Unmissable Things to Do in London in 2026
What fresh hell awaits us? Welcome to 2026, surely the best year to be alive! We’ve spent the first couple of days of the new year in your service, putting together this list of Unmissable Things To Do in London (and beyond) for 2026 – go on, knock yourselves out, have a great one!
First things first: some things to do this January to get you through the darkest of months. Then, on to some of the other gems 2026 has to offer – and, of course, we’ll have a dedicated February list for you, next month…
Scroll down for your January fix – or jump ahead to…
January
Visual Fictions | Books on the Rise | 6-31 January | Free
Artists respond to a brief challenging them to interpret books, stories, writers and characters who inspired them into new artworks. One for those who always judge a book by the cover.
Monkeyface | Riverside Studios | 8 & 10 January | £12
Board the roller coaster of emotions of starting uni with Raphael Phillips’ thrilling new play.
Souvenir | Fitzrovia Chapel | 9 January | FREE
London’s most exciting secret art space in Marylebone brings all new surprises with Souvenir, the first exhibition by inaugural Curators-in-Residence, – the award-winning artists and BAFTA-nominated filmmakers Iain Forsyth & Jane Pollard.
LGSM @ 10 – Piehouse Party! | Piehouse Co-Op | 10 January | From £5
Celebrate 10 years of Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants with this night filled with speakers, DJs and a powerful collective resistance against xenophobic fascism rife in the UK right now.
David Hoyle’s Almanac | Royal Vauxhall Tavern | 15 January | £13
2026 could be a real shit show and who better to wade through it all, than anti-drag icon David Hoyle in their spiritual home the RVT.
FOC IT UP! | Soho Theatre | 14 January | From £16
An unmissable night of fresh femmes of colour comedy curated by the incredible Kemah Bob.
Sick Girl Films: Ginger Snaps | Piehouse Co-Op | 18 January | From £6.13
Two disabled queer people present cult classic films and for this January outing it’s Ginger Snaps, where ‘Two death-obsessed sisters, outcasts in their suburban neighborhood, must deal with the tragic consequences when one of them is bitten by a deadly werewolf’.
Winter Lights | Canary Wharf | 20-31 January | FREE
London’s original and most impressive winter light art trail breathes life and brings colour into the long winter nights and the bleak financial district of Canary Wharf.
Scene Change | Barbican | From 20 January
As the Barbican Centre undergoes refurbishment the venue steps out with some awesome collaborations including with Dante or Die’s BTS wedding promenade performance and Belarus Free Theatre’s dinner debate.
MimeLondon 2026 | Various Venues | From 21 January
London’s visual performance festival returns with some killer moves including Sadiq Ali Company’s Tell Me investigating through circus a young woman’s HIV diagnosis. Powerful stories don’t necessarily need words.
London Short Film Festival | Various Venues | From 23 January
A wonderful way to support new filmmakers and discover London’s most exciting independent cinemas.
3 highlights from this year’s programme that stood out are:
- Trans Sister Seventies! (Sat 24 Jan): Newly unearthed archival shorts chart the trans-feminine experience of the 1970s.
- Palestine Looks Back (Fri 30 Jan): Palestinian voices who dared to go beyond what was asked, turning their gaze back on the West – its inaction, border regimes, colonial history, but also its solidarity and environment.
- So Long To The Valleys, So Long To The Seas (Sat 31 Jan): A journey through global storytelling and folkloric landscapes, where traditions can hold stories of both great celebration and lasting pain.
The Night of One Thousand Margaret Thatchers | Piehouse Co-Op | 23 January | From £8
A fundraiser full of Maggie mayhem with all profits going to the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund.
Weirdos Comedy New-Year Showcase with Adam Larter and Ali Brice | Museum of Comedy | 24 January | £9.25
Offbeat comedy galore with two of the scenes best goofballs.
The Tottenham Outrage | Abney Park | 25 January | FREE
Alan Gartrell gives a tour exploring the mysterious and strange tale of Latvian revolutionaries stealing wages of Tottenham factory workers.
Independent Venue Week | Various Venues | From 26 January
A 7 day celebration of independent music & arts venues. Support yours or it dies.
