Turning Dizzy Over Dippy

It’s an exciting week. My youngest son is commencing a new developmental stage.

First came the smile, swiftly followed by the giggle; next was rolling over, then sitting up. Lately, we’ve mastered simple tower-building and are beginning to parallel play.

But - and here the excitement really begins - today sees the start of the Dino-mania stage!

All parents will recognise it, instantly. Dino-mania begins in early childhood and lasts… well, sometimes indefinitely.

Highly contagious and commonly recognised by feverish symptoms, flushed faces and general giddiness, Dino-mania has been sweeping the country, taking over Birmingham, Glasgow and, this weekend, Newcastle.

Yes, the much-anticipated Dippy has arrived at the Hancock!

Dippy was unveiled on Saturday: a spectacular Diplodocus skeleton from London’s Natural History Museum, cast in 1905, with 292 bones in total and spanning over 21 metres in length. It is surely as spellbinding now as ever.

Last month, the Kelvingrove announced the spectacular success of Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure, with visitor figures for the tour reaching the million mark. Such triumphs seem certain to continue, with Dippy in situ at the Great North Museum: Hancock until 6 October.

Dippy’s appearance has reminded me that dinosaurs are the perfect family diversion. Known to us only through their fossilised remains, these ancient creatures are the stuff of mystery, the stuff of adventure and of stories, guarding their secrets closely.

Moreover, the complexities of geology ensure that a dabble into the world of dinosaurs can engage the entire family, no matter the spread of ages. When railroad workers unearthed the fossilised bones in Wyoming, USA in 1898, newspapers billed the discovery as the 'most colossal animal ever on Earth'.

Anyone venturing up to Newcastle would be wise to book tickets online before setting out. There was no chance of picking up a last-minute ticket for the opening weekend. In fact, over 40,000 free tickets have already been booked in advance.

As well as welcoming Dippy to the North East, families can explore the other museum galleries too, which feature special pop-up displays with themes of extinction, endangered species, fossil fuels, nature conservation and climate change. An extremely rare taxidermy mount of a Great Auk – a flightless bird extinct since the mid-1800s – is one of many highlights, alongside Dippy, of course.

As a storyteller, I often turn to dinosaurs and their fossils for inspiration – it doesn’t have to be as spectacular as Dippy. Even something as tiny as a single fossilised tooth can munch its way into the imagination. Dinosaurs, from a time far in the murky depths of pre-history, back far beyond our own primitive pasts, are endlessly fascinating, and make perfect stimuli for myriad creative activities.

It has taken around 50 hours to painstakingly assemble Dippy’s skeleton over the course of a week, but the effort is, without a doubt, worth it. Director of the Natural History Museum, Sir Michael Dixon, said “We are sure that our much loved and charismatic dinosaur will also prove a hit in Newcastle.” I am sure he’s right.

If you want to stay a little closer to home, you can indulge in a bit of Dino-mania across Yorkshire too.

Another record-breaking dinosaur exhibition continues at the Yorkshire Museum - which recently announced the highest visitor figures for the previous 12 months since York Museums Trust was formed in 2002.

‘Yorkshire’s Jurassic World’ is open to the public until at least March 2020, exploring the dinosaurs and sea monsters of Jurassic Yorkshire.

With virtual reality technology to breathe life into the huge Yorkshire residents of 150 million years ago, the exhibition, opened a year ago by Sir David Attenborough, draws on nationally-significant collections and welcomed 10,000 visitors in its first week alone.

Elsewhere, across the North Yorkshire coastline, dinosaurs left their footprints, presumably with the express purpose of delighting and amazing tourists – many of which can be viewed at Scarborough’s delightful Rotunda Museum, which is also currently featuring a special ‘Ancient Seas of the Yorkshire Coast’ display. Anyone holidaying near Scarborough this half term will be able to join in the free fossil-handling sessions with the museum geologists on 28 May, running from 10.30 am – 12 noon and 1.30-3.00 pm.

Of course, the very youngest can be inspired by dinosaurs without even leaving the comforts of the home. Local libraries are a rich source of pre-school reading material, a favourite of mine being Timothy Knapman’s ‘Dinosaurs in the Supermarket’ – perfect for encouraging close looking and understanding of camouflage, as children search for the dinosaurs hidden amongst the aisles.

With more sunny weather forecast for next week, I suspect we’ll also be hiding dinosaurs around our garden for the perfect game of Dinosaur Hide and Seek. I may be some time.

Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure is at the Great North Museum: Hancock until 6 October. The tour is generously supported by the Garfield Weston Foundation.

You can book tickets and view a programme of events and activities for all ages running throughout Dippy’s stay at greatnorthmuseum.org.uk. Limited walk-up spaces are available each day but queues are likely, particularly during weekends and school holidays for those without pre-booked tickets.

Relaxed sessions are available to book on Sundays (11.15am) and each first Wednesday of the month (4.15pm). These timeslots have a reduced capacity and quieter atmosphere, making them particularly suitable for visitors with autistic spectrum conditions.

Find out more about the Yorkshire Museum, York here: https://www.yorkshiremuseum.org.uk/
Find out more about the Rotunda Museum, Scarborough here: https://www.scarboroughmuseumstrust.com/rotunda-museum/

Rosie Goodwin runs MakeMore ARTS, a Yorkshire-based arts engagement company, working with schools and community groups, museums and heritage organisations. You can find out more at www.makemorearts.com