Category: News

Jane Austen exhibition opens at SeaCity Museum

Posted on March 27, 2025 by - News

The much-anticipated exhibition ‘A Very Respectable Company – Jane Austen and Her Southampton Circle’ is opening on Saturday 29 March 2025 in the Southampton Stories gallery of SeaCity Museum.

The exhibition highlights Austen’s time in Southampton, where she lived on several occasions, casting light on her circle of friends and relations. The display is part of the celebrations taking place across Hampshire, marking the 250th anniversary of her birth.

Jane Austen’s social circle featured a fascinating mix of individuals, including Charlotte Fitzhugh, who married into a prominent East India Company family and was a devoted fan of Austen’s favourite actress, Sarah Siddons; and Ann Morse Middleton, a mixed-race plantation heiress born in Jamaica, married in India, whose personal life made headlines in national newspapers.

These women could easily have inspired the characters found in Austen’s novels such as Mansfield Park, Emma and Sanditon. The exhibition will showcase items loaned from the archives of their descendants, offering new and rarely seen materials connected to Austen’s social circle, including the Austen Family Household Book, personal items and portraits of some of Jane Austen’s Southampton relatives.

The items on display also include letters written to John Butler Harrison, who married Jane Austen’s cousin Elizabeth Matilda as well as a wide range of prints and paintings from the museum collection, illustrating the town that Jane Austen knew, both when she was briefly at school here in 1783, when visiting relatives as a teenager and later, when she lived in Southampton, in 1806-09.

Councillor Lorna Fielker Leader of the Council said:
“The 250th anniversary of Jane Austen’s birth feels like the right time to celebrate her many connections to Hampshire and to Southampton in particular. I feel proud that we can honour her and her works in this exhibition of rarely seen items. We hope that the exhibits will inspire a new generation of authors.”

Local Nursing Home Residents Celebrate International Museum Day With Us

Posted on June 27, 2023 by - News

To celebrate International Museum Day recently, residents from local Oaklands House Nursing Home in Southampton paid us a lovely visit. John, Bill, and Irene were very excited to visit our wonderful Titanic Museum. If you have visited us before, you will know that our SeaCity Museum tells the story of the people of the city, their fascinating lives and historic connections with Titanic and the sea. You can discover maritime history brought to life through an interactive experience, which John, Bill and Irene enjoyed participating in.

As the port at which the 1912 White Star liner Titanic set sail, Southampton is at the heart of the Titanic story. Many lives and families were affected by the tragedy. This exhibition tells their story. Residents enjoyed exploring the 1:25 scale interactive model of the ship, experienced the disaster room, and immersed themselves in the 1930s court room which depicts the enquiry held in London after the disaster.

Residents also looked at the Southampton Gateway to the World: Using the City’s unique historic collections, this gallery recounts the stories of people who have departed from or arrived in the port of Southampton over the last 250,000 years, from the earliest settlers to the stories of people living in the city today.

The importance of care home residents enjoying days out cannot be overstated. Days out provide social interaction, combat feelings of isolation, and promote a sense of belonging. They stimulate the mind, improve cognitive function, and enhance emotional well-being. Days out empower residents, maintain their independence, and boost their self-esteem. Engaging in physical activities during outings improves physical health and mobility. Meaningful experiences create lasting memories, while overall, days out contribute to an improved quality of life for care home residents. By facilitating and supporting these outings, care homes can enhance well-being and satisfaction for their residents. Residents John, Bill and Irene were enthralled by the various rooms, sounds, exhibits and the many artifacts and we were thrilled to have them visit us for the day.

May half-term children’s activities

Posted on May 24, 2023 by - News

May half-term children’s activities

Southampton has plenty of fantastic family activities to offer this May half-term. If you’re looking to do something fun with the kids, or even if you need to drop them off somewhere to enjoy a much-needed break for yourself, here are some great ideas to keep everyone busy…

Tuesday 30 May

Explore different toys from the past at Tudor House & Garden, and even make some of your own in this workshop packed with objects, activities, and crafts. The Toys Through Time workshop session is 10.30am.

Wednesday 31 May

Step back in time to 1940 for a fascinating Civil Defence Training Experience at Tudor House. Led by the Air Raid Precautions Warden, children will be trained in the skills needed during WWII, like the correct way to put out an incendiary bomb and bandaging the wounded! Workshops are 10.30am, 11.30am, 1pm and 2pm, and are suitable for ages 6yrs+.

Or, get messy in Southampton City Art Gallery with a fun creative workshop for all the family, without having to clean up afterwards! Perfect for kids 5yrs+, this workshop will have you will experiment with charcoal and chalks to create your own mixed media masterpiece. Join sessions at either 10.30am or 1pm. Find out more here.

