The way London's cancer patients are treated changed on Thursday in a move the NHS hopes will save up to 1,000 lives a year.
Cancer services in the north and east of the capital have combined to be called London Cancer - responsible for more than three million people.
It has brought together hospital specialists, GPs and scientists.
Patients can now receive specialist care at major cancer centres and then the rest of their care closer to home.
London Cancer's chief medical officer Professor Kathy Pritchard-Jones said: "We've got some of the best scientists and clinicians in the country in our capital city but we need to get them to work together much more effectively for the benefit of patients.
'Compete with the best'"I think this is a real opportunity to do something ground-breaking for our patients.
"We've been given the opportunity to think really big and to plan services for a population of three and a half million people in north and east London, so this means we can now compete with the very best in the world."
About 13,600 people die from cancer in London each year and more than 27,000 are diagnosed with the disease.
One patient is 46-year-old black cab driver Mark Fitzpatrick.
He is one of the first to experience what life will be like for future patients.
In January he was diagnosed with cancer at Barts Hospital. Since then he has been receiving his chemotherapy treatment at Whipps Cross Hospital - 10 minutes from his home - meaning he does not have to travel into town.
He said: "It's not a journey you'd want to do on a regular basis, particularly at the beginning - because if you are particularly ill you don't want to be travelling into central London.
"It's just so handy to go to your local hospital. I mean, I live 10 minutes away, it just makes life so much easier at a time when you don't feel well.
"It's nice to be treated locally as it's a small unit and they treat you particularly well."
At the moment the average survival rates for cancer in London one year after diagnosis are worse (63.8%) than the rest of the country (66.5%).
Satisfaction rates amongst patients are also lower.
It is hoped this new network, and one for south and west London, to be launched later this year, will change that.
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
London Welsh prepare for appeal over Premiership exile - The Guardian
London Welsh's appeal against a decision barring them promotion to the Aviva Premiership looks set to be heard this month.
The Exiles won this season's Championship after beating Cornish Pirates in both legs of the final.
However, the Richmond-based club were told just hours before the first leg kicked off in Cornwall that they did not meet minimum standards criteria set down by English rugby's Professional Game Board for Premiership entry.
London Welsh played the final's second leg at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford, which is thought to be their preferred venue should they gain Premiership status.
As things stand, Newcastle will remain in the Premiership next season despite finishing bottom, a point behind Wasps, this season. However, should London Welsh succeed in overturning an original decision that went against them then they will go up and the Falcons will be relegated.
In a statement, the RFU said: "The Rugby Football Union has today received London Welsh's appeal against the decision that the club failed to meet the minimum standards criteria set out by the Professional Game Board for promotion to the Aviva Premiership.
"It is proposed that the appeal hearing, which will take place before an independent panel, will be held on 21 June at the London Bloomsbury Hotel.
"An expedited timetable has been agreed with London Welsh, with the proposed date of 21 June the earliest possible time to allow for the exchange of cases and evidence. During the appeal, no further comment will be made."
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
London Welsh and Newcastle face anxious wait after RFU set appeal date - Daily Mail
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London Welsh's appeal against a decision barring them promotion to the Aviva Premiership looks set to be heard later this month.
The Exiles won this season's Championship after beating Cornish Pirates in both legs of the final.
Champagne moment: London Welsh clinched the title on Wednesday night
But the Richmond-based club were told just hours before the first leg kicked off in Cornwall they did not meet minimum standards criteria set down by English rugby's Professional Game Board for Premiership entry.
London Welsh played the final's second leg at the Kassam Stadium in Oxford, which is thought to be their preferred venue should they gain top-flight status.
As things stand, Newcastle will remain in the Premiership next term despite finishing bottom by a point behind Wasps this season.
But should London Welsh succeed in overturning an original decision that went against them, then they will go up and the Falcons be relegated.
In a statement, the RFU said: 'The Rugby Football Union has today received London Welsh's appeal against the decision that the club failed to meet the minimum standards criteria set out by the Professional Game Board for promotion to the Aviva Premiership.
