Dippy is unveiled at Kelvingrove Museum, Glasgow

Dippy, the Natural History Museum London’s famous Diplodocus cast, has crossed the Irish sea for a second time, making his way from Ulster Museum in Belfast to Glasgow's Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum.  

Glasgow is the fourth stop on an eight-venue tour over almost three years, which aims to introduce 1.5 million people to this fascinating exhibit, to inspire the next generation of scientists and to encourage families to explore nature on their doorstep.

Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure is being brought to Kelvingrove Museum and visitors across the UK by the Natural History Museum in partnership with the Garfield Weston Foundation, and supported by Dell EMC and Williams & Hill.

It has taken a team of four technicians and two conservators from the Museum five days to piece the giant dinosaur jigsaw together at Kelvingrove Museum, where, for the first time, visitors were able to watch the transformation take place from the balcony. To see a timelapse video of the construction, read through to Notes to Editors.

Director of the Natural History Museum, Sir Michael Dixon, said: ‘We are thrilled that Dippy has once again made it safely across the Irish sea and has now arrived at Kelvingrove Museum in Glasgow. Dippy on Tour has so far seen record visitor numbers at the three previous venues. Dippy has acted as an ambassador for the natural world inspiring thousands of children to explore the nature on their doorstep. We are sure his impact will be just as powerful in Scotland and hope visitors are as excited to see him as we are for him to be there.’

As well as attracting large numbers of additional visitors at all three previous venues that have hosted Dippy, Dorset County Museum, Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery and Ulster Museum have all reported a positive social and economic impact too. In Birmingham, Dippy attracted 140,000 additional visitors to the  city centre – these visitors ultimately spent £4.2m in the city. Most recently at Ulster Museum in Belfast, Dippy delighted over 130,000 visitors. The Museum also reported the highest number of visitors for an exhibition in a single day, 4,200.

Chair of Glasgow Life, Councillor David McDonald, said: ‘Dippy has arrived. There is a wonderful sense of excitement surrounding the biggest thing to arrive at Kelvingrove Museum – quite literally – this year. We’re delighted to be the only Scottish venue to host the iconic dinosaur. It feels a little like a homecoming given the conversations that lead to his creation started at Skibo Castle, home of Andrew Carnegie and it was a pleasure to have his great grandson with us for the opening.’

At Kelvingrove, Dippy’s 292 bone structure will be accompanied by a very special exhibition telling the story of Andrew Carnegie, the Scottish philanthropist who, in Wyoming in 1912, uncovered the fossil from which Dippy is cast. The exhibition will display a variety objects related to the Diplodocus’s fascinating history, giving visitors the chance to learn more about Andrew Carnegie and his namesake Diplodocus carnegii.

William Thomson, Andrew Carnegie’s great grandson, was at Kelvingrove Museum for the opening. He said: 'For Andrew Carnegie, Diplodocus carnegii was more than a huge prehistoric creature. It was a symbol and an opportunity. By gifting copies to the heads of state of seven other countries as well as the UK, Carnegie hoped to demonstrate through mutual interest in scientific discoveries that nations have more in common than what separates them.  He used his gifts in an attempt to open interstate dialogue on preserving world peace – a form of Dinosaur Diplomacy!  Replicas of Diplodocus carnegii are still on display in some of the most famous natural history museums in Europe, but sadly the wellspring of their united history has been largely forgotten.  The exhibition sheds some light on this remarkable story.’

Philippa Charles, Director of the Garfield Weston Foundation, said: “We are delighted to see Dippy arrive in Scotland after his hugely successful stays in Dorchester, Birmingham and Belfast. We hope that he continues to inspire visitors to think about and explore the wonders of our natural world during his stay in Glasgow.”

Having been carefully installed he is now ready to meet visitors on Scottish soil. The eagerly awaited Dippy on Tour: A Natural History Adventure opens Tuesday 22 January and will run until 6 May 2019.

Admission is free and you do not require a ticket to visit, although people are being asked to leave a little extra time to see Dippy, especially at weekends and during school holidays.

