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Beamish Museum: North East England’s Living Museum · UK Travel Planning

0:00
SPEAKER_01: What if you could walk into a 1900s sweet shop, ride a tram through a pit village and get your hair set in a 1950s salon all in one day?
0:08
SPEAKER_01: In this episode, Samantha Shotten, deputy CEO of Beamish the Living Museum of the North, shares why this is history you can touch, talk to and even taste, and how to make the most of a full day there.
1:02
SPEAKER_01: But even if you do not have a family connection, you will love it.
1:06
SPEAKER_01: If you're curious about how people in Britain really lived from the 1820s right through to the 1950s, Beamish belongs on your list.
1:14
SPEAKER_01: Let's get into it.
1:16
SPEAKER_01: Hi, Samantha is I'm so excited to welcome on the podcast today because we're going to be talking about one of my absolute favourite places to visit when I'm in the UK and somewhere that's I has huge uh childhood memories for me as well.
1:29
SPEAKER_01: And uh we're talking before we actually started recording, had a massive impact, in fact, in how I actually um taught history as a history teacher.
1:37
SPEAKER_01: So we're going to talk all about Beamish Open Air Museum, uh Living Museum in the northeast of England.
1:44
SPEAKER_01: Um so, Samantha, would you like to kick off by kind of just introducing yourself and tell us a little bit about um what you do at Beamish?
1:51
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, of course, first of all, I'm so happy to be here.
1:53
SPEAKER_00: It's great to hear your stories about Beamish because that's that's what it's all about.
1:56
SPEAKER_00: It's about those family stories.
1:58
SPEAKER_00: Um I'm Samantha Shot, and I'm the Chief Operating Officer and Deputy CEO here at Beamish.
2:04
SPEAKER_00: Um I've got a little story if you don't mind me sharing.
2:06
SPEAKER_00: So I uh came on a school trip as well, as you can imagine.
2:09
SPEAKER_00: I um the first carousel I took my son on was the one here at Beamish, and I did my work experience here when I was 15.
2:15
SPEAKER_00: And then three years ago, full circle, I've come back around to Beamish and here I am.
2:20
SPEAKER_00: So um my role is is very much all-encompassing.
2:24
SPEAKER_00: I look after the entire operation.
2:26
SPEAKER_00: So I'm here to ensure that the museum continues to be here, that it's sustainable, that it provides a fantastic visitor experience, and that everything is running as we would hope.
2:35
SPEAKER_00: So I get the very enviable position of looking after having an overview of our collections, our people, our volunteers, um, and our overall visitor experience.
2:45
SPEAKER_00: So um it's it's a lovely position to be in.
2:49
SPEAKER_01: Oh, absolutely.
2:50
SPEAKER_01: And Beamish is all about experience, it really is.
2:52
SPEAKER_01: I'm going to talk a little bit about more of that more when we kind of get into it.
2:56
SPEAKER_01: But talk a little bit about actually what Beamish is and where it is.
3:00
SPEAKER_00: Oh, well, we we describe ourselves as a living museum.
3:03
SPEAKER_00: So we are um in County Durham, we're near the town of Stanley, um, and also near Chesley Street, so we're not too far off the A1 if you're driving up towards us.
3:12
SPEAKER_00: Um we are a massive museum, so we have uh nearly 500 acres, and some of that is woodland, some of that is open green space, and some of that is um a carefully curated sort of areas by era.
3:27
SPEAKER_00: So we've got um a 1800s town, we've got a Georgian landscape, 1820s, we've got a brand new 1950s town, which is only a couple of years old, which is amazing, um, as well as a 1940s farm, and we're sort of a mixture of buildings that were here, buildings that were translocated, so taken down brick by brick and rebuilt here, um, and buildings that have been inspired by other buildings across the Northeast.
3:51
SPEAKER_00: And what we do is we tell the story of the North.
3:54
SPEAKER_00: But I think what makes us unique, and we call ourselves the Living Museum of the North, is um we're not your traditional museum.
4:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, we have uh a fantastic and dedicated workforce of about over 500 people, as well as supported by over 400 volunteers, and that means we're able to interpret through people.
4:14
SPEAKER_00: So when you come to our site, you'll get a walkthrough, you'll be able to experience the site, the smells, the you know, from the touch, the buildings, you'll be able to talk to real people.
4:24
SPEAKER_00: But like myself, I've got my little hat here, um, wearing wearing costumes.
4:28
SPEAKER_00: We've got an in-house costume team that really add to the tableau.
4:33
SPEAKER_00: And I think, you know, what makes us so special, which is kind of what we were chat chatting about about your early experiences of the museum, is that um because of that uh people interaction, it's really accessible.
4:45
SPEAKER_00: Like we can alter the information for our audience, we can respond to your individual interests, and but it's a real opportunity, and I hope in a non-intimidating way, um, for people of all ages and backgrounds to come here and really get introduced into this rich history of the Northeast.
5:01
SPEAKER_01: Oh, absolutely, 100%.
5:03
SPEAKER_01: Um, I visited actually in June with uh my husband and my sister, um, and my sister she was like, We have to go and see the dentist.
5:12
SPEAKER_01: So we we spent about 20 minutes chatting to the dentist about what it was like in kind of the early 1900s and how we wouldn't have had teeth, and then having you wouldn't have been able to afford necessarily got the dentist.
5:23
SPEAKER_01: Honestly, it was so interesting.
5:25
SPEAKER_01: I had to drag my sister away because honestly, she was just completely engrossed in chat and all about the dentistry and what would it have been like and how you know how did people cope when they didn't have the teeth?
5:35
SPEAKER_01: And it was just it was just really good fun.
5:39
SPEAKER_01: And I think that um I think that's uh I really want to get that across actually to to anybody kind of considering got a beamish, is that it really is an immersive experience that you can ask questions of everybody who's who's dressed in the in the in the right costume for that particular era, but you can ask them questions about what their life is like and what it's like working in the shop.
6:01
SPEAKER_01: And it's and that is it really is like going back in the past and having the ability to be to do that, isn't it?
6:06
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I hope so.
6:07
SPEAKER_00: And and you know, I like to think that it's interactive as well.
6:10
SPEAKER_00: Like you can actually come in and go into a drift mine, and I just don't think you can really understand that until you get to see the sort of claustrophobic conditions.
6:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also as you say, there's something about really being in a space surrounded by, you know, we've got nearly 2.5 million objects here at the museum, um, surrounded by those objects, but whilst also hearing real stories that are informed by, you know, uh really robust research um and sort of uh oral histories and social histories.
6:39
SPEAKER_00: And I think what's nice as well is what we find is lots of people can relate, yes, okay, it's a hundred years old, some of the stories we tell, or or longer if we're looking at the 18, 20s, 200 years old.
6:50
SPEAKER_00: Um but actually there's something relevant there, there's something that chimes.
6:53
SPEAKER_00: Like we do go to the dentist, you know, we do need to think about what happens if we buy too many sweets at the sweet shop.
6:59
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also we've got some places where you can actually make a transaction.
7:03
SPEAKER_00: So we do have a sweet shop, it's awesome.
7:05
SPEAKER_00: Um, it's very hard to resist.
7:07
SPEAKER_00: It's one of the uh downsides of working here, I suppose.
7:10
SPEAKER_00: Um, but you know, just as in a sweet shop, you would have made a transaction.
