A Scimitar tank from Bovington is heading to Bodmin Keep

It weighs several tonnes, runs on tracks, and for two weeks this month it will be parked at a museum in the middle of Cornwall. With the people who used to command vehicles like it standing alongside.

Bodmin Keep, Cornwall’s Army Museum, is hosting a Tank Take-Over from Monday 19 October to Saturday 31 October, with a Scimitar Mark II light tank on loan from The Tank Museum in Bovington as the centrepiece.

It is the first collaboration of its kind between the two museums.

A Scimitar in Bodmin

The Scimitar is an armoured, tracked military vehicle used by the Army for close reconnaissance. Visitors to the museum in Bodmin will be given a guided 15-minute tour covering its design and operational history, and will hear from veterans who operated these and similar CVRTs (Combat Vehicle Reconnaissance (Tracked)).

The Take-Over runs on Mondays, Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Saturdays across the fortnight, from 11am to 3pm each day.

Alongside the tank itself there is a new remote-controlled tank assault course, a digital shooting range, and WWI tank footage screened inside the museum’s replica trench dugout and The Keep’s historic Regimental cells. Access to these outdoor installations is included with every ticket.

Nick Booth, Director of Curatorial Services at The Tank Museum, said: “We’re delighted to be able to share the story of the Scimitar tank with Cornish audiences. We hope that the Takeover will inspire visitors to learn more about this very special area of military heritage.”

Life behind armour, from people who lived it

Two Saturdays of talks sit alongside the display. Each talk costs £6.

Saturday 24 October

• 11am to 12pm, Life Behind Armour. A Q&A panel discussion with first-hand combat accounts from veterans who served in tanks in active war zones. It features Merlin Hanbury-Tenison, veteran, conservationist and author of Our Oaken Bones, and Dickie Trant, Trustee and Chair of the museum. Both commanded tanks in conflict zones.
• 2pm to 3pm, The History of the Tank. Joe Raine, Vehicle Curator at The Tank Museum, traces armoured warfare from its WWI origins to modern combat, including the evolution of reconnaissance vehicles like the Scimitar.

Saturday 31 October

• 11am to 12pm, Restoring the Ferret Scout Car. Nigel James from Bodmin Keep tells the story of the museum’s Ferret Scout Car, from its arrival in 2024 to getting back on the road.
• 2pm to 3pm, Vehicle Restoration at The Tank Museum. Duncan Masters, Workshop Manager at The Tank Museum, gives a behind-the-scenes look at preserving and conserving historic military vehicles.

Weekday workshops for younger visitors

The weekday sessions mix crafting, history and STEM.

• Mondays, Roman Armour and Military Transport. Archaeologist Laura Miucci looks at ancient battlefield tactics. Children can form a Roman testudo and make their own scutum shield to take home.
• Tuesdays, Make and Take Tank Building. Build an armoured vehicle from everyday materials, inspired by the Scimitar and Bodmin Keep’s own Ferret Scout Car.
• Wednesdays 21 and 28 October, RAF St Mawgan Workshops. Work with RAF experts to design, build and launch rockets and courtyard gliders.

Tickets

Admission is £6 per person. Tickets and the full listings are on the Bodmin Keep events page.

The Ferret Scout Car that Nigel James will be talking about on the final Saturday only arrived at the museum in 2024. It is now back on the road.

📷Scimitar Mk II