The best May half-term things to do in London

What is it? The Natural History Museum always has fun with its big, slick temporary exhibitions: for 2025 it poses one of the biggies – are we alone out there? Helpfully (and possibly even deliberately) running while the neighbouring Science Museum’s 40-year-old Exploring Space exhibition is being taken down and reworked, Could Life Exist Beyond Earth? is pretty self-explanatory in what it’s asking. 

Where is it? Natural History Museum.

How much is it? £14-£16.50, £7-£8.25 kids.

Why go? Because the NHM’s collection isn’t just about taxidermied finches: it has some of the world’s best space rocks, and after 144 years they’re finally gettin their own exhibit. We’re promised the opportunity to snap a selfie with a piece of Mars, touch a fragment of the Moon and lay your hands on the Allende meteorite, which is, remarkably, older than Earth itself. Plus loads of fun interactive stuff if your ungrateful child isn’t wowed by a collection of very, very old rocks.

What is it? This half-term marks your absolute last chance to see the OG Exploring Space gallery at the Science Museum: 39 years on from its opening in 1986, it’ll close for good on June 2.

Where is it? Science Museum.

How much is it? Free.

Why go? Exploring Space closing is not a bad thing in and of itself: it’s an old exhibition that opened considerably closer to the first Moon landings that the present day. It needs a refresh and it’s getting one. Nonetheless: it’s an icon and it’ll be sad to see it go; if you kids are fans or have never been, definitely sneak in this half-term for a last look.

What is it? This large scale immersive exhibition last visited London when the previous Jurassic World film came out, and with Jurassic World Rebirth hitting cinemas this summer, guess what’s back? The show – which is a sort of journey through a series of large scale Jurassic World-themed rooms – will open the new NEON at Battersea Power Station venue.

Where is it? NEON at Battersea Power Station.

How much is it? £28.95, £23.95 children.

Why go? Are your children alive, with a pulse? Well they probably like dinosaurs, then. Even if they’re not allowed to watch the source films, it is lavish dinosaur content to enjoy and they should be wowed by the venue too. 

What is it? The Tate Modern is celebrating its twenty-fifth birthday with a trail of 25 artworks from its illustrious quarter century. Works include Mark Rothko’s Seagram murals, and Dorothea Tanning’s Eine Kleine Nachtmusik, but the headline events is undoubtedly the return of the most iconic exhibit from the Tate’s opening: Louise Bourgeoise’s ten-meter tall metal spider Maman.

Where is it? Tate Modern Turbine Hall.

How much is it? Free.

Why go? The Tate is great for kids of all ages and is always a good holidays choice for teens looking for something a bit more cultured. But on the very basic level, the Turbine Hall plus a gigantic spider is simply very cool – and hopefully not traumatising. Big ones may want to contemplate what it all means; little ones might want to run around it screaming. Both are entirely valid, and it’s fine to just dip into it on your way past the gallery. Maman plus trail is up until the end of August.

How did you celebrate your 25th birthday? Eight lagers, four sambuccas and a whole heap of regret? Same. But Tate Modern isn’t like us, and it’s celebrating its birthday in a far more refined way. 

To mark the anniversary of the opening of what is apparently the world’s most popular modern and contemporary art museum, Tate Modern is bringing back Louise Bourgeois’ iconic ‘Maman’ sculpture. The monumental metallic spider, standing at 10 metres tall, was the first work to greet visitors in the then new Turbine Hall, and now it’s coming back to launch a trail of 25 newly installed artworks (to celebrate 25 years, obviously) placed around the museum.

That trail will include the return of arguably the most important work in Tate’s collection, Mark Rothko’s Seagram murals, which will be coming back from their holiday at Tate St Ives. Other pieces in the trail will include Dorothea Tanning’s ‘Eine Kleine Nachtmusik’, an immersive multi-screen film installation by Nalini Malani and a series of live tarot readings staged as part of an installation by Meschac Gaba.

