Museum of Science and Industry

Professor Brian Cox today welcomes the launch of a groundbreaking new gallery at MOSI and called for more investment in creative science education. Professor Cox said MOSI's Revolution Manchester gallery, which is part of a £9million redevelopment project and showcases Manchester's greatest innovations - is part of a crucial drive to inspire the next generation of young scientists and engineers. 

Revolution Manchester, which includes the very latest in digital technology and interactive games, was designed by London-based kin design and opens on 29 January 2011 to the public. It features the UK's largest indoor video wall (50 screens), supplied by leading manufacturer NEC and videowall experts PSCo, and a unique 'digital chandelier' which spans three floors of the converted 19^th century railway warehouse. Collection items, most of which are displayed for the first time at MOSI, tell the stories of how Manchester changed the world, from the world's first commercial computer, to a model of ZETA (Britain's first experiment in nuclear fusion), to the world's first enclosed cabin monoplane. Six sections cover computing, science, engineering, energy, transport and industry.

The MOSI redevelopment project also includes a new coffee shop, gift shop, restaurant, learning and conference centres, as well as the updated interactive science gallery, Experiment. The building has been renamed the Great Western Warehouse in recognition of its role as a former railway warehouse as part of Liverpool Road station, which opened in 1830 for the world's first passenger railway.

Professor Brian Cox said: "Manchester has produced so many world-changing inventions and continues to be at the cutting edge of science and engineering, but it's essential to encourage more and more young people to study science, so investment in creative science education facilities such as MOSI's Revolution Manchester and Experiment galleries is essential for inspiring the next generation of scientists. The new MOSI is a fantastic asset to science education in Britain and will help to keep the North West's spirit of curiosity and innovation alive."

Tony Hill, MOSI Director said: "I'm delighted to launch the Great Western Warehouse of which Revolution Manchester gallery is the final showpiece to be unveiled in this first phase of our vision for MOSI. We have worked with creative designers at the top of their fields to produce a truly innovative gallery for the 21^st century, which acts as a fabulous introduction to help the visitor understand how Manchester changed the world and helps to orientate them to other galleries around the Museum. This gallery really injects the 'wow' into MOSI and promises to engage the visitor even after they have left the Museum."

Revolution Manchester gallery includes the very latest in cutting edge technology and design. Visitors start by swiping a barcode card to register. During registration their photograph is taken (if requested) and displayed on the digital sculpture (made up of 24 screens) and the media wall, which work in conjunction with each other. The visitor has a personal digital scrapbook, which includes photographs, scores from the interactive games surrounding collection items, and vox pops recorded in the gallery. When they return home they can log on to their scrapbook to download the images and find out more about other galleries and events at MOSI.

The gallery allows visitors to interact and interpret collection items through innovative games and hands-on exhibits. Visitors can play a simple binary code game linked to the replica 'Baby' computer (the world's first stored-program computer, built by the University of Manchester in 1948) or send a love letter based on an early computer program, written for the Ferranti Mark I, which generated random love letters.

A game based around a model of the 1957 ZETA experiment to demonstrate nuclear fusion gets visitors to create their own energy by working together to activate a plasma animation, while a model of the Avro F aeroplane can be manipulated by the visitor to demonstrate wing warping.

The redevelopment of the Great Western Warehouse began in November 2009 and is now open to the public, except for Revolution Manchester gallery, which will open on 29 January. Funding for the redevelopment project has come from the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), the Northwest Regional Development Agency (NWDA), the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), the Garfield Weston Foundation, the SITA Trust, and a number of other trusts and foundations.

The building work for MOSI's redeveloped Great Western Warehouse was carried out by John Turner & Sons, Buttress Fuller Alsop Williams were the architects and property consultant Drivers Jonas Deloitte acted as project managers for the scheme. Kin design and 24 Design are responsible for design and build of Revolution Manchester gallery.

For more information please call Sarah Roe, Press and Publicity officer on Tel: 0161 606 0176 or look up www.mosi.org.uk

Notes to editors

1. ERDF in the Northwest

The European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) is making a real difference to people and businesses in the Northwest. With €755 million to invest between 2007 and 2013, ERDF is enhancing the competitiveness of the region's economy by supporting growth in enterprise and employment.

2. For more information on museums and galleries in Manchester:

Creativetourist.com is an online magazine, a series of city guides and a collaborative project that has been put together by Manchester Museums Consortium, a group of eight museums and galleries - Cornerhouse, Imperial War Museum North, The Lowry, Manchester Art Gallery, The Manchester Museum, (MOSI) Museum of Science & Industry, People's History Museum, and The Whitworth Art Gallery - in Manchester.  These venues have a dual vision: the desire to stage intelligent, thought-provoking and international exhibitions and events and to celebrate the city in which they live, work and play. Creativetourist.com, with its mix of exclusive features, interviews, arts news and city guides, allows readers to discover more about what's happening in the city, uncover its outstanding cultural programme and collections, and perhaps come to be as passionate about Manchester as its inhabitants.

Back to news