⛸️ 49 things to do in London this weekend with the kids (14–15 November)

Hey DILFs,

Golden Ticket alert! I’ve just finished putting together my complete guide to the Christmas holidays in London, and it’s available exclusively to Golden Ticket subscribers.

It covers theatre, workshops, carol services, grottoes and plenty of other ways to fill the holidays, all organised by category and venue, with dates, times, prices and suitable ages clearly shown.

Golden Ticket subscribers also get an extra weekly email featuring events worth booking ahead, plus access to my searchable database of future events, which you can filter by date, age, price and area. There’s also How to do (almost) anything with children, an interactive guide packed with practical advice on taking the kids to museums, restaurants, festivals, live performances and even shopping.

If that sounds useful, The Golden Ticket is just £36 a year – the equivalent of £3 a month.

Anyway, enough about Christmas. We've got a weekend to sort out first!

Enjoy,

Jeff xx

PS The brand new Harry Potter gift shop on Oxford Street is finally open, and absolutely no one is acting cool about it. I haven’t been brave enough to venture there myself yet, so if you’re less of a wuss than me, please let me know what you thought!

Family Design Challenge

📍 Where: Young V&A, Cambridge Heath Road, E2 9PA
📅 When: Saturday 14 November, 12:00–16:00
🎟️ Price: Free – no booking required
👶 Age: 5–14

I'm hoping you didn't notice that last week's newsletter looked as though it had been put through a blender. If you did, sorry about that. Dads in London has been undergoing a bit of a redesign, and something went spectacularly wrong with the formatting when I clicked send. I'm hoping this week's is readable – although if you're currently seeing a paragraph of Wingdings followed by a picture of an angry koala, please assume that wasn't intentional. After a month of this, I never want to hear the word "design" again.

All of which means I'm the last person who should be signing up for Young V&A's Family Design Challenge. The idea is that you and your children are given a creative challenge by a professional designer, then work together to dream up a solution and build it using the materials and tools provided. Which sounds like a brilliant way to spend an afternoon, provided you haven't spent the previous month being given design briefs by yourself and then arguing with your own website about how to implement them.

You'll have objects from the museum's collection to inspire you, plus creative facilitators on hand to help when your brilliant idea turns out to be considerably harder to make than you'd anticipated. At the end, you can take your creation home or leave it on display in the studio.

It's aimed at children up to 14, which is... ambitious? I suspect persuading a 14-year-old to spend Saturday afternoon crafting with their parents might be the biggest design challenge of all.

Find out more: https://www.vam.ac.uk/event/WpMv9q5lVqB/family-design-challenge-2026-27

Tradition/Rebellion: Coming-of-Age Style in Kitakyushu, Japan

📍 Where: Japan House, 101–111 Kensington High Street, W8 5SA
📅 When: Daily until 18 April, weekends 10:00–18:00 and weekdays 10:00–20:00
🎟️ Price: Free – book free tickets for guaranteed entry

At what age are you supposed to become an adult? It depends who you ask.

Americans have their Sweet Sixteens at 16; in much of Latin America, girls celebrate their quinceañera at 15; and in the Jewish tradition, girls have their bat mitzvah at 12 and boys their bar mitzvah at 13. (To be fair, this was decided centuries before anyone thought to invent adolescence and give boys another decade to grow up.) And in Japan, the big coming-of-age ceremony takes place at 20 – which, with the benefit of hindsight, we can all agree is probably the closest to accurate.

Every January, Japan celebrates Coming-of-Age Day, when young people put on their finest clothes, attend official ceremonies and are welcomed into the world of responsible adulthood. The modern tradition dates back to 1946, when a town near Tokyo decided it was high time its young people had something to celebrate.

But in the city of Kitakyushu, things have taken a bit of a different turn. In 1998, the local authorities decided to bring together young people from five different districts for one enormous coming-of-age ceremony at a theme park. With everyone suddenly celebrating in the same place, a bit of inter-district rivalry developed, and young people began competing to see who could turn up in the most spectacular outfit.

