Get a friendly welcome at People's History Museum in Manchester, the national museum of democracy. Explore the museum and be empowered by the past to make a change for the future.
Follow the link below to plan your visit, and find out what to expect when you get to PHM.
Plan your visit
For group visits of over six people, follow the link below to fill in an enquiry form or phone the Learning Team on 0161 838 9190.
Book your group visit
The museum is located on the corner of Left Bank and Bridge Street, opposite the Civil Justice Centre, alongside the River Irwell, in the Spinningfields area of Manchester city centre, postcode M3 3ER.
Follow the link below for information on how to get to PHM.
Getting to PHM
We are committed to supporting all visitors during their time at PHM. We understand that everyone’s access needs are different.
Please talk to us if you have queries or require any assistance in advance of your visit on 0161 838 9190 or access@phm.org.uk.
Access at PHM
Explore PHM’s galleries, exhibitions, and hands-on and digital interactives engaging adults and children alike.
Find out what's on
The museum is Family Friendly throughout, from facilities to family favourites including hands-on interactives and activities connecting you and your family with PHM’s unique collections and stories.
Plan your family visit
Take a break from exploring with a sustainable, ethical, and delicious food experience at Open Kitchen Cafe & Bar; offering breakfast, lunch and drinks to grab and go, or sit in and enjoy.
A picnic area is available for visitors bringing their own food and drink to the museum.
Take a break
A unique gift shop in Manchester inspired by the museum’s collection, full of books, cards, homeware, souvenirs and great presents for kids and grown ups.
Shop the collection
Join other visitors and make a donation today, helping to ensure the museum remains free for all.
Support PHM
Have you had your morning brew yet? ☕ It’s #NationalTeaDay this Sunday, but what does a cup of earl grey have to do democracy?
(Yes, I did use an earl grey tea bag for this video and yes, I did really enjoy drinking it afterwards.)
#BritishHistory #PoliticalHistory #EarlGrey #TeaTime #Cuppa #MorningBrew
Have you had your morning brew yet? ☕ It’s #NationalTeaDay this Sunday, but what does a cup of earl grey have to do democracy?
(Yes, I did use an earl grey tea bag for this video and yes, I did really enjoy drinking it afterwards.)
#BritishHistory #PoliticalHistory #EarlGrey #TeaTime #Cuppa #MorningBrew
The media’s dramatic fears over marginalised people gaining rights are nothing new.
‘Hieroglyphic of an Eventful Year, 1831’ depicts how the 1830s ruling elite were having an absolute meltdown over the thought of sharing democracy with middle and working class men. The Reform Act 1832 ended up extending the vote to only middle class men. Just wait until they hear about women’s suffrage.
#BritishHistory #PoliticalHistory #VoterReform
The media’s dramatic fears over marginalised people gaining rights are nothing new.
‘Hieroglyphic of an Eventful Year, 1831’ depicts how the 1830s ruling elite were having an absolute meltdown over the thought of sharing democracy with middle and working class men. The Reform Act 1832 ended up extending the vote to only middle class men. Just wait until they hear about women’s suffrage.
#BritishHistory #PoliticalHistory #VoterReform
An MP once described as ‘one of the most violent anti-British agitators in England…’, yet rarely mentioned in the history of British politics: Shapurji Saklatvala was the Labour Party’s first MP of colour.
Shapurji Saklatvala was born #onthisday 150 years ago in Bombay (now Mumbai). From 1922 to 1923, he used his position as Labour MP for Battersea North to strongly oppose British colonialism in India and Ireland. He was hated by the press because he was openly communist and critical of the British Empire.
Read the blog at the link in bio to find out more about Saklatvala’s remarkable and unique position in British politics.
Image: Saklatvala speaking to a crowd in Trafalgar Square, Communist Party photo collection. Image courtesy of People`s History Museum
#LabourParty #CommunistPartyOfGreatBritain #AntiColonial #BrownHistory
An MP once described as ‘one of the most violent anti-British agitators in England…’, yet rarely mentioned in the history of British politics: Shapurji Saklatvala was the Labour Party’s first MP of colour.
Shapurji Saklatvala was born #onthisday 150 years ago in Bombay (now Mumbai). From 1922 to 1923, he used his position as Labour MP for Battersea North to strongly oppose British colonialism in India and Ireland. He was hated by the press because he was openly communist and critical of the British Empire.
Read the blog at the link in bio to find out more about Saklatvala’s remarkable and unique position in British politics.
Image: Saklatvala speaking to a crowd in Trafalgar Square, Communist Party photo collection. Image courtesy of People`s History Museum
#LabourParty #CommunistPartyOfGreatBritain #AntiColonial #BrownHistory
After years of campaigning by Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), an ombudsman report published yesterday has recommended that thousands of UK women born in the 1950s be compensated for government failings over changes to the state pension.
The WASPI campaign agrees with the state pension age being equal but believes that women were not properly informed and left with no time to make alternative plans.
Currently on display in PHM`s 2024 Banner Exhibition, this banner was created by WASPI in 2018 in protest against having to wait an additional six years for state pensions when they had expected it at 60. The government has not confirmed whether they will pay compensation or apologise, as suggested in the report.
Image: Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) banner, 2018. Image courtesy of People`s History Museum.
After years of campaigning by Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI), an ombudsman report published yesterday has recommended that thousands of UK women born in the 1950s be compensated for government failings over changes to the state pension.
The WASPI campaign agrees with the state pension age being equal but believes that women were not properly informed and left with no time to make alternative plans.
