Welcome to our January to March programme
Explore the January to March programme for 2023 at The Museum of English Rural Life. Find something for visitors of all ages to enjoy.
Digging deeper: volunteer satisfaction at The MERL and Reading Museum in 2022
Delve into the findings of our 2022 volunteer survey and explore the fantastic work our volunteers helped deliver throughout the year.
MERLy Christmas: begin the festive season this year at The MERL
Learn about MERLy Christmas, our annual Christmas shopping event. Featuring crafts, treats, and carol singing!
Takeover Day 2022 at The MERL
For Takeover Day 2022, a student from Addington School talks about their internship here at The MERL.
Magical Lights in The MERL garden
Each year, we end December with a Magical Lights event. Read about our postponed 2021 Magical Lights, reimagined for the Lunar New Year.
51 Voices: The story continues…
Read about the next steps for The MERL’s 70th-anniversary celebrations, 51 Voices, as they continues into our 71st year.
Wild Being: our Mentored Volunteering Programme
Find out how mentored volunteering at The MERL and Reading Museum helps more people access the benefits of volunteering.
Discover Friday Fledglings at The MERL
Hear from Charlotte Allchin, who plans and delivers Friday Fledglings: our weekly outdoor learning sessions for under 5s.
Hidden Stories
The MERL – so much more than simply galleries for people to visit…. The MERL prides itself in being part of the local Reading community beyond the walls of the museum. Recently we have had the opportunity to partner with Age UK Berkshire to take our collections to a whole new audience and we jumped […]
Naming places: how children make the world their own
Written by Dr Jeremy Burchardt, Department of History, University of Reading Place-name (toponym) research has a long and distinguished tradition in English historical scholarship, associated with the work of luminaries such as Margaret Gelling, Harry Thorpe and the English Place Name Society. Admittedly, there is an even longer tradition of bogus place-name derivations–just the other […]