Madame Tussauds Wax Museum. Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, London, UK How many Madame Tussauds museums are there?

Madame Tussauds is named after its founder, Marie Tussauds. However, her interest in sculpting began in childhood, when she wore girl's name Anna Maria Grosholz. It was she who stood at the origins of the creation wax figures. And her business still lives and is very popular all over the world.

The story of an extraordinary sculptor

Maria's mother served in the house of Dr. Philip Curtius, who, in addition to healing, was interested in anatomy and was engaged in the creation of anatomical models, and soon began to create various custom-made wax sculptures. Little Maria often ran into his workshop and watched his work - it was then that Curtius began to teach her the skill of creating wax figures.

At the age of seventeen, Maria created her first sculpture - and it was a sculpture of Voltaire himself. Great philosopher died a few months after the modeling session, so his wax bust, displayed in the window of Curtius’s shop, greatly attracted buyers and helped the family establish a business.

Maria became Curtius's assistant - she managed his affairs, helped with organizing exhibitions and continued to make sculptures. He appreciated both the help and the girl’s talent for sculptural art, and therefore subsequently bequeathed all his works to her.

Maria Grosholz became famous for her wax figures famous personalities so much so that she was once invited to model sculptures of the royals themselves. At the time of arrival french revolution Marie was sentenced to death, but her chance to escape was to create death masks from murdered royals and take casts of revolutionary leaders such as Robespierre, Marat and others.

A few years later, Marie married Francois Tussaud, a French engineer, and gave birth to two sons, Joseph and Francois. She continued to sculpt and create wax figures. famous people. But one day, leaving her husband, who became drunk, she and her children went on a trip to the islands of Britain and along the way continued to create sculptures of famous historical figures and British political figures.

This is how the first Madame Tussauds museum appeared, which at that time was a traveling exhibition - Maria took it with her during her travels.

Soon she finally moved to the British capital. So in 1835, the same Madame Tussauds museum appeared in London, and it was originally located on the famous street called Baker Street.

Fifteen years after the opening of the museum in London, Madame Tussaud passed away, but her business did not disappear thanks to her sons and grandchildren. The museum soon moved to a more prestigious area of ​​the capital, on Marylebone Road. And even despite the fact that half a century after the move, Madame Tussauds lost most of the sculptures due to fire, they were restored thanks to the surviving dummies.

The same one famous museum Madame Tussaud's wax figures, which are mainly referred to, are still in London. The museum's exhibition usually includes about four hundred wax figures.

The popularity of this place is so great that every time in front of the entrance there are huge queues of people wanting to see the creations of the Tussauds dynasty. Many of the sculptures housed in the museum were made by the hands of Mary. By the way, the wax figure of Madame Tussauds is the very first sculpture that greets viewers who enter the museum building. Its author is Madame Tussaud herself, who decided to create her own self-portrait during her lifetime.

All exhibits in the collection are divided into thematic rooms. “World Arena” is the name of the largest of these halls, which houses wax figures of famous personalities from the field of history, culture and politics from different centuries.

Visitors will also see figures from the royal family there, including Prince William, his wife Kate Middleton, brother Harry and others. Politicians of the 20th and 21st centuries are also collected here: visitors will see Indira Gandhi, Barack Obama, and many other political figures.

Separate rooms are dedicated to sports stars, music world, Hollywood and even Indian Bollywood. Visitors are simply amazed by so many star doubles: from Freddie Mercury and Jimi Hendrix to Justin Timberlake and Christina Aguilera, from Harrison Ford and Arnold Schwarzenegger to Angelina Jolie and Jennifer Aniston.

A separate room is dedicated to the most terrible historical events: famous maniacs, serial killers and their victims, instruments of torture and other thematic exhibits are housed there - fortunately it is all made of wax. Unstable psyche, pregnancy and age under twelve are restrictions for visiting this room of fear.

Though main museum Madame Tussauds is located in London, as is the workshop where each figure is created, and nineteen branches of the museum have been created in nineteen cities around the world. The most famous and interesting branches of Tussauds opened in Berlin, New York and Amsterdam. Each of them contains unique sculptures, but celebrities may be repeated.

Madame Tussauds gives celebrities immortality in the form of wax figures, but some even experience a kind of regeneration. If a celebrity gets a tattoo or changes his hairstyle, then the artists can add or change this to an existing sculpture, introducing new elements, but most often the wax figure of the celebrity is completely created anew.

