1. Tate Modern
Tate Modern is located on the south bank of the River Thames at Bankside, near Blackfriars Bridge, opposite St Paul's Cathedral and next to the Globe Theatre. Take tube to St. Pauls cross the millennium pedestrian bridge—gorgeous walk. See the Opened in 2000, this gallery has amazed industry insiders, art lovers and tourists and detractors are few and far between. The museum, located among the drab, concrete blocks of Bankside, has few of its original features; it used to be a 1950's power station. Grand inside, there are many innovative and attention-grabbing works, with a variety from 1900 to the present, from the most important artists of the century to today's rising stars. The building itself is huge and incredible. Some of the best views of St.Pauls and the city. The restaurants are worth a trip on their own. Admission is free, but a donation is appreciated (charges for special exhibits and films). Open Hours: 10a-6p Su-Th, 10a-10p Sa-Su. http://www.tate.org.uk/modern/
2. Horniman Museum
Daily 10.30am - 5.30pm Entrance to the Museum and Gardens is FREE.
An anthropological museum set in 16 acres of landscaped gardens, the Horniman Museum has a traditional natural history gallery - dominated by a bizarre, overstuffed walrus - where the exhibits are displayed in traditional cases with no computer touch-screens in sight.
Sneak down to Forest Hill for what might be (whisper it) London’s best museum – the Horniman.
Skeletons, pickled animals, model insects and Egyptian mummies, and the star attraction – an enormous (over-) stuffed walrus. Don’t miss the mesmerising jellyfish in the new aquarium or the Apostles clock chiming at 4pm. Horniman Museum, 100 London Rd, SE23 www.horniman.ac.uk). Forest Hill Rail.
Sneak down to Forest Hill for what might be (whisper it) London’s best museum – the Horniman.
Skeletons, pickled animals, model insects and Egyptian mummies, and the star attraction – an enormous (over-) stuffed walrus. Don’t miss the mesmerising jellyfish in the new aquarium or the Apostles clock chiming at 4pm. Horniman Museum, 100 London Rd, SE23 www.horniman.ac.uk). Forest Hill Rail.
3. Museum of London
Museum open daily and is FREE! Monday to Sunday: 10am-6pm
Last admission: 5.30pm
Seriously, way more interesting than it sounds! The history of London, from prehistoric times to the present, told through reconstructed interiors and street scenes, alongside displays of original artifacts found during the museum's archaeological digs. Interactive and cool exhibits and the home to the Centre for Human Bioarchaeology is part of the London Archaeological Archive and Research Centre-that curates the Museum of London's extensive holdings of human remainsMuseum of London, 150 London Wall, London, EC2Y 5HN (0870 444 3851/ http://www.museumoflondon.org.uk St Paul's or Barbican tube.
4. Sir John Soane’s MuseumOpen free: Tuesday to Saturday inclusive, 10-5. Also on the first Tuesday evening of each month, 6-9 pm. Closed Sunday, Monday, Bank holidays. One of the most fascinating collections in the world. Sir John Soane lived in this house until his death--collecting paintings, antiquities, drawing and oddities. A genius architect, his home is an architectural maze of rooms from the elegant to the bizarre. There is even a sarcophagus in the basement. There is a special candlelit opening on the first Tuesday evening of each month, 6-9pm. Last entry for this is 8:30pm. Visitor numbers are generally high on these evenings and there is frequently a queue to enter the Museum. 13 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3BP-- just a short walk from Holborn Tube Station on the Central Line. http://www.soane.org/index.html
5. The Clink Prison Museum
Open 7 days a week 10:00 - 21:00 Student ticket £3.50This eerie museum is built upon the original site of the Clink Prison dating back to 1144 making it one of England’s oldest if not the oldest prison. Visitors will experience a hands-on educational exhibition allowing the handling of original artifacts including torture devices and along with the opportunity to view and hear the amazing stories of the inmates and the notorious Southbank. Crime and the punishment of criminals has been a social debate for hundreds of years--Be able to join the debate through learning how inmates were treated and the conditions they lived in. London Bridge tube/rail. www.clink.co.uk
6. The Benjamin Franklin House
The Historical Experience Show runs at 12, 1pm, 2pm, 3.15pm and 4.15pm Wednesday through Sunday all year round. 7 pounds.
