This weekend starts on the most romantic day of the year: the re-opening of the world’s longest & tallest tunnel slide.
And then, once we’ve all annihilated the structural integrity of our underwear in the most gloriously gravity-assisted manner, things continue in grand style as you ricochet between parties with live music & belly dancing; your last chance to get some of the city’s best ramen; a secret shindig with cabaret & tarot cards; and a hyper-realistic crab drinking a beer.
The Best Things To Do On FRIDAY 14th February
Valentine’s Day | Hopefully you already know about this one
Sure, you’re likely aware that it’s Valentine’s Day this Friday, and you’ve likely already planned something weeks ago, and you probably – WHAT? YOU HAVEN’T?? Oh you sweet, doomed fool. Unless you literally own a florists, you’re going to have to take a look at our lineup of 38 Valentine’s date ideas and hope one of them works for you…
Helix at ArcelorMittal Orbit | The world’s longest & tallest tunnel slide
We’d bet good money on the fact that most Londoners don’t know that London has the world’s tallest & longest tunnel slide, nor that you can recklessly commit yourself to gravity and bomb down it as of this Friday, gliding your posterior at immense speed down a 178m tunnel that wraps itself a dozen times around a 12-storey sculpture by artists Sir Anish Kapoor.
Details: From 14th February | ArcelorMittal Orbit, Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park | Tickets from £14 (plus £5 booking fee per order)
Bookshop Crawl | Book it around London
Unless you’re having this Weekend Guide narrated to you, then the chances are that you can probably read. And if you can read, then you probably like books. And if you like books, then the bookshop crawl taking place this month is probably going to be quite fun. Expect a jaunt through Shoreditch, Notting Hill, and Covent Garden’s independent bookshops, as well as book swaps, quizzes, readings, and more.
Details: 14th – 16th February | Various London locations
The Moonwalkers | It’s a trip
Ready to return to the moon? Well, this genuinely amazing show is back as of this weekend, and ready to eclipse everything else. So go ahead, try to be cynical. Try to go into this experience with your attitude set to skeptical, and still come out that way. The show takes place in the Lightroom in King’s Cross, which is a marvel in itself, a 40ft cube in which every wall is a screen. Here, totally immersed in the experience, the soothing baritone of Tom Hanks’ voice will take you on a journey to the moon and back.
Details: 14th February – 27th April | Lightroom, 12 Lewis Cubitt Square, N1C 4DY | £25
Light Up Kingston | A little free serotonin with your shopping?
Light shows have been popping up with a near-mycological fury in the past few years, and we’re all for it. This weekend, Kingston town centre’s getting a fluorescent facelift thanks to almost a dozen eye-dilating masterpieces. Expect to see bubble tubes, light mazes, projection shows, and more.
Details: 14th – 23rd February | Kingston-upon-Thames Town Centre | Free
Dinner In The Painted Hall | With a little thing called THE SUN
Dinner underneath Luke Jerram’s amazing installation gives you a chance to say ‘No YOU are my sunshine, darling‘ and ‘You light up my life more than this old thing‘ . Plus, getting a three course dinner in an 18th century painted hall is already pretty romantic to begin with.
Details: 14th February | The Painted Hall, Old Royal Naval College, SE10 9NN | £125
The Best Things To Do On SATURDAY 15th February
The Candlelight Club | A ’20s style secret shindig
There’s nothing like a bit of secrecy to add a little frisson to your night out, so you’re already on to a winner before you’ve stepped through the doors of the Candlelight Club. The 1920s speakeasy-style parties are laid on at different venues throughout London, with the location revealed only two days before. And aside from live swing bands, cabaret and Champagne, they also have a fortune teller who can categorically state if you’ve found The One. Probably.
Details: 15th February | A Secret Location | £30+
Lovers X Haters | At Bourne & Hollingsworth
Bourne & Hollingsworth always know how to put on a good party, and this one involves live music, belly dancing, a three-course dinner, a DJ, and a lot of fun.
