🐧 7 things to do in London this weekend with the kids (16–17 November)

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Hi DiLFs!

Like many parents, I require that my children put on their metaphorical blinkers when we “exit through the gift shop”. It isn’t because London’s galleries and museums are full of useless plastic tat: quite the opposite. There’s some truly incredible stuff to buy in those places, and I just know I’d get suckered into buying it all – because I’d want everything too.

… Which means they’re a GREAT place to find Christmas gifts.

If you’re on the lookout for something a bit different for friends and family, check out these normally-shunned-by-anyone-but-tourists stores, because they have a lot to offer.

For example: 

• This Connecting London board game from the London Museum (which involves laying tiles to connect Zone 1 stations before your opponents) is educational, useful and fun. Ditto the jigsaw. 

• This Elite Syncopations print from the Royal Ballet & Opera would look amazing on someone’s wall. And the Create Your Own Theatre would make a thoughtful gift for a performance-loving youngster. 

• A cloth-bound hardcover of a Charles Dickens classic might not be appreciated by a Minecraft-loving ten-year-old at the time of receiving it, but its value will be felt in years to come (maybe). Or you could just get the Charles Duckens bathtime companion for a surefire hit. Both are from, obvs, the Charles Dickens Museum. 

• There’s a London dog map tea towel at the V&A, plus of course a London cat map tea towel. What I’d really like, however, is this owl glass pitcher.  

I’ve created a list of all the top museum and gallery shops, with some links to a few of my favourite finds at each one. The list is completely free, and you just need to click to download it. I’m not asking for anything in return, but – if you’d like to find a way to say thank you – I’d LOVE for you to refer Dads in London to just one person. Just one!

And now onto another list: what to do this week. There are a few bonus events this week because I just wouldn’t whittle it down to five – sorry!

Jeff xx

1: Solve the Rubik’s mystery (or at least learn some tricks)

50 Years of the Rubik’s Cube
Saturday 16 November, 14:00–15:15
The Royal Institution, 21 Albemarle Street, W1S 4BS
Adults £17.06, children (16 and under) £10.85

How many possible arrangements are there in a Rubik’s Cube? Take a guess. WRONG! The answer is far, far higher: 43,252,003,274,489,856,000 (that’s 43 quintillion). So – unless you cheated or have a ridiculous brain – this might explain why you haven’t solved it yet.

Now I’m not saying this event will help you become an annoyingly smug person at birthday parties any time soon (I swear: no one wants you to show up with your little multicoloured cube and a weird new flex). But it will arm you with loads of exciting facts, anecdotes and answers to questions you didn’t realise you cared about – plus insights that might just (maybe) one day finally get all those colours in line. 

It’s billed as a family show “full of mathematics, magic, and some unforgettable moments” and is hosted by Andrew Jeffrey, the founder of the world’s largest national maths festival. Not only that, but he “briefly held the record for being the youngest person in the entire universe and is fluent in nearly two languages”. I like this guy.

Find out more: https://www.rigb.org/whats-on/50-years-rubiks-cube 

2: Create emotional masterpieces at Tate Modern 

Uniqlo Tate Play Make Studio: The Joy of Feeling
Tate Modern, Bankside, SE1 9TG
Saturday and Sunday, 10:30–18:00 (and various other days until 12 February)
FREE

Uniqlo has been partnering with Tate Modern since 2021 to create year-round family activities, and I’m pretty sure that’s why my wardrobe is 74% Uniqlo: I’m at these events a lot, and branding clearly works.

The theme changes every few weeks, and there’s a new theme right now. It’s called The Joy of Feeling, and it provides various tactile materials for children to create a sculpture that shows how they feel. The purpose is to show how art can help us express our emotions, and you’re encouraged to look around the Tate’s galleries (the permanent ones are all free to enter) to get inspiration from other artists first. 

Tbh this theme doesn’t sound like the most innovative one I’ve ever encountered at Tate Modern, but that’s just because they’ve set the bar so high with other family activities this year. 

As with all Uniqlo Tate Play events, it’ll be well-organised and brimming with crafting materials. It’ll also be loaded with sculptures so impressive that you’ll silently accuse the kids of having adult help… before you remember all the assistance you gave your own kids (and realise what that says about your own level of artistic talent).

Find out more: https://www.tate.org.uk/whats-on/tate-modern/uniqlo-tate-play/uniqlo-tate-play 

3: Walk London’s streets in search of festive waddlers

Penguin Parade
Until 5 January
Fleet Street Quarter (see map)
FREE

If you did The Snowman Trail last year and loved it, you get to do the same thing again this year – but this time with penguins, and with children who whine more about walking and cold weather than 12 months ago. (Why do kids become less hardy as they grow older?)

