Culture in the Capital

Culture in the Capital

London is one of the world's greatest cultural cities. The economic benefits that London's museums, galleries, theatres and heritage sites generate are vital to the Capital's economy. Culture is also central to London's success in terms of making it a place in which people want to live and work.

Culture is one of the strategic powers devolved to the Greater London Authority (GLA). The Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, has appointed the Cultural Strategy Group (CSG), which works with local authorities, regional agencies such as London Arts and the London Sports Board, organisations such as the Royal Opera House and many small cultural organisations across London.

On 4 February 2003, 'London: Cultural Capital', a 10 year plan to develop London as a centre of cultural excellence and creativity, was launched by the Mayor of London. The document, which was produced by the CSG, is the Mayor's draft Cultural Strategy, which he is required by law to produce.

The Corporation of London and Culture in the City
The Corporation of London is the third largest sponsor of the arts in the country. Such support provides the crucial leadership that lets culture flourish in the City for the benefit of the whole of London.

Arts policies serve every need with music and theatre, art galleries, films, festivals, specialist libraries, educational programmes and institutions. Both the Barbican Centre and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama engage in schools education and other programmes in neighbouring boroughs which is consistent with other City Fringe activities.

The City is an extraordinary place. The Corporation of London has produced Discover Your City, a pocket-sized picture of the City it cares for to encourage those who live and work here to explore. The Discover Your City guide is available for download electronically (by area of interest) or you can email us to order a free copy by post.

The Museum of London
Universal free access to the country's major national collections was introduced in December 2001, and visitor numbers to the newly free galleries have rocketed. Five of the ten national collections to have dropped entrance fees are in London - including the Museum of London in the heart of the City.

The Museum of London was opened in 1976. It is funded jointly by the Corporation of London and the Department of Culture, Media and Sport, each providing half the annual costs.

In addition to its main galleries and displays, the Museum offers a lively programme of events and exhibitions about various aspects of London and its history.

For full details of displays and events, plus details of opening times and how to get there, visit the Museum of London's web site.

Barbican Centre
The Barbican was built in 1982 by the Corporation of London as a 'gift to the nation', and is Europe's largest multi-arts and conference venue. Still funded and managed by the Corporation of London, the Barbican presents a year-round programme of art, music, film and theatre.

Under one roof are a concert hall, two theatres, three cinemas, two art galleries, conservatory and public library, as well as three restaurants, private function rooms, conference suites, two exhibition halls and the Guildhall School of Music and Drama

The Corporation of London announced in April 2002 that it has awarded a total of 31.23 million to the Barbican Centre for capital works over the next 6 years. The funds will enable the Barbican to undertake a full renovation of its foyers. The balance of the funds will be used to maintain the fabric of the building. This new investment in the Barbican builds on the Corporation's recent capital grants to the Centre for the acoustic and aesthetic refurbishment of the Barbican Hall and for the installation of the new digital television system.

For full details of forthcoming events please visit the Barbican Centre's web site.

Guildhall Art Gallery
The new Guildhall Art Gallery was opened in 1999. The original Gallery was burned down during a severe air raid in May 1941.

The new Gallery displays about 250 works of art at a time, with a programme of temporary exhibitions exploring different themes and allowing many lesser-known pictures from the collection to come out of store.

The Corporation of London began collecting works of art in the seventeenth century, when it commissioned portraits of the judges appointed to assess property claims in the wake of the Great Fire of London of 1666. Its collection now comprises 4,000 works of art ranging from portraits of kings and queens to depictions of important naval battles, from period views of historic London to the work of contemporary artists. Since the Second World War, the Corporation's collection has concentrated on London subjects.

Perhaps the most popular works in the Guildhall collection are its Victorian pictures, including well-known favourites like Millais' My First Sermon and My Second Sermon and Landseer's The First Leap, as well as a large landscape by John Constable, Salisbury Cathedral from the Meadows. The Guildhall Art Gallery also houses the famous painting The Defeat of the Floating Batteries at Gibraltar by John Singleton Copley.

For full details of displays and events, plus details of opening times and how to get there, please click here

Roman London's Amphitheatre
In 1988, Museum of London archaeologists made a discovery that was to change the face of Roman London forever - when they unearthed the capital's only Roman amphitheatre in Guildhall Yard. Scholars had speculated on the site of Roman London's amphitheatre - where gladiators fought and died and criminals were torn to pieces by wild animals - for more than a century. In 2002, the doors to the amphitheatre were opened for the first time in nearly 2,000 years.

The amphitheatre was first discovered when short stretches of Roman wall were observed at the bottom of four archaeological investigation trenches. The site became a protected monument. The Corporation of London was keen to integrate the remains into its proposals for the new Guildhall Art Gallery and in 1992 work started, with the excavations taking place at the same time as construction. The cost of the archaeology was 4 million and the cost of the fitting out of the amphitheatre 1.3 million.

Entry to the amphitheatre is included in the admission to the Guildhall Art Gallery (see above). For organised tours, please contact the Museum of London Box Ofice on 020 7814 5777 or email groups@museumoflondon.org.uk For more information about the amphitheatre, please click here