Official opening of Much Wenlock Museum
Much Wenlock Museum was officially opened on Thursday 12 April 2012 by John Penrose MP, Minister for Tourism and Heritage, following a recent major refurbishment.
The museum, supported and run by Shropshire Council, has been completely revamped thanks to a £520,800 grant by the Heritage Lottery Fund towards improvements.
Admission to the museum is free and it will be open daily from Good Friday (6 April 2012) through the summer (including Sundays). Visitors will have the opportunity to learn about Much Wenlock’s most famous resident, Doctor William Penny Brookes, the widely-regarded pioneer of the modern Olympic Games.
Focusing on the Olympian and geological heritage of the area, the improvement project has broadened the appeal of Much Wenlock Museum to local, national and international visitors, creating new exhibitions, heritage walks and education opportunities for people of all ages.
The new-look museum, which also houses the Visitor Information Centre, also features installations representing other local heritage themes, including Wenlock Priory, the building’s former history as a cinema, and the inspiration that the surrounding area has provided to numerous literary and artistic figures such as AE Housman, Mary Webb and Vaughan Williams. In addition to the exhibitions, a local history resource will be created for residents, schools and community groups.
Mike Owen, Shropshire Council’s Cabinet member responsible for tourism and culture, said:
“It will be a great honour to welcome the Minister for Tourism and Heritage to Much Wenlock and show him around the fantastic, newly-refurbished museum.
“I would like to thank the Heritage Lottery Fund for their generous support. This has been an extremely important project for Much Wenlock and for Shropshire, which recognises both the unique influence the town had on the development of the modern Olympic movement, and the geological heritage of the area. I wish the museum all the best for the future, and encourage residents and visitors of all ages to come along and experience the fascinating history and heritage this wonderful town has to offer.”
Milner Whiteman, Shropshire Councillor for Much Wenlock, said:
“I am very pleased that the Minister is coming to Much Wenlock to open the museum. There is a lot to interest all ages, and we look forward to welcoming many visitors to the town. I am very pleased that it is open every day.”
The Much Wenlock Museum will be open daily to visitors from Good Friday until the end of August. Subsequent opening times will be posted on the museum’s website at www.muchwenlockmuseum.co.uk.
For further details about Much Wenlock, including events in 2012, please visit www.muchwenlockguide.info or call the Visitor Information Centre on 01952 727679.
Further information
William Penny Brookes
William Penny Brookes’ lifelong work as a visionary and philanthropist was the inspiration for the formation of the modern International Olympics. He was born in Much Wenlock in 1809 and he believed in the benefits of physical exercise and education to better the working classes and established the Wenlock Olympian Class (later the Wenlock Olympian Society) to promote this aim through an annual sporting competition.
Brookes shared his vision for an International Olympian Festival with influential Frenchman Baron Pierre de Coubertin, who visited Much Wenlock in 1890 and was inspired by what William Penny Brookes and the Wenlock Olympian Society had achieved. The Frenchman went on to set up an international Congress. From this, the first of the modern International Olympics were organised and took place in Athens in 1896 – the ultimate realisation of William Penny Brookes’ lifelong dream. Sadly, Brookes died in December 1895, just four months before the first International Olympic Games.
One of the London 2012 Olympic mascots has been named Wenlock in honour of Dr Brookes and his Games, cementing in history the crucial role he played as the forefather of the modern International Olympic Games. A film featuring Wenlock can be viewed at: http://www.mylondon2012.com/mascots/
Wenlock Olympian Society
The first Games, held in October 1850, comprised of a mixture of athletics and traditional country sports. Following Brookes’ death in 1895, the Wenlock Olympian Society (WOS) has kept the tradition going and the WOS’s Annual Games are still held every year – centred on Much Wenlock but now on six sites across Shropshire over five days. You can explore the history of WOS and William Penny Brookes by completing the Olympian Trail in Much Wenlock. The Trail starts outside the Much Wenlock Visitor Information Centre and winds around the town following bronze markers set in the ground.
Much Wenlock
Much Wenlock is one of the oldest settlements in Shropshire and has been a market town for at least 700 years. The town lies on the north east end of Wenlock Edge near to Ironbridge and Bridgnorth. This historic town is a warren of quaint streets, black and white half-timbered buildings and limestone cottages. There are numerous speciality shops and watering holes as well as the remains of a grand 12th century priory.
