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What to do in Dorchester over Easter (Even if it’s Raining!)

Friday, April 15th, 2011
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Dorchester Dinosaur Museum

Dorchester Dinosaur Museum

Okay, so it was too good to last. We had a fleeting glimpse of the sunshine last week, and our previous blog was full of ideas to make the most of this welcome bout of early summer.

Sadly the sun has faded away as quickly as it came, and a generous assessment of this week’s weather would be muggy with occasional spells of dreary.

Thankfully we live in a town which is full of life and variety come rain or shine, so we decided to put together another blog on the all-weather activities and attractions on offer in Dorchester over the Easter half term. Hopefully you will find it useful!

Dorchester Cinema

The Plaza has long been the get out of jail free card for Dorchester parents on rainy half term days. The prices are among the cheapest in the area, with tickets just £2.50 on weekdays, and £3.50 on weekends. The Plaza also now show 3D films (at a small extra charge), including the latest family-friendly animated blockbuster Rio. You can see full film listings for the coming week here.

Dorchester Museums

It’s hard to pick one museum to visit in Dorchester over the half term, there are just so many good ones! From the Teddy Bear Museum to the Tutankhamun Exhibition, there’s something to suit all interests and age groups.

If you have small children, then you can’t go wrong with the Dinosaur Museum. It’s the UK’s only museum dedicated solely to the prehistoric beasts, and includes life-size dinosaur replicas, dinosaur skeletons, and genuine fossilized remains from millions of years ago.

Dorset County Museum also never fails to serve up interesting exhibitions and activities, and is usually high on the list of priorities for visitors to Dorchester. On Wednesday next week the museum is hosting a Tudor-themed family activity day, and giving you the opportunity to make a pomander and learn about the Tudors’ bizarre herbal remedies.

Dorchester Family Dining

It’s always nice during the holidays to give mum a rest from the kitchen and go out somewhere nice for a family meal. Dorchester is full of special little places to take the family, with a nice mix of national restaurant chains and family-run local eateries.

A big favourite in Dorchester at the moment is the Town Mill Bakery. They do great lunches including soups and Danish pastries, and suppers with fresh home-baked pizzas made with local ingredients.

And that’s not the only place to go for great pizza – Dorchester folk have been enjoying Prezzo’s fantastic menu and delicious dough recipe to Dorchester for a while now, but with so many choices, the biggest problem is still deciding which topping to go for!

These are just a few suggestions of things to do in Dorchester over the half term break. You can find out plenty more about museums, attractions and places to eat by heading over to the Dorchester Dorset website. Happy Easter everyone!

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Teddy Bear Auction Could Be A Record Breaker

Wednesday, October 13th, 2010
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Christies Teddy Bear Auction

Christies Teddy Bear Auction

Our very own Dorset’s Teddy Bear Museum will be watching with bated breath the auction of a unique collection of Steiff Teddy Bears and animals being held at Christies, today 13th October.

The collection that is expected to fetch in the region of 1.3 million pounds contains many rarities including an amazing Steiff Harlequin Bear, thought to be a prototype that was never manufactured. This wonderful coloured bear, created from red and blue mohair is expected to fetch between 50 and 80 thousand pounds.

Jackie Ridley, the Curator of The Dorset Teddy Bear Museum in Dorchester said,

“It’s very exciting for such a wonderful collection of bears to come on the market. Apart from the sheer quality of the bears being offered for sale, the chance that a new record may be set is going to attract the attention of many museums and collectors from all over the world”.

She continued,

“At the Teddy Bear Museum in Dorchester we have in our collections a group of teddy bear record breakers. These unique, meticulously accurate hand crafted replicas, were specially made for the Museum. They tell the story of teddy bear record breakers from the first record in 1985, of “King Arthur” a 1905 Steiff that was sold for £3,740.  This was followed in 1989 by “Alfonso” a 1908 Steiff that sold for £12,100 and the magnificent “Happy” a 1926 Steiff that fetched £55,000. “Happy” was sold to Paul Volp, an American collector who bought it as a 42nd wedding anniversary present for his wife Rosemary. “

“But all these records were put to shame in 1994 when “Teddy Girl”, a 1904 cinnamon Steiff was sold at auction for a staggering £110,000 to Yoshihiro Sekiguchi who bought it for the Izu Teddy Bear Museum in Japan. Two years later he bought “Teddy Edward” another record breaking teddy for £34,5000.

