Rosie Hewitson

January 2026: Take advantage of the big post-Christmas lull to beat the crowds and explore London’s museums this January. The capital’s iconic institutions will be blissfully quiet as you catch up with last year's biggest openings, from Wes Anderson at the Design Museum to Marie Antoinette Style at the V&A. Don't miss the final weeks of the Barbican's iconoclastic fashion show Dirty Looks, or neglect to navigate your way to British Library's intriguing Secret Maps exhibition, both of which close this month. Or find out more great things to see this year with our pick of 2026's cultural highlights. Museums are one of the things that London does best. This city boasts grand institutions housing ancient treasures, modern monoliths packed with intriguing exhibits, and tiny rooms containing deeply niche collections – and lots of them are totally free to anyone who wants to come in and take a gander. And with more than 170 London museums to choose from, there's bound to be one to pique your interest, whatever you're in to.  Want to explore the history of TfL? We’ve got a museum for that. Rather learn about advertising? We’ve got a museum for that too. History? Check. Science? Check. 1940s cinema memorabilia, grotesque eighteenth-century surgical instruments, or perhaps a wall of 4,000 mouse skeletons? Check, check and check! Being the cultured metropolitans that we are, Time Out’s editors love nothing more than a wholesome afternoon spent gawping at Churchill’s baby rattle or some

January 2026: A new year has arrived, and Londoners are bunkering down for a month of joyless health kicks and penny pinching as we all attempt to physically and financially recover from the largesse of the festive season while riding out the quietest and coldest days of the year. But we promise it’s not all bad! January is a great time to catch up on some of the culture you missed during the pre-Christmas chaos. Loads of great art shows are entering their final days – like Cecil Beaton at the Portrait Gallery, Kerry James Marshall at the Royal Academy and Emily Kam Kngwarray at Tate Modern – while London’s major attractions tend to be light on tourist crowds at this time of year. If you’re quick, you can also catch the final days of some of the city’s festive ice rinks and winter pop-ups too. Happy New Year, London! The London Eye. Hyde Park. Wembley. The Shard. London landmarks are iconic for a reason!  Even if you’ve lived here for years and pride yourself on steadfastly avoiding ‘tourist traps’, you really ought to check these places out at least once. Marvelling at the capital’s museums, galleries, monuments and parks is a London rite of passage, whether you’re a day-tripper visiting for the first time, or a lifelong local who knows the entire Tube map by heart.  But where to begin? Right here of course, with our massive list of the capital’s 50 best attractions. We’ve thought long and hard about what is worthy of your London bucket list, so you can expect to find a real

Even on the coldest, darkest days of winter, London is always bustling with fun things to do, with a jam-packed calendar of unmissable events to keep you entertained during most people’s least favourite time of the year. And yet, even we culture-mad London superfans have to admit that every once in a while it’s nice to have a little break from it all. When the capital’s hustle and bustle leaves you feeling a little drained, you can find some escape from the crowds and hordes of tourists by getting up and getting out just for a day. In dire need of crisp country air, a relaxing spa day or a gorgeous, long walk? These day trips from London are all under two hours from Zone 1 and will give you the relief you need this winter. RECOMMENDED: The best day trips from London Best winter day trips at a glance 🪄 Best for magic-lovers: Warner Bros Studio Tour 🎄 Best for the light deprived: Go Wild 2025 at Wakehurst  🍴 Best for the always peckish: Chapel Down Luxury Dining Experience 🏞️ Best for crowd haters: Broadway, Worcestershire 📱 Best for digital detoxers: Rocheser Christmas Fair

It's probably not time to ditch that warm coat, but March is still the month where you can bid a tear-free goodbye to bleak winter and start getting excited about spring in London. That means golden carpets of daffodils brightening up the parks, tables tempting the first intrepid diners to eat al fresco, and the first of a summer-long flood of exciting events and festivals to look forward to. Things are finally hotting up, and that means it’s time to finally come out of winter hibernation and set about exploring the city’s fantastic parks and gardens, world-class museums and galleries, and unbeatable restaurant and bar offerings. From St Paddy’s to Mothering Sunday, Pancake Day to International Women’s Day, the third month of the year packs in a whole host of big celebrations. Find out about all of these, and much more, in our roundup of the best things to do in London over the month. RECOMMENDED:🎨 The best art exhibitions opening in London this March🎭 The best theatre shows opening in London this March🍽️ The best new London restaurants opening this March🎤 The best gigs happening in London in March

