Museum's visitors surge after Bluebird goes on display

The daughter of Donald Campbell, Gina, in the cockpit of Bluebird K7, after the craft was put on display at the Ruskin Museum in Coniston last month

A museum has seen the number of visitors surge after a record-breaking craft became part of its collection.

Donald Campbell set seven water-speed world records in Bluebird, before tragically dying during a further attempt on Coniston Water in Cumbria in 1967.

The hydroplane's wreckage was recovered in 2001 and rebuilt by Tyneside engineer Bill Smith. Following a legal battle, it returned to Coniston last month.

Its new home at the Ruskin Museum in Coniston attracted 6,000 visitors last month - up from 1,900 in March and April the year before.

Tracy Hodgson, director at the museum in Coniston, said the boost in visitor numbers had been "fantastic".

“I thought there would be a rush of people wanting to come and see her, but I’ll be honest, I wasn’t expecting the kind of figures that we’ve had.

"It’s absolutely fantastic.”

Bluebird returned to Coniston in March following a 147-mile journey from where it was restored in North Shields.

The hydroplane, which returned to Coniston village after 23 years, is on display in the museum's Bluebird Wing.

Ms Hodgson said people had been queuing out of the museum's door to see it, with a lot of visitors recalling Mr Campbell's fatal crash.

"Generally, I think people visit Coniston to come walking or go to the lake, but now they are coming to see Bluebird - they’re coming to see K7, there’s no doubt about that.

“When they come to Coniston they do a full 'pilgrimage': they go and visit Donald’s grave, they go down to the lake to see where he did his records - so it’s a full experience for them.”

About 6,000 people visited the Ruskin Museum in March, more than three times the number seen across both March and April 2023, despite the venue being closed for 10 days last month to allow for the installation of Bluebird.