Pointy hats and capes at the ready

A magician, an owl and a mini wizard in the making, met beside the steam locomotive from the Harry Potter movies, Olton Hall, to cast a spell over the Museum and declare the competition officially open.

Wannabe wizards are being encouraged to dress in magical attire and attend the Museum's Wizard Week this February half term (11 – 19). Visitors to the nine day event can then get snap-happy during their visit and upload pictures of themselves in magical costume onto the Museum’s Facebook page to enter the competition – www.facebook.com/nationalrailwaymuseum.

The person named the 'Best Dressed Wizard' will receive a wizard-themed experience package, including a one to one magic lesson with a real life wizard, The Magic Hatter, and an Owl Experience at Falconry UK Limited.

Zoe Roberts, Public Programmes Developer at the National Railway Museum, said:

"Wannabe wizards are expected to fly in from miles around for our Wizard Week event this February and we're really looking forward to seeing their magical costumes. The competition prize is certainly an exciting opportunity, so we hope wizards of all ages will enter into the spirit of the event by donning their pointy hats and capes. There’ll be lots of activities for wizards and their families to enjoy, from a talking dragon and broomstick flying, to wizard duels and a chance to see the steam locomotive from the Harry Potter movies."

New to the February half term event this year is the chance for visitors to jump on a broomstick and see themselves flying through the magic of green screen technology. A cauldron load of other hocus-pocus is also being planned including daily wizard duels, beautiful owl displays, magic tricks and balloon modelling from The Magic Hatter, and a chance to meet Derek the talking dragon. Visitors can also take part in craft activities to reveal their inner wizard by making a wizard ID badge.

On Friday 17 February the author of 'The Science of Harry Potter', Roger Highfield, will also be giving a special talk as part of the nine day wizard-themed event. Visitors will find out how dragons fly and if invisibility cloaks would really work.

Admission to the National Railway Museum is free. Wizard duels, owl displays and science shows are all free with a small charge for craft activities and broomstick flying. Further information about the event can be found at nrm.org.uk/wizardweek.

ENDS

For more information contact:
Emma Rodgers, Press Officer, NRM
01904 686281
emma.rodgers@nrm.org.uk

Notes to Editors:
• Photo entries for the ‘Best Dressed Wizard’ competition will be judged by a panel of National Railway Museum staff, plus a special guest judge from the world of magic.

• The National Railway Museum in York covers over 200 years of railway history and its collections include over 100 locomotives , some 250 items of rolling stock and thousands of other objects - from posters and tickets to uniforms and silverware. Visitors can enjoy a fun family day out with the kids including an action-packed annual programme of special events and exhibitions. Admission to the museum is free. For more information visit nrm.org.uk.

• The National Railway Museum forms part of the National Museum of Science and Industry (NMSI), along with the Science Museum in London, the National Media Museum in Bradford and Locomotion – the National Railway Museum in Shildon.