Thank god for Burns Night. As the long, bleak month of January rolls on, this kilt-raising, haggis-scoffing, whisky-fuelled celebration of Scotland’s national poet Rabbie Burns is a chance to banish the winter blues and have a rip-roaring time. The Bard turns 267 this year, but you don’t have to be in the big guy’s motherland to join in the festivities. An estimated 200,000 Scottish expats live in the capital, which technically makes it the third most populous Scottish city, so you can guarantee there’s plenty of feasting, boozing and partying to be done down here too.  When is Burns Night in London? Burns Night always falls on January 25, the day Robert Burns was born in South Ayrshire way back in 1759. This year’s celebration falls on a Sunday.  Whether you want to get sweaty at a ceilidh, pipe in a haggis, or have a classy time at a whisky tasting or indulgent Burns supper, this is how you can enjoy Burns Night 2026 in London.  RECOMMENDED: Here are London's best spots for a delicious Burns Night supper.

Since the early 1900s, some form of International Women’s Day has existed, giving focus to the women’s rights movement and issues such as gender equality and violence against women. Unfortunately, over 100 years on, it’s still a much-needed spotlight on societal problems that remain today. Now a huge global affair, each IWD sees the city taken over by talks, debates, parties, gigs and more, all celebrating female talent and solidarity, and highlighting the areas that we still need to improve. So, if you’re ready to dismantle the patriarchy with some like-minded women, here are our top picks of events to mark this year’s edition of IWD in London. RECOMMENDED: More great things to do in March. When is International Women’s Day? International Women’s Day takes place every year on March 8. In 2026, that’s on a Sunday. Celebrating International Women's Day in London The centrepiece of London's annual celebrations tends to be Southbank Centre's annual Woman of the World (WOW) festival, with a teeming programme of talks, discussions, and exhibitions from an international crew of female thinkers, writers and artists. Other events include the Million Woman Rise march against male violence, as well as special concerts, shows and events at cultural venues across the city. 

Happy New Year, London! 2025 was a cracking year for our ol’ town. It gave us the Paddington musical, a new instalment of Bridget Jones and the inaugural SXSW London.  But now it’s the start of a brave new year. Struggling to feel enthusiastic about 2026 amid the freezing temperatures and joyless health kicks that January usually entails? We get it, but we’re here to convince you that there’s absolutely loads of fun stuff to look forward to in the coming twelve months.  From blockbuster exhibitions and some thoroughly exciting new museums to major festival appearances, venue makeovers and big West End debuts, 2026 is already looking very promising indeed for our beloved London town. So forget the crash diets and Dry January; if there’s any resolution worth making at the start of another year, it’s a commitment to get out there and make the most of our fabulous city, starting with our list of the 26 best things to do in the capital in 2026. RECOMMENDED: Time Out’s Best of 2025

The Irish really know how to celebrate, so when it comes to St Patrick’s Day in London, the city’s Irish community has no problem showing us how it’s done. With an estimated 170,000 Irish expats living in the city, and many more Londoners with Irish heritage, the celebration of Ireland’s patron saint is always one big welcoming bash, involving plenty of dancing, hearty traditional dishes, a huge parade and as many pints and drams of whiskey as you can handle. The Mayor of London’s annual St Patrick’s Day Festival celebration will take place on Sunday, March 15 – two days before the official holiday – and, as usual, thousands of revellers are expected to watch the parade wend its way from Hyde Park Corner to Trafalgar Square for a giant free party with Irish music, food and performances from 12noon to 6pm. If you don’t fancy braving the crowds of central London for the main event in the capital, there are still plenty of St Patrick’s Day parties and events to check out. We’ll be rounding up the best of them below as they get announced, so you’ve got plenty of time to get planning for a very green week. RECOMMENDED🍻 The best Irish pubs and bars in London☘️ Our ultimate guide to the St Patrick’s Day parade and festival🌱 The best London events in March

  Got a few hours to kill today? You’re in luck. London is one of the very best places on the planet to be when you find yourself with a bit of spare time. In this city, you’re never too far away from a picturesque park, a lovely pub or a cracking cinema, and on any given day, you’ve got a wealth of world-class art shows, blockbuster theatre and top museum exhibitions to choose from if you’re twiddling your thumbs. Use your spare time wisely with our roundup of the best things happening in London today, which gets updated every single day and includes a specially selected top pick from our Things to Do Editor seven days a week. Bookmark this page, and you’ll have absolutely no excuse to be bored in London ever again! Find even more inspiration with our curated round-ups of the best things to do in London this week and weekend

