Can you believe it’s the last weekend in January? Exciting for us as birthday season kicks off in February at Babes HQ. Before then, there’s lots to look forward to in the London Kids Weekend Scoop, packed to the rafter with family fun at Science Museum, Sadler’s Wells, Harry Potter Studio Tour and more hotspots. Have a wonderful weekend!
Don’t Miss this year’s London Hot List!
Your Guide to the Best Family Fun in London this Weekend!
Thu-Sat: Matthew Bourne: Cinderella at Sadler’s Wells, Rosebery Avenue, EC1R 4TN (Angel tube)
LAST CHANCE: The classic tale is reimagined as a war time romance, with a dashing young RAF pilot falling for Cinderella just before they’re parted by the Blitz. Award winning design, a 60 piece orchestra and Matthew Bourne’s trademark style create a dazzling dance production, set to Prokofiev’s unforgettable score. For ages 5+ (younger ones not admitted). Tue-Sat at 7.30pm (7pm Dec 30, no eve perf 24, 31 Dec or 28 Jan); Sat Mats at 2.30pm (not Dec 9); Sun Mats at 2pm (not Dec 10); Sun at 7pm (no eve perf 25 Dec, 1 Jan or 29 Jan); Thu Mats at 2.30pm on 21 Dec, 28 Dec, 25 Jan; £12-£68 (until Jan 27)
Thu-Sun: Hogwarts in the Snow, Warner Bros. Studios Leavesden, Aerodrome Way, Leavesden, Hertfordshire, WD25 7GS (Watford Junction rail)
LAST CHANCE: See The Gryffindor common room, the Great Hall and the Hogwarts castle model dressed for Christmas, with special effects fire and snow, handmade props and one of the beautiful Yule Ball sculptures on display. Festive treat for any Harry Potter fan. All ages. 9am-10am first tours, last tour 4-6.30pm (closing time 3 hours after last tour). 2017 prices (until Dec 31): adult from £37-£39/child from £29-£31/family from £118-£126/ages 0-4 FREE but require tickets. 2018 prices (until Dec 31, 2018): adult from £39-£41/child from £31-£33/family from £124-£132/ages 0-4 FREE but require tickets. Pre-booking essential. (until Jan 28)
Thu-Sun: Winter Happiness Festival, Museum of Happiness, 220 Arlington Road, NW1 7HE (Camden Town tube)
Feeling a little blue this January? Come and lift your mood at the Winter Happiness Festival for all ages. For just a fiver, you can: dive into a ginormous LED disco ball pool (filled with 30,000 white balls), explore creative mindfulness with colouring and origami, take silly photos in the fancy dress photo booth, indulge in delicious hot choc, and hear tips and insights on happiness and well-being from a host of great speakers. Workshops include everything from laughter yoga to practising the art of gratitude. Ball pool visits are in timed 15 minute slots (arrive 10 minutes before your session). All ages welcome, but kids under 16 MUST be accompanied by an adult. Also there is a 1m height restriction in the ball pool. 12pm-6.45pm (daily from Sat Jan 20), £5 (Jan 20-Feb 4)
Sat: Baby Broadway in Blackheath, 90 Mycenae Road, SE3 7SE (North Greenwich tube/DLR, Westcombe Park rail) and Stoke Newington, Stoke Newington Church Street, N16 9ES (Finsbury Park/Arsenal/Manor House tube, Stoke Newington rail)
Delight to a morning of toe-tapping live music with Baby Broadway (top image), popping up at a venues around London including Blackheath and Stoke Newington this weekend. The family friendly concerts put everyone in a feel-good mood, with West End singers belting their hearts out with popular tunes from Singin’ in the Rain, Hairspray and Mamma Mia! plus new faves Moana and Frozen. Young and old are encouraged to sing (and dance) along, all ages are welcome, from babies to school-age kids and their grown ups. 11am-11.45am, adult £10/child FREE (Jan 27)
Sat: Half Moon Theatre: Leaf, Half Moon Young People’s Theatre, 43 White Horse Road, E1 0ND (Limehouse DLR/Stepney Green tube)
