From penis piercings to Princess Diana and Brexit, MAXINE GORDON gets a preview of York's new gallery of broken relationships

A TOY penis with piercings, a Rubik's cube full of images of Princess Diana and Prince Charles, and an 18th-century jigsaw of Europe are just three objects in a new exhibition in York about broken relationships to coincide with Brexit.

From Friday, doors will open at the pop-up Museum of Broken Relationships which has taken over a wing at York's Castle Museum.

Designed like a white-cube art gallery, on show will be a collection of objects from across the world - all with one thing in common.

"Each item will have a label, a date and a location with a story about a broken relationship," explains Philip Newton, of York Castle Museum.

Many items are on loan from the original Museum of Broken Relationships in Zagreb, Croatia, with some pieces added from the Castle Museum's own collection.

Items as varied as the penis toy, a gingerbread cookie, a Victorian Valentine's card, a Terry's chocolate Easter egg from 1902, and a cheque book will be on show in the gallery which spills out over five rooms and a corridor.

Philip says there are some adult themes in the show and a disclaimer will be displayed.

One of the most bizarre items is the toy penis, with bolt piercings through it. The story behind it, explains Philip, is that a man went off to have a piercing in his private parts, but his partner didn't realise until they became intimate. Their relationship soon ended.

Other pieces on show have their own tales to tell about doomed love affairs: a joint cheque book, an unopened packet of condoms, and a toy motorbike made of wood. This, explains Philip, was given to man in Mexico by his girlfriend after he came off his bike and broke his leg. The caption reads: "My ex-girlfriend gave me this motorcycle. She hated that I rode motorcycles and even vowed that she would never ride mine. Soon after we began dating, I had an accident. I broke my leg and had to wear a cast, stay in bed, etc. One day she brought me this toy motorcycle. At first I thought it was a nice gift, but then she said: 'Bringing you this seems fitting seeing as how you are only capable of taking care of something of this size. You’ll have to get yourself a toy woman too because I seriously doubt you can handle a woman like me.' I decided I never wanted to see or hear from her again. We haven’t spoken since."

Some items have a particular poignancy in hindsight, none more so perhaps than the Rubik's cube with a Royal theme. This puzzle toy which was invented in the 1970s and became a global craze was decorated in stickers of Diana and Charles in the early 1980s to commemorate their wedding. It has become all the more significant given the couple's acrimonious separation in 1992 and Diana's untimely death in 1997.

Each space in the gallery has a different theme, including romance, home and memory, resolution, and "air mail love" – the latter of which will be focused on themes emerging from Brexit. Here, there will be two glass panels filled with memorabilia from the 2016 Brexit referendum and the public vote on joining the European Union in 1975. It will also house a jigsaw of Europe, dating from the 1760s – thought to be the first jigsaw of its kind – from the Castle Museum's archive.

Projected on the walls will be an up-to-date news feed on Brexit as well as thoughts gathered from people across Yorkshire about the impact of Brexit.

Philip says Brexit is just one aspect of the exhibition, stressing that "broken relationships" cover everything from the personal to the political.

He says: "This is not an exhibition about Brexit, but it is looking at different themes around that."

In essence, he adds, it's an exhibition about people and human connections.

One such story unfolds around a large ceramic teapot dating from 1898. It was bought by a man from a shop in York while he was meeting for the first time his long-lost younger sister. "Their mother died in childbirth and their father died a few months later," begins Philip."The baby girl went to live with an uncle and the older boy was sent away to be an apprentice baker. He went back to York to rekindle the relationship and bought the teapot from a second-hand shop."

The teapot was kept by the family and donated to the Castle Museum last year.

One of the most moving stories is the one behind a Terry's chocolate Easter egg from 1902. "The child died before it could be eaten. It was too painful for the parents, so it was returned to Terry's," says Philip.

Memorial cards and Valentine's cards from Victorian times are also in the exhibition and give unique insight into how we used to cope with loss and love.

Philip says in the current political climate with Brexit hovering over us all, it is easy to focus on what divides rather than unites us. However, one thing that does bring us together is our experience of relationships.

He adds: "Everyone who comes to the Museum of Broken Relationships should be able to find something that resonates with them."

The Museum of Broken Relationships at York Castle Museum, from Friday, March 22

For opening times and prices, visit: yorkcastlemuseum.org.uk