Reviewed by Katy Hart
On 29 August 2017 we visited At Bristol Science Centre, now known as We The Curious, in the centre of the city. We arrived early and parked in the award-winning Millennium Square Car Park. This brings you out into the Millennium Square – a lovely modern public area with water features, statues and gardens. Immediately opposite us was the science centre and a vast mirrored sphere which looked amazing in the sunshine as it glistened and reflected in the water, we later discovered this is the 3D planetarium (a part of the @ Bristol Science Centre).
The science centre opened at 10am and my children (ages 17, 12 and 11) and I very excitedly went in and were greeted by a friendly team member who helped with our tickets, gave us a wristband to wear and off we went exploring.
I must confess I was a little apprehensive as I had anticipated that the day would be geared very much at a younger audience, however I can honestly say that although many of the shows and experiments are suitable for younger children, my three boys also had a thoroughly interesting day and really enjoyed it.
We spent just over five hours exploring the two floors of exhibits and hands on experiments. We built bridges and tested their strength, we created animated films, we made enormous bubbles, saw the veins and blood in our hands using a special machine, ran in a huge wheel and watched the gears working to help move water along an exhibit. These really are a fraction of the things that we saw and tried today, there really was so much to see and do. My children, being that little bit older, enjoyed trying to understand how and why these experiments worked and we had some great conversations as we were going around. The wristbands we were wearing each had a unique barcode. As you tried different experiments, you could scan your barcode and it saved your data so that you can download everything at home. This really appealed to my boys and they’ve already logged on now we’re home, to see what they can download and find from their day out.
We all especially enjoyed the ‘Boggling Brains’ session led by Raj as he demonstrated how to make a brain, and how the different parts of the brain are stimulated by different senses. It was a fun, and interesting session and we all were entertained by Raj and his assistants Steve and Gloria, and we came away having learned new things about the brain.
The highlight of our day has to have been our visit to the 3D Planetarium. We went to ‘Exploring the Solar System’ presentation which was hosted by Katrin. We entered the dome and sat in the most comfortable seats. Katrin introduced herself and started the presentation – everyone within the dome was in awe as it looked as if the roof of the dome was opening and we could see out into the night sky. Katrin’s passion for astronomy was evident – we were all captivated and learned something from this show that lasted approximately 30 minutes. My three boys thought it was absolutely fantastic. They’ve taken away a factsheet about the August night sky and are hoping for a clear night tonight to see for themselves.
Credit Lee Pullen
There was so much to do and explore, and although we visited in the holidays and it was quite busy, we managed to try everything we wanted to do. There is much to do for younger children, but I also found that there was plenty for my older children to enjoy too, and in fact we really had some great discussions as we tried to understand how things worked and why they did what they did. It really sparked that curiosity in them and it was great to see. Perhaps quite aptly, the science centre is about to begin a new journey commencing next week, with a change of name to ‘We the Curious’ and many of the exhibits are being revamped to create a culture of curiosity.
There were staff accessible throughout the centre and they were all friendly and welcoming, many of whom I noticed were sat down with children helping them, and asking and answering questions.
The facilities were clean. There was a small cafe serving food and drinks, and a picnic area for those who had brought their own food. I cannot vouch for either of these as we didn’t stop for lunch – that will tell you how interested my children were.
We all felt this was a top day out for families and that there was something that everyone could learn and take away with them. I love the idea that they are constantly updating and moving with new technologies and advances in science – the new revamp with its focus on developing curiosity is really exciting and shows that they want to be innovative and progressive. We will definitely return to get curious with them.
Rating: 5/5
Tickets cost £9.90 child / £15.30 adult (including Gift Aid).
For more information or to book tickets online visit www.wethecurious.org.
We The Curious, Anchor Road, Harbourside, Bristol, BS1 5LL | 0117 915 1000
