Museum of Free Derry

19/10/2026

From Monday 2nd November, the Museum of Free Derry will be open Monday to Friday until 5.00pm.

The Museum of Free Derry tells the people’s story of government oppression, the struggle for civil rights, the descent into conflict, Free Derry and Bloody Sunday.

Find out more and plan your visit at www.museumoffreederry.org

15/10/2026

The Bloody Sunday Trust / Museum of Free Derry is delighted to once again be a host venue for the City of Derry International Choir Festival, and wishes the best of luck to the festival organisers and to all the choirs involved. Come along to the museum next week and enjoy the music!

13/10/2026

We hear you!

We know that the story of our campaigns for rights, justice and equality are key reasons why people come here!

Tourism Ireland Visit Derry

Derry’s Museum of Free Derry has been ranked as the second most underrated attraction in Ireland, England, Scotland and Wales by the travel experts at luggage storage platform Stasher.

13/10/2026

We were delighted to welcome Conor from Tourism NI along with a dedicated Peace Tourism familiarisation visit to the Museum of Free Derry.

Following a self-guided tour, the group joined our museum guide, Eoin, for a discussion and Q&A about the exhibits and the stories behind them.

Conor said:

“The group had a fantastic visit to the museum. It was really insightful for them to hear and see in detail the significant events that occurred in that very area and the campaign that the families and community engaged in following.

Following the self-guided tour, the group had a Q&A upstairs which allowed them to get further insight and ask questions to enhance their understanding of the events that occurred. We could have stayed a lot longer as there was so much to take in.”

He also praised Eoin for giving the group “a really good insight” into such a difficult subject for the people of the city.

We hope the visit will encourage more tour groups visiting Derry to discover the stories and history we share at the Museum.
Visit Derry Tourism Ireland

12/10/2026

Residents can visit the Museum of Free Derry at no cost today and every Monday until the end of December.

Students also can come in at half-price admission.

This a unique opportunity to spend time exploring the history of our city through the eyes of those who lived through it.

The offer is available on a walk-in basis only.

05/10/2026

North West Civil Rights Archive launch!

Today, on the anniversary of the 5th October 1968 Derry Civil Rights March, the Museum of Free Derry are delighted to launch of the North West Civil Rights Archive – a project by the Bloody Sunday Trust / Museum of Free Derry, Guildhall Press and Archive Ireland

North West Civil Rights Archive is a rights-based archive situated in the North West of Ireland, with the purpose of bringing together artefacts and oral histories that document the development of the civil rights movement from the '60s to current day.

Website: https://civilrightsarchive.org/
Instagram:
Facebook: North West Civil Rights Archive

If you would like to contribute printed material or artefacts (digital/physical), or if you’d like to participate in an oral history interview, contact us at [email protected]

The NWCRA is made possible with The National Lottery Heritage Fund. Our thanks to and National Lottery players for making this work possible and this archive accessible to all!

04/10/2026

Explore the neighbourhood’s history from Civil Rights to Free Derry to Bloody Sunday.

Residents are invited to visit the Museum of Free Derry for free on Monday’s, while students can enjoy half-price admission.

The offer is available on a walk-in basis only.

29/09/2026

Solidarity with the Garvaghy Road residents.

28/09/2026

Historian and author Tom Hartley joined us at the Museum of Free Derry to talk about his latest book, The Al Rawdah.

In conversation with Eoghan Mac Cormaic, Tom looked back at internment without trial in the north of Ireland in the late 1930s and early 1940s, and the story of the Al Rawdah prison ship on Strangford Lough, where internees were held in harsh conditions.

Thanks to Tom and Eoghan for a really interesting discussion, and to everyone who came along.

23/09/2026

Historian and author Tom Hartley will be in the Museum on Friday for a special lunchtime talk on his latest book, The Al Rawdah.

In this compelling new work, Hartley explores the little-known history of internment without trial in the north of Ireland during the late 1930s and early 1940s.

Central to the story is The Al Rawdah, the infamous prison ship moored on Strangford Lough, where internees were held in harsh and often inhumane conditions.

Books will be available on the day at the Museum.

Register here: https://www.eventbrite.ie/e/tom-hartley-the-al-rawdah-the-untold-story-of-internments-prison-ship-tickets-1996530322941