The Royal Armouries Museum in Leeds has taken Gen Z’s slang rulebook and made a star out of one of its curators, whose viral TikTok promoting the museum has amassed nearly five million views.
The video shows 65-year-old military expert Mark Murray-Flutter using slang like “slay”, “pop off queen” and “the vibes are immaculate” to promote the museum’s artefacts. In one clip, he describes Henry VIII as “the original rizzler,” and states that “his codpiece hits different”.
Mr Murray-Flutter, who has worked at the museum for 40 years, told ITV that he’s enjoyed his newfound fame.
“People have been stopping me on the train, which has been quite a shock,” he said this week.
The museum offers thousands of exhibits of arms and armour available to see for free.
It is one of most popular and frequently visited attractions in Leeds.
The lighthearted video, which went live on TikTok last week, has struck a chord with young people on the video-sharing platform, and clearly, the marketing tactic has worked: many, including those living as far as the US, have said that the video has made them want to visit the museum.
“Why do I actually wanna go here cuz of this,” one comment underneath the video says. “Give your social media guy/girl a raise,” says another.
Working together with the museum’s Gen Z communications officer Katie, Murray-Flutter has continued to appear on the museum’s TikTok page in a number of similar videos.
Now the face of the museum, he admitted to ITV that, to begin with, he didn’t understand what he was being asked to say.
He added: “It does appear to be a different language, or at least phraseology... I have had to learn it to make it happen.
“It’s been fun. It’s different from the day job.”
