AFTER more than six months of temporary closure, Bradford's National Science and Media Museum will reopen its doors to the public again from Wednesday 19 May, it has been announced.

Tickets are now available to pre-book online, and museum opening hours will remain Wednesday to Sunday, from 10am to 4pm.

To ensure the safety of visitors and staff, the site will undergo a rigorous cleaning regime prior to reopening, and additional site-wide cleaning will continue to take place throughout each day.

There will also be signage in place to help guide visitors and staff safely around the building, while visitors will be encouraged to observe social distancing measures and face masks will be mandatory - in line with current guidelines - unless the visitor has an exemption.

Visitors will also be required to book a free timed entry slot in advance of their visit.

The majority of the museum’s galleries will be reopened, including the Kodak Gallery, with the popular Wonderlab gallery and Games Lounge also returning, with enhanced cleaning regimes in place.

The museum shop and café will also open from 19 May, while Pictureville Cinema will reopen from Friday 21 May, showing the new IMAX film Antarctica 3D.

Although the museum has had to "adapt a lot" to the circumstances, staff are still "over the moon" ahead of the reopening, said museum director Jo Quinton-Tulloch.

She added: "We can't wait to come back, and we're so excited - it's been tough on everybody, but we can't wait to welcome people back to the museum.

"Hopefully, this heralds the return of being able to do the things we all love so much once again.

"It is also worth noting that other museums and galleries in Bradford are also reopening in the same week, which is also great to see. 

"Bradford is really well-served by some fantastic collections, both here and elsewhere, and there is lots for people to enjoy. It's great that people now have things to come back out to again and visit for free."

Jo added that a number of measures have been put in place to ensure that the museum is safe for people to visit.

"We need to manage the number of people that come to the museum, so there is still only a certain number of people allowed in the building at any one time, to ensure social distancing can take place”, she said.

"We are asking visitors to book a free ticket in advance, which gives them a timed entry slot, while there will be one-way routes in the galleries and lots of extra signage. We will of course also be asking people to wear a face mask, unless they are exempt.

"There will be similar safety measures in place for our cinemas - all seating will be allocated in a socially-distanced way and again, there are pre-booked tickets so we can manage the number of people. There will also be enhanced cleaning regimes in between screenings.

"There are quite a lot of new exhibitions, and some of our well-loved galleries are also back, while our shop and café will also be open if visitors would like a snack or a drink.

"We have a fantastic line up of exhibitions and events planned for the rest of this year, including the opening of our new Belle Vue Studio exhibition, our Sound Season exhibitions in the summer, and the return of the ever-popular Widescreen Weekend and Bradford Science Festival in the autumn.

"It is also wonderful to be bringing back the magic of the big screen with the reopening of Pictureville Cinema.

"We have had a really good number of ticket sales so far, and we're really delighted that people are responding so well. It is great to know that people are enthusiastic to get back and enjoy some of the cultural activities that Bradford has to offer.

"We've also had some schools booking, which is really pleasing as we know how challenging it has been for schools over lockdown. Kids haven't had the opportunity to get outside much, so it's fantastic that they can start to do that again now."

More information can be found on the National Science and Media Museum website.