Pride, free festivals from Croydon to Hornsey, Wolf Alice at Finsbury Park, Pendulum at Silverworks Island, a secret Thames island and England v Mexico at 1am. This is London doing a lot.
It’s Pride weekend, it’s 4th July, the World Cup is ongoing and the weather is holding. If you can’t find something to do in London this weekend you’re genuinely not trying.
Tonight: free outdoor cinema (Friday 3 July)
Granary Square, King’s Cross, London N1C and East Piazza, Covent Garden, London WC2E 8BE
Everyman on the Canal at Granary Square is free, Wimbledon is screening daily until 12 July, and there’s always an evening film on if tennis isn’t your thing. No tickets, no registration, just turn up early enough to claim a bean bag before everyone else does.
Alternatively, the Covent Garden East Piazza outdoor cinema is running free screenings through mid-July, with Wimbledon coverage and evening films under the stars with a glass of something cold from Courtyard Wine Sellers alongside.
Pride in London (Saturday 4 July)
Hyde Park Corner to Whitehall, central London
The Pride in London parade starts at Hyde Park Corner at midday, winds east along Piccadilly and finishes on Whitehall. MNEK headlines the Trafalgar Square main stage alongside Beth Ditto, with six stages across Soho and the West End covering trans and non-binary performance, Black British talent, LGBTQIA+ women and a family zone at Victoria Embankment Gardens. 1.8 million people expected.
Completely free, unticketed, likely to be very lively. We’ve published the full route and stage guide on the site. Arrive early, avoid Oxford Circus entirely and set a meeting point before your signal goes.
Wolf Alice at Finsbury Park (Saturday 4 July)
Finsbury Park, London N4 2NQ
The band’s biggest ever headline show, with The Last Dinner Party, Lykke Li and Rachel Chinouriri supporting. If you have tickets, this is the headline act of the weekend. It’s going to be one of those shows. Book tickets here.
South Kilburn CarniVale (Saturday 4 July)
Peel Plaza, South Kilburn, London NW6
Now in its fifth year and still properly community-rooted. The South Kilburn CarniVale brings together Irish dancers, a Jamaican maypole, Bengali artists turning reclaimed materials into sculpture, and Iranian, Bangladeshi, Mediterranean and Lebanese food all in one place, plus live music, DJ sets and dance workshops. Come in your team shirt for the World Cup or traditional dress for the costume prize. 1pm to 5pm. Free.
Jester Festival, West Hampstead (Saturday 4 July)
Fortune Green, West Hampstead, London NW6 1LD
52 years in, the Jester Festival is still run by volunteers and still raises money for the West Hampstead Food Hub. Live music, a funfair, circus skills, a climbing wall and a raffle with prizes from every shop on the local high street. From 11.15am to 6.30pm. Free.
WAH In The City: Worried About Henry at Silverworks Island (Sunday 5 July)
Silverworks Island, Royal Docklands, London E16
WAH In The City returns to Silverworks Island in the Royal Docklands, an industrial open-air playground with two arenas set against London’s skyline. Pendulum headline live alongside Andy C: Alive, Bou, Kanine, Mozey, SOTA, Andromedik and K Motionz. Noon to 10pm. If drum and bass is your thing, this is a serious lineup in a genuinely great setting. Ticketed.
The Cally Festival, Caledonian Road (Sunday 5 July)
Caledonian Road, Islington, London N1
Once a year they close the Cally Road and 7,000 people throw a party in it. The Cally Festival brings music, performance, art, workshops, street food and market stalls to one of those narrow North London streets that transforms completely when you take the traffic out. Noon to 6pm. Free.
Eel Pie Island open weekend (Saturday 4 and Sunday 5 July)
Eel Pie Island, Twickenham, London TW1
The private island in the Thames off Twickenham, whose studios once hosted the Rolling Stones and Led Zeppelin and whose artist community has been there ever since, opens its gates this weekend. Eel Pie Island lets you visit working artists in their studios and buy directly from the people who made it. Free, but book in advance.
Hampstead Big Fair (Sunday 5 July)
Heath Street, Hampstead, London NW3
The grand finale of the Hampstead Summer Festival closes Heath Street to traffic from noon to 5pm for a carnival-style street party with art and craft stalls, live music, community performances and the occasional famous Hampstead face enjoying their own neighbourhood. Free.
England v Mexico (Monday 7 July, 1am)
BBC One and BBC iPlayer, pubs open until 5am
Technically Monday morning, but it counts. England face Mexico in the World Cup last 16 at 1am at the Estadio Azteca. Pubs are legally confirmed open until 5am. The Night Tube runs. We’ve published the full guide on the site. Set an alarm, find a screen, accept the consequences.
The London x London Take: Saturday is the busiest single day London has had all summer: Pride, Wolf Alice and three free community festivals running simultaneously, with the option of Wimbledon on a canalside screen in the evening. Sunday is quieter but WAH In The City and the Cally Festival are both genuinely worth your time. You don’t have to do all of it. But you should do at least one thing you wouldn’t normally do.