Fast-forward to today, and Kitakyushu's coming-of-age celebrations have become something of a fashion arms race, with towering hairstyles, spectacularly embroidered kimono, extravagant fur trims and outfits that can cost thousands of pounds (or several hundred thousand yen, which sounds even more irresponsible). Some participants spend years saving up for their big day, while others work with specialist designers to create something entirely unique. All this to mark the moment they become sensible, responsible adults.

The authorities weren't initially thrilled about all this competitive flamboyance, but attitudes have changed considerably. Kitakyushu's current mayor is a big fan, arguing that the outfits aren't just about fashion but also express young people's individuality, gratitude to their families and bonds with their friends. He's even urged them to follow their own paths "without being bound by common sense or correct answers". (This newsletter has now reached the stage where I'm reading Japanese municipal press releases in my spare time.)

And if you're wondering what several thousand pounds' worth of ceremonial one-upmanship actually looks like, Japan House London has the answer. Its new exhibition, Tradition/Rebellion, follows eight young people from their first fittings to the ceremony itself, exploring how they dreamed up their extraordinary outfits, who helped bring them to life and what they wanted to say by wearing them. You'll see the finished creations up close – alongside films, interviews and tactile displays – and discover the stories of the designers, hairdressers and other local characters who make the whole spectacle possible.

I've probably spent longer researching this exhibition than it would take to visit it. And I'm still looking forward to going.

Find out more: https://www.japanhouselondon.uk/whats-on/traditionrebellion-coming-of-age-style-in-kitakyushu-japan

The Lord Mayor’s Show

📍 Where: Various places to go; see below (and website) for more information
📅 When: Saturday 14 November, 11:00–14:30
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

Remember last year's Lady Mayor, Dame Susan Langley? If you don't, now's not the time to swot up on her because she's already gone. Turns out the City of London elects a new Lord Mayor every year, so she was never going to be around for long.

Replacing the outgoing mayor is normally fairly straightforward. But this year, a chap called Tim Hailes FKC JP was all lined up for the job, only to withdraw two days before the election.

Naturally, I set about investigating. First, I searched online to see whether anyone else had noticed that "FKC" looks suspiciously like a typo of a swear word or a fast-food chain. (Apparently not.) Then I discovered that it stands for Fellow of King's College London, which sent me off to see whether they sell any tongue-in-cheek FKC merchandise. (They don't.)

At which point I remembered that I was supposed to be finding out why he'd withdrawn because goddammit Jeff: can't you concentrate on something for more than half a second? Anyway, Tim said he'd learnt that someone connected to a former employer was facing criminal proceedings; he wasn't involved, but stepped aside just in case any pesky tabloids decided to imply otherwise.

So the job has gone to someone called Bronek Masojada, who has five kids and the sort of career trajectory (McKinsey, Hiscox, various boardrooms...) that makes me shudder because I genuinely think I might be allergic to business attire.

His new work clothes will be quite a departure, though: black velvet, knee breeches, silk stockings, buckled shoes and a hat with ostrich feathers. Mind you, when you're taking on a job that's more than 800 years old, I suppose you have to expect a few peculiar traditions – especially when some of them date back to the reign of one of England's least popular kings.

… Which segues neatly into the history of this event…

In 1215, King John was losing his French territories, running out of money and facing open revolt from his barons – so he tried to lock in London's support with a Royal Charter. The deal was this: the City would get to elect its own mayor and in return, the new mayor had to visit Westminster each year and swear loyalty to the Crown. London was the cash and trade hub, so it made sense to keep them onside: win the City and you've got its money behind you.

