★★★★★ 5.0
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Tate Britain
Right beneath your feet lie the buried foundations of Millbank Prison, where thousands of convicts once waited for transport to Australia! This magnificent building with its gleaming classical dome houses the world's largest treasure trove of Turner masterpieces - 300 oil paintings that would stretch longer than three school buses if lined up. The Jewish philanthropist Charles Clore spent six MILLION pounds just to build the special Turner wing in 1987 - that's like buying 60,000 bicycles! As you step through Sidney Smith's grand portico, you're entering what started as the "National Gallery of British Art" on July 21st, 1897, but everyone called it the Tate Gallery after sugar king Sir Henry Tate. Look up at that dome towering above - it's watching over Turner's swirling seascapes and blazing sunsets that inspired the Impressionists! Can you spot the terrazzo floors that shimmer like the marble mosaics that once decorated this Grade II listed palace of British creativity?
Did You Know?
- Tate Britain was built on the site of the notorious Millbank Prison, London’s first national penitentiary, and its opening in 1897 marked the transformation of a place of punishment into a temple of British art—a symbolic shift that fascinates both history buffs and families exploring London’s layered past.
- The gallery’s founding collection was kickstarted by sugar magnate Henry Tate, who not only donated his own impressive Victorian art collection—including masterpieces like John Everett Millais’s Ophelia—but also funded the building’s construction after the National Gallery turned down his gift due to lack of space, leading to the creation of a dedicated home for British art.
- Tate Britain is home to the annual Turner Prize, one of the world’s most famous—and sometimes controversial—art awards, which has launched the careers of many leading British artists and draws global attention to contemporary art; the prize is awarded at Tate Britain every other year, making it a must-visit for art lovers and a fun, interactive experience for families during exhibition periods.