The Hon Sir William McAlpine Bt
In Memoriam Sunday 13th Fawley Hill Museum. Sir William McAlpine was one of the first enthusiastic patrons of The Brunel Museum, always ready to fill the gap. A keen Brunel collector, he was the first to loan objects to the museum, which came from his own very extensive collection. He lobbied other organisations to follow suit, and …
Director’s Diary: A View of the Bridge
We are now offering heritage boat trips every day of the week, and our popular riverside walk from Bermondsey tube three times a week. This is the finest view of Henry Marc Brunel’s Tower Bridge… Sunday 6th May 10.40 heritage boat trip from Embankment tube offered in partnership with London Walks 10.40 riverside walk from …
Director’s Diary: Isambard Brunel dans son cabaret
Last week visits from Subterranea Britannica, UCL, primary schools and an Arts Society. And of course concerts and river walks and cocktails. This week Secret Adventures for underground film & cocktails, and on Saturday the welcome return of Down the Shaft our own underground cabaret. This week is also the anniversary of Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s underground cabaret …
Director’s Diary: more subterranean concerts
Half term holidays the children’s craft workshops were busy, and also the usual boat trips, river walks, film showing and concert. Midnight Apothecary served cocktails for Hallowe’en. Next week we have visits from Subterranea Britannica http://www.subbrit.org.uk , engineering students from UCL, Albion Primary School researching the docks and The Arts Society Kingston. We also have concerts and …
Director’s Diary: spooky, spoke-y and ethereal
Congratulations and a cup of tea and cake to Gill who arrived Sunday at the end of a four day, 167 mile ride from Bristol to London. A Sustrans map is available here . Forever associated with Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the city of Bristol is the start of this Great Western Way cycle route, while a museum …