Ah, the joys of satire: a chance to pop the inflated egos of the rich, famous and infamous, not with sledgehammer subtlety, but intelligence, wit and creativity.

Imagination and social comment go hand in hand in the Museum of London's show on 300 years of satire in the capital, delivering scathing, biting opinion in the relatively harmless form of humour.

Here, the iconic, the untouchable, the beautiful people, the regal and the mighty are cut down to size, exposed as flawed human beings just like the rest of us.

Of course, it's not just the rich and famous who come under fire. The brutality of satire ensures that more or less no one is spared, whatever your class, belief, gender or age happens to be. Satire can come in many forms, from light-hearted jabs at the subject in question to full-blown character assassinations.

This exhibition covers the history of satire in all its forms. Split up into three sections, the first ('The Art of Satire') delves into satire's original blossoming into a form all of its own in the capital, while the second section concentrates more on London itself and why its environment and images were such ripe targets for parody.

The final section concentrates on Londoners who are one of the most caricatured and parodied people in the country. Here we can see the many examples of how they came under fire, such as the publication Punch, which originated in 1841 and became an enormous success, satiating the clear desire of the public to have a laugh at the expense of not only others but themselves.

In this day and age, targets have becoming less sacred and critics fearless in their desire (George W. Bush being arguably the most parodied figure in the world at the moment).

There's so much tongue-in-cheek amusement to be had here. But satire is not all about making us laugh, it's about voices being heard, power being questioned and freedom of speech.

  • Satirical London: 300 years of Irreverent Images, Museum of London, until September 3. Admission is free. Nearest Tubes: Barbican, St. Paul's and Moorgate. Opening hours: 10am to 5.50pm from Mondays to Saturdays and noon to 5.50pm on Sundays. Last admission is 20 minutes before closing time. For further information call 0870 444 3852.