Located in an old warehouse basement on the site of the original Clink Prison, the museum provides reconstructions of cell interiors and contains a display of original and reproduction restraining and torturing devices. Built by the Bishops of Winchester in 1151 to keep control of medieval Bankside, the Clink prison was destroyed in the Gordon Riots of 1780.

For centuries, the London borough of Southwark was in the Diocese of Winchester. As such, it fell outside the jurisdiction of London and became a safe haven for all sorts of illicit activities including bear-baiting and prostitution. The Clink Prison was used for the incarceration of religious offenders, debtors and other malefactors.