Bristol Dockyards

Bristol Dockyards Home of SS Great Britain
Propelled by ideas since 1843 Step back in time when you board Brunel’s SS Great Britain and discover the ship that changed the world.
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Experience the sights, sounds and smells of life on board for Victorian passengers and crew. Descend under water below the glass ‘sea’ to touch the world’s first great ocean liner. This iconic steam ship, and national treasure, was designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, and lies at the heart of a multi award-winning visitor attraction.

Interested in bringing your school group on a trip aboard Brunel’s SS Great Britain?We are taking bookings for the 2026/...
09/06/2026

Interested in bringing your school group on a trip aboard Brunel’s SS Great Britain?

We are taking bookings for the 2026/27 academic year and all bookings made by 22nd July 2026 will be honoured at this year’s prices!

As part of your school visit, you can book interactive workshops and guided tours; a wide range of free resources are available to support pre- and post-visit learning.

“The best trip we’ve ever been on! Absolutely fantastic.” – KS1 class teacher

For more information visit: https://www.ssgreatbritain.org/learning-and-education/school-visit/

Or get in contact at: [email protected].

This , we celebrate marine life in all its diversity through the lenses of award-winning ocean photographers. Currently...
08/06/2026

This , we celebrate marine life in all its diversity through the lenses of award-winning ocean photographers. Currently housed in the ship's dry dock until June 28, Ocean Photographer of the Year showcases the breathtaking beauty and diversity but also the vulnerability of our marine ecosystems, acting as an urgent call for better stewardship for our oceans.

This exhibition presents a range of rare and compelling perspectives from the deep sea — moments only a few have been fortunate enough to witness. The categories explore themes of Human Connection, Hope, Adventure, Wildlife, Young Photographers and Impact, taking visitors on a journey from exhilarating encounters to extraordinary marine life. To give a sense of the exhibition’s scope, explore a selection of the winning and finalist works below.

Image credits:
Jade Hoksbergen
Noam Kortler
Ben Thouard
Daniel Flormann
Ysabela Coll

Hailed as “Spectacular!” by The Times Square Chronicles, DIVE is a 75‑minute, one‑woman musical experience that takes au...
04/06/2026

Hailed as “Spectacular!” by The Times Square Chronicles, DIVE is a 75‑minute, one‑woman musical experience that takes audiences deep into the ocean and beyond.

This , dive beneath the surface with DIVE — an extraordinary live show fresh from London’s West End and the United Nations General Assembly in New York.

Led by critically acclaimed music artist, diver and activist, EM The Master, this hilarious yet deeply moving show blends real-life underwater encounters with original music, reimagined classics and playful storytelling. As she brings ocean creatures to life, DIVE celebrates the sea’s wonders while exploring the challenges it faces and our power to protect it.

⚓Performed aboard the world’s first ocean liner, a vessel for maritime history and the Ocean Photographer of the Year exhibition (until 28 June), the ship is the perfect setting for this one‑off, unique show.

🦐Tickets available here: https://www.ssgreatbritain.org/things-to-do/dive-world-oceans-day-show/

Kids go free all summer long!☀️From now until September, bring the whole crew to Bristol's iconic landmark where young a...
03/06/2026

Kids go free all summer long!☀️

From now until September, bring the whole crew to Bristol's iconic landmark where young adventurers enter for free! There's a stacked programme of activities for everyone to enjoy- there's never been a better time to visit!

🌊Plan your visit: https://www.ssgreatbritain.org/things-to-do/may-family-fun/
*One child goes free with every paying adult – book online in advance to save 10%

02/06/2026

Today as part of Volunteers' Week, we put the spotlight on Betty who has been with us for 4 years as a Sewing and Visitor Experience Volunteer about what she enjoys most.

In her own words:

"𝙄 𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙤𝙣𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩 𝙞𝙣𝙛𝙡𝙪𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙖𝙡 𝙡𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙠𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙖𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙞𝙢𝙚 𝙚𝙣𝙜𝙞𝙣𝙚𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙤𝙧𝙡𝙙. 𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙥𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙡𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝘽𝙧𝙪𝙣𝙚𝙡'𝙨 𝙖𝙢𝙖𝙯𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙖𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙣𝙨𝙥𝙞𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙨.