'It is proposed that the appeal hearing, which will take place before an independent panel, will be held on June 21 at the London Bloomsbury Hotel.
'An expedited timetable has been agreed with London Welsh, with the proposed date of June 21 the earliest possible time to allow for the exchange of cases and evidence.
'During the appeal, no further comment will be made.'
Source: www.dailymail.co.uk
London 2012: 50 days to go until Olympics - Newham Recorder 24
Sarah Shaffi, Olympics editor (news)
Thursday, June 7, 2012
8:43 AM
Today marks just 50 days until the opening ceremony of the London 2012 Olympic Games.
To celebrate the occasion London 2012 has published a list of 50 ways to join in with the Games.
Ideas for London include getting your photo taken with the Olympic Countdown Clock in Trafalgar Square, watching Damon Albarn in his opera Dr Dee at the national Opera House as part of the London 2012 Festival, and sending a message of support to Team GB’s Olympic and Paralympic athletes via www.ourgreatestteam.com.
People are also encouraged to consider training to become a referee, official or coach in a sport that interests them, visit the giant Olympic Rings at St Pancras International Station, and view the Tate Britain’s exhibition of Olympic and Paralympic posters.
Seb Coe, chairman of the London Organising Committee of the Olympic and Paralympic Games (LOCOG), said: “The Jubilee celebrations and the incredible welcome given to the Olympic Torch Relay have shown the great community spirit of British people and their enthusiasm to get involved with big events.
“By releasing this list, we want to demonstrate that whatever your interests, there is a way for you to be part of London 2012. We are urging the UK public to join in, and to keep their bunting and flags ready to mark what will be an unrivalled summer of sport, culture and celebration.”
London 2012 is also encouraging people to become a Local Leader - a person in the community who organises events to celebrate the Games.
There are currently more than 14,000 Local Leaders across the country for London 2012 who have already hosted or are planning events.
The Mayor of London Boris Johnson said: “With a mere 50 days to go, we are keeping our foot on the pedal to make sure everything is in place for a smooth and successful Games. We will learn any lessons from the spectacular celebrations of the Diamond Jubilee and will make sure the capital is buzzing as we roll out a huge programme of events and festivities for everyone to enjoy.
“So whether it’s watching the sporting spectacle at our live sites or being inspired to take up a new sport, joining in the free arts extravaganzas going on across the city or just enjoying the shopping, theatre and restaurants that make this the best big city in world, London is the place to be.”
Source: www.newhamrecorder.co.uk
What happens after health law ruling? - USA Today
The question is: Will the structure be completed, or dismantled?
A U.S. Supreme Court decision expected as early as Monday could eliminate a key plank of the law: the mandate that nearly everyone obtain insurance. The court also is weighing whether to strike down other sections of the new insurance marketplaces where 20 million people — those already with individual policies and those seeking them — are supposed to find health plans.
Already, 14 states, including California, Colorado and West Virginia, have authorized the creation of online "exchanges" where, beginning in 2014, those who aren't covered by employers can buy insurance. In addition, doctors, hospitals and insurers have been changing the way they do business as they prepare for an influx of customers and a new set of incentives that reward more coordination between healers, more preventative care and financial punishments to penalize poor performers.
"The train is really well out of the station at this point," says Sara Collins, a vice president at the Commonwealth Fund, a health foundation in New York City.
The justices also will decide whether to block the government from broadening the federal-state Medicaid program to cover 17 million additional people, the program's greatest expansion since it was created a half-century ago.
The court decision could affect millions of Americans, including:
• People without insurance. By the year 2021, 39 million Americans would lack health insurance if the justices overturn the mandate to obtain insurance, according to the non-partisan Congressional Budget Office. That would be 16 million more people than if the justices leave the law intact, the CBO says.
• People who currently can't get insurance on the open market because they have ailments that make insurers either refuse to cover them or charge them a higher rate than healthy people. The law requires that insurers accept all applicants.
