The Imitation Game Exhibition at Bletchley Park

We recently spent two weeks traveling around Southern England and couldn’t pass up the chance to visit Bletchley Park, just north of London. Our visit happened to coincide with the opening of the The Imitation Game exhibition, which celebrates Benedict’s most recent film. Our staff writer Aki already did a wonderful write up about visiting Bletchley Park (which you can find here), so I will be focusing on the current exhibition (which will be on until November 2015, perfect for anyone coming over for Hamlet). Bletchley Park is just outside Milton Keynes and can be reached by bus, train or car. We almost missed the very unassuming entrance but were immediately enchanted by the quiet and historical atmosphere of the place. We had about 4 hours and those passed almost too quickly. There’s just SO much to explore and take in. From the moment you enter the first building you feel transported back in time. Bletchley feels like a real time capsule.

We of course couldn’t resist a cheesy selfie in front of the exhibition poster. The first part of the general exhibition gives you a nice introduction to Bletchley and its code breakers. After that you get an iPod Touch to guide you through the whole complex.

The Imitation Game exhibition is located in the gorgeous mansion (right next to the café, where we enjoyed some yummy bangers/sausages and mash).

The amount of The Imitation Game props and costumes on display is really astonishing! From school boy uniforms to Keira and Benedict’s costumes and Turing’s bike. All very nicely presented in two of the mansions gorgeous rooms.

This picture was taken and included here because I’m sure you all appreciate some Sherlock-haired Casualbatch.

I loved how much of the prop documents and letters were on display. It really shows the amount of detail that went into the creation of the film. Even letters we never get to see in close up were meticulously recreated. We overheard some elderly gentlemen pointing out a historical error in one of the prop newspapers (wrong Queen or year, I think), which made me chuckle. You can really spend ages reading all the documents. Even the stones Alan throws at Joan’s window at one point in the film are on display. That’s how detailed everything is.

Along with props and costumes you find a lot of explanations and production notes, which are an interesting read.

Turing’s wonderful creation ‘Christopher’ (which the real Turing never really called Christopher, it was simply the ‘Bombe’) is an incredibly impressive recreation. You can go here to read how it was built for the film.

Even the bar from the film can be found here (sorry, this dashing gentleman insisted on being in the picture). The bar scenes were actually filmed in this very room. So it’s a bit like a set visit too.

The Imitation Game exhibition is, of course, only a tiny part of the Bletchley experience. Make sure to visit the different huts where codebreakers worked tirelessly to be one step ahead of the enemy. The huts are brought back to life with projections and audio tracks recreating the bustling atmosphere. But they’re still a bit eerie. You can feel that you’re surrounded by history.

And then there’s Alan Turing’s office. I couldn’t help but shiver when I entered the room. It was hard not to feel his presence somehow. Particularly because the office is so nicely furnished and feels like he could return any second.

Little touches like the mug which has been chained to a radiator (Turing’s strategy to keep others from using it), the running shoes and the gas mask (which Turing wore during hay fever season while riding his bike to avoid pollen) are lovely reminders of how wonderfully unique Turing was. Great things to spot for anyone who has seen the film and done some research on the man.

You can find more very touching Turing mementoes in in the Block B building, which houses the Life and Work of Alan Turing gallery. It’s the perfect place to learn more about this incredible man and his work. And you can visit Porgy, the teddy Turing used to practice his speeches on. I love this mental image.

But the heart of this part of the exhibition is without a doubt the world’s only fully operational Bombe rebuild. Just look at it!! It was running while we were there and a lovely volunteer explained how the Bombe was used to break Enigma. I still try to get my head around the complexity of this miracle of engineering. How on Earth can anyone come up with something like this? The mind boggles!

Benedict apparently spent a few hours down here, trying to understand the Bombe’s mechanisms. We know how much he loves his research.

This is only a small part of what Bletchley Park has to offer. I can really see myself going back for a longer visit! This is particularly tempting because the entrance ticket gives you the option to return for free during one year. I can highly recommend packing a picnic and jumping on the train to spend a stimulating and also very relaxing day there.

Written by Cumberchicken on 22 November 2014. 1 comment »
Category: Education, History, Places
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