This is due to the fact that, unlike wax sculptures, living people tend to change over time or due to plastic surgery. For example, the figure of singer Kylie Minogue changed four times, and the wax figure of Michael Jackson, according to known reasons- thirteen times.

How wax figures are created

All visitors who come to Madame Tussauds wax museum are struck by the resemblance of the sculptures to celebrities. In particularly successful cases, the celebrity in the photo cannot be distinguished from a wax double. But not everyone knows what is behind the creation of wax figures in the museum.

• Each wax sculpture takes a huge amount of time to make, about three to four months, as the craftsmen carefully work out even the smallest details. About two hundred of these figures are produced annually.

• First, measurements are taken from the face and body of the person for whom they want to make a wax figure. Celebrities have to spend a lot of time in the workshop for the sculptor to assemble all the necessary information: what skin and eye color his model has, hairstyle, hair color and shape, does she have moles, scars, tattoos, etc. And in the case when a person is no longer alive, modeling masters have to be guided only by photographs.

• After the measurements are taken, you need to fix the pose of the future sculpture. For this, a metal frame is used: the lower part of the figure is formed from hard metal, and the upper part from soft metal.

• Based on the measurements, a clay model of the model is compiled - it must exactly match its real appearance. The frame is then formed using these clay casts.

• After this, it’s time for beeswax - they pour it into wet clay and wait for the figure to harden, which takes about 170 hours. After this, the sculpture is polished, if necessary, and minor imperfections are removed.

• Madame Tussauds takes a realistic approach to all the details, so the wax figures do not wear wigs - natural hair is attached to the “skin” of the sculpture’s head, strand by strand. After this, the hairstyle is formed. Working on your hair can take more than a month.

• Next comes the turn of the teeth and eyes: acrylic rubber is used to make them.

• The skin color and “makeup” of the sculpture are created using oil paints.

• The celebrities themselves usually give their own clothes and accessories to the wax figure.

The safety of each figure is monitored very carefully: the sculptures are checked before and after each exhibition day. At the same time, visitors, for example, are not prohibited from hugging the wax double to take a photo.

If you wanted to see with your own eyes what one of the most unusual museums in the world looks like - Madame Tussauds wax museum in London, then watch the following video, in which you can walk through the halls of the museum together with the author of the video:

Madame Tussauds has a very touching story creation. It all started back in 1761 in France. After the death of her husband, the mother of this amazing woman was forced to move from Strasbourg to Berlin in search of work. She found it in the house of the doctor Philip Curtius. The man had quite unusual hobby- creating figures from wax. Mademoiselle liked this activity so much that she decided to learn all its secrets and devote her life to this particular art form.

The first works of the young sculpture were put on public display in London in 1835 (in the northern part of Westminster). That's when the ancient museum was founded! After 49 years it moved to a building on Marylebone Road, in the heart of the city. A few years later, almost nothing remained of the collection of figures; it was destroyed by fire. Madame Tussauds had to start work again and reconstruct all the dolls. After the death of the owner of the wax “empire,” the sculptor’s heirs took over its development. They developed new technologies to prolong the “youth” of their statues.

Where is Madame Tussauds located?

Main showroom is located in England, in the most prestigious area of ​​London - Marylebone. But it also has branches in major US cities:

• Los Angeles;
• New York;
• Las Vegas;
• San Francisco;
• Orlando.

In Asia, representative offices are located in Singapore, Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Beijing, and Bangkok. Europe is also lucky - tourists can see masterpiece sculptures in Barcelona, ​​Berlin, Amsterdam, and Vienna. Madame Tussauds became so popular that her works went far overseas, to Australia. Unfortunately, they have not yet reached the CIS countries for 2017.

The exact address of the main Madame Tussauds museum is Marylebone Road London NW1 5LR. It is located in the building of a former planetarium. Regent's Park is nearby, and the Baker Street metro station is nearby. It is convenient to get to the site by train or buses 82, 139, 274.

What can you see inside?

The exhibition includes more than 1,000 figures around the world. Sculptures have taken their place in different branches of the museum:

• actors;
  
• musicians;
  
• politicians;
  
• writers;
  
• athletes (Maria Sharapova, Ronaldo, etc., David Beckham is especially popular);
  
• representatives of the English royal dynasty;
  
• heroes of films and animated series and simply famous personalities.
  

