Leighton House — Attraction in London

Leighton House Museum had been on my wish list for quite some time, and it more than lived up to expectations. Surprisingly, I knew very little about the Victorian artist Frederic Leighton beforehand, though I immediately recognised some of his work as we wandered through his extraordinary home.

When we bought our tickets, I asked the staff where best to begin. The member of staff was wonderfully helpful, suggesting that newcomers either start in the basement with a short introductory film or explore the house first for a more immediate surprise. We chose the film, and although it revealed a few glimpses of what was to come, I’m glad we did, it gave us valuable context about Leighton’s life and artistry, enriching the experience that followed.

Every room was a delight, filled with exquisite furnishings and decorated in a mix of artistic styles, including Leighton’s own meticulously crafted works. My personal highlight was the extension housing the breathtaking Arab Hall. We lingered there for quite a while, taking in the intricate details and chatting with a knowledgeable volunteer who shared even more insight.

After thoroughly exploring the house, we enjoyed drinks and cake in the charming autumnal garden. (I highly recommend the apple shortbread - delicious!) It was fascinating to learn that Leighton House was part of a circle of artists’ homes, though unfortunately, most of the others aren’t open to the public. Sambourne House, however, is linked to the museum, and I plan to visit there in the future.

We also had the chance to enjoy a small visiting exhibition tucked behind the video room, which sparked lively conversation among my friends as we each picked out favourites and compared styles.

Overall, Leighton House is a captivating blend of art, architecture, and history, and it made for a thoroughly memorable day out.

The only disappointment was the fact there were no fridge magnets with scenes from the house or Leighton's artwork. I like to buy one when I visit places...

HARD TO SUPPORT AN ESTABLISHMENT THAT DOESN'T SUPPORT THE DISABLED

This is a wonderfully magic location just on the edge of Holland Park.

A house of inspirational architecture and a story to match.

It was a new experience for me as friends had brought me along (takes a lot to show me something in London I didn't know about).

The problem however came when we were entering and discovered there was an entrance free. As you'll probably know by now, most museums in London are free to enter.

This venue however had an entry fee of £9 standard, £7 Concessions, half-price for NT Members and FREE for Art Fund Members (National Art Pass), Friends of Leighton House, Under 12s, Museums Association Members, ICOM Members, Accredited Press*.

One of our group is Disabled and requires a Carer. Normally, venues allow carers in for Free (as they are there to facilitate the visit that the disabled person would be unable to do without them and therefore should incur no more cost) but here they wanted to charge.

As the disabled person was on benefits, they'd be entitled to the concession rate, but they then also had to pay for their carer at the same rate, which is essence meant they were paying twice as much as everyone else, which financially they were unable to do.

It seemed strange that the person at reception, wouldn't have just comped the ticket, upon hearing of the plight, but they insisted that it would have to be paid for. Our guest, decided not to take the offer of our financial assistance to pay for their carers ticket, almost on principal I believe.

It marred an otherwise wonderful experience and I hope the process of writing this review may get the venue to think again and like most other establishments allow for their disabled guests to bring their carers in for free.

It really is a lovely venue and I have only marked it down to 3 stars (would be 4 otherwise) on...

We first visited Leighton House a few years ago, and remembered being blown away by the place. So when we found out about an exhibition of Evelyn de Morgan's work, we had no hesitation in going back. We found the place much changed, with the addition of a new entrance area housing a shop, and a pleasant cafe looking over the garden. After a cuppa, we headed down to the exhibition, which was absolutely marvellous - worth the entrance fee all by itself! Then we took the lift up to the top floor, thinking we would save the best (the Arabian Hall with its fabulous tiles) til last. It was about 5pm by the time we started towards the stairs, and as the place was open until 5.30pm we were very surprised when a room steward told us that the ground floor was closed already and that we couldn't go down! When we protested, we were told that it was a "one way" house and we should have started on the ground floor and then come up to the top! There was no signage to that effect anywhere, no arrows to guide visitors in which order to proceed, and we had not been told anything of the kind upon entering. If a place purports to be open until 5.30pm, they should not shut half of it at 5pm! We were not prepared to take this lying down as we don't live in London or visit very often, so we went out of the exit, back in through the front entrance, and headed straight for the Arabian Hall. Nobody on the desk challenged us and we were able to enjoy its delights after all. However, the unhelpful (verging on aggressive) attitude of that steward did take the shine off the experience, which was a great shame. This is a splendid place and with better signage and/or better training of room stewards, would be...