🔊 9 things to do in London this weekend with the kids (11–12 October)

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Hey DILFs!

Assuming you’re old enough… do you remember when the official Tracy Island toy sold out everywhere? The BBC’s ’90s re-runs had set off a full-blown Thunderbirds craze, so parents ended up building the Blue Peter version with Anthea Turner instead. My mum did, and it still ranks among her greatest creations.

Now, after all these years, you have the chance to see the real deal up close. Thunderbirds and Space: 1999 – A Celebration of Sci-fi Toys and Collectables at the Museum of Brands is a proper nostalgia trip for anyone who grew up with Gerry and Sylvia Anderson’s worlds. Alongside Tracy Island you’ll find shelves stacked with the toys we once begged for, plus the branded extras that came with them – like cereal boxes, magazines, board games and books. It was the sort of merch that somehow made eating cornflakes feel like saving the universe.

The exhibition runs until the end of February 2026 – which is plenty of time to indoctrinate your kids into the brilliance of the Tracy clan, Lady Penelope, Parker, and all the other “supermarionation” stars of the 20th century.

If you’re too young or too cool to have an opinion on whether Thunderbird 2 really was the best of the collection, here are some other things you can be doing this weekend.

Enjoy!

Jeff xx

1: Enter a world where two suited octogenarians still delight in winding up the art crowd

Gilbert & George: 21ST CENTURY PICTURES
Saturday 10:00–20:00 and Sunday 10:00–18:00 (plus Tuesday–Sunday until 11 January)
Southbank Centre, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX
Adults £20, 12–16s £8, under-12s free
Age guidance: “There is no age guidance for this exhibition but please be prepared to have age appropriate conversations with children about the content of the work. Our staff are available to support you if you would like any further information.”

Gilbert & George are in their eighties, which ought to mean pipe and slippers, but no – they’re still out here winding people up like toddlers who’ve just worked out that “poo” gets a reaction. That’s been the game for more than 50 years: plastering turds, swear words and bare flesh across giant technicolour grids, always with G & G in the picture too, suited up and staring out. It’s silly and calculated at the same time – they know exactly which buttons they’re pressing. Which is why it’s hard to tell if they’re taking the mick out of the art world or running it. Maybe both.

The new show is called 21st Century Pictures. No mystery there – it’s all work made since the year 2000. In that time Gilbert & George have churned out whole series with titles like New Horny Pictures, The London Pictures, The Beard Pictures and The Corpsing Pictures. These guys are masters of a lot, but they’ve clearly never felt the need to learn the art of the mysterious metaphor when titling their works.

They’ll tell you it’s about big social issues, but half the time it feels more like they’re daring you to squirm. Maybe that’s the point, maybe not – I’ve given up trying to work out their masterplan. What’s certain is it’s brash, blunt and a decent antidote to all those canvases that look like blotting paper with a placard about “ephemerality and the sublime nature of the self”.

The age guidance for the exhibition reads, “There is no age guidance for this exhibition but please be prepared to have age appropriate conversations with children about the content of the work. Our staff are available to support you if you would like any further information.” I would LOVE to know how they’d help you answer all your child’s questions about corpses and willies, so please let me know if that happens.

Find out more: https://www.southbankcentre.co.uk/whats-on/gilbert-george-21st-century-pictures

(In case you’re interested… the Southbank Centre has an article called 5 things to know about Gilbert & George: 21ST CENTURY PICTURES, which provides some useful background information and is easy enough for older primary-aged kids to understand.)

2: Experience an exhibition that doubles as a communal jukebox in the middle of Kensington Gardens

Peter Doig: House of Music
Saturday and Sunday, 10:00–18:00 (and Tuesday–Sunday until 8 February)
Serpentine South, Kensington Gardens, W2 3XA
FREE (booking recommended)

When did the Serpentine become so cool? It barely nudged my radar before about 2022, but now it keeps lobbing out gleefully odd and experimental exhibitions and I can’t keep up. Did they kidnap the PR team that turned Crocs from orthopaedic footwear to fashion statement?

This time it’s auction house sweetheart Peter Doig. The Serpentine has filled its rooms with Doig’s new and recent paintings – many of which were made during his 20-odd years living in Trinidad, where he became familiar with sound system culture and cinema.

In case you need some background info (because I certainly did): sound system culture started in 1950s Jamaica, before spreading across the Caribbean. It was all about huge speaker stacks being set up in the street, DJs talking over the records, and the party carrying on until morning.

They weren’t just parties either. Producers began stripping down and remixing tracks to give their sound system an edge, which is how dub and, later, reggae were born. You see that culture in the gallery paintings: people listening, people dancing, musicians performing... the general sense that sound is always part of the scene.

So far, so straightforward for an exhibition. Which doesn’t exactly line up with me banging on about it being “gleefully odd and experimental” at the start. I may have been over-egging things a bit: after all, this is no The DELUSION, currently on at Serpentine South (see link for my write-up). But it all starts to feel a bit more whoa when you see the paintings that are wired up to a wall of rescued cinema speakers, which are playing out Doig’s vinyl and cassette collection. His soundtrack is in your ears while his images stare back at you from the walls, which I confidently claim to be pretty creative and unique.

