british museum

Entry to the museum is free, and any queue will move quickly. Be there at the opening hour, and avoid rainy days when everyone else will be doing museums.

No queues whenever I've been.

Hilda, I was at the British Museum just over a month ago. Just last night, I was poking through the souvenir guide book I bought there. Yes, it is huge, excellent and diverse, and covers the globe and human history, not so much topics related to Britain. My one word of advice for the British Museum and other similar large world-class museums: try to read up some in advance, so you know which sections of the museum you most want to visit. Otherwise, you can fritter away large parts of your time trying to figure that out, and wandering through sections that don't really interest you, just because they are nearby. Toward the end certainly you can wander and discover new interests, but I suggest starting with a plan and priorities.

No queues at all. Free entry and no security queue either.

There may appear to be a lot of people in the entrance area but they will just be milling around the Great Court. Do check up in advance for special exhibitions, or if you are interested in anything that is viewable by appointment, such as much of the coin collection.

I've never, ever, had a queue there.

No, I tell a lie. I was there 2 hours early once several years ago because I had not planned ahead and suddenly decided a couple of days before the Chinese buried warriors finished that my wife and I wanted to see them. So we queued for the special exhibit tickets - not for admission to the British Museum. We could have just walked in the main entrance but special tickets do require a special ticket counter in the main hall.

It was a nice friendly queue, and we all went off at times for coffee and toilets. After the museum opened we were inside within 10 minutes and had our tickets within about 20 minutes. We spent the morning in a number of halls that we enjoy, and then at 13.20 we viewed the magnificent Chinese Warriors.

I am absolutely certain that that was the only time I ever queued at the British Museum in all the years

The only real queue I've seen at the Museum was for one of the ticketed special exhibits. Entering the Museum itself has always been quick and smooth. I suppose you might find yourself behind a busload of school kids, though.

Quick follow-up to Larry's comment about the actual collection--the original museum collection was formed by collectors who were interested in the "great civilizations" as they were viewed by people in the past, countries like Greece, Rome, and Egypt, and the earliest era of British history that was of any importance was when the Romans invaded. The entore prehistory of the island just wasn't of interest to anyone in the 18th or 19th centuries. They have some gorgeous Bronze Age and Iron Age items, but not as many as you might think. Check out the Mold Cape and the Battersea Shield for representations from those ages, as well as a few hoards like the torcs from the Snettisham Hoard.