What's On
After a sold-out run at the National Theatre, the award-winning The Motive and the Cue, written by Jack Thorne and directed by Sam Mendes, is transferring to the Noel Coward theatre for a run this winter. The play, starring Johnny Flynn, Mark Gatiss and Tuppence Middleton as Richard Burton, John Gielgud and Elizabeth Taylor, examines the relationship between art and celebrity as Burton, newly married to Taylor, starts rehearsing for an experimental production of Hamlet directed by Gielguld and it doesn’t go smoothly.
SLEEPING BEAUTY
See your fave Ru girls in panto this festive season with Sleeping Beauty playing at the Harold Pinter Theatre in December. Drag legend Miss Moppe has written the show, in which Princess Aurora is under a spell (or just massively hungover) causing her to sleep for a hundred years. Will the evil Carabosse have her way or will Prince Charming slay the competition and save the Princess? RuPaul’s Drag Race UK stars Kitty Scott Claus, Victoria Scone, Michael Marouli and Kate Butch are all starring, alongside Yshee Black, Kemah Bob, LoUis CYfer, and Ophelia Love in what is sure to be the most ridiculous retelling of this famous fairytale.
THE HAPPY ENDINGS PUDDING HATCH
Not content with making the best ice cream sandwiches in the land, Happy Endings is warming us up this winter with their Pudding Hatch at Pavilion in Victoria Park. Expect steamy sticky toffee and hot chocolate pudding topped with custard or a scoop of their famous ice cream (with flavours such as vegan mint stracciatella, golden syrup, malted milk or classic vegan vanilla). And if it’s a bit too nippy out there, you can grab some pud to take away and warm up at home. The hatch is open all weekend (Fri – Sun) for the rest of the winter, we’ll see you there.
33 ⅓ VINYL EXHIBITION
Take a trip back to 1990 and relive the music of the time with the 33 ⅓ Vinyl Exhibition at The Vinyl Cafe in Tileyard. The display features album sleeves of 33 records from 1990, from the likes of Happy Mondays, Prince, Madonna, Jane’s Addiction, Charlatans, Pixies, Ride and George Michael, 33 ⅓ years after their release and 33 ⅓ years since music manufacturer and exhibition organisers Key Production Group started making vinyl for the industry.
WINTER MARTINI GARDEN AT HAM YARD HOTEL
Normally reserved for hotel guests, Ham Yard Hotel is opening up its rooftop terrace and garden, which has been transformed into a winter martini garden, to everyone this festive season. It’s the perfect place to get cosy with heaters, candles, tartan blankets and hot water bottles dotted around and hot cocktails, like the Paloma-tini (with Sipsmith gin, Suze and grapefruit & thyme syrup) and the Beekeeper’s Martini (a hot take on a Bee’s Knees finished with smoke) on the drinks list. There are also cold martinis on offer from the tableside trolley and you can pair your bevs with food cooked over fire, such as game & smoked bacon skewers, roast scallop with smoked butter & crispy seaweed, and ember-roasted beetroot & Cashel Blue flatbread.
SHIFTING LANDSCAPES
Emergence Magazine is hosting Shifting Landscapes, a free exhibition at Bargehouse running during COP28, to explore the way the Earth is changing during the climate crisis. The immersive exhibition features works from nine international artists, who have created installations, soundscapes, large-scale photography and film, including a film on the destruction of rainforests in Cambodia, an installation on the role of bees and beekeepers in ecosystems, photographs that highlight the impact of rising temperatures in Tunisia and the changing landscape of the Arctic, and a VR experience that transports you to the Hoh Rain Forest in North America to understand the impact of human-generated sound on the living world.
Pop-Up Crisis is returning to Savile Row to help raise vital funds to help those experiencing homelessness in the UK. Open for ten days, the pop-up will be stocked with a range of menswear, womenswear, gifts and accessories, with designer pieces from the likes of Vivienne Westwood, Wales Bonner, Tods, Giles Deacon, Erdem, Pringle of Scotland, Christopher Kane, Burberry and Jimmy Choo. There’ll also be items donated by Kate Moss, Stormzy, Aisling Bea and David Gandy; wreath making workshops run by social enterprise The Glasshouse; a late-night shopping evening and a raffle competition. It’s all for a great cause, so it’s the perfect place to do your Christmas shopping.
POWERED BY DEPOP
Depop is popping up in IRL with some of its top sellers in tow to encourage more people to get involved in second-hand and circular fashion during party season. kathandrosa will be taking over the Sook space on South Molton Street on 30th November with a selection of vintage and Y2K pieces, with sellers like celiapops, alicefletchdf, reloadedld and elianaavintage all popping up in Sook’s Oxford Street space across December, so get down there and shop ’til you drop.
SPIRITED AWAY
Following in the footsteps of the smash hit My Neighbour Totoro, another Studio Ghibli play is showing in the city. Spirited Away, arguably one of the studio’s most impactful films, is running at London Coliseum this spring and summer. If you haven’t seen the film, the story follows 10-year-old Chihiro who gets lost in a fantasy world after her parents, after angering Shinto spirits by eating their food, are turned into pigs. She takes a job at a magical bathhouse while working to get her parents back and return to her own world. If you have seen the movie, you’ll know that bringing those characters to life is a real feat. Expect to see Kamaji, the spider-like boiler man, with 19-foot-long arms; No-Face played by as many as 12 actors; Haku’s transformation into dragon form; and more remarkable visuals. And, of course, the film’s legendary original score (composed by Joe Hisaishi) will be performed by a live orchestra throughout.
