Museum of the Moving Image (MOMI)
South Bank, SE1 (box office 0171 928 3232/recorded information 0171 401 2636/administration 0171 928 3535). Embankment tube or Waterloo tube/BR.
Open 10am-6pm daily; last entry 5pm. Admission £5.50; £4.70 students; £4 children, OAPs, UB40s; £16 family ticket (2 adults, 4 children).
Credit A, V.
Opened in 1988 in a purpose-built space squeezed beneath Waterloo Bridge, MOMI has become one of London's most popular museums. Its success relies not only on the innate appeal of its subject but also the museum's encouragement of participation. The first part describes the birth of cinema with static displays of early attempts at animation, optical toys and the first cine cameras. Things really get moving with the dawn of the silent era, followed by a multitude of clips covering cinema's many genres: cartoons, Russian classics (shown in an agitprop train), newsreels and Hollywood favourites. Along with these, numerous working models allow you to explore the technical aspects of film and TV: fly with Superman, be interviewed by Barry Norman or direct your own animated feature. The actor guides tend to have their work cut out entertaining the hordes of children. You could happily spend many entertaining hours here, but unfortunately there's no re-admission. Audio cassettes for the visually impaired. Bookshop.
Disabled: access; help points. Films shown in evenings. Foreign-language guides. Regular exhibitions and events. Shop. Sign-interpreted tours (contact Education Dept).
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