The Sixties

The Sixties aims to recreate the spirit of this exciting decade which saw momentous change in so many areas of public and private life.

The gallery uses fascinating and iconic objects from our social history, art, fashion, military and astronomy collections to bring back the atmosphere of change which swept over the country during the 1960s. Highlights include a Lambretta scooter, a Dansette record player, Beatles singles and fashion by Mary Quant.

Using visual design and colour schemes influenced by the trends of the decade, it explores key themes such as fashion, music, the home, sport, childhood, the Space Race, free love, counterculture and women's liberation.

As well as looking at big themes and extraordinary events, it examines the everyday experiences of people in the city and the country and the extent to which their lives were affected by them.

Household exhibits include food packaging, clothes, electrical items, toys, records and more. Visitors can listen to memories of the decade via special telephones, listen to music on a Jukebox and watch television and film footage from the time.

We also have a cut-out of the famous picture of Sir Bobby Moore, with his face removed, so visitors can be photographed lifting the World Cup, plus a replica of the Mercury space capsule to climb inside!

The creation of this new gallery has been generously supported by the Wolfson Foundation and City of York Council. We are also grateful to BBC Radio York for their work on our oral history section.