BLETCHLEY PARK BROUGHT THE 1940’S TO LIFE

The World War Two Home Of The Codebreakers Went Back In time With Its Annual Forties Family Festival on Saturday 26 and Sunday 27 May

There was plenty of family fun at Bletchley Park on for its annual ‘Forties Family Festival’. The event attracted thousands of visitors and over 250 World War Two (WW2) re-enactors who had Bletchley Park teeming with Forties activity. The two day event featured a range of wartime displays and re-enactment groups, Forties news reels in our Enigma cinema and entertaining lectures about life at Bletchley Park and elsewhere during the war.

Re-enactment groups recreated a host of WW2 displays. Sittingbourne Home Front Living History Group will have a display recreating a wartime rest centre and Military Police mobile checkpoint. There was also a visit from Field Marshal Montgomery and Winston Churchill and the Northern Forties Re-enactment group, with both RAF and Navy displays to name but a few.

Visitors were transported back in time and surrounded by classic characters such as spivs, 40’s press photographers and land girls, as well as many vehicles from the time both military and civilian. The marquee on the lawn hosted the 1940’s disco where lindy hoppers took to the dance floor as well as the highlight of the event, a ‘40’s fashion show by Allied Assortment, who showed off every day and elegant fashion, from swimsuits to wedding dresses, whilst putting on a show that had the audience's sides splitting with laughter.

Meanwhile, a selection of evocative wartime cinema reels were showing in Bletchley Park’s wartime Enigma cinema and visitors young and old enjoyed taking part in a craft workshop and having a go at making a wartime toy.

The event also featured entertaining talks, such as what life was like as a wartime evacuee.

Photo Gallery

MKFM were at the event with Samantha The Panther - check out our photo gallery to see if we snapped you...

About Bletchley Park

Bletchley Park was home to the codebreakers of World War Two and the birthplace of the modern computer. Today it is a museum and heritage site, with a fascinating range of permanent exhibitions and private collections. Among other things, visitors will see our new Enigma display case housing one of the largest collections of Enigma machines on public display, including the famous Abwehr Enigma Machine, and the newly opened exhibition “The Life and Works of Alan Turing”.

Bletchley Park is set in beautiful parkland with a Victorian Mansion, a lake, wildlife and a children’s play area. The café in Hut 4, former home of the Naval codebreakers, serves a range of meals and refreshments. Bletchley Park is easily accessible by car from the A5 and J13 and J14 of the M1.

On-site parking is £3 per car and Bletchley Railway Station, which has direct services to London Euston and Birmingham New Street, is a five minute walk.

Normal admission applies for this event.

Bletchley Park Annual Season Ticket Prices

With Bletchley Park’s annual season ticket, you only have to pay for your first visit. You can then return time and time again for up to 12 months for free, which means that you and the family can come to all our Easter and summer activities and only pay once. (Parking is a separate charge of £3 per car, per visit)

Adults: £12.00
Concessions: (over 60's and students with valid ID): £10.00
Children 12 to 16: £6.00
Children under 12: (with friends and family only. Groups of children with clubs, such as Cub Scouts, should contact us in advance) Free of Charge
Family Ticket: (Two adults + Two children aged 12 to 16) £26.00

Tickets include a guided tour (subject to availability) and/or the use of an audio guide.

Admission to the Colossus and Tunny galleries:

Adults: £2.00 (upgrade for an additional £3 to visit the rest of The National Museum of Computing when it is open on Thursdays and Saturdays)
Children (13 to 16) and Concessions (over 60's and students with valid ID): £1.00
Children under 12 (with friends and family only. Groups of children with clubs, such as Cub Scouts, should contact us in advance): Free of Charge
Family Ticket: (Two adults + Two children aged 12 to 16) £26.00

NB: This is NOT an annual season ticket but a one-day admission pass.

When the rest of The National Museum of Computing is open on Thursdays and Saturdays, you can upgrade your £2 admission by paying an additional £3 to visit the museum at the pay booth.

• Bletchley Park is open every day except Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, Boxing Day and New Years Day:
• 1 March to 31 October – 9.30 am to 5.00pm (weekdays and weekends)
• 1st November to 28 February – 9.30 am to 4.00pm (weekdays and weekends.)