Big Give Christmas Challenge 2025 update
In 2026, we want to keep our families events free. This week we’re fundraising with the Big Give’s Christmas Challenge, which means all donations will be DOUBLED before 9 December. If we can raise the full £7500, we want to offer: Party in the Piazza Community Festival – FREE Family activities as part of Open …
Banquets at the Thames Tunnel: New Sources for the World’s First Underwater Dinners
Monday 10 November 2025 is the 198th anniversary of an extraordinary dinner, held under the waters of the River Thames in the Thames Tunnel. In our latest blog, Museum volunteer Sue Thomas reveals a raft of new information about the dinner, following her exciting discovery of a file of RSVPs sent to the Brunels. …
Marc Brunel and the American Steamboat
The Brunel name is inextricably linked with the great nineteenth century steamships. However, long before Isambard Kingdom Brunel designed and launched three world-changing ships, his father, Marc Brunel, had been involved with steamships: and not in Britain, but in the United States. In our latest blog, Mark Kleinman considers Brunel’s engagement with American steamboat pioneers …
Brunel Museum Awarded Funding for Action Research Exploring Inclusive Career Pathways in Museums
We’re excited to announce that the Brunel Museum is one of seven selected by the Group for Education in Museums (GEM) to participate in their new Inclusive Pathways Action Research Programme, with each museum receiving a contribution of up to £5000 made possible through the three year Investment Principles Support Organisation (IPSO) Programme from Arts …
The Thames Tunnel Bazaar: An Interactive View
From 12 May to 25 June 2025, a team from Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) in Massachusetts were at the Brunel Museum to work on a new project entitled ‘Designing a Multimedia Interactive View of the Thames Tunnel Bazaar’. When the Thames Tunnel opened on 25 March 1843, it was more of a shopping centre than …
New Insights into the Thames Tunnel Designs
In our latest blog, Collections Volunteer Arran Saunders provides new insights into the Thames Tunnel Designs acquired by the Museum in 2017, following a period of cataloguing and research. Calling into question received ideas about artistic attribution and highlighting new archival discoveries about the production of the Designs and their purpose, the project has developed …
The Thames Tunnel in World War II
During World War II, the Thames Tunnel was a key transport asset across the Thames. With its strategic location close to the London Docks, it was vulnerable to enemy action. As the tide of war changed in favour of the Allies, neighbouring areas and perhaps the Tunnel itself played a key role in the eventual …
The Afterlife of the Thames Tunnel: How a White Elephant became the Windrush Line
Though the Thames Tunnel, the world’s first tunnel beneath a navigable river, was an engineering marvel, it was a financial failure. Almost two centuries later, it is a vital north-south rail link as part of London Overground’s Windrush Line. In our latest blog, Mark Kleinman tells the story of how a white elephant became the …
Marc Isambard Brunel: What’s in a name?
25 April 2025 marks the 255th anniversary of the birth of Marc Isambard Brunel (1769-1849) in a small village in northern France. To celebrate, Jack Hayes looks at the connection between Brunel’s birthday, his unusual name, and a medieval knight. During the Easter holidays, one of our youngest visitors had a specific question about the …
Illustrious Visitors to the Thames Tunnel
An appearance from a famous person is always a great way to advertise and bring excitement to any project or idea. This post looks into how members of royal families – the celebrities of the 19th century – were not only interested in the Thames Tunnel but also how the press reported on those visits …