The 12 penguin sculptures are popping up in spots like Chancery Lane, New Street Square, Ludgate Circus and Fleet Street; they’re all dressed in jolly Christmas clothing, and you can find them by downloading a map and audio guide created by Olaf Falafel. 

Because all experiences need something “interactive” and tech-based about them these days (old fart alert!), each penguin has a QR code beside it to learn more about them. You can also use the QR code to chip in a donation to the WWF if you fancy. And no, I won’t be making a joke about wrestling here. Bah humbug!

Find out more: https://wildinart.co.uk/events/fleet-street-penguin-parade

While you’re there… 

👍️ You probably know that Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese is famous, but maybe you aren’t sure why. Did Dickens hang out there or something? Is it where Fleet Street journalists used to get drunk at lunchtime? Is it the oldest pub in London, or the world, or something impressive? Yes, yes and yes…ish. 

Dickens, Twain, Tennyson and Wodehouse (plus so many others it’s ridiculous) drank and dined here. Fleet Street journalists did indeed down a lot of beverages here. And there’s been a pub at this location since 1538 – which would make it very almost the oldest if it weren’t for the fact that the Great Fire demolished the place and it needed to be rebuilt from scratch. 

YOCC, as no one calls it, is a chop house as well as a pub – which means they know how to prepare, cook and serve an excellent cut of meat. 

👍️ Dr Samuel Johnson lived around the corner from Ye Olde Cheshire Cheese (but was never spotted there), and his house is now a museum. If you visit, you’ll be able to see his huge library of books, manuscripts and pamphlets (including first editions of Johnson’s Dictionary) plus a varied collection of his paintings and random other objects he owned – including pieces of Georgian furniture, his desk and chair, his walking stick and a letter case. Note: the museum is closed on Sundays. 

4: Take part in a century-old quiet tribute

Field of Remembrance
Saturday and Sunday, 08:30–18:00
North Green, Westminster Abbey, 20 Deans Yard, SW1P 3PA
FREE

Now in its 96th year, the Field of Remembrance is a memorial garden for those who died in the Armed Forces. It contains 250 plots for regimental and armed services associations, which are filled with remembrance poppies from members of the public. 

You can get involved too: any visitor can buy a poppy and plant it. Each poppy is affixed to a wooden token on which you can write a name or message (or both), and when all the poppies are planted, it’ll resemble a temporary military cemetery.

The Field is only open for about a week, and once it closes (this Sunday afternoon), the crosses are collected and burnt – and the ashes are scattered at the WWI battlefields in northern France and Belgium. Any money raised is donated to The Royal British Legion. 

It’s a pretty meaningful event, and one that I think my six-year-old is just about ready to appreciate. 

Find out more: https://www.westminster-abbey.org/abbey-events/special-services/2024/november/field-of-remembrance-2024/ 

While you’re there… 

👍️ The Field of Remembrance is in the North Green of Westminster Abbey. If you want, you can go inside the Abbey for a service that day too – such as the Sung Eucharist at 11:15 or Evensong at 15:00. It doesn’t matter what religion you are (or if you have no religion): you’re welcome to join in. 

5: Discover the clever workarounds behind Britain’s trickiest builds

Difficult Sites: Architecture Against the Odds Exhibition
Saturday 16 November, 10:00–17:00, and other dates until spring 2025 (closed on Sundays)
The Royal Institutes of British Architects, 66 Portland Place, W1B 1AD
FREE

I wasn’t sure about including this exhibition: it’s not exactly glitter guns and jokes about poo-poo. (Neither is the Field of Remembrance, in case you were wondering.) But my eldest loves architecture, and while every child is a unique snowflake or whatever, I reckon many of them are fascinated by buildings and construction.

Difficult Sites explores over 20 buildings across Britain, all created despite “tricky terrain, awkward urban plots, challenging remodels, and more”. You’ll find everything from cultural hubs and housing estates to regular homes and head-scratching renovations.

Proving that architects often do their best work when backed into a corner, these buildings show how obstacles can be turned into something downright clever. Take the brutalist Alexandra Road Estate in South Hampstead (Daddy Pig would be in heaven: there’s enough concrete to sink a ship). Love it or loathe it, the stepped gardens and curved design were a clever workaround to fit snugly alongside the Euston mainline.