• Young adults covered under their parents' policies, as well as very sick people who now have limited coverage that has left them with huge medical expenses. The law has already required that insurers must allow families to keep covering offspring up to age 26, and it banned insurers from placing limits on the maximum amounts they would pay for anyone's care.
• Those looking for affordable health coverage in the exchanges. RAND, a Santa Monica think tank, says premiums would rise by 2.4% if the justices nix the mandate but leave the rest of the law in place.
Experts say it's impossible to predict what the court will do, given the range of potential options outlined in court pleadings. The justices could leave the law intact or strike down just the mandate. They might eliminate the rule that limits how much more insurers can charge older people than they do younger folks, or the rule requiring plans to accept customers regardless of health.
Or the justices could strike down larger sections of the law that include financial subsidies, averaging $4,780, that would help lower income people buy coverage in the exchanges. They could get rid of the Medicaid expansion. Finally, they could throw out the entire law.
Experts on both sides of the debate agree the mandate is the most legally vulnerable piece, but disagree about how crucial it is to making the insurance markets work.
Sabrina Corlette, a professor at Georgetown University's Health Policy Institute in Washington who supports the law, says if the court strikes down the mandate, it "would be quite chaotic and disruptive" because healthy people are less likely to join the health insurance pools. If the court strikes down the broader insurance rules for the exchanges, she says, "then we're back to the status quo of people being denied because they have preexisting conditions, or being told because they have cancer they'll be charged 26 times that of a healthy person."
Joseph Antos of the American Enterprise Institute, who opposes the law, says the mandate's importance has been exaggerated, especially given the weakness of the penalties for people who don't get coverage. Those start at $95 in 2014 and rise to 2.5% of income by 2016, but there are multiple ways people could be exempted, he says. "I just don't see the insurance market collapsing" if the court strikes down the mandate or other parts of the law, Antos says. He predicts insurers would keep some popular provisions that have already begun, such as family coverage for dependents up to age 26.
The law's ultimate future may rest with whichever party wins the White House and Congress in November, says Charlene Frizzera, a health care consultant and former acting administrator of the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney has said would dismantle the law. If President Obama were re-elected but the court had struck the insurance mandate, his administration would have a number of ways to write rules that prod people to get insurance, such as charging more to people who wait until they are sick to sign up.
Source: www.usatoday.com
London 2012 Olympics: Usain Bolt stuns the world by winning 100m showdown with Asafa Powell in 9.79 sec - Daily Telegraph
Britain supplied two of the supporting cast members for Thursday’s sprint showdown though neither were able to steal the show. Mark Lewis-Francis suffered the ignominy of being disqualified for a false start while Marlon Devonish finished sixth in an underwhelming 10.40sec.
The world 400m hurdles champion, Dai Greene, insists that winning Diamond League races is of no importance to him this season and that his training programme has been geared to peaking for the Olympics.
One can only trust he and his coach, Malcolm Arnold, know what they are doing because Greene showed none of the strength and power that carried him to the world title in Daegu last summer as he struggled home in fourth place last night in a weary 49.98sec.
A long way ahead of him was Javier Culson, the Puerto Rican who took the silver in Daegu but has looked the man to beat all season. His winning time of 47.92sec was the fastest in the world this year and has been bettered by Greene only once in his career.
Greene, who appeared to be running out of gas in the straight, said: “It was disappointing. I’m not going to lie, I wanted a lot more. I didn’t think I was going to run as fast as Culson but I just didn’t feel quite as fresh as I did a few weeks ago.” In mitigation, Greene was forced to pull out of last week’s Rome Golden Gala with a stomach virus and he admitted his preparation had not been ideal.
“I thought I could have gone about four tenths faster,” said the Welshman. “That was the target in my head. I ran very aggressively from the start but it was a struggle from hurdle seven onwards. Hopefully, things will get a bit easier in the future.”
