Things To Do In London This Weekend: May 31 - June 2
How to win at the weekend, in a few easy steps
FASHION: Graduate Fashion Week
As a fashion magazine, we’re always on the lookout for the Next Big Thing in the style world. And as a reader of a fashion magazine, we can safely assume that you are too. So why don’t we all take a shortcut and find plenty of Next Big Things, all handily on display in one place? We speak, of course, of Graduate Fashion Week, which takes place at Old Truman Brewery from Sunday and features 23 runway shows and 3,600(!) names to discover. Alumni include Stella McCartney, Christopher Bailey, Giles Deacon and Matthew Williamson – so you can be sure that the clothes on the catwalk here are the ones you’ll be obsessing over in the future. At which point you’ll be able to say you saw ’em before everyone else. Na na na nahh nahh.
2-5 Jun; £14.50
Graduate Fashion Week, Old Truman Brewery, Hanbury Street, Shoreditch, E1 6QL
graduatefashionweek.com
POP-UP: La Dolce Vita at the Berkeley
Usually, in terms of things that are likely in London, you could file ‘having access to a rooftop pool’ along with ‘buying property in Zone 1 or ‘making eye contact with a stranger on the Tube’ - ie not very likely at all. However, from this weekend The Berkeley is changing that, with its new, bookable-to-all rooftop pool and garden. And better yet, it’s themed on the Italian Riviera. Which means one thing: negronis! Oh, and lemon trees, citrus décor, fritto misto, gelato, a sauna and steam room… and, of course, Aperol spritz and bellinis, if negronis aren’t your thing. Book a four-hour session, no waiting lists required. Now: about that two-bed in Notting Hill…
From 1 Jun until September; £75 for four hours’ access and an Aperol Spritz
La Dolce Vita, Wilton Pl, Knightsbridge, SW1X 7RL
FUN: Mudchute Fun Dog Show
Here's a sentence you may never have expected to read: dog shows just got FUN. That's right – forget crusty Crufts, because there's a way more stylish (and silly) canine pageant in town. Held at London's Mudchute Park & Farm in east London, this open-to-all event features categories including wiggliest tail, prettiest bitch and, of course, the big one – best dressed. So bust out your pooch’s finest Dolce dog cardy (are they a thing? They should be) and get down there.
2 Jun; free
Mudchute Park & Farm, Pier Street, Isle of Dogs, E14 3HP
Picture courtesy of thelondog.com
ART: Peckham Levels Open Studios Weekend
It’s fair to say that car parks have had one helluva rebrand. So much so that parking a car is pretty much the last thing you think to do in them, behind drinking, dancing, watching gigs and theatre – and now seeing art installations, taking part in screen- printing and frame-making workshops, and doing yoga classes. Because this weekend, the mother of all multi-storeys, Peckham Levels, opens all six of its floors once again. Across Levels 1-4, Peckham Levels artists showcase their work, collaborate on events and open their studios to the public; on Levels 5-6 you’ll find the usual food and drink marvels; and on LevelSix you’re in for taster yoga sessions and henna art. And on no levels will you come across stationary Ford Fiestas. Fact.
31 May-2 June; free
Peckham Levels, 95A Rye Lane, SE15 4ST
DRINK: NT’s Summer Terrace
There are bars. There are cool bars. And then there is NT’s Summer Terrace. Taking what what was already a not-exactly-uncool bar, renowned for its creative cocktails, NYC studio styling and views over east London, and making it, well, ice cold, the newly opened outdoor space is hosting live jazz, DJ collectives and late-night sets right through the summer. Upcoming acts include Four Heads, Analog Africa, Jack Tyson Charles and Mali Hayes (of Gilles Peterson’s bubblers)… plus, of course, there’s delicious food from Palms Green and Sons of Slice, THOSE cocktails and the perfect setting for fuzzy sundown vibes. In short: you’ve just found your new summer second home.
Now open Weds-Sat; £5 (£10 after 10pm)
NT’s, 207, 1 Westgate St, London Fields E8 3RL
NIGHTLIFE: Kitsuné Day & Night Summer Party
If there’s anyone that knows how to club the cool way, it’s taste-making Parisian label Kitsuné. Specialists in super-hip ambient electro and deep house, this weekend they’re hopping on a Eurostar to show London how ze nonchalance Française is done… basically by throwing a party with a VERY laissez-faire attitude to going home. Sprawling over 12 hours this Saturday at Brixton Jamm, we’re promised a terrace party by day, club session by night, variously featuring dreamy house from Genius of Time, ’80s post-disco with Get To Know, and underground hip-hop from Chennessy b2b Jamo Beatz. Mag-ni-fique.
1 June; £15
Brixton Jamm, 261 Brixton Road, SW9 6LH
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