The sculpture at night Pic: ArcelorMittal Orbit
We’re expecting the arrival of Hurricane Bertha in London any moment so you might want to plan being indoors this Friday night, August 8…
Get your grove on and throw some moves among the red twists of London’s squiggliest and tallest sculpture, the ArcelorMittal Orbit, as it opens Friday August 8 for a trio of adult-only evening sessions. Along with an impressive view of the sun setting over London, visitors will be treated to live music, DJs and silent discos, with a licensed bar and food available all evening. Book in advance.
Start your Saturday, August 9, reducing your carbon footprint with a DIY Solar Panel workshop. Do you fancy creating your own electricity? No experience or skills are required, so even those who consider assembling an Ikea lamp to be a challenging DIY project will leave with their very own functioning panel. At 9.30, £100, Axion House, 1 Silver Road, Lewisham, London, SE13 7BQ.
Also this Saturday, one week on from First World War comemmorations, brings the East London Suffragette Festival. A day of talks, workshops and performances about history, equality and East London, at historic Toynbee Hall, 28 Commercial Street, London E1 6LS. Cake, jumble plus stalls and activities for the kids. From 10am to 6pm. Free entry.
Jeff Bridges in The Big Lebowski Pic: FILEPHOTO
Saturday night should be fair weather returns so put your dressing gown on, grab your bowling gear and sup a White Russian ready as The Big Lebowski will be screened at Lewisham’s pop up Outdoor Cinema at Manor House Gardens, Lee, Lewisham, SE13 5SU. Tickets are £10 or get a weekend pass and brave the weather. For £25 you can also watch The Royal Tenenbaums on Friday, August 8, and Top Gun on Sunday, August 10. Closest railway stations are Hither Green and Lee. Take layers as it will get chilly and something to sit on. Keep up to date following @popupscreens.
On Sunday, August 10, head to the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park to cheer along cyclists taking part in the 100 mile Prudential Ride London challenge which travels through the capital and onto Surrey’s countryside roads, through the Surry Hills before finishing at The Mall. If you want to take part but missed the ballot (80,000 people registered for 24,000 place) it’s not too late. The ride is for amateur’s and riders will be seeded by ability from 6am. Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park, London, E20 2ST. Visit the website for more information and details road closures.
Dance Party with Swing Patrol
The best way to banish any Monday blues surely must be doing a jitterbug or a Lindy Hop! Make your way, half way down a pedestrian alley called Graces Alley, hidden on the edge of the City of London between Wapping and Whitechapel and you will find Wilton’s Music Hall. A unique building comprising a mid-19th Century grand music call attached to an 18th Century terrace of three houses and a pub. From 7pm on Monday, August 11, you can take to the dance floor with help from the Swing Patrol experts. Dance class 7pm, music from 7.30pm, £15 (including class).
Tuesday, August 12, from 1pm Breakers Yard in Sutton House opens. It’s their newly refurbished outdoor. Once a mere scrubland, Breaker’s Yard has been transformed into a late-20th century themed urban oasis with funding from arts charity, The House of Fairytales and award-winning landscape designer Daniel Lobb. You’ll be able to explore its edible garden and innovative art installations, including ‘The Magical Grange’, a 1970s, two-storey caravan kitted out like a historic stately home.
Crate barman Borja and Chef Willy Pic: Secret Adventures
See Hackney by water on Tuesday, August 12
The Crate Brewery in Hackney Wick launches Secret Adventures and you can paddle through the Hackney canals from Limehouse to Crate Brewery on the water’s edge for £36 per person. Fingers crossed for a clear evening as the sunsets over the water are spectacular. If you’ve never canoed before that’s fine. This adventure is suitable for everyone. Limehouse Basin to Unit 7, Queens Yard, E147JZ.
Head to Hackney’s Oslo on Wednesday, August 13, to hear the psychedelic breakdowns and searing of Childhood who got together at Nottingham Uni, several years ago. Nowadays they’re back in London, where their founding members grew up, and honing their already promising gift for big melodies. £7.50. Doors open at 7.00pm. Oslo 1a-1c Amhurst Road, E8 1LL.
Start your Thursday, August 14, with a warming cleanse of hot yoga. So at 7am get yourself to Hotpod yoga who have set up a new installation on the roof of Netil House with space for 25 yogis. The vinyasa class for beginners and intermediate will be heated to 37 degrees with the promise of taking your mind to an altogether new place. Netil Hose, London Fields. It costs £12 per lesson.
End it at the London Craft beer festival at Oval Space, O2, running till Sunday August 17. Craft beers from London, the UK, Europe and beyond and you can soak the booze up with street food and enjoy live music. Tickets are £25 per person which include several drinks and entry to the Flanders Festival in the Pickle Factory next door. Oval Space, 32 The Oval, Tower Hamlets, E2 9DT.
End your week on Friday, August 15, with a healthy debate about equal access to creative careers. Supported by the Intern Magazine, showcasing the best intern and unpaid talent across the creative industries plus Lets Be Brief, the creative journal and agency. The Russet, Hackney Downs Studios Hackney Downs Studios, 17 Amhurst Terrace, E8 2BT London 6pm.
