Rural Museums Network

Absolute Units podcast - The Museum of English Rural Life Come for the big sheep. Stay for the history of rural England and its people.

A spirit watches over Dartmoor. His face is granite grey. His eyes are dark as peat pools. His name is Old Crockern. And today he’s at The Museum of English Rural Life.

Learn Crockern's story on Absolute Units, w/ Ruth Webb & @lisaschneidau.bsky.social, out now!

merl.reading.ac.uk/explore/abso...

Apply for Associate Fellowship - RHS Closing dates for next applications: Mondays 9 March and 11 May 2026   Associate Fellowship recognises the contribution made by a wide range of historical researchers and advocates for History with es...

JOIN US: our Associate Fellowship category is for those at an earlier stage their research careers - for example, completion of a #History PhD, or history professionals (teachers, curators, archivists etc) who make research possible.

Applications welcome at any time bit.ly/44r8NTg #Skystorians 1/2

Rethinking the Rural Life Museum: “Irons, Pots and Griddles oh my!” Join us to hear how two RMN member organisations are approaching Audit and Rationalisation in their museums...

This Thursday, we’ll be looking at how we can rethink rural museums through auditing and rationalising collections, with speakers from Ulster Folk Museum and the Food Museum.

Thursday 4th December 3pm - 4:15pm Online

👉For details and to book:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rethinking...

Rethinking the Rural Life Museum: “Irons, Pots and Griddles oh my!” Join us to hear how two RMN member organisations are approaching Audit and Rationalisation in their museums...

In the last of our 2025 seminars, we will look at how we can rethink rural museums through auditing and rationalising collections, with speakers from Ulster Folk Museum and the Food Museum.

Thursday 4th December 3pm - 4:15pm Online

👉For details and to book:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rethinking...

Collecting and Studying Rural Protest Moments of rural unrest can be long-simmering or very short-lived. So, how do we begin to grapple with these histories in museums?

This Thursday, join us to discover how museums can collect and study rural protest, with an online seminar hosted by Museum of English Rural Life's Curator, Ollie Douglas.

Thursday 6th November 3pm – 4:15pm online

👉For details and to book:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/collecting...

Collecting and Studying Rural Protest Moments of rural unrest can be long-simmering or very short-lived. So, how do we begin to grapple with these histories in museums?

How can museums collect, document and study rural protest? That’s the question our next seminar will seek to answer, exploring the topic of rural protest and what the role of museums can be.

Thursday 6th November 3pm – 4:15pm online

👉For details and to book:
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/collecting...

Absolute Units - The Museum of English Rural Life podcast Come for the big animals. Stay for fascinating and surprising stories about England's rural past, as told by our collections.

Here is a brilliant new episode of Absolute Units with @timjerrome.bsky.social. Co-presented and very professionally produced by the inimitable @joevaughan.net, as always.

merl.reading.ac.uk/explore/abso...

On World Mental Health Day remember that it's ok not to be ok. It’s also ok to talk about it and ask for help. And remember that spending some time in nature can benefit your mental health 👇

yorkshiredales.org.uk/healing-with...

📸 Wendy McDonnell #WorldMentalHealthDay #WMHD25 #MentalHealth

Herefordshire 'Cart Horse' History Rural Museums Network AGM followed by Seminar with Q&A with historic farming specialist Bob Powell

Less than a week to go!

Join us online as Bob Powell, specialist in historic farming and heavy horses, talks about Herefordshire ‘Cart Horse’ history.

Book now for our online seminar – Thursday 2nd October 3pm

👉 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/herefordsh...

Herefordshire 'Cart Horse' History Rural Museums Network AGM followed by Seminar with Q&A with historic farming specialist Bob Powell

Join us on Thursday 2nd October for the first in our autumn seminar series where the fascinating Bob Powell, former curator of the Weald & Downland Museum and Highland Folk Museum, will be talking about Herefordshire Cart Horse history.