7:14
SPEAKER_00: You can come here, see the sweets being made, and make a transaction in that transactional space.
7:19
SPEAKER_00: We've got a 1950s toy shop, you can do the same, we've got a pharmacy.
7:23
SPEAKER_00: So it's really about sort of tying that together and and and and getting that connection and relevance to today as well.
7:29
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's absolutely fantastic.
7:31
SPEAKER_01: The sweet shop is irresistible, I have to say.
7:33
SPEAKER_01: Um we stood and there's always there's always a cue.
7:36
SPEAKER_01: So we stood in the line, I went in, and then I don't know how I think we we we each of us had two packets each, but trying to decide from the sweets is really hard.
7:45
SPEAKER_01: Because a lot of them have got memories from my grandparents.
7:47
SPEAKER_01: My grandparents were born in the early 1900s, so you know, a lot of the suites I was I knew of because they were what my granddad used to have, so it was just it was fantastic actually being able to look and decide what we're gonna have, and um, so then we continued driving around the UK constantly eating with our car in the car with the sweets that we had from Beamish, which was amazing.
8:07
SPEAKER_00: So you've taken them on a road trip.
8:10
SPEAKER_01: On a road trip.
8:11
SPEAKER_01: I uh I was actually telling my mum as well because you've got a 1940s and 50s area, which made her feel old because she was born in the 1940s, but I actually really want to take her.
8:20
SPEAKER_01: She's like in the mid-80s now, but I'd really like to take her because I think it will take her back to her what it was like growing up in her childhood, because it's you know, as you say, all the objects, everything is set as it was in that time.
8:33
SPEAKER_01: Um, so let's talk a little about the eras.
8:36
SPEAKER_01: Because so you've got 1820s, 1900s, 1940s, and 1950s areas.
8:41
SPEAKER_01: So, what to each one of those areas give a visitor?
8:44
SPEAKER_00: Well, I'll start with the 1820s.
8:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, so we've got an 1820s landscape, so we've got um uh a wagonway, and which actually tells a really important story about early steam travel and rail travel in the northeast, which is really, really um fascinating.
8:59
SPEAKER_00: And you can have a go on that, which is awesome.
9:01
SPEAKER_00: Um, and you get that real sort of smell of um uh of the engines, but we've also got a beautiful umpocaly, um, which is a sort of old farmhouse, so to speak, um, but it's always been there and it sits beautifully in the landscape, and parts of it actually go back to the 1400s.
9:17
SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's it's it's old and it sits there.
9:20
SPEAKER_00: And we've been really, really careful about both the interpretation and presentation of that building, but right down to the heritage breeds we have.
9:27
SPEAKER_00: So we have living collections, if you like, you know, we have uh the right sheep in the landscape, and we've been really, really deliberate.
9:34
SPEAKER_00: Um, but there's also just something so peaceful about Pocaly as well.
9:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, you can really get in there, see what's in the garden.
9:41
SPEAKER_00: We've got a beautiful landscape garden, see the railway at the bottom of the hill, and talk to our engagers, but also see some heritage crafts.
9:48
SPEAKER_00: So it might be that we're candle making or uh you know weaving some wool or what have you, um, which is which is really exciting.
9:54
SPEAKER_00: We've got a new tavern up there as well, which is which is lovely, um, as well as some self-catering accommodation cottages.
10:00
SPEAKER_00: So we've really sort of developed that area of late.
10:03
SPEAKER_00: Um, but that's that's a real beautiful, a beautiful spot, and it tells that sort of really interesting time of sort of that sort of cottage industry, but also that rural heritage of the northeast as well.
10:15
SPEAKER_00: Some really interesting stories along an old Drover's route.
10:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, so we've got some great stories there.
10:20
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then if you sort of work around, we've got a couple of uh areas that are based in the 1900s.
10:25
SPEAKER_00: So we've got a 1900s pit village, um where we tell a story of mining life, and we've got our drift mine, which is the location of an original drift mine, and we've got some cottages there, the schoolhouse that you mentioned yourself, which has been um many memories for school children over the last 60 years, um, and our chapel, um, as well as a little collary narrow gauge.
10:46
SPEAKER_00: So we really tell the story of sort of the wider story of mining, and obviously that played such a big part in our region as well.
10:56
SPEAKER_00: Um, we actually have some some team members and volunteers who were miners themselves, um, so really able to tell that story of mining through an industry, really.
11:07
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then we've got our 1900s town, which is very much I'm representing the pit village by the way.
11:11
SPEAKER_00: I've got my my hat.
11:13
SPEAKER_00: Um we've also got our 1900ths town, and you mentioned the sort of sweet shop and the and the dentist, and that really just shows the sort of difference between those communities to a certain extent, but you get to start to see professions.
11:25
SPEAKER_00: We've got a piano teacher, we've got the dentist, as you mentioned, we've got the bank, we've got the co-op, and we've got a garage.
11:31
SPEAKER_00: Um, so we've really got that sort of it's a sort of based a bit on Bishop Auckland, but it's a sort of typical sort of uh market town, if you like, and it just shows another element to the area.
11:41
SPEAKER_00: Now that is um, I don't want to use the word iconic, but it's it's often the image people have when they see see Beamish.
11:49
SPEAKER_00: Um and we have a fleet of historic transport as well, so you'll see our trams and our buses, which you can ride on if you want to, um, coming through the town as well.
11:58
SPEAKER_00: And again, it's just something that you can do.
12:00
SPEAKER_00: Um, so that that's that's really exciting.
12:03
SPEAKER_00: And the 1900s is is is brilliant, it's a really interesting time in British history um that it warriored period.
12:09
SPEAKER_00: Then we've got our 1940s, and we tell that in our 1940s farm.
12:12
SPEAKER_00: So we've got sort of it's a the home front essentially.
12:16
SPEAKER_00: So we've got some of our land girls, and what that meant, we we do a lot of education work up there as well.
12:21
SPEAKER_00: Um, but again, you get to see that rural change um sort of between the 1820s and the 1940s, right?
12:28
SPEAKER_00: Which brings us up to our newest exhibits, um, which are uh the 1950s.
12:33
SPEAKER_00: So we have a 1950s farm as well, so we really carry that story through from rural Weirdale.
12:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we've also got our 1950s town, and like I suppose one of the key, there's a couple of key features, but we've got our grand cinema from Ryehorpe in Sunderland, and we show films in there.
12:49
SPEAKER_00: Um, and we've got an electrical shop, I mentioned a toy shop, we've got a house Norman Cornish, who's a sort of local artist, we've got a domestic setting from him, um, as well as um allotments, uh Boland Green, and and we've really been able to tell some national stories, you know.
13:05
SPEAKER_00: You've got the foundation of the NHS, you've got uh social security and minors' welfare, um, which we were able to tell a story through that.
13:15
SPEAKER_00: Um, but what's been really exciting is that is also the setting for our health and well-being work.
13:19
SPEAKER_00: So we create non-clinical settings and groups for people who might be living with dementia and really give them a space to have a purpose, to be in a non-clinical setting, um, and a comfortable space where they do crafts.
13:33
SPEAKER_00: We've got a men's group and they make bags and they do some really, really beautiful things.
13:38
SPEAKER_00: And um being dementia-friendly is a really key part of who we are in our accessibility.
13:42
SPEAKER_00: But if you're in our 1950s area, that's also where we base that now.
13:46
SPEAKER_01: Oh, lovely.