Notes to Editors

Tour dates

• Dorset County Museum, 10 February - 7 May 2018
• Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery, 26 May - 9 September 2018
• Ulster Museum, 28 September 2018 - 6 January 2019
• Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum, Glasgow, 22 January - 5 May 2019
• Great North Museum, Hancock, Newcastle upon Tyne, 18 May - 6 October 2019
• National Museum Cardiff, 19 October 2019 - 26 January 2020
• Number One Riverside, Rochdale, 10 February - 28 June 2020
• Norwich Cathedral, 11 July - 31 October 2020

The Natural History Museum

The Natural History Museum exists to inspire a love of the natural world and unlock answers to the big issues facing humanity and the planet. It is a world-leading science research centre, and through its unique collection and unrivalled expertise it is tackling issues such as food security, eradicating diseases and managing resource scarcity.

The Natural History Museum is the most visited natural history museum in Europe and the top science attraction in the UK; we welcome more than five million visitors each year and our website receives over 500,000 unique visitors a month. People come from around the world to enjoy our galleries and events and engage both in-person and online with our science and educational activities through innovative programmes and citizen science projects.

In partnership with the Garfield Weston Foundation

Established over 60 years ago in 1958, the Garfield Weston Foundation is a family-founded, grant-making charity which supports causes across the UK with grants around £70million annually. It has donated over £1billion to charities since it was established.

One of the most respected charitable institutions in the UK, the Weston Family Trustees are descendants of the founder and they take a highly active and hands-on approach. The Foundation’s funding comes from an endowment of shares in the family business which includes Twinings, Primark, Kingsmill (all part of Associated British Foods Plc) and Fortnum & Mason, amongst others – a successful model that still endures today; as the businesses have grown so too have the charitable donations.

From small community organisations to large national institutions, the Foundation supports a broad range of charities and activities that make a positive impact in the communities in which they work. More than 1,800 charities across the UK benefit each year from the Foundation’s grants.

Tour Sponsors

DELL EMC

Dell EMC, a part of Dell Technologies, enables organizations to modernize, automate and transform their data center using industry-leading converged infrastructure, servers, storage and data protection technologies. This provides a trusted foundation for businesses to transform IT, through the creation of a hybrid cloud, and transform their business through the creation of cloud-native applications and big data solutions. As a supplier of the Natural History Museum, Dell EMC technology has supported the work of its scientists for many years. Through Dippy on Tour, Dell EMC and the Natural History Museum have the opportunity to inspire the next generation of scientists and encourage them to engage with the natural world. The digital world has a huge role to play in this, and the web app Dippy’s Naturenauts created as part of this partnership, demonstrates the role online and mobile technology can play in encouraging people to explore the outside world.

Williams & Hill

Williams & Hill have built up a reputation for excellence by firmly establishing themselves as the leading ‘Specialised Transporter of Fine Art, Antiques, Design Furniture and Decorative Objects’. With a highly experienced team working for the world’s major galleries and exhibition venues – they have a true understanding of the requirements for methodical care, consideration and appreciation of whatever may be in their care. No two days are the same, and the excitement of working in their own ever changing art gallery never fades. 

Tour venues and partners

Dorset County Museum is one of the leading independent, charitable, heritage organisations in the Southwest of England. It has a learned Society with 2000 members and receives over 47,000 visitors a year. Its diverse collections contain over 4 million objects including internationally significant geology, archaeology and literary collections. The Museum is a registered charity and operates independently with financial support from Dorset County Council and West Dorset District Council. In May 2015 the Museum was awarded £11.3million from the Heritage Lottery Fund to enable an ambitious redevelopment project. dorsetcountymuseum.org

The Jurassic Coast was designated England’s only natural World Heritage Site in 2001. Day to day site Management of the Jurassic Coast is the work of the Jurassic Coast Trust, a small independent charity with a huge remit.  The Trust works to inspire people to love, understand and value the Jurassic Coast, and was instrumental in bringing Dippy down to Dorset in collaboration with the County Museum. jurassiccoast.org

