The 20 best things to do this May bank holiday in London

Taking place across a whopping 20 venues in and around Queen’s Yard in Hackney Wick – including The Yard, Colour Factory, CRATE brewery and 9294 – this day-to-night celebration of London’s vibrant dance music scene is becoming a much-loved fixture over the early May Bank Holiday weekend. More than 100 DJs or collectives feature on the whopping line-up, which ranges from beloved local selectors to more established international names playing everything from house and techno to garage and disco. But that’s not all, as there’ll be after-parties kicking off at Colour Factory and Village Underground, too. Artists include: Percolate, Daytimers, Huns n Roses and Wet Dreamz.

When it comes to baby animals to cuddle up to in spring, tiny lambs are obviously the GOAT. Surrey Docks Farm, a sweet little site right next to the Thames with its own blacksmithery, puts on lamb-feeding sessions almost every day during the season. Sessions take place at 12.45pm and 4.40pm, and they sell out pretty quickly – well, who wouldn’t want to feed these fluffy little cuties – so snap up a spot asap! 

Brixton’s annual disco festival will make you feel like you’re dancing in hot pants even if you’re actually wearing dad jeans.Returning for its eighth year in 2026, it takes place across a host of SW9’s best venues, including Brixton Jamm, Phonox, Electric Brixton and the Black Cultural Archives, and features a line-up of legendary house, soul and disco selectors, including Norman Jay MBE, the Handson Family and Faith residents, Derrick Carter, Luke Una, Natasha Diggs, Melvo Baptiste.

The Bermondsey Beer Mile is sooo last year. Now, the coolest craft quaffers are all doing the Blackhorse Beer Mile in Walthamstow. Much more chic. The lagertastic event is back for the fourth year in a row this May bank holiday, with all of E17’s best drinks makers taking part. We’re talking Penny Social, Signature Brew, Pretty Decent, Exale, Renegade Urban Winery, Burnt Faith Distillery, East London Brew Co, Burnt Faith and Hackney Church Brew all rolled into one boozy crawl. Plus, across the trail will be DJs, a live brass band and food pop-ups from the likes of ACME Fire Cult, Patty & Pickle, Sereli and more. Grab your mates and get ready to enjoy Blackhorse Lane’s finest, just maybe don’t Lime home afterwards. 

Is it warm enough to swim outdoors yet? Well, kinda? The end of May marks the crossover between the period where only the truly hardcore swim outside, and the period where hobbyists in impractical swimwear flood London's watering holes. It's the perfect time to test your nerve, before the crowds descend.

For 43 years, Banana Cabaret has been a much-loved fixture on London's comedy circuit. Hosted by Balham pub The Bedford, it's nurtured talents including Lee Mack and Sara Pascoe, and has been central to the birth of the UK's alternative comedy movement. Now, its producer Dave Vickers is ready to retire, and he's throwing one last big bash to celebrate.

Banana Cabaret's farewell festival goes on throughout May, with a packed line-up of big comedy names, including Al Murray doing his touring show 'All You Need Is Guv', and mixed bills with the likes of Zoe Lyons, Milton Jones, Luisa Omelan, and many more. Until then, Best of Banana Cabaret shows will run every weekend in March and April, with special guest appearances including Tim Vine and Harry Hill.

The annual Sony World Photography Awards exhibition is a calendar highlight for any shutterbug, featuring more than 300 gasp-worthy snaps encompassing sport, portraiture, landscape and fashion photography, shortlisted from over 430,000 submissions from more than 200 countries. Returning to Somerset House for its 19th edition, the exhibition will feature a special display celebrating the career of American street photographer Joel Meyerowitz, the recipient of the competition’s Outstanding Contribution to Photography award this year, and will be supplemented by a programme of talks, workshops and debates with leading photography practitioners and experts.

Shakespeare's most sun-drenched play is never far from London's stages, and for good reason: its stories of sparring lovers and vengeful fairies are loads of fun, and capture all the sultry energy of long summer nights. After staging a bleak take on the play over winter, Shakespeare's Globe is lining up a production that sounds like the exact opposite, being billed as ‘a joyful, family-friendly night of mischief, wonder and transformation under starry, summer skies’.

From swanky skyscrapers to casual warehouse hangouts and hidden pub terraces, London has a real crush on a rooftop bar. To enjoy a heatwave high, we are blessed with all kinds of rooftops which offer a winning combination of wicked city views and perfect drinks. So take your pick from stylish Shoreditch, buzzing Soho and Covent Garden, trendy Peckham and more – it’s time to soak up those sunsets, with rooftop bar season now upon us.

Sir Quentin Blake is one of the most prolific and best-loved British illustrators of all time, having drawn the covers for most of Roald Dahl’s novels and countless other children’s books over his near-60-year career. So it's a pretty big deal that he's launching a whole museum dedicated to his chosen artform, which opens this May in a former industrial building Clerkenwell. Use your Bank Holiday weekend to discover this space and you'll find illustrations from the greats of kids and adults' illustration, alongside inaugural exhibition, MURUGIAH: Ever Feel Like…, a solo show for one of illustration’s most exciting rising stars. 

