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Name any topic – there’s a high likelihood that, somewhere in the UK, there’s been a museum exhibition dedicated to it. Creating an exhibition all about soil, the circus, handheld fans or dinosaurs takes thousands of hours of research and preparation. And every year, the Museums + Heritage Awards recognises all of that hard work.
One of the headline categories at the awards is Permanent Exhibition of the Year. For 2026, that title went to a little museum in Worcestershire. Avoncroft Museum of Historic Building received the top prize for its ‘Revealing the Hidden Stories of the Showmen Community’ show.
Avoncroft’s exhibition centres around a 20th century Showman’s grand living wagon, decked out with etched glass, rich mahogany furnishings and hand-painted ceilings. It was built in 1910 and acted as a family home and business office for showman Tom Clarke as he took as rides and attractions around the Midlands.
The venue’s collections and interpretation manager Steven Hearn came across the wagon in 2022, hidden away in a nondescript building at the museum. He wrote in a blog about the exhibition that it became clear the vehicle was ‘an opportunity to tell a broader, more impactful story about the Showmen community and to raise awareness, understanding, and appreciation for this marginalised demographic’.
So, to make the exhibition a reality, he began conducting surveys, reaching out to organisations such as the National Fairground and Circus Archive and the Fairground Heritage Trust and collecting stories from Tom Clarke’s family and people in travelling communities.
All of that work culminated in an exhibition that features 38 historic fairground signs, historic swing boats that originally belonged to Tom Clarke, an intricate fairground model that was acquired by the museum in 1990 but had been in storage for decades, an oral history section with stories from 25 Showmen, interactive panels and of course, the magnificent wagon.
The museum also commissioned Amy Goodwin – one of just 10 commercial fairground artists remaining in the UK – to create signage for the exhibition and eight bespoke hand painted background designs for the interpretation panels.
Judges said: ‘This winner is a perfect David and Goliath moment — a small-scale co-curated exhibition delivered on a very small budget that is, in every sense, outstanding. It is a masterclass in authentic, emotionally resonant storytelling.’
Zoe Willems, director of Avoncroft Museum, said: ‘We are absolutely thrilled to receive this award.To be recognised on a national stage alongside some of the largest museums and heritage organisations in the country is incredibly special. This exhibition was created with passion, collaboration and a commitment to telling real stories with honesty and care.’
The other venues shortlisted for the award was London’s Natural History Museum for its ‘Fixing Our Broken Planet’, Somerset’s Shoemakers Museum for its ‘Place, people and purpose’ exhibition, Manchester’s Science and Industry Museum for ‘Power Hall: The Andrew Law Gallery’ and Poole Museum.
Check out: These are the museums in the running to be crowned Art Fund Museum of the Year 2026.
Plus: This underrated British museum is getting a game-changing refurb.
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