Visiting the Roald Dahl Museum, Buckinghamshire

It’s not hard to imagine the BFG wandering the narrow lane in the dead of night, casting his shadow on the half-timbered houses. The red petrol pumps which inspired the filling station where Danny the Champion of the World lives, lie a few houses further away.

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And I’ve no doubt there are both pheasants and fantastic foxes in the Buckinghamshire woods near the village of Great Missenden, where Roald Dahl was inspired to write his famous children’s stories.

Which also makes it the perfect home for the Roald Dahl Museum & Story Centre, bright bunting outside flapping in the breeze, the words ‘it is truly swizzfiggingly flushbunkingly gloriumptious’ painted on the outside. Having read half a dozen of his books with my daughter, a trip here has been in my plans for a little while – so with The Twits on audio CD and my daughter’s toy monkey playing the part of Muggle-Wump, we set off.

I’m not quite sure what I expected from the Roald Dahl museum – in fact, it’s rather a clever mix of both exhibits on the author and his life, information about his books including their origins and inspiration, and a separate room to encourage kids (and adults!) to be more creative, with influences from a variety of authors.

Add in story-telling and craft sessions, as well as two trails which you can follow outside the museum, and it’s very very easy to while away the day.

With just three main rooms, the museum seems small – and you’re told to allow around 90 minutes – but after two story sessions, one craft activity, lunch, the village trail and a thorough exploration, we spent four hours there.

If I had let my daughter settle down on one of the comfy seats with a copy of The BFG, we might still be there – I did love the fact that books are dotted around all of the museum, including the café, which helpfully entertained her while we waited.

Another bonus is that there’s plenty for different ages. At four, nearly five, my daughter wasn’t the youngest there although I think that’s probably the youngest I’d suggest to appreciate a lot of it. With unaccompanied adults visiting too, it’s safe to say there’s probably no upper limit either.

Even in the rooms detailing Dahl’s early life, at school, his first job which took him to Africa and his time during the war, there’s lots that’s interactive.

Videos play, there’s audio narration from his autobiography Boy in the first room, plenty of chances to dress up, buttons to press, even a rather fabulous height chart which enables you to measure yourself against both Dahl and his characters.

Minnie is very precisely half a Roald Dahl. I discovered I’m a complete Wonka (but then you knew that already).

Famously there’s also Dahl’s writing shed, with his comfy armchair and board, plus the very precise set-up from specific notepad and number of pencils to his daily routine, as well as some of the weirder items which sat on his desk: a hip ball joint, a ball of silver chocolate wrapping papers, a carved whale.

The focus of the Roald Dahl museum is firmly on the quirky, on the magic of the author’s books rather than the complications of the man, on the worlds created by his wonderful tales, which to me are such a part of childhood; to the extent that stories I hadn’t heard for three decades or more sprang straight back to life with just the smallest reminder.

And they are justifiably famous, from his better-known novels to the shorter clever Revolting Rhymes, subverting those nursery rhyme standards, or the tummy beast from Disgusting Beasts, which had the kids stamping, gurgling and giggling during the story session.

The details of his creations are woven throughout each room, how they sprang to life and how their characters changed, how they were illustrated so memorably by Quentin Blake, how they drew on locations nearby or from his past – too much to absorb in one trip.

We found ourselves dipping in and out, as walking round was punctuated by stops to sit and listen, to eat, and for one of the special craft sessions – making a Terrific Twits garden, led by a member of the helpful, enthusiastic staff, who all seemed natural storytellers and great with kids (as you’d hope, although as most parents know, not guaranteed at even family-friendly attractions).

It wasn’t too busy on a sunny May Sunday and we had plenty of time to try our hand at making monkeys and cages, drawing the terrible Twits, and allowing a Vermicious Knid to wander from another book into the garden.

Perhaps my favourite part was the final room with area after area to get creative. At the ideas table, you could make up your own word and illustrate the resulting creation, or elsewhere follow Phillip Pullman’s advice by using post-its to make up a story – in this case, fridge magnets with prewritten phrases.

One lovely touch on arrival was my daughter being given a pencil and paper to note down her ideas as they sprang into her mind before they slipped away.

There was even the chance to make your own stop motion film, with different backdrops and animal models to photograph before watching it back. I was rather tempted to sit and play with this myself.

But there is more to find than the Roald Dahl museum alone. The village trail awaited us though, most stops found on a quick wander along the main street of Great Missenden, before finishing at the church.

Further on than you might expect (keep going across the bridge over the bypass), it’s the site of Dahl’s grave with several supersized footprints dotted around the graveyard.

Minnie was at least half convinced they were really made by the BFG. Perhaps I was too: there is magic in the air here. The writing on the wall doesn’t lie – it is truly swizzfiggingly flushbunkingly gloriumptious.

For more ideas of days out with kids who love books, check out my pick of the best, as well as ideas for days out if you love Harry Potter

Need to know: Roald Dahl Museum

Tickets cost £7 for adults, £4.70 for children aged five to 18, including re-entry for a year. Under-fives go free.

The museum is open from 10am to 5pm Tuesday to Friday, 11am to 5pm at weekends. It is closed most Mondays except bank holidays and some school holidays – check here for full details. You get a wristband which lets you come and go throughout the day.

There is no parking at the museum and limited parking in the village (although with few restrictions on Sundays, it was easy enough when we visited). Trains run from London Marylebone to Great Missenden twice an hour, taking 45 minutes. The station is a short walk away.

There is a cafe at the museum (open to all during museum hours), or you’re welcome to bring your own food with space set aside for people bringing picnics.

Also, although there are fizzy lifting drinks on the menu, you can’t get whipplescrumptious fudgemallow delight bars in the café (one boy asked).

There are regular events and activities at the museum throughout the year, most of which have a separate charge – some for participants only, such as the Terrific Twits Garden at £3, some for all attendees (such as author talks). You can only attend if you pay to enter the museum, and booking is recommended, essential for some. There is also a small craft area within the museum which is free.

There are often special summer events as well: when we visited, this included a Buzzyhumming Summer focused around animals, insects and birds, with crafts and guided countryside trails, as well as author events.

Along with the village trail, there’s a countryside trail with tips on how long each section takes to complete – over an hour in total – and directions. There’s very limited data coverage in the village, although the museum itself has free Wifi, so don’t rely on Google Maps!

There’s also a little trail through the museum to match pictures and phrases to enter a competition. We were so absorbed, I totally forgot until near the end of our visit.

Disclosure: I am working with VisitEngland as part of the Year of Literary Heroes, looking at the best travel across the country for those who love books. Check out the #bookengland tag to discover more and share your experiences. Our entry to the museum and craft session was free: all opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate links – any purchases you make are unaffected but I may receive a small commission

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