Lantern Making in the Brunel Museum Tunnel Shaft

Come and join us for a free, family-friendly lantern-making workshops at the Brunel Museum in their extraordinary Thames Tunnel Shaft.

Opened in 1843 after almost 40 years of digging, flooding and near bunkruptcy, The Thames Pedestrian Foot Tunnel was the world’s most popular visitor attraction. It is the first tunnel known to have been constructed successfully underneath a navigable river. For the opening, Brunel organised underground fairs, banquets and markets inside the tunnel – once described as the Eighth Wonder of the World!

With the tunnel sold to the London Metropolitan Railway in 1869 all that remains is the Grand Entrance Hall, with smoke-blackened brick walls from steam trains and a brand new purpose built concrete floor. Perfect for lantern making!

The museum will be open from 10:30am until 3:30pm if you would like to pop in before the workshop!

Everyone is welcome, no experience necessary. You don’t need to bring anything – we provide all the materials and teach you willow lantern making technique.

By making a lantern with us, you’ll also be invited to take part in a spectacular lantern parade on 15th November in Russia Dock Woodlands, featuring acrobatic performances, live music, and an evening full of fun and wonder! Find out more about the parade here.

You’ll work with natural materials - fresh buff willow, eco-friendly tape, wet-strength tissue, and non-toxic PVA glue- to bend, tape, and layer your designs, bringing them to life with LED lights.

With our guidance, you can make anything you like. Our team of lantern makers will help you realise your ideas, no matter how big or imaginative.

Once you’ve made your lantern, you are invited to join Light Up the Old Docks - a new lantern parade for Rotherhithe. Taking place on the 15th of November at Russia Dock Woodlands, everyone who made a lantern will automatically have a reserved ticket for the parade.

And the adventure doesn’t end there – the sister parade, Illuminate Bermondsey, takes place the following weekend, continuing the celebration of light, community, and creativity.

We are Light Whale International, a collective of lantern makers and performers. We began our practice in France and now deliver lantern parades, light installations, and craft workshops to communities in the UK and beyond.

For the last four years, we have run annual lantern parades in Tonnerre, France, and Eye Village, UK. Now, with the support of the Southwark Cultural Celebrations Grant, we are bringing a new lantern parade to Rotherhithe – and we can’t wait to share it with you!

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