Culture’s back and you can book to visit these 15 attractions now for after May 17

Liverpool’s all about culture, arts and events so we’ve missed our attractions since they’ve been closed.

Now though, with the May 17 restriction easing date coming up, we can all start to think about getting out and about to them again.

Demand’s sure to be high so it’s worth checking what you fancy and booking in advance. To give you some ideas, here are Liverpool attractions you can book now for after May 17 …

The Bluecoat

In the heart of the city centre, The Bluecoat on School Lane is a real hub for contemporary arts and from May it has lots of events and exhibitions to get involved with. Tickets can be booked now including May 19 onwards for artists exhibiting as part of The Biennial and a programme of events and performances from Independent Dance, May 24-28.

Visit The Bluecoat website here.

Tate Liverpool

Good news for anyone who missed seeing Don McCullin’s incredible photographs of Liverpool and beyond because that exhibition has been extended until September 5 and can be booked now. You can also book tickets for free displays including Aliza Nisenbaum’s portraits of Merseyside’s NHS workers, the Biennial and two new displays of the Tate collection. Reopening is being planned for May 17.

Visit the Tate Liverpool website here.

FACT

FACT on Wood Street is hoping to open again from May 19 with three brand new exhibitions including Biennial artists. Soft Boys, in the foyer gallery, is a short film about queer and trans joy, specifically within the Somali culture and community. It’s free, no booking needed.

Visit the FACT website here.

Walker Art Gallery

The Walker is one of the best art galleries in Europe thanks to its collection of paintings, from contemporary to 17^th and 18^th century masterpieces, sculpture and decorative art.  From May 18, it will be home to a new exhibition showcasing creative talent of North West makers called Past, Present, Future: Celebrating Craft which includes studio ceramics, glass, metalwork and furniture.

Find out more info here.

Royal Liver Building 360

One of our most spectacular attractions on the waterfront, RLB360 will be back open from May 19. Visitors will be able to take the tower tour, with its incredible views and audio visual experience, plus a new addition – The Capsule of Culture, a time capsule in the visitors centre designed to commemorate events of 2020. Booking via the website.

Book your visit here.

Peace Doves at Liverpool Cathedral

Postponed from last year, the stunning Peace Doves installation will open on May 21 until August 31. The artwork, created by renowned sculptor and artist Peter Walker, will feature over 20,000 paper doves suspended in the cathedral. The popular Angel Wings moving light projection by Luxmuralis is also returning. Both are free but slots should be booked in advance.

Book a slot here.

The Beatles Story

Beatles fans from here and across the world will be able to revel in everything about their lives and music again when The Beatles Story reopens from May 17. The award-winning attraction at the Albert Dock, which celebrated its 30^th anniversary in 2020, plans to open its permanent exhibition, Discovery Zone, Fab4 Café and Fab4 Store. Website booking is now open.

Book your visit here.

Speke Hall

The grounds of Speke Hall are beautiful at this time of year, with 50 acres of gardens and woodland including masses of bluebells. From May 19 the Tudor house at the centre of it all is reopening so take a picnic or go to Home Farm café and have a day of nature and history rolled into one. Booking via the website.

Book your visit here.

Western Approaches HQ

Western Approaches

The top secret underground bunker on Rumford Street is an absolutely fascinating piece of wartime history and its maze of rooms and WWII artefacts will be open again to visitors, every day from May 17. Bookings are valid for a year and you can either do a self-guided tour or opt for one of the private themed tours which they run. 

Visit the Western Approaches HQ website here.

Liverpool Phil

The RLPO On Demand concerts have been keeping Phil fans happy while the hall has been closed, but from May 20 live performance will return with Vasily conducting the orchestra for an audience again. The first two concerts are already sold out but there are two more on May 27 & 28 to launch what should hopefully be a full 2021 programme.

Visit the Liverpool Phil website here.

Liverpool Biennial

Liverpool Biennial 2021, on the theme of The Stomach and the Port, launched its outdoor sculptures and installations across the city centre in March. Now it’s preparing to open indoor exhibitions too from May 19 across nine venues city-wide, including the old Lewis’s building and the Lush store on Church Street. Free tickets can be booked in advance via the Biennial online portal.

Find all the info here.

AI new to World Museum

World Museum on William Brown Street is planning to reopen from May 18 so visitors can get to see fantastic permanent displays including the Bug House, aquarium and dinosaurs, and there’s another major new attraction coming. AI: More Than Human will give an exciting insight into the world of artificial intelligence through immersive artworks. Tickets go on sale soon.

Book your tickets here.

Museum of Liverpool

If restriction easing goes to plan then the Museum of Liverpool on the waterfront is aiming to reopen to visitors from May 18 with free permanent displays, including one revealing the secret (sometimes grisly) life of Pembroke Place and a temporary photographic exhibition showing how Liverpool was devastated in the Blitz. A Liverpool 8 Against Apartheid exhibition is coming soon too.

More info here.

International Slavery Museum

Another of Liverpool’s great museums which should hopefully be reopening from May 18 with its permanent displays including Enslavement and the Middle Passage, which looks at how enslaved Africans were taken to work on plantations in the Americas, and Challenging Histories, a collection of contemporary artworks which show how artists have responded to the history of transatlantic slavery and its legacy.

Find out more here.

LightNight Liverpool

One of the city’s favourite arts nights of the year, LightNight is back on Friday May 21 with the theme of Play. Supported this year by a Crowdfunder, the one-night festival runs from 5pm and will see over 100 organisations getting involved to stay up late and create a trail of events and performance for everyone to wander around and join in.

Find all the info here.