The 180th anniversary of the launch of the SS Great Britain is being marked by bosses at the tourist attraction - by letting children visit for free for the rest of the summer. Anyone under 16 can visit Brunel’s famous ship from next Wednesday, July 19, right up until Sunday September 3 - with a few caveats.
The offer is being introduced as part of the celebrations of the date back in 1843 when Brunel’s ship - which was the largest passenger ship ever built at the time - was launched out of its builders' yard on the Floating Harbour on the morning of Wednesday, July 19.
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The launch was a bit of a fiasco. Brunel conducted a train from London with Prince Albert on board, and that took just two hours and 40 minutes to arrive. But the float out had already started by the time the Prince got there. Huge crowds gathered to see the spectacle and Prince Albert, but the naming ceremony didn’t go well either.
Clarissa Miles, the mother of Bristol’s MP, had the honour of smashing a champagne bottle against the hull, but the steam packet ship towing the SS Great Britain had started pulling it moments before, and the bottle didn’t reach the hull so didn’t smash. Prince Albert grabbed another bottle and threw it at the ship, so it smashed at the second attempt.
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The boat was floated out from the Great Western yard where it was built, but didn’t get much further - the lock gates at the Cumberland Basin weren’t big enough to allow the ship to go through, so it had to wait for almost a year for work to create a new, wider entrance to be completed.
Now, rescued, restored and with a status as Bristol’s top-rated tourist attraction, bosses at the SS Great Britain are staging a series of celebrations for families to mark the 180th anniversary.
“Families can immerse themselves as they explore Brunel’s iconic and mighty ship for a fraction of the cost, enjoying a fun day out this summer,” said a spokesperson for the SS Great Britain. “The SS Great Britain’s 180th anniversary celebrations also include an exciting new food trail – ‘Birthday Banquet Blunder’ – where families can follow a series of clues to find food items hidden throughout the ship. The trail will teach children about the food that passengers would have eaten on board.
“If they dare, visitors can climb the ship’s rigging on the highest rope walk in the UK, meet Mr Brunel and other Victorians, and enjoy an adventure where they can see, hear and smell history brought back to life. Visitors to the SS Great Britain this summer can also step back in time by peering through a pair of augmented reality binoculars that will transport them to 1843. Created by Zubr, a leading augmented reality studio based in the south west, the experience will allow visitors to see the ship and the Floating Harbour as they were 180 years ago. Zubr recreated the monumental launch of the ship by drawing inspiration from ‘The Launch’, a painting by Joseph Walter,” she added.
The ‘kids go free’ ticket option allows two children aged between five and 16 to go free for every full price adult ticket purchased. Children aged four and under are free anyway. Any child under 14 has to be accompanied by an adult, and the offer can’t be used alongside any other discounted ticket deal, or as a group ticket - and has to be purchased online and booked in advance.
Iona Keen, head of interpretation at Brunel’s SS Great Britain said: “We’re delighted to be launching Kids Go Free This Summer, to enable more people than ever to experience the wonders of the SS Great Britain. Visitors will be able to step on board to embark on their own voyages of discovery.
“The new ‘Birthday Banquet Blunder’ family trail is a fun way of showcasing the sights, sounds and smells of a Victorian voyage. And there’s a culinary twist to tie in with our 180th anniversary this summer – families can help solve party preparation blunders, all based on real life events that happened on board the ship,” she added.