And boom, we’re in 2026! Just like that, it’s the first full week of a brand new year, and there are no slow starts here. If you’re anything like us, the last couple of weeks have been a blur of cheeseboards, daytime pyjamas, endless glasses of Prosecco, back-to-back sitcom reruns and a seemingly never-ending supply of choccies. But unfortunately, the Crimbo Limbo can only go on for so long. It’s time to crash-land back to reality, put down the tin of Quality Street (there are probably only coconut eclairs left anyway) and face up to our overflowing work email inboxes. January gets a pretty terrible rep, given that it usually means freezing temperatures, depleted bank balances and some sort of punishing fitness regime, but we promise it’s not all bad. If you can bear to crawl out from under your duvet, there’s plenty of fun stuff to do to stave off those January blues. Spend the week checking out the city’s brilliant five-star theatre, squeeze in one last glide around one of the city’s pop-up ice rinks before they close, or catch our favourite exhibitions of 2025 in their final weeks. Or, get stuck into the season by heading out on a winter walk, visiting a warming pub or picking up spoils from London’s best markets. Get out there, have a blast – and a happy new year from everyone at Time Out!  Start planning: here’s our roundup of the best things to do in January In the loop: sign up to our free Time Out London newsletter for the best of the city, straight to your inbox.

If you’re anything like us, the last couple of weeks have been a blur of cheeseboards, daytime pyjamas, endless glasses of Prosecco, back-to-back sitcom reruns and a seemingly never-ending supply of choccies. But unfortunately, the Crimbo Limbo can only go on for so long. It’s time to crash-land back to reality. January gets a pretty terrible rep, given that it usually means freezing temperatures, depleted bank balances and some sort of punishing fitness regime, but we promise it’s not all bad. If you can bear to crawl out from under your duvet, there’s plenty of fun stuff to do to stave off those January blues. Start the new year as you mean to go on by making the most of all of January’s cultural spoils. See the Royal Academy’s Kerry James Marshall exhibition before it closes, see a magical five-star revival of Stephen Sondheim’s ‘Into the Woods’ at the Bridge Theatre, or watch Felicity Kendal in a moving revival of Tom Stoppard’s ‘Indian Ink’. You can also squeeze in one last glide around one of the city’s pop-up ice rinks before they close, or catch our favourite exhibitions of 2025 in their final weeks.  Or, get stuck into cosy season by heading out on a winter walk, visiting a warming pub or picking up spoils from London’s best markets. Get out into the cold, and have a blast!  Start planning: here’s our roundup of the best things to do in London this January In the loop: sign up to our free Time Out London newsletter for the best of the city, straight to your inbox.

January is here, which means we’re entering a brand new year. Despite all the January goals, resolutions and hopes we have for 2026, it’s no secret that January can ostensibly become the most depressing month of the year. The days are short and dark, it’s cold, and our bank balances are severely depleted after the December festivities. But, we’re here to help you realise it’s not all bleak.  For one thing, it’s the ideal time to discover London on a budget and without the crowds, while many of city’s very best theatre and musicals, restaurants and bars – ranked definitively by Time Out's crew of expert local editors – offer discounted tickets and cheap meal deals to entice you out of the house during the coldest and darkest days of the year. Believe it or not, but January can also a time for celebration, too. London will once again be playing host to plenty of Burns Night ceilidhs, haggis suppers and poetry readings commemorating Scotland’s most famous poet, plus dinners and parades in celebration of the Lunar New Year, which falls nice and early in 2025, on January 29. If you’re someone who likes to commit to a month of sobriety or a punishing new exercise regime at the start of the New Year, London definitely has your back too. The city is home to countless excellent sports clubs and fitness classes, plus dozens of glorious parks and spectacular walking routes, and there’s arguably nowhere that better caters for the sober and sober-curious. Of course, if you’d rather just s

Photography fans are in for a real treat this month, as Nan Goldin’s seminal series The Ballad of Sexual Dependency goes on display in full for the first time ever in the UK. Staged at the St Davis Street branch of Gagosian, the exhibition marks the 40th anniversary of the publication of Goldin’s formative photobook, featuring 126 photographs shot between 1973 and 1986. An intimate, wistful portrait of Goldin’s downtown NYC community it includes photographes of pop culture icons like Cookie Mueller and Greer Lankton, shot in Goldin’s signature saturated, moody hues. Don’t miss a very rare chance to see it in all its glory.

