M Shed is the free city museum on Bristol's working harbourside, housed in a 1950s transit shed with the original harbourside cranes still standing outside. The three floors cover Bristol's history with unusual honesty about the city's role in the slave trade alongside the more conventional stories of Brunel, the docks, and the city's creative identity.
The building's industrial character is part of the experience. The ground floor often has temporary exhibitions. The balcony view over the harbour and toward the SS Great Britain is one of the better free views on the Bristol waterfront.