Make a Victorian Gluggle Jug with Dave Short at Broadway Museum

On a bright morning in Broadway, England, a sunlit second-floor studio at Broadway Museum and Art Gallery fills with the tactile smell of damp clay and the quiet murmur of people learning to coax form from mud. The workshop, '218- Gluggle Jugs with Dave Short,' brings a playful Victorian object — the gluggle jug — back into hands-on craft under the guidance of Great Pottery Throwdown finalist Dave Short. Over a focused 2.5-hour session you’ll learn slab-building techniques for stoneware, decorate and personalize a fish-shaped vessel, and leave the fragile stage of leather-hard clay in Dave’s care to be glazed and fired for pickup four to five weeks later.

Gluggle jugs are distinctive for the comic, breathy 'glug' they make when liquid leaves the mouth of their fish-shaped form; that acoustic oddity is part folk-craft, part Victorian novelty. In this class you’ll use slab-building to construct the body and tail, score and slip seams, and apply surface decoration before Dave demonstrates finishing touches. All materials and tools are provided, and whether you’re a complete beginner or already confident with clay you’ll find the session paced so you can be ambitious or conservative with your design. Tea, coffee, and sweet treats are offered throughout, and the ticket includes free access to the museum’s collections and exhibition.

What makes this experience stand out in Broadway is the combination of TV-level instruction and local cultural context: a national-television finalist teaching in a civic museum workshop is rare, and the venue’s bright, airy second-floor room offers natural light ideal for detail work and photography. Practical realities are handled up front—classes run in a compact group, the workshop is delivered on the second floor (let the host know any accessibility needs), and parking is straightforward with nearby long-stay lots; Shear House is a four-minute walk managed through Ringo.

Expect kiln risk: firing is usually successful but cracks and surprise outcomes happen, and those moments are part of the pottery story. Bring old clothes or an apron, a curious attitude, and plan to return weeks later to collect a glazed, fired piece that carries both Victorian tradition and your fingerprints. For visitors to Broadway seeking a tactile souvenir and a few hours of low-stress creativity, this is a standout workshop that turns local museum space into a small, memorable studio.

Spaces are intentionally limited to keep the session hands-on and focused, so book early to avoid disappointment. The museum recommends parking in nearby long-stay car parks; Shear House is the closest managed through Ringo and sits about a four-minute walk away. If you need additional support or have neurodiversity requirements, notify the museum so instructors can adapt the experience. The finished piece is a practical object and a conversation-starting keepsake.