13:46
SPEAKER_01: It's it's a lovely area.
13:48
SPEAKER_01: As you say, that's when did that when was that completed, the 1950s area?
13:51
SPEAKER_01: Because uh, the last time I was there, I can't remember it being there.
13:54
SPEAKER_01: So I guess it must be something fairly newish.
13:56
SPEAKER_00: It is, yeah, with help from some partners and the Natural National Heritage Lottery Fund.
14:01
SPEAKER_00: We did a a big capital investment program to build the the 1950s.
14:05
SPEAKER_00: So um our some of our buildings are older than others, so our welfare hall was one of our earlier um introductions.
14:11
SPEAKER_00: Um and we did our last one um not last year but the year before.
14:15
SPEAKER_00: Um what we're really proud of is how we've really tied that together, been telling wider stories, but also we were recognized as um Museum of the Year, uh, Art Fund Museum of the Year in 2025, which was a huge achievement and accolade for us.
14:30
SPEAKER_00: We were really, really proud of that and what the team had managed to achieve.
14:33
SPEAKER_01: Oh, very well deserved, honestly.
14:35
SPEAKER_01: I I loved the 1950s because I was born in the 1960s, so I kind of there was part of going through the houses that were set up in the 1940s and 50s that were again reminded me of my grandparents' house and some of the things you see that are just you're like they just you you they were the things that would have been in in our grandparents' house if you're kind of my generation.
14:53
SPEAKER_01: So you recognize them.
14:55
SPEAKER_01: I also like the hairdressers.
14:58
SPEAKER_00: The hairdressers are brilliant, you know.
15:00
SPEAKER_00: We've got trained um our our team in there can do updos, so actually, that's another way you can get involved and like get your hair done in a 1950s style um and go and enjoy the museum with your hair done.
15:11
SPEAKER_00: It's brilliant.
15:12
SPEAKER_00: It's again just that another chance to get really, really involved and immersed in what we've got.
15:16
SPEAKER_01: Oh, I'll have to do that next time.
15:18
SPEAKER_01: I I have to say, I was kind of I was too I was busy shopping in the sweet shop and and shopping in the toy shop because again, looking at the toys or even just looking at some because in there as well there are examples of kind of you know tumble dryers or not micro early microwaves, I can't remember now, tumble dryers, washing machines, or we spin things.
15:35
SPEAKER_01: I don't know, just very early kind of uh and I just remember oh fridges, I think it was a fridge.
15:39
SPEAKER_01: Again, I was like, oh my goodness, it was like the early start of that kind of stuff, like where we are now.
15:45
SPEAKER_01: We just think, you know, we're we're 70 years on, but it it's like a cut, it's like it's more than a lifetime ago, the difference of of where we are now to how it was for like a housewife in the 40s and 50s for sure.
15:57
SPEAKER_01: Um that was really interesting as well.
15:59
SPEAKER_01: I kind of I was fascinated by that.
16:01
SPEAKER_01: Now we've talked a little bit about the sort of things that people can do.
16:05
SPEAKER_01: Um so so talk about a little bit more about the things that they can take part in.
16:10
SPEAKER_01: Because it really is, I say, like you get interactive and immersive and and and accessible.
16:14
SPEAKER_01: There's lots of different things you can do.
16:16
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
16:18
SPEAKER_00: So um, when you come to see us, you'll be able to partake in any of the activities that our team are doing.
16:23
SPEAKER_00: So I think, you know, first of all, I've mentioned the transport, which is really, really key, it's a real highlight for people.
16:29
SPEAKER_00: Um, but you'll be able to see some of the heritage crafts that our team are doing.
16:32
SPEAKER_00: So you might see them doing something like knitting or sewing, um, which would be very much in line.
16:38
SPEAKER_00: We tend to do children's activities, um, especially during the holidays, but we've always got something to partake in, whether it's feeling the money in the bank and seeing the weight and seeing what that looks like.
16:48
SPEAKER_00: Um we've got we've got all of that going on.
16:51
SPEAKER_00: We also have a really active events program.
16:55
SPEAKER_00: Um, so we've just done a horticultural show, for example, uh, where lots of our team got involved as well, but people could come in and really take part in that sort of rural tradition if you like, um, which is really nice.
17:07
SPEAKER_00: We're working with a community um this weekend come in.
17:10
SPEAKER_00: So that that's gonna be really exciting.
17:11
SPEAKER_00: We're doing an action town event.
17:13
SPEAKER_00: Um but actually there's also bits where we'll do a 1950s quiz, for example, shove it up your jumbo, it's called.
17:20
SPEAKER_00: Um, and people can see that.
17:22
SPEAKER_00: But we also do um community groups, so we have um play spaces, we've got um uh a 1950s play area to modern safety standards, obviously.
17:32
SPEAKER_00: Um, and uh, you know, we do we do groups as well, so we have a baby clinic so the children could bring their baby to the NHS baby clinic and uh get get them checked and what have you.
17:43
SPEAKER_00: And we have um we're really trying to open up that space for for play.
17:48
SPEAKER_00: But even things like, you know, we've got a bowling green, uh when the weather's good, we like to get the balls out and let people have a go with that again.
17:55
SPEAKER_00: Feel the weight, touch it, feel the texture, have a go on the grass.
17:59
SPEAKER_00: See the kind of things that we're we're really working with there.
18:02
SPEAKER_00: And another thing I think really just brings the atmosphere alive is um is music.
18:07
SPEAKER_00: So we have a volunteer choir, which is incredible.
18:09
SPEAKER_00: We also work with local brass bands, you know, the sounds of the region.
18:13
SPEAKER_00: Um on a weekend, you'll be able to see bands in the bandstand and and listen to that and and and really get involved in that way as well, which is which is lovely.
18:22
SPEAKER_00: Um the way our our ticket works is we're pay for the day, visit for the year model.
18:27
SPEAKER_00: Um so it's sort of unlimited.
18:28
SPEAKER_00: So even if you wanted to come to us every weekend just to see a different band, you could.
18:33
SPEAKER_00: Um, and it really builds that sort of yeah, I hope sort of visitors feel that they're really part of what's going on because they can come back, get involved, take on the different activities that we might do.
18:44
SPEAKER_00: We might be doing a trail.
18:46
SPEAKER_00: Um the other bit that's so emotive for people is taste.
18:50
SPEAKER_00: We've mentioned the sweet shop, but we've got uh um a bakery as well, and actually we've got fish and chip shops.
18:56
SPEAKER_00: We we do in every area we do different food that really sort of fits in, inspired by the time as well.
19:02
SPEAKER_00: And I think that's just another way that people can really get that nostalgia, but yeah, be part of that that region, you know.
19:09
SPEAKER_00: Well, when I said when you said dentist, I was thinking, I bet you remember the smell.
19:13
SPEAKER_00: Yep, absolutely.
19:17
SPEAKER_01: Well, I don't like the dentists at all.
19:19
SPEAKER_01: So when I started driving in, I was like, I and the thing is, you know, you think I I think it's bad enough now, but I'd hate to have lived in the 19th, or even earlier thinking first of all, um the teeth situation, and then also I wear glasses, so you kind of think, you know, it would have been disastrous.
19:33
SPEAKER_01: I wouldn't have been able to see and I would have had no teeth.
19:35
SPEAKER_01: What what sort of sight that would have been?
19:43
SPEAKER_01: Oh dear.