At the entrance to the central branch of Madame Tussauds, guests are greeted by its owner in modest attire “in person.” During a tour of the exhibition halls, you can say hello to members of the legendary Beatles, take a photo with Michael Jackson, shake hands with Charlie Chaplin, and exchange glances with Audrey Hepburn. For history buffs, there are two rooms reserved specifically for Napoleon himself and his wife! The museum has not forgotten about those who devoted their lives to science and cultural activities. Among them:

• Charles Dickens;
  


• Shakespeare;
  
• Pablo Picasso.
  

Naturally, members of the British royal family took pride of place in the London branch of Madame Tussauds. They seem to be pictures come to life, it seems that Kate Middleton has just stepped out of the pages of a magazine, tenderly holding the hand of her husband, Prince William. And to the right of them stands majestically the mistress of Buckingham Palace, the great Elizabeth II. The strict Sir Harry keeps her company. And where would we be without Lady Diana!

It was simply impossible for Britney Spears, Ryan Gosling, Rihanna, Nicole Kidman, Tom Cruise, Madonna, Jennifer Lopez, the scandalous couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie, George Clooney, confidently sitting on the sofa, to appear in the museum.

Political figures of no less interest are:

The Berlin branch displays figures of Winston Churchill, Angela Merkel, and Otto Von Bismarck. Children will be delighted by the figures of Spider-Man, Superman, Wolverine, and cinema lovers will be able to pose against the backdrop of Jack Sparrow and Bond heroes.

Who are the Russians represented in the museum?

There are few Russians in Madame Tussauds museums. It’s worth going to Amsterdam to see Comrade Gorbachev and Lenin; the former, by the way, also found his place in New York, near Reagan. A sculpture of one of Russia's presidents, Boris Yeltsin, is located in the London branch. Of the contemporary political figures of the Russian Federation, the museum’s masters decided to recreate only Vladimir Putin, whose statue adorns the exhibition hall in the UK and Thailand. These are the sculptures exhibited in different branches of the institution!

Room of Horrors: Brief Description

This is what the museum is famous for in the first place. Entrance here is only available to people with healthy hearts and nerves; children and pregnant women are not allowed here. Madame Tussauds was inspired by her teacher's cabinet of horrors to create this mystical corner. The situation here is extremely dark, with deceivers, traitors, thieves and even serial killers stalking you at every turn. One of the most popular is Jack the Ripper, who committed brutal murders on the streets of London at the end of the 19th century and remained uncaught.

In the fear room, scenes of torture and executions that took place in the Middle Ages are very accurately recreated. They are given reality by real guillotines used during the French Revolution. All this chilling horror is complemented by the sounds of bones crunching under the hammer, cries for help, and the screams of prisoners. In general, before going here, you should think a hundred times.

What's so impressive about this place?

The sculptures exhibited in Madame Tussauds museums are real masterpieces. They are so similar to their originals that you won’t even notice the fake in the photo. Masters can achieve this effect by precisely observing all body proportions, height and body composition. Absolutely everything is taken into account - hair color and length, eye shape, shape of the nose, lips and eyebrows, personality traits faces. Many of the mannequins are even wearing the same clothes as the real stars.

Particularly curious visitors can see with their own eyes how famous dolls are made. At the exhibition you can look at the tools that masters need in their work, at future elements of celebrity clones and accessories that will be used in the process. By the way, many of them are given by the stars themselves.

Helpful information

An interesting fact is that at Madame Tussauds it is allowed to take photographs with the sculptures without any permission. You can touch them, shake their hand, hug them, and even kiss them. You can at least take photos of all the exhibits! It will take at least an hour to explore the collection. To be among this starry elite, you need to pay 25 euros per child and 30 euros per adult to the box office.

Little trick! The price of tickets if purchased on the official website of the museum is approximately 25% lower.

The cost of the ticket is also affected by the time of day; in the evening, after 17:00, it is slightly cheaper. You also need to consider the museum's opening hours. From Monday to Friday its doors are open from 10 am to 5:30 pm, and on weekends from 9:30 am to 5:30 pm. Excursions in the area are extended by half an hour holidays and by an hour during the tourist season, which lasts from mid-July to September.

It should be taken into account that there are a lot of people who want to get to the famous place, so you will have to stand in line for at least an hour. This can be avoided if you buy a VIP ticket, which costs about 30% more than a regular ticket. Those who are going to purchase it online do not need to print the document, just present it at the entrance in electronic format. Don't forget to take your ID with you!

