On 7th October 2017 the National Tramway Museum at Crich in Matlock Derbyshire held a Steampunk Day. We stayed at the Premier Inn in the nearby town of Ripley about 5 miles away. The hotel was clean and comfortable, but the restaurant next door was closed for refurbishment when we were there. This did not bother us because we took a short cut into the town centre via Carr Wood and ate our meals in the local Wetherspoon’s. It suited our budget at the time.
Crich Tramway Village is in a picturesque part of the Derbyshire Peak District and has a collection of over 60 trams. Tram rides take you around the site for about a mile. As well as the depot, it has a cafe, old style sweet shop and a pub. The latter the Red Lion pub was interesting due to the fact that it originally stood in Stoke-on-Trent and was rebuilt brick by brick in its present position showing off the wonderful tile work.
The Steampunk event was great fun. (Steampunk for the uninitiated is Jules Verne meets Victorian Science fiction – anything goes!) As well as musical entertainment on the bandstand, there was a lady with snakes, which were fascinating. Then there was the biscuit dunking competition, where the winning competitor was the person whose biscuit stayed upright the longest – hilarious! Then there was the “Votes for Women” march down the cobbled street. They were harangued by a sergeant major type character yelling “Go back to your husbands you hussies, you are his property!”
The museum is a great day out for all the family.There is even an Access Tram the Berlin 3006. The site is re-opening fully after the winter break on 1st April.