Details: 15th February | Bourne & Hollingsworth Buildings, EC1R 0HU | £80
Shaulan Steenson x SOMA | Sushi meets mixology in Canary Wharf
Chef Shaulan Steenson is one of the most exciting young sushi chefs in the city right now (with stints at Tokyo’s revered Hakkoku and London’s Michelin-starred Umu), and this Saturday, he’s going to be serving up an omakase experience at the excellent SOMA cocktail bar in Canary Wharf. Genuinely, it’ll be tough to find a better combination of great food and great drink this year.
Details: 15th February | SOMA Canary Wharf, E14 5HA | £150 per person
Supa Ya Ramen at The Gun | Last chance
After Supa Ya Ramen closed last year, the world was a slightly less noodley, less delicious place. Well, for one last weekend, balance will be restored to the force thanks to a pop up from Luke “Supa Ya” Findley himself at The Gun. Expect bowls of ramen on Fri-Sat, then a roast on Sunday.
Details: Fri-Sun until 16th February | The Gun, 235 Well St, E9 6FE
Titanic: Echoes from the Past | A fully immersive Titanic exhibition
Immersive outfit Eclipso are opening a permanent venue in Camden this weekend to show off their world-building skills, and they’re kicking things off in grand style with an exhibition all about the Titanic. You’ll be able to strap on a VR headset, and “explore the grand decks, wander through lavish rooms, and even visit the captain’s bridge”, before “recreating your Jack & Rose moment at the bow”. That ought to break the ice.
Details: From 13th February | Basement floor, 213–219 Camden High Street, NW1 8QR | £20+
Things to do on SUNDAY 16th February
Sunday Papers Live | Some first-class relaxation
Sunday Papers Live is back. It sells out every single event, and it’s returning this week ready to transform an all-new venue into a living personification of the most relaxed day of the week. Park Village, just off Regent’s Park, is usually a studio space for film, TV and advertising, which basically makes it one huge blank canvas. And upon that canvas they shall daub sink-right-in sofas, piles of oversized newspapers, fascinating speakers, live music, Bloody Marys, and an ungodly amount of tea & cake.
Details: 16th February | Park Village, One Park Village East, NW1 7PX | £20+
Michelangelo, Leonardo, Raphael | Last day
It’s your last chance to come and sit at the table with the big boys of the Renaissance at the RA this weekend. Three of the most influential figures in the Western art canon are on display here, linked by their brief period of overlap in Florence in about 1504. Through dozens of precious sketches and drawings, this exhibition tells the story of Michelangelo and Leonardo’s rivalry, and their influence over the up-and-coming Raphael. It’s a wonder nobody’s made a Netflix drama of it all.
Details: Until 16th February | the Royal Academy of Arts, W1J 0BD | £19-21
Turner Prize 2024 | Also last day

Jasleen Kaur – Sociomobile
The Turner Prize is probably the most prestigious award a British artist can receive. Since its inauguration in 1984, it’s been awarded for Tracey Emin’s unmade bed, Damien Hirst’s pickled shark in a tank, and – almost – to Anthea Hamilton for her 18ft sculpture of a man’s hands pulling his buttocks apart. Basically, it’s the artiest of art world occasions, and you can catch works by this year’s winner Jasleen Kaur alongside nominees Pio Abad, Claudette Johnson and Delaine Le Bas on display at Tate Britain until this Sunday.
Details: Until 16th February | Tate Britain, SW1P 4RG | £14, or £5 for free Tate Collective members (U25s)
Looks Delicious! | Also also last day
If you can believe it, this crab is not actually drinking a beer. It’s just one example of the thriving Japanese industry for creating hyper-realistic replica food, supplying a century-old trend for restaurants displaying their menu by the entrance in alluring 3D format. Japan House’s free exhibition walks you through the history, hand-crafted production and unexpected applications of these fake foodstuffs. And of course, there’s dozens of impressive trompe l’oeil dishes to drool over, including some particularly imaginative creations arising from the leading manufacturer’s annual competition.
Details: Until 16th February | Japan House, Kensington, W8 5SA | Free
Fancy escaping the capital? Check out our pick of amazing day trips from London