South Kensington's most-visited museum has a new chapter on show: the Natural History Museum in London has opened a gallery dedicated to its Second World War history, shedding light on what happened behind its famous terracotta facade during the Blitz.

It's a side of the museum most of its millions of annual visitors never hear about. The Alfred Waterhouse building, opened in 1881, didn't sit out the war untouched — like much of central London it faced the threat of bombing, and staff took steps to safeguard one of the world's most important natural science collections. The new gallery explores that wartime chapter, from the protection of specimens and the museum's role in the war effort to the mark the conflict left on the building itself.

For travellers, the appeal is obvious. The Natural History Museum is already one of London's essential free attractions — the Hintze Hall blue whale skeleton, the dinosaur galleries and the earthquake simulator keep families queuing along Cromwell Road — and this addition gives returning visitors a reason to look beyond the famous displays. It's also a natural pairing with the area's other heavyweights: the Science Museum and V&A sit right next door, and all three are free to enter.

The wartime angle fits into a broader trend of London institutions pulling their own history out of the archives. The capital's war story is usually told at dedicated sites like the Imperial War Museum or Churchill War Rooms, so a natural sciences museum examining its own Blitz-era experience is an unusual and worthwhile detour for anyone interested in how the city kept running — and kept its treasures — through 1940s bombing raids.

If you're planning a London trip, it's worth booking a free timed entry slot for the Natural History Museum in advance, especially for weekends and school holidays when demand spikes. Go early in the morning or later in the afternoon to dodge the worst crowds, and build in time for the museum's South Kensington setting, one of the most walkable museum districts in Europe with Hyde Park a short stroll away.