Imperial War Museum - Improved or Sanitised

The Imperial War Museum's New improved Museum, don't think so.
Result, Confusing layout and signs, many of the vehicles and most of the exhibitions that gave some reality of warfare have gone.
People standing in front of T.V. screens watching pictures and listening to voices so loud that it's distracting.  Add to that the poor lighting due to the screens makes it impossible to see anything.
No uniforms or insignia to mention but a load of artwork better of in the Tate Gallery, that's not a complement.

The holocaust, dreadful as it was, it had little or no connection to British and Commonwealth forces.  
Yet we have a full gallery devoted to the Holocaust and little or no mention of the atrocities committed by the Japanese in the Far East on British and Commonwealth forces.  
Ask children about the Nazis and the holocaust and you should get an answer somewhere near accurate, but if you ask them about the Japanese and the Far East would you get an accurate answer?
Ask them also about Stalin and Russia during the war, how many would know about Stalin's house cleaning.  

Coming out my wife said 'where's the imperial part I feel like we've missed something'.
Not a lot of Imperial on show here now, is there!  Not a lot of anything on show period.

Now wouldn't you think that Africa, India, Australis, Canada, China, New Zealand and others would have had some more imperial input over the years?

If feels like the Imperial War Museum is sanitising history, picking out the bits of popular imperial history that's less likely to offend.  
Or maybe they have just over-reached by extending there brief outside of the imperial box.

Not all bad though, the Lord Ashford Gallery is very good, you will find India and the other commonwealth nations well represented among the medals.   Also don't me too shocked it there is even a mention of the Crimea, or some other forgotten little imperial spat.
Another new feature with great potential is the History Centre, part access to the museums collections, didn't try it out but I hope it's a little better than the web search.

Get up to the Leeds Armoury and see how a modern museum should look and feel.

This is disappointing, I expected better from the Imperial War Museum. Is the mock World War One trench still there? Ive heard that it is perhaps the most impressive display they have.

There's very little left of the old museum.  
Many visitors like the new look but it's poorly laid out with narrow corridors leading to dead ends.  
Add to that some of the unnecessary item's that’s taking up floor space and you've ended up with style over substance.  
Unlike many of the military museums there's not really anything for the children to get involved. Children are tactile by nature and love holding and climbing onto things.  
The modern view appears to be don't touch and keep off, maybe the health and safety brigade have now gained full control along with the PC battalions.

If I hadn't seen the old museum,  I may have quite enjoyed my visit, although I would still believe that the name 'Imperial War Museum' doesn't apply.
Lets only hope that the National Army Museum doesn't follow the Imperials example.
If you wish I could send you more information from the guidebook.

wfrad wrote:There's very little left of the old museum.  
Many visitors like the new look but it's poorly laid out with narrow corridors leading to dead ends.  
Add to that some of the unnecessary item's that’s taking up floor space and you've ended up with style over substance.  
Unlike many of the military museums there's not really anything for the children to get involved. Children are tactile by nature and love holding and climbing onto things.  
The modern view appears to be don't touch and keep off, maybe the health and safety brigade have now gained full control along with the PC battalions.

If I hadn't seen the old museum,  I may have quite enjoyed my visit, although I would still believe that the name 'Imperial War Museum' doesn't apply.
Lets only hope that the National Army Museum doesn't follow the Imperials example.
If you wish I could send you more information from the guidebook.

That's a shame, who in this day and age came up with such a bad move? Nowadays more and more museums are moving towards hands on exhibits and the IWM decides to move away from this concept? This was a bad move on their part. The various US military museum have dozens of hands on exhibits. The National D-Day Museum in New Orleans has a landing exhibit where visitors actually ride in a Higgens boat.

Maybe they believe that the majority of children are so used to sitting in front of the TV, computer or games console that monitors blasting out information is the way forward.
Limited space within the museum must be a major problem for the curators, but it now appears to be even smaller than before the renovation/sanitation.  
Then again it's awhile since my last visit so it may be my poor memory that makes it appear smaller.
I've sent you a PM with some more info.
Regards
WF