Madame Tussauds is not just a collection of wax figures, but a whole separate world with its inhabitants. In no other place can you meet so many stars at the same time! No matter how interesting the story about him may be, all this is definitely worth seeing with your own eyes.

One of the most famous museums and symbols of London - the wax museum opened in 1835. It is named after Marie Tussaud, nee Grosholtz. She was born in 1761 in Strasbourg, but after the death of her father the family moved to Bern. The girl's mother got a job with Dr. Philip Curtius, who skillfully created wax figures famous people. This meeting became fateful. Maria begins to study with him, shows a keen interest in creating wax figures and at the age of 16 creates her first work - exact copy Voltaire. Subsequently, this and other early sculptures of hers will be included in the collection of Madame Tussauds in London.

In 1802, having survived the revolution, prison and an unsuccessful marriage, Maria and her sons moved to Great Britain, where for many years she toured the country with exhibitions. This brings her increasing popularity, and the number of wax sculptures is growing every year. And in 1835, her sons convinced Maria to open the first permanent exhibition on Baker Street, and the exhibition immediately won the love of the townspeople. In 1845, the Cabinet of Horrors appeared in the museum, in which figures of serial killers and death masks executed. In 1884 the wax museum moved to Marylebone Road, where it remains to this day. In 1925, most of the collection was destroyed by fire, but wax forms were preserved, and many exhibits were restored.

Today, Madame Tussauds has 19 branches around the world, the most famous of which are in Amsterdam, Vienna, Berlin, Singapore, New York and Hong Kong.

Wax figures

The first Tussauds figures in London were short-lived and could only be stored for a few years. After the death of Marie Tussaud, her sons became concerned with preserving the figures and creating a more durable method of making them, but in general the technology remained almost unchanged. However modern technologies gave sculptors ample opportunities to improve figures - artificial skin, visually close to the real thing, plates of eyes and nails. Dentists work on the smile of the figures, and hairdressers and hairdressers implant hair to create a hairstyle.

Currently, for greater effect, they use not only costumes that correspond to the era, but also computer voice modeling, animation on the backgrounds of compositions and the movement of the wax figures themselves.

Exhibits from Madame Tussauds

Madame Tussauds today is a multitude of thematic exhibitions wax figures, each of which contains unique works. The museum exposition includes halls "Party" And "Music" where you can see almost everyone famous singers, actors and musicians of the past and present such as Michael Jackson, Lady Gaga, Madonna, Nicole Kidman, and in the hall "Fashion week" you can go behind the scenes of Fashion Week and meet famous figures from this area.

Halls "Film" And "Bollywood" will introduce visitors to the greatest figures from the history of world cinema - Audrey Hepburn, Marilyn Monroe, Steven Spielberg and others. There are also themed rooms dedicated to the heroes of modern blockbusters ( Alien: Escape, Kong: Skull Island), where not only the figures of the main characters are presented, but also backgrounds and special effects are created that immerse you in the plots of the movie.

The museum also features a hall with figures of prominent figures of science and culture ( hall "Culture"), including Albert Einstein, William Shakespeare, Pablo Picasso and others. Here you can also see Madame Tussaud herself, bending over another wax exhibit.

In addition, the museum has "Sport" hall, whose figures are outstanding athletes of the world.

For children Madame Tussauds has prepared a lot of interesting things: in addition to halls with film characters, there is an exhibition with figures of heroes from famous comics and films "Marvel" and " star Wars» (« Star Wars») . Children can take photos with Spider-Man, Hulk and superheroes, and 4D cinema, located inside the museum's dome, will captivate young visitors with realistic animation and modern special effects.

Also for children and parents there is a hall dedicated to Sherlock Holmes. It hosts interactive excursions into the world literary hero By famous places London.

Madame Tussauds takes visitors on a journey through the pages of London's history ( "Spirit of London Ride"), where you can meet witnesses historical events, recreated from wax.

The most popular are the museum halls associated with politicians peace ( "World leaders"), including figures including Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Donald Trump, Vladimir Putin and, in fact, the British royal family ( "Royal"). There are always a lot of visitors here.

Among the museum's most recent innovations, the exhibition dedicated to the wedding of Prince Harry stands out ( "Harry and Meghan"), where you can see the figures of the newlyweds and the attributes of the ceremony.

