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Things To Do In London This Weekend: July 26 - 28,2019
Sun’s out, fun’s out! And these are the hottest al-fresco happenings in town
FESTIVAL: Standon Calling
Fancy a last-minute festival? No? Go look outside. LOOK AT THE SUNSHINE! Now you fancy a last-minute festival, don’t you? And the good news is there’s a rather excellent one happening this very weekend, just 40 mins from London. Standon Calling has all your partying-in-a-field needs covered: from iconic disco (Nile Rodgers & Chic) to Mercury-winning rock (Wolf Alice) to euphoric electro (Simian Mobile Disco) to late-night drag (Sink the Pink). Throw in hot tubs, boutique camping options and fancy dress (the theme is Twisted Creatures, folks) and you have all manner of good times in prospect. And by the looks of the weather, you don’t even need to take your Hunters. Yes.
25-28 Jul; £169
Standon Calling, Standon Lordship, Standon, Hertfordshire, SG11 1EE
MUSIC: Grandmaster Flash at Solomons' Yard
The word 'legend' is thrown around a lot in the music world. And the word 'genuine' is thrown around a lot in markets. A lot of the time neither are exactly accurate. . But if you head down to Camden Market on Friday, you'll be in the presence of a bona-fide, genre pioneering, Nobel Prize for Music-winning GENUINE LEGEND (fully deserving of the caps). Because Grandmaster Flash will be taking the decks at Solomon's Yard - your only chance to see one of hip-hop's founding fathers in London this summer. Expect scratch, loops and feel-good vibes aplenty. It's Grandmaster frickin' Flash!
Middle & West Yard, Camden Market, NW1 8AF
DRINK: Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Garden
If there is a better combination of words in the English language than 'rosé champagne garden paradise' then we sure as hell don't know about it. This is how masters of bubbles Piper-Heidsieck describe their summer terrace on the roof of Selfridges, and those words alone guarantee our attendance. We come for the flutes of fine Rosé Sauvage, Brut and Essentiel fizz (or the Rare Champagne if you're high rolling); we stay for the terrace sofas, private huts and Italian cuisine from Alto by San Carlos. Perfect evening, done.
Until 4 Aug; free
Piper-Heidsieck Champagne Garden, Selfridges, 400 Oxford St, W1A 1AB
MUSIC: Cubitt Sessions x CDY
There’s only one thing better than a bit of al-fresco culture. And that’s a bit of FREE al-fresco culture. And with that truism firmly in mind, we direct you to King’s Cross’s hip Coal Drops Yard over the next two weeks. Because here – among 14 terrace bars and restaurants – you shall find top-notch arias from the English National Opera, live jazz from Nishla Smith and Manchester Collective, raucous flamenco guitar care of Paco Peña and show tunes belted out by West End stars. All for nada. Zip. Gratis. Which is surely the best of all the prices.
Until 4 Aug; free
Cubitt Sessions x CDY, Coal Drops Yard, Stable St, Kings Cross, N1C 4DQ
FOOD: River Walk Market
So we’ve had street food in warehouses, street food on rooftops and street food on pop-up beaches. You might struggle to remember the last time you ate street food in a street. But let’s not get pedantic, guys, because now we’re going one weirder, and eating street food in Battersea Power Station. Yup, where once you’d just have found grubby coal and possibly a pink pig blimp, you can now find independent food and drink producers, artists, designers, and live music from Busk every Saturday and Sunday. Look out for Turkish mezze from Aegean Deli, mega toasties from The Big Melt and PB&J and cookie dough brownies from Outsider Tart, all backed by those famous chimneys. Streets are overrated, anyway.
Circus West Village, Battersea Power Station, SW1 8AH
POP-UP: Roof Fest London -
Now, usually during a heatwave, Oxford Street is not top of the list of places you want to be. But what if we told you that far above the sweaty shoppers, atop the John Lewis store, you can find a deck-chair-strewn rooftop garden complete with Filipino street food from Bong Bong’s Manila Kanteen, cooling cocktails from Background Bars, hula performances from Storm Hooper (Saturday), live funk from Michael Sebastian (Sunday), yoga classes (Friday mornings) and, every Tuesday, a Sunset Cinema showing out-and-out classics such as Ferris Bueller’s Day Off, Cool Runnings, Top Gun and Bridesmaids? Suddenly it’s worth braving the Victoria Line for, you’ll agree.
Until September; free (£13.50 adv for Sunset Cinema)
Roof Fest London, John Lewis & Partners, 300 Oxford St, W1C 1DX
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