Reach 4,800+ engaged North Londoners. Partner with My North London.
Hey Neighbour,
There’s so many things to do in North London this bank holiday weekend. Here’s the full list.
— Maryam
Someone thought you'd like this? They're right. Join 4,800+ neighbours here.
⏳Still On
Catch them while you can.
Allen Jones: Taking Shape | 📍Camden Arts Projects, NW5 | Until 30 August | Free
Even if you have never heard of Allen Jones, the idea is easy to get: figures that seem to change as you move around them. The British Pop artist has filled the gallery with a steel sumo wrestler, brightly coloured bodies and a five metre sculpture hanging overhead. One piece even lets you turn part of the figure yourself, changing its pose as you look. Open Wednesday to Sunday, 11am to 6pm.
Matthew Bourne’s The Car Man | 📍Sadler’s Wells, EC1R | 12- 29 August | (£)
Forget the opera house version of Carmen. Matthew Bourne turns the story into a dance thriller set inside a hot, greasy 1950s American garage diner, where the arrival of a mysterious stranger sets off affairs, jealousy, betrayal and revenge. There is no dialogue, with the story told through dance and the familiar music of Carmen. Runs for two hours including an interval. Tickets from £15. Recommended for ages 15+.
Marionettes: An Exhibition Celebrating String Puppets | 📍Little Angel Workshop, N1 | 22 August to 6 September | Free
Little Angel Theatre is turning 65, and instead of just looking back at old productions, it is opening up a collection of the string puppets that helped shape its history. You will see marionettes, the puppets controlled by strings from above, made by British makers across six decades, from founders John and Lyndie Wright to artists working today. The exhibition also looks at why the craft has become so rare, with fewer than five people in Britain currently making a living carving marionettes. Free to visit, but you need to book a timed slot.
The Camden Fringe | 📍Various venues across Camden and beyond | Until 30 August | (£)
The Camden Fringe is into its final few days, after a month that has brought more than 450 shows to venues across Camden and beyond. There is still time to catch some of the last theatre, comedy, music, dance and new writing before it all wraps up on Sunday.
St Giles’ Book Fair | 📍St Giles’ Cripplegate, EC2Y | Until 1 September | Free
If you like rummaging through second hand books, this is one of only four chances a year to catch St Giles’ Book Fair. Long tables of used books fill the church, so you can browse properly, pick up something unexpected and come back another day if one visit is not enough. No booking needed. Open daily from 11am to 6.30pm.
Regent's Park Music Festival | 📍Regent's Park, NW1 | Until 20 September | Free
Every Sunday all summer, there's a free band playing in Regent's Park. Jazz, brass, steel and concert bands, with swing dancing on five Sundays and jazz on selected Saturdays. Now in its tenth year.
Your guide to what’s happening in North London this week. Events marked with (£) require a ticket in advance.
Back II Life Cafe Family All-Dayer with Jazzie B and Guests | 📍Camden Market Hawley Wharf, NW1 | 29 August | Free
Spend the Bank Holiday by the canal with DJ sets from Jazzie B, Sigma and Lisa I’Anson, plus family activities, workshops, food and stalls across the market. Pick up a wristband for discounts at selected food traders, then wander between the music, garden and canalside. 1.30pm to 7pm. Booking is encouraged, but walk-ins are welcome.
Speaker Box Street Party | 📍Wembley Park, HA9 | 29 August | Free
Wembley Park turns into one big dance floor for an afternoon of Latin, Caribbean, Afro and Bollywood music, with DJs and easy follow-along sessions between each set. The day ends with a Michael Jackson birthday celebration and a final group dance. Browse the summer market nearby, then join in or simply watch from the side. No booking needed. 12pm to 5pm.
West Hampstead Carnival | 📍The Sherriff Centre, NW6 | 29 August | Free
The Sherriff Centre is putting on a full day of family activities for the Bank Holiday weekend, with games, children’s entertainment and a dedicated soft play area for younger kids. Entry to the carnival is free, although soft play sessions need to be booked in advance if you want to guarantee a spot. There will also be charity fundraising happening throughout the day, so you can come for the kids, stay for the atmosphere and support a local cause while you are there. 10am to 5.30pm.
