Arts + Culture

London’s arts and culture scene: theatre, exhibitions, film, comedy, live music and the cultural moments that make this city shine.

Hundreds of glowing paper lanterns bearing handwritten messages float on the water at dusk during the Water Lantern Festival

Write a message and float a lantern across Clapham Common’s Long Pond this September

Roadman London Slang

Peng tings: a cheeky A-Z of roadman slang

Monet and Renoir painted the same scene, side by side, in 1869. For a few weeks only, you can see the results together again, free.

Steve Rubie at the piano at the 606 Club

From a Chelsea basement to a cultural landmark: the 606 Club turns 50

Lantern House, 2022, by architect Tosin Oshinowo

The Design Museum’s major new exhibition on contemporary Black design opens this autumn

People making colourful feathered Carnival headdresses at a workshop table

Make your own feathered Carnival headdress at this hands-on City workshop this week

The Rio Cinema exterior lit up pink and red at dusk on Kingsland High Street

Rio Cinema turns 50 this autumn, with Ben Whishaw, Asif Kapadia and a bespoke IPA joining the celebrations

The main room at Sunday Papers Live, decorated with newspaper bunting

Sunday Papers Live is bringing roast lunches, Bloody Marys and a live crossword back to Clerkenwell this autumn

Nan Goldin, Young love, 2024, paired with a classical sculpture

Nan Goldin’s first major UK show in over two decades opens at the Hayward Gallery this November

A saxophonist plays as climbers reach the summit during Up at The O2's Summer Sessions

Sunsets, sounds and skylines: Up at The O2 brings Summer Sessions back to the summit

The best jazz clubs in London

The best jazz clubs in London, from a hidden Soho cellar to a brand-new Covent Garden stage

Blue Note London exterior render, credit: Legeard Studio

Robert Glasper, Erykah Badu, Jamie Cullum and Nubya Garcia: Blue Note London’s opening season lineup revealed

Brass band performing on stage at Brassworks, Woolwich Works

Brassworks is back for Woolwich Works’ fifth birthday, and it’s the biggest one yet

Notting Hill Carnival

Notting Hill Carnival is back this month, here’s everything you need to know

The new building in Smithfield

A fatberg, Charles I’s execution vest and a nightclub after-party: London Museum’s incredible new home is nearly here

Woman with headdress staring at the viewer

Every surviving Van Eyck portrait is coming together for the first time ever, and it’s happening at the National Gallery this November

Man leafing through records

Free entry, serious hi-fi and a DJ with an actual UK No.1: Mitsu’s new listening bar nights land in Shoreditch this August

Dua Lipa in yellow top

Dua Lipa is curating London’s literature festival this year, and she’s brought Patti Smith and Zadie Smith with her

Machado playing guitar

Handel Hendrix House turns ten this year, and it’s celebrating with a rock concert inside a 900-year-old church

Burlesque performers on the stage

Pavarotti, the Blitz and Charles de Gaulle: the hidden history behind London’s most fun new burlesque night