London Museum to Open New Smithfield Market Location
The London Museum is set to open its new home at Smithfield Market on 28 November. The site will feature permanent displays including Banksy's piranhas, the UK's oldest hand-written document, and a section of the notorious Whitechapel fatberg.
The museum closed its previous location at London Wall in December 2022 as part of a £437 million initiative to relocate into the expansive, disused Victorian market building.
Beyond its exhibitions, the museum aims to serve as a social hub offering a variety of day and night activities such as dinner clubs, storytelling events, and club nights. Notably, Thameslink trains will run through the museum’s basement galleries, integrating transport and culture.
The museum's director Sharon Ament said she hoped to "make Londoners proud".
The institution, which claims to be the world’s largest city museum, expressed its mission to "honour the past and present of this major global capital."
Smithfield's General Market Building Divided into Three Sections
The General Market building at Smithfield will be divided into three distinct areas.
The first section, called Real Time, will serve as the museum’s entrance and feature a covered street where data capturing London in the moment will be displayed.
Visitors will then proceed beneath the domed market roof to the Our Time section. Here, events and activities will be hosted in collaboration with organizations such as nightclub Fabric and immersive theatre group Punchdrunk Enrichment. Around 13 large installations reflecting London’s living memory will be showcased.
"Guest editors" will also be invited to shape various experiences and events based on themes such as "tastes, sounds and wears [clothes]" so that people can "experience a slice of their city," according to the museum.
The vast market basement will house the Past Time galleries, featuring permanent displays that provide an overview of London’s history through chronological and thematic presentations.
Historic Items and Future Developments
The museum will display several historic items, including Banksy’s piranhas, the UK's oldest hand-written document, and a portion of the Whitechapel fatberg.
Smithfield’s extensive Poultry Market building will also become part of the museum but is not scheduled to open until 2028. The market workers ceased operations there in August 2023.
Funding and Vision
The project has been financed through a unique partnership between the City of London Corporation and Mayor of London Sadiq Khan, with additional support from philanthropic organizations including Bloomberg Philanthropies, the Goldsmiths' Foundation, The Linbury Trust, and The National Lottery Heritage Fund.
Ament described the undertaking as "a long undertaking – not without its challenges but mostly filled with immense joy and hyper-creativity."
"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."
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