Tomorrow, the new £15m Royal Marines Experience at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard will open to the public. I was able to get a sneak peek yesterday.

It’s been nine years since the former Royal Marines Museum in Eastleigh closed. Since then the Royal Navy Museums Team have carefully looked after the historic collection, ready for its new home in the 1840’s Grade II listed Boathouse 6 in the Portsmouth Historic Dockyard.

But the artefacts of Royal Marines history from 1664 to today (362 years) are not the only aspect of the new museum. The name gives the clue; visitors will have a chance to ‘experience’ some of what it is to be a Royal Marine through immersive, multimedia, interactive galleries and Commando challenges.

As James Daly the Royal Navy Museums curator for this project told me: “We reflected quite early on that Royal Marines are very dynamic people. They don’t generally do a lot of sitting around; they’re generally throwing themselves at all sorts of challenges. And we felt that if their museum didn’t reflect that, there was something missing.”

“Obviously we can’t put people through the full Royal Marine Commando training, but we thought we wanted people to take away some essences of what that was. Whether that’s the physical challenges, the more intellectual things like map reading, the specialisms that they undertake, and also their extraordinarily broad history.”

So there are plenty of ‘hands-on’ opportunities such as a combat sim (VR) room, and to demonstrate what a Royal Marines recruit goes through, you can try your hand at a series of parade ground and physical exercises as used at the Royal Marines Commando Training Centre at Lympstone, Devon. This is where you learn that your 7-year-old daughter is better at push-ups than you!

There’s also a re-designed Laser Quest arena. Boathouse No.6 formerly housed the ‘Action Stations’ attraction with the original Laser Quest themed around a hijacked shipping container and pirate stronghold. The new Royal Marines Commando themed Laser Quest is a 270m² arena may be a little intense. It’s designed by Royal Marines instructors!

Other sections of the Experience look at current specialisms in the Royal Marines such as Seaborne Assault, Airborne Assault, Arctic Warfare, Medical, Engineers, or Musicians. Visitors can learn about them using interactive video or audio testimony.

In the middle of the ground floor is the ‘traditional museum’ space, housing some of the Royal Marines most important historic and modern memorabilia, such as…

* Warrant Officer ‘Mac’ McNaghten’s AI Faw briefing model, built in secret whilst onboard HMS Ocean enroute to the Persian Gulf in 2003 and used by 40 Commandos to plan their attack on the Al Faw peninsula.

* All 10 Victoria Crosses awarded to the Royal Marines, from the Crimean War to Second World War, brought together to tell stories of exceptional bravery and service.

* A Green beret worn by Marine W.G.C. ‘Molly’ MacPherson who served in 3 Troop, K Company, 42 Commando during the Falklands War. (Marines serving during the Falklands war preferred to wear Green Berets rather than helmets as they thought that the Green Beret was ‘bulletproof’.

* A commando kayak of the type used by Herbert “Blondie” Hasler and his team on the famous “Cockleshell Heroes” (Operation Frankton) raid on ships at Bordeaux in 1942. Together with his map case and boots he used to walk 650 miles on his subsequent escape from occupied France.

The Experience also has a small Remembrance Room where members of the Royal Marines Family can connect with their history and each other, and remember those who gave their lives in service to their country.

While I was there, RM veteran Peter Othen placed a photo of his long-time friend on one of the shelves. Peter served for 17 years during the Cold War, in 45 Commando in Aden, and on board HMS Belfast, HMS Eagle, and HMS Bulwark.

The Royal Marines Experience is not quite finished. Work continues on the new mezzanine floor which will host expanded and upgraded facilities, including a 275-seated auditorium.

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