Vibrance | Venue | 29 & 30 January | FREE
The City of London reverberates with free digital artworks involving light, sound and live performance.
Francisco de Nata | Soho Theatre | 29-31 January | From £18
‘you need this goofy giraffe in your life to rediscover your inner child and let go of being cool.’ Edinburgh Fringe sensation comes to London’s Soho Theatre for a limited run. Don’t miss out.
A Palace of Varieties – The Grand’s 125th Birthday | The Clapham Grand | 29 January | From £10
Celebrate the variety roots of Clapham’s drag party destination with a smorgasbord of top talents.
So Long To The Valleys, So Long To The Seas | The Cinema Museum | 31 January | £10
A chance to delve into folk traditions in the sublimely ghostly surroundings of former poor house at The Cinema Museum.
February
Guidelines | New Diorama Theatre | 3-14 February | From £11
Our online culture is rarely challenged or explored, so this show by newcomer theatre makers CONGLOMERATE is so exciting as they present a ‘live haunting for the social media age’.
Debate: Baldwin vs Buckley | Wilton’s Music Hall | 3-7 February | From £13.50
Hotshot New York company the american vicarious come to London’s oldest surviving grand music hall to re-enact the 1965 debate between writer and leading civil rights activist James Baldwin and conservative intellectual William F. Buckley Jr.
Leicester Comedy Festival | Various Venues | 4-22 February
Get the train up to the Midlands for a Feast of Fools – 735 shows. It’s epic and you’re bound to find something to cheer you up.
Ballroom Boogie with Brigitte Aphrodite | Southbank Centre | 7 February | FREE
A free chance to spend a delightful afternoon with the magical Brigitte Aphrodite.
Letters to the Future with Peggy Seeger | Southbank Centre | 7 February | From £20
Nonagenarian and legendary socialist activist Peggy Seeger returns to the Southbank Centre to join Michele Stodart (The Magic Numbers)’ night of letters and songs.
It Walks Around the House at Night | New Wolsey Theatre, Ipswich | 10-11 February | From £15
A spooky touring production for scare lovers.
The Marvellous Adventures of Mary Seacole | The Rosemary Branch | 11 February | £14
14 years since the last production which explores the legacy of Seacole – healer, traveller and witness to war, the important piece of Black history returns.
I’m In My Regen-slay Era (once again) : Valentine’s Ball | Chats Palace | 12 February | From £10
Love it or hate it, Valentine’s Day season can’t be more fun than at this epic Georgian themed party at DIY beauty Chat’s Palace.
Creepy Boys: Slugs | Soho Theatre | 16-21 February | From £18
Edinburgh Comedy Award nominees Creepy Boys’ latest fringe show Slugs is a radical must-see that helps you escape standard live comedy.
Bitch Boxer | Arcola Theatre | From 18 February | From £15
Charlie Josephine’s breakout hit is theatrical dynamite and is back for a run in Dalston starring one to watch, Jodie Campbell.
Bar Wotever – London’s Legacy Queer Cabaret: 21st Birthday Show | Piehouse Co-Op | 28 February | From £7
London’s original queer new work platform is here to celebrate its 21st birthday at Deptford’s gorgeous den of the anti-establishment.
March
ASTITVA | The Place | 3 & 4 March | From £16
Jaivant Patel Company’s show gives us a window into the world of south-Asian gay men.
Trans Mission | OVO Arena | 11 March | From £34
A one day festival full of top tier trans and ally talent including Trans Voices, Kate Nash, Munroe Bergdorf and more.
Black Athena Festival 2026 | Rich Mix & The Place | From 13 March
A dazzling festival of dance, theatre, music, and live art by pioneering spectacle producers Certain Blacks. The narrative behind the name is all about rebutting the Eurocentric view of history moving the centre of civilisation from Ancient Greece to Egypt.
There Is A Spotlight That Never Goes Out | Phoenix Arts Club, Soho | 25 March
Character comedy queen returns with two characters interpreting the works of The Smiths. Hang the blessed DJ.
Choir Boy | Stratford East | From 26 March | From £10
A revival of the soul-stirring queer coming of age hit by Tarell Alvin McCraney.
