Whats on North London this weekend October 31-Nov 1

Hey Neighbour,

There’s so many things to do in North London this weekend. Here’s the full list.

— Maryam

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Your guide to what’s happening in North London this week. Events marked with (£) require a ticket in advance.

Diwali at Brent Cross | 📍Brent Cross Shopping Centre, NW4 | 1 November | Free
Diwali is the Hindu festival of lights, celebrated by over a billion people worldwide, and Brent Cross has marked it with a free community event for 26 years running. This Sunday Centre Court fills up from noon: diya making and henna artists from the start, a cultural parade at 1.30pm, then Dhol drumming, Garba, Bhangra, Bollywood and Zumba from 2pm, another parade at 3.30pm and a final performance with audience participation at 4pm. Free parking too. 12pm to 5.30pm.

With Each Look | 📍Lower Slopes Gallery, N1 | Until 1 November | Free
The debut show from Lower Slopes, a Highgate gallery not yet open, eighteen works across painting, photography, ceramics, embroidery and sculpture from twelve artists, mostly women, from the UK, Europe and North America. The thread running through it is looking again, at the same thing, until you see something different. Last week to catch it.

Classic Car Boot Sale at Walter | 📍Walter The Garage, N8 | 31 October | Free
Walter is a vintage denim and clothing shop on Middle Lane Mews in Crouch End, and this Saturday they’re hosting a car boot in the garage with Twocees and Second Hand Gav. Vintage clothing and denim goods, 11am to 5pm.

Rising Forms | 📍The Art Studio, N20 | 29 October - 1 November | Free
Five professional artists from around Whetstone got together, formed N20 Collective, and this weekend is their first ever show. The work spans five completely different styles, paintings you can browse and buy, and the artists will be there in person.

Made in Palestine Pop-Up | 📍46 Park Road, Crouch End, N8 | 29 October - 1 November | Free
El Bustan sources directly from Palestinian artisans, and this weekend they’re in Crouch End. Tatreez is the centuries-old Palestinian embroidery tradition, and you’ll find it here alongside handcrafted leather bags from Hebron, olive wood carvings from Bethlehem and ceramics from Haifa.

Kidzworld Pumpkin Patch | 📍Hampstead Heath, NW3 | 31 October | (£)
Pick your own pumpkin on Hampstead Heath, with a funfair, trick or treat maze, fun games, food stalls and a marshmallow roasting pit. 10am to 6pm both Saturdays.

Stampex International | 📍Business Design Centre, N1 | 28 - 31 October | Free
The world's biggest stamp fair comes to Islington for four days, with 65 dealers and collectors from across the globe. Whether you're adding to a collection, thinking of selling one, or just curious what the fuss is about, it's free to walk in. 

Film Screening: House of Wax | 📍The London Archives, EC1R | 29 October | (£)
Vincent Price, 1953, in an archive on Halloween. Before the film starts you hear what London's censors made of it at the time: they thought the 3D made it funny rather than scary. Popcorn and a drink included. Over 18s, doors 5.45pm, starts 6.15pm.

Black Music & Rebellion: 50 Years of Punk | 📍Camden Town Hall, WC1H | 29 October | (£)
Punk turns 50 this year, but the story usually told leaves out the Caribbean sound systems, reggae, dub and ska that helped shape it. This panel at Camden Town Hall puts that at the centre, with broadcaster Richie Brave in conversation with Stephanie Phillips of Black feminist punk band Big Joanie, Mykaell Riley of Steel Pulse and founder of the Black Music Research Unit, and journalist Vivien Goldman who documented the punk-reggae relationship as it happened in the 1970s. Part of Camden’s Black History Season, proceeds to the African Caribbean Leukaemia Trust.

Halloween Spooky Walks | 📍Lauderdale House, N6 | 31 October | (£)
Follow a mysterious guide through Lauderdale House and into Waterlow Park after dark, meeting weird and wonderful characters along the way before coming back for a Halloween treat. Think Halloween meets pantomime. Running for over 20 years, and every costume is made by the Lauderdale House team. Walks from 5pm, slots at 5, 5.30, 6 and 6.30pm. £12.50, concessions £9.

Halloween at Islington Square | 📍Islington Square, N1 | 31 October | Free
Islington Square teams up with Urban Food Fest for a Halloween day on Upper Street: artisan market stalls, seasonal food, live entertainment and themed experiences. Full lineup to be announced. From 11am.

First Dip of Winter | 📍Parliament Hill Lido, NW5 | 1 November | (£)
IceBreakers is a free men’s community built around cold water swimming and mental health, with a North London chapter at Parliament Hill Lido. Chilly Dippers, founded by Liv Sharron, is a cold water and mental health community that grew from Edinburgh into London. This Sunday the two are combining for their first dip of winter, breathwork to ease you in, a group swim, then coffee and birthday cake because IceBreakers North London turns three. Never done cold water before? Getting in is entirely optional. 

Right, Let’s Write: Vol. 3 | 📍Next Door Records Two, N16 | 1 November | Free
A community writing session in the back of a Stoke Newington record shop, for anyone working on something or just needing a space to start. Every form of writing welcome, fiction, poetry, scripts, whatever you’re working on. Show up, write, meet other writers. 2pm to 5pm.

Halloween Dog Parade | 📍Claremont Park, NW2 | 31 October, 11am–1pm | Free
Your dog deserves a Halloween too. Dress them up, bring them to Claremont Park, and parade them through the park in front of judges deciding on Best Dressed, Spookiest Pup, Best Homemade Costume, Cutest Puppy and more. There’s free professional photos at Arthur’s, dog treats from local retailers, face painting, and all proceeds go to Pets As Therapy. Participating dogs must register in advance — spectators just show up.

