Gunpowder treason and plot

Remember, remember,
The fifth of November,
Gunpowder treason and plot;
For I see no reason
Why gunpowder treason
Should ever be forgot.

The Gunpowder Plot, a new-ish offering on London's tourism scene, is a mixed-reality experience near the Tower of London. On Thursday afternoon, with the half dozen others in our timeslot, we played likely Catholic prisoners in the Tower who were drawn into Guy Fawkes' plot to blow up the king and parliament in 1605.

Over the course of the 1.5-hour experience, we wore hooded cloaks, crept through passages, deciphered a coded message, used a secret knock, hid in a priest hole and had to decide which side we were on! With great actors and sets, supported by three short VR segments, we all really enjoyed it — AND got an in-depth history lesson!

Oh, and apparently most of us would have decided to blow up the king as well (rather than report the plotters to the king's spymaster)... we may have bloodthirsty children! (To be fair, their decision was informed by the treatment of our fellow prisoners.)

This was a fun and different activity for us, and the boys in particular loved it!