Construction work begins for new Royal Marines Museum at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard amid move concerns
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Boots are on the ground to develop the new Royal Marines Museum at a prominent historical location.
The new tourist attraction will be coming to Portsmouth Historic Dockyard at Boathouse 6 following a move from its former Eastney site. A spokesperson for the National Museum of the Royal Navy (NMRN) confirmed to The News that “initial construction work has begun”, alongside a provisional finishing date.
Most of the funding had been secured for the site, with work continuing to try and secure further financial support. “As with all construction schedules there are many influencing factors that will determine the opening date of the building and as such, we have not yet announced a date, but the programme is working to a 2026 ambition,” the spokesperson said.
“We have secured a large proportion of the capital for the project but continue to work with funders and partners to secure the remaining funds.”
“Lost completely”
The beloved Action Stations interactive experience in Boathouse 6 - with the building also consisting of climbing walls, Laser Quest, a cinema and other amenities - is currently closed. It’s the aim for the 1840s Grade II* listed building to house a museum and interactive experience honouring the Royal Marines.
A 96-room luxury hotel is due to be built at the former location after planning permission was approved earlier this year. The site is currently up for sale.
Royal Marines history enthusiast Derek Raey, 73, of Stubbington, expressed concerns about the new location, and said the stories and bravery of the force could be “lost completely”.
He told The News: “It has all gone to pot. The Royal Marines Experience Museum will only be a third of the size of the original plans, and a lot of things won’t be on show.
“Boathouse 6 is an iconic building due to the way it was constructed. People would go in there to see the iron columns and girders on the inside. Now, if they move a museum there, it’s going to be based around all these columns and pillars. They intend to put boxes around them, so the people who used to go in there to look at the construction, half of that won’t be there anymore. I don’t think it’s a suitable building.”
Mr Raey is also worried about its lack of prominence in Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. He added: “ It will simply be an extension of Portsmouth Historic Dockyard. People will think it’s just something else to see. Whether they’ll actually go in is another matter.
“Management said numbers will more than triple, but I don’t think it will be that number. People will look at it and not explore it. It will all be technology based, an interactive thing where people can press buttons. Youngsters might like it, but the older people who are interested in the history of the marines won’t see much of what was already on show.”
The NMRN spokesperson said the decision to move the museum away from Eastney was “not an easy one”, with the structure not being suitable to preserve historic collections. They added that Boathouse 6 has many benefits, with the scale of the building enabling design teams to create conservation standard conditions for objects to be displayed and not deteriorate.
Much of the current collection is being housed in a £2m collection store in the dockyard. Visitors have already accessed memorabilia via the Collections Access Service. “Whilst this has been temporarily suspended, it will be back up and running later this year and will provide continued access to items that aren't on display in the new Royal Marines galleries,” they added.
A 400sqm special exhibition space is being created at the site. “This will also provide opportunities to bring out a whole range of items from our stored collections, as well as working with national and international partners, to create a dynamic rolling programme of temporary exhibitions, allowing us to refresh the offer and create experience for a whole range of audiences,” they said.
“The desire to bring the RM story to the dockyard does sit beyond the fabric of its previous home. Portsmouth Historic Dockyard draws hundreds of thousands of visits every year. It is our hope that bring this story to the dockyard will actually open it up to a much wider audience than those who made their way to the Eastney site. It also allows to connect the story of the Marines with the wider storytelling across the site, for example the Royal Marines experience on HMS Victory. In doing this we believe that it will make the story richer and connect with the wider experiences of the Royal Navy.”