London Weekend Guide | 3rd – 6th May 2024
It’s a bank holiday weekend! Which means that Monday is basically trying to rehabilitate its image by putting on a fake moustache and a pair of sunglasses and pretending that it’s always been this fun. It’s fooling no-one, but we’ll still absolutely take it.
Why? Because there’s still a ton of great stuff going on, ranging from immersive installations that will bathe you in sound & light; a chance to play the cutting-edge sport of Crazy Boules; a pop up specialising in Indian comfort food (why yes, that does mean butter chicken & masala fries); a huge, multi-venue party with 100+ DJs; a supperclub from chefs who serve you food on your hands & syringe it into your mouth; a 10 course Indo-Chinese banquet; a festival of toe-tapping gypsy jazz, and more…
The Best Things To Do On FRIDAY 3rd May
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1) Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre | Play outdoors
Here’s some dramatic news: the Regent’s Park Open Air Theatre is back open for business as of this weekend. Surprisingly for its size – it seats a cool 1,253 – it’s a place you wouldn’t really stumble across unless you knew it was there. Hidden away in a grassy corner of Regent’s Park, it’s a sprawling outdoor stage surrounded by a canopy of trees and rows of amphitheatre-style seating, that all allows for the kind of mind-blowing staging that’s hard to get inside…
Details: 3rd May – 21st September | Inner Circle, Regent’s Park, NW1 4NU | £15+
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2) Origin Sound Installation | Get ‘bathed in sound & light’
Okay so, this one is a little bit offbeat. The World Heart Beat Music Academy – which ordinarily is a school, concert hall & recording studio – has decided to dip its toes into the world of weird abstract sound installations. Origin is billed as a “unique new deep listening art installation” in which you’ll be asked to lie down an “be bathed in sound and light”. It’s been put together by a team of artists, and they’ve used the venue’s fancy, cutting-edge audio tech to do it. There’s not much else to go on, but the team behind it have a good track record…
Details: 3rd-6th May | WHB Embassy Gardens, 3 Ponton Road, SW11 7BD | £10
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3) The BBQ Club | Interactive multi-course menus by the river
Jimmy Garcia, prince of pop ups, tycoon of temporary restaurants, baron of BBQs, is back. His BBQ Club tends to sell out every year, and because he’s not a total idiot, he’s bringing it back. He’s returning to his tried & tested spot on the Southbank, where the Thames-side venue will be split into two distinct areas, a sit down restaurant overlooking the river (with an interactive BBQ build into every table), and a street food space downstairs…
Details: 3rd May – 20th September | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
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4) The World Press Photo Exhibition | Stunning images in Borough Market
The World Press Photo Exhibition is, perhaps ironically, not a very snappy name – but the images themselves are amazing. They’re a collection of the world’s best press photographs, and they’re going to embark on a 60+ city tour across the globe after debuting right here in London.
Details: 3rd-27th May | Borough Yards | Dirty Lane, SE1 9AD | £5
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5) Dost | Indian comfort food in Notting Hill
The folks at Dost like to occasionally take over Notting Hill’s Eggbreak cafe, and turn it into a little supperclub serving Indian comfort food. And this Friday is one of those occasions. That means prawn naan toast, crab samosa, coal-cooked tamarind tomahawk steaks, butter chicken, masala fries & gravy, you name it. Dost thou fancy it?
Details: 3rd May | Eggbreak, 30 Uxbridge St, W8 7TA
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The Best Things To Do On SATURDAY 4th May
6) Queen’s Yard Summer Party | 100+ DJs across 20 venues
Okay, so this is more of a festival than a party. And it takes place across the whole of Hackney Wick instead of just in Queen’s Yard. And the whole ‘summer’ thing definitely needs to calm down. But despite not one word of the name being technically accurate, it still absolutely nails the vibe. Expect 100+ DJs across dozens of excellent venues to help kick off an absolutely killer Bank Holiday weekend.
Details: 4th May | Across Hackney Wick | £62+
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7) Breakin’ Convention | Sadler’s Wells hip-hop festival
Hip hop heads, mark your diaries. Breakin’ Convention is returning to Sadler’s Wells Theatre for the 21st time. Which ironically isn’t exactly breakin’ convention… However the rest of the premise, and the performances, certainly live up to the name. The annual hip hop dancing festival is coming back with another predictably strong lineup dappled with international stars who currently rule the world of hip hop theatre, as well as the next generation.
Details: 3rd-6th May | Sadler’s Wells | £15+
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8) Canalway Cavalcade | Behold, peak Britishness
It’s official. The Canalway Cavalcade is peak Britishness. Nothing can top it. It’s A) traditional, having started in 1983, B) involves canal boats, C) involves those canal boats queueing up by the banks of the canal D) has Morris dancers & real ale tents lined up on those banks and E) sounds like a really nice day out so long as the weather cooperates.
Details: 4th-6th May | Little Venice (W9 2PF and W2 6NE) | Free
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9) Light Into Life | 17 beautiful mirrored sculptures in Kew Gardens
When artist Marc Quinn says that his new exhibition at Kew Gardens is designed to ‘reflect on the links between nature and humanity’, he literally means it: the 17 sculptures are all polished to a mirrored sheen, allowing you to see yourself in them, and see the verdant nature surrounding you reflected right back.
