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Group Tours

These tours are available daytime and evening and entail one of the Museum’s very own experts giving your group a personal tour of the Museum. Tours can be tailored to meet specific needs and allow a greater insight into our unique vehicle collection.
Minimum notice required to book a tour is 4 weeks.

The Tank Museum’s five halls house the world’s most comprehensive collection of tanks and armoured vehicles. There are over 200 vehicles from 26 countries ranging from a unique collection of First World War up to a Modern Day Gulf War Tanks.

Inside the Museum our Trench exhibition highlights the stark reality of warfare during the First World War, from recruitment to going “over the top”. The experience is brought to life with shocking facts, graphics and moving readings. Finally you pass through a German trench system to witness the awesome sight of the first tank crashing though the German trenches on 15th September 1916.

The Museum also has its “For Valour” medal collection which illustrates the bravery and courage undertaken by tank men throughout the ages. The collection is presented in an interactive and exciting manner, which uses original photographs, stories, artifacts and diaries to tell the stories of those who have won medals.

With so much to do and see the Museum is proud to be able to offer great versatility for groups whether you would like a general or more specific tour.

Tour & Group Bookings Rates

• Groups between 10.00am and 5.00pm (Minimum group 10 people)
• Museum Entry (per head)- £10 adult. £9 OAP/disabled. £7 Child (5-16 yrs).

GUIDED TOURS

• Tours can be organised for groups of a maximum 20 people and a minimum of 10 people per group. (Two or more tours can be arranged simultaneously if required)
• Group entrance rates apply, with additional guide cost:
• General Museum Tour - £50 per group
• Specific Tour - £120 per group
• Lunch and refreshments are available on request.

General Tour given by a Museum Warden costs £50.00 and gives a basic history of the Museum and a selection of Tanks form each era and last approximately 1 hour.

Specific Tour by Curator or Historian

Cost £120.00 includes a choice of subjects i.e.

• The Development of the tank
• WW1 tanks
• WW2 tanks
• Post War tanks
• The future of the tank
• Other – Please specify

The tour will last approx 1hr and the subject will be more technical and specific than a general tour

Out of Hours (Lectures & Performances)

Evening lectures, performances & talks at The Tank Museum in 2007/2008.
For all events, the Museum and bar will open at 6pm. Parking is free. We would ask that you take your seats 10 minutes before the event commences, but please note that seats are allocated on a first come, first served basis.

Tickets available from The Tank Museum and the Tourist Information Centres in Wareham & Dorchester. Due to the limited capacity for each event, we highly recommend booking

Programme

Thursday 28th February 2008 - 7.30pm: Gordon Corrigan.
Blood, Sweat and Arrogance: The Myths of Churchill's War
Distinguished author Gordon Corrigan has gained a name for writing military history books that challenge commonly held conceptions of the past. His latest work Blood, Sweat and Arrogance: The Myths of Churchill's War - also the subject of this talk - challenges our assumptions about the Second World War and exposes just how close Britain came to losing.
£9 per person: Tickets Available: 100

Thursday 27th March 2008 - 7.30pm: David Fletcher.
Mr Kipling’s Museum - 60 years of The Tank Museum.
To mark The Tank Museum’s 60 years as a public Museum, Tank Museum Historian David Fletcher will recall the history of this internationally important museum; from its birth as a teaching collection after World War One, to its present position as a leading tourist attraction. Local heritage meets international history in an entertaining talk by one of the world’s leading military vehicle experts.
£9 per person. Tickets Available: 100

Thursday 24th April 2008 - 7.30pm: Allan Mallinson.
The Warriors Trade - From Badajoz to Basra.
Retired Brigadier Allan Mallinson is now a successful novelist, historian, and journalist. From the perspective of historian and modern defence commentator, he will examine the enduring character of the British soldier, describing a historical continuity of this trade from Badajoz to Basra - and how he believes that this continuity is in danger today. The tenth book in a series of novels chronicling the life of Matthew Hervey, a Dragoon officer in the Napoleonic Wars is published in March 2008, titled The Warriors Trade.
£9 per person. Tickets Available: 100

Thursday 29th May 2008 - 7.30pm: Dr Dan Todman.
The Second Great War: 1914-18 in the context of 1939-45
Thursday 29th May 2008 - 7.30pm
'REPLACEMENT FOR POSTPONED GARRY SHEFFEILD LECTURE
(This had been rescheduled for 20/11/08)
Using film and the printed word, as well as official and private documents, Dr Todman will explore how the First World War was remembered during the Second and suggest the ways in which this legacy can still be felt.
He will argue that the different experience of total war in the Second World War has become a filter through which perceptions of the complex experiences of the First have been reduced to a few easily understood symbols: death, futility, mud and poetry.
£9 per person. Tickets Available: 100

Wednesday 9th July 2008 - 7.30pm (TBC).
Proms At The Museum - The Light Cavalry Band.
The pomp and circumstance of popular classics. The Tank Museum presents an open air concert featuring Proms favourites such as: Jerusalem, Land of Hope and Glory, and Rule Britannia.
Proceeds to the Corps of Army Music Trust and The Tank Museum.
Visitors are welcome to bring chairs, food & drink and warm clothes.
Please contact us for confirmation of date & time.
Adults: £5.00; Under 16's: £3.00.
Tickets available: Unlimited, but limited to 300 if bad weather forces us to hold concert indoors. (Please book in advance to avoid disappointment)

Thursday 20th Nov 2008 - 7.30pm: Gary Sheffield.
Douglas Haig - Was he the Accidental Victor in 1918?
Douglas Haig was a controversial figure of World War One and his methods have been frequently called into question by historians ever since. In this lecture, University of Birmingham War Studies Professor Gary Sheffield talks about the final year of the First World War and discusses Haig’s role in the victory of 1918.
£9 per person. Tickets Available: 100

Improve Your Computer Skills With Kingston Maurward College
In a new computer suite at The Tank Museum.

• Computers for the Terrified
• Internet and E-mail
• International / European Computer Driving Licence

For more information, or to book places for the computer course, please telephone Kingston Maurward College on 01305 215 215, or visit their website: www.kmc.ac.uk

Bookings and information for Tank Museum Lectures - tel: 01929 405096 Ext 212 or email: interpretationofficer@tankmuseum.org

Download pdf of The Tank Museum's Out of Hours programme 2007/08
(requires Adobe Acrobat Reader - available from Adobe.com. Opens in new window.)

Functions

The Museum with its five halls and three large external demonstration areas has the space and facilities to cater for any event be it business or pleasure, indoors or out. With our corporate services department at hand to give any advise or help with planning and co-ordination.

In the past the Museum has held lectures for over 300 and dinners for over 200. The Museum as also catered for launch parties, award ceremonies & trade shows with great efficiency.

The following shows attend the Museum annually with attendances of over 1500.

• Wargamers Weekend
• Military Vehicle Trust Weekend
• Wessex Classic Car Show
• Tankfest