A heartwarming production by Tam Tam Theatre, Leaf returns to Half Moon Theatre, inviting the smallest theatregoers to engage with the seasons. Trace the journey of a leaf from birth, as it sprouts, changes colour and finally falls off the tree… Then spring comes and a new leaf grows. With an evocative soundscape and the fun storytelling style that marked previous hits Circles in the Sand and Curious, this theatre piece delights the youngest audiences. For ages 0 to 3. 11am, 1pm & 3pm; £7 (Jan 27)
Sat: Mini Maestro Family Concert: Vivaldi at St Martin in the Fields, Trafalgar Square, WC2N 4JJ (Charing Cross tube)
These hugely popular and engaging early years concerts are put on by the London Musical Arts Ensemble with conductor John Landor. This week, you can enjoy a performance of Autumn and Winter from Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, with a chance for the youngest audience members to meet and greet the musicians… and their instruments too! All ages, best for 5+. 4.30pm; adult £10/child £8 (Jan 27)
Sat-Sun: Science Museum: Illuminating India Family Festival, Exhibition Road, South Kensington, SW7 2DD (South Kensington tube)
Illuminating India is a sweeping new exhibition at Science Museum celebrating India’s contribution to science, technology and mathematics. This weekend, take the little ones along to the Illuminating India Family Festival where there are a range of free activities, from Bollywood dancing to rangoli geometry. Discover the maths behind the music and make your own constellation coasters to take home. Different activities suitable for ages 3+, 5+, 7+, 12+ and all ages. Varying times between 11am-5pm, FREE entry (Jan 27-28)
Sun: Free Family Sundays | Everyone a Maker: Stories Come Alive at Rich Mix, 35-47 Bethnal Green Road, London, E1 6LA (Shoreditch High St overground)
Storyteller Vanessa Woolf (Royal Academy of Arts, Big Fish Little Fish, Unicorn Theatre, Meltdown Festival and more) weaves her tall tales for little people in this exciting interactive workshop. Immerse yourself in the magic of storytelling as Vanessa leads a call and response session, then invites you to make your own stories. Bring an object you love from home or from a culture that you would like to feature in your story. Create a story and take it away in your heart (no writing down!). Best for ages 5+ and their families. This event is part of the weekly Free Family Sundays activity at the fabulous Rich Mix cultural space.
Sun: Fun DMC at Bloomsbury Bowling Lane, Basement of Tavistock Hotel, Bedford Way, WC1H 9EU (Euston tube/rail)
Hurry, hurry people! You can grab one of the last remaining tickets for the Fun DMC 3rd Birthday Weekend. Has it really been 3 years? London’s daytime block party for big poppas, hip mamas and their l’il brood celebrates three years of bringing radio-friendly hip hop to families across the capital. Fun DMC was created by Charlie Dark (Attica Blues/Run Dem Crew) and Spin Doctor (The Doctor’s Orders) for old school heads and future fans of hip hop. Special guests Mr Thing & Essa (formerly Yungun) join Spin Doctor in cranking out the crowd favourites. The Bloomsbury Bowling takeover means 8 lanes of bowling to keep you busy too. There’s also hip hop fancy dress, graffiti wall, balloons, basketball and a licensed bar! Food is available from Smokey Tails For ages 0-10 and families. 11am-2pm; adult £7/walking kid £5/family £22/babies under 12 months FREE (Jan 28)
Sun: Red Riding Hood and the Wolf at Arts Depot, 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley, N12 0GA (Finchley Central/West Finchley/Woodside Park tube)
It’s time for bed, so settle in and let Robyn’s story begin. This bright little girl can’t relate to Red Riding Hood, sugar and spice and all things nice. I mean, what if the Big Bad Wolf wasn’t big or bad at all? Enjoy this twist on a familiar fairy tale, as Robyn reinvents the bedtime story for misfits, in a world of homemade make-believe. This production by the Little Angel Theatre is based on a book by Emma Dodd. For ages 7+. 11am & 2pm; £8 (Jan 28)
London Kids Cinema Listings
A selection of movies from some of our favourite family friendly cinemas in London.