𝙄 𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙞𝙖𝙡𝙡𝙮 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙮 𝙩𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙞𝙣𝙜. 𝙒𝙚 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙨𝙤 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙖𝙗𝙤𝙪𝙩 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙞𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙫𝙞𝙙𝙪𝙖𝙡𝙨 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙫𝙚𝙡𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙤𝙣 𝙎𝙎𝙂𝘽, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙞𝙩'𝙨 𝙛𝙪𝙣 𝙩𝙤 𝙗𝙧𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙞𝙧 𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚𝙨 𝙖𝙡𝙞𝙫𝙚 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙫𝙞𝙨𝙞𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙨. 𝙄 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙝𝙤𝙬 𝙢𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙩𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙚𝙣𝙟𝙤𝙮 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙧𝙚𝙡𝙖𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙨.

𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙥𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙎𝙂𝘽 𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙢. 𝙄 𝙡𝙤𝙫𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙮 𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙧𝙚𝙜𝙖𝙧𝙙𝙚𝙙 𝙬𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙨𝙪𝙘𝙝 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙘𝙩 𝙗𝙮 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙛𝙛. 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙨𝙤 𝙡𝙪𝙘𝙠𝙮 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙄 𝙖𝙢 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙪𝙨𝙚 𝙢𝙮 𝙝𝙤𝙗𝙗𝙞𝙚𝙨 𝙞𝙚 𝙨𝙚𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙥𝙖𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙞𝙣𝙜, 𝙩𝙤 𝙘𝙤𝙣𝙩𝙧𝙞𝙗𝙪𝙩𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙤𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙡𝙞𝙛𝙚 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙝𝙞𝙥 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙣 𝙞𝙩.

𝙇𝙖𝙨𝙩 𝙗𝙪𝙩 𝙣𝙤𝙩 𝙡𝙚𝙖𝙨𝙩. 𝙄 𝙣𝙤𝙬 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚 𝙖 𝙜𝙧𝙤𝙪𝙥 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙚𝙨𝙩 𝙛𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙄 𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙡𝙙 𝙝𝙖𝙫𝙚."

01/06/2026

Here at the SS Great Britain, our team of volunteers go above and beyond. This (1st - 7th June) we say a MASSIVE thank you to our dedicated team.

They were aptly described in a recent visitor review:

"𝙉𝙤𝙩 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙬𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙘𝙖𝙥𝙚𝙨! 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙠 𝙩𝙤𝙤𝙠 𝙪𝙨 𝙪𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙞𝙨 𝙬𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙡𝙚𝙙 𝙪𝙨 𝙤𝙣 𝙖 𝙛𝙖𝙣𝙩𝙖𝙨𝙩𝙞𝙘 𝙬𝙝𝙞𝙨𝙩𝙡𝙚-𝙨𝙩𝙤𝙥 𝙩𝙤𝙪𝙧, 𝙩𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙞𝙣𝙩𝙤 𝙖𝙘𝙘𝙤𝙪𝙣𝙩 𝙢𝙮 𝙙𝙖𝙙’𝙨 𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙤𝙛 𝙢𝙤𝙗𝙞𝙡𝙞𝙩𝙮. 𝙒𝙞𝙩𝙝 𝙈𝙖𝙧𝙠’𝙨 𝙜𝙪𝙞𝙙𝙖𝙣𝙘𝙚, 𝙬𝙚 𝙬𝙚𝙧𝙚 𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙩𝙤 𝙨𝙚𝙚 𝙖𝙡𝙡 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙗𝙞𝙩𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧𝙚𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙨𝙩! 𝙃𝙞𝙨 𝙠𝙣𝙤𝙬𝙡𝙚𝙙𝙜𝙚 𝙬𝙖𝙨 𝙤𝙪𝙩𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙜.”

Coming from all walks of life and a range of experiences, the volunteer team consistently go out of their way to help the organisation and the many visitors who come from all over the world. In 2025, we had 159 volunteers who contributed 14,392 hours of their time across 14 different disciplines.

Throughout the week, we'll be putting the spotlight various members of the team to find out more about what volunteering means to them.

