New 3D Virtual Tour of Discovery Museum's regimental gallery

A new online 360-degree interactive virtual tour of Charge! The Story of England’s Northern Cavalry gallery at Newcastle’s Discovery Museum will be available to explore from 26 June 2021, on national Armed Forces Day.  

People will be able to remotely navigate the gallery from their own device and delve into 300 years of stories through a mix of imagery and filmed interviews with museum staff and soldiers.  

The creation of the virtual tour was made possible with the support of The Light Dragoons, the contemporary incarnation of the regiments brought to life in the permanent gallery space.  

Colonel of the Regiment, The Light Dragoons, Brigadier Angus Watson MBE said:  

“When Charge! The Story of England’s Northern Cavalry Gallery opened in 2017, we were intent on ensuring that it remained fresh and exciting.  The opportunity to create this virtual tour meets that aspiration both through including some new material and expanding the reach of the gallery.   

“It has been achieved through an excellent partnership with the Discovery Museum and Heritage Interactive, and I congratulate all involved.  The Light Dragoons is a regiment which has always been at the leading edge, and the successful delivery of this innovative project demonstrates this characteristic once again.” 

Manager of Discovery Museum, Carolyn Ball said: 

“We are very grateful to The Light Dragoons for supporting Discovery Museum to create this virtual tour, allowing us to bring this important gallery to people online.  

“The virtual tour not only allows people to explore the stories of the gallery from any location, it also acts as a companion piece to the gallery, with expert insight and authentic voices bringing the emotive themes of the exhibition to life.”  

Uniquely, the virtual tour was filmed with gallery curator, Roberta Goldwater and serving members of the Light Dragoons in uniform standing in the gallery space so when people navigate the gallery they will ‘pass’ members of the current regiment.   

In one film, Roberta Goldwater highlights a small case connected to one of the most well-known stories of the First World War featuring the Northumberland Hussars - the unofficial Christmas Day truce in 1914, when soldiers on both sides declared a break in the fighting: playing football, exchanging gifts and burying their dead.   

Another film features actively serving WO2 (RQMS) Anthony Richardson as he guides the viewer through the modern-day army uniforms on display.  

The Charge! gallery illustrates the 300-year-old history of England’s Northern Cavalry and its antecedent regiments through fascinating historic artefacts, displays, and compelling visual interactive media. 

Heritage Interactive, who produced the new virtual tour, also contributed to the original permanent gallery as the creative force behind the huge three screen featuring footage of a recreated 19th century cavalry charge and the contemporary Light Dragoons in their Jackal vehicles. 

The Light Dragoons is the only cavalry regiment in the British Army today which exclusively recruits from the North of England. 

The day before the tour launches on 25 June soldiers of The Light Dragoons are to be awarded with medals for serving as part of the current United Nations mission in Mali. The Light Dragoons are the first unit to receive their medals for this mission.  

Other pivotal moments in the colourful history of these regiments, from the capture of Napoleon’s carriage at the Battle of Waterloo (1815), The Charge of the Light Brigade (1854) and D-Day, World War Two (1944) are explored through to more recent reconnaissance missions in Bosnia (1993), Iraq (2004) and Afghanistan (2009), as well as honouring the vital roles played by those born and bred in the north of England. 

Discovery Museum is open Monday – Friday 10am – 4pm and at weekends 11am – 4pm, with free entry, with donations welcome.   

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