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We won’t pretend that London’s a cheap place to be. It’s far from it. Rent is racking up year-on-year, pints now cost as much as £8 and simply visiting a friend on the other side of the city will eat up a fiver. Free goings-on in the city, therefore, are a real godsend. And we’ll let you in on a secret: London is absolutely full of them, if you know where to look.
This is one of the best weekends London has had for free stuff in a while, so don’t waste it by staying inside. There’s a plethora of jazz gigs from world-leading musicians, a bunch of creative gatherings at major art institutions, and even complimentary Spice Girls-inspired cocktails at one of the city’s most famous hotels. Keep reading for all your weekend inspiration.
RECOMMENDED: All the best things to do in London this weekend.
The 6 best free things to do in London this weekend
1. Relive ’90s nightlife at Tate Britain
Rave culture and the underground scene of the 1990s will be under the spotlight at Tate Britain’s next Friday Late. Coinciding with the new exhibition The 90s: Art and Fashion, the evening will feature dance performances, screenings of Dazed’s Music Nation documentaries, an immersive display of photographs taken at the infamous LGBTQ+ club night Love Muscle XX, a talk on the political and social power of ’90s music and a workshop where you can collage your own rave flyers. Obviously, there’ll be a rave too. MILLZ will fill Room 8 with old-school jungle classics and heavyweight breakbeats while underground music platform Keep Hush will bring a high-energy set to Djanogly Café.
Tate Britain, Millbank, SW1P 4RG. Fri Nov 13. Free.
2. Mooch around the winter markets
London’s markets are really ramping up as we approach giving season. This weekend, there’s a bounty of ‘em to choose from. If you’re in Islington, stop by the All Day Mini Mart on Upper Street. The first 20 people there will get a free limited-edition (and genuinely lovely-looking) butter knife made of plastic waste donated by brands like Ottolenghi, Perello and Kerrygold. Near King’s Cross? Check out the handmade goodies on display at the Crafty Fox Market in the British Library. For those on the east side of the city, there’s the Canada Water Craft + Flea Makers Market with more than 100 traders. Or, if you’re out west, go to the Chiswick Yard Sale on Sunday, in which dozens of homes will open their doors so visitors can browse secondhand clothes, furniture, homeware, art and books.
Various locations. Free.
3. Get involved in the lakeside Light+Flight Festival
On Saturday, the five-storey Finchley Lakeside will open to the public for the first time. Once a dull office block, the building has been transformed into a temporary cultural hub, and is introducing itself to north London with two days of music and art. Over two days, the complex will be crammed with all sorts of cultural goings-on for the totally free Light+Flight Festival. Meander around the site and you’ll come across the huge participatory artwork ‘Ascendance’, a live listening session with Voices Radio, a showcase by Art Against Knives, a ceramics workshop and an exhibition exploring Barnet’s rich heritage. Don’t miss the DJ sets from south London collective Touching Bass or the live performance by Youth Music 2024 Producer of the Year and Little Simz’s bassist Marla Kether. See the full programme and reserve your spot here.
Finchley Lakeside, Squires Lane, N3 2QT. Sat Nov 14-Sun Nov 15. Free.
4. Jam to jazz from across the globe
Much of the EFG London Jazz Festival is ticketed but there are a few excellent gigs that you can attend for nothing. On Saturday, Tarana, a band that blends Qawwali, Indian, Nepali and devotional sounds with rave, jungle and drum and bass, will play a free show at the Southbank Centre. Over at the Barbican, artists from Rotterdam and London will come together in the foyer to showcase sounds from both cities. And at the Jazz Social, catch the Sounds of St Lucia, with performances from Endurance Steel Orchestra, DJ ShyBoy and saxophonist Denys Baptiste. At the Southbank Centre on Sunday, Sound Lines will bring a five-hour-long tribute to global traditions of vocal and percussive music, with Brazilian jazz, a Portuguese polyphonic choir and Afro-Colombian bullerengue. Go to the Barbican from 3pm and you’ll catch the special live recording of BBC Radio 3’s jazz show ‘Round Midnight.
Various venues. Until Nov 22. Free.
5. Spice up your night at the St Pancras Hotel
Thirty years ago, Posh, Ginger, Scary, Baby and Sporty were let loose in London’s ultra-posh St Pancras Renaissance Hotel for the ‘Wannabe’ music video. The song marked the start of the Spice Girls’ world domination, and cemented the hotel’s place in pop culture history. To celebrate its 30th anniversary, St Pancras Hotel has concocted a special cocktail named Thirty in Pink, which combines St. Pancras London Gin, ginger syrup, pink peppercorn bitters, elderflower, passion fruit and lemon, topped with English sparkling wine. And it’s giving it away for free. Just ask the bartender ‘do you know what I want?’ and they’ll reply ‘what I really really want!’. And voilà – you get a Thirty in Pink cocktail on the house.
St Pancras Hotel, Euston Rd, NW1 2AR. Sat Nov 14-Sun Nov 15. Free.
6. Attend the opening of V&A East’s latest exhibition
The V&A East’s new series of commissions is all about the storytelling power that clothes can have. A piece by industrial designers Jimin Jeon and Adam Huxley-Khng traces the surprisingly fascinating history of garment fasteners, while an installation by East London Textile Arts was created in collaboration with 90 makers and draws upon research into the V&A collection. In celebration of the new programme, the V&A East Storehouse and V&A East Museum are hosting an afternoon of artist talks followed by an evening of flowing drinks and beats on the latter’s Upper Ground.
2 Parkes Street, E20 3AX and 107 Carpenters Rd, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, E20 2AR. Sat Nov 14. Free.
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