19:44
SPEAKER_01: Well, if I didn't have another guy, I was like, if you didn't have a teeth out you were gonna get married, it was like, oh dear, well, I wouldn't have been able to see anyway, so I would have had it.
19:51
SPEAKER_01: You just kind of think like the time we're at now, how much easier it is and how like compared to what it was then in terms of like I can as well.
20:00
SPEAKER_01: My grandfather, so I'm a I'm a coal miner's granddaughter, so that's what my grandfather was in in the coal mines.
20:06
SPEAKER_01: Um, so I grew up with that whole culture with my grandmother, you know, she she was doing all the cooking, my granddad would come in, and and and so it it was a different completely different way of life to something that my daughter would experience now or having any having any contact with really.
20:21
SPEAKER_01: Um so I think it's it's that that's the ability to do all that at Beamish, which brings that back to life.
20:27
SPEAKER_01: So what you experience, you can you can you know that passes down the generations, makes it real.
20:33
SPEAKER_00: I like to hope so.
20:34
SPEAKER_00: And you know, one of our favorite activities, one of our most popular activities is we um we tell the story of suffragettes and suffragists, and uh our visitors can get involved and join air march with the suffragettes and suffragists, and they can shout and bawl and really make their voice heard.
20:50
SPEAKER_00: Um and it it it it's it's brilliant actually.
20:53
SPEAKER_00: Um again, just sort of galvanizing that feeling and telling that really important story of where we are and where we've come from.
21:00
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
21:00
SPEAKER_01: This and I want to talk a little bit about the people and a little bit about the collection.
21:04
SPEAKER_01: So we'll start a little bit with the live and history side of it, which I say uh honestly, I think I must have been about eight or nine when I first went to Beamish, and it had it had an impact on me in terms of you know, um, uh we've all been in a history classroom with a teacher who you know opens a textbook that gives you a um, you know, a piece of paper to fill in and a and it's boring.
21:27
SPEAKER_01: And so I never ever wanted to do that.
21:29
SPEAKER_01: And I I swear part of that came from that experience of something where you're immersed in it and just how much that leaves an impact on you.
21:38
SPEAKER_01: So that's how I used to teach.
21:39
SPEAKER_01: And we're talking about this that before we actually went into the podcast.
21:42
SPEAKER_01: Like I taught very much with art and drama and wanted to make it real, whether we're talking we're doing the Romans or whether whatever we're doing, I wanted to make it kind of real and and and not feel like it was something that that was you know just out of a textbook and had no relevance to to the kids I was teaching.
21:59
SPEAKER_01: Um and I That that's what's amazing about Boomish when you go in, because you've got you've got the people in costume.
22:05
SPEAKER_01: So tell us who the people are, tell us a little bit about the costumes as well before we sort of talk about the objects, but it's the actual people that I find fascinating.
22:14
SPEAKER_01: It's brilliant.
22:15
SPEAKER_00: We've got such a diverse workforce.
22:17
SPEAKER_00: So I sort of mentioned earlier we've got um over 500 um dedicated staff, which is amazing, and again, 400 volunteers.
22:24
SPEAKER_00: And you you'll never be able to tell the difference.
22:26
SPEAKER_00: They're all our people, and that's that's what it's all about at the end of the day.
22:30
SPEAKER_00: Um, we have a very skilled um costume team on site, and they put a lot of research into really making sure that the the costumes add to the experience.
22:40
SPEAKER_00: So um I I wear costume every day.
22:42
SPEAKER_00: Um, I always think that I might walk across the street, and if I've really added to that tableau and helped people understand what it could have looked like and felt like, I think that's uh that's really, really key.
22:51
SPEAKER_00: But it also, even things like the practicalities of it, it it I think it really hits home for people.
22:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also it it facilitates a two-way conversation, which I think is really, really interesting.
23:02
SPEAKER_00: So obviously our team are very trained, um, they they know the history of these objects inside out, and but they're also constantly learning because they're having conversations every day with people who have lived in the Northeast, and actually, you know, uh that's always constantly sort of uh building the stories that we are able to tell.
23:20
SPEAKER_00: And you know, we're really committed to expanding those stories as well.
23:23
SPEAKER_00: The communities of the Northeast aren't necessarily the same communities that were here in 1900, so their stories are relevant too.
23:29
SPEAKER_00: So, how do we include that?
23:30
SPEAKER_00: How do we layer our stories and make sure that we are telling a representative story?
23:36
SPEAKER_00: I mean, uh the I I think this is lovely.
23:38
SPEAKER_00: We've got one of our um 1950s uh semis, it's a domestic setting.
23:42
SPEAKER_00: Um we did a a vote and it was a house from from Heworth that was chosen.
23:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, and two of the the women who grew up in that house now volunteer with us.
23:51
SPEAKER_00: So there's a chance that you could be here at Beamish in a house from the 1950s with the women who grew up in it.
23:58
SPEAKER_00: And I just think there's something so real and validating about the everyday experience, and that's what we try to to to give really.
24:06
SPEAKER_00: We're we're sort of celebrating the everyday stories, the social stories of of how we uh how we do this.
24:12
SPEAKER_00: And you know, you mentioned about um you know, remembering your grandparents' house, people didn't change their kitchens very often, for example.
24:20
SPEAKER_00: So if you you were born in the 60s, it's very possible you would have had 10 years of your grandparents' 50s kitchen.
24:26
SPEAKER_00: And and actually how that that ties together is is really, really lovely.
24:31
SPEAKER_00: But um this this museum only works because of the dedication of those really skilled and personable individuals.
24:39
SPEAKER_00: Um and that that's not lost on us.
24:41
SPEAKER_00: And I think it's really what makes us unique.
24:44
SPEAKER_00: Oh, absolutely.
24:45
SPEAKER_01: I I just love the fact that you can walk into a house.
24:49
SPEAKER_01: Um we walked into a house and there was a the lady was was I think she was needing bread, which again is something my grandmother used to do all the time, and then she'd prove it in front of the coal fire, and and the the the husband was you know rocking on his rocking chair and he was going, ee hinee, you know, and talking to us like proper accent, and and it's it's so it feels very real.
25:09
SPEAKER_01: So you get that it it literally is like walking into your grandparents' house.
25:13
SPEAKER_01: Or and if you're you know, if you're coming to visit the UK from Australia or from America, you may have relatives, and quite often we'll talk to people who say, you know, my relatives, but my my great-grandfather was a coal miner from Durham or from the Northeast, or my great-grandma moved over.
25:28
SPEAKER_01: And this is a perfect way for you to go and experience what it was like.
25:32
SPEAKER_01: Um people trace, you know, do the ancestry and and trace it, which is great, and it's fantastic to be able to do that.
25:39
SPEAKER_01: But I think as well, being able to, if you do that, being able to go somewhere where you can kind of experience what it was like for those members of your family, whether that was in the early 1800s or the early 1900s, you actually can get that experience.
25:52
SPEAKER_01: Then again, I think it's about putting us in touch um with the past, giving us that link with the past, which I think is so important.
25:59
SPEAKER_01: I think we should always be kind of looking at where we are now, but putting that in in relative to how it was for our relatives in the past, whether that was 50 years ago or 100 years ago, 150 years ago.
26:11
SPEAKER_01: Um because that that's all made us who we are now, and I think um and that's the uniqueness and the brilliance of Beamish that that enables that to happen.
