Budget-friendly things to do in London this week for £5 or less.
Looking for more free things to do in London? Here are 102 of em! We've also compiled this epic map of free stuff in London.
Step into the 'Fungarium'
More than 30 artworks on a fungi theme go on display at the 'Fungarium', an exhibition by artist Jacqueline Freeman — who describes herself as a 'mushroom nut'. Head to The Gallery at The Playroom in Archway to view her drawings and paintings.
Free, 16-21 July.
Watch 36 Shakespeare plays in 45 Minutes
A printer in a hurry trips, sending all the pages of Shakespeare's First Folio scattering. Can he, with a few helping hands, reorder 36 plays in 45 minutes? This is the charming — not to mention ambitious — premise of Fix the Folio, a 45-minute play by Troubadour Stageworks, on at the Fleet Street Quarter Amphitheatre. You'll need to reserve your spot.
Free, 18 July.
Visit London's new 'dinosaur garden'
Wondered why the Natural History Museum hasn't had its festive ice rink for the last couple of winters? The space the rink used to occupy has been redeveloped into a new Evolution Garden, and it opens to the public this week. Make your way along sunken paths, via an immersive timeline of plants, geology, and representations of reptiles, birds and mammals. Oh, and it's home to a huge bronze cast of a dinosaur skeleton too.
Free, from 18 July.
Play mini golf on the cheap
There's a new mini golf course in town, and it's rather pretty. The Wild Swing Mini Golf course has been decorated with wildflowers by Lee Baker and Catherine Borowski of Graphic Rewilding, as a nod to the plants that once thrived in the pre-industrial waterways near Greenwich Marshes.
It's only £2 per person per game (under-5s go free), and all equipment is provided. Find it at Greenwich Peninsula, outside NOW Gallery (close to North Greenwich tube station). If you're in the area on Saturday, there's also a free-entry Jazz & Food Festival.
£2, 18 July-29 September.
Get an insight into the UK's hobbies
Thousands of objects including handmade Cosplay costumes, miniature origami, Warhammer figurines, knitted items, homemade banjos, customised Action Man dolls, collections of toys and vintage typewriters go on display in a free exhibition giving an insight into the UK's hobbies.
Come As You Really Are is the work of award-winning artist and Spider Man enthusiast Hetain Patel, and celebrates people who dedicate their spare time to making, modifying and collecting. The exhibition is the result of a public call out for information about people's hobbies and the stories behind them, and you can see it at Grants Building in Croydon until September, before it goes on tour around the UK.
Free, 18 July-20 October
Catch a free, open-air opera performance
The penultimate Songs on the Steps performance this summer takes place on Friday, with performers from Opera Holland Park stepping out from the auditorium and into the park itself to give a free lunchtime concert, open to anyone passing by. Take a picnic blanket or chair and enjoy entertainment as you tuck into your lunchtime sarnies. It lasts around 40 minutes.
Free, 19 July.
Kickstart your weekend, Carnival-style
Things get lively at Southbank Centre on Friday evening, when the Just Vibez collective brings a Carnival party to the Riverside Stage outside the venue, with soca, steel pan, dancehall and reggae music and Carnival costumes. The event is open to all ages and you can drop in and out as you like.
Free, 19 July.
Watch free dance performances all weekend
Not to be confused with the Riverside Stage (above), the National Theatre's River Stage (also free, open-air and located on South Bank) is back for another weekend of entertainment. This time around it's curated by the Rambert Dance Company, so expect three days of dance-centric performances and workshops hosted by drag diva Rhys' Pieces. The programme includes an excerpt of Rouge by Marion Motin, a choreographer who has worked with Christine and the Queens and Dua Lipa, as well as a Soca dance workshop that's open to everyone.
Chow down on free tea and cake at a summer festival
Grand Junction, near Warwick Avenue, hosts its summer festival on Saturday, with a slew of free events including face painting, storytelling, live music performance and free tea and cake (our favourite kind).
Free, 20 July.
Witness a 500-year-old traditional ceremony
One of London's quirkier events, the Ceremony of Cart Marking takes place this Saturday, and it's open to spectators. It's a 500+ year old tradition by the Worshipful Company of Carmen, with a collection of handcarts, horses and carts, steam-driven — as well as electric, solar-powered and hydrogen — vehicles being 'marked' at Guildhall, with Livery Masters and Court Assistants in their official robes, chains and hats.
Free, 20 July.
Take the whole family along to a science discovery day
We're huge fans of The Crick Institute, aka The Crick', a science research centre in St Pancras. It regularly has excellent exhibitions going on, but there's an extra reason to visit this Saturday when it holds a Discovery Day, aimed at 7-11 year olds and their families.
The day consists of experiments and activities, an insight into what goes on inside different immune cells, and a chance to interview a real life scientist.
Free, 20 July.
Look out for hot air balloons in London's skies
Cross your fingers for perfect weather on Sunday, as there's a chance that the Mayor of London's Hot Air Balloon Regatta will take place. In theory it's an annual event, though a combination of weather and pandemic (mainly the former) mean it hasn't taken place since 2019. Even a date earlier this month was scuppered due to high winds.
If the weather's behaving, look to the skies early in the morning to see dozens of hot air balloons taking off from Battersea Park and floating over the London skyline — they set off around 5am, and it's a sight well worth seeing.
Free, 21 July.
Attend a quaint village fete... in central London
You've probably heard of the Soho Waiters' Race, when serving staff from different restaurants leg it around the area while balancing a bottle of fizz, wine glass and ashtray on their tray. But did you know that it's part of a wider event, the Soho Village Fete?
The free-entry event, organised by the Soho Society also features a tug of war between the police and fire brigade, a best in show where pooches must dress like royalty, and a music stage, among other events.
Free, 21 July.
Take a deep dive into topics around homelessness
The newly-opened Museum of Homelessness in Finsbury Park now has an events programme up and running, including the monthly Deep Dive, a current affairs programme about homelessness hosted by the museum's directors Matt and Jess, along with special guests — full details of this month's edition TBC at time of writing.
Free, 21 July.
See one of these free exhibitions before they close
Fortitude is the Royal College of Physicians' take on the Covid-19 pandemic, as told through the eyes of healthcare workers who experienced it first hand. Trainee doctors and consultants, GPs and physician associates were among those who responded to an RCP survey in January 2021, telling stories of suffering, chaos and exhaustion — but also, compassion, courage and joy.
Free, until 18 July.
The National Gallery's The Last Caravaggio, showcases the last known work of Italian painter Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. It's the first time The Martyrdom of Saint Ursula has been on display in London for 20 years — and this week is your last chance to see it.
Free, until 21 July.
Also closing this week is The National Archives' current exhibition, Great Escapes, about prisoners of war and civilians who were confined to internment camps during the second world war. Some managed to escape physically, while others remained trapped but found freedom in creative endeavours such as art and theatre productions, or in writing letters to loved ones.
Free, until 21 July.
