Autumn.
It’s the perfect time to ahem, fall for someone.
And as your humble advisors regarding the best of London, allow us to take you on a little whirlwind tour of the most date-worthy events and places to visit in this fair city this season, from al fresco gigs and a barge full of cheese to fireworks; festivals and the occasional rutting stags.
So without further ado, behold our Autumn date ideas…
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Watch Acoustic Musicians Play In A Candlelit Church
With hot toddies brought to your seat. READ MORE
Details: 16th & 23rd October | The Hackney Round Chapel, 1D Glenarm Rd, Clapton, London E5 0LY | £22
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Test Your Sunday Compatibility At Sunday Papers Live
Comfy sofas, roasts, Bloody Maries and fascinating speakers. It’s not the worst place to start a tradition… READ MORE
Details: 3rd October | Bourne & Hollingsworth Buildings, 42 Northampton Road, London EC1R 0HU | £35
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Share A Baked Brie On Board The Cheese Barge
THIS is what floats your boat. READ MORE
Details: Open Tuesday – Sunday | Sheldon Square, Paddington Central, London, W2 6HY
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Hear Someone Fascinating at the London Literature Festival
Word up. READ MORE
Details: 21st – 31st October | Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
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Book Tickets to Moulin Rouge!
After 10 years of development, it’s opening in London… come what may. READ MORE
Details: Opens 12th November | Piccadilly Theatre, 16 Denman Street, London W1D 7DY | From £25
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Check Out The Free Outdoor Art Gallery in Regent’s Park
These sculptures have all been curated by Frieze, and it’s totally free to see.
Details: Until 31st October | The English Gardens of The Regent’s Park | Free
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Admire Japan’s Famous Autumnal Trees… at Kew
Alongside some show-stopping Japanese art at their upcoming festival. VIEW DETAILS
Details: 2nd – 31st October | Kew Gardens, TW9 3AE | £17.50
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Go Apple Picking!
Tim Mossholder
With the apple of your eye, of course. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Daily | Garsons, Winterdown Road, West End, Esher, KT10 8LS | Pay per kilo
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Or Pumpkins, If It’s That Time Of Year
Maddy Baker
Then have a carve-off. VIEW DETAILS
Details: 23rd-30th October | Secretts, Hurst Farm, Chapel Lane, Milford, Surrey, GU8 5HU | £3 entry
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Do The Crossword In A Pub With An Open Fire
These are our favourites.
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Explore the Dalston Curve Garden by Night
While enjoying the dulcet tones of two incredible musical acts. VIEW DETAILS
Details: 28th September | Dalston Eastern Curve Garden, 13 Dalston Lane, London, E8 3DF | £16.37
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Go Deer-Spotting in Richmond Park
Sophie Keen
It’s surprisingly easy to track them down. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Richmond Park, TW10 5HS | Free Entry
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Plan a Month of Dates for London Cocktail Month
London Cocktail Week is just a teensy bit longer this year… VIEW DETAILS
Details: 1st – 31st October | Across London | Wristbands £12.50-£15
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Book Tickets to the BFI Film Festival
And if you’re not keen on film, there’s a whole programme dedicated to ‘immersive’ film and mixed-reality artwork… VIEW DETAILS
Details: 6th – 17th October | BFI Southbank and other venues | From £10
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Go to A Museum Late
Learn how awesome museums are with cocktails instead of coach tour groups. READ MORE
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Play Pétanque, Drink Pastis at Baranis
After all, the French do it best. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Open Tuesday-Saturday | 115 Chancery Lane, London, WC2A 1PP
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Watch A Film Beneath The Stars (With Blankets)
There are screenings running into October, amazingly. READ MORE
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Toast Marshmallows at the Midnight Apothecary
It’s a rooftop cocktail bar in a garden. With unlimited marshmallows for the fire-pits. What’s not to love? READ MORE
Details: Fridays and Saturdays until the end of September | Brunel Museum, Railway Avenue, SE16 4LF | £8-20
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Warm Up Over A Steaming Bowl of Ramen
So you can cool down with a bowl of noodle ice cream for dessert.
Details: Open Wed-Sun | Sūpa Ya Ramen, 499 Kingsland Road, London E8 4AU
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Pick Out A Book For Each Other At Daunt
Ugur Akdemir
Then read the first chapters to each other over strudel at Fischer’s.
