Entertaining Children After Xmas

Wondering how you might engage and entertain young children after all the excitement of Christmas has died down? If they enjoy the stories of Roald Dalh, then why not consider a trip to one of the two local museums and galleries dedicated to this famous children's author?

You can get into the spirit of this author's writings in preparation for a visit by going to the official Roald Dahl website

Option 1:
Roald Dahl Children's Gallery in Aylesbury

Option 2:
Roald Dahl Museum & Story Centre in Great Missenden

Roald Dahl Children's Gallery in Aylesbury

The Discovery Gallery on the ground floor is like walking into a giant pop-up book. Here you can ...

• Encounter James and his minibeast friends inside the Giant Peach and zoom in on their minute world with the aid of the amazing video microscope.
• Explore Sound with the BFG. Play on his giant pipe organ and find out how sound is made with lots of exciting experiments.
• Discover life underground and buried treasures from the past as you crawl along Fantastic Mr Fox's tunnel.
• Dress up in Victorian school clothes under the watchful eye of Miss Trunchbull and play some games from yesteryear.
• Investigate the unfamiliar and often bizarre inventions from the past with Mr Willy Wonka, the greatest inventor of them all.
• Find out what's missing from Roald Dahl's tuck box.

Walk through the Discovery Gallery and through an enormous book into Matilda's Library. Here you will find an inviting room full of books where you can discover more about Dahl's life and work. You can listen to a story, watch a video, or just dip into your favourite Dahl book.

Ride in the Great Glass Elevator up to the Imagination Gallery
Here you will find things to baffle your brain and boggle your eyes....

• Things are turned upside-down, back-to-front, and are often not what they seem. Investigate reflections with Magic Mirrors, and test your skill on the amazing eyeball maze.
• Freeze your own shadow or write a message on the magic writing wall, and watch it fade before your eyes.
• Send yourself by television like Mike Teavee in Charlie and the Chocolate Factory.
• See the Twits' upside-down room and feel the things hidden in their wall.
• Discover the optical toys that amazed children in Victorian times.
• Turn the world upside-down inside the camera obscura.

Opening Times:

For details of normal opening times after 4th January, please see here
The main website can be found here

Roald Dahl Children's Gallery
Church Street
Aylesbury
HP20 2QP

Telephone: 01296 331441

Prices:
Child (3-18yrs), concessions £4.00
Under 3s FREE
Adult £6.00
Family/group ticket £17.50 (4 people including at least 1 adult)

Roald Dahl Museum & Story Centre in Great Missenden

The museum is aimed at 6 to 12 year olds, and features two fun and fact-packed biographical galleries telling the fascinating story of Roald Dahl's life, and looking at how his experiences shaped him as a writer.

In Boy Gallery find out about Roald Dahl's childhood, his love of chocolate and his schoolboy pranks. Here you can explore the archive on the touch screen monitors, rummage through the Dahl photo album and smell the giant chocolate doors.

The centrepiece of the displays in Solo Gallery is Roald Dahl's Writing Hut, complete with all its original contents and furnishings. Visitors can see the "little nest" as Roald Dahl called it, exactly as he had it set up, with all the extraordinary and fascinating objects he kept at hand for contemplation and inspiration.

The Story Centre puts the imagination of the visitor centre-stage and encourages everyone (young and old) to dress up, make up stories, words and poems or get arty in the craft room.

As well as having a phizz-whizzingly inspirational time, every child over five who visits the Museum receives a Story Ideas Book, just like Roald Dahl's, to scribble their ideas in around the Museum. Grown-ups are given a Visitor's guide to help everyone get the most from their visit.

Fancy a peek inside the Museum before you visit? Take a look at the Virtual Tour

Opening Times:

From Thursday 2 January the museum is open as usual – for details, see website

The Roald Dahl Museum and Story Centre:

81-83 High Street
Great Missenden
Buckinghamshire
HP16 0AL
United Kingdom
Tel:01494 892192

Prices:
Adults £6.60
Children 5 to 18 £4.40
Children under 5 free
Concessions £4.40
(Concessions are for students, people aged 60 or over or for those with disabilities)
Family ticket £21.00*
(*For 2 adults and up to 3 children.)