26:19
SPEAKER_01: Um now, as well as your amazing stuff, you also have some amazing buildings and objects.
26:25
SPEAKER_01: So where do they come from?
26:26
SPEAKER_01: Because I know quite often they're moved brick by brick, some of them, aren't they?
26:29
SPEAKER_00: Some of them are, yeah.
26:30
SPEAKER_00: So our collections are really wide-ranging, whether it's a building, um, a tram, or you know, a sewing machine, or or you know, a clock.
26:39
SPEAKER_00: Um, we have such a diverse range of collections or or a photo archive I was mentioning um there.
26:44
SPEAKER_00: So we really do have this.
26:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, what's really interesting?
26:47
SPEAKER_00: So we were set up by a gentleman called Frank Atkinson, he'd worked at the Bose Museum in County Durham.
26:52
SPEAKER_00: He was a collector, is how I described it.
26:54
SPEAKER_00: So if he always had something in his pocket, an object to tell you about, he'd bring out a coit and be like, what's that?
26:59
SPEAKER_00: Um which was brilliant.
27:00
SPEAKER_00: And he was able to inspire people.
27:02
SPEAKER_00: Um but what we said is actually it's not what's important randomly to that curator, it was what's important to the people of the Northeast.
27:10
SPEAKER_00: So he did um open collecting at the time.
27:13
SPEAKER_00: Now we we're not in a position to do open collecting now, but what he did is he said, if it's important to you, bring it in.
27:20
SPEAKER_00: So he was really building our collections from again everyday items.
27:24
SPEAKER_00: So yes, you might have an item, you might have, I don't know, say say it is a clock, it might be a clock that uh it's not particularly rare, but it is very um representative of the time.
27:35
SPEAKER_00: Lots of people recognize it.
27:36
SPEAKER_00: It was important to people, it was on the mantelpiece, it was a key part of the home.
27:41
SPEAKER_00: So that's really, really interesting in terms of how our quite eclectic collections have come together.
27:47
SPEAKER_00: It was what was important to people.
27:48
SPEAKER_00: Um, where possible, we want them to uh be ticking.
27:52
SPEAKER_00: We, you know, we have um one of the most important, you know, working transport collections in the country, and uh they work, which actually preserves them in a way, so they're getting attention constantly.
28:02
SPEAKER_00: Um, but our buildings are a mix, so uh we have some where we've uh taken them down brick by brick, um whether that's to to save them or to tell the story and rebuilt it.
28:12
SPEAKER_00: Um so I mentioned our cinema, which is from Ryup in Sunderland, and we work with communities around that, um, or things like our 1950s house I was explaining, and that is a uh a copy of a building.
28:24
SPEAKER_00: Um, with that, with some of our 1950s buildings, we've been able to make them more accessible, for example, than they might have been in the 1950s for our visitors, you know, you know, widen doors and what have you.
28:35
SPEAKER_00: Um, and then we've got our buildings that were here already.
28:37
SPEAKER_00: So home farm, which is our 1940s era, and Pocley, um and of course the location of the drift.
28:44
SPEAKER_00: Those buildings were here already, they were on this beautiful site.
28:48
SPEAKER_00: So we've got such a mix, and all of that combines together to give that social history and story.
28:53
SPEAKER_00: I mean, you said um it's very much about connections to the past, and you're absolutely right.
28:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, people feel a real connection to objects.
28:59
SPEAKER_00: Um, one of the things um that we really strive for is to create connection and conversation between people as well.
29:04
SPEAKER_00: So quite often I'll be out and about talking to people, and there's four generations of that family on the visit.
29:11
SPEAKER_00: So great grandpair is all the way down, and that's really, really lovely.
29:15
SPEAKER_00: It starts a conversation between the generations, I think.
29:18
SPEAKER_00: Um, and again, it just it builds that connection.
29:22
SPEAKER_00: It's it's it's really lovely.
29:23
SPEAKER_01: No, yeah, absolutely it does.
29:25
SPEAKER_01: I mean, my sister's um 26 years younger than me, so um it it's she has a completely different kind of experience for me, but it was just brilliant when we were walking around and again having those conversations about things that we could remember and things that were relevant, and as you say, it does that conversation.
29:42
SPEAKER_01: My husband's not unfortunately for him, he's not from the northeast.
29:46
SPEAKER_01: Um bless him.
29:47
SPEAKER_01: So I know, I know, he's not a northerner, so but he got to experience that, and I say, look, this is like it it is um, I feel like also a way of getting to know me better because I'm from that part of the world, and that gives you it's that your identity is there as well, which I'm kind of gonna swing around a little bit back to the schoolhouse because that to me is kind of when I think of Beamish, I think of the schoolhouse.
30:07
SPEAKER_01: So, where did was that their school?
30:09
SPEAKER_01: Did that come in as a school or was it built as to look like a school because it's just so much like the school I went to?
30:16
SPEAKER_00: The school's a really, really interesting one.
30:18
SPEAKER_00: It's something that people do remember, like you say, from their school visits.
30:22
SPEAKER_00: And uh what we try to do there is um really set up exactly a school that people would like.
30:27
SPEAKER_00: So, one of the things that surprises me, uh surprises lots of people, is you know, different entrances for boys and girls um and and how that story comes to life.
30:35
SPEAKER_00: And and our engagers in there are great.
30:38
SPEAKER_00: They're able to very much read the room and present a um school experience for children um to understand how that could be.
30:45
SPEAKER_00: They get to sit in the desks, for example, um, and then go out and play with a buoler on the yard, yeah.
30:51
SPEAKER_00: Which is which is which is really, really interesting.
30:54
SPEAKER_00: I'll have to double check for you about the exact uh location where that one came from, I'm afraid, but I could double check and send that across.
31:00
SPEAKER_01: Oh yeah, yeah, because it's it's what it's I went to unfortunately the school that I went to, um, which was a station school in between New Hotley and St.
31:08
SPEAKER_01: Delva has been knocked very sadly been knocked down and replaced by um new homes now.
31:13
SPEAKER_01: Um and I used to drive past it, and it's one of those, you know, again, that's gone, but when you go to the the the Beamish school, it's it's it's like that building was.
31:20
SPEAKER_01: It was very, very old, very old little school.
31:24
SPEAKER_01: Um but yeah, but uh yes, cold, cold and um and wood stone, stone floors and um yeah, dark corridors.
31:33
SPEAKER_01: I remember that.
31:34
SPEAKER_01: And then also not having enough room for all the kids.
31:36
SPEAKER_01: So we're all outside in the in the um or mobile classrooms, they were a big thing in the 70s because of there wasn't room for all the kids at that point.
31:44
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, um, let's swing back round to what you would do.
31:48
SPEAKER_01: So, how would you recommend um somebody spend a full day?
31:51
SPEAKER_01: Because obviously you can spend a full day there without any problem.
31:56
SPEAKER_01: Is there a way that you would say is the best way to work round, like or it would you do it more randomly?
32:02
SPEAKER_01: How would you recommend to do it?
32:03
SPEAKER_00: I I think it depends what you're interested in.
32:05
SPEAKER_00: I know that seems a bit interesting, but um what I'd say is you know, if if if you're able to walk, we've got about 1.3 miles of of loops.
32:13
SPEAKER_00: So the site is, if you're able, very, very walkable.
