2025 AT BOW STREET POLICE MUSEUM
• Join front-line activist Peter Tatchell in our first evening talk of the year, set against the backdrop of the Magistrates Ballroom of the NoMad Hotel, formerly Court No.1 at Bow Street Magistrates’ Court.
• Find out more about the relationship between the LGBTQ+ community and the law this LGBTQ+ History Month,’ from the 18th Century to the present day, with our Of Mollies and Men tour.
• Bring your placards and protest for your rights in our Votes for Women! Walking tour
• Discover how Bow Street, an unremarkable thoroughfare at the heart of theatreland became the centre of criminal justice reform with Stages and Cells.
• Uncover the rebellious and often brutal past of Covent Garden, in our Reform, Rebel, Riot! Walking tour.
• Families are invited on an interactive storytelling adventure to help the Bow Street Runners solve the case of The Cake Thieves!
NEW EVENING TALK: A Life of Activism: Peter Tatchell in his own words
Until 1999, Britain had the largest number of anti-gay laws of any country in the world. Front-line activist Peter Tatchell will provide an inside account of his arrests and detention at Bow Street, including the mass turn-in to defy anti-LGBT+ laws.
Peter has close ties with the Bow Street Police Station and will be hosting the talk in the Magistrates’ Ballroom of the NoMad Hotel, formerly Court No.1 at Bow Street Magistrates’ Court.
Formerly a coordinator of the LGBT direct action group OutRage!, he is Director of the human rights campaign group, the Peter Tatchell Foundation.
Mr Tatchell said: “I’ll (be talking) about Bow Street Police Station as the starting point for the ‘Outrage! Equality Now Campaign’ in 1992, which sought to challenge anti-LGBT laws. It was the longest, most sustained civil rights campaign in England since the Suffragettes”
Director of Bow Street Police Museum, Simon Tansley said: “We are honoured to welcome Peter Tatchell to Bow Street Police Museum. Peter’s tireless work campaigning for civil rights, particularly for the LGBT+ community make him a true legend”.
Mr Tansley added: “To host Peter at Bow Street is particularly meaningful and we are proud to offer a range of tickets that make this event accessible for so many”.
The talk is taking place on Sunday 2nd February at 18:00 and tickets are available to join us in person or via Livestream.
VIP Ticket: £35 – Entry via Bow Street Police Museum at 17:30, with a free glass of fizz on arrival, a chance to see the museum and meet with Peter. This ticket also includes reserved seating in the Magistrates Ballroom.
Prices to attend at the Museum: £20 / £16 Friends – Entry via the NoMad Hotel, where the Magistrates Bar will be open from 17:30, for you to purchase pre-event drinks
Prices to attend via Livestream: £10 / £8 Friends.
OF MOLLIES AND MEN LGBTQ+ WALKING TOUR
This LGBTQ+ History Month join us for a journey through time. From the Molly Houses of the 18th century to the arrest and trial of Oscar Wilde, to the laws protecting LGBTQ+ people today, explore the rich history of Covent Garden with this Bow Street Police Museum Walking Tour.
Discover how law and order governed the lives of queer-identifying people throughout history and hear the stories of the people who dared to be themselves.
Tours last approximately 90 minutes and will take place on Sunday 9th February, Saturday 22nd February, and Saturday 22nd March at 11.00.
VOTES FOR WOMEN WALKING TOUR
In proud association with the Bow Street Police Museum, allow Herstorical Tours to transport you back to Edwardian London, and retrace the footsteps (quite literally!) of these incredible women as they marched, preached, fought, smashed, burned, and bombed their way to getting women the vote.
From Westminster to Covent Garden, revisit the locations where the suffragettes held protests, rallies, and staged some more *ahem* ‘creative’ stunts. See also where they were arrested and tried.
On this tour, you will see theatrical re-telling of the stories of…
• Human smuggling involving a Music Hall star…
• Vandalism in the National Gallery…
• A disabled, working-class suffragette of the East End…
• A refugee singer and actress who became an arsonist…
• An Indian Princess who joined the cause…
• …and many more!
Herstorical tours are guided walking tours with a difference. Created and led by Maria, a performer, and storyteller, the tours focus on women’s stories in London’s history and bring those stories to life using acting, comedy, and fun! With a special focus on the dark and curious underbelly of London’s past along with the ‘forgotten’ women, exploring the hidden nooks and crannies of the city whilst introducing you to the characters that created ‘herstory’ there. Herstorical tours aim to educate on sensitive historical subjects with the right balance of respect and entertainment.