The National Portrait Gallery has been on a solid run in recent years, particularly when it comes to exhibitions on contemporary portraiture – we loved its exhibitions on The Face and Jenny Saville last year – so we have high hopes for this, the biggest exhibition to be shown in the UK to date from the iconic photographer Catherine Opie. Curated in collaboration with the artist, the exhibition will span the Ohio-born artist’s three-decade career, exploring representations of home, family, identity, politics and power structures through Opie’s vivid and colourful portrait photographs. Works featured in the exhibition will span her first major work, Being and Having (1991), her portraits of LGBTQ+ friends inspired by court painter Hans Holbein, to her Baroque-like portraits of artists.

The UK’s largest queer film event returns to the BFI Southbank (and to the BFI Player online) for its 40th edition from March 18-29. The line-up has yet to be announced, but it's typically a wide-ranging, international array of new films and rediscovered classics exploring every hue of the LGBTQIA+ rainbow. Cinephiles can also expect a host of expanded-reality works, panels, Q&As and after-hours events. Check the BFI website for the full schedule.   

It’s difficult to talk about Ana Mendieta’s work without first mentioning her death. The Cuban-American artist was just 36 years old when she died in suspicious circumstances in 1985, after allegedly falling from the 34th-floor Manhattan apartment she shared with her husband, the revered modernist sculptor Carl Andre.  As a rising star of the avant garde art scene in 1980s New York, there’s no knowing what brilliant work Ana Mendieta might still be producing if her career hadn’t been cut tragically short, but it’s doubly unfortunate that the work she did produce is often obscured by conversations about her husband’s murder trial. Great news, then, that the Tate Modern is putting the art front and centre this summer, in the largest UK exhibition of Ana Mendieta’s work to date, featuring many pieces never exhibited in this country before. Delving into the Havana-born, Iowa-raised artist’s groundbreaking practice spanning performance, photography and video art, it will explore Mendieta’s deep affinity with the natural world, while making the case that she deserves to be remembered as one of the most important artists of the 20th century. 

Arriving in Clerkenwell in May 2026, this major new culture venue dedicated to illustration is set to be the biggest venue of its kind in the world. Its founder and namesake, Sir Quentin Blake, is one of the most prolific 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. Blake has been trying to get a gallery dedicated to illustration off the ground for a long time. Several years and £12.5 million later, his dream to create a space where the ‘extraordinary wealth of illustration can be exhibited, discussed and celebrated’ is finally becoming a reality. An 18th century building previously used for waterworks will house the new centre, which will be made up of three different galleries, a library and learning spaces, And, of course, most important of all – there will be a gift shop and a café. Be sure to check out its inaugural exhibition, MURUGIAH: Ever Feel Like…, a solo show for one of illustration’s most exciting rising stars, delving into the artist’s kaleidoscopic, sometimes macabre world influenced by Hollywood film, sci-fi, Japanese anime and 2000s era pop-punk. 

London’s jazz scene has gone from strength to strength in recent years, and 2026 looks no different, thanks to the arrival of a major new late night venue in the city centre. Founded in NYC’s Greenwich Village in the 1980s, the iconic jazz club Blue Note is arriving in Covent Garden in spring of this year, taking over the basement venue beneath St Martins Lane hotel. The new outpost follows recent openings in Tokyo, Milan and Rio de Janeiro, the subterranean club will feature two performance spaces – a 250-capacity main room and a 100-capacity secondary room – and will boast a full-service kitchen open for dinner throughout the week, and a 1am late license on weekends.  The OG venue in Manhattan bills itself as the ‘jazz capital of the world’, with the likes of Dizzy Gillespie, Oscar Peterson, Ray Charles and Chick Corea all gracing its hallowed stage over the years, so if its London expansion attracts half as many legendary names, London jazzophiles are in for a real treat. 

You need only look at the shelves piled high with unibrowed fridge magnets, tea towels, plant-pots and earrings in the average museum gift shop to know that Frida Kahlo is one of the 20th century’s greatest icons.  Featuring over 130 works alongside documents, photographs and memorabilia taken from Kahlo’s archives, Tate Modern’s blockbuster summer exhibition will explore how the Mexican painter became the kind of cultural phenomenon whose likeness adorns everything from novelty socks to limited-edition eyeshadow pallets. The first major London exhibition on the feminist icon since the V&A’s fashion-focused 2018 show Making Her Self Up, it will include some of her most iconic paintings, as well as the work of more than 80 fellow artists, from her contemporaries to the later generations she inspired.  All in all, it promises to be a fascinating exploration of the transformative role of women artists in the 20th century, as well as notions of fandom and the diverse communities who claim Frida as their own. Keep an eye out for the on-sale date as it’s sure to be a hugely popular show. 

