The Cinema Museum

A labour of love founded by private collectors Ronald Grant (ex-British Film Institute) and Martin Humphries, this cineastes's mecca has evolved, since 1986, into an eclectic assemblage of artefacts, memorabilia and equipment — from ushers' uniforms, ashtrays, cinema chairs and popcorn cartons to books, posters and 17 million feet of film — that captures the full sweep of cinema history, from its 1890s origins to its peaks of grandeur in the 1920s, 30s and 40s and up to and including the present day. A registered charity, the museum now resides in its permanent home in the Victorian-era Lambeth Workhouse, where Charlie Chaplin spent time as a child. But the museum's future here is not necessarily secure. Visits require a paid-for guided tour and must be booked in advance. Tube stations: Kennington and Elephant & Castle.