Pokémon is teaming up with The Natural History Museum, and their new pop up is landing in London next month

Okay, this collab was not on our 2026 bingo card

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an image of pokemon and pikatchu on the balcony inside the natural history museum
(Image credit: Luke Dyson / The Natural History Museum)

There have been many unexpected collabs over the years: Nigella and Greggs, Timothee Chalamet + Lime Bikes + the red carpet (basically a Gen Z Lion, Witch, and the Wardrobe). Now, we already have an entry for January 2026 as The Natural History Museum will be teaming up with Pokémon for a banging new pop up.

Specifically, it will be landing on January 26th, when you’ll be able to experience Pokémon Fire Red on the Gameboy Advance, heading to the pop-up store that joins the world of Pokémon and the Natural History Museum – and it’s running for two whole months. With plenty of memorabilia, and merch up for grabs, any Pokémon fans will want to head down asap.

The store will be hosted by The Natural History Museum at its (newly revamped) Cranbourne Boutique shop, and you’ll be able to get your hands on clothing, stationary, accessories, prints, plushies, and more.

an image of the two plushies looking up at the giant suspended whale skeleton in the museum

(Image credit: Luke Dyson)

The pop-up store is celebrating Pokémon’s 30th birthday, combing its more, erm, man-made history with the epicentre of biological evolution. Entry to the store is completely free, but you will need to grab a ticket before hand via The Natural History Museum’s website. The ticket-system has been put in place to help with crowd control as they’re expecting big numbers. So big, in fact, that the first-release tickets have already sold out online, but more will be released in stages nearer the time, so keep checking back if you’re keen.

Talking about the collab, Adam Farrar, Director of Commercial and Visitor Experience for the Natural History Museum, said: “There is such a wonderful alignment between Pokémon and the Natural History Museum – we’re obviously both big fans of the natural world and its evolution and diversity. We hope this collaboration will spark joy and curiosity in the creatures around us, both in the world of Pokémon and Earth”.

The pop-up will be running from January 26th until March 22nd, and you can find more information including tickets here.

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Hermione Blandford
Hermione Blandford
Content Editor

Hermione Blandford is the Content Editor for Shortlist’s social media which means you can usually find her scrolling through Instagram and calling it work, or stopping random people in the street and accosting them with a mini mic. She has previously worked in food and drink PR for brands including Johnnie Walker, Tanqueray, Gordon's, The Singleton, Lagavulin and Don Julio which means she is a self confessed expert in spicy margaritas and pints, regularly popping into the pub in the name of research.

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