Having closed the doors of its last home all the way back in 2022, the attraction erstwhile known as the Museum of London will finally reopen at its new Smithfield home in 2026, where it will be known as London Museum; a catchier name, for sure, but an absolute nightmare for anyone trying to find it on Google.  The new venue will boast an underground gallery space in the old Great Northern Railway depot and a big window in the market’s old salt store allowing visitors to watch trains carry passengers through Farringdon – a feature meant to connect the museum to the ‘London of today’. A decade in the making, it’s set to arrive towards the end of the year, just on time for the museum’s 50th anniversary.  Details of its inaugural exhibitions are being kept under wraps for now, but watch this space!

A brand new London lido is set to arrive in Canary Wharf’s Eden Dock this year, just in time for the summer. Open water swimming has been a spring and summer fixture at Eden Dock for the past couple of years already, but this will see the whole area upgraded and turned into a permanent 50-metre pool with lanes, outdoor saunas and a wooden boardwalk all around the swimming area.  It’s being built by the team behind the very successful Sea Lanes Brighton, the UK’s first National Open Water Swimming Centre. Catering to even the hardiest of open water fanatics, swimming will be open all year round. The six-lane Olympic-sized pool will be fully life guarded and 1.3 metres deep. And as well as having hot boxes, the spot will be home to a community club house hosting fitness classes and talks, plus food and drink offerings. Who’s ready for an alfresco dip among the skyscrapers?

If there’s one wellness trend that defines London right now, it’s sauna. The city has gone crazy for the Finnish pastime in recent years with everyone from run club hipsters to allotment-owning grannies going crazy for a good ol’ steam bath and cold plunge. This Walthamstow branch of not-for-profit mini-chain Community Sauna opened in autumn 2025 on an industrial plot just off Blackhorse Road. The new venue features three communal saunas and cold plunge pools, hot and cold showers, changing rooms and a shared relaxation space, with plans for a wheelchair accessibly community garden that will be open to the public. Off-peak sessions wstart at £9.50 for 60 minutes, rising to £16.50 for peak times, with memberships and bulk packages available too.   

If you’d rather extend your Strava streak than lounge around housing cheeseboards in front of re-runs of Gavin and Stacey, you’ll love this festive fun-run around the picturesque Wimbledon Common during the Christmas holiday season. Entrants to the 5k and 10k races will get free race photos and chip-timed results, with medals and goody bags for finishers. It’s the perfect way to earn that extra helping of roast potatoes on the big day.

Skip the endless charades and family arguments by spending Christmas Day touring London in an open top bus. Pass Buckingham Palace, Tower Bridge and Regent Street, while seeing the capital in all its glitzy festive splendour, decked out in thousands of twinkling lights for Christmas, with a live guide to point out the sights as you pass by. Buses run every 30 minutes between 10am and 4pm, with stops clearly signposted. Find out more and book here. 

Black Friday has been and gone, London’s festive markets, Christmas shops and department stores are buzzing with activity, and the big day is less than three weeks away. So if you haven’t already made some serious headway on your gift shopping, you might be starting to feel a little panicked. But don’t worry about it! Time Out’s 2025 Christmas Gift Guide just landed, and it’s packed full of great pressie ideas, from nifty gadgets and stylish accessories to covetable homeware and fun stocking fillers. And we’ve also got some excellent ideas for what to get the small people in your life. Landed your primary school-aged cousin in the family Secret Santa, or got a boisterous little niece or nephew you usually get a little something for? Time Out’s Theatre Editor and resident kids’ expert Andrzej Lukowski has picked out the perfect thing; these cutesy little things from the venerable toymakers Ty (of Beanie Babies fame).  Setting you back less than the price of a central London pint, the Ty Beanie Bouncers have topped renowned toy shop Hamleys’ list of the most in-demand toys for Christmas 2025. If you’ve walked past the Regent Street shop in recent weeks, you might have noticed that its window display is dedicated to the colourful little spherical plushies.  Essentially a cross between a Beanie Baby and a bouncy ball, they come in a huge range of different designs, including the cheerful snowman pictured above, some adorable little animals, both real (we’d die for Banana the Monk

