A new exhibition at the Imperial War Museum North displaying items belonging to well-known war correspondents is the first of its kind in the UK.
“War Correspondent, reporting under fire since 1914”, has a huge number of remarkable items on display, many on show for the first time and can be seen, for free, now until 2nd January 2012.
From the typewriter used in Vietnam by Michael Nicholson, one of the last to make it out of the country in 1975, to a burqa worn by John Simpson to infiltrate Afghanistan in 2001, iconic pieces of journalism have been loaned to the museum from correspondents who became household names.
Alex Knight, Press and PR Manager for IWM North, said: “This incredible exhibition reveals the sort of danger they were in. It tells the story behind the stories.”
This summer holiday, IWM North are also running free drop-in sessions alongside the exhibition for children aged 5+ who ever considered a future as a journalist.
The “Young Correspondents” will be able to join in fun and educational craft sessions, such as designing a newspaper front page, to decorating their own journalist’s jotter.
And for young adults (aged 13 to 19) looking to become the next Kate Adie there is a unique opportunity to take part in “Young Correspondents Master Classes” for the full journalistic experience.
The free two day workshop provides teenagers with the chance to meet real witnesses to conflict to get a real sense of context and build a fully informed story.
The young correspondents will then head over the Quays to the BBC Learning Studio at MediaCityUK and create their own report to be loaded onto the BBC 21st Century Classroom website.
“The master classes are going to be really quite exciting,” explained Alex. “It will be a remarkable opportunity and a special introduction to journalism, using up-to-date technology.”
Places for the master classes are still available, and can be booked by contacting the museum. Email [email protected] to book or find out more.
For further details about the drop-in sessions for younger children, go to http://north.iwm.org.uk/server/show/conEvent.3720
For the more information on the master classes for young adults, visit http://north.iwm.org.uk/server/show/conEvent.3762
