In the run-up to the millennium, £1.3bn of National Lottery money was invested in more than 200 projects. Some were controversial, others failed, but these science centres have gone from strength to strength
@Bristol Location: Bristol Twitter: @AtBristol Cost: £96m Millennium funding: £44m Opened: July 2000 @Bristol, which recently installed the UK’s only ultra-HD 3D planetarium, attracts more than 300,000 visitors a year.
IMAGE: Lee Pullen
Live shows are popular at the hands-on science centre
Magna Location: Rotherham Twitter: @MagnaScience Cost: £47m Millennium funding: £23m Opened: April 2001 Magna is set in a former steelworks and tells the story of the region’s steel industry. In recent years, the science centre’s financial stability has been in question.
IMAGE: John Edler
The venue is often used for events and gigs
The International Centre for Life (LIFE) Location: Newcastle Twitter: @scienceatlife Cost: £67m Millennium funding: £33m Opened: May 2000 LIFE explores human biology through hands-on exhibits and multimedia displays. It welcomes 250,000 visitors per year.
The 4D motion ride at LIFE
National Space Centre Location: Leicester Twitter: @spacecentre Cost: £84m Millennium funding: £32m Opened: June 2001 Featuring a state-of-the-art dome theatre, this attraction uses personalities and technology to explain our understanding of space.
IMAGES: Osborne Hollis
Moon rock and rockets are on show
IMAGES: Osborne Hollis
Moon rock and rockets are on show
Winchester Science Centre Location: Winchester Twitter: @WinSciCentre Cost: £11m Millennium funding: £6m Opened: March 2002 Previously known as INTECH, this Hampshire science centre attracts 150,000 visitors a year, and sells 100,000 tickets to its digital planetarium.
Hampshire science centre
Glasgow Science Centre Location: Glasgow Twitter: @gsc1 Cost: £71.5m Millennium funding: £35m Opened: June 2001 Glasgow Science Centre is one of the most popular paid-for attractions in Scotland, attracting more than 350,000 visitors annually.
Glasgow Science Centre
Millennium fails Though the Tate Modern, the Millennium Bridge and the Eden Project have seen great success, not all Millennium Commission contracts did well, and some were forced to close their doors, including:
• The £15m National Centre for Popular Music in Sheffield, which predicted 400,000 annual visitors but received only 104,000
• The £42m Earth Centre in Doncaster, which went bankrupt in 2004
• The Public, a £54m digital art gallery in West Bromwich. Much of it never opened
• The £14m Big Idea Centre in North Ayrshire, which closed in 2003 due to lack of finances and low visitor turnout
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In the run-up to the millennium, £1.3bn of National Lottery money was invested in more than 200 projects. Some were controversial, others failed, but these science centres have gone from strength to strength
@Bristol Location: Bristol Twitter: @AtBristol Cost: £96m Millennium funding: £44m Opened: July 2000 @Bristol, which recently installed the UK’s only ultra-HD 3D planetarium, attracts more than 300,000 visitors a year.
IMAGE: Lee Pullen
Live shows are popular at the hands-on science centre
Magna Location: Rotherham Twitter: @MagnaScience Cost: £47m Millennium funding: £23m Opened: April 2001 Magna is set in a former steelworks and tells the story of the region’s steel industry. In recent years, the science centre’s financial stability has been in question.
IMAGE: John Edler
The venue is often used for events and gigs
The International Centre for Life (LIFE) Location: Newcastle Twitter: @scienceatlife Cost: £67m Millennium funding: £33m Opened: May 2000 LIFE explores human biology through hands-on exhibits and multimedia displays. It welcomes 250,000 visitors per year.
The 4D motion ride at LIFE
National Space Centre Location: Leicester Twitter: @spacecentre Cost: £84m Millennium funding: £32m Opened: June 2001 Featuring a state-of-the-art dome theatre, this attraction uses personalities and technology to explain our understanding of space.
IMAGES: Osborne Hollis
Moon rock and rockets are on show
IMAGES: Osborne Hollis
Moon rock and rockets are on show
Winchester Science Centre Location: Winchester Twitter: @WinSciCentre Cost: £11m Millennium funding: £6m Opened: March 2002 Previously known as INTECH, this Hampshire science centre attracts 150,000 visitors a year, and sells 100,000 tickets to its digital planetarium.
Hampshire science centre
Glasgow Science Centre Location: Glasgow Twitter: @gsc1 Cost: £71.5m Millennium funding: £35m Opened: June 2001 Glasgow Science Centre is one of the most popular paid-for attractions in Scotland, attracting more than 350,000 visitors annually.
Glasgow Science Centre
Millennium fails Though the Tate Modern, the Millennium Bridge and the Eden Project have seen great success, not all Millennium Commission contracts did well, and some were forced to close their doors, including:
• The £15m National Centre for Popular Music in Sheffield, which predicted 400,000 annual visitors but received only 104,000
• The £42m Earth Centre in Doncaster, which went bankrupt in 2004
• The Public, a £54m digital art gallery in West Bromwich. Much of it never opened
• The £14m Big Idea Centre in North Ayrshire, which closed in 2003 due to lack of finances and low visitor turnout
Off the back of the success of the first round of Everyday Heritage Grants in 2022, Historic
England is funding 56 creative projects that honour the heritage of working-class England.
Universal has revealed it will be adding new Harry Potter attractions, alongside Super Nintendo
and How to Train Your Dragon worlds to its Florida resort.
Populous have unveiled their plans for a state-of-the-art e-sports arena, designed to stand as a
central landmark in Qiddaya City’s gaming and e-sports district, Saudi Arabia.
Immersive entertainment specialists, Layered Reality, is creating a tribute to Elvis Presley
featuring a concert experience with a life-sized digital Elvis.
