The 8 London museum exhibitions we’re most excited about this autumn

Autumn doesn’t technically arrive until next week, but if you’re anything like us your calendar is fast filling up with fun things to do. Not only does autumn promise beer-chugging, spooks and big bangs, it’s also arguably the biggest season of the year for London’s cultural quarters, with loads of exciting new theatre shows and blockbuster art exhibitions on the horizon. 

And that’s not all; London’s museums are nice and busy over the next few months too, with big exhibitions touching on everything from Korea’s rich tradition of decorative arts to the literary legacy of a beloved 20th-century crime writer, as well as the long-awaited reopening of one of the city’s most significant cultural institutions. 

Have your diary to hand, and read on for our pick of the best exhibitions coming to London’s museums this autumn. 

8 London museum exhibitions we’re most excited about in autumn 2026

1. ‘The Bayeux Tapestry’ at The British Museum

You don’t really need us to explain the significance of the British Museum’s blockbuster autumn exhibition. Back on English soil for the first time since it was actually woven nearly 1,000 years ago, the Bayeux Tapestry is not just a spectacular piece of craftsmanship, but also the primary source for our understanding of surely the most momentous year in the story of our own country. Laid out flat in one continuous 70-metre strip, it’s an astonishing artefact that teeters somewhere between outsider art, medieval illumination, action cartoon, historical document and blithe propaganda. 

British Museum. Until Jul 11 2027. £33. 

Photo: Andrzej LukowskiHarold gets shot in the eye

2. ‘Korea’ at The British Museum

Korean pop culture has won our hearts over the last decade or so, but how much do you know about the country’s history? The British Museum’s second autumn opening focuses on the east Asian country’s impressive history of sculpture, painting and decorative arts, spanning over two millennia from around 300 BC to the present day. Look out for National Treasures including ancient gold body ornaments and Buddhist icons, as well as 12th- and 13th-century celadon-glazed stoneware, evocative ink landscapes and contemporary works responding to the turbulence of the 20th century.

British Museum. Oct 1-Jan 31 2027. Price TBC.

3. ‘Es Devlin’ at The Design Museum

The Design Museum’s landmark retrospective on Tony and Olivier Award-winning English stage designer Es Devlin will delve into the stories behind the London-based artist’s 30-year practice encompassing everything from kinetic stage sculptures to monumental art installations. Developed in close collaboration with Devlin – who has worked on everything from the Olympic opening ceremony to the Super Bowl half-time show – it will feature maquettes, sketches, annotated texts and process materials, as well as new large-scale installations conceived especially for the exhibition. 

Design Museum. Oct 2-Apr 4 2027. £21.

4. ‘Becoming America: How Science Shaped a Nation’ at The Science Museum

Marking 250 years since the signing of the Declaration of Independence and the founding of the United States, the Science Museum’s free autumn exhibition casts an eye on how science and technology shaped the development of the nation. Across the exhibition, you’ll find stories of how Anglo-American colonists, Indigenous Americans and formerly enslaved communities used their knowledge, skills and tools to cultivate the land and exert power in a decisive four decades, from the 1760s through to the Declaration of Independence in 1776 and the first US presidency in 1790s. 

Science Museum. Oct 23-Apr 25 2027. Free.

5. ‘God Save The Queens’ at The Museum of Youth Culture

Chrissy Hynde, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Debbie Harry: this autumn, the newly opened Museum of Youth Culture celebrates the women behind the punk movement with a landmark exhibition. Dedicated to the legacy of Poly Styrene, the visionary frontwoman of feminist punk band X-Ray Spex, it will bring together artwork, photography, fashion and personal effects to illustrate the important role women played in punk, including pieces from the Poly Styrene Archive, artwork by X-Ray Spex saxophonist Lora Logic, photography by Linder, and archival fashion by designer Dame Zandra Rhodes. Riot grrrls, this one’s for you. 

Museum of Youth Culture. Oct 23-Nov 22 2026. Price TBC.

6. ‘Agatha Christie: A World of Mystery’ at The British Library

Widely regarded as the greatest ever crime novelist, Agatha Christie is herself under investigation in the British Library’s autumn exhibition. Coinciding with the centenary of The Murder of Roger Ackroyd, one of the prolific writer’s most important and influential novels, the autumn exhibition will delve into the origins of iconic characters Miss Marple and Hercule Poirot, while also exploring the eclectic range of interests that inspired the English author’s works, from archaeology to pharmacology, and illustrating the profound impact the Queen of Crime’s oeuvre continues to have on the whodunnit genre. 

British Library. Oct 30-Jun 20 2027. From £20.

7. ‘Constantinople to Istanbul: One City, Two Empires’ at the V&A

The V&A is delving into its impressive archive of Byzantine and Ottoman artefacts for its autumn exhibition, Constantinople to Istanbul: One City, Two Empires will explore 1,600 years of the influential city that was the imperial and religious capital at the heart of two successive empires: the Byzantine (AD 330– 1453) and the Ottoman (1453–1922). Spanning from AD 330 to 1922, it will bring together remarkable works of art, design and architecture to reveal the enduring creative legacy of an imperial capital that shaped the Mediterranean world and far beyond. 

V&A. Nov 7-TBC. Price TBC. 

8. The London Museum Reopening

Alongside loads of fabulous exhibitions, we’re also getting a whole new museum this November, when the London Museum (fka the Museum of London) reopens in its £437m new home in Smithfield’s historic General Market. Housing curated artefacts from a collection of 7 million items, the 30,000 square metre institution will be a treasure-trove of artefacts, historical objects and exhibitions celebrating the Big Smoke in all her glory. 

London Museum. Nov 28 2026. Free.

The Barbican has announced its 2027 art programme with a high fashion takeover

The 7 best London theatre shows to see this autumn

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