Battersea Power Station

Battersea Power Station already has an indoor chimney lift experience, a huge food court, a lovely cinema and more high street faves than you can hope to get round in a weekend-long shopping spree. Now it’s adding a free summer funfair to its entertainment offering Electric Summer opens in Power Station Park and along the Coaling Jetty from 29 July, and it’s an entire seaside town’s worth of things crammed onto a Thames-side patch of concrete.  The centrepiece is a full roller rink with sessions ranging from wobbly first-timers to Thursday date nights and Saturday silent discos, plus roller fitness classes if you fancy your cardio with a side of nostalgia. Out on the jetty, pétanque courts turn the riverside into a passable stand-in for the south of France, river views included. There's also a big wheel for skyline views, dodgems, a wave swinger and boardwalk games including Lobster Pot and Blockbuster. We aren’t too sure what either involves, but we’re very intrigued. The Boardwalk Bar’s rooftop terrace is also the obvious spot for an after-work pint with a view. Getting in is free. You only pay if you want to skate or spin around on something.

In 1971, Yorkshireman Roger Hargreaves was having dinner with his eight-year-old son when he asked ‘what does a tickle look like?’. That was the question that led Hargreaves to invent Mr. Tickle, the very first character in his now iconic Mr. Men and Little Miss comic series. Fifty-five years later there are more than 90 characters, from Mr. Snooty and Mr. Topsy-Turvy to Little Miss Chatterbox and Little Miss Scary.  To pay tribute to them all and, in particular, to birthday boy Mr Tickle, Battersea Power Station is hosting a Mr. Men Little Miss takeover. There’ll be workshops in which kids can create wooden characters or door plaques to take home, interactive storytelling sessions and a trail along which you can find hidden characters and unlock free gifts. Tickle himself may even make an appearance. 

Following its success over the last two years, CelebrASIA is once again taking over Battersea Power Station with a celebration of South East Asia that shines a light on the cuisines and creativity of the region. Held both inside and outside of the art deco power station, the whole area will get a colourful transformation in the form of lanterns, sculptures and immersive installations, transporting you straight to the continent without actually having to leave London.   As always, there will be comedy sets, cooking classes, craft workshops, film screenings, live music, an artisan market and national dress parades. But for the very first time, on top of all of that, the event will host expert panels exploring South East Asia’s influence on fashion, food, literature and culture across the globe. Those will kick off with a talk between Khairani Barokka (author of Annah, Infinite)and Ivy Ngeow (author of The American Boyfriend). Other panellists will include Helena Lee, features editor at Harper’s Bazaar, Audrey Khew from the British Fashion Council and John Chantarasak from AngloThai. Street food stalls will serve up bites from cult favourite London restos including Farang, Turo Turo, Mambow and Chick’n’Sours. Craft workshops will teach the arts of Batik painting, Sarawak beadwork, and other traditional crafts, and there will be traditional dance and music performances from Malaysia, Singapore, the Philippines and more throughout the weekend.