These days, the Lord Mayor's job is largely ceremonial, with a hefty dose of promoting the City's financial services industry around the world. There's still the annual oath for tradition's sake – although the three-mile trek to Westminster has become more of a full-blown procession with around 6,500 participants, 250 horses, dozens of floats and 20 marching bands. Among the attractions this year are the original Dad's Army van, a giant model of Tower Bridge, a South African dance group, a giant bee made from confiscated knives and, of course, Bronek himself in the 18th-century State Coach.

Where to watch it depends on your temperament. For the full crush of crowds, noise and BBC cameras, head to the Bank–St Paul's stretch between 11:00 and noon. If you'd rather breathe, the return leg along the Embankment from 13:10 onwards has wider pavements and more elbow room. Or, if you're making a day of it, stick around to watch the Lord Mayor return to Mansion House at around 14:30, complete with salutes, presenting of arms and medieval pageantry from the Pikemen.

Find out more: https://www.lordmayorsshow.london

Note: there’s SO much useful information on the Lord Mayor’s Show website, including advice on where to go, a printable map, a detailed timetable, and tons of interesting facts about the history of the show.

Once the procession is over you’ll find yourself in the middle of a car-free City with a few hours of daytime left. So… what to do?

👍️ Between 15:00 and 16:00, the official City of London Guides will be leading guided walks from No1 Poultry (opposite Mansion House), leaving at regular intervals throughout the hour. Guided walks last about 60 minutes and are completely free: just turn up and get guided.

👍️ You can visit the Billingsgate Roman House and Baths – which was first built around AD 150. It was occupied right through to the end of Roman London in the early 5th century AD, and is considered one of London’s best-preserved archaeological remains. Access is by guided tour only (I presume because we can’t be trusted on our own) and suitable for children aged 8+. You can book here (but book quickly: tickets for this weekend are going fast).

👍️ There are plenty of events and exhibitions at Barbican on Saturday (including the white squares one I wrote about recently). Check them all out here.

Does Size Matter?

📍 Where: Firepit art gallery, 10 Cutter Lane, Ground Floor Retail Unit, SE10 0XX
📅 When: Until 30 January, Tuesday–Saturday 11:00–17:00 (until 19:00 on Thursdays)
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

When the organisers named their exhibition Does Size Matter?, I'm pretty sure they meant it rhetorically. But they hadn't reckoned with the existence of Captain Literal over here – a man who's always willing to take a question at face value and annoy the hell out of anyone trying to make a broader point about the world.

To these organisers I would say: sometimes, yes, size does matter actually. If you're trying to squeeze your hand luggage into a Ryanair baggage sizer, it matters. If you're dividing the last slice of cake between two children who are both watching your every move, it matters. And if your eight-year-old is a centimetre too short to go on the Winter Wonderland rollercoaster he's been dreaming about all year, it really effing matters.

But perhaps size matters less in the world of art. The idea behind this exhibition is that artists should be able to produce something just as impressive on a tiny canvas as they can on one the size of a double-decker bus. And, as an added bonus, you might actually be able to afford to take the smaller one home.

The organisers have taken the idea pretty darn seriously, inviting artists to create works no larger than 50cm. There are more than 150 pieces on display, including paintings, photographs, prints, glassworks, collages, miniature dioramas and sculptures, by everyone from first-time exhibitors to prize-winning artists.

Everything is for sale for £500 or less, and whenever something sells, another work takes its place. So you could visit twice and find a different selection on the walls.

The venue itself sounds worth a nose around, too. It's an independent, not-for-profit arts space that's also home to 11 resident artists (who between them speak 15 languages), a gallery, a cafe, a bar, a bookshop and a gift shop selling work made on site. In a nice, literal nod to its name, Firepit even has a room with an actual firepit in it, where they hold everything from storytelling sessions to life drawing classes. And because it's set up as a Community Interest Company, the money it makes goes straight back into keeping the place running.