April
Giffords Circus Presents: Waterfield | Various Venues | From 2 April
The UK’s most beguiling circus whose previous hits include Carpa set in Mexico, this time takes you closer to home with an exploration of English countryside and the creatures that dwell within.
GIRLKISSER | The Lion & Unicorn Theatre | 7-11 April | £15
A gig-theatre trip through the struggles of Gen Z.
Musical Comedy Awards 2026 | Bloomsbury Theatre | 10 April | From £18.50
TikTok stars The Sugarcoated Sisters headline this showcase of comedy with a melody.
The Music Is Black: A British Story | V&A East | From 18 April
The concrete cultural quarter of East Bank in Stratford finally feels like it’s blooming with this exhibition at the new V&A East exploring Black music culture.
Golden Girls: The Parody Musical | Two Brewers | 29 April – 1 May | From £15
The seminal camp sitcom classic returns soon stage with drag queens Mrs Moore, Rose Garden, Stephanie Von Clitz & Tanya Hyde singing their wise-cracking hearts out.
May
Noughts and Crosses | Hackney Empire | 12-14 May | From £18
Malaria Blackman’s tale of racial and social divides comes to Hackney for a limited engagement.
Gender Stories | Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool | From 16 May | FREE
Head away from London to Liverpool to get this incredible exhibition on the story of gender identity.
Out There | Great Yarmouth | 28-30 May
Go East from Liverpool Street and you’ll end up in the circus capital of the UK for this outdoor arts extravaganza.
June
Pride | National Theatre | From 11 June | From £20
Matthew Warchus revolutionary tale of solidarity between LGBT people and the miners is retold on stage.
Brassed Off | Leeds Playhouse | From 18 June | From £16.50
Hilarious British colliery brand band classic is back and this time on stage 30 years after the movie was released.
Frida: The Making of an Icon | Tate Modern | From 25 June
Discover a huge range of works from iconic art star Frida Kahlo, plus her contemporaries and those she inspired, at this blockbuster exhibition at the Tate.
July
Happy Valley Pride | In & Around Hebden Bridge | 17-26 July
Pride goes back to its roots at this delightfully ‘Hebden Bridge’ celebration of local queerness.
August
Rebellion Festival | Winter Gardens, Blackpool | 6-9 August
Punk bands from Bow Wow Wow to The Vapors make up this A-Z of alternative music live in Blackpool.
Greenwich + Docklands International Festival | From 21 August
London’s most inspiring day out is back for more with circus, outdoor theatre and pure joyous spectacle.
September
Es Devlin | The Design Museum | From 18 September
Get close up to scenic designer to the stars, Es Devlin’s work at this extraordinary new exhibition.
October
Tim Walker’s Fairyland: Love and Legends | National Portrait Gallery | From 8 October
Tim Walker queers photography with an inspiring array of activists, performers, artists, and writers.
Who Are We? | Southbank Centre | 14-16 October | From £22
Exquisite modern circus from Toulouse.
Agatha Christie | British Library | From 30 October
Objects, photos and texts give a more personal history of the world famous whodunnit queen.
November
Vanessa Bell & Duncan Grant | Tate Britain | From 12 November
The creative partnership of Bloomsbury Group and Charleston’s famous residents is a wonder to behold.
The Afronauts | Royal Court | 14 November – 19 December | From £15
Hotshot writer Ryan Calais Cameron tells the little known story of 1964’s Zambian space program.
Jonny Woo’s Un-Royal Variety | Soho Theatre Walthamstow | 26 November | From £19
Following a welcome return in 2025, Jonny Woo and his cavalcade of divine divas retake Soho Walthamstow’s enormous stage for a rebellious riot.
December
London Museum | Smithfield | December | Free
Hopefully this new London Museum will be open by December (it’s scheduled for late 2026) and this would be a great time to visit.
Did we miss any big incredible things to do in London (or beyond) for 2026?
We almost certainly did – please let us know in the comments below!
Occasionally the To Do List team are forced to work together.
Rupert likes: free, cheap & offbeat London, especially: cabaret, art, theatre, pop-ups, eating out, quirky films, museums, day trips, social enterprise & much more.
Stuart likes: nice pubs, film marathons, not doing real marathons, bad comedy, plays/musicals with shorter second halves, and the Oxford comma.