32:16
SPEAKER_00: Um and actually you can either turn right and head to Pocaly and start with the 1820s, so start with our oldest era first, or you can turn left and head to our our pit village, and which is quite often a firm favourite.
32:29
SPEAKER_00: People remember it, and it's a really great start, I think, to what Beamish is, and that sort of immersive element.
32:35
SPEAKER_00: That being said, if you're really interested in our sweets, jump on the tram or the bus first, head round, get your sweets, you're sorted, you know, you're covered.
32:44
SPEAKER_00: Um, and there's something really special, I think, about being here early in the morning and seeing those spaces both when they're quiet and then when they're bustling later in the day, you get two different experiences, but both very much, you know, um reminiscent of those eras.
33:00
SPEAKER_00: So I would definitely say uh don't miss, don't miss Pockley.
33:04
SPEAKER_00: Um it's a little bit further from the tram stop, but it is worth it um to get up the hill there, see the views from there.
33:10
SPEAKER_00: You get a great view of the museum as a whole as well, um, and you get to try some of our Georgian-inspired recipes up in the tavern, which is um a newer experience for our visitors.
33:19
SPEAKER_00: So that that's that's really, really lovely as well.
33:21
SPEAKER_00: And a little bit of a pro tip.
33:23
SPEAKER_00: I was chatting to um some of my visitor experience colleagues, and they were saying, actually, pro tip, if you walk around to Pockley, do it first.
33:29
SPEAKER_00: There's a quiet tram stop and bus stop there.
33:31
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, it's a real opportunity.
33:33
SPEAKER_00: But I think there's something about enjoying our rural location as well.
33:37
SPEAKER_00: Um, but definitely build in some time for the transport to experience it, but you don't have to rely on it to get around.
33:43
SPEAKER_00: You can you can walk and enjoy that as well.
33:45
SPEAKER_01: Oh yeah, the transport's amazing.
33:47
SPEAKER_01: I'm gonna talk about that in a little while.
33:50
SPEAKER_01: Um but we're gonna talk before we talk about getting around Beamish, we're gonna talk about how to get to Beamish because that's I know that's question's gonna come up.
33:57
SPEAKER_01: So if people are coming from London, Newcastle or Durham, or if they're coming by train or by bus or car, how's the how can they get to Beamish?
34:05
SPEAKER_00: Um, well, first of all, um we're not too far from Chesley Street, we're not too far from City Centre Durham.
34:11
SPEAKER_00: So if you're coming up on the on the northern main lines, you can get to those locations by train.
34:16
SPEAKER_00: Um, we do have a number of buses, and I would always encourage people to get the bus if they're able to.
34:21
SPEAKER_00: We give you 25% off your ticket if you take the bus.
34:25
SPEAKER_00: Um, and obviously it's a greener alternative that we're always going to be um keen to promote.
34:30
SPEAKER_00: Um, there are some um in the summer, it's just ended, I'm afraid, but in the summer we do a uh a sort of Durham Explorer bus.
34:38
SPEAKER_00: So you can get on the bus and go to a number of different attractions.
34:41
SPEAKER_00: So if you're looking to start with Beamish and then go further afield, that's a great option in the summer.
34:46
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we do have some service buses um from Newcastle City Centre, from Gates Ed, um, from Chesley Street um heading up towards Stanley.
34:56
SPEAKER_00: So that's that's the route that you would want to get.
34:58
SPEAKER_00: Um if you're coming via car, um, we have a large car park, you can get here via car when where we've got brown signs off the A1.
35:06
SPEAKER_00: Um so you know, if you're heading up north, you can look out for us off the A1 and come and join our car park.
35:12
SPEAKER_00: I'd always recommend the bus, but there is car options as well.
35:15
SPEAKER_00: Our car park's free as well.
35:16
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
35:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and so once I've got there by bus or by train or a taxi or however I've got there, um bicycle.
35:25
SPEAKER_01: I'm sure my sister would probably she would she would cycle, honestly.
35:28
SPEAKER_01: She she loves cycling.
35:29
SPEAKER_01: So, what about once I get there, talk about because this is a real I mean Beamish is amazing, but I know of a real highlight for a lot of people is actually how you get around the site.
35:40
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
35:41
SPEAKER_01: Uh so talk about, you know, how does that transport work and what sort of transport options do you have?
35:46
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
35:47
SPEAKER_00: So I mentioned you can walk the site, which is lovely.
35:49
SPEAKER_00: Uh everybody's welcome to do that.
35:51
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we also have our fleet of historic trams and historic buses, and they work on a circular route, so they're constantly going around the site.
36:00
SPEAKER_00: So you can either get on and do a full route if you'd like to, or use it to get from era to era if you'd prefer.
36:06
SPEAKER_00: Um, but it means that there's a bus coming sort of every 15 to 20 minutes, it works out by the time they're running round.
36:12
SPEAKER_00: Um the historic transport, it wasn't necessarily built with accessibility in mind.
36:16
SPEAKER_00: So we also run um an accessible, an easy access bus with a tail lift um for wheelchair users.
36:23
SPEAKER_00: Um, and that is great.
36:25
SPEAKER_00: We've been able to make that out of a historic vehicle, so it's an adapted historic vehicle, but it means that actually you'll still have an opportunity to experience our historic transport.
36:34
SPEAKER_00: So that's by call.
36:35
SPEAKER_00: So, you know, you would call up and and and do that.
36:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, but yeah, it's great because you get to sit on the seat, you get to sit on the top.
36:42
SPEAKER_00: We've got some open top trams and buses, we've got some closed top as well, um, and there's a real variety, and that is a huge draw, especially for some of our younger children, but also our enthusiasts.
36:52
SPEAKER_00: Um now, speaking of transport, that gets you around the site and goes around the site, but we also have opportunities with our steam, so our rail.
37:00
SPEAKER_00: So um we recently reopened uh Rowley Station where you can have a train ride down the track and back up.
37:07
SPEAKER_00: Um, and we have our 1820s wagonway, you can have a ride on that train as well.
37:12
SPEAKER_00: And then on selected weekends, you'll see our Collier Railway in operation as well.
37:16
SPEAKER_00: So there's so many different options to do that.
37:19
SPEAKER_00: Um we we we we also have a horse operations team, so that's not something that our visitors can get on, but you might see our horses in the field, you might see them working, um, you might be able to join one of our horse weekends and see actually carriages going around the site.
37:36
SPEAKER_00: Um, so that's really exciting for people.
37:38
SPEAKER_00: And again, you then get that sort of progression up the transport eras as well.
37:42
SPEAKER_00: But I mean, gosh, they're they're stunning.
37:44
SPEAKER_00: The trams are buses are absolutely, absolutely stunning, and I think they're really they're a really interesting experience for people.
37:50
SPEAKER_01: Oh, they're amazing.
37:51
SPEAKER_01: It's just amazing to see them in in the all the glory that they're they're so well looked after, and they they're still going, and you know that you know, the be I mean, the maintenance I hate to think, um, but it's yeah, just absolutely fantastic to be able to do that.
38:04
SPEAKER_01: And it's like everybody waits at the stop to see what's gonna come.
38:07
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, you know, right?
38:07
SPEAKER_01: What is it the bus that's gonna come, which that was uh you know, or you're gonna hop on the tram?
38:11
SPEAKER_01: Yes.
38:12
SPEAKER_01: Um, and we tried a few different things because it's like you want to do you're like, oh, I'm gonna try this, I'm gonna sit on the top, or and then you realise how how hard the seats were.