Find out more: ​​https://www.firepit.art/exhibitions/does-size-matter

Skate at Somerset House

📍 Where: Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA
📅 When: Daily until 10 January, timeslots between 09:00 and 22:45
🎟️ Price: Adults (13+) £21–£23, under-13s £14.25–£15.50

Before we get started: yes, I'm very uncomfortable recommending ice skating at Somerset House in mid-November. I don't want to be part of the reason Christmas starts earlier every year, especially when I have nothing to gain from it. I'm not a bank manager who's been waiting since January for the chance to make his branch feel 0.5% more welcoming by hanging up some tinsel.

Also though, recommending ice skating at Somerset House feels a bit like turning up to the Ambassador's reception with a box of Ferrero Rocher. It's basically the least groundbreaking suggestion you've ever received, and I’m embarrassed to be doing something so lame.

But here's the thing: ice skating is THE way to mark the start of the Christmas season. And I've tried – largely out of a pathological aversion to doing what everyone else does – to find somewhere other than Somerset House to do it. The Natural History Museum's rink is permanently closed, which is a fairly significant drawback. Hampton Court Palace is approximately halfway to the south coast. And as for Leicester Square, I'm still trying to process my experience of that one and haven't had enough therapy to tell you about it yet.

Somerset House ice skating, however, is practically perfect. The courtyard is a spectacular setting, the enormous Christmas tree always looks fantastic, and the little wooden huts selling hot chocolate and waffles feel so welcoming that you won't even mind how gloriously clichéd the whole thing is. There's even an Alpine-style restaurant where you can eat raclette afterwards, should you wish to complete the illusion that you're on a skiing holiday in 1970s Switzerland rather than a family outing in WC2.

For children who are still finding their feet on the ice, there's a Kids Skate Club for 6–12-year-olds, with skating aids and staff on hand to help, plus proper lessons for anyone aged eight and over. There are also special extended 90-minute sessions on three dates in November, for anyone who feels the usual 45 minutes isn't quite enough time to master the art of staying upright. And if you'd rather watch from the sidelines, you can enjoy the whole atmosphere without paying a penny to enter.

If you're not quite ready to begin Christmas yet, don't feel you need to go this weekend. But I'd book now, before the rest of London decides it's ready too.

Find out more: http://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/skate-somerset-house

👍️ Are you particularly unsteady on your skates, but you still want to experience the thrill of gliding across the ice at Somerset House? Consider spending an extra £35 for your own dedicated Skate Mate – “a dedicated ice marshal who can be booked to provide help for groups of 4 to 15 people”. Skate Mates won’t teach you to skate, but they will make an embarrassment accident less likely. Find out more on the FAQs page.

👍️ Pose for a picture outside 10 Downing Street. I mean 10 Adam Street. The doors look identical, so you may as well try to fool as many people as you can.

This section brings together both new events I don’t have room to expand on and selected older ones from past newsletters that are still running. If you see a “(see my write-up here)”, that’s your cue to click through and rediscover whatever Past Me felt strongly enough to write about.

📍 Where: Woolwich Works, Ropekeepers Studio, 11 No. 1 Street, Royal Arsenal, SE18 6HD
📅 When: Sunday 15 November, 11:00 and 14:00
🎟️ Price: £12 per person, family ticket £43.20 (four people), plus £1.50 booking fee per ticket
👶 Age: 3–8

📍 Where: Barbican Cinema 2, Beech Street, EC2Y 8DS
📅 When: Saturday 14 November, 11:00
🎟️ Price: Adults £5, under-18s £2.50
👶 Age: 4+ (U)

📍 Where: National Theatre, Olivier Theatre, SE1 9PX
📅 When: Until Saturday 6 February, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: £20–£105 per person
👶 Age: 7+

📍 Where: Unicorn Theatre, 147 Tooley Street, SE1 2HZ
📅 When: Until Sunday 3 January, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: From £7 per person
👶 Age: 4+

📍 Where: Half Moon Theatre, 43 White Horse Road, E1 0ND
📅 When: Until Tuesday 17 November, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: £9 per person
👶 Age: 13+

