Just a short walk from Baker Street Tube Station in the heart of London, Madame Tussauds is somewhere I've been meaning to go for years now.

It was reasonably quiet on a Monday afternoon with no queue to get in and we quickly found ourselves in the first room surrounded by the likes of Britney Spears (with hair), Christina Aguilera and Brad Pitt.

Some of the models are very realistic - for example Morgan Freeman - and we both found ourselves staring at one of two visitors for slightly longer than we should have because we were not sure if they were wax models or not.

Of course the first thing you do, when confronted with life-like wax models of celebrities, is pose for comedy photographs.

Christina, Kylie Minogue, Jennifer Aniston all looked suitable charmed in my photographs as I puckered up to them while I saved my more serious poses for hardcore action heroes like Arnold Schwarz-enegger and the Incredible Hulk.

After exhausting my repertoire of comedy poses my girlfriend made a bee-line for smooth lotharios Brad Pitt, Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp, which kept her grinning for most of the afternoon.

But for me the best part was the Chamber of Horrors - a short walk through a dungeon inhabited by impaled wax models, chilling sounds of torture and actors whose job it is to jump out from behind corners and scare you witless.

It must be noted that said girlfriend did not like this part at all and felt the need to attach herself to my back and scream in my ear for the duration of it. Next there was a room filled with historical figures such as Hitler, Churchill, The Beatles, Jose Mourinho, Tony Blair, Albert Einstein and a rather oddly placed Richard Branson who seemed to have been relegated to the realms of the coffee shop.

But the experience ended with an annoying five-minute animation which was essentially a lousy excuse to trick you into posing for a ludicrously overpriced photograph.

Overall it's a fun day out if you find yourself in London with a couple of hours to kill, but a tad pricey.

Open: Daily 9am to 6pm Prices: Adult: From £13.50 (cheapest off peak ticket), Child: From £9 (cheapest off peak ticket) Refreshments: A Costa Coffee where you may find yourself sitting next to the Mayor of London!

Essential: Comfy shoes and cash!

Contact: 0870 999 0046 or www.madame-tussauds.co.uk ASH BOLTON