The Nation’s Favourite Dinosaur is extending Coventry residency after capturing the imagination of hundreds of thousands of visitors since its arrival three years ago.
The Natural History Museum’s iconic Diplodocus cast – Dippy – will be on show at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum for another year.
Dippy arrived at the Herbert in February 2023, with the 26m-long Jurassic exhibit contributing to a surge in visitor numbers at the city centre attraction, where it will remain until February 19, 2027.
The Natural History Museum and Herbert Art Gallery & Museum agreed a one-year extension to Dippy’s original three-year stay due to its popularity with local and regional audiences.
The 292-bone, 4.17 metre high replica skeleton first arrived in London in 1905 and has inspired generations of visitors to connect with nature.
In 2018, after 110 years on display in the capital, Dippy embarked on an eight-city UK tour, with each location reporting an influx of visitors in what has been called the “Dippy effect”
In Coventry, the Dippy effect has helped bring around half a million visitors to the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum over the last three years.
From February 2023 to February 2025, visits to Dippy are estimated to have brought £2.1 million into Coventry’s visitor economy, based on visitor expenditure in the city according to an evaluation by Durnin Research.
In addition to providing an awe-inspiring welcome to visitors of all ages, the Coventry gallery’s wide range of dinosaur-themed events has proved popular with families – from Doze Under Dippy overnight experiences to the Brick Dinos exhibition, which featured LEGO dinosaur sculptures designed in collaboration with palaeontologists.
A model Allosaurus head, and a showcase of the Cruxicheiros newmanorum – a T. rex shaped dinosaur which was found just a few miles from Coventry – were added to the Herbert’s Discover Dinosaurs collection in November 2025.
Fossils of Jurassic sea creatures that lived in Coventry & Warwickshire between 200 and 145 million years ago are also on display.
Marguerite Nugent at CV Life who manages the Herbert said the extension would provide even more opportunities to educate and inspire local families and visitors.
“Dippy has been a huge hit for visitors of all ages over the last three years, and has helped cement the Herbert’s reputation as a must-visit venue in the West Midlands.
“The Dippy effect has been clear to see, not just in the volume of people who have come to see it, but in the knock-on effect it has with families enjoying a wide-range of dinosaur-inspired events and activities at the Herbert and across the city.
“We’re looking forward to making the most of these extra 12 months and welcoming more visitors to see Dippy and the other unmissable exhibitions in store at the Herbert.”
Dr Alex Burch, Director of Public Programmes at the Natural History Museum, London, said: “It’s been fantastic to see the success of Dippy at the Herbert. We know that biodiversity is under threat and the planet is facing a crisis. Dippy has the ability to capture people’s imagination.
“Through this extended stay we hope the nation’s favourite dinosaur can encourage even more people to care about natural world as well as bringing further economic benefit to Coventry.”
For more information visit www.theherbert.org/whats-on