Details: Open daily | 83 Marylebone High Street, W1U 4QW
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Go for the Perfect Roast
Maybe try all of them, just to be sure. READ MORE
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See Shakespeare in a Candlelit Theatre
It’s the Globe’s closed-roof – and sliightly more autumn-friendly – cousin. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Metamorphoses opens 30th September, Measure for Measure opens 19th November | 21 New Globe Walk, SE1 9DT | From £5
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Wander Round An Eccentric Architect’s Townhouse
Candlelight, wine, and an ancient Egyptian sarcophagus. READ MORE
Details: Open Wed-Sun; lates on 24th September & 29th October | 13 Lincoln’s Inn Fields, WC2A 3BP | Ticketed free entry, lates £25
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Go On A Day Trip
Incredibly, this doesn’t require a plane ticket. See the best day trips from London
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Get Steamy in Your Own Personal Rooftop Sauna
And relax with a cocktail by the campfire after. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Open daily | Netil 360, 1 Westgate Street, Hackney, London E8 3RL | From £22.50
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Head To A TT Liquor Cocktail Masterclass
Then drink your homework. READ MORE
Details: Fridays & Saturdays | TT Liquor, 17b Kingsland Road, E2 8AA | £75
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Attend A Supperclub In A Plant Shop
Joy = Stevie Parle’s cooking, and a roomful of cacti. READ MORE
Details: Thursday evenings | JOY, 94 Marylebone High Street, London W1U 4RG | £65pp
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Go For Dinner at This Ridiculously Beautiful Restaurant
And have a nightcap up at the rooftop bar. READ MORE
Details: Sessions Arts Club, The Old Sessions House, 22 Clerkenwell Green, EC1R 0NA
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Hold A Board Game Tournament At Draughts
Loser gets the drinks in. READ MORE
Details: Open Tues-Sun | 41 Kingsland High Street, Dalston, E8 2JS | £5pp cover charge
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Cosy Up with Campfire Club
Music, marshmallows and a crackling fire = peak autumn. READ MORE
Details: Several dates | Various outdoor venues | From £5
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Go Star-Gazing
Not the Leicester Square kind, the Greenwich Observatory kind… READ MORE
Details: Daily, 10am-5pm | Royal Observatory, Blackheath Avenue, Greenwich SE10 8XJ | £10
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Step Into The Kit Kat Club
At this intimate new production of Cabaret, starring Jessie Buckley and Eddie Redmayne. VIEW DETAILS
Details: Opens 15th November | Playhouse Theatre, Northumberland Avenue, London, WC2N 5DE | From £30
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Go Watch The Fireworks At Alexandra Palace
Unless you already have enough fireworks of your own… READ MORE
Details: 5th & 6th November | Alexandra Palace, Alexandra Palace Way, N22 7AY | £10.50
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Go To A Chef’s Table In A Railway Arch
If you love seafood but hate choosing things on a menu, this is for you. READ MORE
Details: Wednesday to Saturday | The Sea, The Sea, Hackney, 337 Acton Mews, E8 4EA | £150pp
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Go For A Crisp Sunday Stroll Through Hampstead Heath
Julian Simpson
Find our guide to the heath here.
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…Then Listen To Live Music and Sip Cider at the Southampton Arms
When the weather turns really cold, they serve it mulled. READ MORE
Details: Open daily, live music most Sundays | 139 Highgate Road, London NW5 1LE
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Go Vintage Shopping Down Camden Passage
Ungry Young Man
Buy each other antique spoons and vintage prints, then admire your haul at the Katsute Japanese tearoom. READ MORE
Details: Camden Passage, Angel Islington, N1 8EA
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Sip Cocktails at Coupette
Our favourite bar, and a decidedly autumnal one at that. READ MORE
Details: Open daily, live music Mon & Wed | 423 Bethnal Green Road, Bethnal Green, East London, E2 0AN
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Show You Don’t Have A One Track Mind…
…by getting tickets to One Track Minds. VIEW DETAILS
Details: 11th October | Wilton’s Music Hall, Graces Alley, London E1 8JB | £12-15
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Explore A Promenade Dance Show at Battersea Arts Centre
Stumble on performers in corridors, basements and stairwells… VIEW DETAILS
Details: 6th – 10th October | Battersea Arts Centre, Lavender Hill, London SW11 5TN | Pay what you can, suggested price £20
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Have Your Own Ghost Moment In A Pottery Class
Then sip smugly from your slightly off-centre mugs by the fireside later. READ MORE
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Listen to Jazz In A 300 Year-Old Crypt
And find out if you’re soul mates. READ MORE
Details: From 22nd September | St Martin-in-the-Fields, Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 4JJ | £10-15
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Whisk Your Date Off to DinnerPARTY
Dinner, cocktails, candlelight, bands, DJs, gambling and the most brilliant people in London for company… Nudge readers. READ MORE
Details: 25th September | Bourne & Hollingsworth Buildings, 42 Northampton Road, EC1R 0HU | From £22
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Take A Leisurely Dinner Cruise Along London’s Canals
Candlelight, oysters and wine. You literally cannot go wrong. READ MORE
Details: Cruises Wednesday-Sunday | London Shell Co, The Prince Regent, Sheldon Square, W2 6DS | £65
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Go For A Dip In A Heated Lido
Then refuel over Michelin-starred fare at Brat’s nearby pop up. READ MORE
Details: Open daily | London Fields Lido, Hackney E8 3EU | £5.25
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Listen To Celebrities Read Incredible Letters
And get inspired to write love letters of your own. READ MORE
Details: 30th October | Royal Albert Hall, Kensington Gore, SW7 2AP | £29.50
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Hibernate In One Of London’s Hidden Bars
Any of these should do quite nicely. READ MORE
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Roam Through A Bar with Six Rooms of Live Music
With themed cocktails to match. READ MORE
Details: From 23rd September | Wardens Grove, Southwark, SE1 0HT | £54.50
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Bathe In Red Wine
We are NOT speaking figuratively. READ MORE
Details: Open daily | AIRE Ancient Baths, 2-3 Robert Street, WC2N 6RL | From £150
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Go To A Listening Party In The Dark
A spine-tinglingly atmospheric way to listen to music. READ MORE
Details: 21st-23rd September | Across London | From £8
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Run Around London On A Cryptic Treasure Hunt
Solve clues sent to your phone (with pub stops built in)… READ MORE
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Watch Some Comedy Together
Even if the acts are terrible, at least you’ll seem hilarious by comparison. READ MORE
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Hole Up In A Wine Bar For The Night
Leave with a bottle to take with you on your next date, at a BYOB restaurant. READ MORE
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Indulge In Decatur’s Seafood Pop Up
Their warm cockles will warm your cockles.
Details: 29th September – 16th October, Wed-Sat | Quality Wines, 88 Farringdon Rd, London EC1R 3EA
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Go For Dinner With A View
One of these ought to fit the bill. READ MORE
Last Updated: 16th September 2021 | Main image: Nest Collective
Want more date ideas? Check out 101 fool-proof year-rounders right here