It’s been 75 years since the Festival of Britain, an era-defining cultural event designed to boost national morale post-WW2, which took place on London’s Southbank. There’s a whole host of events lined up throughout 2026 to commemorate the anniversary. This weekend, to honour the thousands of pioneers in dance, music, literature and art that have graced the Southbank Centre’s hallowed halls since 1951, legendary illustrator Quentin Blake has created thirty life-size characters who will be dotted around the venue. Look out for dancers, skaters, parkour athletes, opera singers, a violinist and more. 

Londoners have fallen hard for the sour, sticky, spicy flavours of Korean cuisine, but most of us stick to a few familiar classics like kimchi and bibimbap. Take your obsession a step further at Jung Festival, the UK’s first festival of Korean food, which'll assemble a mouthwatering line-up of indie traders and brands to introduce you to new dishes and new flavours. Head to King’s Cross’s Canopy Market for a free-entry market with names including Chickenhaus, Hoho London, Kiwa and Hongdae Pocha, who’ll serve up delicious dishes inspired by Korea's rich culinary traditions. 

Ava Pickett's hit play 1536 is a feminist hybrid of EastEnders, Samuel Beckett and Wolf Hall, set in the year Anne Boleyn was executed. It earned rave reviews when it opened at the Almeida so it's great that Londoners have got a second chance to see this intriguing, witty take on history and gendered power dynamics. 

One of the leading painters of 17th-century Spain, the first ever exhibition dedicated to Zurbarán is coming to the National Gallery. If you’re looking for a bit of solemn reflection, this exhibition could be the place for it – celebrated for their naturalism and emotional depth, Zurbarán’s paintings include stunning life-size depictions of saints, soaring altarpieces and contemplative still lifes. 

This new immersive film is a dive into Ziggy Stardust’s story that’s been fully authorised by the David Bowie estate. Instead of narration, it’ll be told fully using voice clips from the man himself, as well as footage from the Bowie Archive in New York. It’ll be told in Lightroom’s signature style, which involves ultra high-powered projectors covering the walls, ceiling and floor with vivid imagery. It’s directed by Mark Grimmer, who led the design of the V&A’s David Bowie Is exhibition and went on to direct David Hockney: Bigger & Closer. 

Awaken your inner child by delving into enchanted lands, magical creatures and timeless tales at the British Library’s interactive family-friendly exhibition. All the bangers from your childhood will be explored – from Goldilocks, to Aladdin – through books, artworks, interactive displays, theatrical design, story sharing spaces, costumes and activities. Opening in time for the Easter holidays, Fairy Tales is ideal for passing a few hours with the little’uns. 

The first major London revival for the stage version of Ken Kesey’s countercultural classic in over 20 years comes this spring, as Clint Dyer directs Aaron Pierre and Giles Terera as two inmates of a hellish psychiatric ward. Published in 1962, Kesey’s darkly comic satire on psychiatry and institutionalisation was quickly adapted into a 1963 play that starred Kirk Douglas as Randall P McMurphy, a rebellious prisoner who makes the mistake of faking insanity, believing he’ll have an easier time of it in a mental hospital (Jack Nicholson famously starred in the 1975 film as Douglas was too old old for the role by the time it finally got made). Pierre – best known for his role in Netflix hit Rebel Ridge – will star as McMurphy, with Olivier winner Giles Terera as his fellow inmate Dale Harding. 

Imagine a properly good walk and you're probably thinking of rolling hills, mountains, forests and a rustic country pub for a celebratory pint at the end. And although you won't find that exact formula in London, you can come pretty damn close. This city is full of surprisingly peaceful, rural-feeling and very pretty corners where you can immerse yourself in nature for a few hours – without ever being more than half an hour away from a decent macchiato or a TfL station. Check out our tips for the best places for a May stroll full of spring blooms and early summery vibes. 

Fashion brands at the pinnacle of hype culture – think A Bathing Ape, Kenzo and Human Made – will get a look in at the Design Museum in an exhibition dedicated to Japanese designer and OG hypebeast NIGO. Through more than 700 objects, with 600 from NIGO’s personal archive, the exhibition will follow the designer’s career from Harajuku to Paris and will include rarely before seen BAPE fashion and a recreation of NIGO’s teenage bedroom. Brands to feature will include Nike, Pepsi, Louis Vuitton, Snoopy, Uniqlo, Nintendo, Sesame Street and Disney. 

As soon London’s weather reaches anything over 15 degrees, dining chairs and tables start to spill out onto the streets and London takes on a European edge. This bank holiday (provided the sun makes an appearance) book a table in restaurant courtyards, riverside terraces an gardens and al fresco restos to make you feel like you’re on a proper holiday in your hometown. Towpath Cafe in Haggerston, Oyster Shack and Seafood Bar in Epping Forest, Italo in Vauxhall and Fish, Wings & Tings in Brixton are some of our absolute favourties for an al fresco feast. See our full list here.