Six Lives
The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens
Free for Members and Patrons
20 June - 8 September 2024
£21 / £23.50 with donation
Members visit free – join from just £5.50 per month.
25 and under: £5 on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays.
Pay What You Wish: minimum payment of £1 on Saturdays from 17.30 to 21.00 and Sundays from 10.30 to 12.00.
Seniors Mondays: 50% off the Adult price for visitors over 60 every Monday.
Tudor paintings by Hans Holbein the Younger and contemporary photography by Hiroshi Sugimoto meet in the National Portrait Gallery’s first exhibition of historic portraiture since reopening, presenting a study of the lives and afterlives of the six women who married Henry VIII.
Six Lives will chronicle the representation of Katherine of Aragon, Anne Boleyn, Jane Seymour, Anne of Cleves, Katherine Howard and Katherine Parr throughout history and popular culture in the centuries since they lived. As a frequent source of fascination, the stories of the six women has repeatedly inspired writers and artists of all kinds to attempt to uncover the ‘truth’ of their lives: their characters, their appearance and their relationships. From historic paintings, drawings and ephemera, to contemporary photography, costume and film, the exhibition draws upon a wealth of factual and fictional materials to present the life, legacy and portrayal of six women who forever changed the landscape of English history.
Related events
The Lives of Tudor Women
Thu, 20 June 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Curator’s introduction to Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens
Fri, 21 June 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
Onsite £15 (£12 Members / concessions)
Game of Queens: the women who made 16th-century Europe
Thu, 27 June 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Descriptive tour: Six Lives
Fri, 5 July 2024, 18.00-19.30
In Gallery (room TBC) and Learning Centre
Free (booking required)
SIX the Musical interpreted performance and Six Lives BSL tour
Sat, 6 July 2024, 16.00-19.00
BSL tour: 18.00-19.00
Meet in the Gallery's Entrance Hall
Waiting Game: the untold story of the women who served the Tudor queens
Thu, 11 July 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Panel discussion - Page, stage and screen: dramatising Six Lives
Fri, 12 July 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£15 (£12 Members / concessions)
Marguerite de Navarre: the mirror of a Renaissance queen
Thu, 25 July 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Hunting the Falcon: Henry VIII, Anne Boleyn and the marriage that rocked Europe
Thu, 5 September 2024, 13.00-14.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£10 (£8 Members / concessions)
Suzannah Lipscomb in conversation
Fri, 6 September 2024, 19.00-20.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£15 (£12 Members / concessions)
Six Lives study day: the material culture of the Tudor Court
Sat, 7 September 2024, 11.00-17.00
The Ondaatje Wing Theatre
£40 (£32 Members / concessions)
Shop the exhibition
Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII's Queens
This publication accompanies the National Portrait Gallery exhibition Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII's Queens. What were the real life stories and legacies of the six women who married Henry VIII? Discover these extraordinary queens through the court culture that recorded and shaped their often tempestuous lives: their letters, heraldic devices, books, love tokens and, of course, their portraits.
School bookings
School groups of 10+ can book for £5 per student for Six Lives: The Stories of Henry VIII’s Queens. Maximum group size is 25 per 15 minute timeslot and a complimentary teacher ticket is available to book for every 10 students.
Advanced bookings only.