'𝙊𝙪𝙧 𝙫𝙤𝙡𝙪𝙣𝙩𝙚𝙚𝙧𝙨 𝙖𝙧𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙞𝙡𝙚𝙣𝙩 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙤𝙚𝙨 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩 𝙨𝙝𝙖𝙥𝙚 𝙪𝙣𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙖𝙗𝙡𝙚 𝙚𝙭𝙥𝙚𝙧𝙞𝙚𝙣𝙘𝙚𝙨, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙨𝙩𝙚𝙖𝙙𝙮 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙨 𝙗𝙚𝙝𝙞𝙣𝙙 𝙢𝙤𝙢𝙚𝙣𝙩𝙨 𝙤𝙛 𝙬𝙤𝙣𝙙𝙚𝙧, 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙥𝙚𝙤𝙥𝙡𝙚 𝙬𝙝𝙤 𝙢𝙖𝙠𝙚 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙚𝙭𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙤𝙧𝙙𝙞𝙣𝙖𝙧𝙮 𝙛𝙚𝙚𝙡 𝙚𝙛𝙛𝙤𝙧𝙩𝙡𝙚𝙨𝙨. 𝙏𝙝𝙚𝙮 𝙖𝙧𝙚, 𝙞𝙣 𝙚𝙫𝙚𝙧𝙮 𝙨𝙚𝙣𝙨𝙚, 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙝𝙚𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙤𝙛 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙎𝙎 𝙂𝙧𝙚𝙖𝙩 𝘽𝙧𝙞𝙩𝙖𝙞𝙣.'- Andrew Edwards Chief Executive

28/05/2026

Bristol City Leap recently partnered with students from Boom Satsuma; a Bristol-based education provider for the creative industries, to produce six short films spotlighting organisations funded through the Bristol City Leap Community Energy Fund.

From heritage sites including ourselves, cultural venues, local farms, pools and scout huts, they demonstrated the breadth of the Fund and the range of organisations leading change.

With the Bristol City Leap Community Energy Fund support, the SS Great Britain Trust is collaborating with external experts to analyse data from its building management system, building a clearer understanding of heat and energy flows across the site. This analysis will support optimisation of the existing gas-fired heating system and ensure any future replacement is correctly sized and tailored.

The film captures this thoughtful approach: blending heritage stewardship with modern energy expertise to make informed, future-ready decisions.

This film was created by:
Nichole Sims - Project Manager
Jess Sherwood - Director
Lorenzo Thomas - Editor/Sound
Oskar Leighton - Sound
Sky Shaw - Camera Operator

Today's weather getting you down? Here's a taster of the sun, "sea" and surf coming this bank holiday weekend. 🌊We’re ma...
20/05/2026

Today's weather getting you down? Here's a taster of the sun, "sea" and surf coming this bank holiday weekend. 🌊

We’re making a splash this May half term with four days of family fun at Bristol’s iconic landmark, the SS Great Britain. This year, Kids Go Free all week long!

There’s plenty of activities to keep the whole crew entertained, from movie screenings and face painting to a surf simulator and an activity trail winding its way through the ship. ⚓

Plan your visit: https://www.ssgreatbritain.org/things-to-do/may-family-fun/

Last week we welcomed Bristol legends Jayde Adams and Josh Eggleton on board to record the latest episode of their new p...
20/05/2026

Last week we welcomed Bristol legends Jayde Adams and Josh Eggleton on board to record the latest episode of their new podcast, Centre of the Universe!⚓

To catch the chaos, ASMR and Bristolian adoration from the SSGB Promenade Deck, you can find episode six of Centre of the Universe on Spotify and YouTube today.

From film productions and TV dramas to factual programming, photoshoots and podcasts, the SS Great Britain Trust welcomes all enquiries for commercial filming, photography and location hire.

To enquire about commercial filming and photography opportunities please contact [email protected] or call 0117 462 3136

Address

Gas Ferry Road
Bristol
BS16TY

Opening Hours

Tuesday 10am - 5pm
Wednesday 10am - 5pm
Thursday 10am - 5pm
Friday 10am - 5pm
Saturday 10am - 5pm
Sunday 10am - 5pm

Telephone

+44 (0) 117 926 0680

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