Why not enhance your tour of London with a visit to one of the many small museums or historic houses?
Those below are some of my favourites. Several of them provide curatorial tours by their own staff but most allow me to guide you around myself. Either way, they are all wonderful places to visit.
If you wish to incorporate one into your tour I can advise on suggested timings and costs. If you have an idea of your own for somewhere to visit then I will be glad to follow up for you.
Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood
After the South Kensington Museum (now the V&A) was refurbished in 1872 the building was offered to any area which wanted their own museum. The people of Bethnal Green took up the offer and it moved to the present site playing host to a variety of exhibitions and even housed the Wallace Collection for a while. Since the 1970s the museum has been home to a wonderful collection of toys from the past and a visit will evoke happy memories for people of all ages.
An ideal visit combined with our ‘Two Parks and a Canal’ tour.
British Optical Association Museum
Founded in 1901 this small but fascinating collection is a real ‘eye opener’! There are over 13,000 items and all of them relate to the work opticians and eyewear. There is also an unparalleled collection of paintings and prints, all of which have some form of eyeglass depicted within.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Secrets of the Strand’ tour.
Dennis Severs House
An 18th century Huguenot Weaver’s House transformed by former owner Dennis Severs to trace the story of the fictional Gervais family through the centuries. This is not a museum but a theatrical experience. As you walk round the house in silence, listen for the sounds of the past and take in the atmosphere created by Severs in the rooms which are filled with memories of a bygone age.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Cosmopolitan London’, ‘Sunday Morning Markets’ or ‘Old Jewish East End’ tours.
Foundling Hospital
Sea captain Thomas Coram established the Foundling Hospital in 1739 as a home for abandoned children. To raise money and awareness concerts and exhibitions were arranged by Handel and Hogarth and although the 18th century buildings have since been demolished some historic rooms were preserved and are now open as a museum.
An ideal visit combined with a Bloomsbury tour
Formans Salmon Smokery
Established in 1905 Forman’s is the last east London smokery to remain operating in the area. The tour includes a talk on the history of salmon smoking, a demo of how to fillet and slice a side of salmon and time to peruse the work of local artists in the new Smokehouse Gallery. Not only that you can have lunch there too!
An ideal visit combined with the London 2012 range of tours or any east London tour.
Geffrye Museum
Housed in the early 18th century Ironmongers’ almshouses funded by a bequest from Robert Geffrye this is one of London’s favourite small museums. Within a series of rooms the development of domestic interiors from the 1600s to the present day is displayed.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Creative Shoreditch’ tour.
Kenwood House
Kenwood’s last private owner, Edward Guinness, bequeathed this beautiful Adam house to the nation together with its priceless collection of art which includes works by Vermeer, Gainsborough, Van Dyck and Rembrandt. Looking like a wedding cake atop green undulating landscape this is one of London’s premier wedding and film locations.
An ideal visit combined with Hampstead and Highgate tours.
Leighton House
Holland Park was a magnet for the premier 19th century artists. Recently restored, Leighton House was designed and built for Lord Leighton and behind its modest exterior there is an elaborate interior including an Arab Hall complete with fountain and tiles brought back from Izmir.
An ideal visit combined with the Holland Park tour.
London Canal Museum
Housed in converted ice store of Carlo Gatti this museum on a basin of the Regents Canal provides an insight into the Canal Mania of the late 1700s, the development of canalside industry and the subsequent decline and redevelopment of London’s waterways. Not only that, there are the stories of the ice and ice-cream industries too.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘All Change at Kings’s Cross’ and any Regents Canal tours.
Museum of Brands and Packaging
Robert Opie started collecting chocolate wrappers as a youngster and his collection has since grown into 12,000 items all which had been designed to be thrown away. Today, they are displayed to provide a trip down memory lane par excellence . When you visit this museum, you will not stop remembering. My memories are coming back already ....Aqua Manda, Mint Cracknell ....
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Notting Hill’ tour.
Museum in Docklands
This is one of London’s newest museums situated in a 19th century sugar warehouse.
When London’s docks closed the Museum of London collected a fascinating array of artifacts from machinery to spice jars and they are now housed in this museum which tells the story of London’s Docks and the River Thames. The highlight of a visit is “Sailortown” a recreation of a Thames side street with shops selling everything from sails to giraffes.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Sugar Sailmakers and Seafarers’ - Historic West India Dock and Limehouse Tour, ‘Dockers to Wharfers’ or ‘Isle of Dogs’ tours
Old Operating Theatre
Built in 1822 at the top of St Thomas’s Church as a women’s ward for St Thomas’s Hospital it was closed and forgotten when the hospital moved to Lambeth. Rediscovered in 1956 it is a time capsule that reminds us all what surgery was like before anaesthetic and antiseptic!
An ideal visit combined with any of the Bankside, Borough and Southwark tours
Phoenix Cinema
This recently restored independent cinema in north London celebrates its centenary in 2010 and within its walls you will discover a hundred years of cinema architecture and cinema going. Sit back and let your cinematic memories come flooding back. There is usually also an opportunity to visit the projection room too.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Highgate Village’ tour
Sands Film Studio
Housed in an old granary this visit is a real eye opener when you have the opportunity to discover how film sets are made, props go from idea to reality and a costume collection which has been an labour of love to produce.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Rotherhithe’ tour
Thames River Police Museum
Established in 1798 to combat the excessive theft from boats moored on the River Thames the River Police is now the oldest uniformed police force in the world. With the water lapping outside the back entrance this museum, housed in the old carpentry shop of the police station provides an atmospheric insight into the work of the Marine Police Unit as they are now known.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Pirates, Pepper and Penthouses’ tour
Whitechapel Bell Foundry
Founded in 1570 this is considered the oldest registered company in the country. On the same site since 1670 it is still making bells and associated fittings and over the door is the cast for Big Ben, one of the largest bells ever made here. This historic building is one of the most popular tours in London and the tours, only on a Saturday (plus special occasions) are booked up months in advance so please plan ahead for your visit.
An ideal visit combined with any of the east London tours.
William Morris Gallery
Housed in the 18th century Water House, the William Morris family home, this is the only public gallery devoted to the life and work of William Morris himself. Through the collection you discover the stories behind the man, his family and friends and his work as a writer, designer, manufacturer and social activist.
An ideal visit combined with the ‘Walthamstow Village‘ tour
Visits that can be incorporated into a half-day tour
The list is by no means exhaustive but it does give an idea of the variety available to you. These tours last around 30/45 minutes and have proved popular additions to a half-day walking tour.
Floris Perfumier, St James’s
German Lutheran Church, Whitechapel
Granada Cinema, Tooting
Kingsley Hall, Bromley by Bow
Nelson Street Synagogue, Whitechapel
New West End Synagogue, Bayswater
Sandys Row Synagogue, Spitalfields
St Augustine’s Tower, Hackney
St Olaf’s Church, Rotherhithe
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SOHO OF THE 60s
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STITCH STITCH STITCH
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