38:20
SPEAKER_01: Yes, yes, you think, oh gosh, I'm gonna want to go on a long trip.
38:25
SPEAKER_01: Exactly, exactly, exactly.
38:27
SPEAKER_01: Now, um, if if somebody's planning to visit Beamish, how long would you kind of recommend?
38:32
SPEAKER_01: I know you probably I would say a day, and I'm sure you're probably gonna say it's really at least a day, and if they go back numerous times um as well.
38:40
SPEAKER_01: Um, so obviously, if somebody's just in the UK for a few weeks and they're they're passing through, I would still say if you can give it a day, go and have that day.
38:48
SPEAKER_01: Um, but obviously you've got stuff that goes on across the year.
38:52
SPEAKER_01: Like I said, you buy the ticket and it you can go for for 365 days, then I guess.
38:57
SPEAKER_01: Which I guess maybe you're not open on Christmas Day boxing a day, but whenever you're open.
39:04
SPEAKER_00: But yeah, the days that you're open.
39:06
SPEAKER_01: The days that we're open.
39:08
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, I mean, we that's what I'd recommend.
39:10
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I'd say at least a day.
39:12
SPEAKER_00: Since we built the 1950s town, I'd argue that there's there's time to do more, especially if you want to really get immersed in everything that we have to offer.
39:19
SPEAKER_00: But also, you know, depending on when you're visiting, we do have some additional ticket events.
39:23
SPEAKER_00: We have Halloween and we have Christmas.
39:26
SPEAKER_00: So if you're up for October half term, for example, you might wish to join us for a Halloween evening.
39:31
SPEAKER_00: Um, or if you're up for the festive season, we have um Christmas evenings as well, which are really, really lovely.
39:37
SPEAKER_00: They really just uh, you know, evoke everything that you think about for a historic Christmas um with all of the lights.
39:43
SPEAKER_00: It's a beautiful, beautiful time of year to visit.
39:46
SPEAKER_00: But I would say, you know, uh to make the most of your visit, uh book online.
39:50
SPEAKER_00: It's always easier.
39:51
SPEAKER_00: Book in advance if you can.
39:52
SPEAKER_00: Turn up, you know, just before we open to really make the most of your trip.
39:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, it's you know, it's there is a lot to see.
40:00
SPEAKER_00: Please plan for the fact that there's a lot to see.
40:02
SPEAKER_00: If you need to do it in a shorter time, you can.
40:05
SPEAKER_00: That's absolutely fine.
40:06
SPEAKER_00: Everybody, everybody uses their past differently.
40:08
SPEAKER_00: Um, but I would recommend trying to at least carve out a full day for it.
40:12
SPEAKER_00: And then actually, you know, if you're in the region, you know, take advantage and go and see some of our sort of lovely friends and colleagues at uh museums around around the northeast.
40:20
SPEAKER_00: I'd really recommend that.
40:21
SPEAKER_01: I was actually gonna ask you if um somebody's planning to do because we often have a lot of people who are planning like road trips around the UK.
40:27
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
40:27
SPEAKER_01: Um is there anywhere in particular you would say to base yourselves, like near you, Durham, Newcastle, or maybe somewhere closer to Beamish?
40:34
SPEAKER_01: And other uh and I'm sure there's plenty of other places that you'd recommend that would kind of uh marry up with with visiting Beamish in the area?
40:42
SPEAKER_00: Absolutely.
40:43
SPEAKER_00: I mean, we're we are in County Durham, and there's some fantastic attractions um sort of on the doorstop, uh doorstep.
40:49
SPEAKER_00: If you're coming up from the south, I would recommend heading to Bishop Auckland and seeing some of our friends at at the Auckland project and Rabie Castle there as well.
40:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we've also got some some newer bits in Durham as well, some newer cultural bits.
41:02
SPEAKER_00: So you've got Red Hills, you've got the Story Museum, um, and then there's a little bit of a further head up.
41:07
SPEAKER_00: You've got the sort of cultural delights of Newcastle City Centre, but then we're not much further up into Castle Territory up in Northumberland Centre.
41:14
SPEAKER_00: Exactly.
41:15
SPEAKER_00: You know, and and you know, coastal Northumberland and and um North and South Shields.
41:19
SPEAKER_00: Like I really, I really recommend the Northeast has so much diverse attractions to offer.
41:24
SPEAKER_00: Um, you know, we're one of the most visited attractions in the region, um, and we do offer that.
41:29
SPEAKER_00: And I think we're a great starting point to really get that flavour of the Northeast.
41:34
SPEAKER_00: But uh please, you know, use us as a stepping off point because you can then start to see how that's influenced, either go further back in time and see and see a different aspect to our northeastern history or see how it's influenced the culture today.
41:46
SPEAKER_00: We've got such a strong and and and welcome in, and uh it's it's such a great place to visit.
41:50
SPEAKER_00: Um County Durham's brilliant actually because you can get you know down into Bishop Auckland with County Durham itself, you've got that rural, you've got access to the sea, you've got access to the cities.
42:00
SPEAKER_00: Um it's a really nice hub.
42:02
SPEAKER_00: I mean, I mentioned we've got self-catering accommodation cottages, they're they're they're they're Georgian inspired.
42:07
SPEAKER_00: It's a real opportunity to sort of sleep in this beautiful, it's it's in the in the um bounds of the museum as well.
42:14
SPEAKER_00: So you actually get to to sleep here in our Georgian landscape.
42:17
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we've also got you know great partners, you know, we Beamish Hall hotels across the road, um, Lumley Castle hotels, but we've got great city centre options as well.
42:25
SPEAKER_00: So yeah, don't underestimate what the North East has to offer, is what I'd say.
42:29
SPEAKER_01: Oh no, I'm well I'm always saying that as a you know Northumberland girl, northern girl as well.
42:34
SPEAKER_01: And I what I quite often I hear people go, oh, we're going to York, and then where are you going after that?
42:39
SPEAKER_01: Oh, we're going to we're going to Edinburgh.
42:40
SPEAKER_01: Hang on, there's a huge bit you're missing out in between both of those.
42:44
SPEAKER_01: York's fantastic, Edinburgh's fantastic, but do not miss the bit in between because um often that's what people do, and I'm like, terrible, are you kidding?
42:53
SPEAKER_01: It's I think then I then I have people saying, Shh, don't don't spoil it, don't tell too many people.
43:00
SPEAKER_01: Those in the no, those of us in the no go, it is the beautiful part of beautiful part of England and an interesting part, and we're friendly, as you can tell.
43:10
SPEAKER_01: I'm also from Love You, you know, we're just a very friendly, outgoing, joyful people, say.
43:16
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
43:17
SPEAKER_01: I think joyful's really there.
43:19
SPEAKER_00: We've had tough issues, but we can really deliver on English.
43:23
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, I think I think we can, and you're absolutely right, because we have had uh again, I don't want to go too much of the law, but you know, a tough background.
43:30
SPEAKER_01: Like my like when I look back at my grandparents, both sets of grandparents and the lives that they had were were were really tough compared to to where I am now.
43:37
SPEAKER_01: So and and you know, I I never take that for granted.
43:40
SPEAKER_01: Um and as I say, that's the important thing about taking the generations and and going around Beamish and and and experiencing that.
43:48
SPEAKER_01: I think that you it's just an unmissable thing to do.
