Discover The Dark Side Of London At The Night Museum

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Discover The Dark Side Of London At The Night Museum

This is a sponsored article on behalf of Museum of London.

Musarc Choir: credit Yannis Katsaris

Let us introduce the night museum, a week-long after-dark pop-up at the Museum of London, revealing the secrets of the city. Across three evening festivals, the hidden and illicit from London's past will be uncovered and explored through a range of performances, installations, activities and parties.

On 2 November, the second (completely free) event at the night museum, titled the museum of dark places, will take place in a range of hidden locations within the City. Talks, walks and performances and will pop-up beneath the Museum of London itself, as well as at nearby sites including St. Botolph Without Aldersgate Church, Postman's Park and Barber Surgeons' Garden, on an evening dedicated to London's secretive spaces.

Credit: Anna Podedworna

Dress up warm, as several events are outside, touring and exploring the darkened streets of London. Take part in 'Night.London.1616'  a thought experiment to evoke the experience of waking up in the middle of the night and walking through the city before street-lighting was a thing. With a lack of light, your other senses will have to work overtime: listen up to experimental choir Musarc's atmospheric pieces before heading out on a listening tour of the city's night-time soundscape with Rosie Oliver.

Prepare to be scared if you are in the Museum's gardens at 8.25pm, when mythical creatures will stalk the park in specially commissioned spooky performances. Species from H G Wells' The Time Machine and sci-fi film Quatermass will come head to head to engage in a nocturnal battle that will be more gripping than an episode of Game of Thrones.

Characters will be stalking the Museum Gardens

A history lesson with an inspiring, if gory, twist is on the cards by the Watts Memorial to Heroic Self-Sacrifice. Historian Dr. John Price will tell the story of this famous memorial, and of pantomime artist Sarah Smith who died when attempting to save her companion who was enveloped in flames, and to whom, amongst others, this statue is dedicated to. This is more than pub-quiz trivia — this is proper London history.

Or if books are more your bag, head to Dark City: London After the Apocalypse, a talk on post-apocalyptic London imagery in literature. From Doris Lessing to Virginia Woolf, and more contemporary disturbing urban fantasies, Dr. Caroline Edwards from Birkbeck University will discuss the dark side of London in writing.

Gimlet Bar will be on hand to serve up drinks

In need of a drink after that? Luckily, the museum of dark places bar will be open from 8.30pm-10pm in St. Botolph Without Aldersgate, offering specially commissioned night-themed cocktails from Gimlet Bar. If they are even half as exciting as the line-up for the evening, we're in for a treat.

The museum of dark places takes place on November 2 from 7.30pm at Museum of London and other locations. The information desk is open from 7pm in St. Botolph Without Aldersgate. Events are free. Find out times and locations of talks and performances on the Museum of London website. Note that under 16s must be accompanied by an adult.

Last Updated 31 October 2016