Transport for LondonAll things weird and wonderful
The MetroTravel team have picked five of the most intriguing museums to visit in the capital.
Next time you have a free hour or two, why not explore these alternative collections.
Freud Museum
Once home to the influential psychologist, Sigmund Freud, this house now holds his extensive collection of antiquities and books.
Freud's study has been preserved exactly as it would have looked to his patients, complete with the infamous psychoanalytic couch.
Visitors can enjoy rare gems from his life, including the only known recording of his voice and a portrait by Salvador Dali.
Tube: Finchley Road
Buses: 13, 82, 113
Museum of Brands, Packaging and Advertising
Having started at the age of 16 with a packet of Munchies, historian Robert Opie has collected an impressive range of material that shows the constantly changing face of mass consumer culture dating back to the early 1900s.
There are war propaganda posters from the 40s, ad campaigns from the 50s, confectionary of the 60s, toys from the 70s and comic books from the 80s.
Tube: Paddington and Notting Hill Gate
Buses: 7, 23, 28, 31, 36, 52, 70, 238
Foundling Museum
London's first public art gallery was founded in 1739 as the Foundling Hospital - the city's first home for abandoned children.
Also living there was the artist William Hogarth, the composer George Frideric Handel and its founder, the philanthropist Thomas Coram.
Today the gallery displays its collection of art and social history along with stunning 18th century interiors.
Tube: Euston, St Pancras and Russell Square
Buses: 59, 68, 91, 168, 188
Cartoon Museum
In the 19th century, the word 'cartoon' was used to describe a humorous drawing and introduced into the English language by the editor of Punch.
Now, more than 100 years later, we have a museum dedicated to the art, exhibiting more than 1,500 cartoons, caricatures and comics.
Family fun days are organised for the second Saturday of each month.
Tube: Tottenham Court Road and Holborn
Buses: 1, 8, 19, 25, 38, 55, 98, 242
Old Operating Theatre Museum and Herb Garret
The oldest operating theatre in Britain can be found in the roof space of a Baroque church, near London Bridge.
Now a museum, visitors can see the range of medical instruments used to operate on unfortunate patients.
The procedures were carried out without anaesthetic and were frequently observed by a mass of medical students.
The rich often preferred to be operated on at home - usually on the kitchen table.
Tube: London Bridge
Buses: 17, 21, 35, 40, 43, 47, 48, 133, 141, 149, 343, 381, 521, RV1
Go to tfl.gov.uk/journeyplanner to plan your way to these museums, and use tfl.gov.uk/traveltools for up-to-the-minute news while you're on the move.
A range of accessibility guides can also be found at tfl.gov.uk
