Never having been to Bletchley Park before, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. With an estimated travel time of three hours, it was further than Omnibus trips usually go. Would it be worth the journey and would there be enough to keep us occupied for the six hours we had planned to spend there? I needn’t have worried. The place was absolutely amazing! Twenty-seven acres of land packed with artefacts, interactive displays and exhibitions. After a quick stop for refreshments, we made our way to the first exhibit which was how codes were broken during the First World War. I was particularly intrigued by the gentleman who used to crack codes in the bath while he was at work! Following on from that we took the excellent free audio guide and explored the grounds, mansion and huts. There was something for everyone – I particularly enjoyed listening to the accounts of people who worked there, while my son was fascinated by the Enigma Machine and the Bombe machine. The number of different possibilities for the codes, and the lengths they went to in order to crack them, was just mind-blowing. After a quick bite to eat we went into some of the huts that were reconstructed to be just how they were during the war effort, including Alan Turing’s office. Each office in each hut had a different story to tell. We even found out about the pigeon decorated for bravery! Suddenly the day had slipped away – a quick visit to the D-Day exhibition and the gift shop and it was time to go back on the coach. We felt that we had hardly skimmed the surface! Other Omnibus members told tales of an excellent walking tour, the museum in Block B and the National Radio Centre. Luckily the tickets we have will allow us a return visit for free, so we plan to go again with Omnibus next year. If you are interested in going before then, please let me know as we have two spare tickets that weren’t used on the day.
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Responses
It certainly was a fascinating, mind blowing and thought provoking place, there was plenty of talk on the coach on the way home. I'll keep hold of my ticket for our next trip there!