THE OLD OPERATING THEATRE in LONDON - Most Unique Medical / Science Museum in England

If there’s something I admire about London, it’s the sheer amount of excellent museums found within a relatively small area (with many also being free of charge)! One of those museums is The Old Operating Theatre and Herb Garret.

This particular museum is an authentic operating theatre, located inside the attic of the 18th century church of Old St Thomas’ Hospital. The building began its life as an Herb Garret, which was a facility that dried and stored herbs used to create various medicines. Later, in 1822, an operating theatre was added on to perform more invasive treatments.

In the 18th century, these new medical amphitheaters allowed others to view surgeries occurring on live patients. Many operations were performed there, including, but not limited to, the rather barbaric lobotomies.

Something notable at this particular theatre is that it is, according to the official description, the “oldest surviving surgical theatre in Europe for female patients.” A true relic of European medicine and science, indeed.

Location: 9a St Thomas St, London
Hours: 10:30a.m.-5:00p.m. Thursday-Sunday
Price: Adults £9.00, Concessions £7.00, Child £5.50, Family £20.00
Accessibility: No step-free access. You must climb a 52-step spiral staircase to view the theatre.

Note: Some of these photos were taken on my first visit to The Old Operating Theatre during COVID-19, hence the mask.

The operating theatre is small, but you are welcome to walk around the entire area. It’s very immersive, and I appreciate that you can sit/touch/walk anywhere.

The Herb Garret is also fascinating, with many descriptions throughout that explain specific herbs, or details about how items were stored and used.

I was very happy about how much I was allowed to explore the space!

Overall, I highly recommend a visit to London’s Old Operating Theatre and Herb Garret. It’s a fascinating piece of medical and scientific history, and the museum itself is rather interactive. If you enjoy arcane and dark tourism, or just unique places to visit, it should be a definite visit on your list!

Make sure to let me know in the comments if there are other unique museums in London you want me to check out!