Tickety Toc

Battersby opens a museum named Tickety, hoping to draw interest from the public. However, the venue fails to attract a substantial audience, with visitor numbers remaining low since its inauguration. The opening ceremony attracted only a handful of guests, and subsequent days have seen similarly sparse attendance.

Museum Time is a television programme that presents stand‑alone episodes centred on museum‑related stories. Each instalment offers a self‑contained narrative that explores a particular facet of curatorial work or public exhibition. The format allows viewers to dip into a variety of museum scenarios without the need for an ongoing storyline, making each episode a discrete glimpse into the world of cultural institutions. In one episode, the character Battersby takes the initiative to launch a museum devoted entirely to Tickety. The venture involves organising displays, arranging the exhibition space and opening the doors to the public with the aim of showcasing Tickety items. Yet, despite the effort put into establishing the venue, the museum fails to draw a sizeable audience; only a modest number of visitors attend after the opening. The limited attendance highlights the difficulty of generating footfall even when a specialised collection is on offer. Battersby's enthusiasm for creating a dedicated Tickety museum is met with a quiet, under‑visited space, underscoring how an institution can be fully operational yet still attract few patrons. This contrast between the ambition behind the museum’s creation and the reality of its low visitor numbers forms the core of the episode’s narrative, illustrating the challenges faced by niche museums in attracting a broader public.