Natural History Museum? Priceless

It is a truth universally acknowledged that those in possession of a MasterCard must be in wont of fun things to do in London – oh wait, not true! Priceless London is a special scheme run by MasterCard which means boredom is not a problem for its customers as they have access to unique experiences around the capital, of which an evening at the Natural History Museum, entitled Take the Heat, is one.

The night, exclusive to MasterCard holders, kicked off with drinks and canapés in the former Geological Museum which is now the Red Room at the NHM. Upon entering this room, you were greeted with dramatic statues of Medusa, Atlas and the Cyclops, among others, with the requisite prehistoric animal skulls and stalagmites loosely connected with them, which give a pretty striking first impression under the low lighting. The centrepiece of the room though was the steep escalator leading up through a giant model of the world. As watering holes go, this was a very unique venue to be enjoying a cocktail with added chilli in.

And the chilli wasn’t just a random addition to the drinks – the theme for the night was ‘heat’. We were split up into groups and taken around different parts of the museum throughout the evening, tours interspersed with a delicious food break. In each location we were greeted by NHM scientists with different specialities who gave us 15-minute talks on a subject within their specialisms (loosely related to heat) and showed us relevant artefacts.

The talks were fascinating and among the many perks, we got to handle meteorite that was 4.5 billion years old, see a piece of rock from Mars, learn how dung beetles help identify whether animals are native to a country  and witness an explanation of the sordid and spicy world of fish sex… with pickled fish. (WARNING: An angler fish ain’t pretty. You may also never be able to watch Finding Nemo again.)

It was clear that the scientists loved their subjects, and this along with their geeky charm and happiness to answer questions really added to the enjoyment of the evening and the special atmosphere.

So if you have a MasterCard and are looking for a night out with a difference, head to Priceless London and get booking.

Take the Heat with MasterCard Priceless London took place on Monday 10 September at:

Natural History Museum
Cromwell Road
Kensington
SW7 5BD

Tel: 020 7942 5000

Priceless London offers all MasterCard cardholders that register on pricelesslondon.co.uk exclusive experiences and privileged access to the capital’s music, theatres, museums, restaurants, retail, sport and attractions.

Photo: James Carnegie