Tonight, we are heading to the East London to visit two new V&A East Museums, V&A East Museum and V&A East Storehouse. Both opened last year and already have become must-visit museums in London.
Two museums are 15 mins walk apart. Entrance to both museums are free, but charges apply for special exhibitions (see below).
East Storehouse: This is a museum like no other. It is a radical new 'working museum' where visitors explore more than half a million stored objects in an open-access warehouse rather than traditional curated galleries. It exposes the behind-the-scenes life of a museum, letting visitors to see conservation work live and even to book appointments to handle selected objects through its 'Order an Object' system. It houses David Bowie Center and is the permanent home of the artist's archive.
East Museum: A museum of contemporary life, focuses on youth culture, creativity and communities that shape the modern Britain. Apart from permanent collections, a special exhibition 'The Music is Black, a British Story', celebrates 125 years of Black British Music with more than 100 sound tracks played directly to your headset. More than an exhibition, through immersive sound, fashion, photography, instruments and multimedia installations, it explores the power and impact of the Black British Music. You need to buy a ticket for this special exhibition.
To Book, please click here. Book 18:30 slot. If you wish to spend more time in this exhibition, book an earlier slot.
No official pre-museum meet as people may wish to visit one or both museums at different times, except if you attend The Music is Black - meet in the queue at 6:30pm or inside the exhibition.
Post Museum F&B: We will meet at 8pm at the main entrance of East Museum. Picnic if weather permits or a F&B venue (TBD) in Stratford Westfield. More detail to follow.
A WhatsApp group will be set-up for this event. If you wish to be on it, please email swcsocialATgmailDOTcom.
#2026-06-18T18:30
3 comments:
Weather forecast is good for Thursday Evening. We will proceed with the picnic option. There are multiple seating areas nearby so we can decide the exact location on the day.
Meet at the entrance to the V&A East Museum at 8pm. Bring something to share if you'd like.
Just to mention the 388 bus route from London Bridge to Stratford passes the V&A Storehouse (alight at the Copper Box) and also connects with Bethnal Green Underground, Shoreditch High Street and Liverpool Street Stations
n=7 walkers attended this social outing, of whom three visited the special exhibition.
As far as I know, nobody ventured into The Storehouse, which was a shame as it would have been a real treat. Perhaps that’s a good excuse for a return visit in the future.
Now, about the special exhibition – The Music is Black. In my view, the title doesn’t quite do it justice. The exhibition is far broader in scope than the name suggests. It begins with the history of the transatlantic slave trade before tracing, chronologically, the development and influence of musical genres such as Jazz, Reggae, Two Tone, Rap and many others that have shaped popular music as we know it today. It was both fascinating and educational – a genuine learning experience.
What made the exhibition even more impressive was the technology. Visitors are issued with high-quality Sennheiser headphones on entry. As you move through the exhibition, the music associated with the artist or display you’re viewing is automatically streamed to your headset. The transitions are seamless, creating a wonderfully immersive experience. It was an absolute pleasure to explore, and I could easily have spent two or three hours inside without a hint of fatigue.
Then came the important matter of post-museum food and drink.
The area offers plenty of picnic opportunities, a refreshing change from the usual crowds of central London. The weather was glorious – practically tailor-made for a picnic. We initially settled outside Museum East with our packed provisions, but one suggested that the occasion called for something stronger than a bottle of water/soft drink. A pub was proposed, and the motion carried without opposition.
A few minutes later we found ourselves at a pleasantly uncrowded pub, occupying a large outdoor picnic table. One walker ordered fish and chips and was rewarded with a fish of such impressive proportions that it attracted considerable attention from those of us eating our own picnic. Envy was widespread....
We finally left the pub at around 9:30 pm. Some walkers headed off on foot towards Mile End, while others caught trains from Stratford. All in, it was a lovely evening out in a part of London that deserves to feature more often on our programme of outings.
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