Tomorrow marks the official start of the annual Museums at Night event where, unsurprisingly, a lot of museums are open in the evening.
(although one venue seems to be starting tonight!)
Many museums do actually have some sort of late-opening event most months anyway, but the Museums at Night is a nationwide event where they lay on a bit more than the usual just staying open for a few extra hours.
My personal pick – more for the rarity of visiting it – would be the Bank of England museum, which is normally only open Mon-Fri and therefore damn difficult for the average working adult to visit. It also happens to be a rather good museum.
The Government Art Collection is a good one to look at as well as it is also usually only open for specially arranged tours or Open House events, so you can get a chance to see how the Ambassadors and Ministers choose to decorate their offices – and why we spend money on such things at all.
That one is now fully booked – sorry.
Finally, if you like old dusty museums, then the Gothic Egypt event in the Petrie museum will satisfy you as it is a wonderfully unfussy museum that is resolutely aimed at people more interested in old things than in modern computer screens and plastic buttons.
Thursday
| 7:00 PM | Smithfield talk |
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This illustrated talk will look back at Smithfield from its inception as a livestock market through to London’s Central Meat Market. |
Friday
| 5:30 PM | Banknotes and Bullion |
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Late night opening at the Bank of England Museum |
| 6:00 PM | Apsley After Dark (Picadilly) |
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visit Apsley House and Wellington Arch after dark with the curtains drawn and chandeliers twinkling. (Cost: £7.90) |
| 6:00 PM | Candlelit Evening at Sir John Soane’s Museum (Holborn) |
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Small intimate guided tours of the eccentric museum by candle light. (Cost: £20) |
| 6:00 PM | Gothic Egypt: Life and Death at the Museum (Bloomsbury) |
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A guided ‘trail’ around the Egyptology museum with details of how Egypt inspired the gothic horror novel |
| 6:00 PM | Surgery by Gaslight & Other Medical Tales (Southwark) |
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Experience the fear and the emotion of a patient in the 19th century – come and have your leg amputated in the oldest surviving operating theatre. (Cost: £9) |
| 6:30 PM | Bedtime Stories at the Government Art Collection (Tottenham Court Road) |
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Chance to visit the Government art collection and see some of the art and the workshop |
| 7:00 PM | Bali – dancing for the gods (Forest Hill) |
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Preview of the new exhibition followed by the masked Topeng Kerras and Panyembrama Welcome dances. (Cost: £5) |
| 7:00 PM | Explore the Victorians (Walthamstow) |
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Enjoy a late night viewing of our latest exhibition on Victorian childhood and join in the fun and games. |
| 7:00 PM | Chance to view of the New Bus for London! (Covent Garden) |
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Free evening at the Transport Museum to see the future double-decker bus that will replace the bendies. |
| 7:00 PM | Twilight Tour at Dr Johnson’s House (Fleet Street) |
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A rare opportunity to see many of the rooms in Johnson’s historic house lit by candlelight in these special curator-led twilight tours. (Cost: £10) |
Saturday
| 6:00 PM | Apsley After Dark (Picadilly) |
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visit Apsley House and Wellington Arch after dark with the curtains drawn and chandeliers twinkling. (Cost: £7.90) |
| 6:00 PM | Canal Museum at Night (Islington) |
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An evening of candle-lit tours, atmospheric lighting, and exhibits of art and film in dark places. (Cost: £4) |
| 6:30 PM | Bedtime Stories at the Government Art Collection (Tottenham Court Road) |
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Chance to visit the Government art collection and see some of the art and the workshop |
| 7:00 PM | FAB – Sylvia Anderson talks about Thunderbirds (Hendon) |
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An evening devoted to Thunderbirds and Captain Scarlett with talks, films and exhibits (the talk needs pre-booking/paying though) |
| 7:30 PM | Markfield Beam Engine and Museum – in Steam! (South Tottenham) |
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Chance to see (and smell) the recently restored Victorian steam engine in action at night. |
| 8:00 PM | Behind the Scenes tours of the restoration of Kensington Palace (Kensington) |
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Guided tour of Kensington Palace looking at the building site where restoration work is being carried out. |
| 8:00 PM | Brunel Museum Fancy Fair in the Grand Entrance Hall (Rotherhithe) |
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Underground entertainment including the amazing floating woman of Clifton Suspension Bridge, the engineer puppet master and a performance poet. (Cost: £5) |