The eagerly awaited Olympic 5,000m showdown between Mo Farah and defending Olympic champion Kenenisa Bekele is in danger of not even happening after the Ethiopian trailed home in fifth place in the 5,000m here. The race had been nominated by the Ethiopian athletics federation as an Olympic trial and, unfortunately for Bekele, the four athletes who finished ahead of him were all compatriots, leaving him in serious peril of missing out on London.
Bekele has yet to run under 13 minutes this season, though he insisted that he still had time to post a quick enough to catch the selectors’ eyes because the final decision would not be made for several weeks.
“I don’t give up hope,” said Bekele. “I still have time. No problem, I will make it.” Thursday’s race was won by Dejen Gebremeskel, the 5,000m bronze medallist at last year’s World Championships, in 12min 58.92sec, though Farah still leads the world rankings after his 12min 56.88sec in Eugene, Oregon, last Friday.
Jessica Ennis had a mixed night after recording her third-quickest ever time of 12.83sec in the semi-finals of the 100m hurdles only to be disqualified from the final for a false start. Victory went to Australian world champion Sally Pearson with a world-leading time of 12.49sec in her first outdoor race of the European season. Britain’s Tiffany Porter showed her own Olympic medal credentials by taking some big scalps in finishing third in 12.70sec.
Abi Oyepitan turned back the clock with her best 200m time in eight years to finish in second place in her race in 22.71sec — the fastest time this year by a UK runner and well within the Olympic ‘A’ qualifying standard.
The last time she ran so quickly was at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where she reached the final. Having already secured the ‘A’ standard in the 100m, the Tony Lester-coached athlete now looks back to her best after years of injury problems.
Britain's winners and losers in Oslo...
Good Night for...
Abi Oyepitan (200m)
After reaching the final of the Athens Olympics, Oyepitan’s career was blighted by injury, but she now looks back to her best. Her 22.71sec in Oslo took her to the top of the UK rankings.
Nigel Levine (400m)
The UK indoor champion sliced a huge 0.67sec off his lifetime best to win his 400m race in 45.11sec — well inside the Olympic ‘A’ qualifying standard.
Gareth Warburton (800m)
His winning time of 1min 44.98sec made him the third GB athlete to achieve the Olympic ‘A’ standard.
Bad Night for...
Dai Greene (400m hurdles)
He looked a shadow of the runner who won the world title last September as he came fourth in 48.98sec. The Welshman admitted he was disappointed but was not pressing the panic button yet.
Nicola Sanders (400m)
The 2007 world silver medallist finished last in her 400m race in 52.79sec, a long way off the Olympic ‘A’ standard.
Jessica Ennis (100m hurdles)
After clocking 12.83sec in her semi-final — the third fastest time of her career — she was disqualified in the final for a false start.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
London subway system launches WiFi service - CNBC
LONDON - Travelers on London's Underground need no longer fear being out of touch.
The subway network began launching WiFi on Thursday, rolling out the service to a handful of stations this week as part of a build-up before the Olympics. The games are set for July 27 to Aug. 12.
By the end of the year, about 120 Tube stations will be connected, including some which are very deep underground.
The service will be free for the summer, but users will have to register. After that, a "service portal" will be made available to Tube passengers that will provide subway updates and some entertainment information. Access to the wider Internet will be made available as part of Virgin Media's broadband and mobile subscriptions — or on a pay as you go basis.
London's transportation authority and Virgin flatly declined to discuss the value of the contract, saying it was commercially confidential.
The announcement did not mention plans to introduce cell phone service to the Tube network.
Will it work? London's WiFi network can be clunky at times above ground, but organizers are confident the system will be able to handle the challenge of providing service miles (kilometers) underground.
The WiFi addition is part of a multibillion-pound (multibillion-dollar) effort to upgrade the capital's aging subway network.
