An open-air museum that brings 1940s and 1950s history to life through “immersive exhibits” has won the UK Art Fund Museum of the Year, the world’s largest museum prize.
Beamish, The Living Museum of the North in County Durham—which attempts to show what life was like in the Georgian, Edwardian, 1940s and 1950s eras through meetings with “costumed folk”—was announced as winner of the £120,000 prize yesterday (26 June) in a ceremony at the Museum of Liverpool.
The 55-year-old museum recently completed its “Remaking Beamish” project, the recreation of a 1950s town involving 32,000 community members. In 2024, the museum welcomed more than 838,000 visitors. An Unlimited Pass allowing entry for a year from the date of purchase costs £33 (standard).
Jenny Waldman, Director of Art Fund, says in a statement: “The judges were blown away by the remarkable attention to detail of its exhibits across a 350-acre site and by the passion of its staff and volunteers.” The other four finalists—Chapter (Cardiff), Compton Verney (Warwickshire), Golden Thread Gallery (Belfast), Perth Museum (Perth & Kinross)—each receive £15,000.
The Art Fund Museum of the Year judges 2025 include the artist Rana Begum; David Dibosa, the director of research and interpretation at Tate; Jane Richardson, the chief executive of Amgueddfa Cymru-Museum Wales, and the comedian Phil Wang.
The Art Fund Museum of the Year prize is funded by its members who buy a National Art Pass. It has been awarded annually since 2013; previous winners have included the Burrell Collection in Glasgow, the Horniman Museum, Tate St Ives and the Victoria and Albert Museum. The Young V&A, a museum aimed at children that reopened in London in 2023, won last year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year prize.