Love Your N21 Sunday Market | 📍The Sidings, N21 | 30 August | Free
Right beside Winchmore Hill station, The Sidings is filling up with small local businesses for the return of the Love Your N21 market after its summer break. Come for breakfast or lunch, then have a proper browse through stalls selling fresh bread and pastries, cheese, hot food, coffee, candles, handmade gifts, crafts and other locally made bits. It is small, neighbourhood led and easy to dip into, whether you are doing the Sunday shop or just fancy seeing what people around N21 are making and selling. 10am to 3pm.
🎡Funfairs
Hampstead Heath Bank Holiday Funfair | 📍Lower Fairground Site, Hampstead Heath, NW3 | 26 August - 1 September | Free entry
The big Bank Holiday funfair is back on Hampstead Heath for seven days, with rides for little ones, bigger thrill rides, dodgems, fairground games and all the usual sugary treats. You do not need a ticket to get in, so you can wander through first and decide what you fancy paying for. It is open every day from 12pm to 8pm.
Highbury Fields Family Funfair | 📍Highbury Fields, N5 | 23 August-1st September | (£)
For just over a week, part of Highbury Fields turns into a temporary fairground beside the swimming pool. There are rides for younger children, bigger rides for older kids and adults, dodgems, games and the usual candyfloss and fairground food. You pay to enter, then buy tokens for the rides you want to go on, so you can also just walk around with the family and see what takes your fancy.
Kidz World Wristband Fair | 📍Victoria Park, Finchley, N3 | 19 August - 4 September | Free entry
This one works a little differently from the usual funfair where every ride means buying another token. At Kidz World, you can pay £14.99 for a wristband and spend one whole session going back on the rides as many times as you want, or just buy tokens if you are only planning a couple. The fair has taken over part of Victoria Park for the summer holidays, with children’s rides, inflatables, adult dodgems and bigger rides including Disco Fever.
Urban Food Fest Artisan Market | 📍Islington Square, N1 | 29 August | Free
Islington Square gets its weekly Saturday market back with a mix of street food, fresh produce and small makers all in one place. You can grab lunch from the food traders, pick up fruit and veg, browse handmade products and local stalls, then let the kids get stuck into the free arts and crafts and outdoor toys. It is the kind of market you can drop into for food and end up staying for a proper browse. 11am to 5pm. Entry is free.
The Elmhurst Bank Holiday Carnival Garden Party & BBQ | 📍The Elmhurst, N17 | 30 August | Free
The Elmhurst is turning its garden into a free Bank Holiday party for the afternoon and evening, with a BBQ, drinks and a long run of DJs playing everything from reggae and rare groove to jazz, disco, broken beat and house. Local crews For The Time Being and Strictly Vinyl are joining forces for the day, so the music is designed to move around rather than stick to one sound. It runs from 1pm to 9pm, and free advance tickets also unlock 2 for 1 cocktails during the party.
Guava Jamz Carnival Warm Up Party | 📍Two Tribes Campfire, N7 | 29 August | Free
Guava Jamz is starting Carnival weekend a day early with a nine hour outdoor party at Two Tribes Campfire. It runs from afternoon into night, with DJs idah and Conrad Lee, a BBQ, full bar and the whole thing set up as a warm up for the weekend ahead. Under 18s can come before 9pm with an adult, then it becomes 18+ later in the evening. 3pm to midnight. Tickets are free.
Chuckie Online’s FAMILEE Carnival Afterparty | 📍KOKO, Camden, NW1 | 31 August | (£)
When Notting Hill Carnival winds down on Bank Holiday Monday, Chuckie Online takes the party north to KOKO. His annual FAMILEE night is built around Carnival sound system culture and his British Jamaican roots, so expect a late night mix of Caribbean influenced sounds, big DJ sets and the kind of crowd that is very much not ready to go home yet. This is his only Carnival party he is having this year, last year’s one sold out. Doors open at 10.30pm, with last entry at 1am and the party running into the early hours. Physical photo ID required.
Uren and Upwards: Hornsey Town Hall and Its History | 📍Hornsey Town Hall, N8 | 29 August | (£)
Go behind the doors of Hornsey Town Hall and see the rooms where local politics, public life and music once played out. The 90 minute tour takes in the council chamber, mayor’s parlour, assembly hall and the building’s modernist details, with stories of The Kinks, Queen and the films and TV shows shot here. Starts at 2pm.
