Narrative and the Museum in Docklands

The Museum has a reassuringly traditional narrative structure - except they send you up to the 3rd floor to begin the story of London's Docklands, and thereafter it is a descent through time, from the beginning of London's story to the present day. Within each section there are, of course, thematic as well as chronological narratives. But by and large reassuringly from once upon a time, to nowadays.

As with most factual stories the story does start in the present day with an introduction by Tony Robinson, setting the scene. But we are then taken straight away to the origins of London. The first gallery, although modernised by the use of digital labels with further video footage of Mr TV Archaeologist, feels like many other local history museum, and there is a feeling that this museum is in direct competition with its own mother museum, the Museum of London, both telling essentially the same story, and the sense of disappointment, and the feeling that there is alack of editorial focus does not disappear until the HLF funded Slavery exhibition, where a bit of money, a compelling tale and some multimedia raise the Museum to a higher level.

There are a couple of interesting narrative devices that diverge from the standard. The first is the use 'filmed' fictional drama to bring the past to life, with a few ham actors pretending to be in Edward Lloyds Coffeehouse discussing the state of shipping in the pipe smoking, wig wearing, smug 18th Century. It fails both to be authentic or dramatic enough.

More successfully, is the multimedia in the Slavery section where meaningful words are spoken by a cast of ordinary (but very multi-cultural) Londoners. As a narrative tells a parallel story of the past and the present at the same time, and the use of one voice with many faces, at least makes the viewer think, and for once departs from the traditional narrative structure.

Physically, mostly the displays are of the directed serpentine system whereby there is definitely a right way to go around the Museum, in places there is a mixture of pinball and the serpentine system, but the visitor can usually detect the way they are meant to go around.

Post modern elements are restricted to the multimedia as mentioned above and the use of various post-it notes and pin up your opinion participative devices.