Details: 4th May to 29th September 2024 | Kew Gardens | Included with entry to the Gardens
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10) The Brixton Disco Festival | Get down (there)
Disco has been around for 40 years, and the Brixton Disco Fest intends to pack it all into one glorious, glitterball-ey day. They’ve got live bands (including Norman Jay), screenings, food & drink, talks, and more in and around Brixton’s most storied venues.
Details: 4th May | Various Brixton Venues | £20+
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11) Punk Royale | Bonkers Swedish chefs at Carousel
Punk Royale are a lot of things, but they are not forgettable. These guys do absolutely bonkers, big, brash, inventive, loud, in-you-face and in-your-mouth type dining experiences in their native Seden. Of the many, many courses you get, you’ll have ingredients like caviar, lobster, and truffle variously served to you on your hand, syringed onto your tongue, and cooked by the table while loud music pumps through the room, and lots of booze (some served in petrol cans) is poured into your glass. Believe it or not, they tend to polarise opinion. According to them, they have “four Michelin Stars”. And believe it or not, they also tend to sell out their supperclubs quickly.
Details: 4th May | Carousel, 19-23 Charlotte Street | £195
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Things to do on SUNDAY 5th May
12) Lucky & Joy x The Tamil Prince | 10 courses of Indo-Chinese food
Indian food? Delicious. Chinese food? Also delicious. Indo-Chinese food? Going out on a limb here, but probably delicious. The 10-course menu being served up at the Lucky & Joy x The Tamil Prince pop up will involve dishes like masala prawn toast, biang biang noodles in curry sauce, grilled chicken and tiger salad, and mango lassi soft serve, all comfortably next to each other.
Details: 5th & 6th May | Lucky & Joy, 95 Lower Clapton Road, E5 0NP | £45
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13) Mexfest | At Hackney Bridge
Mexfest is here to flex its Mexiness by starting with a dozen Mexican street food vendors, them moving onto a traditional Mexican market, plus a performance from a top-shelf ‘Cumbia’ band (they’re the traditional Latin American folk outfits) and finally some Guacamayo DJs to take things into the wee hours.
Details: 5th & 6th May | Hackney Bridge
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14) Untapped at The Sea, The Sea | £75 tasting menus from rising star chefs
The Sea, The Sea have decided to lend their beautiful alien steampunk spaceship style chef’s table space to some up & coming chefs. And this weekend will see Ezra Dobie, one of the original chefs at The Sea, The Sea finally taking the reins. But the best bit? The full tasting menu is only £75, which is a bargain for what you’re getting…
Details: 5th, 19th, 26th May | The Sea, The Sea, 337 Acton Mews, E8 4EA | £75
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15) Ruben’s Reubens @ Peckham Arches | Stellar BBQ in a beautiful space
Ruben Dawnay’s ongoing pop-up in Brixton Village, Ruben’s Reubens, is still drawing queues months after opening – and now he’s dropping into Peckham Arches for the summer with a menu of smoked meats and BBQ’d veg. His signature meat platter is loaded with a smoked 1/4 chicken, lamb sausage, and pulled pork shoulder, while over in the veggie corner there’s charred hispi cabbage, smoked oyster mushrooms, and BBQ cauliflower – all served with charred flatbread, pickles and mustard BBQ sauce. Oh, and tiramisu.
Details: Opens 1st May | Peckham Arches, Blenheim Grove, SE15 4QN
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Things to do on MONDAY 6th May
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16) Gypsy Jazz Festival | Django with the flow
For those who don’t know it, Gypsy Jazz is a swinging, lively, and spirited style that basically grabs your feet and makes them tap – and the Gypsy Jazz Festival is returning to town this month a whole bunch of great acts at venues across London, starting on Bank Holiday Monday.
Details: 6th-12th May | At jazz clubs across London
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17) When Forms Come Alive | Final day
Closing this weekend, this show is a teeming, bubbling collection of sculptures where artists have wrangled cold and rigid materials into breathing, organic forms. There are sheets of scaffolding ejecting plumes of foam, neon rollercoasters, and Tara Donovan’s enormous spheres that seem to be self-replicating and about to froth over. It’s fun, and doesn’t feel like it’s trying to impose any kind of complex artistic narrative – like the artwork, it just goes with the flow.
Details: Until 6th May | the Hayward Gallery | £18 | Book here.
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18) Between The Bridges | A 4,000 sq ft festival of fun, now with Crazy Boules
Between The Bridges can most boringly be described as a “really big beer garden” but should more accurately be described as “a massive, free to enter al fresco adult playground which fuses a smorgasbord of bars and street food with DJs, live music, drag brunches and special events; all packed into four different dining areas right by the Thames.” And this year it can add the eclectic sport of Crazy Boules to its portfolio of fun…
Details: Opens 2nd May | Queen’s Walk, South Bank, SE1
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19) The World Photography Awards | Final day
The fight against burning oil wells, Kuwait oil fields, 1991. © Sebastião Salgado
Juicy Controversy Alert: last year’s winner of the World Photography Awards turned out to be AI generated. The organisers tried to give the award to the photographer anyway. He refused to accept it. It was something of a kerfuffle. Anyway, everyone’s going to be scrutinising the images on show this year verrrry carefully to make sure there was a pulse involved. But whatever the case, they’ll be absolutely stunning…
Details: Until 6th May 2024 | Somerset House | £15
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Fancy escaping the capital? Check out our newly-refreshed pick of amazing day trips from London