Natural Aspect Summer Concert | 📍Parliament Hill Bandstand, Hampstead Heath | 30 August | Free
Bring a picnic and settle in for an afternoon of live music on the Heath. The bandstand will move through soul, jazz, reggae, ska and rock, with sets from John Etheridge and Vimala Rowe, The Bohème Hot Club and Peace & Love. There will also be circus skills, children’s activities, food, pizza, ice cream and plenty of room to dance. 1pm to 5pm.
Inverness Street Bloc Party: Disco House | 📍Inverness Street Market, Camden, NW1 | 29 August | Free
Inverness Street is swapping market stalls for a giant outdoor dancefloor this Bank Holiday Saturday. The theme is Disco House, so expect the feel good side of disco mixed with house music, with DJs including Brandon Block, Ricky Morrison and Matt White playing from midday into the evening. There is a bit of Camden history behind it too, celebrating the clubs and dancefloors that shaped the area, from Camden Palace to the Electric Ballroom, as well as Camden’s connection to Claudia Jones, who organised one of Britain’s earliest Caribbean Carnival events nearby. Come for a dance, bring the family or just stop by and see what is happening. 12pm to 7pm.
Yiddish Culture Weekend 2026 | 📍Bloomsbury, King’s Cross & beyond | 28 to 30 August | Free + paid events
This is a whole weekend for getting to know Yiddish culture by actually taking part in it. Yiddish is a language historically spoken by many Ashkenazi Jewish communities, with its own music, stories, humour, poetry and traditions. Across the weekend you can learn a traditional dance from scratch, join a Yiddish singalong, listen to klezmer musicians, hear poetry read in Yiddish and English, browse old newspapers and postcards from Jewish London, or sit down for a screening of the 1937 film The Dybbuk. Sunday is the big day at SOAS, with workshops and performances running from 10am to 7pm, and complete beginners are very much welcome. Some events are completely free, while paid passes and sessions start from £15.
Bi Pride 2026 | 📍Kings Place, King’s Cross, N1 | 29 August | Free
Bi Pride brings the UK’s Bi+ community together at Kings Place for a full day of performances, conversations and meeting people. It is for people who experience attraction to more than one gender or identify somewhere under the Bi+ umbrella, with friends and allies welcome too. There are two stages to dip between, with live music, drag and performances on one, and conversations about relationships, family, identity, activism and Bi+ life on the other. Jordan Gray and Shaaba are among this year’s headliners, and there will also be stalls from LGBTQ+ groups, charities and small businesses. A sensory room, remembrance space and multi faith prayer room are available too. 2pm to 10pm. Free, but you need to register for a ticket.
Manorfest 2026 | 📍New River Studios, Manor House, N4 | 29 & 30 August | (£)
A car park behind New River Studios is becoming a two day Bank Holiday festival, and each day has a completely different feel. Saturday is the louder one, with live bands including Eel Men, Snub, Morreadoras and EZ8, plus DJs, art, performances, food and a bar before the party moves inside New River Studios until 1am. Sunday slows things right down with Ambient Car Park, an afternoon of gentler, more meditative DJs and live performances from artists including Agate, Dave Webb and UKAEA, followed by another indoor afterparty. Saturday runs 2pm to 10pm, Sunday 12pm to 8pm.
AEW All In: London | 📍Wembley Stadium, HA9 | 30 August | (£)
Wembley is becoming one enormous wrestling arena for the afternoon. AEW, one of the biggest professional wrestling companies outside WWE, is bringing its flagship All In show back to London, with a stadium full of entrances, rivalries, title fights and the kind of high flying, theatrical matches designed to feel huge from the stands. Kenny Omega and British star Will Ospreay are at the top of this year’s bill. There is also a separate £60 fan experience where you can pose with the AEW World Championship belt, meet an AEW wrestler and get first look at the event merchandise. Main show starts at 4.30pm.
Quince Bakery’s 3rd Annual Pie Party | 📍Quince Bakery, N1 | 31 August | (£)
Quince Bakery is turning Bank Holiday Monday into one big pie table. For its third annual Pie Party, the Islington bakery is inviting some of London’s best independent bakers, including Bake Street, Decatur, Lucky Yu Bakery and Hamblin Bread, to each bring their own take on pie. Expect everything from fruit filled and lattice topped slices to savoury pies, mini pies and big sharing slabs. Last year they baked almost 500, and this time they are aiming even bigger. There will also be coffee, iced tea, ice cream and snacks while you queue. Doors open at 12pm and they keep serving until the pies are gone.