London

6-7pm | 7-8pm | 8-9pm | 9-10pm
10-11pm | 11pm-midnight
midnight-1am | 1-2am | 2-3am
3-4am | 5am

St James's Park

6pm
Go for a post-work picnic in the park
London’s most under-rated royal park, St James’s, is a great place for a post-work picnic. If you’re feeling particularly flush, stock up at Fortnum & Mason beforehand. If you’re lazy (and flush), you can have dinner on Inn the Park’s verandah, or sample their picnic menus.
Inn the Park, St James’s Park, SW1 (020 7541 9999/www.innthepark.com).

Pedal power up
Campaigning cycle group Critical Mass has bike rides round London on the last Friday of every month starting on the South Bank (6pm meet, 7pm ride). Just try not to bump into any skaters (see under 8pm). Prefer your steed to have a little more personality? Westway Stables on Latimer Road offers evening horse-riding up to 7.45pm.
Critical Mass (www.criticalmassLondon.org.uk); Westway Stables, 20 Stable Way, Latimer Rod, W11 6QX (020 8964 2140/www.westwaystables.co.uk) Feature continues

Wise up
You can do night classes in just about anything, from stone-carving at Morley College to modern gospel at Hackney Community College. Most start straight after work; see www.floodlight.co.uk for the full list of courses at colleges in your area.

Regent's Park Open Air Theatre

Discover all the world’s a stage
Fringe productions often take advantage of their smaller companies and audiences by performing in unusual venues such as parks and crypts: The Principal Theatre Company are unseasonally doing 'Twelfth Night' in Holborn's Coram's Fields. The Globe and Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre combine performance and evening sunshine; this summer's productions include 'Macbeth' and 'Fantastic Mr Fox'. Finally, London Bubble are out and about with a version iof Edward Lear's 'The Dong with the Luminous Nose.'
Shakespeare's Globe, 21 New Globe Walk, Bankside, SE1 9DT (020 7902 1400www.shakespeares-globe.org). Open Air Theatre, Regent's Park, Inner Circle, Regent's Park, NW1 4NR (08700 601 811/www.openairtheatre.org). Coram's Fields, 93 Guildford St, WC1N 1DN (020 8807 6680). London Bubble (020 7237 4434/www.londonbubble.org.uk).

An ace pursuit
The tennis courts at Lincoln’s Inn Fields in Holborn are open till dusk on weekdays, perfect for unwinding with some delicate drop shots or floating forehands. Playing in the centre of London will also make you feel a bit special.
Lincoln’s Inn Fields, WC2 (booking 07717 516 351).

British Library

Join the lecture circuit
The British Library, Royal Society of Arts, and ICA all have regular talks on arts, politics, science and current events, generally starting at 6.30pm. Crucially, the bar at the ICA is open till 1am Tuesday to Saturday.
British Library, 96 Euston Rd, NW1 2DB (020 7412 7332/www.bl.uk). Royal Society of Arts, 8 John Adam St, WC2N 6EZ (020 7930 5115/www.rsa.org.uk). ICA, The Mall, SW1Y 5AH (020 7930 3647/www.ica.org.uk).

Alfresco viewing in Docklands
There's evening dance and music as part of India Now in August, and the Canary Wharf Jazz Festival runs September 19-22.
Canada Square Park, Canary Wharf, E14 (www.mycanarywharf.com).