Birmingham's historic museum reopens after four-year closure

ITV News Central reporter Hannah Bechelet reports on the opening of the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery after a long closure post-Covid - with a delighted public and celebrities all in attendance.

It's been a very exciting time for history and art lovers in Birmingham, as the Birmingham Museum and Art Gallery has reopened after four years.

The beautiful building was first opened in 1950 and has been showcasing art ever since, but when it closed for the Covid pandemic in 2020, it remained closed, bar a brief spell during the Commonwealth Games so that renovations could take place.

Since then the museum's heating, lighting, roof and electronics have been improved, and some of the space has now been reopened, with some of the million objects the Birmingham Museums Trust back on display.

But how do you pick what to display when you have so much to choose from ?

Well in the case of Birmingham Museum and Gallery, the people of Birmingham were asked what they wanted to see.

Along with specific pieces of art, they said they wanted to hear stories of Birmingham, and the museum has delivered.

One of the rooms has a huge neon sign saying "Made in Birmingham" on the wall and it celebrates all things great about the city in living memory, from the HP sign that used to hang on the Aston factory, to a menu from the arena cafe that used to be in the old Bullring shopping centre.

There's also the first typewriter Benjamin Zephaniah owned and the sign from the Eagle and Tun pub, made famous by UB40 in the "Red, Red Wine" video.

Elsewhere in the museum, former visitors will recognise Jacob Epstein’s stunning bronze sculpture, Lucifer, which stays in pride of place in the Round Room, and there's new exhibits focused on children, plus a beautiful Tearoom.

The reopened rooms represent just a quarter of the space in the building, but due to funding, not all of the room is being used.

The Museum hopes that in time, with fundraising, they'll be able open more and more of the space and showcase more of the exhibits.

I had the pleasure of being at the Museum on opening afternoon, and was blown away by the beauty, not just of the exhibits, but also the architecture.

It is simply a stunning building and as Harry Kirton, an actor from "Peaky Blinders" who just happened to be looking around told me, "I'm not sure if I'm here for the art, or the architecture". Both are equally as amazing.

The Museum is free to look around, and open from Wednesday's to Sundays. It's a beautiful place that showcases the best of Birmingham. I would recommend a visit.