'Spitfire girl' courtesy of MOSI
'Getting into character' to bring history alive has been richly rewarded in Manchester this year. A visually stunning team of 20 costumed characters, ranging from 18th century scientist John Dalton, to early railway travellers and aviators, won the Tourism Experience of the Year 2009 for Manchester’s Museum of Science and Industry (MOSI).
The award came just before the Museum's character extravaganza week in May half-term, Heroes and Heroines of Flight, which featured performances by the 'Spitfire Girls' and told the story of 166 young women who risked their lives to transport Spitfires to battle areas around Europe.
MOSI director, Steve Davis MBE said: "Our costumed characters are constantly praised by visitors and it is one of the areas that we are working to develop further. The characters really help to bring history to life for people and are a great way to learn facts in an entertaining way."
'Spitfire girl' courtesy of MOSI
As a lively method of re-creating history and re-living the drama and tensions of a particular era, MOSI will be holding regular costumed performances throughout the year.
Every Sunday, it is historical characters’ day at MOSI where you can meet and talk to renowned historical characters, such as the genius engineer James Watt, or the less renowned Annie Pritchard, a cotton mill worker from the 1830s, and really experience what it was like to live in their time.
A Victorian cyclist courtesy of MOSI
On June 27 - 28, as part of the Refugee Week celebrations, there will be performances from 19th century railway workers (the navigation engineer, or navvy) exploring the often dangerous and hostile conditions involved in building the railways.
David Smith, Community Development Officer at MOSI, explained how they have linked the two initiatives: "We thought that a great way of making a link between Refugee Week and our collections was to focus on the plight of Irish navvies. We were interested in exploring how a group of workers, in this case the Irish navvies, initially seen as 'outsiders,' were able to integrate themselves so fully into Manchester’s social and cultural life. This story is especially resonant today."
If you don't get the chance to visit the Museum in June, the Transport Festival (August 8-16) should also be featuring the early railway workers. For further information visit the MOSI website.
