Enjoy the rest of the summer with these fun events and things to do in SW London taking place this month...
1. Chihuly Nights at Kew
📍 Kew Gardens 📅 Aug 15-Oct 26, 7.30pm - 10.30pm
Starting this month is the rare chance to experience Kew Gardens at sunset as they open for 33 Chihuly Nights. Wander the pathways, taking in some of Kew’s most stunning sights, including the incredible illuminated colourful glass sculptures of Chihuly. As well as the outdoor locations, you can also take a peek inside the Temperate House, the Waterlily House and the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanic Art. Food, drink and music is also on offer.
2. The Bull’s Head
bullsheadbarnes.com
📍 Barnes 📅 Various dates and times
More jazz and blues at the Bull’s Head with a month’s line-up of live acts. Grab a drink, some dinner and prepare to tap those toes.
3. Environment Trust Clothes Swap
📍 Etna Centre, Twickenham 📅 Aug 2, 6.30pm-9.30pm (Tickets: £10)
The Environment Trust charity is encouraging locals to help the fashion industry be more sustainable by launching a clothes swap. Contributors are asked to donate between 4 and 10 items of clothing and they will be able to take home a new outfit of the same number.
4. Children’s Night Safaris
📍 London Wetland Centre 📅 Aug 2–30, 7 pm–10 pm, for children aged 7+ (Tickets: £25.50 per child)
Experience the wild side of this wonderful place – an evening adventure, including building dens, listening to wildlife, looking for bats and other nocturnal animals – and if you’re in luck, some stars in the dark sky – plus a campfire, stories and toasted marshmallows.
5. Lux Afrique Polo Day
📍 Ham Polo Club 📅 Aug 3 (Tickets from £59)
If you want to see a few chukkas with a difference, head down to Ham to see the only African polo event of its kind in Europe. On offer is live music, top-notch polo and a supercar parade.
6. Luna Cinema
ROBERT SMAEL
📍 Hampton Court Palace 📅 Various dates
See A Star is Born (Aug 8), Bohemian Rhapsody (Aug 9), Mamma Mia! Here We Go Again (Aug 10) and The Greatest Showman (Aug 11) in the glorious gardens of this exquisite setting.
Like outdoor cinemas? Read our article on all the best outdoor cinemas and theatres in Surrey & SW London here.
7. The Beatles in Twickenham
http://www.swlondoner.co.uk
📍 Exchange Twickenham 📅 Until Aug 16. (Free)
An exhibition documenting the Fab Four’s time in the borough, including making Help! In Ailsa Avenue in St Margarets and the famous pub scene from A Hard Day’s Night filmed at the Turk’s Head.
8. Alice in Wonderland
📍 Kew Gardens 📅 July 20 - August 26 (£22.90 adults, £17.70 children)
Lewis Carroll’s classic story is brought to life in a family-friendly outdoor theatre by the Australian Shakespeare Company. Go along with Alice as she tumbles down the rabbit hole and meet all your other favourite characters. A perfect summer holiday treat!
9. Get set for RIDELONDON!
📍 London - over six festival zones 📅 Aug 3-4
The world’s largest cycle festival returns this month and as well as seeing some of the world’s top professionals putting the pedal to the metal through London and Surrey, you can enjoy eight miles of traffic-free roads in the capital during the FreeCycle on Saturday, August 3. Perfect for families, there are Led Rides from every London borough to deliver you to and from the FreeCycle route and there’s bike-based fun going on all over the city at six festival zones. See News for the professional race (Aug 4).
10. Surrey Sculpture Society Trail
https://www.surreysculpture.org.uk
📍 RHS Wisley 📅 Aug 17–Sept 22
Wander the beautiful gardens and be inspired by more than 100 sculptures by some of the South’s finest artists – both established and emerging. All pieces are available to buy…
11. Nile Rodgers at the Southbank Centre
📍The Southbank Centre 📅 Aug 3–11
If you missed the Chic co-founder at Hampton Court, then get your tickets booked for the Meltdown Festival, curated by Rodgers himself. There will be nine days of live music, including funk, disco, jazz, soul, classical, pop and much more!
13. Glow in the Park
📍Kempton Park Racecourse 📅 Aug 31, 8.15pm (£10 registration fee which includes a charity glow in the dark t-shirt, headband and medal. Minimum sponsorship: £50)
Get your glow on and raise money for Kingston Hospital by doing a neon night 5K. A fun event for the whole family from ages 6 and up. Light shows and energising beats will carry you around the course.
14. Sing the Blues and Dance with Soul
reactcharity.org
📍 See details below 📅 Sept 28 (Tickets: £95. Tel: 020 8940 2575 or email: react@reactcharity.org)
A charity fundraiser for React – enjoy a glass of prosecco, three-course dinner, including wine and an evening of dancing.
15. Hampton Court Palace Food Festival
📍 Hampton Court Palace 📅 Aug 24–26
Save your elasticated waists for the August bank holiday and this lovely end-of-summer food festival. There are stalls, talks and plenty of delectable offerings to try and buy. Stars such as Michel Roux Jr will be there!
