Listings information to follow about the free events, activities and exhibitions this Christmas at National Museums Liverpool's eight venues

ADMISSION to all the venues is also free, and as you can see below there's plenty to do once you get inside. All of the venues are open most days over
the school holidays, only closing for four days on 24 to the 26 December and 1 January.

The popular 'Grossology' exhibition at Liverpool Museum has been extended due to record breaking figures, so if you haven't been yet make sure you see it over Christmas. In addition to the regular events and activities there are a lot of special seasonal extras. For example, there's an 'Enchanted
Forest' display for younger visitors at Liverpool Museum, and the Piermasters House has been decorated with 1940s displays showing how people
tried to bring some Christmas cheer to the home during rationing in the Second World War.

The breathtaking 'Rossetti' exhibition is only open for a few more weeks until 18 January 2004. The Walker is the only UK venue for this show, so don't miss it! Families can take part in fun trails and activities in the special Rossetti Artbase, dress up in medieval costumes inspired by the paintings, or delve through the artist's box of props.

The Albert Dock venues are open 10am - 5pm daily (Merseyside Maritime Museum, Museum of Liverpool Life and Customs & Excise Museum). All other venues are open Mon-Sat 10am to 5pm, Sun 12 noon to 5pm (Conservation Centre, Lady Lever Art Gallery, Liverpool Museum, Sudley House & the Walker)

Events & Activities

Christmas in the Enchanted Forest Liverpool Museum, William Brown Street, Liverpool
0151 478 4393 www.liverpoolmuseum.org.uk
Take a walk through the Enchanted Forest and meet all the colourful characters that live and work there in this seasonal winter wonderland display for younger visitors. On selected afternoons you could meet the
Enchantress and hear a special seasonal story. 29 November 2003 to 4 January 2004

At home with the piermaster and family in the 1940s 
Museum of Liverpool Life, Pier Head, Liverpool 0151 478 4080 www.museumofliverpoollife.org.uk The dock's best kept secret! Glimpse life during World War II at the Piermaster's House, near the Hartley Bridge in the Albert Dock. The house is currently themed with 1940s displays to complement the Spirit of the Blitz exhibition at the Maritime Museum. The Christmas decorations show how people had to be resourceful and use whatever scarce materials were available to bring some Christmas cheer to the home during the Second World War. The house is open every day, but you can join the piermaster's wife for special events on the following dates.  Guided Tours 27-30 December, 1.30, 2.30 & 3.30pm. Free tour tickets from Museum of Liverpool Life information desk.

Christmas Customs

Customs & Excise Museum, inside Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool
0151 478 4499 www.customsmuseum.org.uk
Free craft activities for all the family - you could create a snowy.

Victorian scene of the Liverpool Customs House, or decorate our tree with 'smugglers' lanterns. Saturday 20, Sunday 21, Saturday 27, Sunday 28 December, Saturday 3 & Sunday 4 January, 12.30-3.30pm

Fairies in the Forest

Liverpool Museum, William Brown Street, Liverpool
0151 478 4393 www.liverpoolmuseum.org.uk Craft activities themed around winter trees, forest animals and fairies in this fun session for the whole family. Weekends 20 & 21, 27 & 28 December, 3 & 4 January 12.30 - 4.30pm

The Natural History of Christmas

Liverpool Museum, William Brown Street, Liverpool
0151 478 4393 www.liverpoolmuseum.org.uk What do gold; frankincense and myrrh actually look like? Why do we display mistletoe at this time of year and what is the significance of Christmas trees? Come along to the Natural History Centre and find out the answers.

Our expert demonstrators will give you a rendition of The Twelve Days of Christmas, complete with real calling birds, geese and hens. Available during normal open hours in December.

Lights out!

Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool 0151 478 4499 www.merseysidemaritimemuseum.org.uk
Meet Albert the ARP Warden on the Spirit of the Blitz gallery as he recalls tales of wartime Liverpool.
27, 28, 29, 30, 31 December, Sunday 4 January, 1.30 2.30 & 3.30pm

Creepy Cove....  Customs & Excise Museum, inside Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool 0151 478 4499 www.customsmuseum.org.uk Suspect visitors have been spotted in the customs creepy cove. Eyewitness
accounts show they appear to be approachable and willing to tell their tales
of smuggling and bravery. Join us if you dare!
All ages are welcome.
Tuesday 30 December, 1.30, 2.30 & 3.30pm

Mother Redcap
Customs & Excise Museum, inside Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock,
Liverpool 0151 478 4499 www.customsmuseum.org.uk Mother Redcap will be on the gallery to captivate you with her stories about
the dark and dangerous world of smuggling. Join her if you dare! Story telling session for the whole family.
Wednesday 31 December, 1.30, 2.30 & 3.30pm

