I Grew Up 90s
Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum
5th July – 7th September 2025
An entire generation has a chance to revel in nostalgia when the fantastic new exhibition I Grew Up 90s arrives at Worcester City Art Gallery and Museum on 5 July until 7 September 2025.
Revisit the days of Britpop and Cool Britannia, from the Spice Girls to Lara Croft, Power Rangers to Pokemon, Trainspotting to Teletubbies, through more than 200 iconic objects and artworks which bring the 90s to vivid life.
Exhibition curator Matt Fox comments: “The Nineties have been described as the decade where ‘history took a holiday’, with ten years of relative peace, prosperity, and progress for our planet. In Britain, the economy was doing well, arts and culture were flourishing, and an air of optimism prevailed – we even thought football might be coming home! Those of us who grew up during those peaceful years may not have realised how fortunate we were, but with today’s hindsight we recognise the Nineties as a golden age for UK youth. It was the decade of Girl Power and Cool Britannia, of the internet and innovation, and it belonged to the young.”
Journey back in time to the days when Everything I Do, Love Is All Around, and I Will Always Love You set up camp at the top of the singles chart and refused to leave. In cinemas, Pretty Woman set the decade on a romcom course that ended with the Titanic sinking, and the British film industry reinvigorated by Four Weddings, Lock Stock, and Trainspotting. Beanie Babies, Polly Pockets, Super Soakers and Tamagotchis kept us entertained, while Harry Potter, Horrible Histories and Tracy Beaker kept us reading. There were no smart phones, social media or reality TV to distract us, but we might occasionally have returned a tape late to Blockbuster.
This exhibition has been curated by collector and cultural commentator Matt Fox who also curated the previous blockbuster summer exhibitions at Worcester City Art Gallery & Museum I Grew Up 80s and May the Toys Be With You.
Check out the Museums Worcestershire website and social media channels for a fun 90s-themed programme of events and activities including two special Museum after Hours events on Fridays 25 July and 22 August, 6.30 – 9pm. Spice up your night on 25 July with an evening of 90s chart-topping music from the Andy Richards Band. Do you ‘Wannabe’ Sporty or Posh, Liam or Noel? Dust off those dance moves and come dressed in your 90s finest for a night of fun, nostalgia, and cocktails. On 22 August dance the night away with DJ duo Le Grande Fromage – well known on the Worcester circuit – as they bring vinyl-only music to the Art Gallery and Museum’s summer show.
Museum after Hours is free entry (including free entry to I Grew Up 90s during the event). No booking needed. Cash bar.
I Grew Up 90s opens on Saturday 5 July. For ticket and events information, please visit the Museums Worcestershire website. Worcester city residents enjoy free entry to the exhibition when they show their Council Tax bill payable to Worcester City Council.