Your May Bank Holiday Plans Sorted
One bank holiday done and on to the next. From exhibitions to beer crawls, to London’s best parks and days outdoors, here’s our guide on what to do for the May bank holiday…
Photo: Rooftop Film Club
1 Candlelight Soundtracks, Paddington
If atmospheric music scores are your thing, then listening to a string quartet perform the compositions by Ennio Morricone, Hans Zimmer and other great cinematic composters, by candlelight, in a church is a great way to spend an evening. Tickets are still available for the late performance of Candlelight Soundtracks, where you’ll get to hear scores of the likes of James Bond theme, Indiana Jones Raiders March, Schindler’s List Theme, and the Game of Thrones Theme. Musicals by Candlelight, held in The Actor’s Church in Covent Garden, has a performance scheduled for Saturday, April 30, if show tunes are more your thing. This gig’s £25 a ticket.
Date: Friday, April 29
Time: 9pm
Tickets: £25
Address: Grand Junction, Rowington Close, W2 5TF
Website: feverup.com
2 Bottomless brunch at Sumosan Twiga, Knightsbridge
Japanese Italian fusion restaurant is extending its bottomless brunch service for the May bank holiday, so you now have the option to quaff your choice of champagne, cocktails, beer, wine and spirits as while you feast on dishes such as maki rolls; chargrilled beef rib eye; tortelloni with ricotta, lemon and bottarga; and goats cheese, spinach and hazelnut salad. Live music – from dj sets to saxophonists, drummers and freestyle dancers will entertain you and bring the party vibes. Crazy Pizza Marylebone will also offer brunch on bank holiday Saturday and Sunday 12pm-3pm.
Date: Saturday, April 30 – Sunday, May 1
Time: 122pm-4pm
Cost: £150 pp for a boozy bottomless brunch, or £110 pp for a non-alcoholic brunch
Address: 165 Sloane Street SW1X 9QB
Website: sumosantwigalondon.com
plaqlock.com4 Enjoy the sun
With the sun set to shine through the long weekend, pack a picnic and hang out at one of London’s many parks. The Royal Parks of London (that’s Hyde, Richmond, Bushy, St James’s and Greenwich Park as well as Kensington Gardens, Brompton Cemetery and The Regent’s Park and Primrose Hill) are always a treat, but there’s also Victoria Park and Clissold Park in the east, the lovely Hampstead Heath and its swimming ponds in the north, as well as Brockwell Park and Crystal Palace in the south. Head to your regular fave, or try a new park in a different pocket of town.
5 Kyōsai: The Israel Goldman Collection at The RA, Piccadilly
This exhibition showcases the work – some never seen publicly before – of 19th century Japanese painter Kawanabe Kyōsai. The exhibition – the first solo Kyōsai in the UK since 1993 – focuses largely on the art of sekiga, ‘spontaneous paintings’, produced at ‘calligraphy and painting parties’ (shogakai) which were often fuelled by prodigious amounts of saké, and armed with that information, you can kind of see a drunk man’s mind on the canvas; his paintings are beautiful and comical, and also a little mad.
Date: Running until June
Time: 10am-6pm
Price: £17
Address: Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD
Website: royalacademy.org.uk
Date: Sunday, May 1
Time: Start at Truman Social Brewery; 1 Priestley Way, E17 6AL
Website: blackhorsebeermile.co.uk
7 Rooftop Film Club, Peckham
Rooftop Cinema at the Bussey Building in Peckham opens this bank holiday, kicking off with True Romance with Christian Slater and Patricia Arquette. Jurassic park, West Side Story and Belfast, which will be captioned and signed as part pf Hard of Hearing Week, all so feature on the big screen through the course of the weekend.
Date: April 29-May 2
Tickets: From £16.95
Address: Bussey Building, 133 Rye Lane, Peckham SE15 4ST; 7 & 8 Stratford Multi-Storey Car Park, Great Eastern Road E15 1BB
Website: rooftopfilmclub.com
Madison’s rooftop has great views of St Paul’s Cathedral. Photo: Madison
8 Outdoor drinking and eating, across London
More rooftops and outdoor venues are popping up in time for the bank holiday. The Culpeper, in Shoreditch reopens its rooftop garden, which is a little, green urban oasis among east London’s hubbub. Rooftop party place with a cracking view of St Paul’s Madison, has taken its sprint time ques from the Amalfi coast with lush foliage and lemon trees. Pergola Paddington has turned into a Mexican beach-inspired fiesta, with fire performers, dancers, live percussion and djs playing until late. Somerset House Terrace is also now open, and the iconic venue makes for a great spot for a sundowner or two.
9 The London Cabaret Club Pop Brunch, Bloomsbury
The London Cabaret Club launches its monthly Pop Brunch this bank holiday Saturday, with BBQ-style dishes whipped up by Michelin-starred chef Richard Galli. Fizz and mimosas are unlimited for an hour, so quaff away as you watch a live show filled with noughties bangers and floor fillers such as Amy Winehouse’s Back to Black, Ed Sheeran’s Shape of You and Bruno Mars’ smash hit, Uptown Funk.
Date: Saturday, April 30
Time: 12pm-4pm
Price: £49.50 for two-courses
Address: Victoria House, Bloomsbury Square WC1B 4DA
Website: thelondoncabaretclub.com
London Cabaret Club Pop Brunch. Photo: London Cabaret Club
hrp.org.uk11 Yoga at Sky Garden, City
Led by yoga instructors from TruBe, Sky Garden’s yoga is a one-hour dynamic vinyasa flow class suitable for all levels and abilities. Let the instructor guide you through your poses and stretches, and as a special bank holiday treat, follow up your cat-cow with a post class breakfast the Darwin Brasserie.
Time: Saturday and Sunday 9am-10am
Cost: £25
Address: The Fenchurch Building, 1 Sky Garden Walk EC3M 8AF
Website: skygarden.london
Time: Saturday & Sunday 10am-9pm
Price: £16/£13 adult/child
Address: 79-85 Old Brompton Road, South Kensington, SW7 3LD
Website: smallisbeautifulart.com
13 Fashioning Masculinities: The Art of Menswear at The V&A, South Kensington
Celebrating the power, artistry and diversity of masculine attire, this exhibition trace how menswear has been fashioned and refashioned over the centuries and how designers, tailors and artists (as well as their clients and sitters) have constructed and performed masculinity to deconstruct it and start again. It features looks from Harris Reed, Gucci, Raf Simons, as well as paintings, photograph, film and performance.
Date: Running to November
Tickets: From £20
Address: Cromwell Road, South Kensington SW7 2RLb
Website: vam.ac.uk
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<p>Gucci Pre-Fall 2019, V&A South Kensington. Photo: Gucci</p>
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vam.ac.uk15 Cats and Dogs Exhibition & the Spring Fair at Horniman Museum and Gardens, Forest Hill
Discover more about your furry friends in this interactive family-friendly exhibition that offers a pets-eye view of the world. This immersive exhibition explores the scientific, social and cultural role that cats and dogs play in our world, and invites visitors to go on an exciting, sensory journey, exploring what it’s like to be a cat or a dog.
When: Running until October 30
Price: £9.50/£5 adult/child; group tickets available
Address: 100 London Road, Forest Hill SE23 3PQ
Website: horniman.ac.uk
Date: Until August 29
Cost: £18; concessions available
Address: Tate Modern, Bankside London SE1 9TG
Website: tate.org.uk
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