The Teddy Bear Record Breakers are on Show at The Teddy Bear Museum in Dorchester that is open seven days a week all the year round.

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Museums at Night

Thursday, May 6th, 2010
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Museums at night

Museums at night

Just like Ben Stiller and Ricky Gervais now’s your chance to have “A night at the Museum” as Dorchester’s curators open their doors for you to enjoy an evening exploring these fine and varied facilities. Museums at Night 2010 is a special initiative, organised by Culture24 and takes place during the weekend of Friday to Sunday 14-16th May. The event is part of European wide celebrations of International Museums Day and is funded by the Museums, Libraries and Archives Council (MLA)

Everything comes to life

‘Museums at Night’ is coming to Dorchester in a big way on Saturday 15th May. The historic county town of Dorset boasts no fewer than five superb museums and this initiative will see all five open to visitors from 5pm to 9pm.

Dorchester is blessed with a wealth of top quality museums covering a fantastic range of topics and themes. There is sure to be something to surprise and educate be it  Roman Britain; Tutankhamun; Teddy bears; Thomas Hardy; Dorset’s military history; Dinosaurs, or simply Dorchester’s rich history. Museums at Night promises to be a very special night offering families and individuals an unrivalled opportunity to explore and discover.

‘Museums at Night’ venues

Dorchester County Museum

Dorset’s award winning County Museum located on High West Street, Dorchester is a fantastic base for exploring the history of Dorchester and the surrounding area. The family friendly Museum has fascinating modern galleries, dealing with a wide range of subjects including archaeology, farming history, Dorset wildlife, art, history and literature with special emphasis on the history of Thomas Hardy and the Jurassic Coast.

Dinosaur Museum

For dinosaur lovers, Dorset has the Dinosaur Museum, most recently chosen as one of Britain’s Ten Best Child-Friendly Museums. Located on Icen Way in the centre of Dorchester, the museum is a real treat for children and it combines life-sized reconstructions of dinosaurs with fossils and skeletons to create an exciting hands-on experience.

Teddy Bear Museum

The Teddy Bear Museum houses a large display of teddy bears from throughout the last century starting from the earliest examples right up to today’s TV favourites.  Located on the corner of High East Street and Salisbury Street, Dorchester, the wonderful and varied displays offer sheer enjoyment for the young, and for the not so young, with a fascinating and nostalgic look at this much loved toy,

The Keep Military Museum

The Keep Military Museum is sited in an impressive prominent historical building located at the top of the town in Dorchester, Dorset. It houses the splendid archive collection of the participating regiments that make up the Military Museum of Devon and Dorset. People of all ages can experience realistic battle environments, together with exhibitions and tales of courage, humour and sacrifice spread over 300 years.

Tutankhamun

The Tutankhamun Exhibition holds a spectacular recreation of Tutankhamun’s tomb and treasures. The Tutankhamun Exhibition opened in 1987 and houses the most comprehensive exhibition on the boy pharaoh outside of Egypt.

Bovington Tank Museum

Away from the town centre, but most certainly not to be overlooked, the Royal Tank Regiment Museum located at Bovington is also joining in this special event. On the evening of May 15th, you can experience how the Army and tank crews have operated in darkness, from World War One to the present day in an extra special night at The Tank Museum. For this special evening you will be able to experience a torchlight tour of The Museum, try out state of the art night vision equipment with the Export Support Team, watch a night time vehicle exercise by the Army and discover what it’s like to crew a vehicle in the dark.

Special admission ticket

There is a special ticket available for the evening of 15th May only, giving you admission to all six museums. Advance family tickets can be purchased for £6 from any of the ‘Museums at Night’ participating museums or from the Dorchester Tourist Information Centre. Special tickets purchased on the night will be £10. Five of the museums are within a short walk of each other and Culture 24 have produced a Google map listing all the participating ‘Museums at Night’ venues and their locations in Dorchester.

Many of the high quality restaurants, cafes and pubs in the centre of Dorchester, Dorset are linking in with ‘Museums at Night’ with special offers for those on the museum trail. The town will be sure to have a special vibrant atmosphere on the night so come along and enjoy a really great evening out.

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