16. Summerchime
reactcharity.org
📍 Chiswick House and Gardens 📅 August 16, from 5.30pm. (Tickets from £82.50)
Children with Cancer UK launches an evening of music representing the moment of celebration that every child with cancer longs to experience – the chiming of their end of treatment bell. This intimate event, held in the walled garden of Chiswick House and Gardens, will feature an exclusive headline performance from Liam Payne (of One Direction fame) with support from international chart-toppers All Saints, and critically-acclaimed X Factor winner Louisa.
17. Family Workshops at the William Morris Society
📍 The William Morris Society, 26 Upper Mall, W6 9TA 📅 Various dates- see below (All £5 per child + fees
• Create badges and brooches using modelling clay, inspired by the designs of William Morris and his daughter May. (Aug 7, 10.30am-1pm).
• Decorate a jar using special glass paints, then create a beautiful design on a ceramic tile. (Aug 14, 10.30am-1pm).
• Use new weaving looms and a variety of yarns to create a placemat or bookmarks. (Aug 21, 10.30am-1pm).
Suitable for children age 6-12. Please note that children under 8 must be accompanied by an adult)
18. Urban Food Fest Market
📍 Chiswick Park Work-Enjoy 📅 1 & 29 Aug, 12-3pm
Sweet and savoury treats to tickle all taste buds from over 15 different food traders.
19. Shakespeare continueth!
📍 George IV Chiswick, The Queen’s Head Brook Green, The Rose & Crown Ealing 📅 Aug 1 (George IV Chiswick), Aug 3 at (The Queen’s Head Brook Green), & August 29-30 at (The Rose & Crown Ealing)
Fuller’s transforms 32 of its pub gardens into a magical setting for an evening of open-air Shakespeare. Catch al fresco performances of The Merry Wives of Windsor and Romeo and Juliet, playing at pubs in Chiswick, Ealing, Hammersmith and Barnes.
20. Bank Holiday Birds of Prey at Chiswick Food Market
📍 Chiswick Food Market 📅 Aug 25, 10am-2pm
Every Sunday, come rain or shine, approximately 25 top producers from around the country come and sell their produce at Chiswick Food Market, from artisan cheeses, breads, fresh vegetables, homemade apple juice and more, to delicious hot food, plants and even gourmet dog treats. This month, the market will also be welcoming the Eagle Heights Wildlife Foundation which will be bringing some rescued birds of prey, such as Kayla the Bald Eagle. You can find the beautiful birds in the market until 1 pm, and then watch them being flown in the park afterwards.
21. Happy Place Live
📍 Chiswick House and Gardens 📅 Aug 3-4, 10am-6pm (Tickets from £35.75)
Fearne Cotton’s brand-new Happy Place Festival launches at Chiswick House and Gardens this month. Following her popular Happy Place podcast and best-selling book Happy, the festival aims to show visitors how to be just that with meditation workshops, mindful arts and crafts, massage, sound therapy, expert talks, yoga classes, and live podcasts. Sunday is a family day, with child-friendly activities, workshops and food for little ones.
22. Experience Queen Victoria's Palace
Royal Collection Trust - rct.co.uk
📍 Buckingham Palace 📅 Until 29 September 2019 (£25 adults, under 17 £14, under 5s free (concessions, family group tickets also available)
This year’s special exhibition at the annual 10-week Summer Opening of the State Rooms at Buckingham Palace is Queen Victoria’s Palace, which tells the story of how the young Queen transformed Buckingham Palace from an unloved private house into a working royal residence and a powerful symbol of the British Monarchy.
23. Notting Hill Carnival
https://nhcarnival.org
📍On the streets of London W10 and W11 📅 Aug 25-26
Europe’s biggest street festival was first held in 1966 as an offshoot of the Trinidad Carnival, celebrating Caribbean culture and traditions in London. Now it’s an annual event and a colourful spectacle celebrating London’s rich and varied multicultural past and present. Watch elaborate floats and costumed performers wind their way through the streets, dance to sound systems, Brazilian and steel bands and calypso music, and try some jerk chicken, callaloo, or traditional goat stew from tempting food stalls along the route.
24. Fun for little ones at Gunnersbury Park Museum
📍 Gunnersbury Park Museum 📅 Various dates and ticket prices (Special offer: Book the Minibeast Safari and Flora & Pip's Big Adventure together for £12 per child!)
Brilliant botanicals
Led by an expert botanical artist from Kew Gardens, children (aged 7+) will be taught skills in drawing and painting botanical specimens and then create their own pieces of art using flowers. (Aug 21, 10am-12.30pm, £15).
Sculptures from nature
Make a minibeast or a magical creature using found natural objects from the gardens. Kids can take their sculpture home, or add it to the Museum’s new menagerie. (Aug 24, 10am-12.30pm, £15).
Minibeast safari & pond dipping
Grab your minibeast spotting equipment and discover the hidden world of insects at Gunnersbury and why these special habitats are so important. Led by Ealing Park Ranger James Morton. (Aug 30, 10am-12.30pm, £10).
