Beamish, the Living Museum of the North wins the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2025 award

The 350-acre site blew judges away with its ‘joyous, immersive and unique’ exhibitions

(David Levene)

Beamish, The Living Museum of the North, has been announced as the Art Fund Museum of the Year for 2025 and has been presented with £120,000 in the process - the largest museum prize in the world.

The renowned open-air museum, which is situated in Stanley, County Durham, immerses itself in North East England's Georgian, Edwardian, 1940s and 1950s history. Visitors can experience what times were like during those eras by interacting with the costumed staff and volunteers and their historically accurate surroundings.

The pioneering museum recently completed its “Remaking Beamish” project, which saw the meticulous recreation of a 1950s town which utilised the firsthand knowledge of local people who knew the original spaces. More than 32,000 community members and 14,338 schoolchildren were involved in the project and helped create 31 new exhibits for the museum.

The museum also opened its aged miners’ homes this year, which tells the story of the landmark welfare provision for retired miners in County Durham.

The '1950s Town' exhibition at Beamish (David Levene)

Beamish’s commitment to preserving local heritage was recognised by the Art Fund, with Rhiannon Hiles, Chief Executive of Beamish, being presented with the award by an Art Fund judge and comedian Phil Wang during a ceremony at the Museum of Liverpool.

Singing the praises of Beamish, Jenny Waldman, Director of Art Fund and chair of the judges for Art Fund Museum of the Year, said: “Beamish is a museum brought to life by people – a joyous, immersive and unique place shaped by the stories and experiences of its community. The judges were blown away by the remarkable attention to detail of its exhibits across a 350-acre site and by the passion of its staff and volunteers.”

She added: “With three-quarters of adults in the North East of England saying museums make them proud of where they live, Beamish is a shining example of how museums enrich and celebrate local communities. Warmest congratulations to Beamish on winning the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2025. You have been a jewel in the crown of the North East for 55 years and I’m sure you’ll continue to delight visitors for many more to come.”

An Edwardian photography studio at Beamish (David Levene)

Wang, who was a judge on this year’s prize and served as its presenter, also spoke highly of the museum, saying: “Beamish is a worthy winner of this year’s Art Fund Museum of the Year award. Our visit was one of the most fun days I’ve had in years. An unbelievable level of commitment from staff, and a jaw-dropping amount of detail ran through everything. They had to drag me kicking and screaming out of there!”

Continuing the applause for Beamish was the UK government’s culture secretary, Lisa Nandy, who said: “Congratulations to Beamish, The Living Museum of the North, on being named Museum of the Year 2025. This award recognises the extraordinary contribution that Beamish has made to celebrate the heritage of the North East and to showcase this to the world through thousands of visitors every year. I would also like to congratulate the shortlisted museums and thank the dedicated staff and volunteers who support our museums all year round and help us to tell our national story across the country."

Beamish, The Living Museum of the North, is currently celebrating 55 years since it opened its doors (David Levene)

The other highly commended shortlisted museums were: Chapter (Cardiff), Compton Verney (Warwickshire), Golden Thread Gallery (Belfast), Perth Museum (Perth & Kinross).

Each finalist will receive £15,000. Together with £120,000 received by the winning museum, the total prize money for Art Fund Museum of the Year is £180,000.

Previous winners of the prize include the Victoria and Albert Museum, Tate St Ives and Yorkshire Sculpture Park.