National Portrait Gallery

Lonely Planet review

Excellent for putting faces to names over the last five centuries of British history, the gallery houses a primary collection of some 10,000 works, which are regularly rotated, among them the museum's first acquisition, the famous 'Chandos' portrait of Shakespeare.

Despite the recent discovery that the Royal Shakespeare Company's Flower portrait of the Bard was a 19th-century forgery, the National Portrait Gallery still believes this one to have been painted during Shakespeare's lifetime.

To follow the paintings chronologically you should take the huge escalator to the top floor and work your way down. The 1st floor is dedicated to the Royal family, but the most fun is seeing one of the two portraits of the Queen made by Andy Warhol. The ground floor is most interesting with portraits of contemporary figures using a variety of media, including sculpture and photography. Among the most popular of these is Sam Taylor-Wood's David , a video-portrait of David Beckham asleep after football training, which attracted a lot of women to suddenly take interest in this part of the gallery. There's an annual Photographic Portrait Prize exhibition, featuring some of the best contemporary photographers.

Audioguides (a £3 donation is suggested) highlight some 200 portraits and allow you to hear the voices of some of the people portrayed. The Portrait Café and bookshop are in the basement and the Portrait restaurant is on the top floor, offering some superb views towards Westminster.