FUN IN THE HUNDRED ACRE WOOD - THANK YOU VICTORIA & ALBERT MUSEUM!

Today I went to the V & A for the Winnie the Pooh Exhibition. I had read about it and was determined to visit - even more so when i discovered friends Brian Sibley and David Weeks had loaned some of the precious items from their collection.

I had forgotten how imposing the museum is - the front door lets you know you are entering a very exciting place.

From there it was straight to the cafe and an elegant lunch under the enormous modern chandeliers which seemed incongruous against the illustrated ceiling.











Then a visit to the Fashion section - covering early 1700s through to modern times. I didn't know at that point that I could take photos - so  i have very few and they were sneaky! I loved the early gowns but the 60s and 70s onwards were fascinating as were the 2000s onwards.

Before long it was time for Winnie the Pooh and I entered expecting...  who knows? I certainly thought it would be much more than a vehicle for E M Shepard's drawings! 

I was disappointed by this. The opening was a long wall case crammed full of items which would've done better to have been spread around the whole space - and at a level that children could appreciate. There were boxed games - but we couldn't see contents, only lids. There were treasures - but they were so high up that small people, and those in wheelchairs,  couldn't possibly see them easily. 


There was even a glorious hand painted child's tea set which had been lent to the museum by the Queen herself - yet it was not isolated as a glorious gift but squashed into an ill designed display.

I heard people in wheelchairs complain about so much being way above their heads and I felt the frustration of the little ones who were bored by the time they got a third of the way along. There were an incredible amount of drawings, wonderful of course, but eventually monotonous as one had come for 'wonderment'.






Yet there were some super things as I walked through the wall displays - like the doorway with 'Mr Sanders' written over it which was a great photo opportunity; and the dark area to sit and enjoy a reading from one of the stories - as the words slid smoothly in various directions across the ceiling..

















There was Pooh Sticks Bridge, very well represented, with moving 'water' effect and sticks which

apparently floated out from under the wooden structure as would be expected.

Then it was back to the drawings high up on the walls...  though the interactive section on the different books in so many languages was an engaging way of explaining the worldwide appeal.

All in all - the Winnie the Pooh exhibition had its heart in the right place - but needed more input from those who understood lovers of children's classics rather than academics.

Try harder next time V & A!