After being built at the Edinburgh Fringe in 2019 and popping up in Canary Wharf in 2021, The Greenhouse Theatre is back in London with a Christmassy residency in Spitalfields. The pop-up theatre is the UK’s first zero-waste performance space and is made entirely from recycled materials – it doesn’t use any electricity either. This year, the Greenhouse will debut a new play, The Lost Library of Spitalfields Market, which tells the story of Isla (played by Ronay Poole) who stumbles upon a secret library hidden in Spitalfields Market while looking for a Christmas present for her mother. That’s not all, as the Greenhouse will also host a range of other festive events in the run-up to Christmas, including carol sing-alongs, festive pub quizzes, wreath-making workshops, scavenger hunts and much more. And while you’re there, warm up with a mulled wine or hot cider from the theatre’s zero-waste bar.
STORY KNITS
Every year, Save the Children’s Christmas Jumper Day campaign raises funds to transform the lives of children globally and in 2023, they’re hosting a seasonal sweater pop-up in Covent Garden to mark the initiative’s 12th edition. The Story Knits store is open for a week, as of Fri 1st December, and is stocked with pre-loved jumpers provided by beloved vintage clothing brand Beyond Retro. Each jumper in the curated range is priced at £30 and has been named after a child, accompanied by a label telling their story. And 100% of the proceeds go towards supporting Save the Children’s work in providing children in need with food, healthcare and education.
THE CROWN PROPS AT BONHAMS
Following the release of the sixth and final season of historical drama The Crown, auction house Bonhams is hosting an exhibition of sets, costumes and props from each season, which will be followed by two auctions. The exhibition, which has also toured New York, Los Angeles and Paris, is being held at the Bonhams’ New Bond Street site for just over three weeks across January and February and entry is free. Expect to see reproductions of some of the Royal Family’s most recognisable outfits and artefacts, with highlights including the Coronation ordaining regalia, Princess Diana’s engagement ring and ‘revenge’ dress, and the Gold State Coach.
Flea London getting festive with a spesh Christmas market running for one weekend at Vinegar Yard. The outdoor (but covered) market will feature over 40 stalls from local and indie traders, selling a range of handcrafted gifts, plus there’ll be mulled wine and street food to keep you toasty while you shop.
BABEL AT JEALOUS GALLERY
Thank goodness for ALO, the London-based street artist bringing joy and colour to the streets of London for us to enjoy – much like a modern-day, art-school-chic Robin Hood. If you’ve not yet caught his work in the enclave of East London, head over to Jealous Gallery, which is ending 2023 with a bang with a display of the artist’s remarkable works in a new exhibition titled BABEL. ALO’s muses, which he often refers to as ‘London’s unseen’, take centre stage as the artist continues his exploration of the human form. Exaggerated and distorted figures stand powerful in bold, vibrant colour, each created using an array of mixed media techniques. The result? A seriously eye-catching, thought-provoking, ever so slightly spooky (it’s the eyes) exhibition that is definitely a must-see.
Also on show is the artist’s new screen print ‘Morgana’, created in the Jealous Print Studios this year and seen for the first time at Woolwich Print Fair in October. If East London isn’t your regular haunt, ALO’s given us a reason to head over.
DIRECT FROM GRACELAND | ELVIS
Immersive events space Arches London Bridge has debuted its latest major exhibition – and this one’s all about Elvis. Direct From Graceland boasts more than 400 artefacts, many of which (as the name suggests) have been shipped to London straight from Elvis’ Memphis home and over half are being displayed in the UK for the first time. Expect to see some of the most recognisable objects from the legendary singer’s career, including his gold lamé suit, Las Vegas-era jumpsuits and aviator sunglasses, alongside more personal pieces such as a gold-plated telephone, his wallet and go-to cologne. Plus, mega fans can even select the ‘White Glove Experience’ when booking for the chance to hold Elvis’ international belt and gold microphone used in Las Vegas in 1969. If you’ve always wanted to make that trip to Graceland but never quite got round to it, this is the next best thing.
If you’ve been strolling around Covent Garden lately and caught your reflection in a giant mirrored box, then you’ve also spotted the Marc Jacobs pop-up shop. The brand’s first ever UK pop-up has landed on the Piazza to promote the new Resort collection and it’s just as shiny inside with crystal canvas tote bags, other bags in silver, rhinestone and pearl finishes, and sparkly jewellery on display. Appropriately, as it’s one giant mirror, there’s a dedicated photo op spot at the back of the space.
GWYNETH GOES SKIING
The public loves a celebrity trial and when Gwyneth Paltrow was sued over a skiing accident at the beginning of the year, the internet had an absolute field day. The legal dispute (nicknamed ‘Ski Court’) started off on a fairly ridiculous basis as Gwyneth, who was being sued by retired optometrist Terry Sanderson for $300,000, was countersuing the claimant for just $1. But over the course of the two-week case, it became a full-on farce, with thousands live-tweeting all the most bizarre moments along the way. The lines between this court case and a comedy skit were already a bit blurry, but they’re about to disappear completely as a comedy musical based on the trial has landed in London. Gwyneth Goes Skiing comes from the same minds behind Diana: The Untold & Untrue Story and How to Live a Jellicle Life (Awkward Productions) and will see the Pleasance Theatre transformed into the Deer Valley Ski Resort.