In the heart of London, just steps from famed Trafalgar Square, is Benjamin Franklin House, the world's only remaining Franklin home. For nearly sixteen years between 1757 and 1775, Dr Benjamin Franklin - scientist, diplomat, philosopher, inventor, Founding Father of the United States and more - lived behind its doors. Benjamin Franklin House, built circa 1730, is now open to the public as a dynamic museum and educational facility. The Historical Experience presents the excitement and uncertainty of Franklin's London years using rooms where so much took place as staging for a drama which seamlessly integrates live performance, cutting edge lighting, sound and projection technology. From Charing Cross:
Turn left out of the main station entrance, and make another left onto Craven Street - look for the plaque commemorating Franklin's residence in the House.
7. Dickens Museum
The Museum is open daily from 10.00-17.00 Last admission is 30 minutes before closing time.
A hidden gem, it's easy to miss the only surviving London house where Dickens lived, from 1837-1839. The world's most important collection of material relating to the great Victorian novelist and social commentator. There are four floors of Dickens material in this townhouse, decorated as it would have been during his tenancy, from posters advertising his public speaking to rare editions of his work. Interesting aspects of Dickens life revealed! 48 Doughty Street
London WC1N 2LX Underground services:
Piccadilly Line (Russell Square Station)
Central Line (Chancery Lane and Holborn) or buses 7, 17, 19, 38, 45, 46, 55, 243.8. The Women’s Library
Access is free and open to everyone. The Reading Room is open Tuesday to Friday, 9.30am to 5.00pm. On Thursdays the Reading Room is open from 9.30 to 8pm, Saturday hours are 10.00am to 4.00 pm. The Women's Library houses the most extensive collection of women's history in the UK. Established in 1926, the Women's Library the home of major collection of women's history including posters, banners, books, magazines, photographs and other materials celebrating the women's lives they document. The Women's Library London Metropolitan University, Old Castle Street , London E1 7NT. Tube and directions: Aldgate East (Hammersmith and City and District lines; 3 minute walk). http://www.londonmet.ac.uk/thewomenslibrary/9. Dennis Severs' House
A critics choice museum—Very limited opening times:Sunday 12-4 last admissions 3:15 (8 pounds)
Monday 12-2 the 1st and 3rd Monday of the month last booking 1:30 (5 pounds)
Monday evening (recommended) 7-10 (12 pounds)
Is a one-of-a-kind experience—a time capsule attraction in which visitors are immersed in a unique form of theatre. The ten rooms of this original Hugeuenot house have been decked out to recreate snapshots of life in Spitalfields between 1724 and 1914. An escorted tour through the compelling 'still-life drama', as American creator Dennis Severs put it, takes you through the cellar, kitchen, dining room, smoking room and upstairs to the bedrooms. With hearth and candles burning, smells lingering and objects scattered apparently haphazardly, it feels as though the inhabitants had deserted the rooms only moments before. The Dennis Severs House tour is unsuitable for children as tours are conducted in silence. 18 Folgate Street—Tube: Liverpool Station--Leave the station via the Bishopsgate exit, turn left. Folgate street is on the right. http://www.dennissevershouse.co.uk/
10. Hunterian MuseumTuesday to Saturday from 10am to 5pm. Interested in medicine, surgery, the body. Thousands of medical specimens and cases of surgical instruments is fascinating. It’s not gruesome-the space is super-stylish, with glass specimen jars displayed neatly along clean glass shelves. The best exhibits are pickled organs from soldiers who fought in the Battle of Waterloo, Winston Churchill’s dentures and the skeleton of the 'Irish giant'. The Hunterian Museum is located inside The Royal College of Surgeons of England, 35-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3PE. Within easy walking distance of Holborn Tube Stop (Piccadilly and Central lines). http://www.rcseng.ac.uk/museums/
