London’s museum scene is always best-in-class, with a handful of world-class exhibitions on at any given time. But even for London, 2026 is set to be special.
The city will finally see the opening of the blockbuster London Museum, alongside two other major additions; it will also see the return of the Bayeux Tapestry for the first time in a thousand years, surveys of some of the world’s most important artists from Frida Kahlo to Tracey Emin. And who could forget an interactive celebration of Wallace and Gromit?
Here’s my pick of 18 exhibitions and museum openings to get excited about in 2026.
Table of Contents
If you’re looking for what’s on at the moment, explore my comprehensive guide to exhibitions in London at the moment. This blog is part of my London Museum Guide, where you can discover all of London’s 200+ museums.
London’s new museums in 2026
To start with, before we get into exhibitions opening throughout the year, London is set to see three new museums added to its roster in 2026.
The London Museum at Smithfield – Date TBC, towards end of 2026
I really can’t wait for this one. After closing its London Wall site in 2022, the Museum of London is finally reopening as the newly rebranded London Museum in the stunning Victorian General Market building at Smithfield.
This £400m project transforms the historic Smithfield market buildings into a world-class museum telling the story of the capital from prehistory to the present day.
The ground floor will retain the marketplace feel – a public, social space which will host exhibitions, events, a bookshop and a restaurant. Vaults below will house permanent galleries telling the city’s story. The old Poultry Market building will open in 2028 to host the museum’s temporary exhibitions.
I loved the old Museum of London – but with this new blockbuster edition, London will finally have the world-class city museum it deserves.
V&A East Museum – 18 April 2026
Following the recent opening of the V&E East Storehouse and its David Bowie Centre, the V&A is expanding again with a new branch in Stratford.
The V&A East Museum will be a five-story, brand new museum within the Olympic Park. Its free-to-visit permanent galleries will showcase art and design from the collection, called ‘Why We Make’.
And its first temporary exhibition will be a landmark exploration of Black British Music over the last 125 years.
Quentin Blake Centre for Illustration – May 2026
Just a month after the new V&A East Museum opens, London will see the opening of the UK’s only permanent cultural space dedicated to illustration.
Twenty years in the making and set in the atmospheric grounds of an 18th-century former waterworks in Clerkenwell, this is the world’s largest dedicated space for the art form.
Three galleries will house regularly changing exhibitions, showcasing original illustrations from leading and emerging illustrators. The first exhibition will be MURUGIAH: Ever Feel Like…, showcasing the Sri Lankan artist’s kaleidoscopic works blending Hollywood, sci-fi and Japanese anime.
History exhibitions in 2026
Samurai (the British Museum)
3 February – 4 May
I always love the British Museum’s blockbuster temporary exhibitions, and I’m especially excited for this one. Described as a ‘myth-busting exhibition’, this major show will explore the reality behind the myth of the Samurai, Japan’s warrior class, over 1,000 years.
Bayeux Tapestry (the British Museum)
Autumn 2026-Summer 2027
This is the big one. Arguably the most significant museum loan in living memory, the 70-metre Bayeux Tapestry will be displayed in England for the first time since it was made nearly 1,000 years ago.
Depicting the 1066 Norman invasion and the Battle of Hastings, the tapestry is coming to London while its permanent home in Normandy undergoes renovation. It will be displayed in a single straight line (rather than its usual U-shaped configuration in Bayeux) in the Sainsbury Exhibitions Gallery.
Make sure to keep an eye on the British Museum’s website for ticket details – it’s going to be a popular one.
Hawaiʻi: A Kingdom Crossing Oceans (the British Museum)
15 January-25 May 2026
The British Museum’s first exhibition to open in 2026 is an exciting one, bringing together hundreds of artworks and artefacts to tell the story of Hawai’i and its artistry. It commemorates 200 years since the Hawaiian King and Queen visited London – which included a visit to the British Museum.
Art and photography exhibitions in 2026
A View of One’s Own: Landscapes by British Women Artists (Courtauld Gallery)
28 January-20 May
During the so-called ‘Golden Age of British Landscape Art’, women were locked out of the UK’s formal art institutions. Many of the best female artists from the time went unrecognised, their work largely forgotten.
This exhibition at the Courtauld Gallery aims to change that, showcasing landscape drawings and artists by British women artists from a one-hundred year period. Some of the artists achieved recognition in their lifetimes – others’ mastery was only discovered later.
