It has been promised for quite a few years now, but at last the Bow Street Police Museum opens tomorrow – Friday 28th May 2021.
Bow Street Police Station and the adjoining Magistrates Court featured heavily for BTP officers over the decades. Many prisoners arrested at Charing Cross and on the London Underground went there for processing, and would appear the following day at the court next door. It was also where BTP officers often went to be sworn in as Constables (including your Webmaster).
Of course, prior to the formation of the Metropolitan Police, an earlier form of police force were the Bow Street Runners, a story which is told in the museum.
The police station closed in 1992 and the Magistrates Court building was sold in 2005. The last case was heard in 2006 and the building remained empty for many years. In the meantime the building changed hands twice more. The developers had long promised that the cells area would be turned into a police museum and with the main building recently opened as the luxury NoMad London hotel this has now come to pass.
The Bow Street Police Museum is a registered charity.
Also see:
BBC News article.
The Guardian article on the impending opening: ‘Not like I remember it’: Bow Street police station reopens as museum.