The exhibition is divided into three sections: Difficult Landscapes, Difficult Urban Spaces, and Difficult Reworks, with iconic sites like the Eden Project, Westminster Abbey and the British Library, plus some places you didn’t know existed. There’s original art, models, and plans – enough to make even a Nerf-gun-wielding kid nod thoughtfully.

Find out more: https://www.architecture.com/explore-architecture/exhibitions/Difficult-Sites_Architecture-against-the-odds 

While you’re there… 

👍️ You’re right next to the south-east bit of The Regent’s Park – home to Marylebone Green Playground (which has some of the most unique playground equipment in London) and the beautiful English Gardens. Walk a bit further and you’ll find yourself in the world-famous (or at least I think it’s world-famous?) Queen Mary’s Rose Gardens and my son’s favourite: the Japanese Garden Island.

👍️ Did you ever read Saturday by Ian McEwan? The entire novel takes place in Fitzrovia – and most of it in Fitzroy Square specifically. Fitzroy Square is the home or former home of tons of famous people and institutions – including Ian McEwan himself. Many other books are set there, and multiple movies and TV programmes have been filmed in the square too. It’s a lovely place to walk around and go blue plaque-spotting, and the garden in the middle is beautiful.  

6: Join a live cardboard quest of crafting, creating, and quirky challenges

Boxville
Sunday 17 November, 13:00 and 15:00
The Albany, Douglas Way, SE8 4AG
£9.50 per person

Last time this show was on, I only managed to mention it in a quick round-up because I wasn’t aware of it until the last minute. So I’m glad it’s back, because it gives me a chance to write a proper description of a bonkersly brilliant event. 

The overarching gist of the show is that you, the audience, will work with the cardboard engineers on stage to create cardboard everythings (musical instruments, shields, dragons, crabs, space suits, etc.). This bizarre assortment of paper-based pieces will then be used to complete the tasks and trials of Boxville – and by the end of it, you’ll all be fully fledged cardboard engineers yourselves.

I’ll grant you that the plot is somewhat unclear. But what it lacks in anything resembling a point, it makes up for in astoundingly good corrugated keepsakes (you get to take your items home with you).  

Find out more: https://www.thealbany.org.uk/shows/boxville/ 

7: Step into a tale of mythical creatures, Islamic art... and a very British designer

Family Day: The Magic of Storytelling
Saturday 16 November, 13:00–13:30, 13:45–14:15, 14:30–15:00 and 15:15–15:45
William Morris Gallery, Lloyd Park, Forest Road, E17 4PP
FREE entry to the gallery and storytelling session (and no need to book)

I went on a quick deep dive down a sea of rabbit holes about William Morris, because I knew almost nothing about him and love mixing my metaphors. Turns out he was one of those 19th century polymaths who make us 21st century living people feel like a let-down to the world. This man was a designer, a poet, a publisher, a textile designer, and a famous socialist and preservationist. And what can we all do? Well I don’t know about you, but I’m a master of the claw machine at arcades – and until this morning, I was exceptionally proud of that skill. 

Morris (who came across as very English) was inspired by art from the Islamic world, and there’s currently an exhibition at the William Morris Gallery showing how his work was heavily influenced by Islamic textiles, ceramics, metalwork and manuscripts. 

… Which brings me to this family event on Saturday. Taking its lead from the main exhibition, there’ll be a story about a “colourful journey across borders, countries, and time”, which features mythical creatures and fairytale characters along the way. There’ll also be activities that are connected in some way to the theme, but I’m not sure what they are. 

OK, it all seems a bit vague. BUT the session is being led by Elias Mattar – who’s a Palestinian play specialist, drama therapist, director and storyteller. I looked him up and he’s legit accomplished, which makes me confident that this event will be more impressive and well-organised than the description suggests. 

Find out more: https://www.wmgallery.org.uk/event/family-day-magic-of-storytelling/ 

While you’re there… 

👍️ Entrance to the gallery and all its exhibitions are free. So you should definitely check out the current exhibition – William Morris & Art from the Islamic World – while you’re there. 

👍️ Deeny’s Cafe at the gallery looks AMAZING. Instead of the bog-standard salads, flimsy sandwiches and overpriced cakes, this place focuses on what we actually want to eat: toasties. And the toastie ingredients are insane.  

Book now! House of Dreams

House of Dreams
Saturday 7 December, 09:45–17:00 (slots throughout the day)
45 Melbourne Grove, SE22 8RG
£12 per person

You don’t have time to read anything about House of Dreams: just go book for Saturday 7 December before slots disappear.