Moyse's Hall St Edmund Exhibition Extended to February

Moyse’s Hall Museum has kept its exhibition on St Edmund open for another four months. Edmund and the Great Heathen Army was due to close earlier this month. It will now run until Sunday 28 February 2027.

West Suffolk Council, which runs the museum on the Cornhill, announced the extension on 15 October. It said the decision followed popular demand and the agreement of the museums and organisations that lent objects.

More than 10,000 people have seen the exhibition since it opened on 6 June, the council said. That includes over 1,000 students from local schools.

What is in it

The exhibition tells the story of Edmund, King of East Anglia, killed by the Danes in 869. In legend he refused to give up his Christian faith, was shot with arrows and beheaded, and a wolf guarded his head. His body was buried in Bury St Edmunds, and the Abbey of St Edmund grew up around his shrine.

Pieces made for the show include:

• a re-creation of St Edmund’s gold tomb, built by Andy Stubbs of Scenic Productions and decorated by Nick Holmes, both of whom work on West End theatre sets
• a relic banner of St Edmund, made with the help of Dr Rebecca Pinner, an associate professor at the University of East Anglia
• a replica crown of St Edmund, by the metallurgist Dr Steve Jones

The council names four funders, who put in £16,650 between them:

Cllr Ian Shipp, the council’s cabinet member for leisure and culture, said: “Over 1,000 years after his life and death, the story of Edmund remains such an important part of our cultural heritage.”

One ticket, three exhibitions

From Saturday 24 October, a day ticket covers three shows:

• Edmund and the Great Heathen Army, to 28 February
• Crime and punishment, the museum’s displays on the town’s witchcraft trials, including a book bound in human skin
• Things that go bump…, a new exhibition on scary stories, which opens on 24 October

The museum’s listing gives the prices and hours:

It is open 10am to 5pm Monday to Saturday (last entry 4pm) and 10am to 4pm on Sunday (last entry 3pm). The museum closes from 24 December to 3 January. It recommends booking ahead.

A Heritage Ticket costs £15.50 for an adult, £9 for a child and £46 for a family. It gives a year’s entry to both Moyse’s Hall and West Stow Anglo-Saxon Village (prices).

The bigger Edmund project

The exhibition runs alongside the Abbey of St Edmund, Reborn, a £9.83 million plan for the abbey ruins. In July the National Lottery Heritage Fund awarded it £7.137 million, according to St Edmundsbury Cathedral, which leads the project with West Suffolk Council and English Heritage.

The plan includes:

• a visitor centre and a West Cloister for exhibitions and community use
• conservation of the medieval abbey ruins
• a 1.4km accessible circular route linking the ruins, the cathedral and the town
• work along the Rivers Lark and Linnet

The cathedral says building work starts from spring 2027. The council’s release says the project should get the go-ahead to proceed this month, and will run from late 2026 to late 2029.

What it means for you

• If you missed the exhibition over the summer, you have until 28 February. It is closed over Christmas and New Year, from 24 December to 3 January.
• Half term is the best value visit. From 24 October one ticket covers Edmund, the crime and punishment galleries and the new Things that go bump… exhibition. Our half term guide and Halloween guide list the museum’s family events.
• If you go often, the Heritage Ticket pays for itself after three adult visits to Moyse’s Hall.
• The town’s new witch trials memorial is due to go on show at the same museum by the end of October.

For more ideas, see our things to do in Bury St Edmunds page.