The Cartoon Museum is tucked away downstairs just off Oxford Street and is something of a hidden gem – great for adults and children alike.
Adults and older children will enjoy the historical and political cartoons – I especially liked those lampooning Boris Johnson and some of the wartime sketches belittling the enemy. It was also fun to see comics that I remembered from my childhood including Top Cat, Judge Dredd and a copy of the Dandy from the year I was five (even if I was more of a Beano kid myself!)
Younger children are more likely to enjoy some of the more colourful comic strips displayed on the walls – and let’s face it, the excellent selection of cartoon- based items in the gift shop, from Wallace and Gromit to Moomins! There are also tables dotted throughout the admittedly very small museum with paper and pencils for drawing and copying sketches and a small activity pamphlet with things to look out for in different pictures and spaces to draw your own designs, which was a really nice touch.
They also offer workshops which we didn’t realise and they looked really good – eg an opportunity to learn drawing skills from illustrators and artists. I’ll definitely be keeping an eye on the website to see if there is one we can go to in future. They say on the site that the school holiday workshops are aimed at ages 8-14.
On this occasion we were there primarily for a temporary exhibition – Cats in Cartoons. From Garfield and Bagpuss to the cats of Axel Scheffler (illustrator of Julia Donaldson’s Tabby McTat, among others) and cartoons dating back to much earlier periods, there are cats galore. My daughter and I both really enjoyed seeing the different styles of drawing and seeing how the cartoons depicted felines or how they were used to make a particular point or evoke a particular feeling.
Cats in Cartoons is on until 7 September and included in the normal entry price – £12 for adults and children are free, and your ticket is valid for return visits within a year.
Mini Moo Life 
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