A celebration of Frankie Goes to Hollywood legend Holly Johnson is one of the highlights of the National Museums Liverpool autumn/winter programme. Tony McDonough reports

National Museums Liverpool have revealed details of its autumn/winter programme with a Liverpool pop legend among the highlights.

From September the Museum of Liverpool will offer The Holly Johnson Story, a celebration of the former Frankie Goes to Hollywood frontman. It will explore his “life and art” and “the heritage of LGBTQ+ communities in Liverpool”.

From October to March the Walker Art Gallery will host a major exhibition celebrating Black British women and non-binary artists and the Lady Lever Art Gallery in Wirral will showcase an “exquisite range of garments” from the 1920s to the present day.

Laura Pye, director at National Museums Liverpool, said: “We’re delighted to announce our rich and varied programme for this autumn/winter at NML.

“Our diverse programme is an impressive celebration of artistic expression, from the historical to the contemporary.” Full programme is as follows:

• Opening at the Museum of Liverpool on Saturday September 14, The Holly Johnson Story explores the incredible life and art of Holly and the heritage of LGBTQ+ communities in Liverpool. It also marks the 40th anniversary of the album Welcome to the Pleasuredome.
• In October the Walker Art Gallery will host a major exhibition celebrating Black British women and non-binary artists called Conversations. It runs from October 19 to March 9 and features work by almost 50 leading Black women and non-binary artists.
• British-Trinidadian artist Karen McLean is set to Explore Liverpool’s Colonial Legacies at Walker Art Gallery with her installation Stitching Souls: Threads of Silence, which opens September 28 and runs until March 2.
• Also at the Walker, innovative glass artist Chris Day brings a stunning blown glass and mixed media commission called Now You See Me from August 6 to November 24.
• Dive into a century of glamour at the Lady Lever Art Gallery with Bedazzled from
• October 5 to March 2. This exhibition showcases an exquisite range of garments from the 1920s to the present day.

• Explore the music scene in Liverpool’s bustling 1960s Merseybeat era at Museum of Liverpool’s Skylight Gallery with Beyond the Beat from June 29 to November 3. It features  previously unseen photographs taken from a huge archive by Peter Kaye Photography.
• Magnus Hastings,  renowned for his internationally acclaimed work with drag performers and the LGBTQ+ community, brings Queen to the Walker Art Gallery, from July 27 to August 25. 
• Currently running at the World Museum until 5 May 2025 is Bees: A Story of Survival. This immersive exhibition brings together art and science to explore one of nature’s most incredible creatures – the bee.