• Thu. Mar 28th, 2024

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Celebrating Seaside Fun at a New Exhibition

Screen Shot 2015-05-26 at 12.56.14THE heyday of the great British seaside holiday is being celebrated at a summer exhibition at South Tyneside.

Donkey rides, sandcastle competitions and Punch and Judy shows were just some of the summertime treats enjoyed by the holidaymakers of yesteryear.

Now South Shields Museum is turning back the clock to give older visitors a trip down memory lane and younger ones a glimpse of days gone by, with its Seaside Shields exhibition.

Seaside Shields will open on Saturday 13 June with a fun-filled programme of activities and events for all the family and will run until 31 October.

Among the displays will be a collection of the sort of vintage amusement machines that filled the sea front arcades in the latter half of the last century.

The machines are all in good working order and old pennies will be available so visitors can bring back memories as they try their luck at games such as pinball and What the Butler Saw.

A large number of photographs, depicting seaside fun from as far back as the 1880s, will also be on display, along with a range of postcards that would have been sent to loved ones by South Tyneside holidaymakers.

Visitors will be able to contribute to the museum in a number of ways including by sharing their memories of South Shields during its heyday and giving their views on ways in the town could once again become a ‘staycation’ destination.

Throughout the summer holidays the Seaside Shields exhibition will be supported by Tremendous Tuesday and FundayFriday activities for youngsters, with highlights including Punch and Judy shows and mini-golf competitions.

Visitors will also be invited to take part in a wide range of craft activities, such as puppet making and compiling scrap-books.

Seaside Shields is part of the Treasures of South Tyneside 2015 programme, organised by South Tyneside Council, Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums and Bede’s World, Jarrow.

The Grand Opening, on 13 June, will take place between 11am and 3pm and admission is free.

For further information about the exhibitions, displays and live performances, which make up the Treasures programme, visitwww.visitsouthtyneside.co.uk.

By admin