The Cinema Museum
Photo: The CInema Museum — CC0, via Wikimedia Commons
The Cinema Museum in London preserves the history of cinema from the 1890s to the present day, featuring a vast collection of film memorabilia and equipment.
Planning your visit
The Cinema Museum occupies the former Lambeth workhouse where Charlie Chaplin was admitted as a child of seven with his mother and brother — a fact that would be remarkable anywhere and is barely signposted.
Inside is a vast accumulation rather than a curated display: projectors, cameras, seating, usherettes' uniforms, signage, posters, tickets, carpets and fittings salvaged from British cinemas as they closed through the second half of the twentieth century, filling a building that was never designed for it.
Visits are by guided tour, led by volunteers who know the collection intimately and tell it as social history — how cinemagoing worked, what the buildings were like, why they closed.
It runs on volunteers and screenings, and its tenure in the building has been precarious for years.
It is near Elephant and Castle. Booking ahead is required. Allow ninety minutes. Current availability is shown below.
Before you book
Where is The Cinema Museum?
The Cinema Museum is in London, United Kingdom. The map on this page marks its exact location.
How long should I allow for The Cinema Museum?
Allow ninety minutes. That is the time the collection itself takes at an unhurried pace, before any queue.
Do I need to book The Cinema Museum in advance?
Guided tours run to a fixed schedule and small group sizes, so they are usually booked ahead.
