Following our trip to Dudley Zoo and Castle, we went to the other major tourist attraction in Dudley: the Black Country Living Museum.
Those of us living in the North of England may be familiar with Beamish, which is a large, outdoor museum showing what life was like in the North East during various time periods. The Black Country Living Museum is very similar, but based in the Black Country. This is the area around Dudley, Sandwell, Walsall and Wolverhampton in the West Midlands, and probably gets its name from the mining and/or burning of coal.
Visitors can walk around various buildings that have been transplanted or recreated from the area. These include an array of shops – some of which sell things to buy – as well as a couple of pubs and fish and chip shops. There’s also a school where you can have a ‘lesson’ as if it were the 1950s, and a fairground. The museum also backs onto the Dudley Canal, and a cut from the canal goes through the museum.
Transport
It’s quite a large site, and so there are transport options to get you from the visitor centre at the entrance into the recreated town. On the day we went, this was a classic diesel bus, but there’s also an electrically-powered trolleybus that was parked up. There’s a tram line as well, but this is currently out of use.
Mines
As mentioned, coal probably inspired the name of the Black Country, and so there are two mines on site. One is a deep mine, The Racecourse Colliery, and the other is a ‘drift mine’ which can be entered on foot. The latter is open for tours, although it’s a realistic simulation rather than a real mine. It does mean that it’s unlikely to collapse, but you’ll need to wear a hard hat as it includes low ceilings that would be typical in this type of mine.
There’s plenty to see, and I would advise going at a weekend when more events take place as we did. Like many attractions, your tickets are valid for one year after your visit, so we may go back another time to see some of the other demonstrations. As you would expect, the museum is also frequently used for filming shows such as Peaky Blinders.
As usual, you can view several more photos on Flickr.
Accessibility
The site is on a slope, and some powered wheelchairs may struggle in some places. Some buildings have narrow entranceways or steps, and the drift mine is uneven under foot. There is an accessible bus available if booked in advance. Some of the industrial exhibits may produce loud and unexpected noises.
