Seven Stories on Tour

As part of our touring programme which has seen Seven Stories exhibitions enjoyed by over a million visitors in venues around the country, it is Plymouth City Museum's turn to host the Enid Blyton exhibition. This popular exhibition has travelled to Plymouth following a successful run at the Beaney House of Art and Knowledge,  Canterbury where it was described as  "a blockbuster".

The objects and framed artworks were condition checked by a member of our exhibitions team before being packed in flight cases for transport.

A second condition check took place on arrival at the next venue and it was my turn to travel to Plymouth to do the checks.

Works were thoroughly examined for any change of condition before being carefully stored prior to installation.

I arrived at the museum to find everybody busy painting the walls from their customary white to Noddy's trademark red, yellow and blue. Most of the graphics were in place and more went up during my visit transforming the space into a wonderful sensory experience.


The Magic Faraway Tree was ready to have it's slippery slope added in anticipation of thousands of Blyton lovers sliding down it.

Toyland was taking shape ready for visitors to drive Noddy's car.

Since writing this blog on the train back from Plymouth, the exhibition has opened and runs till the end of August.

Mystery, Magic and Midnight Feasts – the Many Adventures of Enid Blyton  
Plymouth City Museum from Wednesday 17 June – Friday 28 August 2015

The Gruffalo Travels to Chatham, Kent

This Saturday, A Squash and a Squeeze, Sharing Stories with Julia Donaldson will open at The Historic Dockyard Chatham, in Kent. 

View from just outside the exhibition space

The exhibition arriving in crates to the venue

The exhibition will open on 15th February 2014, and will be on display until 1st June 2014. Axel Scheffler, illustrator of the Gruffalo, among many other of Julia Donaldson's books, will be hosting an event on the 17th May.

Contained within the exhibition is some beautiful original illustration work from a mix of illustrators including Axel Scheffler, Nick Sharratt, Lydia Monks, Joel Stewart, Karen George, Emily Gravett and David Roberts. It is displayed alongside notebooks and early ideas from Julia Donaldson, including the notebook with the first idea for the Gruffalo!

The exhibition has plenty on offer for families including areas where you can share stories and explore sensory environments based on Julia's books; You can follow in Toddle Waddle's footsteps, climb into the cave with the Cave Baby and meet The Gruffalo. Sing-a-long to songs on Julia' Jukebox or perform a play on the stage.

This is the second venue for the exhibition, after being on show in Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery last summer, and attracting a whopping 33'000 visitors! The exhibition will travel to Bradford following its run in Kent, at Cartwright Hall from 28^th June – 9^th November 2014.  

The Historic Dockyard is easily accessible via train from London and the surrounding area, and is a fascinating day long visit, not just for the exhibition, but also to explore all of the different parts of the dock, including a fantastic submarine! 


Go to the Dockyard website.

Alison (Exhibition Curator)

Touring Exhibitions from Seven Stories

Seven Stories have been touring exhibitions for many years, travelling all around England, Wales and Scotland, and this blog post is the first of many about our ventures.

Last week was a very busy one for our team, as we travelled to Leeds and Kilmarnock to take down two separate exhibitions - Through the Magic Mirror: The World of Anthony Browne and Daydreams and Diaries: the Story of Jacqueline Wilson.

The Dick Institute, Kilmarnock where Daydreams and Diaries was on display from September 2013 to January 2014

Leeds City Museum, where Through the Magic Mirror was on display from July 2013 to January 2014

When each exhibition arrives and leaves a venue, a member of our staff goes along with it. We make sure the original objects to be put on display are in perfect condition, and make sure the installation of all the graphics and props goes to plan. 

Once all objects are removed from the display cases, they are carefully laid out to be checked, before being packed away.

Two of Jacqueline Wilson's toy monkeys, which inspired a section of 'My Sister Jodie' being packed away for safe transport back to Newcastle.

Leeds was the final venue for the Browne exhibition, but in April, the Wilson exhibition will be travelling to London, to go on display at the V&A: Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green from April 2014.

Over the Summer, we also have our exhibition A Vikings Guide to Deadly Dragons heading to Wolverhampton Art Gallery, and in February, A Squash and a Squeeze: Sharing Stories with Julia Donaldson will be opening at Chatham Historic Dockyard. Head to the Seven Stories website for more details.

To find out more about where Seven Stories touring exhibitions are heading to next, click here! 

And if you are interested in booking an exhibition for your venue, please email alison.fisher@sevenstories.org.uk or sarah.mcglynn@sevenstories.org.uk.