It’s been a busy couple of years for London’s iconic Victoria & Albert museum, with a whole bunch of major development projects on the go across the city. First, there was the £13 million revamp of the museum’s childhood-focused Bethnal Green outpost, which reopened as the Young V&A to  in June 2023 to critical acclaim, picking up the Art Fund Museum of the Year Award the following summer.  This spring then saw the opening of another very well-received project, the V&A East Storehouse, a ‘working museum’ purpose-built to house half a million objects from the museum’s various archives while offering Londoners a peek behind the scenes to see how a museum goes about curating and caring for the items in its collection.  And now, the museum group has announced the opening date for the second part of its east London development project, V&A East, which is due to open to the public on Saturday, April 18 2026. Opening just shy of a decade after it was first announced as part of the £1.1 billion development of Stratford’s East Bank cultural quarter, the 7,000 square metre museum will bring together exhibits that speak to both east London’s creative heritage and the voices that are shaping contemporary culture across the globe today.  Photograph: V&A East Museum Why We Make Galleries render © JA Projects Also announced today are details of the free-to-visit permanent galleries, new commissions and temporary exhibitions that comprise the museum’s opening displays. These include the Wh

It’s a huge weekend on the London social calendar, with Halloween parties galore, Day of the Dead fiestas, a smattering of early Bonfire Night celebrations and the final few days of October half-term entertainment all happening over the next couple of days.  But while that sounds really fun, it also sounds...expensive! Blown all your money on a killer Halloween costume and/or a week of entertaining the kids? No worries; it’s also an excellent weekend for wallet-friendly fun around the capital.  From great museum lates to fun pop-ups, here’s where to have fun this weekend without spending any more of your paycheque before November has even started.  RECOMMENDED: All the best things to do in London this weekend.  The best free things on in London this weekend 1. Learn about Nigerian modern art at a Tate Late  Inspired by its new exhibition Nigerian Modernism, the Tate Modern’s October late features talks, workshops and curator chats exploring food cultures, diaspora fashion and key African artworks in the Tate collection. There’ll also be plenty of music with DJ sets curated by Native Soundsystem, Tone and Sample Chief.  Tate Modern, SE1. Fri Oct 31. Free (some events are ticketed). 2. Or go rococo at a V&A Late hosted by Riposte  Have you heard the rumours that Marie Antoinette was actually queer? This late drawing off the V&A’s blockbuster exhibition all about the fated French queen, will be delving into the lesbian-coded history and symbolism of Marie Antoinette, in an ev

The clocks have gone back, there’s a chill on the air and central London’s fancy dress shops suddenly have queues out the door. It can only mean one thing; Halloween is just days away! Pretty soon, the streets will be full of the raving dead, as Londoners head out to Halloween parties around the city. And with the spookiest holiday on the calendar happening to fall on a Friday this year, we’re even more spoilt for choice than usual when it comes to late-night antics on All Hallows’ Eve. Still trying to decide which club night deserves to be graced by your haunted labubu costume?  We know which one we’ll be doing the monster mash at, because one north London party has topped our list of London’s best Halloween parties for 2025, thanks to a killer line-up headlined by Kurupt FM and special guest Aitch.  With the likes of DJ AG, Eliza Rose, SBTRKT, Mike Skinner, Eats Everything, Yung Singh and Flowdan featuring across three huge rooms, Drumsheds Presents Halloween is promising more bangers than Dracula has had bloody dinners this October 31.  The north London superclub – which recently announced major upgrades ahead of its 25/26 winter season – will be kicking things off nice and early at 7pm, meaning partygoers will have eight whole hours of raving ahead of the 3am curfew.  The venue has also told partygoers to ‘Expect the unexpected,’ which we imagine means it’s got some spook-tastic surprises planned for the scariest night of the year. We reckon those high-tech screens in Roo

October is a huge month for culture in the capital. Hot on the heels of the London Film Festival, Frieze London, London Cocktail Week and a whole bunch of theatre and gallery openings, it’s time for the city’s literary scene to take centre stage.  London Literature Festival arrives at the Southbank Centre this week, with 13 days of talks, readings, workshops, screenings, performances and award ceremonies celebrating the written and spoken word. Both rising stars and literary titans appear on a stacked line-up co-curated by Rebecca Lucy Taylor, AKA Self Esteem. The BRIT Award-nominated singer (and former Time Out cover star) will be taking over the venue on Saturday November 1, appearing in conversation with Dolly Alderton to discuss her new book, A Complicated Woman, before hosting a Saturday night music and spoken word variety show featuring some of her writers and performers, including Travis Alabanza, Tom Rasmussen and Pam Ayres. So celebrate the festival’s arrival this week, we asked the pop star, her line-up and a few names from the wider festival programme to tell us which one book they would take to a desert island. Rebecca Lucy Taylor, AKA Self Esteem  Photograph: Scarlett Carlos Clarke ‘I wish I could remember who suggested I read Women Who Run with the Wolves by Clarissa Pinkola Estés. I was about 30 and so very angry, and this was the first time I read that my anger was perfectly reasonable. Not only was it reasonable, it was NATURAL. Were I on a desert island

