The world’s first museum of youth culture will open in Camden

The world’s first museum dedicated entirely to youth culture will open in London this December. 

Aptly called the Museum of Youth Culture, London’s new gallery showing artefacts and culture created by teenagers will arrive in a permanent home in Camden this December, with the exact opening date still to be confirmed. 

The 6,500 square-foot site, which will be a short walk from Camden Town, will preserve teenage life from the past 100 years, showing photography, archive video, books, zines, ephemera, objects and oral histories. Think rave flyers, band tees, dub soundsystems and even school leavers shirts.  

The space will comprise three gallery spaces with rotating displays: two rolling galleries will pull highlights from the permanent collection and archive, plus a dedicated free gallery space will allow young creatives to exhibit their work. The museum will also host talks, screenings, and learning workshops, such as hands-on music production courses, and will be home to a bar, café and record store.

‘This is more than a place to look back, it’s a space to participate, contribute, and shape the cultural narrative together. Camden has been synonymous with music and youth culture for decades, making it the natural home for the Museum,’ said Jon Swinstead, founder of the Museum of Youth Culture. ‘We’re creating a space for stories that have often been overlooked but are essential to understanding who we are. Youth culture drives innovation, challenges norms, and creates communities – it’s one of the most powerful forces in society.’

The Museum of Youth Culture has existed as an online archive since it was founded in 2015, and has hosted pop-up exhibitions at London’s Barbican Centre and Carnaby Street. The Camden site will be the archive’s first permanent home. The collection is always open to submissions, and is asking the public to share their memories and items from their teenage years. If you want to submit something, you can do it via the Museum of Youth Culture website. 

Museum of Youth Culture. St. Pancras Campus, Georgiana Street, NW1 0TH. Opens Dec 2025. 

A major new exhibition space and arts venue has opened in Camden. 

A massive new 4,000 capacity warehouse music venue is coming to east London. 

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