Source: www.cnbc.com
London 2012: 50 of the best unusual museums in London - Daily Telegraph
2. Cartoon Museum, Holborn
Just a few streets away from the looming British Museum, the diminutive Cartoon Museum is easily missed but worth seeking out. Its mission is to preserve and promote British cartoon art, comic art and caricature and with a collection that dates from the 18th century to the present, visitors of all ages will discover cartoons that tickle their fancy or spark a childhood memory. Playful and popular cartoon strips featuring The Bash Street Kids, Billy the Whizz and Dennis the Menace are shown alongside rarer and more politically minded works; if you feel the subject matter warrants further exploration you can also make an appointment to access the museum’s library, where comic book connoisseurs can study the medium further.
3. Old Operating Theatre, London Bridge
In the 1800s, the Old Operating Theatre was used as an operating space for the deathly sick interned at St. Thomas’s Hospital. In those times medical equipment was primitive and effective anaesthesia unavailable so invasive surgeries such as amputations were terrifying ordeals for patients – although a skilled surgeon could perform the procedure in under a minute, novices would sometimes hack and chisel at mangled limbs for much longer. Staff talks on the theatre bring the innocuous wood-panelled space to gruesome life so it’s worth timing your visit to coincide with one; the adjacent herb garret exhibition space has complementary medical displays.
4. Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising; Notting Hill
Those same household products that we retrieve from supermarket shelves week-in, week-out are so familiar that we may not consciously consider our relationships with them, but the Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising seeks to do just that. Started by consumer historian Robert Opie, the museum’s collection includes over 12,000 original items that should be familiar to all of us, be they packets of cereal, tins of baked beans or sachets of custard powder. Consider an amble through the space a rummage through a particularly well-stocked larder and prepare to encounter plenty of decommissioned products that once held pride of place on your family’s kitchen table.
5. The Vault at Hard Rock Café, Park Lane
With so many unique restaurants in London I despair when I see tourists queuing for a table at the Hard Rock Café but fans of music memorabilia will appreciate The Vault. So named because the space was once part of a Coutts bank and now holds valuable music mementos, the display area houses some impressive exhibits. Items in the collection include the guitar used by Guns N’ Roses guitarist Slash in the November Rain video, a harpsichord frequently used by The Beatles and, strangely, one of Madonna’s old credit cards. Open seven days a week, The Vault’s opening hours are different from the main dining space (typically it’s open from midday to 9pm) and admission is free.
6. British Dental Association Dental Museum, Marylebone
Its origins may date back almost 100 years but there are still plenty of lifelong Londoners oblivious to the existence of the BDA Dental Museum. Its foundations date back to 1919 when Lilian Lindsay, the first female to qualify as a dentist in the country, donated a number of old dental instruments to the association. Today the museum’s collection includes some 20,000 items with dental instruments, furniture, photographs and art all on display. With few people enthusiastic about a trip to the dentist, going to the museum might be another way to pay your respects to this field of medicine.
7. Pollock’s Toy Museum, Fitzrovia
The space is cluttered and the collection of old, beady-eyed dolls could be considered somewhat creepy, but Pollock’s Toy Museum is an intriguing place. The museum itself occupies two conjoined houses near Goodge Street and when wandering from one small room to another prepare to encounter toys from your own childhood. Despite the ostensibly juvenile subject matter this museum is possibly better suited to adults who want to wallow in nostalgia than parents who want to provide their kids with distraction.
8. The Crime Museum, New Scotland Yard
London has plenty of macabre museums, but perhaps the most morbid is The Crime Museum, better known as The Black Museum, at New Scotland Yard. Housing an extensive number of weapons which have been used to commit murders or serious assaults in London, its collection includes items used by Jack the Ripper and Charlie Peace. The cases the displays are connected to remain shocking and emotive and it’s perhaps for that reason the museum isn’t open to the general public; however, members of the police forces or associated bodies sometimes access the space to attend lectures on forensic science, pathology, law and investigative techniques.
