London Museum to open in Smithfield Market after decade of work

The new London Museum will officially open its doors to the public this November following decade-long restoration work.

The opening marks the return of the disused Victorian market, Smithfield Market, to public use for the first time in more than three decades.

Welcoming visitors from Nov. 28, the museum’s free permanent galleries will tell the story of the city and feature a range of items including Banksy’s Piranhas artwork, King Charles I’s execution vest and Emmeline Pankhurst’s hunger strike medal.

It will also open up a new social space, set beneath the market’s restored dome, fitted with a restaurant, shop and show space.

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “The opening of the new London Museum will be a hugely significant moment both for London and internationally.”

Backed by one of the largest cultural investments in the capital, the London Museum is expected to attract millions of visitors and reinforce London’s status as a global culture capital.

The museum, Khan said, celebrates the past, creates opportunities in the present and aims to inspire future generations while helping build a better London for everyone.

More than 100,000 people have contributed to the creation of the museum, which will include the Whitechapel Fatberg, the Lord Mayor’s Coach, and ballerina Anna Pavlova’s “Dying Swan” dress along with a number of never-before-seen items.

A new social space, named Our Time in Linbury Hall, will feature a day-to-night program of activities with guest editors invited to explore the city through four key themes – tastes, sounds, plays and wears.

The inaugural program, London Tastes, will be led by baker Ruby Tandoh and food writer Jonathan Nunn and will aim to celebrate the city’s vibrant food culture.

Visitors can also descend below ground to the Past Times permanent galleries.

Set at Roman street level, the gallery will tell stories of the people who shaped London through time, including the city’s Roman origins, the Blitz and the 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Tom Daley’s 2012 Olympic diving trunks are among the pieces that will be on display alongside Queen Victoria’s mourning dress and Charles Dickens’ chair.

Sharon Ament, director of the London Museum, said she hopes it will make “Londoners proud” and that it is a place where people can “feel at home.”

She added: “This has been a long undertaking – not without its challenges but mostly filled with immense joy and hyper-creativity – and now we are counting down the days to welcome our first visitors.

“At the beginning we asked ourselves how to be the best museum for London.

“The answer is, to be London itself, in all its grit and glitter.

“We’ve done it with the very best – designers, historians, curators, builders, architects, artists, poets, writers, creators to name a few, all are shapers of London.

“And the very best includes over 100,000 people who have contributed along the way.

“I hope our museum is a place where people can come together, feel at home and find themselves grounded in the lives, treasures, challenges and innovations of this city’s vast history.

“Above all, I hope we make Londoners proud.”

DAILYSABAH