👉 Book your ticket now
www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/herefordsh...

The logo for Absolute Units. Three giant sheep float over the English countryside.

New Absolute Units is live!

Tune in for episode 10, as we chat to photographer & sheep farmer Amy Bateman about digital technology on modern farms: from advantages, to risks.

Listen & subscribe wherever you get your podcasts:
merl.reading.ac.uk/explore/abso...

An old book titled Intensive Sheep Management.

Are your sheep always turning up late for work? Are they taking too long on their lunch break or simply struggling to get through the workload? Are they always just mucking about?

Then you need some

The art for Absolute Units - three giant sheep float over the English countryside.

thanks for the very kind messages about our newest podcast with Man in the Woods!

if you're looking for a gentle listen this weekend, treat yourself to something nice and join us as we talk about walking through the countryside and making art from what you find:

merl.reading.ac.uk/explore/abso...

Less than a week to go!

Discover how your #rural #museum can be an ally of your local indigenous #language including Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Cornish and Scottish Gaelic.

Book now for our online seminar - Thursday 1st May 2.30pm

👉 www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rural-muse...

We’re delighted to be working with the International Association of Agricultural Museums on a joint event at @themerl.bsky.social

Back on Track – facing twin challenges of the 21st Century

9-11 May

Full programme and booking information for this free event
👉 www.ruralmuseums.org.uk?page_id=1876

Rural Museums as allies of indigenous British languages Join us online as we explore how rural museums can support indigenous British languages.

Want to know how your #rural #museum can be an ally of your local indigenous #language including Welsh, Irish Gaelic, Cornish and Scottish Gaelic? Then our next seminar is for you!

⏰ Thursday 1st May 2.30pm

🎟️ www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/rural-muse...

Screenshot of Apple Podcasts rankings, showing MERL podcast at rank 85

Absolute Units is already in the top 100 History charts on Apple Podcasts!! 🙇

This Thursday! Find out how Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) - a tradition, practice, or living expression of a group or community, inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants - applies to rural museums.

Book now for our spring seminar
👉 www.ruralmuseums.org.uk?page_id=1854

Thursday 3 April 2025, 3.00pm – 4.00pm. Online, via Zoom

Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) is a tradition, practice, or living expression of a group or community, inherited from our ancestors and passed on to our descendants.

Intrigued about how this applies to rural museums? Book now for our spring seminar
👉 www.ruralmuseums.org.uk?page_id=1854

Black and white photograph of a white older man wearing a flat cap, tweed jacket and dark trousers. He is standing next to a large unicorn sculpture made from straw. Behind the unicorn is a large straw sculpture of a lion.

Want to find out more about Intangible Cultural Heritage and what it means for Rural Museums?

Book now for the first of our 2025 seminars at 3pm on Thursday 3 April via Zoom. Tickets are just £5 for non-members.

To find out more and to book your space visit www.ruralmuseums.org.uk?page_id=1854

Fantastic first “Chewing the Cud” session of 2025 - these are our informal online sessions for members when we ask someone to present something they’re working on or a topic close to their heart, open the floor to questions and discussions and see where it leads…!

So pleased you could join us for today’s discussion - so many extra leads and potential contacts were shared to support Jenny’s ongoing research, we hope she’ll come back and let us know what she discovers!

Love this! Who knew that in Wiltshire a “not-cow” was a cow without horns?

Some of our recent work - the Rural Relevance Toolkit was intended for non-specialists and is designed to build confidence in managing, and enthusiasm for using, rural collections in museums.

We hope it’s useful and would love to hear feedback and any suggestions to improve it further!

Introducing the Rural Museums Network - Full YouTube video by Rural Museums Network

To introduce ourselves here on Bluesky, take a look at this short film about us.

The Rural Museums Network are a registered charity, aimed at promoting learning and encouraging a wider understanding of the UK’s rural heritage. Find out more at www.RuralMuseums.org.uk

m.youtube.com/watch?si=ZlR...