The Natural History Museum is the work of architect Alfred Waterhouse, opened in 1881 in a sweeping Romanesque Revival building on Cromwell Road in South Kensington. The terracotta facade, the vaulted iron and glass ceilings, and the famous central Hintze Hall make it one of the most architecturally significant buildings in London and one of the most distinctive venues for private hire anywhere in the world.
For events, the museum opens two of its most iconic spaces after hours: Hintze Hall, the grand central nave with the blue whale skeleton Hope suspended overhead, and Earth Hall, the dramatic space wrapped around the central globe sculpture with the Stegosaurus Sophie at its heart. Both halls can be hired individually for stand alone events, or together for larger programmes that need both scale and a contrasting second space.
Hintze Hall accommodates up to 1,200 standing or 650 for a seated dinner, making it one of the largest hireable interior spaces in central London. Earth Hall offers an entirely different feel: a more intimate, atmospheric venue for up to 400 standing or 200 seated, with the dramatic sculpted Earth backdrop framing every shot from every angle.
Beyond the two main halls, the museum offers additional event spaces including the Jerwood Gallery (for smaller receptions and breakouts), the Anning Rooms (members club style private dining), and access to the surrounding galleries and the wildlife garden during certain hire types. We can advise on the right combination of spaces for the scale and tone of the event.
As an accredited production partner at the Natural History Museum, Kudos AV brings careful, museum sensitive technical production to both halls. Lighting, audio, projection and content delivery designed for these listed spaces, with full understanding of the conservation, fire, sound and access constraints that come with working inside the world's most important natural history collection.