Tour of Leighton House with Melanie Gibson
Date: Thursday 23 April 2026, 10am-11am
Location: Leighton House, 12 Holland Park Rd, London, W14 8LZ
We are pleased to offer OCS members a special guided tour of The Arab Hall: Past and Present with Dr Melanie Gibson. This event accompanies Dr Gibson’s OCS lecture, Frederic Leighton – A Victorian Traveller and Collector in the Middle East, taking place on Tuesday 14 April 2026.
The Arab Hall: Past and Present is the first major exhibition devoted to the Arab Hall at Leighton House, one of London’s most celebrated interiors. Sometimes described as “the most beautiful room in London”, the Arab Hall is renowned for its golden dome and richly patterned tiles from Damascus and Iznik. Since its public unveiling in 1881, it has been admired as an extraordinary artistic and creative achievement, with one early visitor describing it as “quite the eighth wonder of the world”.
The exhibition forms part of the museum’s centenary celebrations in 2026, marking one hundred years since Frederic Leighton’s private studio house (1830–1896) was transformed into a public museum. It is the first exhibition in the museum’s history to focus exclusively on the Arab Hall.
The guided tour is limited to 20 OCS members. Booking details will be shared in February.
The exhibition will be accompanied by Dr Gibson’s new publication, The Arab Hall: Frederic Leighton – Traveller and Collector.
Booking Information
Price: £15 (non refundable)
On Sale Date: February – Date to be advised
Ticket proceeds (after payment processors fees) will be donated to The Friends of Leighton House
Booking Conditions
- Tickets are exclusively for OCS members and strictly non-transferable. Attendees’ names will be checked against the membership list.
- One ticket per member.
- Tickets are non refundable.
Bookings that don’t meet these conditions may be cancelled; tickets are non-refundable. - Please note there is no cloakroom at the venue, Any bag larger than 55 x 40 x 20 cm are not permitted. The venue recommends that larger backpacks are not taking into the historical areas of the museum.
Accessibility
If you have any access enquiries please contact in advance of your visit so the venue can provide you with appropriate assistance.
Please note that the platform lift at Leighton House is currently undergoing maintenance works, preventing step free access to the ground floor of the historic house. Areas still accessible step free, or via the main lift, include the shop, café, garden, first floor of the historic house and basement (including toilets and exhibition gallery).
Gender-neutral and accessible toilets, including baby change facilities can be found on the lower ground floor.
Assistance and support Assistance dogs welcome
Companion / personal assistants are welcome
Travel and arrival Both Leighton House and Sambourne House do not have any onsite parking, and we recommend travelling by public transport where possible. There are no drop-off parking spaces at Leighton House and Sambourne House. Limited metered parking is available in nearby streets from Monday to Friday 8.30am to 6.30pm, Saturday 8.30am to 1.30pm. There is additional parking in the Holland Park Car Park off Abbotsbury Road (pay and display), which is 10 minutes’ walk from either museum. For more parking information please visit Kensington and Chelsea Guide to Parking .
There is one drop off / pick up parking bay for disabled visitors on Holland Park Road where there is a step free entrance to the museum. This blue badge parking bay provides up to 4 hours of free parking during controlled hours. There are no parking facilities directly on the museum grounds. For more parking information please visit Kensington and Chelsea Guide to Parking. Please visit our Plan Your Visit page for more information: www.rbkc.gov.uk
This handling session is for OCS members only
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Image: The Arab Hall, Leighton House. Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Image courtesy of Siobhan Doran
