South Shields monsters exhibitions gets a Christmas twist

Monsters! The Good, the Bad and The Cuddly at The Word, National Centre for the Written Word, in South Shields, celebrates monsters from myth, legend, literature and the movies.

And now a series of panels featuring The Grinch, Gremlins, Shrek The Halls and The Nightmare Before Christmas, has been installed to sit alongside family favourites such as Sulley from Monsters Inc, King Kong, and Dracula.

More than 180,000 visitors have been to seethe Monsters! The Good, The Bad and The Cuddly since it opened in March.

Tania Robinson, head of marketing and culture at The Word, National Centre for the Written Word, said it has been a huge success since opening.

She added: “We have celebrated everything from the ancient monsters of literature to less sinister, modern monsters such as Sulley and, now, The Grinch.

“This has meant that family members of all ages can come to The Word together and each time they visit they will see something they haven’t seen before.

“However, I would urge anyone who hasn’t yet visited to come along soon as the exhibition closes on 6 January 2019.”

Other additions include two new iPad games and a selection of festive film clips, while, for avid Grinch fans, the venue’s ground floor pod has been transformed into Whoville.

Children can help decorate the Christmas tree, post a letter to Santa and try to spot each of the 20 Grinches hidden around the set, which mimics the village in the film.

Along with the update to Monsters! The Word is staging a jam-packed programme of events in the run up to Christmas, from storytelling and laser cutting to crafts, live performances and even a Christmas-themed treasure hunt.