9. Geffrye Museum, Hackney
Anyone with an interest in interiors or design will be charmed by the Geffrye Museum in Hoxton. Based in a series of connected 18th century almshouses, the museum shows typical middle-class living quarters in a succession of period rooms. Visitors start their journey in a traditional 17th century living space and gradually work their way up to the present day. Period gardens in the grounds repeat the process so there’s even more to discover outdoors when weather permits.
10. Household Cavalry Museum
The imposing, Grade I listed Horse Guards in Whitehall makes an impressive setting for the Household Cavalry Museum. The Household Cavalry guards the Queen on ceremonial occasions and also forms an operational regiment that serves around the world; visitors to the museum can learn about its role in detail through interactive displays and can often see members of the cavalry tending to their duties and caring for their horses in the Horse Guards’ 18th century stables.
11. Magic Circle Museum, Euston
By Euston Station, The Magic Circle is a private club where magicians converge; the Magic Circle Museum is a connected space that gives the rest of us insight into how the world’s greatest illusionists operate. Accompanied by guides, visitors can view props used by the likes of Harry Houdini and Chung Ling Soo, the rifles used for Maurice Fogel’s ‘bullet catch’ and hundreds of rare posters.
12. Freud Museum, Hampstead
A short stroll from Finchley Road Underground station, the Freud Museum is housed in what was once the home of Sigmund Freud and his family. They moved here after escaping the Nazi annexation of Austria in 1938 and it was occupied by the family until the death of Freud’s youngest daughter Anna Freud in 1982. It was her wish that the home become a museum that paid tribute to her father’s efforts, and the space remains crammed with his and her accoutrements. Most popular is Freud’s psychoanalytic couch, but visitors will also discover his collection of antiquities, Freud’s writing desk and items from his library.
13. London Sewing Machine Museum, Balham
Part of the Wimbledon Sewing Machine Company, the London Sewing Machine charts the history and evolution of sewing machines both domestic and industrial and contains some 700 different types. Those especially interested in these tools might be excited by an example of the first Singer machine and a machine originally owned by Queen Victoria’s eldest daughter, but this idiosyncratic space is also enjoyed by all manner of designer. It’s usually open only on the first Saturday of each month.
14. London Fire Brigade Museum, Southwark
The London Fire Brigade Museum in Southwark is a must-visit for any adult who aspired to work in the fire brigade as a child, and an interesting attraction for everyone else too. Housed in what was once part of the original Southwark fire station, the museum’s most impressive exhibits are its historical fire engines and Victorian-era gear room but there’s plenty to explore. Visits must be arranged by prior appointment and guests are accompanied by an expert guide.
15. Sherlock Holmes Museum, Baker Street
Sir Arthur Conan Doyle wrote that his fictional characters Sherlock Holmes and Dr Watson lived at 221b Baker Street and that is the location of the real-life Sherlock Holmes Museum. Despite the men never existing, the museum does a good job of creating a setting that seems authentic, with the multi-storey space crammed with antique artefacts that could have been used by the sleuth and his associate. An added attraction is the man in period costume usually stationed outside the door, providing a popular photo opportunity for visiting tourists.
16. The Royal London Museum, Whitechapel
Within the Royal London Hospital, the Royal London Museum documents the history of the hospital and the most notable cases treated there. Surgical instruments, old uniforms and assorted trinkets make for atmospheric displays but the venue is perhaps most known for its showcase on forensic medicine – which includes original material related to the Jack the Ripper murders – and its association with Joseph Merrick, the ‘Elephant Man’. He spent the last four years of his life in a specially adapted room within the hospital, and some of his personal effects (including his hat, veil and a cardboard church he made as a gift) remain on show.
17. Bank of England Museum, City of London
Global financial markets are more confusing than ever, so this could be considered a good time to visit the Bank of England Museum for some contextualisation and education. Tracing the history of the Bank of England from its 1694 foundation to the present day, the museum includes displays of old banknotes and coins, antique furniture, historic pictures and glistening gold bars. Entry to the museum is free which, given how much financial pain everyone’s already in, is just as well.
