London\u2019s museum scene is in a slump. The number of visitors to the Tate Modern and National Gallery in 2025 was down 26 per cent and 31 per cent, respectively, from 2019. In the last three months of 2025, visits to state-funded museums in England \u2013 all of them free since 2001 \u2013 fell more than 8 per cent from 2019.<\/p>\n
Museums themselves cite varying reasons, including a decline in international travellers, despite tourism bouncing back after the Covid-19 pandemic, and fewer visitors in their teens and 20s arriving from the European Union after Brexit.<\/p>\n
An independent 2025 report, \u201cCurating Connection\u201d, in the UK highlighted streaming services, immersive pop-ups, virtual art experiences and \u201ccreator-led storytelling\u201d on TikTok and YouTube as threats to the museums sector.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor younger audiences especially, the \u2018cultural fix\u2019 increasingly happens outside traditional institutions,\u201d the report concluded.<\/p>\n
But a wave of London venues \u2013 from a revamped London Museum, to two new outposts of the V&A, to a Museum of Youth Culture dedicated entirely to the experiences of teenagers \u2013 is aiming to grab the attention of museum-goers once more.<\/p>\n
Museum of Youth Culture co-founder Jamie Brett acknowledges the challenge: \u201cMuseums are under real pressure to refresh and rethink collections. We have to create something that actually requires a bricks-and-mortar visit, something worth coming out for.\u201d<\/p>\n
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