Your chance to spend a Night at the Museum

DON'T expect dinosaur skeletons, stuffed lions and Egyptian artefacts to spring to life as in the Hollywood blockbuster Night at the Museum.

But the public in Aberdeen are being given a chance to sample life after dark at two of the city's main museums as part of a Europe-wide initiative to promote such venues across the Continent.

Aberdeen University will throw open the doors of its two museums for one night only, on Saturday, 17 May, as the only Scottish organisation taking part in the project. A series of special events, including torch-lit trail treasure hunts, behind-the-scenes tours and a host of interactive festivities, are already being planned by the university's Marischal College and Department of Zoology museums.

The university has also launched a photographic competition to coincide with the event, with entrants being asked to capture images of Aberdeen after dark.

The Zoology Museum will open from 7pm until midnight, with a screening of Night at the Museum at 7:30. Marischal Museum will open from 7pm until 10pm. Admission to both is free.