Currently on display in PHM`s 2024 Banner Exhibition, this banner was created by WASPI in 2018 in protest against having to wait an additional six years for state pensions when they had expected it at 60. The government has not confirmed whether they will pay compensation or apologise, as suggested in the report.
Image: Women Against State Pension Inequality (WASPI) banner, 2018. Image courtesy of People`s History Museum.
The arts need you! Make double the difference for one week only with @biggiveorg #ArtsForImpact campaign.
If you give £5, PHM gets £10.
Support us in helping people discover their power to make change. Donate to PHM at the link in our bio.
Thank you! ✊
The arts need you! Make double the difference for one week only with @biggiveorg #ArtsForImpact campaign.
If you give £5, PHM gets £10.
Support us in helping people discover their power to make change. Donate to PHM at the link in our bio.
Thank you! ✊
Happy St Patrick’s weekend! 🇮🇪☘️
Let’s remember an Irish icon: Countess Constance Markievicz. She commanded a garrison at St Stephen’s Green during the Easter Rising for which she was sentenced to death, imprisoned in the notoriously cruel Kilmainham Jail. One year after being spared execution and released from jail, she was elected as the first female MP in the British House of Commons but refused to take her seat in protest against British rule in Ireland in 1918. She supported Labour strikes and women’s suffrage.
Read more about Constance Markievicz in PHM’s latest blog at the link in our bio and visit a mosaic of Constance at PHM as part of the Irish Nation Art Trail, produced by the Irish Mancunian as part of @mancirishfest.
#IrishHistory #WhatsOnManchester #IrishIndependence #StPatricks #StPatricksDay #IrishWomen
Happy St Patrick’s weekend! 🇮🇪☘️
Let’s remember an Irish icon: Countess Constance Markievicz. She commanded a garrison at St Stephen’s Green during the Easter Rising for which she was sentenced to death, imprisoned in the notoriously cruel Kilmainham Jail. One year after being spared execution and released from jail, she was elected as the first female MP in the British House of Commons but refused to take her seat in protest against British rule in Ireland in 1918. She supported Labour strikes and women’s suffrage.
Read more about Constance Markievicz in PHM’s latest blog at the link in our bio and visit a mosaic of Constance at PHM as part of the Irish Nation Art Trail, produced by the Irish Mancunian as part of @mancirishfest.
#IrishHistory #WhatsOnManchester #IrishIndependence #StPatricks #StPatricksDay #IrishWomen
Could there be a deliberate irony in the placement of I <3 NHS stickers on a Tobacco Workers’ Union banner?
In the last few decades, smoking has been the subject of legislation and criticism, with the government often citing NHS capacity as a reason to stop smoking. The latest update is the increased vaping tax announced in Jeremy Hunt’s spring budget 2024.
This banner was made in 1960, with the NHS stickers added later, potentially at protests in 1982. Tobacco workers often stood in solidarity with others fighting for their rights - the Glasgow Tobacco Workers’ Union stood in solidarity during the Miners’ Strike, distributing food to struggling miners.
Image: Tobacco Workers’ Union banner, 1960. Image courtesy of People’s History Museum.
Could there be a deliberate irony in the placement of I <3 NHS stickers on a Tobacco Workers’ Union banner?
In the last few decades, smoking has been the subject of legislation and criticism, with the government often citing NHS capacity as a reason to stop smoking. The latest update is the increased vaping tax announced in Jeremy Hunt’s spring budget 2024.
This banner was made in 1960, with the NHS stickers added later, potentially at protests in 1982. Tobacco workers often stood in solidarity with others fighting for their rights - the Glasgow Tobacco Workers’ Union stood in solidarity during the Miners’ Strike, distributing food to struggling miners.
Image: Tobacco Workers’ Union banner, 1960. Image courtesy of People’s History Museum.
Despite the lack of coalfields in the East End of London, there was strong support for miners in parts of the capital. For example, Tower Hamlets Miners Support Group campaigned on behalf of miners nationally until October 1994.
The design on this banner represents the River Thames by a yellow line, with a pithead wheel placed within the Isle of Dogs, a reference to where the banner was made.
Mark the 40th anniversary of the 1984 to 1985 Miners’ Strike and uncover the stories of a defining event in Britain’s history at PHM on Saturday 23 March. Book tickets at the link in our bio.
Image: Eastenders Against Pit Closures, Tower Hamlets Miners Support Group banner, 1992. Image courtesy of People’s History Museum.
#MinersStrike #MinersStrike40 #Miners #TowerHamlets
Despite the lack of coalfields in the East End of London, there was strong support for miners in parts of the capital. For example, Tower Hamlets Miners Support Group campaigned on behalf of miners nationally until October 1994.
The design on this banner represents the River Thames by a yellow line, with a pithead wheel placed within the Isle of Dogs, a reference to where the banner was made.
Mark the 40th anniversary of the 1984 to 1985 Miners’ Strike and uncover the stories of a defining event in Britain’s history at PHM on Saturday 23 March. Book tickets at the link in our bio.
Image: Eastenders Against Pit Closures, Tower Hamlets Miners Support Group banner, 1992. Image courtesy of People’s History Museum.
#MinersStrike #MinersStrike40 #Miners #TowerHamlets
Are you more independent or community-focused? Experimental or measured? Prefer work or play?
Take our quick quiz to find out which radical you are! At the end we’ll offer you access to our free e-newsletter which matches your interests to what’s on at PHM.
