British Museum closure: Popular UK tourist attraction in London to close for one day - social media users speculate on possible explanations

The decision comes at a time when London is packed with tourists. On its website, the museum says only: “We will be closed for a Museum event on 9 July. We apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.”

However, The Independent has seen a message that was sent on Monday to members of the British Museum. It says: “On Wednesday 9 July, the Museum will be closed for a Museum event. I appreciate this will be disappointing for anyone planning to visit that day and I apologise for any inconvenience this may cause.

“Although no further details are available at this stage, I am very happy to discuss it further with Members following the event and we aim to be in contact with more information as soon as possible.”

The message ends by highlighting “a range of online content this week”. Users have been speculating online about possible explanations.

The first is that the museum will close for French president Emmanuel Macron, who is on a state visit to the UK. The broadcaster Hugh Sykes posted on X, formerly Twitter: “Related to Macron peut-être?”, while Alicia Hayes speculated: “Taking down the Elgin Marbles to handover to Greece?”

A travel blog account, Viaggieri Leggeri, suggested: “Jeff Bezos’ wedding reception, maybe?”. Many tourists are likely to be disappointed. On an average day last year, 17,900 people visited the attraction.

The British Museum is a public museum dedicated to human history, art and culture located in the Bloomsbury area of London. Its permanent collection of eight million works is the largest in the world.