The Big Idea
The Big Idea (literally: the big idea ) was a hands-on museum in Irvine , Scotland, which was funded by funds related to the Millennium Celebration. It opened in 2000 and drew 120,000 visitors in the first year.
museum
The museum was built on the site where Alfred Nobel's dynamite factory had stood. His focus was on inventions and inventors . In particular, the well-known Scottish inventors John Napier , William Murdock , Sir Alexander Fleming and John Logie Baird were in the center of interest alongside Nobel himself.
The number of visitors fell to 50,000 in the following year, possibly due to the opening of the Glasgow Science Center in 2001, an attraction with a similar orientation not far away. In 2003 the end came and the museum has been closed since then, although it was actually still in good shape. Around £ 15 million had been invested by then.
The museum building fits into the landscape like a dune , only one side is provided with glass windows and is visible.
The site belongs to the Chemring Group , which - via various detours - is the successor company to Nobel's dynamite factory and which still operates an ammunition and explosives factory nearby. Various attempts to bring the site back to life have so far failed.
bridge
A pedestrian sliding bridge was built as the southern entrance to the Ardeer peninsula, on which the exhibition building is located. The northern part of the steel and concrete structure known as the Bridge of Scottish Inventions retracts to allow ships to enter the port of Irvine. Since the museum was closed, the bridge has been permanently open and therefore impassable for pedestrians.
Individual evidence
- ^ The Scotsman Aug 9, 2016
- ↑ a b The Big Idea facing closure . BBC News. August 21, 2013. Retrieved August 4, 2018.
- ↑ The Big Idea . Gazetteer for Scotland . Retrieved August 24, 2009.
- ↑ You might be surprised how Irvine's abandoned science center looks 14 years after closing . BBC Scotland. June 28, 2017. Retrieved August 4, 2018.