📍 Where: Saatchi Gallery, Duke of York’s HQ, King’s Road, SW3 4RY
📅 When: Daily until 5 May, 10:00–18:00
🎟️ Price: From £15 per person, under-6s free (concessions and family tickets available)

📍 Where: Dock X, Unit 1, Canada Water Retail Park, Surrey Quays Road, SE16 2XU
📅 When: Until 21 March, various timeslots (see website)
🎟️ Price: Adults £26, 4–15s £19, 0–3s £1.50, plus £2 booking fee per ticket (family bundles available)
👶 Age: Suitable for all

📍 Where: Monopoly Lifesized, 213–215 Tottenham Court Road, W1T 7PS
📅 When: Various dates and timeslots until 3 January
🎟️ Price: Adults (11+) £24.15, 3–10s £30.45, family pack (3 or more people) £24.15 per person
👶 Age: 3–12

📍 Where: National Portrait Gallery, St Martin's Place, WC2H 0HE
📅 When: Daily until 17 January, 10:30–18:00 (until 21:00 on Friday and Saturday)
🎟️ Price: Adults £12, 12–18s £5, under-12s free

📍 Where: Royal Mews, Buckingham Palace Road, SW1W 0QH
📅 When: Until Monday 4 January, Thursday–Monday 10:00–17:30
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

📍 Where: Southbank Centre, Queen’s Walk, under Hungerford Bridge, SE1 8XX
📅 When: Daily until 3 January, stalls 11:00–22:00, bars 11:00–23:00
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

📍 Where: Polka Theatre, 240 The Broadway, SW19 1SB
📅 When: Until Sunday 24 January, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: £10–£26 per person, under-12-months £1
👶 Age: 5–12

📍 Where: British Library, 96 Euston Road, NW1 2DB
📅 When: Daily until 20 June, various opening times (see website)
🎟️ Price: Adults £25, under-16s £6

📍 Where: Lightroom, 12 Lewis Cubitt Square, N1C 4DY
📅 When: Daily until 4 January, entry timeslots throughout the day
🎟️ Price: Adults £25, 3–18s £15 (families of 3+ get 15% off at checkout on selected timeslots)
👶 Age: “Younger children need to be supervised in the space and we ask that parents are considerate of the experience for all our guests.”

📍 Where: Guildhall Art Gallery, Guildhall Yard, EC2V 5AE
📅 When: Daily until 21 March, timeslots between 10:00 and 16:30
🎟️ Price: Pay what you can (including “free”) – booking required
👶 Age: suitable for all

📍 Where: Tate Britain, Millbank, SW1P 4RG
📅 When: Daily until 14 February, 10:00–18:00
🎟️ Price: Adults £22, 12–18s £5, under-12s free

📍 Where: Handel Hendrix House, 25 Brook Street, W1K 4HB
📅 When: Wednesday–Sunday until 11 April, 10:00–17:00
🎟️ Price: Free with general admission (adults £14.50, 13–17s £5, under-13s free as part of a family group)

📍 Where: Puppet Theatre Barge, Blomfield Road, Little Venice, W9 2PF
📅 When: Various dates until 15 November, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: Adults £15, 2–16s £12, under-2s free
👶 Age: 3–7

📍 Where: Museum of Youth Culture, 51 St Pancras Way, NW1 0PZ
📅 When: Wednesday–Sunday until 22 November, 12:00–18:00
🎟️ Price: FREE – advance booking recommended

📍 Where: V&A South Kensington, Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL
📅 When: Daily until 17 January, 10:00–17:45 (until 22:00 on Fridays)
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

📍 Where: Barbican Theatre, Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS
📅 When: Until Saturday 23 January, various performance times (see website)
🎟️ Price: From £34 per person (including transaction fee)
👶 Age: 14+

📍 Where: Southbank Centre, The Undercroft, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
📅 When: Tuesday–Sunday until 29 November, 12:00–20:00
🎟️ Price: FREE – no booking required