And on Sundays the playlist changes, because other musicians and artists come along and bring their own records. Brian Eno, Linton Kwesi Johnson and Dennis Bovell are among the names roped in to turn the place into more of a communal swap-shop than Doig’s private jukebox.

Find out more: https://www.serpentinegalleries.org/whats-on/peter-doig-house-of-music/

While you’re there…

👍️ The DELUSION, mentioned above, is on at Serpentine North. It sounds insane. Scroll down this page for my write-up.

3: Walk through cinema’s wardrobe and see why even hems, buttons and seams mattered on screen

Costume Couture: Sixty Years of Cosprop
Saturday 11 October, 11:00–18:00 (and Tuesday–Saturday until 8 March)
Fashion and Textile Museum, 83 Bermondsey Street, SE1 3XF
Adults £11.50, 12–17s £9.50, under-12s free

Back when telly was black and white, everything on screen was usually a swampy green or sludgy red colour because it made the items look better in greyscale. Then colour TV arrived in the late 60s and, overnight, viewers discovered that half of prime-time Britain had been decorated like a migraine.

Colour TV didn’t just make the old costumes look gross and garish – it, along with sharper cameras, meant audiences could suddenly see every button, every seam, every dodgy hemline on the period dramas they were glued to.

Luckily, there was a man ready to sort out the chaos. A former actor called John Bright started up a new venture called Cosprop, which provided era-faithful clothing for the screen. He wanted costumes that held up under the scrutiny, made with the same materials and methods they would have had in their own time. That meant digging into archives, unpicking historical garments to see how they were made, and teaching teams of cutters, stitchers and milliners skills that were disappearing everywhere else.

Which brings us to Costume Couture, the Fashion and Textile Museum’s celebration of 60 years of Cosprop. You get Colin Firth’s wet Regency shirt from Pride and Prejudice, Meryl Streep’s Out of Africa safari gear, and Johnny Depp’s rumpled Pirates of the Caribbean suit – so realistically grubby you can practically smell it. Add in Oscar-winners like A Room with a View, Howards End and Little Women and you start to realise just how many of cinema’s most memorable costumes have come out of Bright’s workshops.

The detail is startling. Cosprop has always worked on the principle that if you’re making a breeches-and-waistcoat drama, you don’t stop at the waistcoat. You don’t stop at the shirt. You don’t even stop at the underwear: EVERYTHING is historically accurate. According to Cosprop, if the actor knows it’s right, the performance will be too. Which is probably why Colin Firth’s shirt is still getting fan mail.

Find out more: https://fashiontextilemuseum.org/exhibitionsdisplays/costume-couture-sixty-years-of-cosprop/

While you’re there…

👍️ A ten-minute walk away, on Tabard Street, you’ll find estate railings made from old WWII stretchers. During the war, much of London's original fencing was melted down for weapons – so after it ended, someone had the idea to weld surplus stretchers into railings instead. The two kinks in the metal? Designed to make them easier to pick up off the ground.

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4: Explore the see-through floors of Tower Bridge before capping things off at the craft table

Hats Ahoy! Family Activity at Tower Bridge
Saturday 11 October, 10:00–16:00
Tower Bridge, Tower Bridge Road, SE1 2UP
FREE with admission ticket (adults £16, 5–15s £8, under-5s free)
Age guidance: 6–10

I have a new word for you: “bascule”. At least, it’s a new word for me – and therefore I’m assuming it’s a new word for almost everyone. If you already know the word, please don’t ruin the surprise for the rest of the class by shouting out the answer.

A bascule is like a giant seesaw built into a structure, balanced by a heavy weight so it can lift smoothly up and down. It’s most often used for bridges – like Tower Bridge – when the road swings up to let boats pass. The lift needs an initial burst of power to get moving – steam in the old days, electricity now – but once the counterweights kick in they do most of the heavy lifting, making the whole thing possible without using huge amounts of energy.

Anyway! Tower Bridge has mentioned its famous bascules in the most tenuously linked children’s activities I’ve ever seen: “Did you know that around 800 ships pass underneath Tower Bridge's famous bascules every year? Cap off your visit to London’s defining landmark by making a sailor's hat at our family drop-in sessions – yours to take home and keep.” Yup. Ships go under Tower Bridge. Ships have sailors. Sailors wear caps. Let’s make a sailor’s cap!! Could have been worse: ships also have anchors, and I don’t fancy the craft table for that one.

And while making a hat isn’t the most creative activity in existence, it’s a decent way to break up a visit to London’s double-basculed marvel. While you’re there, be sure to lie down on the transparent floor and take a photo using the mirrored ceiling above you. There’s a bunch of other stuff that will be of interest to children there – especially the Engine Rooms – so you’ll get a decent morning or afternoon out of the visit.

Find out more: https://www.towerbridge.org.uk/events/family-activities

While you’re there…

👍️ The Tower of London is just around the corner.

👍️ There’s a hotel nearby called CitizenM, which has a huge, fantastic lobby that children seem to love. There are comfy seats everywhere, fun-looking books and magazines, and it’s generally just a great place to hang out. The lobby serves coffees and various snacks.

