Captain Kidd is back to haunt Museum of London Docklands’ pirate takeover

Dramatic tales and adventures of marauding pirates searching for booty are being staged at a family summer festival in Docklands where kids can dress as Captain Kidd.

Youngsters learning the craft of High Seas piracy... Captain Kidd would be proud! Picture source: Museum of London Docklands - Credit: Docklands Museum

Lucrative shipping trade made the High Seas a prime target for piracy from the 17th to the 19th centuries, with infamous marauders like Kidd prowling for plunder. Kidd later met his maker at Execution Dock in Wapping in 1701.

Commodities such as sugar, rum and spices shipped from the British Empire arrived for storing in warehouses on the Thames like the one at Canary Wharf’s West India Quay, now converted to the Museum of London Docklands where the festival is to be held.

“We’ve drawn on the East End’s historic links to the pirates who looted ships,” the museum’s Aisling Serrant explained. “The festival lets children learn this fascinating history in a fun way.”

The ‘Pirate Takeover’ festival on June 16 and 17 has craft activities and performances for children of all ages, including under 5s.

Actors dressed as pirates are roaming through the museum galleries, with children encouraged to dress as pirates to become part of the adventure.

Highlights include arts and crafts, slime making workshops, sea shanty musicals and costume making classes at the museum located at No 1 Warehouse, West India Quay, in Canary Wharf.