Change of Horizon for Museum Director

Director of National Maritime Museum Cornwall, Richard Doughty, will retire at the end of June 2026, after a career spanning five decades.

Richard was appointed Director in June 2014. He had previously served as Director of the Cutty Sark Trust, overseeing the major conservation project that saved this internationally-loved London maritime icon.

Under his leadership, Richard has consolidated our position as Cornwall’s most popular Museum, largely through a series of outstanding exhibitions that brought artefacts to Falmouth not only from national museums but from private collections as far afield as Sweden and the United States. As a result, the Museum is a major contributor to the Cornish and Falmouth’s economy. Over 40% of the Museum’s visitors come to Falmouth specifically to visit the Museum, bringing increased opportunities for spending in the town’s shops, cafés, and restaurants.

Dr Patrick Newberry FCA FRSA is Chair of the National Maritime Museum Cornwall Board. He said: “I want to thank Richard for his unfailing commitment to the museum and incredible hard work, particularly during recent difficult times for the tourism sector, and for setting such a good, buoyant course. His inspirational leadership has raised the museum’s profile, reached new audiences and has given Cornwall a centre of maritime scholarship of which it can be proud.”

Richard said: “Despite having the word ‘national’ in our title, everything we do has been achieved without any central or local government revenue funding. Our Museum has mounted a raft of major temporary exhibitions of national quality, launched critically acclaimed cross-arts programming, delivered hands-on activities for children, and established an award-winning learning programme. Behind the scenes, there has also been an important drive to uncover hidden stories of Cornwall’s maritime history and preserve the Duchy’s incredible heritage for future generations.”

“The museum’s dedicated team of volunteers gave over 20,000 hours of their time to us in 2025 and I’m deeply grateful to them and our remarkable team of staff who work tirelessly to ensure we provide a warm welcome, a safe building and an exceptional experience for local people and visitors to Cornwall. The collective contribution to the museum is immeasurable and much of what we achieve is thanks to their loyalty and amazing support.”

“I also want to acknowledge and thank our generous donors and, of course, our superb board whose combined expertise has guided me and the museum for over a decade.”

“Finally, a huge thank you to the many wonderful visitors who share our passion to preserve and uphold Cornwall’s maritime heritage – returning time after time to see our exhibitions and take part in our activities.”

Stepping into the role as Interim Director of the Museum is current Head of Public Programming, Stuart Slade. Stuart has been with NMMC for 20 years.

He said: “NMMC is a jewel in Cornwall’s crown, and I feel honoured and excited to be following in Richard’s distinguished footsteps as interim director. Our local community can feel justly proud of our many successes, and we will all be working hard to build on that legacy.”