👍️ Over the river, across Tower Bridge, is Shad Thames – one of the most beautiful streets in London (check out some photos here). There are plenty of places to eat and get a drink here, and there’s also a Shad Thames Trail if you want to dig into the genuinely interesting history of the place.

5: Watch actual wrestling moves hit the stage, choreographed and kid-approved

Dweeb-A-Mania
Saturday and Sunday, 11:30 and 14:30 (and other dates and times until 9 November)
Polka Theatre, 240 The Broadway, SW19 1SB
£14 per person
Age guidance: 8–13

If you think wrestling is just a backdrop plot in Dweeb-A-Mania – one that could have been swapped for a bouncy castle or football – think again. Based on some hardcore investigative journalism on my part (ish), I can reveal this: the people behind the production have been asking wrestling influencers and family-focused wrestling pages to check out the show and make content about it. There’s going to be legit (child-appropriate) wrestling in this show, and they want to make it known.

It means you’re guaranteed to be seeing some fantastic wrestling moves on stage – ones that have been choreographed to perfection and given the nod by actual family wrestling influencers. Basically, you’re getting a cheap and less sweary version of WWE at Wembley, with the added bonus that nobody’s throwing beer on your shoes and you’re home before bedtime.

Which brings us to the actual story, because yes, there is one. Kemi and Norah are mega-nerds through and through. They think they know a lot about… everything. But when popular boy Bentley refuses to invite them to his wrestling-themed party, they discover – to their horror – that he thinks they’re dweebs. It turns out they have much to learn, especially about wrestling. Together, they secretly hatch a plan to become champion wrestlers, crash Bentley’s party, and prove to everyone that they are, in fact, extremely cool.

Should it seem like this show is swerving the usual “everyone is special” route, fear not: the conclusion is just as clichéd as most children’s theatre, with the blurb promising it “celebrates being exactly who you want to be”. Lame and predictable, maybe, but still preferable to the alternative moral: learn about wrestling if you wannabe cool and get invited to parties.

Find out more: https://polkatheatre.com/event/dweeb-a-mania/

While you’re there…

👍️ The Polka Theatre has free indoor and outdoor play spaces, which you can make use of even if you don’t have a ticket to see a show. The indoor space has activity sheets, a dressing up box, a book corner and a magnet board. The outdoor space, meanwhile, has a tree-house with its own sliding pole, a herb garden, interactive play equipment, sensory plants, bug hotels and bird houses.

6–9: More, more, more, more!

evim [my home]
Sunday 12 October, 11:00 and 14:00
artsdepot, 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, N12 0GA
£13.75 per person
Age guidance: 2–7

“Follow three wanderers as they search for belonging… in places, with people, or in a feeling… Twirl, whirl and play as the performers take you on a spellbinding journey to find a place to call home.

A wonderful introduction to dance theatre for young children, using captivating movement and enchanting music in this non-verbal and sensory show.”

That Knave, Raleigh
Saturday 11 October, 15:00
artsdepot, 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, N12 0GA
£19 per person
Age guidance: 10+

“This is a journey through the astonishing highs and lows of one of Britain’s most famous historical figures. But there’s so much you don’t know…

Father, husband, writer, poet, adventurer, philosopher, soldier, tyrant, egotist, lover, traitor, alchemist, visionary, victim.

In a life spanning around 65 years, Sir Walter Raleigh achieved more than others might do in a hundred lifetimes. Over a decade in the tower and still he held power. The Huguenots, America, The Armada and execution. Is that the whole story? The final chapter of Raleigh’s life is perhaps the most daring, strange and utterly heart-breaking.

See the fall from grace taken directly from historical record, marvel at the magnetism of a man who seized every opportunity to create a legacy which spans the centuries and at every wrenching, exalting and personal moment, you will be witnesses.”

Dawnosaurs: Relaxed Morning Visit
Saturday 11 October, 08:00–10:00
Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD (but you’ll need to enter via the East Entrance on Exhibition Road)
FREE (booking required)
Age guidance: 5–15 (siblings are welcome)

“Dawnosaurs is a free event for neurodivergent children, including those with autism, ADHD, Tourette’s, OCD and other sensory processing difficulties.

Enjoy the Museum, free from the hustle and bustle of the general public. Visitors have access to a wide range of galleries and activities supported by and led by experienced, neurodivergent-aware facilitators.

This event is best for children aged five to 15, and siblings are welcome.

It’s essential that all visitors book a free ticket online.”

Water Lantern Festival
Saturday and Sunday, 15:30–19:30
Clapham Common, Windmill Drive, SW4 9DE
£29 per person (under-8s go free BUT they will not receive a lantern of their own)
Age guidance: suitable for all

“Water Lantern Festival is a community event that encourages people of all ages and backgrounds to come together for a night of love and laughter.

Gather with your loved ones, reflect on your life, and connect with new friends. As the sun sets, release your personalized lantern onto the water and watch it illuminate the night.

Enjoy food trucks, live music, vendors, a scavenger hunt, and the lantern launch.”