National Portrait Gallery

What to expect

The National Portrait Gallery opened in 1856 and is arguably the first national gallery in the world devoted to portraits. It has been at its present site on St Martin's Place, next to the National Gallery, since 1896. After a refurbishment that ran from 2020 to 2023 it reopened with new galleries, learning spaces and a public forecourt.

The collection of around 195,000 portraits is told through the people who shaped Britain. The earliest part is the Tudor portraits, reached by a two-storey escalator in the Ondaatje Wing. The gallery's first painting is the Chandos portrait, which is the best-known portrait associated with Shakespeare, though it is uncertain that he is the sitter. Most visitors spend about ninety minutes.

Don't miss

• Tudor portraits
• The Chandos portrait associated with Shakespeare
• The Ondaatje Wing escalator
• Portraits of modern figures

Tips for your visit

• Start at the top with the Tudor portraits and work your way down.
• It is right beside the National Gallery, so you can easily combine the two on the same morning.
• Trafalgar Square and Leicester Square are a few minutes away on foot.