The Museums That Make Us

Original version

BBC Radio 4 LW

Documentaries

Factual

Factual: History

Neil MacGregor tours Britain's museums to explore how the past tells us who we want to be.

Neil MacGregor travels the length and breadth of the country to find out how Britain's museums use their collections to reflect the identity and ambitions of  local communities.

Neil MacGregor presents a new series for BBC Radio Four celebrating the museums to be found in all corners of Britain. The ambition is to explore local, regional and city museums across the length and breadth of the country, and in the process to answer the question 'What are Museums for in 2022?'.

Museums have always been telescopes trained on the past to help locate a sense of place in the present.  Neil believes that role is an active one, responding to changes in the people museums serve and the shifting social and cultural landscape they inhabit. After spending much of his life at the centre of our national Museum life in London, Neil is taking to the road to discover more about the extraordinary work being done in Museums outside the capital, from Stornoway to Stowmarket, and Belfast to Birmingham.  

In each episode he visits a single museum, inviting them to choose an object from their collections which they feel best illustrates their civic role, and the way they relate and want to relate to their local audience.  Very rarely have they chosen a crown jewel from their often priceless collections. More often it's an object with a particular local resonance, or which helps tackle episodes from the past which are being viewed very differently by citizens in the 21st century.

He'll be visiting the great national museums of Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as well as major city institutions in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and elsewhere.  And in spite of the challenges of the last two years, everywhere he meets passionate teams who are dedicated to providing a unique experience for both local audiences and visitors from further afield. 

Neil writes: "What's going on in our museums is at once challenging and exciting and it can only really be understood by visiting as many as possible and finding out how they have approached what is a vital role in providing a sense of local, regional and national identity."


Producer  -Tom Alban

BBC Radio 4 FM

The Museums That Make Us: The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

BBC Radio 4 - The Museums That Make Us, The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

After visiting National Museums in Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales, Neil chooses Oxford to represent an English identity, and finds a message of inclusion.

Neil MacGregor presents a new series for BBC Radio Four celebrating the role and ambition of museums the length and breadth of the country,  and in the process he'll be finding answers to the question ‘What are Museums For in 2022’.

In a week visiting the National Museums of the United Kingdom, Neil faces the challenge of finding a representative for England. In the event he plumps for the oldest of them all, the Ashmolean in Oxford. But rather than the Alfred Jewel, an item that seems to represent something essential in the English psyche, the museum have opted for a far older object from Northern Syria.  Acquired by Oxford's own T.E.Lawrence, this small model clay wagon, possibly a child's toy, provides an opportunity to demonstrate how the museum can provide for a huge breadth of local people from all over the world.
 

Museums have always been telescopes trained on the past to help locate a sense of place in the present.  Neil believes that role is an active one, responding to changes in the people museums serve and the shifting social and cultural landscape they inhabit. After spending much of his life at the centre of  our national Museum life in London, Neil is taking to the road to discover more about the extraordinary work being done in Museums outside the capital, from Stornoway to Stowmarket, and Belfast to Birmingham.  

In each episode he visits a single museum, inviting them to choose an object from their collections which they feel best illustrates their civic role, and the way they relate and want to relate to their local audience.  Very rarely have they chosen a crown jewel from their often priceless collections. More often it's an object with a particular local resonance, or which helps tackle episodes from the past which are being viewed very differently by citizens in the 21st century.

He’ll be visiting the great national museums of Wales, Northern Ireland and Scotland, as well as major city institutions in Birmingham, Leeds, Liverpool and elsewhere.  And in spite of the challenges of the last two years, everywhere he meets passionate teams who are dedicated to providing a unique experience for both local audiences and visitors from further afield. 

Neil writes: “What’s going on in our museums is at once challenging and exciting and it can only really be understood by visiting as many as possible and finding out how they have approached what is a vital role in providing a sense of local, regional and national identity.”

BBC Radio 4

Intelligent speech, the most insightful journalism, the wittiest comedy, the most fascinating features and the most compelling drama and readings anywhere in UK radio.

Accessibility links

Programme Index

The Museums That Make Us

The Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

Genres

Brand

BBC Radio 4 LW

About BBC Radio 4