Open now.

A new tourist attraction in the popular Georgian city of Bath, dedicated to Mary Shelley, her most popular creation, and its cultural influence. Oh, and be careful if you go down in the cellar.

As someone who lives in Bournemouth, I’m very proud of the town’s association with Mary Shelley – her remains are buried in a central church – so I was somewhat surprised that the world’s first Frankenstein museum was opening in Bath. What I hadn’t appreciated (and there’s a blue plaque to commemorate it) is that the young author moved to the city with Percy Shelley in late 1816 and wrote a large portion of the novel that she famously began on the shores of Lake Geneva.

Sitting a couple of Grade II-listed houses up from the Jane Austen Experience on Gay Street, this is a very different sort of visitor experience, and it’s a curious thing to describe. Part Mary Shelley biography, part Frankenstein the novel/play/movies and cultural phenomenon, and part chamber of horrors, it covers many bases, though I’d suggest it’s not quite the family-friendly attraction originally suggested; the basement in particular is a terrifying, dark maze with various nasty things hiding in the shadows.

As a movie buff, I particularly appreciated the section devoted to Frankenstein movies and the Creature’s influence on pop culture. And look at the toys in the cabinets, from glow-in-the-dark kits to figurines, board games and customised bath time ducks. There’s even a working pinball machine styled after the Kenneth Branagh movie!

The centrepiece of the attraction is an eight-foot model of the creature, with pumping heart and… did the eyes move or was it just me? Around this giant are cabinets of curiosities filled with the stuff of nightmares – ghoulish, deformed contents in jars. And at the very top of the building is a separate escape room and a tiny cinema which was playing the silent 1910 version of the story.

The cellar is the final visit before making the obligatory exit through the gift shop. If I’m honest, this is the least essential section, added no doubt to thrill the older teens, but it feels more like a section of a Halloween maze or a chamber of horrors. It can of course be avoided if you’re of a nervous disposition.

It will be interesting to see how this attraction evolves over time, and indeed whether there is the appetite for a ghoulish attraction alongside the more sedate Mr Darcy and regency bonnets of Bath. One thing’s for sure – a lot of love, passion and hard work has gone into getting things up and running, a bit like the Baron and his monster.

Verdict: It’s alive! Not even COVID-19 could prevent Mary Shelley and her modern Prometheus from returning to Bath. A refreshing change from the Bath buns and sulphuric Pump Room water, let’s hope it makes a killing this Halloween. 8/10

Nick Joy