Tickets and opening hours

Madame Tussauds has several types of tickets (prices are in pounds sterling, 1 pound = 1.15 euros):

children's(3 to 15 years) - £30 (if purchased online - £19.50)

adult(over 16 years) - £35 (if purchased online - £29)

family- £27 - adult (16 years and over), £22.50 - child (3-15 years), valid for up to 5 people - maximum 2 adults and minimum 2 children, includes entry to Star Wars and " Marvel Super Heroes" (can only be purchased online)

premium- £53.50 (online £45), includes fast track entry to the museum through a separate entrance, access to all rooms and free popcorn when visiting the 4D cinema.

Madame Tussauds also holds promotions: upon purchase combi ticket— discount on visiting the museum. A combi is a ticket to Madame Tussauds and additionally to 1, 2 or 4 attractions, including the London eye - the famous Ferris wheel.

Examples of combi tickets:

• Metro: The museum is just a two-minute walk from the Baker Street subway station. Bakerloo, Circle, Jubilee, Metropolitan and Hammersmith & City lines.
• on commuter train: to Marylebone station, then 10 minutes on foot.
• by bus: stop "Baker street station", routes No. 18, 27, 30, 74, 113, 139, 205, 453.
• by taxi using mobile applications Gettaxi and Uber.

Madame Tussauds London - Google Maps panorama

Video: virtual tour at Madame Tussauds in London

Anna-Marie was born in 1761 in France; later she and her mother moved to Switzerland. There Anna's mother got a job as a housekeeper for famous sculptor Philip Curtis. He first made anatomical wax models for medical purposes, and then began creating portraits and figures. Wax sculptures were in demand and brought considerable income to their manufacturer. Curtis soon began creating wax portraits of members of the royal family, moved to Paris and opened his own studio. Anna-Maria spent hours watching the master work and soon decided to try sculpting herself. She became a student and assistant to the sculptor, and at the age of 17 she created her first independent work- Bust of Voltaire. The work was displayed in the workshop window, and people crowded around the windows all day long.

Wax figures of Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI

In 1779, Anna Maria received an invitation to teach the king's sister Elizabeth her skills. She remained court sculptor for the next 10 years until the French Revolution began. The woman, as an accomplice of the royalists, was thrown behind bars and was about to be executed, but in last moment pardoned. She was offered to make death masks of the executed Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette.

On the left is Madame Tussauds. On the right, Madame Tussaud creates a portrait of the guillotined Marie Antoinette.

Cooperation with the revolutionaries was forced - if she refused, she herself would have been deprived of her life. The collection included more and more figures of executed victims of the revolution. All Parisian executioners knew it, allowing them to remove the masks from their victims during their lifetime and cut their hair after execution. “I paid for these relics by having blood on my hands. These memories will not leave me as long as I live,” she said. She also had to sculpt masks of criminals, and then she came up with an idea: not to show them one by one, but to line them up plot composition crimes. This was the first step towards creating a museum.


Exhibits from Madame Tussauds' horror room

In 1795, the woman married engineer Francois Tussaud. Due to her husband's addiction to gambling and alcohol, the marriage did not last long, and Anna-Maria left for the UK. There she expanded her collection with wax figures of English politicians and organized exhibitions in different cities. She subsequently received British citizenship and, at age 74, opened a permanent museum in London. All the most famous people of the era were immortalized by Madame Tussauds, and people visited the exhibitions in droves.

Self-portrait of Madame Tussaud at the age of 81

Even as a famous and wealthy lady, Tussauds continued to collaborate with executioners to make death masks of serial killers and famous criminals. This is how a “room of horrors” appeared in the museum with their figures and sculptures of victims of the French Revolution. Sometimes Madame Tussauds independently conducted excursions for visitors. In a room with a guillotine and figures of executed Frenchmen, she said: “By order of the leaders of the revolution, I had to make wax casts of the heads thrown into the basket by the executioner. Just cut off by this weapon. But they are all my friends, and I would like not to part with them.”

Madame Tussauds Wax Museum in London

Tussauds continued own life and after the death of the founder, it was replenished with new exhibits and opened branches all over the world.

Address: UK, London, Marylebone, st. Marylebone Road
Date of foundation: 1835
Coordinates: 51°31"22.3"N 0°09"18.8"W

Who among us has not dreamed of meeting a celebrity at least once in our lives? Ask for an autograph from the singer of your favorite band or take a photo with a popular actor? Interest in people who have achieved great success in creativity, sports or politics, lives in each of us.

