At-Bristol will host the next event in its popular After Hours series on Monday 9 December; usher in the festive season in style by coming to a Christmas party with a difference!  

The After Hours evening is a festive knees up - all with a beer in hand and no kids in sight! Become a creative elf for the evening in Santa's Invention Workshop in the Live Lab area, where event goers will be able to get crafty by making their very own stocking fillers and decorations - with all materials and tools included, you can make light scattering kaleidoscopes, LED Christmas decorations or even a rocket mouse!

Check out At-Bristol's twisted take on the classic Christmas pantomime with the Fairytale SOS live science show - expect multi-colour fire-breathing dragons, spontaneously igniting porridge, and what every panto needs, a gravity-defying volunteer in search of a golden egg!

Guests will also be able to take a spin on the Harbourside's first-ever ice rink* (with real ice!), explore the wonders of the winter night sky in the Planetarium** and of course, play on the hundreds of interactive exhibits in At-Bristol - without the children.

You can eat, drink and be merry, as the award-winning café in At-Bristol will also be running a Christmas-inspired menu, where you feast on Christmas dinner stew, vegetable risotto cakes and mini apple & mincemeat tartlets served with brandy cream. There will also be a licensed bar in the venue, and music which will be provided by a DJ and the Pan Sonic Steel Pan Band who are based at Cotham School.

John Polatch, At-Bristol's Informal Learning Officer said:

'We've had great fun at the After Hours events over the past year, from romantic couples cutting through ventricles in Valentine's dissection lab to the team effort needed to remove a washing machine drum in the pursuit of a lampshade at March of the Makers. It's been an exciting year and we're looking forward to welcoming visitors for At-Bristol's take on a Christmas party.'

For more information and to buy tickets, visit www.at-bristol.org.uk/afterhourschristmas or call 0845 345 1235 (9am - 5pm Mon - Fri, excluding Bank Holidays).

The evening runs from 6.30pm - 10pm and tickets cost £7 or £6 for concessions, group rates also available. This event is for over 18s only.

* Skating costs an additional £7.50.  The ice rink will be open for a 45 minute session starting at 7pm; we recommend you book in advance and arrive 30 minutes before the start of the session. Please note that the rink will also be open to the public at this time.

**Planetarium shows cost an additional £1 and need to be booked in advance.

-ENDS-
 

For more information please contact Jen Forster, PR Manager - 0117 915 7152/07967 334152 or jen.forster@at-bristol.org.uk

You can also follow At-Bristol on Twitter: @atbristol, become a fan on Facebook: www.facebook.com/atbristolfans or for a slightly unusual perspective, learn more about our sustainability through the eyes of our robotic peregrine falcon: @brianrobofalcon

Notes to Editors:

1. Press Trips:If you are interested in writing a review of At-Bristol and require press tickets, please e-mail press@at-bristol.org.uk, providing media details and proposed dates of visit

2. At-Bristol is a leading science centre in the UK and a major player in the worldwide science centre movement with over 200,000 visitors a year, including 50,000 school visits.

3. At-Bristol makes and develops new exhibitions for Science centres and schools worldwide to purchase and hire, and won the tender to design, develop and build the London2012-inspired touring exhibition, In the Zone, on behalf of the Wellcome Trust ahead of many major exhibit developers in the UK.

4. At-Bristol aims to be a world-class science centre that makes a distinctive, valued and recognised contribution to science learning and public engagement with science across Europe.

5. A registered charity, At-Bristol has hosted over four million visits since its opening in June 2000 and continually strives towards making science accessible to all.

6. At-Bristol receives no central government funding and support from visitors, members, corporate partners and donors means it can continue to make science relevant and fun for future generations.

7. At-Bristol has achieved a 20% reduction in energy over 24 months, which won us a West of England Carbon Challenge Carbon Champions award in 2011 and 2012, and we continue to work towards further goals across all areas of sustainability. At-Bristol is currently one of the most sustainable buildings in the country and we were recently awarded Silver in the South West Tourism Excellence Awards due to our sustainable practices, as well as having a Gold Green Tourism Award.