Thursday 1 June

Spend an hour discovering Southampton’s past in this family accessible walking tour with historian Andy Skinner. Starting at Tudor House & Garden you will explore the Old Town and discover the impact that the Blitz had on the city. There’s a 11am or a 2pm tour. It’s suitable for ages 6+. Book the Tour for All here.

Children can let their imagination run wild with some at Southampton City Art Gallery as you explore the Telling Tales: Stories, Symbols exhibition before creating your own story character as a wire figure, complete with props and costume in this fun creative workshop for 7yrs+. Join at 10.30am or 1pm. Find out more here.

Friday 2 June

Get creative in the gallery where you can explore the huge potential of junk; from simple activities with cutting and sticking to more complex design and three-dimensional thinking. Ten things you never knew you could do with a milk bottle workshop is for ages 4yrs+ but can be enjoyed by families of all ages. Choose from 10am, 12.30pm or 2.30pm. Book tickets here.

History buffs can join a fun-filled history session exploring the wonderful world of the Ancient Egyptians at SeaCity Museum. You will even get to mummify an orange in this Mummy Mayhem workshop. Sessions are either 10.30am or 1pm.

Don’t forget, if you are booking children and family activities at SeaCity Museum, Tudor House & Garden, or Southampton City Art Gallery, if you buy six, you get a seventh free. Just pick up your loyalty card from the front desk at one of the venues. Find out more here.

History of women’s football to be revealed and celebrated by UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 Heritage Programme

Posted on January 13, 2022 by - News

Person looking at black and white photos of Southampton-FA-cup-winners

History of women’s football to be revealed and celebrated by UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 Heritage Programme

  • £500,000 from National Lottery to share 141 years of women’s football
  • Southampton City Council joins UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 summer of celebration in partnership with The FA
  • Stories of pioneering women and girls will be recorded for the first time
  • Full programme of activity will be developed for young people and schools

Southampton as one of the nine UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 host cities is taking part in a National Lottery funded project to uncover the hidden history of women’s football in a summer of celebration of the game, its players and communities.

In partnership with The FA, Southampton City Council has joined a number of other organisations across England for the project which has been awarded £500,000 by The National Lottery Heritage Fund.

It’s an important year for women’s football, as England hosts the UEFA Women’s EURO and the Lionesses mark their 50th anniversary.

However, the history of the game goes back a lot further than many might think. This year also marks 141 years since women’s football was first played professionally.

The National Lottery funded project aims to challenge the common perception of women’s football being ‘new’ and change the nation’s understanding of ‘the English game’. In addition to the National Lottery funding, The FA and host cities have contributed nearly £600,000 to the project, making a total of £1,060,580.

For the very first time, information about every England player, captain, goal scorer and match score since 1972 will be researched, recorded and shared alongside the information that already exists about men’s football. Hosted on England Football’s website the record will continue to be updated, ensuring future female players are part of the nation’s footballing story. The project will particularly explore the role of the LGBTQ+ community.

Southampton is one of nine UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 host cities, taking part in a fantastic range of community events and celebrations this summer.

Founded in 1970, Southampton Women’s F.C. won the FA Cup an astonishing eight times between 1971 and 1982 and remain the most successful women’s team in Southampton. As part of the celebrations surrounding the tournament, SeaCity Museum will create an exhibition exploring the history of women’s football in Southampton, which goes back at least to the First World War, when teams were formed by women workers in the local factories. The Museum will run an oral history project to interview ex-players, fans as well as current players and will be looking to collect artefacts relating to the women’s game for the Museum’s collection. A fun programme of activity will be developed for young people and schools, which will involve designing shirts, club badges and scarves.

Professor Jean Williams, who will be leading the historical research to support the programme, said: ‘This National Lottery funded programme is of enormous significance as the first nationally coordinated project of its kind to, firstly collect the history of women’s football in England, and secondly to share that unique heritage with the widest possible public audience. We are finding new artefacts and stories all the time, and are excited to share how women, and girls have historically pioneered football.”

Councillor Spiros Vassiliou, Cabinet Member for Communities, Culture & Heritage, Southampton City Council, said: ‘We are very excited that Southampton is a host city for the UEFA Women’s EURO 2022 and we are proud of our rich football heritage, such as our Women’s team winning the FA Cup eight times between 1971 and 1982. The City’s ability to host large scale events and use key milestones to explore its culture and heritage, also makes it perfectly placed for our current bid to become UK City of Culture 2025.’