- Re-live the final moments on board the Mary Rose as it sinks during the Battle of the Solent on 19th July 1545
- Step back in time to hear from Henry VIII and the crew of Britain’s most famous shipwreck
- Tudor warship sinking experience will open to the public on Monday 26th July in time for summer holidays
1545 will allow visitors to be fully immersed in the Battle of the Solent and re-live the final breath-taking moments on board Henry VIII’s favourite ship.
Dame Judi is introducing the experience at the Portsmouth museum, which is home to the Mary Rose and the world’s biggest collection of Tudor objects.
Laying undiscovered for hundreds of years, entombed within the seabed, the wreck was finally located by divers in 1971. It took over ten years of excavation before the hull could be raised.
A global TV audience of 60 million watched live in October 1982 as both the remains of the ship and some of her incredibly preserved contents, made it to the surface after 437 years.
CEO of the Mary Rose Museum, Dominic Jones, said,
“We’re delighted to be able to bring to life the final moments of the Mary Rose with 1545 – as a spectacular interactive experience. It’s an exciting addition for Portsmouth Historic Dockyard over the summer holidays and will give visitors a way to understand how her story as a warship ended, and how ours as a museum began.”
Dame Judi Dench added,
“I remember being one of the millions who watched The Mary Rose being raised from the Solent in 1982, and it’s a memory that has stayed with me ever since. Her incredible story both before she sank and now afterwards reveals so much about our history and 1545, as a new immersive experience is a great introduction to those fateful final moments overseen by King Henry VIII.”
1545 will be open to the public from 10am on Monday 26 July 2021, to coincide with the start of the school summer holidays and in the same month 476 years ago that the Mary Rose sank.
It is expected to be a huge draw for families in helping all generations learn about one of the most important historical shipwrecks and collections of Tudor objects, shining a light on life 500 years ago.
