I was invited yesterday to a preview of the new “Wondercrump World of Roald Dahl’s interactive experience at the Southbank Centre, in the Royal Festival Hall. As part of the Southbank Centre’s Imagine Children’s festival and Roald Dahl 100 (he would have been 100 on the 13th September this year) it’s a brand new exhibit, perfect for 7-12 year olds that takes you through the imagination of the world’s greatest storyteller and gives us a great deal of insight into his extraordinary life and the surprising inspiration for the most famous characters and stories.
Laura Dockrill, the children’s author has narrated the production and told us a bit about it. It’s a 55 minute immersive, sensory experience aiming to take children on a journey of Roald Dahl’s life, encouraging them to laugh out loud and be enthralled whilst gathering inspiration along the way to enhance their own imaginations and get writing themselves. Encouraging them to go forward, be happy “and watch with glittering eyes the whole world around you – those who don’t believe in magic will never find it.”
There are seven different rooms all providing different insight into Roald Dahl himself – either as a young boy in the classroom or as a man in an RAF uniform (he was 6’4″ by the time he was 15! I hadn’t realised he was such a big man). Or indeed, that he was so prolific over so many years. It was apparently his crash in the desert that caused the life changing moment that he decided to be a writer.
They recreate a 1930’s classroom all filled with school reports and letters – I was given a special bit of scrunched up paper to look after until we got to another room.
Another room houses an orphanage attic surrounded by glowing dream jars and the leather sandal of his that he sent to Quentin Blake to begin the inspiration for the BFG (shortly to be out on film!).
Very touchy feely – sand, squishy things, books, noise, dreams, farty noises at the whoopee cushion stand – guaranteed to result in much hilarity and a concoction and dressing up station. They will love it – it gives you a little of that inspirational magic that was Roald Dahl himself.
Room 1: The City
Boxes of ideas and a typed letter from Roald Dahl to his teacher and her class thanking them for their drawings:-
Room 2: School Years
Desks and lots of typed letters to look at including one that describes the origin of the idea for Charlie and the Chocolate Factory when he had to blind taste some chocolate, as well as some reports.
Room 2.1: Signing Up
His RAF jacket and lots of sand and sound….
Room 3: The Crash
His plane crashes in Libya in the desert.
Room 4: The Forest
A forest, some letters and a giant peach.
Room 5.1: Twits Corridor
All upside down
Room 6: The Library
Letters, books and some magical telekinesis! Including the list of books recommended to Matilda to read. Inspirational.
Room 7: The Attic
Roald Dahl’s size 13 sandal (HUGE!) which he got in Norway and an opportunity to have your dream saved in a bottle. This was the very one he sent to Quentin Blake to begin the inspiration for the BFG (shortly to be out on film!).
Room 8: Inventing Room
Lots of activities here to enjoy!
Especially the Whoopee cushion station!
and here was the message I carried around after it had been cooked and mashed and concocted!
Very pertinent for me…it said “good original thoughts are hard to come by – write it down at once – without my little book I’d be helpless” (or something like that).
