Become a 'Certified Londoner'

Launches 20 October 2011

Unlock our capital’s turbulent past with a new HiddenCity mobile phone trail through the colourful galleries of the Museum of London.

For the first time ever, families will be able to explore a museum in the UK with an interactive text message trail.

The Museum of London Discovery trail - a trail of clues by text message exploring the museum’s galleries - launches on Thursday 20 October 2011, just in time for the autumn half-term school holiday. The trail has been created by HiddenCity, the trails-by-text company, for families, or anyone game for an indoor adventure.

The Discovery Trail takes families on a journey of exploration through London’s turbulent history. Using text messages and a map of the museum, players are guided through a trail of clues, each leading them to a new location within the Museum where they use their ingenuity to deduce answers from their surroundings. Players who successfully complete the trail win a coveted ‘Certified Londoner’ badge by showing the Museum hosts their final congratulatory text message.

To take part, participants sign up in advance by visiting the HiddenCity website, head to the Museum, send the message ‘start’ and get cracking. The trail takes approximately two hours to complete, including a break. It is ideally played by several teams, each consisting of two to four people and costs £16 per team. Entry to the Museum of London is free.

Those who take up the challenge will step through time and can expect to see, touch, hear and even smell exhibits spanning prehistoric, Roman and medieval London, right up to the 20th century and present day city.

Vicky Lee, Marketing Manager at the Museum said: ”The HiddenCity trail is a new way for families to experience the Museum of London. You’ll discover parts of the galleries that you may not have otherwise found and learn about London’s history along the way. We had great fun playing it ourselves and it certainly brought out our competitive side!”

Amber Thomas, 10 from Epsom in Surrey, tried the trail with her twin sister Jade and five friends aged 9, 10, 11 and 12 and said, “I enjoyed using my brain to solve the questions!”

Rob Reason, founder of HiddenCity said: “We’ve had fantastic feedback from past hunters in our previous trails, which we designed for adults. A common request was to create an experience that the whole family can take part in, and we’ve created the Museum of London Discovery Trail to do just that.”

The trail is suitable for all ages. Children must be accompanied by an adult and those under eight years of age may need assistance with the clues.

Notes to editors

 About HiddenCity

 1. HiddenCity is a new trails-by-text company, founded by Rob Reason in 2011 after he realised there must be a more interesting way to experience a city... by turning it into a game.

 2. Ideal for groups of two to four people in a team, and priced at £16 per team, HiddenCity trails are a social way to discover, or re-discover, a city. HiddenCity trails are available in London, Brighton, York and Newcastle. There is no charge for receiving text messages, and those sent by participants are charged at their standard rate, or are free if they have bundled texts.

 3. HiddenCity trails can be played as a competitive event, with the option to enter multiple teams and contend against each other to be the fastest to complete a trail. Once finished teams can sign in online to review scores and, if competing, compare times with rival teams. See how to play for full playing instructions.

 4. The Museum of London Discovery Trail is a special trail jointly created by HiddenCity and the Museum of London, entirely within the Museum’s galleries.

 5. For more information about HiddenCity contact Rob Reason, the founder, on 020 7193 7429 or media@inthehiddencity.com.

 6. High resolution images are available at www.inthehiddencity.com/press

About the Museum of London

 7. Museum of London, Museum of London Docklands and Museum of London Archaeology seek to inspire a passion for London. The Museums are open daily 10am – 6pm and are FREE to all.

 8. For more information or images from the museum contact Nicola Kalimeris nkalimeris@museumoflondon.org.uk 020 7814 5511.

 9. Explore the Museum of London with Collections online - home to over 10,000 objects with more being added.