43:51
SPEAKER_01: Now we've talked a little bit about the fact that it is a big site and a little bit about kind of um accessibility.
43:57
SPEAKER_01: So obviously if people are planning that With a limited mobility or the bringing small children with them.
44:03
SPEAKER_01: So I'm thinking kind of, you know, wheelchairs or push chairs getting around.
44:07
SPEAKER_01: Um, what sort of things should they do to prepare, or you know, what sort of things can you do, or can you do you have at Beamish to kind of um facilitate more access?
44:16
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, well, I would I would recommend checking out our website.
44:18
SPEAKER_00: We've got a list of our accessibility there, and I think that's always a great first step if you've got specific needs just to make sure that we can meet them for you.
44:26
SPEAKER_00: Um, I wouldn't underestimate how large the site is.
44:29
SPEAKER_00: Um, as I mentioned, we've got um an easy access bus that is able to take manual wheelchairs.
44:35
SPEAKER_00: We can't take um motorised scooters, unfortunately, on that vehicle.
44:38
SPEAKER_00: Um, so it's worth checking that out depending on which is the best option for you.
44:43
SPEAKER_00: Um, we have scooters to hire as well.
44:45
SPEAKER_00: So actually, if you're you're coming and you think a mobility scooter would be helpful because of the breadth of the site, we do have those for hire.
44:51
SPEAKER_00: So have a little look in advance, book that in advance to guarantee that you've got it, and we'd provide that for you.
44:57
SPEAKER_00: Um, but we've also been very much uh working on different levels of accessibility.
45:01
SPEAKER_00: So we've got a changes change in places unit in the 1950s, and we've got some quiet spaces as well, we've got sensory bags for those who need it.
45:11
SPEAKER_00: So it's definitely worth looking at that.
45:12
SPEAKER_00: We've got an accessible page on our website, um, which just gives a little bit of information about the surfaces we have, um, how carers can access different bits, and we've got an accessibility toolbar as well, just so that you can see actually what's going to be helpful for you individually.
45:30
SPEAKER_00: Um we've got accessible parking as well, if you need that, we do have that, as well as accessible toilets in all of our areas.
45:39
SPEAKER_00: So please do.
45:40
SPEAKER_00: We've got an at-a-glance section on our accessibility.
45:43
SPEAKER_00: Have a check in advance.
45:44
SPEAKER_00: And if you've got any questions, our team would be more than happy to talk through any individual requirements as well.
45:49
SPEAKER_01: Perfect.
45:49
SPEAKER_01: That's great.
45:50
SPEAKER_01: Swansa, and I will link to that in the show notes of this episode as well.
45:53
SPEAKER_01: So if you're listening, and uh well, we'll put a direct link in so you can check that out.
45:57
SPEAKER_01: Now, before we finish, I want to do a quick fire round with you.
46:00
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
46:01
SPEAKER_01: Are you ready for this?
46:02
SPEAKER_01: I'm ready.
46:02
SPEAKER_01: I'm ready.
46:03
SPEAKER_01: Right.
46:05
SPEAKER_00: Which era would you head for for first?
46:08
SPEAKER_00: I would head for the Serenity of Pockley first.
46:11
SPEAKER_00: I'd walk round there, and then when I was done, I'd be getting on the bus or tram at the quieter stop.
46:16
SPEAKER_01: Perfect.
46:16
SPEAKER_00: One thing to eat or drink on site.
46:19
SPEAKER_00: It's gotta be fish and chips.
46:21
SPEAKER_00: We've got coal-fired beef drip and fish and chips.
46:25
SPEAKER_00: We've got two fish and chip shops, one in the pit village, one in the 1950s.
46:28
SPEAKER_00: Uh, the one in the pit village is on cool like real coal fires.
46:32
SPEAKER_00: It's gotta be fish and chips.
46:33
SPEAKER_00: Can you get more Northeastern than that?
46:35
SPEAKER_00: No, you can't.
46:36
SPEAKER_00: You really can't.
46:37
SPEAKER_00: One thing that surprises people.
46:39
SPEAKER_00: I think one thing that surprises people is just how emotional it can be for those connections, especially for those bigger families and that nostalgia element and those memories of loved ones.
46:50
SPEAKER_00: Um, but also I think I would just throw into there, um, we are a charity and we do other work, like the dementia-friendly work um that I was mentioning earlier, our health and well-being programs.
47:00
SPEAKER_00: Um, we're an independent charity.
47:02
SPEAKER_00: We can only do what we do because people support us.
47:04
SPEAKER_00: Um, and I think that is sometimes a surprise to people in terms of the breadth of thing that we're able to offer for different communities.
47:11
SPEAKER_00: Yeah, absolutely.
47:12
SPEAKER_00: It's fantastic.
47:13
SPEAKER_00: Best time of day to arrive.
47:15
SPEAKER_00: Oh, definitely as early as possible, make the most of it.
47:19
SPEAKER_00: And then you get to see um all aspects of the areas when they're quieter, when they're busier, when it's sunnier.
47:25
SPEAKER_00: Um soon as possible, make the most of it.
47:27
SPEAKER_00: Perfect.
47:28
SPEAKER_01: And then I always finish the podcast with the same question.
47:30
SPEAKER_01: What would be the one thing you'd want someone to know before they visited Beamish?
47:34
SPEAKER_00: I think it is this.
47:36
SPEAKER_00: You have an opportunity to really learn from real people.
47:39
SPEAKER_00: It's not about one version of history on one board, it's a two-way interaction.
47:44
SPEAKER_00: Come make the most of the expertise and friendliness of our people, have conversations.
47:48
SPEAKER_00: If you don't want to do that, you can enjoy it in your own way.
47:51
SPEAKER_00: So please feel that you can come here and be comfortable and learn and experience it in the way that works for you.
47:57
SPEAKER_00: Perfect.
47:58
SPEAKER_01: Oh, well, it's been absolutely fantastic to talk to um Samantha.
48:01
SPEAKER_01: I can't wait.
48:02
SPEAKER_01: I'll be back in the UK next June, July.
48:04
SPEAKER_01: So I'll be heading to Beamish again, I'm sure.
48:06
SPEAKER_01: Because they're saying hello.
48:07
SPEAKER_01: I want to say I will do, absolutely will do.
48:10
SPEAKER_01: But thanks so much for coming on to the podcast and sharing all about Beamish and um, you know, and hopefully people listening will be going, I'm gonna include it in in my itinerary, which is what we want because it is amazing.
48:21
SPEAKER_01: Honestly, my pleasure.
48:22
SPEAKER_01: It's been lovely to chat to you.
48:24
SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
48:25
SPEAKER_01: And that brings us to the end of another episode.
48:27
SPEAKER_01: If Samantha has you added Beamish to your itinerary, everything mentioned today is in the show notes at uktravelplanet.com forward slash episode 222, including the accessibility guide I promised, how to get their barbed train and bus, and places to stay nearby.
48:43
SPEAKER_01: If you have a question about your own UK trip, do leave me a voice message through Speakpipe.
48:47
SPEAKER_01: I'd love to hear from you.
48:49
SPEAKER_01: And if you enjoyed this episode, please share it with anyone planning a trip to the UK.
48:53
SPEAKER_01: We also write a free weekly newsletter, The Great British Trip, which lands every Saturday morning, and the link for that is in the show notes too.
49:01
SPEAKER_01: But as always, until next week, happy UK travel planning!