Birmingham Museums Trust is an independent charity that manages the city’s museum collection and venues on behalf of Birmingham City Council. It uses the collection of around 800,000 objects to provide a wide range of arts, cultural and historical experiences, events and activities that deliver accessible learning, creativity and enjoyment for citizens and visitors to the city. Attracting over one million visits a year, the Trust’s venues include Aston Hall, Birmingham Museum & Art Gallery, Blakesley Hall, Museum Collections Centre, Museum of the Jewellery Quarter, Sarehole Mill, Soho House, Thinktank and Weoley Castle. birminghammuseums.org.uk

Come face to face with dinosaurs, meet an Ancient Egyptian Mummy and see modern masterpieces with a visit to the Ulster Museum. As Northern Ireland’s treasure house of the past and present, the museum is home to a rich collection of art, history and natural sciences and free to all visitors. The Ulster Museum, part of National Museums Northern Ireland, welcomes nearly half a million visitors annually. nmni.com/um

Glasgow Life is the charity which runs services and facilities on behalf of Glasgow City Council. We work in every area of the city and with every community to try and inspire Glasgow’s citizens and visitors to lead richer and more active lives through culture, sport and learning. More than 18 million attendances were recorded to the facilities that we run across the city between 2015 and 2016. Glasgow Museums is the largest museum service in the UK outside London and operates nine easy to reach, accessible and family friendly venues across the city. We are open year-round and entry is free. Glasgow Museums house an extraordinary permanent collection of fine art, historic objects and natural history exhibited in some of Glasgow’s most stunning public buildings. glasgowlife.org.uk

Great North Museum: Hancock is managed by Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums on behalf of Newcastle University. The Museum brings together the North East’s premier collections of archaeology, natural history, geology and world cultures under one roof. It incorporates collections from the original Hancock Museum, Newcastle University’s former Museum of Antiquities and the Shefton Museum. The Great North Museum is a partnership between Newcastle University, Tyne & Wear Archives & Museums, Newcastle City Council, the Natural History Society of Northumbria (NHSN) and the Society of Antiquaries of Newcastle upon Tyne (SANT). 

Situated in the heart of Cardiff’s elegant civic centre, National Museum Cardiff houses Wales’s national art, geology and natural history collections as well as major touring and temporary exhibitions. On the ground floor of the museum, take an amazing journey in The Evolution of Wales from the very beginnings of time to the present day. The story begins in space with the Big Bang and takes you on a 4,600 million-year journey, bringing you face to face with dinosaurs and woolly mammoths along the way. Witness Wales's diverse natural history on an expedition that begins at the seashore and ends in the mountains. Experience some of the unique environments that make Wales home to over 900 Sites of Special Scientific Interest. The art collection at National Museum Cardiff is one of Europe's finest and includes five hundred years of magnificent paintings, drawings, sculpture, silver and ceramics from Wales and across the world, including one of Europe's best collections of Impressionist art.

Rochdale Borough Council is a local authority in the North West of England which serves more than 200,000 residents. Sitting in the foothills of the Pennines and close to the major cities of Manchester and Leeds, the council is playing a key role in the Northern Powerhouse, and its priorities are people, place and prosperity. Link4Life is the Rochdale Boroughwide Cultural Trust, delivering leisure and cultural provision across the Rochdale borough, including the award-winning arts and heritage centre, Touchstones Rochdale. 

Norwich Cathedral is a Christian presence in the heart of Norfolk and the Diocese of Norwich. It began, over 900 years ago, as the Cathedral church of a Benedictine Monastery, built to inspire by its sheer size and magnificence. The Cathedral continues to fill today’s visitors with a sense of awe and wonder. The primary purpose of a Cathedral is to be a place of Christian worship. It was at the centre of the monastery and the focus of the monks’ most important work, the worship of God. Norwich Cathedral is also the focus of both city and county life. As well as playing host to special civic and legal services, it is also a venue for concerts, talks, exhibitions, degree ceremonies and other community events.