A two-year wait due to Covid-19 may seem a long time to us, but it’s no time at all when you think that T.rex and his fellow dinosaurs lived nearly 70 million years ago!
With great excitement Peterborough Cathedral has announced that the Natural History Museum’s touring exhibition, T.rex: The Killer Question, will be shown in the 900-year-old building from 18th July to 3rd September 2022. Plans to present the exhibition in 2020 and 2021 had to be shelved due to the pandemic.
This world class exhibition has nine roaring and moving animatronic dinosaurs of various sizes, including a three-quarter size T.rex. A 12-metre-long static model of a T. rex and a life-size T. rex skeleton will also be on show, facing each other across the Cathedral transepts.
The exhibition poses the killer question: Was T. rex a ferocious hunter or a mere scavenger? To help visitors think about this, the exhibition presents scenes showing the behaviour of several different dinosaur species, from the small and agile Sauronitholestes, to the savage Dromaeosaurus and the plant-eating Tenontosaurus. It also shows examples of bones and fossils to see what they can tell us about T. rex.
The Very Revd Chris Dalliston, Dean of Peterborough, said:
“We’re excited that after a long wait due to the pandemic we are now able to bring this wonderful exhibition to the Cathedral. We know that many people, children especially, are fascinated by these pre-historic creatures and this will be a fantastic opportunity to see them right here in Peterborough rather than travelling to London. Of course, reflecting on the extinction of dinosaurs long ago will also help us to explore very current environmental issues like the diversity of species and how many of them are vulnerable to extinction. These are big questions about God’s creation and the responsibility we have as human beings to care for it and protect it.”
Brad Irwin, Head of Global Engagement at the Natural History Museum said:
“We are thrilled to be bringing T. rex: The Killer Question to Peterborough at last. We hope that the exhibition will be able to educate and entertain an entirely new audience about dinosaurs, specifically the awe-inspiring T. rex. It is our hope that these exciting animals that once roamed the earth can inspire a love of the natural world and motivate people to become advocates for the planet.”
It is expected that tickets for the exhibition will go on sale within the next few weeks.
Join Team T.rex
The Cathedral is inviting people to join ‘Team T.rex’ for an alert as soon as booking opens and for other news about the exhibition. To join free, email t.rex@peterborough-cathedral.org.uk.
Thank you
The Cathedral is particularly grateful to the companies which are supporting the exhibition through practical help or financial contributions (see above).
Additional information
For more information about the Natural History Museum’s dinosaur collection please visit https://www.nhm.ac.uk/our-science/collections/palaeontology-collections/dinosaur-collection.html
Entry to the exhibition at Peterborough Cathedral will be by ticket and these will go on sale soon. The nave of the Cathedral will remain open to general visitors during the exhibition (entry by donation) and the pattern of daily worship will continue.
T.rex: The Killer Question was last displayed in the UK at Longleat in the summer of 2018.
About the Natural History Museum
The Natural History Museum is both a world-leading science research centre and the most visited natural history museum in Europe. With a vision of a future in which both people and the planet thrive, it is uniquely positioned to be a powerful champion for balancing humanity’s needs with those of the natural world.
It is custodian of one of the world’s most important scientific collections comprising over 80 million specimens. The scale of this collection enables researchers from all over the world to document how species have and continue to respond to environmental changes - which is vital in helping predict what might happen in the future and informing future policies and plans to help the planet.
The Museum’s 300 scientists continue to represent one of the largest groups in the world studying and enabling research into every aspect of the natural world. Their science is contributing critical data to help the global fight to save the future of the planet from the major threats of climate change and biodiversity loss through to finding solutions such as the sustainable extraction of natural resources.
The Museum uses its enormous global reach and influence to meet its mission to create advocates for the planet - to inform, inspire and empower everyone to make a difference for nature. We welcome over five million visitors each year, our digital output reaches hundreds of thousands of people in over 200 countries each month and our touring exhibitions have been seen by around 30 million people in the last 10 years.