Free things to do in London this weekend
Make the most of your free time without breaking the bank, thanks to our round-up of free things to do at the weekend
Don't let your cash flow, or lack of it, get in the way of having a banging weekend. Read our guide to free things to do in London this weekend and you can make sure that your Friday, Saturday and Sunday go off with a bang, without eating up your bucks. After all, the best things in life are free.
If that's whetted your appetite for events and cultural happenings in London, get planning further ahead by having a gander over our events calendar.
RECOMMENDED: Save even more dosh by taking a look at our guide to cheap London.
The Cocoa Butter Club
The cabaret night spotlighting queer performers of colour decamps to the Southbank. Expect burlesque, drag and sideshows set to neo-soul, RnB and Motown all hosted by Sadie Sinner.
IBikeLondon Summer Social
Cruise through the city on your bike with a bunch of fun cyclists on this free ride from the Southbank to Richmond Park. Bikes busting out tunes will provide a soundtrack to the ride, which will span around 20 miles (at a comfortable pace) and take in highlights like Battersea Park, Wandsworth Common, Wimbledon, London Wetland Centre and Holland Park. when you've made it to the end of the route, settle down for a lake-side picnic and rest those calves. Meet outside the National Theatre.
Nineties Video Store Pop-Up
It’s been six years since Blockbuster closed all of its remaining video rental shops in the UK. Remember those simpler times spending evenings scouring the shelves trying to find just the right VHS tape to rent? It was like an IRL scroll through Netflix. Now you get a taste of nostalgia at this pop-up Nineties video shop at the BFI Southbank. Visit the wistful installation created by Young Cinema Rebels and students at the Wimbledon College of Arts to scan the shelves, watch films and TV shows on VHS, tuck into free snacks courtesy of Crate Brewery, Dalston’s Soda, Love Corn and indulge in this blast from the not-too-distant past.
Wine Car Boot
We all know not to drink and drive, but as long as the sellers aren't sampling their own wares this niche but light-hearted market will all be above board. Try and buy from some of the best independent wine retailers and producers like Vinoteca, Berry Brothers & Rudd, The Winemakers Club, New Zealand Cellar, Nekter, Le Grappin and Quality Wines. They’ll each present five of their favourite wines to taste, buy, drink-in or take away. Entry is free, so just turn up pick up a tasting pack and tokens then start drinking. Tasting packs are £12 and include a tote, govino glass and five tokens.You can also pay-as-you-go: tote £6 or 2 for £10 / govino glass £3 / Token £1 ea.
StrEATLife
Packed in the middle of its name like a big beef patty is the key to this festival. Yes, StrEATLife is all about food (and craft booze). Ally Pally will be bursting with over 25 stalls cooking up everything from Mexican street food to smokeyBBQ delights, while live performances soundtrack your visit.
The Floating Market
Back again for another year, Paddington Central's Grand Union canalside will be transformed into a bustling market, with barges turned to floating market stalls, all selling food and drinks, including artisanal and organic produce from local farmers over the weekend. As well as collectable records to snap up, an independent book shop nestled in a narrow boat and craft workshops to take part in onboard The Floating Showroom. Back on land, street food vendors will be cooking up tasty plates, and live music will play out across the day. Including the likes of top London sellers such as Lords of Poké, Vagabond Wines, PURE and more. Ain’t no party like a canalside party!
Elizabeth Prentis
You’re going to leave Elizabeth Prentis’s show with sticky feet. And a sticky mind too, if you’re not careful. A bubbling tub of pink Nesquik foams and bubbles onto the blue carpet as giant alien broccoli sculptures loom over it, threatening to dip their fronds into the pink froth. An industrial-strength sex swing stands in the background, a black harness latched onto a mechanic’s hoist. The one painting in the room shows pasty white legs spread wide, being invaded by stalks of broccoli. There’s a karaoke machine there too, and a keyboard, all of it begging to be played with. Obviously, this is super-bodily, hyper-sexual stuff. The room is hot, it stinks of sweetness, it’s oppressively bright and grossly tacky. The whole thing feels like a heady, hilarious plunge into sensuality. There are ideas about power here, submission and control, like a broccoli monster is going to slither its way up your bits and strap you into the sex swing. But more than anything it feels like someone just saying ‘fuck it, let’s go’, and that’s pretty liberating. This is brilliantly messy, gungy, sticky, sexy art. The world around us is a terrifying shambles of politics, war and terrorism, and maybe Prentis’s revolting, light-hearted, kinky art is the perfect antidote.
Summer Streets on Regent Street
Enjoy the rare spectacle of a traffic-free street in Zone One on four Sundays throughout summer (July 14, July 21, August 18 and September 15), as Regent Street's classy curve is pedestrianised from Oxford Circus all the way to Piccadilly Circus for a street party. The festivities will take on a different theme each week, with free entry, installations, demonstrations, food and drink and activities to get stuck into.
Hampstead Beach
Join JW3 and soak up the sun at their very own Hampstead urban Beach, complete with an in built paddling pool and splash areas. Expect food, cocktails and special events so you can get your summer fix for free.
River Walk Market
On the banks of the Thames and in the shadow of Battersea Power Station’s bombastic towers, you couldn’t ask for a more atmospheric setting for this weekly market. Head along to stock up on independent produce, tuck in street food, browse craft stalls and listen to live music.
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