Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026: winners tomorrow, show Friday
South Kensington hosts one of the great nights in the photography calendar tomorrow. The winners of Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2026, now in its 62nd year, will be announced at the Natural History Museum on Tuesday 13 October, and the exhibition of winning images opens to the public on Friday 16 October. Here is what to know before you book.
The awards
This year's competition drew around 65,000 entries, judged anonymously by an international panel. Tomorrow's ceremony, hosted by Chris Packham and Megan McCubbin according to LBC's preview, will reveal the category winners along with the Grand Title and Young Grand Title awards. It is being livestreamed on YouTube for anyone who cannot be there. If you want to see the winners before you visit, the stream is the place to watch.
Images already released
The museum has shared a selection of highly commended images ahead of the announcement, and they give a sense of the range:
- Icy Window by Audun Rikardsen: a polar bear seen from a seal's perspective in Svalbard.
- Split-Second Escape by Jens Cullmann: an African bullfrog lunging at a butterfly in Botswana.
- The Art of Flying by Jack Crockford: a swift passing a plane approaching Heathrow, highly commended in the 15 to 17 years category.
- Urban Wanderer by Sora Miyazawa: a Japanese toad in Tokyo after rain.
- Lifted to the Surface by Vegard Byrkjeland Aasen: an orca supporting a calf in a Norwegian fjord.
The exhibition
From 16 October until 11 July 2027, the Natural History Museum shows 100 award-winning images from this year's competition. Prices on the museum's exhibition page are tiered for adults:
- Peak, £21: weekends during school holidays.
- Standard, £19: weekdays in school holidays, and Friday to Monday in term time.
- Off-peak, £17: Tuesday to Thursday in term time.
Children aged 4 to 17, students and several other groups pay reduced prices, and under fours go free. A ticket also includes museum entry after you have seen the exhibition, and members do not need to book. Tickets cannot be refunded or exchanged, so double-check your date.
When to go
The first weekend tends to be busy, and half-term follows soon after. If you can, aim for a Tuesday to Thursday visit before the school holidays, when off-peak pricing applies and the galleries are calmer. The exhibition rewards time, so allow at least an hour, and longer if you are visiting with children who will want to stop at every animal.
Entries came from photographers across the world, with this year's released images alone spanning the UK, France, Norway, Hungary, Japan, South Africa, Israel and Canada.
Make an evening of it
Our Natural History Museum guide covers the rest of the building, from the Hintze Hall to the galleries families head for first. Brompton Road's restaurants are a short walk away for lunch or an early supper afterwards.
Getting there
The museum is on Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD. South Kensington station is the nearest, and Knightsbridge is a comfortable walk along Brompton Road.
Lead image: Helen Ilus via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