It’s not quite vomiting on the carpet in a Wetherspoons after your umpteenth turbo shandy, but we all celebrate our birthdays in our own ways.

Tate Modern turns 25, May 9-12 2025. More details here. 

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What is it? ‘Story Explorers’ is a new, free exhibition at the British Library is aimed at young audiences aged two to nine and offers them and their families a chance to explore the institution’s gargantuan collection via imagination and play. The exhbition is divided into four themed areas: a library, outer space, the depths of the jungle, and to the bottom of the ocean floor.

Where is it? British Library.

How much is it? Free but booking online is advised.

Why go? Because the works on display sound really cool. They include a Victorian record from the Library’s Sound Archive featuring animal sounds, a near-200-year-old photo of the Moon by Welsh astronomer Theresa Dillwyn Llewelyn, a colourful nineteenth century Thai manuscript depicting elephants frolicking and a map by sixteenth century cartographer Abraham Ortelius that depicts an Iceland surrounded with sea monsters. In other words, it’s not just a collection of dusty tomes: any children with any curiousity about the world should be fascinated.

What is it? The Southbank Centre is going all out to celebrate the eightieth birthday of The Moomins and the Great Flood, Tove Jansson’s first book starring her beloved cartoon creations the Moomins.

Where is it? Southbank Centre.

How much is it? All events are free.

Why go? Whether you’ve raised your little ones as fans of the hippo-like trolls or Moominpappa, Moominmamma et al are completely new to them, there should be something fun for them. The splashiest highlight is surely The Door is Always Open, which will see adventure play and child lead building experts Woodland Tribe erect an actual (well, sort of) Moominhouse over the course of the week (Tue May 27-Sun Jun 1). If little ones want to help build – they can! Just sign up for one of the Play, Make, Dream sessions.

What is it? Aimed at older primary school children, The Vanishing Forest from English Touring Opera is a kids’ opera sequel to A Midsummer Night’s Dream in which Puck and his fairy crew must find Oberon and Titania and put an end to the deforestation around Athens that is robbing them of their magic.

Where is it? Polka Theatre.

How much is it? £11-£20.

Why go? Because it’s cool that there’s a 50-minute, cheap tickets kids opera coming to Wimbledon – often these things are lavishly expensive, but this is more a fun sounding story with great singing than all the pomp and circumstance of ‘an opera’.

What is it? The Unicorn’s big half-terms kids’ show is Emma Earle and Eamonn O’Dwyer’s adaptation of Rachel Bright and Jim Field’s beloved kids’ picturebook about a Kevin, a stay-at-home (well, tree) koala who only very recuctantly embraces change. 

Where is it? Unicorn Theatre.

How much is it? £12.50-£25.50.

Why go? It’s a thoroughly loveable book given a thoroughly loveable stage treatment, with the wonderfully expressive Kevin puppet its beating heart.

What is it? The beloved London Wetland Centre in Barnes has teamed up with the legendary Aardman Studios for an augmented reality trail based on its new TV series Lloyd of the Flies. Your last chance to catch it is June 1.

Where is it? London Wetland Centre.

How much is it? The trail is free with entry, which is around £50 for a family ticket.

Why go? The London Wetland Centre is pretty cool already, but if you’d been putting off making that journey to Barnes then now is the perfect time to go: Aardman are awesome and having the excuse to look at a phone (the AR bits are done via an app) generally cheers most kids up if it’s all too much nature for them.

What is it? A rare dance show for little ones, The Sticky Dance by Second Hand Dance is an installation-like show in which three dancers move around a tactile tapesty of sticky tape.

Where is it? Sadler’s Wells East.

How much is it? £14, £8 children.

Why go? It’s a chill out, laid back taste of dance for an audience rarely catered for. Young attendees are encouraged to interact with the show as they see fit, be that sticking on more of the tape themselves or joining in with the dancing. The show runs two hours start to end, but there are staggered start times and audiences are encouraged to spend around 45 minutes to an hour watching.