| Site map | Contact

Join in At-Bristol’s winter wonderland
21 December 2005 - 3 January 2006

This Christmas holiday At-Bristol has lined up a packed programme of interactive fun to bring holiday cheer to everyone. From ape antics in Wildwalk to mastering the art of animation in Explore and festive IMAX® adventures, there’s plenty to get stuck into this Christmas!

Start your trip with Wildwalk’s new fun-packed exhibition, Great Apes - How great are you? and go bananas on all the interactive activities and challenges. Did you know that there are five great apes – and that you are one of them? Find out more about yourself and your great ape relatives in this fascinating exhibition that will get you hanging out like an orangutan and walking like a gorilla! You can also investigate the threats humans are creating for the future survival of the other great apes, and be inspired with ideas on how you can help save their environments. And if you’re still game for more ape insights then why not join Wildwalk’s Live Science team in the accompanying Ape antics events. See if you can chatter like a chimpanzee or grunt like a gorilla and investigate some incredible ape skulls. Ape antics is free with a ticket to Wildwalk and runs throughout the Christmas holidays.

Over in Explore, the first floor is filled with all things animated in the fantastic touring exhibition, Animated Adventures featuring Wallace and Gromit. Find out how the world’s top animators make their on-screen characters and get an amazing behind the scenes insight into the science and magic of animation. Dominating the exhibition are many of the real sets used in Aardman and DreamWork’s latest film Wallace & Gromit The Curse of the Were-rabbit. You can take a peek inside Lady Tottington’s sumptuous home, see Wallace and Gromit’s bunny-laden basement and discover how the furry buck-toothed Were-rabbit was constructed! To delve even deeper into the tricks of the trade, there’s also the Seeing and Believing show, a whistle-stop tour through the animation process from storyboard scribbles to the finished big screen film. You can then take your newfound inspiration over to the Live Science zone’s Animation stations and try your hand at clay model making, flick book creating and cartoon drawing. Both family events run every day and are free with a ticket to Explore.

To complete your day, don’t miss some classic 3D festive cheer in the IMAX Theatre. With the riotous Santa vs. the Snowman 3D and the enchanting seasonal blockbuster The Polar Express: an IMAX 3D Experience, you can’t fail to get into the Christmas spirit!

Featuring a lonely snowman who devises a plan to take over Santa’s empire, Santa vs. the Snowman 3D transports you to the North Pole for a hilarious polar war with hot chocolate squirt guns and giant igloo Robot Walkers! And for all those who doubt Santa Claus exists, book into The Polar Express: an IMAX 3D Experience and be pleasantly surprised. The film follows the magical story of one doubting boy who takes an extraordinary train ride to the North Pole, discovering that the wonder of life never fades for those who believe. For more details on both 3D IMAX films including screening times and ticket prices, please click here or call the Information line on 0845 345 1235.

At-Bristol is open everyday throughout the holidays apart from Christmas Day. To find out times and details about all events taking please view www.at-bristol.org.uk or call 0845 345 1235 for advance bookings and to help plan your visit.

To contact the At-Bristol Press Office, please call Annabel Iles:
Tel: 0117 915 7152, fax: 0117 915 7200 or email annabel.iles@at-bristol.org.uk

Note to Editors:

1. At-Bristol, a registered charity, has won 13 awards since opening in 2000 including the Good Britain Guide 2001’s ‘Family Attraction of the Year’ and ‘Large Attraction of the Year’ in the England in Excellence Awards South West. It consists of three attractions:
   Explore-At-Bristol - a hands-on science centre, IMAX® Theatre-At-Bristol - the largest cinema screen in the west of England and Wildwalk-At-Bristol - a journey from the origins of life to the ends of the Earth.

2. It is a Landmark Millennium Attraction whose principal partners include the Millennium Commission (£44.3 million), the South West of England Regional Development Agency (£17.1 million) and Bristol City Council (£15.7 million).

3. Great apes – How great are you? has been created by At-Bristol in conjunction with GRASP UNEP/UNESCO’s Great Apes Survival Project). The exhibition is supported by the ReDiscover fund, an initiative set-up by the Millennium Commission, the Wellcome Trust and the Wolfson Foundation to help science centres renew and refresh their exhibitions.

4. Animated Adventures has been funded by the Millennium Commission and designed and developed by W5, the Interactive Discovery Centre in Belfast. It is the first of three touring exhibitions developed by a consortium of the UK’s top science museums: At-Bristol, the National Museums of Liverpool and W5.