All you need to know ahead of Antiques Roadshow at V&A Dundee
With just under a week to go until the Antiques Roadshow arrives in Dundee, V&A Dundee has compiled an essential guide to the event including key travel information and times.
V&A Dundee will welcome BBC Antiques Roadshow and presenter Fiona Bruce to the museum and nearby Slessor Gardens this Sunday [23 June].
Thousands of people from Tayside and across Scotland are expected to attend the event and discover the history of their antiques and collectables before receiving a valuation from a Roadshow expert.
The Antiques Roadshow at V&A Dundee will open at 09.30 on Sunday morning with gates closing at 16.30, although visitors can stay and enjoy the event until filming ends at 19:00. Visitors will also be able to enjoy an extra hour in the museum, which will remain open until 18.00.
Those wishing to get an expert valuation should arrive before 16.30 and are advised to come prepared to queue. It is expected the event will be busiest between 10.30 and 13.30.
The Antiques Roadshow entrance will be located at the north end of Slessor Gardens and can be accessed from Thomson Avenue. The event is free to attend and does not require tickets or pre-registration. Museum visitors not attending the Roadshow event can access V&A Dundee via an entrance near Discovery Point.
Note, Antiques Roadshow items cannot be brought into the museum. To protect museum objects and accommodate expected high numbers of visitors no antiques can be taken into the building.
Teas, coffees and cakes will be available in Slessor Gardens throughout the day from a special Dundee Rep Tea Tent as well the museum café and Tatha Bar and Kitchen. Roadshow guests are also encouraged to bring picnics and refreshments to enjoy on Slessor Gardens.
The show will be largely filmed in the area outside the museum, so visitors are reminded to be prepared for changeable weather.
Philip Long, Director of V&A Dundee, said: “It’s been more than 10 years since the Antiques Roadshow last came to Dundee and we’re delighted the BBC has chosen V&A Dundee as a host this year.
“We’re really looking forward to welcoming thousands of people to the museum and nearby Slessor Gardens for what’s going to be a fantastic day. Dundee, and Scotland as a whole, has an extraordinary heritage and I can’t wait to see what family treasures are uncovered here.”
Dundee city centre will be busier than normal during the day, with several road closures and diversions in place. People are asked to adopt a flexible approach to transport, plan their journeys in advance and use public transport, or walk, wherever possible.
Riverside Esplanade will be closed from 05.00 until 21.00 on Sunday. The parking bays next to V&A Dundee will be closed on Saturday and Sunday, but spaces for Blue Badge holders will be available for museum visitors at the Discovery Point carpark during this time on a first come first serve basis. More information about road closures and diversions can be found on Dundee City Council’s website.
Several large carparks can be found throughout the city and just a short walk from V&A Dundee, including Greenmarket, Gellatly Street and Olympia multi-storey car parks. Please visit Dundee City Council’s website for more information on parking around the city.
Antiques Roadshow is one of the BBC’s most popular factual programmes and is regularly watched on Sunday evenings by around six million people.
At each Roadshow venue around 15,000 items are valued by Roadshow experts from which 50 are filmed for inclusion on the show.
The last time Antiques Roadshow was filmed in Dundee was in 2008 when the standout item was a clock brought along in a bread bin and estimated to be worth up to £10,000. Made around 1830, the clock had been accepted as a settlement for geese during the Second World War by a farmer in Dumfriesshire.