📍 Where: Dulwich Picture Gallery, Gallery Road, SE21 7AD
📅 When: Tuesday–Sunday until 17 January, 10:00–17:00
🎟️ Price: Adults £19, under-18s free

📍 Where: Royal Academy, Burlington House, Piccadilly, W1J 0BD
📅 When: Tuesday–Sunday until 31 January, 10:00–18:00 (Friday and Saturday until 21:00)
🎟️ Price: Adults £26, under-16s free

📍 Where: Tate Modern, Bankside, SE1 9TG
📅 When: Daily until 21 February, 10:00–18:00 (Friday and Saturday until 21:00)
🎟️ Price: Adults £20, 12–18s £5, under-12s free

📍 Where: Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 0RN
📅 When: Daily until 10 January, 10:00–18:00
🎟️ Price: Adults £16, under-19s free (includes the permanent collection)

📍 Where: National Gallery, Trafalgar Square, WC2N 5DN
📅 When: Daily until 31 January, 10:00–18:00 (Friday until 21:00)
🎟️ Price: Adults £25, under-18s free

📍 Where: Troubadour Wembley Park Theatre, 3 Fulton Road, Wembley, HA9 0SP
📅 When: Until 3 January, various performance times
🎟️ Price: £35–£199 (!) per person
👶 Age: 6+; under-3s not admitted

📍 Where: Design Museum, 224–238 Kensington High Street, W8 6AG
📅 When: Until 10 January, 10:00–17:00 Monday–Thursday and 10:00–18:00 Friday–Sunday
🎟️ Price: Adults £17.09, 6–15s £8.55, under-6s free

📍 Where: Design Museum, 224–238 Kensington High Street, W8 6AG
📅 When: Until 4 April, 10:00–18:00 (until 17:00 Monday–Thursday)
🎟️ Price: Adults £21, 6–15s £11, under-6s free

📍 Where: Science Museum, Exhibition Road, SW7 2DD
📅 When: Daily until 3 January, 10:00–18:00
🎟️ Price: FREE – but you need to book a free admission ticket to enter

📍 Where: Barbican Centre, Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS
📅 When: Tuesday–Sunday until 28 February, 10:00–17:00 (until 19:00 on Thursdays and Fridays)
🎟️ Price: Adults £20.50, under-16s free

📍 Where: Somerset House, Strand, WC2R 1LA
📅 When: Tuesday–Sunday until 29 November, various timeslots each day
🎟️ Price: FREE – booking required
👶 Age: 13+

📍 Where: Eclipso Immersive Entertainment, 213–219 Camden High Street, NW1 7BT
📅 When: Wednesday–Sunday (and daily during half term) until 31 December, 10:00 or 11:00–19:00
🎟️ Price: Adults £27.50, 8–17s £21.50 (family bundles and London resident pricing also available)
👶 Age: children must be 8+

📍 Where: British Museum, Great Russell Street, WC1B 3DG
📅 When: Daily until 31 January, 10:00–17:00 (Fridays until 20:30)
🎟️ Price: Adults £20, under-16s free

📍 Where: Sussex Mansions, 79–85 Old Brompton Road, SW7 3LD
📅 When: Until 21 March, various timeslots each day
🎟️ Price: Adults £24.61, 6–17s £16.05 (family bundles also available)
👶 Age: suitable for all (“Note that some exhibits and installations contain mature content, so parental discretion is advised.”)

📍 Where: Serpentine North, West Carriage Drive, W2 2AR
📅 When: Until 31 January, Tuesday–Sunday 10:00–17:00
🎟️ Price: FREE, but booking required

📍 Where: Little Angel Theatre, 14 Dagmar Passage, N1 2DN
📅 When: Until 22 November, various start times (see website)
🎟️ Price: Adults £16, 1–17s £14
👶 Age: 2–5