Maybe I am
seriously wrong, but surely what is needed in a provincial town museum
is a display which evokes interest; curiosity; engages and fascinates.
You leave wanting to comeback for more.

This major rebuild and
revamp doesn’t hit the target on any of these. Don’t get me wrong it’s
been done to a high standard but at the expense, no doubt considerable,
of forgetting its purpose. Glossy and slick and attempting to
incorporate modern technology is no substitute for real thought and
substance.

It is seriously disjointed with no natural flow or coherence.
Interesting exhibits are few and far between with an over reliance on
superfluous interactive audio visual, often without the audio. Simply
not enough objects to explore in real life, an experience that can’t be
replicated on the internet.

I know the museum has always had
“the Elk” and “the Horrockses model site”, but do they deserve such
continued prominence when they do not add to a coherent story board. If
it is a matter of conflicting space, why has the mezzanine floor been
removed?

The fundamental issue is that there is no story of
Preston. There are many disjointed exhibits which are not properly
explored or exploited. An over reliance on a few individuals, who while
important and significant are surely not the story that you expect a
modern forward looking museum to explore. The power and influence of the
great mill owners not balanced by the suffering and atrocious
conditions the workers had to endure? The recent past not including the
aerospace industry? The lack of any real information on the history of
transport and its influence?

I know that the Harris can do a
great job. Its changing art exhibition space is often a revelation and a
real pleasure to explore and engage with. I can’t see why this
opportunity with the story of Preston could not have been achieved in
the same way. A flexible space giving opportunity to a varied
examination of the history of the city. This fixed and unfortunately
dated approach will I suggest not engage with the public in the way it
should.

I would be interested to see the visitor figures after 12 months. I have a belief that after initial curiosity the repeat visitor number will simply tail off. I hope I am wrong.