Christmas Picture Blitz. Museum of Liverpool Life, Pier Head, Liverpool 0151 478 4080 www.museumofliverpoollife.org.uk
Drop in to our art activity and make your own wartime Christmas card, plus add an image or an aeroplane to our WW2 mural. Also includes activities for under fives. Wednesday 31 December, Friday 2 & Sunday 4 January, 1- 4pm

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Conservation Centre, Whitechapel, Liverpool  0151 478 4999 www.conservationcentre.org.uk
Free hands-on activities, led by our demonstrators, for young and old alike, where you can have fun while you learn about conservation techniques. Saturday afternoons from 1.30pm

The Dressing up Box for Children.   the Walker, William Brown Street, Liverpool 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk Try on a costume of a medieval knight or lady like the ones in Rossetti's
pictures. Every weekend during the Rossetti exhibition and every day during the Christmas school holidays.

Picture Props.. the Walker, William Brown Street, Liverpool 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk
Delve into the artist's box of props to find some of the interesting objects Rossetti used in his pictures, like ornate jewellery, rich fabric and flowers.
Every weekend during the Rossetti exhibition and every day during the Christmas school holidays.

Rossetti Exhibition Artbase the Walker, William Brown Street, Liverpool 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk  Explore the collections with picture trails that take you around the gallery. Do some colouring in, or design a stained glass window. Draw a portrait and we'll display it on the wall. Every weekend during the Rossetti exhibition and every day during the Christmas school holidays.

Exhibitions

Grossology... Liverpool Museum, William Brown Street, Liverpool 0151 478 4393 www.liverpoolmuseum.org.uk  Explore the impolite science of the human body! Grossology tells the story of the good, the bad and the downright ugly elements of human biology. Take a 'Tour du Nose' and discover how snot acts as a filter and a mucus producer. Play pinball 'Gas Attack' and score off bumpers dressed up as food that cause flatulence. Find out about indigestion with the 'Burp Machine' and climb the skin wall's zits, blisters and warts. Children will love this interactive - and rather disgusting - free exhibition.

EXTENDED UNTIL 29 FEBRUARY 2004

Come Dancing..  Conservation Centre, Whitechapel, Liverpool  0151 478 4999 www.conservationcentre.org.uk   A nostalgic photographic exhibition of thirty reproduction prints from the Stewart Bale collection depicting Liverpool dance halls, orchestras and bands from the 1930s to 1960s. 20 December 2003 to 1 February 2004

Rossetti... the Walker, William Brown Street, Liverpool 0151 478 4199 www.thewalker.org.uk 
Dante Gabriel Rossetti, the Victorian artist, poet and founding member of the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood, was one of the most original talents of his
generation. For the first time in thirty years the best examples of his work will be collected for this major retrospective exhibition. All aspects of his career will be on display, including drawings, watercolours, pastels, picture frames, and bookbinding designs, bringing the full range of his activities to the attention of a whole new generation of art lovers. Don't
miss this show of intense emotions, symbolism and haunting images of beautiful 'femme fatales'. The exhibition's only UK showing will be at the
Walker, before it travels to the Van Gogh Museum, Amsterdam. 16 October 2003 to 18 January 2004

David Jacques - 'As if in a dream dreamt by another' 
Museum of Liverpool Life, Pier Head, Liverpool
0151 478 4080 www.museumofliverpoollife.org.uk
An exhibition by Liverpool-born artist David Jacques exploring the experiences of people from different communities who have settled in Liverpool over the last 100 years. Featuring large scale banners, photographs, drawings and video footage. 24 October 2003 to 3 May 2004

Spirit of the Blitz.. Merseyside Maritime Museum, Albert Dock, Liverpool 0151 478 4499 www.merseysidemaritimemuseum.org.uk
This major exhibition commemorates a powerful and important subject by recounting the experiences of those who lived and worked through the Second World War in Liverpool, in particular the Blitz bombing of May 1941. The profound effects that the war had on the community of Liverpool will be examined through the personal accounts of people from all walks of life and ages - a disappearing generation.   To accompany the exhibition the nearby Piermaster's House has been converted
into a 1940s home.  10 July 2003 to 6 June 2004

Victorian Life...  Lady Lever Art Gallery, Port Sunlight 0151 478 4136 www.ladyleverartgallery.org.uk  This small display is a rare opportunity to see some 19th century watercolours, prints and photographs from National Museums Liverpool's collections which cannot be publicly displayed very often due to their delicate nature. The pictures explore the themes of shopping, leisure and play during Victorian times and are displayed with a selection of original
Victorian dolls. Highlights include two watercolours by Kate Greenaway and St John's Market by Samuel Austin, a newly acquired painting, which will be shown for the first time. 

7 June 2003 - 4 January 2004

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