Kids in London - Dr Who exhibition and Camden Market

My daughter is a Dr Who fan so I booked tickets (£9.75 adults, £7.75 kids) on-line to see the exhibition at Earls Court (the West Brompton tube side is easier). They are timed slots so we had to hang around for a while to get in. This was a bit of a missed opportunity from the organiser's point of view as there was only a small Time Lord Cafe with some soft drinks and low stock of ice cream on offer to keep us amused while we waited.

You enter through a dark tunnel which has Dr Who pictures on the walls - photos of all the previous incarnations. Then the exhibition starts - the tardis with a model where David Tennant's face is projected. A good photo opportunity. There are lots of posters and images on the walls and loads of touch sensitive screens so you can get more info about the epidoses, the background, the characters etc.

There are various areas with yet more costumes - sadly, some are on raised plinths which means photos with your youngsters alongside are a bit tricky. Anyway, we managed to get good shots with the impressive Face of Bo in a glass jar. Then there is an area showing you how the monsters are made - interesting stuff for those who are interested in animatronics. There were the cat nuns and the pig people and lots of diagrams of how the various costumes were made and the odd model (e.g. Big Ben where the space craft crashed through it).

My personal favourite was the scary angels and my daughter got photos with the oods and the cybermen - although they were moving slightly which made the youngsters a bit wary. We also found Aracnos (the big spider model) and K-9 with lots of flashing lights. Throughout the exhibition areas they had lots of flashing lights and strobes to add atmosphere.

The highlight of the exhibition was a room where there was a short sequence where three daleks moved and used laser guns. Very realistic. There was also an empty dalek where kids could move the arms around from the inside.

Like all such events the exhibition ended in a shop where there was lots of merchandise - so take cash to buy daleks and various other momentos. It only took 45 minutes to get around although I am sure some people would spend a lot longer looking at all the displays.

So then a short tube ride up to Camden Town for some Mummy time. But Camden Lock is also an exciting place for the kids too - lots of stalls selling interesting things, shops and cafes occupied by amazing looking punks and a nice canal side walk up to the pirate castle. And I thought the new glass covered markets were OK and didn't diminish the overall feel of the place. Mind you, if you have a buggy you should be an advanced driver cos it is crowded and some of the lanes are very narrow.

If we had had more time we might have been tempted to take a river bus canal boat but we were content just pottering around the market. There were so many teenagers here I am not surprised it is one of the favourite haunts of my teenage son!

There were loads of places to eat but for picky kids it was more tricky - although walking along past the main drag we did see a Strada (pizza and pasta), Pizza Express and also a burger joint. Anyway, a lovely day out enjoying some of London's attractions with the younger kids.