Tracey Emin: A Second Life (Tate Modern)
27 February – 31 August 2026
The largest ever exhibition to showcase Tracey Emin. It will trace her 40-year, groundbreaking career, showcasing never-before-seen works alongside her career-defining pieces.
Highlights will include her Turner Prize winning My Bed, a controversial winner which sparked debates about what art can be. Not one to miss for modern art enthusiasts.
Frida: The Making of an Icon (Tate Modern)
25 June-3 January 2027
Of all the art exhibitions to be excited about in 2026, this is my top priority. The first major exhibition dedicated to Frida Kahlo in the UK in decades, this blockbuster from the Tate Modern will explore how she became such a cultural phenomenon.
As well as some of Frida Kahlo’s most well-known paintings, the exhibition will explore her ‘many selves’ through documents, photographs and memorabilia.
It will also explore the influence she had, through the work of more than 80 peers and artists inspired by her.
Lucian Freud: Drawing into Painting (National Portrait Gallery)
12 February-4 May
Lucian Freud’s paintings are world-famous, but this exhibition focuses on where they began: his drawings. It will showcase his mastery across different mediums of drawing – pencil, pen, ink, charcoal and etching, alongside a selection of his paintings.
Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends (National Portrait Gallery)
8 October-31 January 2027
An exploration of queer identity and community, through the work of Tim Walker, one of Britain’s most important photographers.
Walker has spent five years photographing LGBTQ+ activists, performers, artists and writers in his inimitable style for this exhibition – expect fantastical and exuberant works.
Renoir and Love (National Gallery)
3 October – 31 January 2027
This exhibition showcases Renoir at the height of his career, bringing together over 40 paintings from the impressionist master.
The highlight will be Bal au Moulin de la Galette (1876) — one of the most celebrated works in the Impressionist canon, on display in the UK for the first time.
David Hockney (Serpentine)
12 March-23 August
Another that I’m personally extremely excited for, showcasing one of the UK’s most influential and finest artists.
Inspired by the Bayeux Tapestry – on display in the UK for the first time in a thousand years – the exhibition will display David Hockney’s ninety-metre-long frieze A Year in Normandy in London for the first time.
It will also display a collection of Hockney’s recent works, encouraging viewers to slow down and notice the extraordinary within the things we see every day.
Design, fashion and culture exhibitions in 2026
The 90s (Tate Britain)
8 October-14 February 2027
Curated by former Vogue editor Edward Enninful, this major exhibition at the Tate Britain will explore the pivotal decade, when a new sense of optimism and creativity shaped British Culture.
Iconic photography from the decade will be showcased along with work by artists like Damien Hirst and Gillian Wearing, and fashion collections including by Vivienne Westwood.
Marilyn Monroe: A Portrait (National Portrait Gallery)
4 June-6 September
To celebrate what would have been her 100th year anniversary, this exhibition from the National Portrait Gallery will explore Marilyn Monroe’s life and legacy through iconic portraits.
It will include work by iconic artists and photographers, including Andy Warhol and Cecil Beaton, alongside some of her personal belongings.
Agatha Christie (The British Library)
30 October – 20 June 2027
50 years on from the death of the Queen of Mystery, this major exhibition from the British Library will explore the life and work of Agatha Christie.
Expect photographs, letters, recordings and personal artefacts to get a sense of the woman behind the writing, along with notebooks and early manuscripts.
Interactive, immersive and family-friendly exhibitions in 2026
Inside Aardman: Wallace & Gromit and Friends (Young V&A)
12 February-15 November
Marking Aardman’s 50th anniversary, the Young V&A’s next major exhibition is a behind-the-scenes look at everyone’s favourite clay man and dog.
As with all exhibitions at the Young V&A, expect it to be interactive and excellent for kids. But let’s be honest, adults who grew up watching The Wrong Trousers every Christmas will be just as enchanted. Cracking stuff.
Fairy Tales (British Library)
27 March-23 August
If you’ve got kids, this is definitely one to add to the calendar. An interactive magical adventure, bringing iconic characters to life through books, costumes, pop-ups and artwork.
And as it’s a British Library exhibition, it will of course feature beautiful books and illustrations, exploring how classic fairytales continue to be revisited and reinvented.
Thanks for visiting my blog! This post may contain affiliate links - which means if you make a purchase, I'll receive a small commission, at no extra cost to yourself. This helps me keep this site running for free.