East Midlands

Northampton Central Museum and Art Gallery

Northampton Central Museum and Art Gallery (www.northampton.gov.uk/site/scripts/documents_info.php?categoryID=1482&documentID=135) is home to an acclaimed collection of boots and shoes, in fact, the largest in the world! Displays show the history of shoemaking and how fashions have changed over the years with designs including Dame Vivienne Westwood. Also on display are oriental and British ceramics, 15th to 18th-century Italian paintings and British art.     

New Walk Museum & Art Gallery (Leicester)

At the heart of Leicester you’ll find the New Walk Museum and Art Gallery (www.leicestermuseums.ac.uk/museums/museframe.html), which has been collecting exhibits for 150 years and is fast becoming one of the premier museums in the region. Lord Attenborough and Sir David Attenborough were inspired followed their interest in art and natural history through regular visitors to the galleries in their younger years.

Jewry Wall Museum (Leicester)

In the same city, at St Nicholas Circle, you’ll find one of Leicester’s most famous and recognisable landmarks, the Jewry Wall Museum (www.leicestermuseums.ac.uk/museums/jewwall.html). The Jewry Wall, which is around 2,000 years old, is located near the town’s Roman baths and is known to be the second largest piece of surviving Roman building in Britain.

Charnwood Museum (Loughborough)

Charnwood Museum (www.information-britain.co.uk/showPlace.cfm?Place_ID=11688) in Loughborough offers a wide range of exhibits reflecting the history, geology, archaeology and industries of Charnwood. Visitors can experience interactive and audio-visual displays, handle volcanic rocks, walk beneath the giant oak tree, investigate the 4,000-year-old burial of the Cossington Boy, visit the Victorian grocers shop or zoom-in on a fly’s eye with the video microscope.

Nottingham Castle

Nottingham Castle Museum (www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/sitemap/leisure_and_culture/museums_and_galleries/nottingham_castle/lcmg_collections.htm) hosts a fine collection of historic and contemporary art, armour, china and silverware, along with temporary exhibitions and touring shows. Don’t miss the chance to explore the manmade caves and tunnels underneath the castle, some of which date back to medieval times. You can take a guided tour to see Mortimer’s Hole, King David’s dungeon and the old wine cellar.

Rutland County Museum

Rutland County Museum (www.rutnet.co.uk/pp/Gold/viewGold.asp?id=823) is the perfect small museum to visit. It’s located in an ironstone building in a former indoor riding school. Today it offers an insight into the history of Rutland with some rewarding displays of local archaeology, history and rural life including an insight into life at former local brewery, Ruddles. 

You can find out more about the fascinating museums and galleries of Britain by visiting www.24hourmuseum.org.uk (www.24hourmuseum.org.uk), or Museums and Galleries Month (www.mgm.org.uk/).


(www.24hourmuseum.org.uk)