Items36The creator’s order
  1. 1Postal Museum, LondonPostal Museum, LondonBoard a small train for a ride through the tunnels that once carried London’s mail. Choose a ticket that includes Mail Rail if you want to go underground. The museum galleries are an option on their own if narrow carriages or enclosed spaces make the ride a poor fit.0
  2. 2Sir John Soane's MuseumSir John Soane's MuseumGo to the Picture Room to see how an architect hung far more art than his walls could hold. Hinged panels open to reveal more pictures, including Hogarth’s A Rake’s Progress. Walk in for free during regular hours, or book ahead if you want a highlights tour.0
  3. 3Museum of BrandsMuseum of BrandsWalk the Time Tunnel from Victorian packaging into the world of familiar supermarket brands. The fun is in comparing boxes, tins, and labels across decades. Give yourself time to look at how the same products were sold to different generations.0
  4. 4Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb GarretOld Operating Theatre Museum and Herb GarretClimb into an old surgical theater and stand where students once watched operations. The steep wooden tiers make the visit as much about how surgeons learned as what they did. The usual entrance is a 52-step spiral staircase. Contact the museum in advance about the accessible entrance.0
  5. 5Grant Museum of Zoology and Comparative AnatomyGrant Museum of Zoology and Comparative AnatomyStart with the jar packed with preserved moles. The label explains why studying anatomy sometimes meant storing many animals together. The university collection is free, and you can walk in without booking for a typical individual visit.0
  6. 6Fan MuseumFan MuseumSet aside a stop in Greenwich for the hand fan. Displays change regularly, so the choice on any given visit might send you into court dress, craft, or the politics of what people carried. Check the current exhibition if you want a particular kind of fan.0
  7. 7Hunterian Museum, LondonHunterian Museum, LondonPut this on your list if you want to see how anatomy was taught through preserved specimens. The surgical collection includes human remains, so choose it with that in mind. Entry is free and the museum recommends booking ahead.0
  8. 8Cinema Museum, LondonCinema Museum, LondonLook past the films to the places that showed them. The collection makes a visit about projection, cinema interiors, and the routines of going to the movies. Book a guided tour ahead because the museum has no regular walk-in hours.0
  9. 9London Sewing Machine MuseumLondon Sewing Machine MuseumGo upstairs at a sewing-machine shop to compare designs from the century when home sewing took on a new shape. Look for the machine Queen Victoria bought for her daughter. The museum generally opens on selected Saturday afternoons and takes a winter break, so confirm the next opening before…0
  10. 10Museum of FreemasonryMuseum of FreemasonryStart with the objects members carried to meetings, from pocket watches to briefcases for their regalia. The permanent exhibition also gives you the early constitutions and documents that formalized the organization. You can see the galleries for free.0