Exclusive Wallace and Gromit exhibition opens at Spaceport in Seacombe

Mar 17 2010 by Matt Hurst, Heswall News

A GRAND day out is in store at Spaceport next week, as an exclusive Wallace and Gromit exhibition opens for the first time.

The Seacombe attraction, more commonly associated with Daleks and aliens, welcomes some of the intrepid duo’s wackiest inventions for a special show entitled ‘Wallace and Gromit in Space’.

Specifically designed for Spaceport, the exhibition includes frequent references to the Lancashire pair’s first short film, ‘A Grand Day Out’. The Academy Award nominated animation saw Wallace and Gromit construct a rocket to take them to the moon in search of cheese, Wallace’s favourite food.

And creator Nick Park says he’s as excited as anyone to see the pair get so close to returning.

He said: “It’s been 20 years since we first sent Wallace and Gromit into space and it’s great to see them back out there again, delving more deeply into the mysteries of the universe.”

Visitors will be able to explore the famous orange rocket constructed by Wallace, and his Moon Base Exploration Station, where the inventor harvested cheese, collected space junk and checked for lunar life, as well as other Wallace and Gromit film sets.

And to ensure the little ones don’t return to school thinking the moon actually is made of cheese, factual information about the moon, solar system and the history of space exploration will also be on display.

Nick Park added: “Hopefully their efforts will help educate others about some of the amazing facts surrounding space exploration and recent advances in technology.”

The exhibition will journey through the history of man’s fascination with the moon, and chronicle the earliest attempts to communicate with life on other planets, as well as the first lunar landing in 1969.

Information on advances in robotic technology will sit alongside some of Wallace’s own inventions for exploring the surface of the moon.

Chief executive of Merseytravel, Neil Scales said: “This is a tremendous coup for us and a unique first for Merseyside.”

The exhibition opens on Thursday March 25.