In this exhibition, as we gear up for further improvements to the museum site, staff reflect on its original condition and the fantastic transformations already made.

World-shaping, record-breaking, life-changing. The Liverpool and Manchester Railway was the world’s first intercity line that started a transport revolution.

Go back in time to the working mills of 150 years ago, experience the deafening sounds of the machinery and find out what life was like for thousands of mill workers.

Can you use your curious brain to help us understand how a steam locomotive works? Our Explainers have a manual, but it’s more fun to work it out!

Who will you support? Player 1 or Player 2? Take control of this live science show as different experiments battle it out to be crowned your winner.

Destination Stations offers a snapshot of the expansion of railway stations, focused on Manchester and London.

Watch volunteers run our replica Baby and see how far computing has come since 1948.

Delve into our treasure trove of books, photographs, documents and films.

Thread your way through Manchester’s rich legacy of industrial innovations, scientific discoveries and ideas that changed the world.

Manchester is built on cotton. Our Textiles Gallery tells the story of the people, products and pioneers that made it and their continuing legacy in our city and our world today.

From the printing press to modern computing, discover how technological advancements have made it possible for us to communicate further and faster.

Stare into the mirror of infinity, create a tornado, and watch your own skeleton ride a bicycle. Play with 25 hands-on exhibits and see science in action.

Experience the sights, sounds and smells of real working steam engines that powered mills all over the North West and helped to shape our world.

Find out how a mill engine works and discover its role in the Industrial Revolution.