Barbican Cinema Framed Family Film Club, Cinema 1, Barbican Centre, Silk Street, EC2Y 8DS (Barbican tube)
The Secret of Kells, 11am; Child £2.50/Adult £3.50 (Jan 27)
Electric Cinema Kids Club, 191 Portobello Rd, W11 2ED (Notting Hill tube)
Puss in Boots at 9.30am; adult/child £5 (Jan 27)
Picturehouse Cinemas Kids Club
Clapham Picturehouse, 76 Venn St, London SW4 0AT (Clapham Common tube)
The Son of Bigfoot at 11.45am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
Crouch End Picturehouse, Crouch End Picturehouse, 65 Tottenham Lane,cr Crouch End, N8 9BY (Hornsey/Harringay/Crouch Hill rail)
My Little Pony at 16.10pm; adult/child £2 (Jan 26)
The Son of Bigfoot at 11.45am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
East Dulwich Picturehouse, 116A Lordship Lane, SE22 8HD (East Dulwich rail)
The Son of Bigfoot at 10.30am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
Gate Picturehouse, 87 Notting Hill Gate, W11 3JZ (Notting Hill tube)
The Son of Bigfoot at 10.30am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
Greenwich Picturehouse, 180 Greenwich High Road, Greenwich SE10 8NN (Greenwich Rail)
NO KIDS CLUB THIS WEEK (Jan 27)
Hackney Picturehouse, 270 Mare Street, E8 1HE (Hackney Central overground)
The Son of Bigfoot at 10.30am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
Phoenix Cinema Kids Club, 52 High Rd, East Finchley N2 9PJ (East Finchley tube)
The Son of Bigfoot at 12pm; Adult/Child £3 (Jan 27)
Regent St Cinema Kids Kino Club, 309 Regent St, W1B 2UW (Oxford Circus tube)
Alice in Wonderland at 11.30am; £1.75 (Jan 27)
Ritzy Picturehouse, Brixton Oval, Coldharbour Lane, SW2 1JG (Brixton tube)
The Son of Bigfoot at 10.30am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
Stratford Picturehouse, Stratford Picturehouse, Salway Road, London E15 1BX (Stratford tube/DLR/overground/rail)
Ferdinand 2D at 11am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
The Son of Bigfoot at 10.45am; adult/child £2 (Jan 27)
BFI Southbank: BFI Families, Belvedere Rd, SE1 8XT (Waterloo/Embankment tube)
BFI Blue Ray Launch: When the Wind Blows + Q&A with producer Iain Harvey at 15.20pm; adult £11.75/child £4 (Jan 28)
Soho Hotel Children’s Film Club, 4 Richmond Mews, W1D 3DH (Piccadilly Circus tube)
Paddington 2 at 10.30am (10am brunch); £10 (film only), or £20 (includes buffet brunch at 10am + popcorn and drinks for film) (Jan 28)
Booking Ahead
Zodiac Zoo at Cutty Sark (Feb 3-4)
Disco Loco: Rabbit Rave in Hackney (Feb 4)
Out of this World: Moon at Royal Observatory Greenwich (Feb 12-13)
The Polar Bears Go Up at Jacksons Lane (Feb 13-17)
I Believe in Unicorns at Polka Theatre (Feb 14-18)
Adventures in Peter Pan’s Neverland at Museum of London (Feb 24-Mar 4)
How Does It Feel to Be Loved Children’s Disco at The Phoenix, W1 (Feb 25)
The Great British Seaside exhibition at National Maritime Museum (Mar 23-Sep 30)
London Kids Weekend Scoop (January 18-21, 2018)
