Bristol Dockyards takes reflective look at imperialism, migration and lives onboard Brunel’s revolutionary vessel
Berthed in a dry dock near Bristol city centre, the grand old ship SS Great Britain is billed as the vessel that changed the world.
But a new museum opening in one of the old dock buildings close to Isambard Kingdom Brunel’s creation highlights that the ship did not always change the world for the better – and life for those who helped build it and travelled on it could be pretty miserable.
Tim Bryan, the project manager for the museum, said it presented a “warts and all” story.
“It’s the ship that changed the world, but there’s always an upside and a downside,” he said. “That’s human life. We have tried to provide a rounded picture of history, which we think is what people want.”
