Pierhead re-opens doors to inform, involve and inspire visitors to Cardiff Bay
2 March 2010
Following months of extensive refurbishment, the landmark redbrick Pierhead building on the National Assembly’s Cardiff Bay estate will today (March 1) re-open its doors to take on its new role as a unique events and visitor attraction.
The Pierhead has been developed with the assistance of visitor attraction specialists who were tasked with satisfying the huge public interest in the building’s history, whilst simultaneously enabling it to function as a venue for public debate and Assembly-sponsored events.
This has been achieved through establishing a number of multi-use spaces which host creative exhibitions - offering visitors insight into the landmark’s past – but also double up as areas that can be used for Assembly-sponsored functions by communities and organisations, to highlight issues of importance to them.
One exhibition offers visitors a window onto the past, with an audio-visual display of Welsh heroes who have made significant contributions to Wales’s cultural and political identity.
Another showcases artefacts that highlight milestones in Welsh history, including the original binnacle from Scott of the Antarctic’s ship, the Terra Nova.
And in a new ‘Oral Histories’ room, visitors can listen to audio accounts of individuals’ experiences of Cardiff Bay, including former First Minister Rhodri Morgan and Tiger Bay born historian and author Neil Sinclair.
A significant exhibition area that will also function as an event space is the Main Hall, which still houses the safe where the first million pound cheque is rumoured to have been kept after being signed in the nearby Coal Exchange.
Presiding Officer for the National Assembly for Wales, Lord Dafydd Elis-Thomas said: “The refurbishment of the Pierhead has been an exciting project in the Assembly’s 10 year calendar and it’s rewarding to see it complete.
“Cardiff Bay has been at the forefront of Welsh economic and civil identity for the best part of 200 years, from its role as one of the biggest ports in the world during the age of King Coal to its current role at the centre of governance in a devolved Wales.
“The Pierhead has been a central part of the Cardiff Bay landscape, having witnessed colossal change in the last century.
“We, the community, and stakeholders, felt that celebrating the building’s past, as well as establishing it as a public arena for Assembly-sponsored events and conferences would be the best way to preserve its character.
“The Pierhead will also meet one of our main goals - increasing participation in the political process in Wales. It will bring people closer to the decisions made over the road in the Senedd and visitors will be encouraged to leave their thoughts on the topical issues of the day.
“What better day to re-launch this jewel on the National Assembly’s estate than March 1, St David’s Day.”
The Pierhead Sessions
The first major event to take place in the building will be the Pierhead Sessions, a three-day event made up of discussions, debates and lectures with key speakers from across the UK on a range of topics relevant to Wales and the world, such as the Future of Journalism and What We’ll be Eating in 2050.
Confirmed speakers at the Sessions include Dr Who’s Matt Smith and environmentalist George Monbiot.
In addition, throughout the month of March, a powerful exhibition by renowned photographer Philip Jones Griffiths will also be housed in the new ‘Futures Gallery’, for the public to enjoy.