Tours last approximately 2 hours and will take place on Saturday 7th and 29th September at 10.30.
STAGES & CELLS OF COVENT GARDEN
This year be sure to join our acclaimed walking tour Stages and Cells, a collaboration with The Royal Opera House that uncovers the stories of crime and theatre that made Covent Garden one of the most notorious areas in 18th and 19th century London.
Intended to be a quiet, residential part of town, Bow Street was transformed by the arrival of the theatres ushering in a new era of bustling crowds, pickpockets, highwaymen, murders, sex workers, gin palaces and unbridled decadence, leading to the necessity of London’s first police force – the Bow Street Runners.
Some of the stories you’ll discover on this tour include the tale of the infamous Charles Macklin, who used his acting skills to literally get away with murder, and the bizarre instance when Bow Street Police officers tried to blend in with the chorus on the Royal Opera House stage to foil diamond thieves.
Tours last approximately 75 minutes and will take place on Sunday 19th January, Friday 7th February, and Sunday 16th February at 11.00.
REFORM, REBEL, RIOT! WALKING TOUR
Bow Street has seen all sorts of protestors pass through its cells and courts, from hatchet-wielding footmen of the 18th century descending on the Magistrates’ house en masse, discontented theatre-goers drowning out performances every night for weeks, and North American servicemen bringing the police station under siege following the arrest of two of their countrymen.
But when does a protestor become a rioter? When does a crowd become a mob? And how does law enforcement know where to draw the line? Follow in the footsteps of these historical events, as we explore the causes of the disaffected, how law enforcement reacted and ask, critically, did they make any difference?
Tours last approximately 75 minutes and take place on Sunday 2nd March, and Friday 14th March at 11.00.
FOR FAMILIES – THE CAKE THIEVES! An Interactive Storytelling Session
Join us this February half-term for an interactive, familyfriendly storytelling adventure.
All is not well at Madame Pâtissier’s 18th-century cake shop – someone has stolen all her cakes! Henry, our Bow Street Runner, is on the case, but he is going to need your help. Pick up clues, make observations, study the exhibits, and help Henry track down the culprits, in an era when fingerprinting, DNA and CCTV were far, far away…
Suitable for those aged 5 years and upwards. Normal museum admission prices apply. Dates and times vary, see our website for more details. Booking is essential as spaces are limited.
In addition, our family trail invites all budding young detectives to pick up a case file and discover the history of policing on Bow Street. Follow the clues, complete the puzzles, and investigate why Bow Street Police Station was one of the most famous in the world. We have a range of trails suitable for all ages, including those that can be used by adults to help engage younger children with lots of the objects and stories on display.
February 15th- 23rd 2025, 11:30 or 14.30 each day, please check when booking.
VISIT THE MUSEUM
Telling the story of the Bow Street Runners, London’s first official law enforcement service, and the Metropolitan Police officers who walked the streets of Covent Garden in their footsteps. Located on the site of the 1881 Bow Street Magistrates’ Court and Police Station, the Museum is filled with rich stories of investigations, arrests and justice being served. Former cells have become galleries where visitors can hear tales from those who once worked inside the station’s walls and learn about the cases which brought international attention to Bow Street including Oscar Wilde, the Suffragettes and the Kray Twins.
The Museum is open Friday – Sunday, 11.00 – 16.30 (last entry 16.00).
HOW TO BOOK
Tickets to visit the Museum and for any of our events can be booked online via our website. As a small museum, places at all our events are limited, therefore we recommend booking ahead to avoid disappointment.
Visit Bow Street Police Museum in 2025 and beyond to discover more about the history of law, (dis)order and criminal investigations in Covent Garden
Venue: Bow Street Police Museum, 28 Bow Street, London WC2E 7AW
Museum Admission: from £8.00; Children under 12 and carers: free
Opening hours: Friday to Sunday, 11 am – 4.30 pm (last admission 4 pm)
Pre-book Museum admission tickets: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.org.uk/visit/tickets/
A Life of Activism: Peter Tatchell in his own words: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/category/36332?navItem=721283
Stages and Cells guided tour: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/event-tickets/56197?catID=34981
Reform, Rebel, RIOT! guided tour: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/event-tickets/51889?catID=34981
Of Mollies and Men guided tour: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/event-tickets/34790?catID=34981
Votes for Women guided tour: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/event-tickets/54330?catID=34981
Family Workshop tickets: https://bowstreetpolicemuseum.digitickets.co.uk/tickets