London Museum in Smithfield opens 28 November

London Museum will open its doors in Smithfield’s General Market on 28 November. This marks the museum’s 50th anniversary and a new chapter for the world’s largest city museum. Our new free galleries will showcase iconic objects and never-before-seen items.

The building itself, the Victorian General Market, had been out of public use for over 30 years. Now restored, it will be more than a museum. We’re creating a social hub for the city – one that connects the museum’s rich collection, London’s vibrant communities and energy

Over 100,000 people from London and beyond have contributed to the creation of our new museum. 

“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,” says our Director Sharon Ament.

Drawing on our seven-million-strong collection and spread across three interconnected spaces – Real Time, Our Time and Past Time – the displays highlight stories and people that have shaped London for millennia. From Roman London, writing tablets that capture the city’s earliest surviving voices go on show. Two rare examples of Roman artistry – a floor mosaic and a painted plaster wall fresco – resurface for the first time in 2000 years.

In the Goldsmiths' Gallery, the Cheapside Hoard, one of the most significant collections of Elizabethan and Jacobean jewellery, takes centre stage. The grit accompanies the glitter with a dedicated display on the Great Fire and a chunk of the infamous Whitechapel Fatberg.

Below ground in our permanent galleries, a six-metre viewing window offers a world-first museum experience. Watch trains rumble through the galleries, with passengers peering in from the passing Thameslink line.

Each of the three spaces has its own character.

Visitors enter through Real Time, where giant animated screens tell the stories of London and Londoners today using the city’s data. It's where you’ll find Banksy’s Piranhas sentry box, too.

You then move into Our Time, a central hub featuring 13 large installations rooted in our city’s living memory, such as the Lord Mayor’s Coach and East End icon Syd’s Coffee Stall. Voices of London’s Gen Alpha will be captured in a display drawn from the museum’s first major collecting project with young people. 

Head down to Past Time’s cavernous galleries, set at Roman street level, for a journey through London’s history via chronological and thematic displays. The stories are brought to life through films, illustrations and interactive exhibits. It spans from prehistoric times through major events, including the Great Fire and the Blitz, and cultural milestones like the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games.

Past Time brings together objects linked to iconic Londoners – including Tom Daley’s 2012 Olympic diving trunks, Queen Victoria’s mourning dress, Charles Dickens’ chair and the vest believed to have been worn by King Charles I at his execution. From the world of music and dance, you can find the smashed Fender Precision Bass guitar on loan from The Clash’s Paul Simonon, tablas belonging to British Bhangra pioneer Kuljit Bhamra and Anna Pavlova’s Dying Swan costume.

The galleries also explore London’s history of protest and activism. From our unparalleled Suffragette collection to more contemporary objects linked to UK Black Pride co-founder Lady Phyll and disabled-led group Transport for All.

Underneath the market’s restored dome, at the heart of Our Time, is a new social space for London – with curated programming from day to night. This includes a weekly tea club, shared late nights with DJ sets, and monthly dinner clubs and house parties. Young visitors and families have magical, interactive experiences with sensory storytelling sessions to look forward to.

We will invite Guest Editors to explore the city through their eyes, reflecting on one of four key themes – tastes, sounds, plays and wears – through a spotlight exhibition and regular thematic programmes. First up is London Tastes, sponsored by Sainsbury’s, from November 2026 to August 2027. It’s a celebration of London’s rich and diverse food culture, led by Ruby Tandoh (author, All Consuming, Cook As You Are) and Jonathan Nunn (founder, Vittles).

These programmes will be delivered with London partners like fabric nightclub, Morley’s chicken shop, Punchdrunk Enrichment and Hive Curates.

The restoration is as much a part of the museum as the collection inside. The Victorian General Market opened in 1883, designed by Sir Horace Jones, the architect behind Tower Bridge and Leadenhall Market. It traded for over a century before being shuttered in the 1990s and falling into disrepair.

Leading the transformation were Stanton Williams and Asif Khan, working with conservation architects Julian Harrap. Together, they’ve drawn on expertise from over 70 trades.

The building’s heritage as a working market is being carefully preserved and celebrated through some of the UK’s leading craftspeople. Among them are master stonemasons, the country’s last heritage coppersmiths, and blacksmiths from Wales restoring the decorative ironwork. A rediscovered 800 sqm system of underground vaults and a perimeter of heritage shopfronts are also being brought back to life.

The £437 million project is the result of a unique partnership with the City of London Corporation and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, alongside support from a range of philanthropic supporters, including Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Goldsmiths’ Foundation, The Linbury Trust and The National Lottery Heritage Fund. 

“The opening of London Museum marks a significant new chapter for the city's heritage. Rooted in placemaking, people and partnership, the project is a fantastic example of the difference investment in heritage can make and we are delighted to have played our part alongside so many others in bringing this vision to life,” shares The National Lottery Heritage Fund Chief Executive Eilish McGuinness.

As Sadiq Khan puts it, “London Museum celebrates the past, creates opportunities in the present and will inspire future generations.”

The project is designed to be a world-leading ‘green museum’. Rainwater-powered toilets, renewable geothermal energy and an industry-first eco-concrete mix are some of the sustainability features. We’re targeting a BREEAM ‘Outstanding’ rating that will place us among the top 1% of sustainable buildings worldwide.

The adjacent Poultry Market will open in 2028, expanding the museum with two temporary exhibition spaces, a dedicated learning centre and a collections store.