Retro Computer Museum facts for kids
| Established | July 2008 |
|---|---|
| Location | Thurmaston, Leicestershire |
| Type | Computer museum |
| Collection size | ~300 (unique) systems, >40000 software titles |
| Founder | Andy Spencer |
| Nearest car park | On site (no charge) |
The Retro Computer Museum (RCM) in Leicester, England, is a special place. It's all about keeping old computers and video game consoles safe. You can see and even play with systems from the 1960s until today!
What is the Retro Computer Museum?
The museum is a charity. This means it's a group that helps people. It's run completely by volunteers. These are people who give their time for free. Andy Spencer started the museum. He leads the team of people who run it.
You can see many old computers and game consoles here. These include early systems like the Atari 2600. There are also famous ones like the ZX Spectrum and Commodore 64. You can even find the NES, GameCube, PlayStation 2, and Xbox. Some very rare items are also on display.
The museum gets most of its items from public donations. It has about 300 different computer systems. More than 40 systems are ready for you to use. You can play games on them. If you know how, you can even try programming. The museum also has a huge library of software. It holds around 40,000 game titles. You can also look through old magazines and manuals.
The museum is usually open on Saturdays and Sundays. It's open from 10 AM to 3:30 PM. You can also book private events there. These include parties or school visits. The museum sometimes goes to other retro gaming events. They often bring systems for people to try out.
How the Museum Started
The Retro Computer Museum began with Andy Spencer's own collection. He had so many old computers and consoles. They eventually filled up his garage! That's when he decided to open a museum.
The museum first opened its doors in 2008. The very first open day was in Swannington, Leicestershire. This happened on November 16, 2008. More events were held over the next few years. They took place at the original spot and other places.
In 2011, the museum moved to its first permanent building. This new home was in Heather, Leicestershire. Many open days and events were held there. Then, in 2013, the museum moved again. It went to a bigger place in Thurmaston. It's still in Thurmaston today, but in a different building.
The museum moved to its current, even larger building in 2016. This big move happened very quickly. It took less than two weeks in January 2016. The museum reopened soon after.
