The Willis Museum and Sainsbury Gallery in Basingstoke will transport visitors back to the 1990s when its new exhibition, I Grew Up 90s, opens on 18 July 2026. More than 200 objects and artworks will chart the decade of Britpop and Cool Britannia, featuring cultural touchstones from Pokémon and Power Rangers to Teletubbies and Trainspotting. The exhibition, curated by cultural historian Matt Fox, promises to capture the sights, sounds and spirit of the era.
A retro arcade machine will give visitors the chance to test their skills on classic titles including Tetris, Tekken, Street Fighter, and Sonic the Hedgehog. Alongside the games, the displays will celebrate the music of The Spice Girls and the iconography of Lara Croft, with the Hampshire Cultural Trust expecting the show to resonate with those who grew up in the decade as well as younger generations curious about its fads. The exhibition runs until 1 November and admission is free, with donations welcome.
Fox previously brought the successful I Grew Up 80s exhibition to the same venue in 2019, a show which featured more than 200 objects and was described as a feelgood celebration of childhood culture. The museum has occupied the Grade II listed former Town Hall in Market Place since 1984, and the Sainsbury Gallery was created in 2009 with funding from the Linbury Trust precisely to host major exhibitions of this kind. That legacy now provides the backdrop for a new journey through the playground crazes, television milestones and musical moments that defined the 1990s.
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