At the heart of the museum is "The Story of Nottingham" galleries, which lead you through fifteen hundred years of city history, from the foundation of the Saxon village known, somewhat unfortunately, as Snottingham to the present day city. The exhibits include an entertaining audio-visual presentation on the history of the castle, a fascinating scale model of how the castle would have looked during its heyday, a reconstruction of the interior of a medieval home and a selection of the alabaster religious icons for which the area was once famous.

The story of the city continues in the "Meet You at the Lions" galleries, a misguided community project that recounts life in modern Nottingham. Exhibits include a bronze bust of legendary football manager Brian Clough and the outfits worn to victory by the Olympic gold medal winning figure skaters Jane Torvill and Christopher Dean. Further local interest is added by the Nottinghamshire gallery of the Worcestershire and Sherwood Foresters’ Regimental Museum, a collection of personal artefacts from the local people who have fought in the regiment that was once known as the Robin Hood Rifles and drilled in the castle grounds.

The museum’s permanent art collection includes an astounding variety of pieces of both local and international interest. The Decorative Arts collection includes one of the world’s finest collections of English domestic Georgian silverware and a complete Victorian collection of Wedgwood. The Ceramics collection includes pieces of the brown salt glazed pots for which the area was famous in the 18th century and the Ballantyne collection of late 20th century studio pottery. The extensive Fine Art collection displayed in Thomas Chambers Hines’ magnificent Victorian Long Gallery includes works from local artists including watercolours from Paul Sandby and Richard Parkes, portraits from Sir William Nicholson and Dame Laura Knight, and painting of the area from such famous artists as J.M.W. Turner and Jan Sibrecht.

The museum and art gallery is still one of the finest provincial museums in the county, with something of interest for all ages, and it is really worth a quick visit if you are in the area for a couple of days.