A list of things that should go into a science fiction exhibition in order to make it actually good
Max 10 old paperbacks.
Max 10 old comics.
Max 5 Japanese robot toys. They still make those things in their millions.
A lifesize Starship Enterprise that you can be beamed up to/from, plus green screen for reenacting amazing planet visitation scenes.
A Time Tunnel.
The white balloon from The Prisoner.
Some actual science. Like, actual proper information about the theories and philosophies that major works of SF have been based upon.
VR.
Stuff by Bjork.
And David Bowie.
Information about the engineers and scientists who are really trying to make, eg, teleportation, time travel etc work.
A whole section just about alien monsters.
A whole section just about fragile masculinity.
Lasers.
An Obi Wan hologram.
Robot guides.
Demos from Hollywood make-up and prosthetics artists.
An ELO gig.
Animatronics.
Real proper machines tracking radio waves from space in real time so we can actually see them.
An app that comes with audio books of, like, Leonard Nimoy reading HG Wells and shit.
The female gaze.
Things that fly/hover.
As much about computer games as there is about books and films.
A ‘would this work’ thing, where physicists are challenged to recreate/explain the science behind major works of SF.
Also they get gunged if they fuck up.
An unspoken understanding that superheroes don’t count as SF.
A special ‘kids section’ that literally only has Doctor Who stuff in it and no Doctor Who stuff is allowed anywhere else.
A Futuro house.
A nuclear bunker.
A moonscape corner where you can take turns to fake the moon landing.
Someone doing a marathon reading of Dune where they can’t sleep for days.
A specially-commissioned documentary: HR Giger vs Haus of Gaga.
A room where everything is tiny and you take it it turns to dress as Godzilla and smash everything up.
UV.
Glitter.
Every hour, a drag show.
Fucking loads about Mary Shelley. Just fucking LOADS.
A dressing up box, but a really good one.
A room with no gravity in it.
Some clever stuff about religion and how we seek faith even when we have no God. Maybe some kind of SF service on Sunday mornings.
Themed snacks.
Free badges.
It should be fully accessible and pay-what-you-can.
And it should tour.
To other planets.