18. Garden Museum, Lambeth
Beautiful and tranquil, the Garden Museum lays in the church of St Mary’s in Lambeth, with the Thames surging past its door. Within the tastefully adapted church, changing exhibitions consider issues related to British gardens and are supplemented by a series of talks; permanent displays of paintings, tools and garden equipment provide further interest. Outside, the grounds contain a well-tended knot garden and the tombs of the celebrated gardeners John the Elder and Younger.
19. World Rugby Museum, Twickenham
Within Twickenham Stadium, the World Rugby Museum is home to one of the world’s most comprehensive collections of rugby memorabilia. Many of its 10,000 objects are kept in storage but trophies, historical photographs and early match programmes and tickets are typically on display. If visiting the museum, consider timing your visit to coincide with one of the tours of Twickenham Stadium (for which there’s an additional charge). When running, they allow fans to take a walk around the pitch itself, the players’ tunnel and the England dressing room.
20. New London Architecture, Holborn
New London Architecture concerns itself with all issues related to London-based architecture, planning, development and construction, and its publicly accessible galleries seek to inform Londoners about the capital’s rapidly changing cityscape. An ongoing programme of debates and discussions consider pertinent issues in depth, but if you only have time for a quick visit, be sure to check out the giant scale model of central London. Measuring 12 metres, the 1:1500 scale model also includes proposed London buildings that have secured planning permission and are in development.
21. The Cinema Museum, Kennington
The Cinema Museum celebrates all aspects of cinema, with a particular appreciation for the pre-digital days when ‘going to the pictures’ was a ticket to escapism and fantasy. The extensive collection deserves detailed exploration, including as it does countless photographic images, old cinema posters, cinema staff uniforms and antique cinema fixtures. Guided tours of the museum are available most days but must be booked in advance as they’re lead by volunteers; a varied complementary programme of talks and screenings attract all manner of cinema enthusiasts and film industry insiders.
22. Leighton House Museum, Holland Park
Its exterior may be unprepossessing, but Leighton House Museum’s beautifully opulent interiors must rival the most lavish private houses in surrounding Kensington. The building was once the home and studio of the Victorian artist Lord Frederic Leighton and it remains a showcase for his spectacular artefacts. The central Arab Hall displays Leighton’s dazzling collection of shimmering Islamic tiles, but other ornate rooms impress with antique furniture and tasteful contemporary art displays. If possible it’s worth timing your visit to coincide with the free tours given at certain times on Wednesdays and Sundays; otherwise it’s possible to download an MP3 tour of the house from the museum website in advance of your visit.
23. V&A Museum of Childhood, Bethnal Green
The V&A Museum in South Kensington is known internationally as one of the world’s greatest museums of art and design; less recognised is its Museum of Childhood in Bethnal Green. This is where the V&A houses its collection of childhood-related objects and with displayed objects often dating back decades (and in some cases centuries), it’s worth a visit whatever your age. The curators deserve further kudos for providing a complementary programme of free daily drop-in activities for children, all designed to entertain and educate young minds.
24. Petrie Museum, Euston
Found within UCL, the Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology may be small but its collection of some 80,000 objects makes it one of the greatest museums of its type anywhere. Among its artefacts are sculptures of lions from the temple of Min at Koptos, dating from around 3000BC and the oldest wills on papyrus paper, as well as various ancient costumes and a series of Roman-period mummy portraits. Admission is free but opening hours are limited so check in advance of your visit.
25. Whitechapel Bell Foundry, Whitechapel
The Whitechapel Bell Foundry is best known for two things: being the oldest manufacturing company in Britain, having been founded in 1570 and operating continually since; and for creating the Big Ben bell at the Palace of Westminster. The foundry includes a small exhibition space in its foyer but is best explored on a pre-booked tour. Detailing the efforts undertaken to cast bells and showing the workspaces in which they’re made, the tour provides detailed insight into the company’s operations and the limited numbers accommodated in the small space means places get snapped up quickly.
Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
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