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Burns museum wins £5.8m funding Burns museum wins £5.8m funding
(about 2 hours later)
A proposed new £17m museum celebrating Robert Burns has been awarded £5.8m in lottery funding. A proposed new museum celebrating Robert Burns has been awarded £5.8m from the Heritage Lottery Fund.
The new centre will be in the heart of Alloway, the tiny Ayrshire village where the poet was born in 1759. The new centre in the heart of Alloway, the Ayrshire village where the poet was born in 1759, will replace an existing museum which has fallen into disrepair.
The project, which has received funding from the Heritage Lottery Fund, will involve building a brand new centre and upgrading existing landmarks. It is part of a £17m project which will also see the cottage where Burns was born restored.
Additional facilities will be added to accommodate the thousands of extra visitors it hopes to attract. The £5.8m museum, co-ordinated by the National Trust for Scotland, will open for bicentenary celebrations in 2009.
class="bodl" href="http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?threadID=5346&edition=1&ttl=20070124090722">Tell us if you're marking Burns' birthday The new museum will exhibit important works such as the original manuscripts of Auld Lang Syne and Tam O'Shanter.
With the 250th anniversary of Burns' birth just two years away, the race was on to complete the work, campaigners said. Burns' life and his works are just as relevant today as they were when he lived Shonaig MacphersonNTS chairwoman class="" href="http://newsforums.bbc.co.uk/nol/thread.jspa?threadID=5346&edition=1&ttl=20070124090722">Are you marking Burns' birthday
The National Trust for Scotland said many precious artefacts were slowly rotting and the old-fashioned setting was doing little to win over 21st Century visitors. Shonaig Macpherson, chairwoman of NTS, said: "We are delighted that the Heritage Lottery Fund has chosen to support us in this project.
"It is vitally important that the legacy of Robert Burns, which is celebrated around the world, is properly marked here in Scotland with a high quality museum that allows people of all interests and backgrounds to study and enjoy the bard's poetry, his songs and his life.
"Burns' life and his works are just as relevant today as they were when he lived and it is crucial that we make sure none of what he gave us is lost."
The current museum is suffering from damp and a lot of artefacts have had to be moved to the National Libraries in Edinburgh.
Final approval
The existing building will be turned into classrooms and a library.
Brian Lang, chairman of the Heritage Lottery Fund's committee for Scotland, said: "It will not only impact on tourism in Scotland but will also stimulate regeneration in Ayrshire."
The Heritage Lottery Fund also announced on Wednesday final approval for a £16.7m boost for the National Museums Scotland to help create a state-of-the-art experience for visitors at the Royal Museum.