View of the museum from the University of Westminster

The beautiful and the great delight and attract. However, just like the terrible and disgusting... But in real life Few people will be lucky enough to be photographed hugging Hollywood beauties, shaking hands with the president, or fearlessly looking into the eyes of the most cruel and terrible maniacs. The exception is the lucky ones who visited Madame Tussauds in London! Or its branch in another city, although any branch is far from the main museum. Madame Tussauds (French: “Madame Tussauds”) is the world’s most famous wax museum, founded by the sculptor Marie Tussauds and located in Marylebone, a prestigious area of ​​London.

The museum has branches in 14 largest cities world (New York, Amsterdam, Shanghai, Vienna, Berlin, etc.). The branch exhibitions number over a thousand wax sculptures prominent politicians, movie and pop stars, historical figures. But the most famous and interesting museum is Madame Tussauds in London. More than 2.5 million people visit it every year and that says a lot.

A doctor who loved making copies of people and his student Maria

The history of Madame Tussauds began on that cold December day when, in 1761, in Strasbourg (France), a daughter named Maria was born into the family of an officer and a simple Swiss girl. The girl's father died in the war shortly before her birth, and soon Maria's mother moved with her and the rest of her children to another city - Bern.

The museum building which previously housed the London Planetarium

There she got a job as a housekeeper for Dr. Philip Wilhelm Curtius. The doctor had an unusual hobby - he made anatomically correct models of people from wax. As it turned out, the meeting of the old doctor and little Maria was fateful.

In 1765, Dr. Curtius moved to Paris. Two years later, Maria and her mother join him. The mother continues to work as a housekeeper, and little Maria begins to learn the art of creating wax sculptures. Even then, in childhood, she showed a deep interest and talent for recreating accurate images people made of wax. The doctor, seeing her as a diligent student, willingly shares the secrets of his skill with the girl.

In Paris, Curtius decides to show his work to the general public. The first exhibition took place in 1770 and had resounding success . Wax copies real people, among whom was, for example, Madame DuBarry (the favorite of King Louis XV), were to the taste of the Parisians.

In those years, Maria also worked on creating her own sculptures, which would later be included in the exhibits of Madame Tussauds in London. Among others were wax figures of Voltaire (her first sculpture), Jean-Jacques Rousseau and Benjamin Franklin.

Inscription on the museum building

Meanwhile, Phillip Curtius continues to organize exhibitions in Paris. Among them, especially noteworthy is the one that took place in 1782 on the Boulevard du Temple. Shocked spectators saw shockingly life-like wax sculptures of famous murderers and executed criminals. It was this exhibition that became the prototype of the Chamber of Horrors, for which Madame Tussauds in London is so famous.

Meanwhile, the streets of Paris are becoming restless - a revolution is approaching. In 1789, rioting rebels, shouting and cursing, carried wax figures of hated politicians made by Maria through the streets. With the change of power, Maria is arrested and imprisoned, where she meets Josephine Beauharnais - future wife Napoleon. Maria was saved from the guillotine only by the fact that after the death of one of the leaders of the revolution, Robespierre, she was invited to make death masks for him and his killer.

After her release, Maria returns to the workshop of Dr. Curtius, who by that time had already died, but managed to bequeath his collection to his student. In 1802, Maria marries engineer Francois Tussaud and becomes Madame Tussaud. The collection of figures of Mary herself continues to grow, and so does her popularity. But her husband starts drinking and losing his fortune at cards, so Maria leaves him and, taking her eldest son and her collection, moves to the UK.

View of the museum from Marylebore Road

In 1835, the first exhibition of wax figures opened on the famous Baker Street in London. From this moment, the history of Madame Tussauds in London begins, who lived to be 88 years old, having managed to create many more amazing sculptures during her life.

Madame Tussauds London and its wax “inhabitants”

Today, Madame Tussauds is located in one of the most prosperous and prestigious areas of London - Marylebone, on Marylebone Road. This is north of Westminster, not too far from Trafalgar Square.

The museum displays more than 400 wax sculptures depicting famous people different eras. Each sculpture is made so accurately and carefully that at first it’s hard to believe that these are not real people made of flesh and blood, but their wax copies! Therefore, it is not surprising that the production of just one figure takes up to 6 months, and its cost is $50,000.

