News and Views

Discover stories from our collections, work, research, and events. Warning: may contain absolute units.

clogs and clog lasts lined up on a window ledge against a dusty window
Author
Alison Hilton
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Published Date
October 10, 2018

Stepping out of time with Hannah James at The MERL Annual Lecture

Repeated images of a postage stamp depicting a chicken wearing trousers on a shield, with the title 'HENSBROEK', a town in the Netherlands.
Author
josefinabravo
/
Published Date
October 9, 2018

Why is a chicken wearing trousers?

Richard Beale’s viral chicken in trousers is unusual, but could have been inspired by a number of things (including a small Dutch town). Discover more!

Author
josefinabravo
/
Published Date
October 8, 2018

Chicken in trousers? What’s next – a cow wearing wellies?

The Museum of English Rural Life went viral with a chicken wearing trousers, but what about other clothed animals in the countryside? Let us tell you.

A black and white picture of Doreen Thorp smiling, wearing a white shirt and tie
Author
sheilafisher
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Published Date
October 8, 2018

Searching for the Extraordinary

Museum of English Rural Life volunteers explore The MERL Archives and Special Collections for stories of extraordinary women for Heritage Open Days

A scene of Woburn sheep shearing fair, with many animals and people milling about.
Author
josefinabravo
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Published Date
October 5, 2018

A snap chat about new photos of country shows

Join our exciting instalment of Land and Folk where we bring the story of photographer Arnhel de Serra’s ongoing project, The Country Show, to The MERL.

Author
Alison Hilton
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Published Date
October 1, 2018

If you go down to The MERL today…

Find out about surprising changes at the Museum of English Rural Life as part of Steven Claydon’s new Reading International exhibition, The Outside In

An illustration of a woman looking at a man, as part of an editorial meeting, for the Ladybird Women exhibition
Author
josefinabravo
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Published Date
September 14, 2018

Women of Ladybird: New Feminism in Old Tales

Discover how depictions of women in Ladybird books contributed to gender roles and the expectations of British society, and visit our free display!

An close-up of a slipware harvest jug coloured brown and yellow, with the design of a smiling sun on the front and overlaid white text 'Folk'.
Author
josefinabravo
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Published Date
September 5, 2018

Why the Folk?

Why the folk should you care about folk? Let our curator Ollie enlighten you to the fascinating and contested world of folk at the MERL.

Author
josefinabravo
/
Published Date
September 4, 2018

We can’t believe we get to do this with chickens

Discover all the fun we’ve had with chickens in our Poultry Club project, in collaboration with the Poultry Club of Great Britain!