6 Weird and Wonderful Museums in Hull

Hull boasts some of the most niche and intriguing museums and galleries in the UK. Honouring its own maritime past and links with the abolition of slavery, it is also home to a curation completely dedicated to nightclubs, as well as must-see exhibits of dinosaur bones, and even a real Egyptian mummy. We picked out some of the best quirky collections to visit in Hull.

Hull Maritime Museum by Andrew Reid Wildman (click pic to visit his portfolio)

 
The Museum of Club Culture 
 
Celebrating the art of clubbing, this unique space explores important themes of community, memory and identity amongst clubbers past and present. Archival collections remember the history of nocturnal subcultures, from mods and punks, to the more contemporary super clubs. The building doubles up as an educational hub, with regular workshops, lectures and seminars, as well as a wide range of events and exhibitions.
 
The Museum of Club Culture is usually situated on Humber Street but has been temporarily relocated to the High Street during the renovations for City of Culture 2017.

 
Dinostar 
 
Yorkshire’s only dinosaur experience can be found in Hull. With a fantastic collection of prehistoric treasures that include a Tyrannosaurus rex skull and the bones of a triceratops, this hands-on museum is ideal for young children and adventurous adults. Admission is only £3 for grown-ups, with child and concession tickets costing just £1.5, so why not bring along the whole family?
 
Dinostar is located on Humber Street and is open every Sunday plus school holidays, 11am–5pm.

Floating attractions
 
Climb aboard Hull’s buoyant museums! Moored at Hull Marina, the Spurn Lightship served as a navigational aid for ships sailing down the treacherous River Humber for almost fifty years. Today, visitors can explore the decks and experience what life was like on board.
 
The Arctic Corsair (pictured below) is stationed next to the Museum Quarter on the High Street and narrates the lives of the deep sea trawlermen, bringing to life the nautical perils of the cold Icelandic fishing waters.
 
Both of these ships offer free admission and are open on specific Sundays of the year, the exact dates of which can be found on the Hull City Council website.

 
Maritime Museum
 
If you don't have sturdy sea legs, or you simply want to know more about Hull’s rich nautical history, head towards the city centre, where you'll find Hull Maritime Museum. Bear witness to a full-sized whale skeleton amongst the many ship models and artefacts, and gain a wealth of knowledge about Hull’s fishing and merchant trade.
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The Hull Maritime Museum is located in the original Victorian Dock Offices, in Queen Victoria Square.

Hull and East Riding Museum 
 
Want to know just how big a woolly mammoth would have been? Make your way to the Museum Quarter where you will find this archaeological collection of prehistoric fossils, Roman pottery, Viking swords and yes, an enormous mammoth.
 
The Hull and East Riding Museum is open Mon-Sat 10am-5pm and Sundays 1:30pm-4:30pm. Admission is free for all.

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Hands on History Museum
 
Travel back in time to Victorian England and learn the story of Hull and its people at the Hands on History Museum. Situated in the old Grammar School of William Wilberforce, the social reformer and anti-slavery leader, this is an interactive experience you will certainly not forget. Especially when you spot the genuine 2,600-year-old mummy in the Egyptian Gallery!
 
Situated in Trinity Square, entry to the Hands on History Museum is free. It is open 12pm-4pm every second and fourth Saturday of the month.