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You are here: Home / London / London Attractions / London Exhibitions / Royal Childhood at Buckingham Palace

in London Exhibitions · 28 07 2014

Royal Childhood at Buckingham Palace

Each year, the summer opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace has a special exhibition and this year it’s all about Royal Childhood. The exhibition covers 250 years of objects from the Royal Collection, the Royal Archives and the private collections of the Royal Family.

Soldier dressing gown worn by three-year-old Prince Harry, c. 1987.
Soldier dressing gown worn by three-year-old Prince Harry, c. 1987.

The exhibition is in two rooms including the Palace Ballroom. Some of the highlights include previously unseen photographs and film footage, as well as some of The Queen’s own childhood toys. Outfits worn by young royals and school work made me smile, while the official announcement of the birth of ‘Prince George’ displayed on the famous easel was popular with many visitors.

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Family-Friendly

As well as the usual audio guide, this year is more family-friendly as there is a Family Multimedia Guide for children under 12. I tried this with my daughter and friends and we enjoyed Rex the corgi giving facts about each room and the quizzes.

FamilyPavilion

There is also a new Family Pavilion on the West Terrace (opposite the Garden Cafe) at the end of the tour. Mar Dixon has written more about this.

Inside the Family Pavilion.
Inside the Family Pavilion.

Seating Added

I was also pleased to see seating had been added to many of the rooms which will help visitors of all ages to stop and enjoy the grandeur in the State Rooms. Previously, there has been nowhere to sit until the end of the tour which was gruelling for older visitors on crowded days.

Chairs belonging to the princes.
Chairs belonging to the princes.

Did you know? All Buckingham Palace menus are written in French.

OutandAbout

Did you know? Buckingham Palace has 20,000 works of art.

Three paintings by Prince Charles aged 8 and 9, 1957-58
Three paintings by Prince Charles aged 8 and 9, 1957-58

As with all good visitor attractions, you exit through the gift shop.

shop

Do look for this tree sign just by the gift shop exit.

Can you see the mistake on this tree sign in the palace gardens?
Can you see the mistake on this tree sign in the palace gardens?

Everyone gets to enjoy the palace gardens as it’s the only way to leave the grounds. We did the ‘Nature Trail’ and enjoyed looking for birds and special trees.

Visitors follow a path through the palace gardens to leave.
Visitors follow a path through the palace gardens to leave.

This year seemed to be a definite improvement in the appeal for families and we spent at least 2 hours on our visit – much longer than in previous years.

As expected, the special exhibition rooms were the most crowded and I know I missed a lot as I couldn’t see all of the glass cabinets due to the crowds. But I’m still glad I went and do think it’s a real treat to see inside this iconic palace.

Official Website: www.royalcollection.org.uk/visit/the-state-rooms-buckingham-palace

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