Entering the museum, visitors see... no, not a famous politician or actor. They are greeted by the figure of a small elderly woman. She is dressed in a black dress and a snow-white cap. The eyes on a round, good-natured face look through the glasses attentively and affably. This wax sculpture Madame Tussauds herself - an amazing woman, the owner of this extraordinary place.

Albert Einstein sculpture

Walking through the halls of Madame Tussauds in London, visitors will see almost all more or less famous people of history and modernity. Music lovers can admire legendary group The Beatles, imposingly lounging on a velvet sofa, or the shocking Michael Jackson. Charlie Chaplin, Marilyn Monroe and Audrey Hepburn are just like alive, hundreds of times more real than on the screen.

Some particularly significant historical figures receive increased attention. Napoleon Bonaparte, whose wife Madame Tussaud knew, was given two entire halls. There, in addition to the figure of the great conqueror himself, you can see his personal belongings, such as the commander’s camp bed.

A separate exhibition at Madame Tussauds in London is dedicated to the British royal family. Here are Elizabeth II, Princess of Cambridge Kate Middleton, and Princes of the British Crown William and Harry. Of course, there is also a masterfully executed figure of Princess Diana.

Michael Jackson sculpture

Cultural figures and people of science are not forgotten. You can recognize Albert Einstein from afar by his famous hairstyle. You can also “get to know” Shakespeare, Charles Dickens, Oscar Wilde. An interesting opportunity for visitors is to take interactive tests: for IQ with Einstein or for creativity with Picasso!

You can freely take pictures with all the exhibits (hugging and touching the figures is not prohibited!). This is a great opportunity to become the owner of a group photo with famous politicians (Barack Obama, George Bush, Vladimir Putin), pop and film stars (Madonna, Britney Spears, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Angelina Jolie, Brad Pitt, Tom Cruise), or outstanding athletes (David Beckham , Eli Manning). Or perhaps someone would prefer a photo with supermodel and actress Kate Moss, or the notorious socialite Paris Hilton.

Chamber of Horrors - the sinister “dungeons” of Madame Tussauds

A special part of Madame Tussauds in London, its creepy “dungeons”, is the Chamber of Horrors. The same one, the prototype and source of ideas for which was the Cabinet of Horrors of Dr. Curtius, Madame Tussaud’s teacher.

The Chamber of Horrors lives up to its name and can be very strong impression. Therefore, heart patients, pregnant women and small children are not allowed there. And then you never know...

Freddie Mercury sculpture

Those brave souls who decide to visit the Chamber of Horrors, filled with alarming dim light, will see the dark underside English history. Wax figures of the most famous English thieves, murderers and traitors are collected here. A chilling thrill is evoked by Jack the Ripper, a serial killer who operated on the streets of London in the 19th century and was never caught.

The scenes of medieval torture and executions are disgusting and at the same time attractive. Their verisimilitude involuntarily fascinates frightened visitors. There are also a couple of guillotines in the Chamber of Horrors. Real guillotines, used for their intended purpose during the French Revolution.

The gloomy picture is completed by an atmospheric sound background: the screams of tortured people, pleas for help, the crunch of bones being ground on the rack. Add the costumed performances of made-up actors suddenly jumping out from around the corner, and you will probably agree that children and people with weak hearts really should not be allowed here!

Sculpture of Winston Churchill

And although you understand with your mind that the Chamber of Horrors is an ordinary, albeit the most terrible exhibition, when you are in it, it is difficult to get rid of the impression that someone’s evil and merciless gaze is watching you. In the end, it’s surprising but true that when one day there was a fire at Madame Tussauds (in 1925), in which almost all the wax figures died, the fire for some reason did not affect the Chamber of Horrors...

Madame Tussauds London and modern trends

Madame Tussauds London continues to develop rapidly. The collection of wax figures is constantly being replenished with realistic copies of famous personalities. The administration zealously ensures that Madame Tussauds presents wax doubles of all the most popular (or notorious) currently the time of politicians, actors, singers, athletes, showmen and musicians.

However, Madame Tussauds' exhibitions are not limited to sculptures of real people. Teenagers (let’s be honest, many adults too!) will be delighted to meet face to face with the heroes of American Marvel comics and films based on them: Hulk, Wolverine, Spider-Man, Captain America, Batman, Catwoman and many others. The characters of modern cinema and animation have not been forgotten. Jack Sparrow is no less charming than in Pirates Caribbean Sea", and Shrek seems even greener and funnier than in the cartoon of the same name.