In a crowded field, The Serpentine is earily one of London’s most influential modern art galleries. Nestled in leafy Kensington Gardens, its pair venues on either side of Hyde Park’s winding artificial lake stage some of the most adventurous temporary art exhibitions in town, alongside huge names like Marina Abramović, Damien Hirst and Jeff Koons.  The gallery has been on a solid run in recent months, with a well-received edition of its annual Serpentine Pavilion designed by Bangladeshi artist and architect Marina Tabassum, and two buzzy autumn shows in the first major solo exhibition from young British artist and video game designer Danielle Brathwaite Shirley and the latest show from Peter Doig – famed for being the most expensive living artist in Europe – inspired by sound system culture.  And there are more big shows on the horizon, with the Serpentine having just announced its 2026 programme, featuring two very different British painters, and Indian video artist and a landmark anniversary commission.  Image: David Hockney David Hockney Kicking of 2026 is an already-announced show from one of Britain’s most iconic living artists, David Hockney (Mar 12-Aug 23) at Serpentine North. The octogenarian’s first exhibition with Serpentine will focus on recent works, including the celebrated Moon Room, reflecting the painter’s lifelong interest in the lunar cycle, plus several digital paintings created as part of his Sunrise series, paintings made on an iPad during a prolific pe

It’s the first weekend of October, and London is looking properly autumnal, but while the leaves are turning brown and the Regent’s Park hedgehogs prepare for hibernation, the capital’s cultural scene is bursting into life. There’s arguably no better month of the year for culture in London, with the London Film Festival, London Literature Festival and Frieze London all arriving in the next couple of weeks, not to mention the plethora of major theatre and gallery openings happening in the coming days. But if all those hot tickets are burning a hole in your wallet, there’s plenty of free fun to be had too. From a harvest festival at the UK’s biggest beer hall to a makers market in honour of Black History Month, here are the best free activities around London this weekend.  RECOMMENDED: The best things to do in London this weekend. The best free things to do in London this weekend, October 3-5 1. Join a barn dance during the Blackhorse Beer Mile Harvest Festival If your memories of Harvest Festival involve bringing a tin of baked beans into primary school for a special assembly, it's time to update them. Walthamstow’s Blackhorse Beer Mile is celebrating the bounties of the season with all manner of country-style entertainment. The main venue is the cavernous Big Penny Social, which is hosting morris dancing and a barn dance with live music, but you can also enjoy tours and tastings, live country and bluegrass music, seasonal drinks specials and a hog roast the area’s taprooms

Everyone has heard of the Met Gala. Organised by fashion world A-listers, since it was first staged in 1948 the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute’s annual fundraising party in New York has grown into one of the biggest fashion industry nights of the year. These days, it attracts some of the biggest names in Hollywood and raises upwards of $30 million annually, with tickets to the invite-only spectacle costing upwards of $50,000 each.  The UK has never really had an equivalent event, but it looks like that might be about to change with the arrival of the British Museum Ball. London’s most iconic museum announced the party this morning, describing it as a ‘landmark, annual event’ that will ‘establish a new highlight on the international social calendar’.  Masterminded by the British Museum’s director Dr Nicholas Cullinan, the first edition of the ball is co-chaired by Indian billionaire heiress and arts patron Isha Ambani. It will take place over the closing weekend of the museum’s current exhibition, Ancient India: living traditions, with a pink theme that’s apparently inspired by ‘the colours and light of India’.  Featured among the 100+ names on its star-studded committee are celebrated designers including Miuccia Prada, Bella Freud, Philip Treacy and Giles Deacon, artists and writers like Zadie Smith, Grayson Perry and Hew Locke, fashion world elites such as Naomi Campbell and Edward Enninful, and A-list celebrities like Alexa Chung and Idris Elba. And with the e

