Wax figures of the world’s most famous faces stare back at you with unsettling realism as you wander through the halls of Madame Tussauds. A Hollywood A-lister stands frozen mid-smile beside a music legend, a sports icon, and a world leader frozen in waxen perfection. This London institution has been creating uncanny likenesses since 1835, when Marie Tussaud first exhibited her sculptures on Baker Street. The process takes months per figure, with every pore, wrinkle, and hair strand replicated in wax. Visitors pose beside their idols, capturing photographs that blur the line between reality and artifice.
Madame Tussauds vax museum is one of the most famous, unusual and popular tourist attractions in London. Positioned in the west end near to Baker Street tube station, it is beneath the Planetarium, so why not visit both and make a day of it?
Photo licensed under the Creative Commons, created by wkmux
Madame Tussauds is a waxwork museum, which is regarded to have the world’s most realistic likenesses in wax of celebrities and historical figures. No matter who your hero is from the world of music, movies or sports, chances are you will be able to get close to a full scale wax model of them here. The models are divided into categories including royalty (all of the British royal family including William and Kate are here), world leaders including Barack Obama, pop stars, including Lady Gaga, Justin Bieber and Amy Winehouse and sports stars like David Beckham. Some stars have their waxworks redone every few years, so the look you will see on your favourite A lister is sure to be current and recognisable.
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Tickets cost £28.80 for adults and £24.60 for children under 12, but you can get some great discounts if you buy the tickets in a package with tickets for other London attractions like the London Eye, or if you book online well in advance (at least ten days).
As this is an indoor attraction it is open and busy all year round. You can unfortunately expect long queues to enter Madame Tussauds at busy periods like during any UK school holidays or at weekends.
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The History and the Making of Wax Figures
Madame Tussauds London began in 1835 when Marie Tussaud, a French wax sculptor who had learned her craft from the royal court at Versailles, established her first permanent exhibition on Baker Street. Each wax figure takes approximately four months to complete, costing around 150,000 pounds. A team of sculptors, hair artists, and makeup specialists create the figures using over 250 precise measurements of the subject.
The Themed Zones and Top Exhibits
Madame Tussauds London is organised into themed zones, each designed to create a complete immersive experience. The World Leaders zone includes wax figures of Winston Churchill, Nelson Mandela, and a dedicated Royal Family section where you can pose beside the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge in their wedding attire. The A-List Party zone recreates a red carpet event with figures of Beyonce, Taylor Swift, and Dwayne Johnson, all positioned around a DJ booth with laser lights and smoke effects. The Sherlock Holmes Experience, added in 2020, combines a wax figure of Benedict Cumberbatch with a projection-mapped mystery game that lasts 15 minutes. The Marvel Super heroes zone includes a 4D cinema experience with 3D projection, wind effects, and vibrating seats, running a 12-minute film featuring Iron Man, Spider-Man, and Black Panther. The Star Wars area contains life-size figures of Darth Vader and a full-scale replica of the Millennium Falcon cockpit. The current Baker Street location also features the Spirit of London taxi ride, which takes visitors through reconstructions of historic London scenes from the Elizabethan era to the Swinging Sixties, with animated mannequins and period smells. During school holidays and weekends, a visit can take up to three hours due to queueing, so buying a Fast Track ticket at an additional 10 pounds is strongly recommended.
Which wax figure would you most want to pose beside at Madame Tussauds? 🎭
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