From Shakespeare to Bowie — and a modern twist by Jenny Saville
While the boys explore Soho and Chinatown in search of the perfect nosh, I go roaming for something equally enticing. Today’s pitstop – London’s National Portrait Gallery.
Hi there lovely readers,
Throw me into a jolly good bookshop or an art gallery and I’m in my happy place, one offering a mental journey via the mighty pen, the other a visual journey through an artist’s chosen medium. And what better way to blend the two than review London’s history via the Portrait Gallery? Top floor (early centuries) down (current), starting with the current guest artist…
First Stop: Jenny Saville – The Anatomy of Painting
I begin with an intriguing exhibition by Jenny Saville, one of Britain’s most celebrated contemporary painters. A collection of 45 works tracing her career and her ongoing conversation with art history. The show was created in close collaboration with the artist herself, and it feels like stepping into her evolving sketchbook of bold, raw humanity. Exciting, at times visceral, a must-see when you’re in London Town. Here’s just a small example…
The Gallery Itself – Britain’s Ultimate Family Album
From there, I wander into the main gallery — a place that tells the story of Britain not through dates or dusty timelines, but through faces. The National Portrait Gallery is all about the people: queens, rebels, poets, politicians, pop stars, and everyday heroes who’ve shaped the nation. Starting point? Yep, the top floor!
What makes it so brilliant?
I loved that the gallery is all about the who, not just the how. The art is important, but the real focus is on the person in the frame and their impact on British history and culture; from Tudor monarchs to pop culture creatives. Through paintings, drawings, photos, sculptures and digital media for every individual who has left a mark on Britain, chances are they’re here.
Having visited the Tower of London and explored its bloodied timeline, the Portrait Gallery humanised that history. Walk chronologically and you’ll see Britain’s story unfold through the eyes of Shakespeare, Churchill, Bowie, Malala — and so many more.
It’s Britain told not through battles and dates, but through the people who lived, led, created, and inspired. Thoroughly recommend!
A few things I learnt along the way…
# Ada Lovelace (1815-1852), a mathematician and computer pioneer, worked with the inventor Charles Babbage on plans for a device called the Analytic Engine. Her work led to her being described as the earliest computer programmer.


# Mary Wollstonecraft Godwin (1797 – 1851) married the poet Percy Bysshe Shelley, wrote Frankstein (The Modern Prometheus – written 1818, revised 1831), and other fine works, and after her husband’s death, penned a travel log of her travels throughout Europe with her late husband. Her mother, Mary Wollstonecraft (who died after giving birth to her daughter) was also an English writer as well as a philosopher and advocate of women’s right, best known for A Vindication of the Rights of Woman (1792).
# David Beckham’s portrait is actually a video recording of him sleeping (and not a snore or dribble in sight!)