Flora and Pip’s Big Adventure
Flora and Pip are lost and are helped by some very special creatures. Explore the magical micro-world of minibeasts and their habitats in this fun and interactive outdoor storytelling session. Aimed at children aged 4-7 years, but all ages welcome. (Aug 30, 1.30-3pm. £5 per child, £3 per additional siblings).
25. Great British Beer Festival
JoannsBuncelmans BMN
📍 Olympia London 📅 Aug 6-10 (Tickets from £9/£14 on the door)
Organised by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), this is one of the biggest events in the beer and cider world, bringing together hundreds of real ales, international beers and ciders and perries. As well as the huge range of drinks on offer, there’s a varied selection of street food, snacks and entertainment.
26. London Craft Beer Festival
📍 Tobacco Dock 📅 Aug 9-11. Tickets from £40 (includes tasting glass and unlimited small pours of any beer from any brewer).
Now in its seventh year and with its biggest ever line up of breweries and beer aficionados to date, this Tobacco Dock event hosts over 80 breweries with close to 500 different beers on tap, as well as food stands from some familiar London restaurants plus live music and DJ sets.
27. TroubaKids Festival
📍 The Troubadour White City Theatre 📅 Various dates & times
West London’s newest theatre The Troubadour White City launches this summer with a family theatre festival.
Peter Pan
Bursting with magic, mischief, music and make-believe, Sally Cookson’s inventive Peter Pan is a funny and moving version for audiences of all ages. (Until October 27. Tickets from £18).
Little Baby Bum Live
Join Mia, Jacus, Twinkle and their Nursery Rhyme friends at the world premiere of this brand-new live show of the digital TV sensation, Little Baby Bum, the world’s largest educational YouTube channel. (Until Aug 3. Tickets from £16.50).
Monstersaurus!
A new show from the creators of Aliens Love Underpants. Follow young inventor Monty as he creates a whole world of wacky inventions and incredible monsters. An energetic show for the whole family with original music and plenty of audience participation. Suitable for ages: 3+. (Until Aug 11. Tickets from £16.50).
The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show
Created by Jonathan Rockefeller, the critically acclaimed production of The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show features a menagerie of 75 puppets, faithfully adapting four of Eric Carle’s stories, and celebrating the Caterpillar’s 50th Birthday in 2019. (Aug 7 – Sept 1. Tickets from £15).
Aliens Love Underpants
The stage version of the international bestselling children’s book features plenty of special effects, madcap action, original music and loads of crazy aliens. (Aug 13 – Sept 1. Tickets from £16.50).
28. Fantastic Food Festivals at Wimbledon Park
https://www.eatdrinkseek.co.uk
📍 Wimbledon Park, close to the tennis and volleyball courts 📅 August 24-26
Over 50 specialist stallholders, with tastings, talks and demos, kids activities and some big-name chef appearances. With late opening and DJs performing on the Saturday and Sunday evening.
29. Open Gardens
📍 Various locations 📅 Various dates and times
Two beautiful local gardens welcome visitors this month as part of the National Open Garden Scheme:
Aug 3, 10am-5pm: enjoy the exotic planting and floating pergola of 4 Franconia Road, SW4 9ND (tickets £5).
Aug 29, 5.50-8pm: visit 7 Spencer Road, Wandsworth to see the experimental planting featured in The Garden RHS (tickets £6).
30. Events at Morden Hall Park
📍 Morden Hall Park 📅 Various dates and times
Great Big Tree Climb
For the first time, youngsters (from 6 years) are encouraged to climb the oldest tallest tree in the park with instructors from the Big Tree Company. (Aug 21; tickets £25- booking essential).
Outdoor Acrobatic Theatre
A magical performance of aerial and ground acrobatics by Star Flower in the Rose Garden. (Aug 2-5; 11.30-12.45).
31. Puppet Theatre
📍Richmond 📅 Various dates (Tickets adults £13, children £9)
Three generations of the Middleton family have been creating puppets and bringing their unique river barge productions to Richmond each summer and this year’s fare promises to be as enchanting as ever.
For little ones, lively double bill Three Little Pigs plus Captain Grimey (ages 3-8 years) runs until August 11, followed by visiting company String Theatre with the strange and beautiful world of grasshoppers, beetles, wasps and dragonflies in The Insect Circus from Aug 14-Oct 6.
Book now for Spirit, a captivating puppetry story about otherworldly experiences told by real people, for 14 years plus.
32. Aqua Run Sessions
📍 Tooting Leisure Centre 📅 Every Monday and Thursday in the holidays and on Sundays (£6 a child)
Every Monday and Thursday in the holidays and on Sundays, Tooting Leisure Centre opens its doors for exciting water fun sessions for 8-15 years. Children must be able to swim at least 10 metres. Tickets are first come first served.
33. A Midsummer Night’s Dream
📍 Morden Hall Park 📅 August 17, 7.30pm (Tickets £9-£18.50)
Pack a picnic and prepare for love, magic and mischief in this open-air performance by travelling troupe, The Lord Chamberlain’s Men.