Where: Enginuity, near Ironbridge, Shropshire
£: Enginuity is one of the Ironbridge Gorge Museums. An annual Passport Ticket allowing entry into all ten museums, valid for twelve months and unlimited return visits, costs 23.25 per adult, 18.75 for the 60 plus, 15.25 for students and children and 64 for a family of two adults and their children (aged up to 18 years in full time education); under 5s go free. Individual museum entry tickets are also available.
What is it?
An amazing display of working Meccano models created by the Telford and Ironbridge Meccano Society will be an extra bonus for anyone visiting the Enginuity design and technology centre over the spring bank holiday weekend. Large quantities of Meccano parts will also be available for youngsters to create their own Meccano wonders.
Larger than ever before, the amazing Meccanuity 2012 exhibition will feature an impressive array of large and small models in the covered bays adjacent to Enginuity. Now in its tenth year, the exhibition has grown to be one of the largest in the country, with a number of overseas visitors expected.
Displays will feature a number of giant cranes, steam engines, astronomical models, pattern drawing machines and clocks. The Society chairman, Chris Shute, will also be demonstrating his 5ft fantasy model of the fabled Wem Treacle Mine complete with subterranean sweet factory and people-powered mining equipment.
Meccano was invented in 1901 by Frank Hornby, and is still made using imperial British measurements. The exhibition will also include a 24-foot Hornby O-gauge railway layout with items dating back over 80 years.
A competition is held each year at Meccanuity where modellers are challenged to produce something out of the ordinary; this year’s Olympic-inspired challenge is to build a vehicle which will travel a curved path, as in a game of bowls, to end up close to a target. The contest will be held on Sunday afternoon at around 3pm with the winner receiving a trophy built from reclaimed Meccano parts.
Visitors will also get the chance to win a Family Passport Ticket or a Meccano outfit, by correctly guessing the number of parts in a particular Meccano Model.
More info: For further information, contact the Ironbridge Tourist Information Centre on 01952 433 424 or visit www.ironbridge.org.uk, for more details about the Telford and Ironbridge Meccano Society check out www.tims.org.uk.