National Museums Liverpool celebrate 40 years with decade-hopping video

National Museums Liverpool is celebrating a major milestone with the release of a new decade-hopping video looking back on 40 years of culture, creativity and change.

The film, National Museums Liverpool: The Story So Far, charts the organisation’s journey since it became the first national museum group outside of London back in 1986, mixing big moments with a dose of humour along the way.

Taking viewers from the 80s right through to today, the video revisits key milestones including the opening of the Merseyside Maritime Museum at the now-iconic Albert Dock and the ‘Into the Future’ funding campaign, which led to the creation of the Transatlantic Slavery Gallery.

It also doesn’t take itself too seriously, poking fun at some of the more questionable moments from the archives, from bold claims like dubbing Lady Lever Art Gallery the “Taj Mahal of Merseyside” to past PR missteps and long-running confusion over venue names.

As well as looking back, the film sets its sights firmly on what’s next, teasing ambitious plans to transform Liverpool’s waterfront over the coming decades.

The video lands as National Museums Liverpool prepares to open a brand new exhibition, National Museums Liverpool at 40, which opens to the public on 3 April.

The free exhibition will showcase a wide range of objects from the organisation’s vast collection, from everyday items like a front door through to major works of art, highlighting the stories behind them. Visitors can also expect to see items that have never been displayed before.

Joe Brook, Head of Audiences and Media at National Museums Liverpool, said: “Marking 40 years of National Museums Liverpool gives us the opportunity to look back on some incredible moments and celebrate Liverpool’s impact on culture here and around the world.

“It’s also a chance to think about what comes next and the role museums and galleries can play, not just in telling stories from the past but in shaping the future too.”

National Museums Liverpool: The Story So Far is available to watch now on the organisation’s YouTube channel.

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