It’s the big one! England’s Red Roses will be attempting to match the Lionesses this afternoon, as they play Canada in the Women’s Rugby World Cup final at Twickenham.  The home side might be the bookies favourite to get their hands on the trophy, but after suffering back-to-back final losses in the last two World Cup finals, it’s far from a foregone conclusion. In a repeat of the 2014 final – the last time England took the trophy home – they’ll need to conquer Canada, who knocked out six-time World Cup winners New Zealand to make it to Twickenham. Thanks to Asahi’s Rugby Like Never Before campaign, more than 1,000 pubs across the UK (and dozens in London) have screened every match of the tournament, making it the most accessible women’s rugby tournament to date. On top of that, the final is on track to break records, with crowd of 82,000 expected to descend on Twickenham Stadium, which will make it the most attended women’s rugby match in history.   Tickets to the fixture have long since been sold out, but thousands of women’s rugby ultras and newly converted fans are preparing to join the scrum at watch parties across the city. Planning to watch with them? Here’s our roundup of London’s greatest spots to watch every scrum, tackle and try in the Women’s Rugby World Cup Final 2025. The best places in London to watch the Women’s Rugby World Cup Final 2025 The Official Fan Zone at Battersea Power Station Situated in the shadow of Battersea Power Station’s iconic 103-metre tall

The first week of autumn is drawing to a close, and the weather is looking appropriately crisp – dare we say even a tad chilly – over the coming weekend. As the weather gets colder and darker, it might be tempting to spend all weekend indoors making roast dinners, taking baths and reading novels, particularly for those of us whose payday doesn’t arrive until next week.  But if you’re willing to wrap up warm and get outside, there’s plenty of free fun to be had over your precious two days off. From a massive sporting fixture to a free arts festival in the London Docklands, these are the best free things to do across the city this weekend.  RECOMMENDED: The best things to do in London this weekend. The best free things to do in London this weekend, September 26-28 1. Watch the Red Roses take on Canada in the Rugby World Cup Final It’s the big one! England’s Red Roses have reached the final of the Women’s Rugby World Cup for the seventh tournament in a row. On Saturday afternoon they’ll face Canada for a chance to lift the World Cup trophy for the first time since 2014, and on home soil to boot. Tickets for the Twickenham fixture have long since sold out, but there are a whole bunch of pubs, sports bars and local rugby clubs across London that’ll be following the action, with plenty of free screenings on offer. Check out our roundup of the best ones here.  Various venues. Sat Sep 27, 4pm kick off. Free.  2. Learn about the rich past of SW3 at the Chelsea History Festival Som

Have you ever really done Christmas in London if you haven’t experienced the festive loveliness of Somerset House’s skating pop-up? Probably not, we’d argue.  A fixture of Somerset House’s winter programme since the riverside institution first opened its doors in 2000, the 900 square metre rink in the centre of William Chambers’s magnificent eighteenth-century courtyard it arguably the most scenic ice rinks in the capital, and certainly one of its most popular ones. Keen to go for a glide (or an awkward shuffle) around the ice this festive season? Here’s everything you need to know about the beloved winter attraction’s 2025 season.  Somerset House ice skating dates and prices Skate at Somerset House returns from Tuesday November 12 and runs daily (excluding Christmas Day) until Sunday January 11 2026. Tickets for hour-long skating sessions vary in price depending on when you’re visiting, starting from £11 for super off-peak times and going up to £26 for the most in-demand dates and times. Somerset House skating on-sale date Tickets for the 2025-2026 Skate season go on general sale on Friday September 26, but if you’re keen to secure tickets for one of the more sought-after dates, it’s worth signing up to the presale here for early access.  Once general sale goes live, you can get tickets on the Somerset House website here. Somerset House Skate Lates line-up Featuring DJ sets from a host of London’s most celebrated music and nightlife collectives, Somerset House’s Skate Lat

The summer holidays are well and truly over, and London’s cultural institutions are very much in ‘back to school’ mode this month, with loads of great exhibition openings across September and new season announcements coming thick and fast. The Tate, the Courtauld and the National Portrait Gallery have already announced their 2026 seasons, and now it’s the turn of celebrated arts institution Somerset House.  Ahead of its 25th birthday celebrations this weekend, the venue has shared details of its 2026-2027 culture programme, including major exhibitions, another big birthday celebration and the return of some of the venue’s best-loved seasonal events.  Following the closure of the venue’s winter exhibitions on Jennie Baptiste and Wayne McGregor, and the ever-popular Skate at Somerset House, the 2026 programme kicks off with the annual Spring commission in the venue’s neoclassical courtyard.  Created by German-Scottish artist and researcher Dana-Fiona Armour, Serpentine Currents (Feb 19-Apr 26) will feature large-scale serpentine structures derived from 3D scans of endangered sea snake specimens, illuminated by light patterns triggered by oceanographic data, addressing the looming threat of marine ecosystem collapse. Cheerful stuff! Photograph: Anne Tetzlaff This is followed by the return of Somerset House Studios’ biannual experimental music and sound series Assembly (Mar 25-28), which returns over four days in early spring with a programme of new commissions and live premier