The Abingdon Pliosaur

Pliosaurs – the name meaning ‘more lizard’ – were the apex predator of the Jurassic Seas. Their sheer size and speed gave them the advantage over any other animal. They were among the largest marine reptiles, and until recently the largest confirmed size of an adult Liopleurodon, for example, was 6.5 metres. In the BBC

Coronation Fun in Abingdon

The coronation of Charles III will be celebrated in style in Abingdon on May 7th 2023, with a day of “Coronation Fun in the Park” (face painting, giant bubbles, bouncy castles, refreshments etc), and of course with a Bun Throwing. The Bun Throwing is of course traditional for a coronation (and other events) in Abingdon,

Railway Women

The history of the railways is often seen as dominated by men, and it is true that women started to drive the trains only recently: the first female train driver was Karen Harrison in 1978. But there is a lot more to running the railways than just driving the trains, and women have participated in

Racing Women

In the second of our series for Women’s History Month 2023 in parallel with our current exhibition “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”, we focus on the last of these: cars, and the women who drove them to spectacular successes. The MG Car Company was famous not only for the successful cars it made, but also for

Flying Women

It’s Women’s History Month during March, and it is also the last month of our current exhibition “Planes, Trains and Automobiles”, so we thought we would bring the two together in three blogposts, focussing on women in aviation, racing and the railways. In this first blogpost we are focussing on flying women. One of the

The Ubiquitous J.T. Morland

When doing research for the Museum’s recent exhibition about Morland’s brewery and the Morland family, I got to know some members of the family better. One of the themes of the exhibition was how the Morland family was embedded in the life of the town, not just the business life, but the civic and social

Fossil Hunting

The current exhibition at Abingdon Museum “Sea Dragons and Giant Monsters” has been greatly enhanced by specimens lent to us by Dr James Etienne from his private collection. While installing the exhibition, we talked about collecting fossils, how he found some of the most impressive items in his collection and how he is looking for

Swans in Abingdon

Today (Friday 22nd July) is the last day of this year’s swan upping, due to finish at Abingdon Bridge at 5 in the afternoon. Perhaps you have seen the signs, and perhaps you have seen it before and know all about it. You might also have heard that all swans in this country belong to

On the Throwing of Buns

Did you go to the Platinum Jubilee Bun Throwing? I recently mentioned the throwing of buns to some friends, and they were amused, puzzled and intrigued. Throwing actual buns? From the roof? Where did that strange idea come from? In this blogpost I will try to illuminate the origins of the Bun Throwing in Abingdon,

Celebrating the Queen

The Queen’s Platinum Jubilee is in full swing by now. As I write this, flags have gone up on the lampposts here in Abingdon, souvenir mugs are on sale, and even the postbox in the Market Place is adorned with a crown. We are looking forward to the Jubilee Bun Throwing in June. So perhaps