Queuing for up to two hours to enjoy a fleeting encounter with the Bayeux Tapestry is not the only sign of history lovers’ dedication. A peak-entry adult ticket, including a donation, will set them back £36.50. But that price has not deterred visitors. The loan broke British Museum sale records, with the first tranche of tickets selling out within a day and similar popularity likely for the second release. 

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Nor is this an isolated instance. The Tate Modern’s Frida Kahlo exhibition had the highest pre-sales in the Tate’s history, with more than 41,000 tickets snapped up before the opening. At the National Gallery, over 22,000 have booked for ‘Renoir and Love’, surpassing the previous record of 15,654 set by its 2024 Van Gogh exhibition. No wonder the Guardian proclaimed ‘a resurgence of the blockbuster exhibition’. But culture vultures are paying for the privilege. Joining a group tour of Kahlo costs £49 for non-members, while a weekend visit to the V&A’s Elsa Schiaparelli exhibition is £30.

The contrast with the recent past is striking. In 2010, admission to the National Gallery’s Canaletto exhibition cost £12 and it was £13.50 to get into the Tate Modern’s Gauguin show. It would be easy to dismiss the increase as simply another symptom of inflation. But £12 in 2010 is equivalent to around £19.25 today. Even accounting for cost-of-living pressures, today’s blockbuster shows are significantly more expensive.

Yet, for all the extra money taken, museums and galleries remain in dire financial straits. The National Gallery has been forced to make major cuts, despite attracting more than four million visitors in 2025. A review led by Baroness Margaret Hodge this year found that ‘most (organisations) are experiencing severe financial challenges; some are in crisis. The cuts in public funding over the last decade and more represent an existential threat to the health and vibrancy of the arts and culture sectors.’

But government cuts are not the whole story. A source working on funding at a major London museum tells me that ‘corporate financing has dried up and is no longer the magic wand it used to be’.........

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