Bloomsbury Festival | 📍Various venues, WC1H | Until 31 October | Free
Bloomsbury Festival is in its 20th year and this is its final weekend. On Saturday, the neighbourhood marks Diwali, the Hindu festival of lights celebrated by over a billion people worldwide, with a free street celebration on Bramber Green and outside Holy Cross Church. Indian food, crafts, music and Bollywood sounds from noon. Then from 2pm inside the church, AKDC brings three forms of Indian classical dance, Bharatanatyam, Odissi and Kuchipudi, with a hands-on drawing session before the performances and a dance-along at the end. All free, no booking needed.

All Treat, No Trick | 📍Karamel, N22 | 31 October | Free
Karamel is a community venue and café in Wood Green, and this Halloween they’re hosting a free afternoon for dogs and their people. Every attending dog gets a free bag of vegan food and treats from Just Be Kind, the humans get sweets, and there’s a Halloween playlist, spooky decorations and a room full of other dog owners to chat to. Costumes encouraged, kitchen and bar open, register a free ticket per dog so they know how many treats to have ready. Noon to 3pm.

Agatha Christie: A World of Mystery | 📍British Library, NW1 | Until 20 June 2027 | (£)
Agatha Christie wrote 66 detective novels and is the best-selling fiction writer of all time, outsold only by the Bible and Shakespeare. The British Library’s new exhibition goes behind the books, her real-life travels on the Orient Express, her work as a WWI pharmacy dispenser that gave her an encyclopedic knowledge of poison, her archaeological digs in the Middle East with her second husband. The exhibition recreates those worlds as physical spaces you walk through, and displays her actual typewriter, teenage manuscripts and personal letters for the first time. Hidden clues throughout for anyone who wants to play detective. From £20.

Crouch End Diaspora Drop | 📍The Floral Hall, N8 | 1 November | Free
A diaspora drop is a curated market where brands from communities of the global south sell directly to the public, and this one lands at Crouch End’s Floral Hall the week before Diwali. Six brands including Mixala Chai, Kansa Gudi and Studio Ashna, selling jewellery, homewares, fashion, original art and chai. 10am to 5pm.

Pan de Muertos Workshop | 📍Calthorpe Community Garden, WC1X | 31 October | Free
Pan de Muertos is the sweet, orange-blossom and anise-scented bread baked in Mexico every year for Day of the Dead, shaped and decorated with dough bones to honour those who’ve passed. Calthorpe Community Garden is running a workshop to make it from scratch this Saturday, alongside Tanta Wawa, the Bolivian equivalent. Free entry, donations welcome, 2pm to 5pm.

Halloween on Hampden Square | 📍Hampden Square, N14 | 31 October | Free
Every Halloween, the businesses around Hampden Square in Southgate deck out their shops and hand out treats to kids doing the trail. This is the fourth year, an hour of trick-or-treating and a pumpkin hunt around the square, with seven local businesses taking part. 5pm to 6pm, good timing before it gets dark and properly spooky.

Hot Lemon Halloween | 📍43 De Beauvoir Road, N1 | 31 October | (£)
Hot Lemon and Batch Baby are throwing a joint Halloween party to celebrate Batch Baby’s fifth birthday. DJ sets, natural wine, tarot cards and spooky surprises at their De Beauvoir Road spot. Costumes required, free welcome drink before 9pm, runs until 3am.

Halloween Market in Devonshire Square | 📍Devonshire Square, N13 | 31 October | Free
Palmers Green’s Devonshire Square gets a Halloween takeover this Saturday, local traders selling French cheese, warm crumbles, jewellery, artwork and handmade gifts, with live music and face painting for kids who need to look the part before trick-or-treating. Come in costume. 11am to 3pm.

Spooky Walk at Firs Farm | 📍Firs Farm Wetlands, N21 | 31 October | Free
The volunteers who look after Firs Farm Wetlands are turning it into a Halloween trail on Saturday evening, skeletons hidden in the dark, mystery boxes, axe throwing, a BBQ and s’mores. Free entry, but bring a torch because they mean it when they say it will be dark. Families with children up to 12, 4pm to 8pm.

Grand Opening: Arnos Park Children’s Playground | 📍Arnos Park, N11 | 1 November | Free
Arnos Park’s volunteers have been working to get a new children’s playground built, and Sunday is the opening day. Face painting, candy floss, a children’s entertainer and Beat the Goalie, plus a meet-and-greet with Zack Nelson, a local lad from Bowes School who made it through the Spurs Academy, played Premier League football for Luton Town and now plays for AFC Wimbledon. 11am to 2pm.

Mozart Piano Gala | 📍Kings Place, N1 | 31 October | (£)
Mozart wrote some of his most joyful music for two people sitting at the same piano, or two pianos playing together. This evening at Kings Place brings five of the UK’s leading pianists together to perform exactly that, seven works across two pianos in an intimate hall setting. £22.50 to £50, 7.30pm.

Regent’s Canal Walking Tour | 📍Victoria Park to Islington Tunnel, E2 to N1 | 1 November | (£)
Regent’s Canal has been a Georgian trade route, a Victorian industrial artery and is now a gentrified leisure corridor, all in just over 200 years. This 2.5-mile walk with architectural historian Lettie Mckie traces that full arc, from Victoria Park to the Islington Tunnel, reading the buildings along the way: Regency villas, Victorian gasholders, lock-keepers’ cottages and converted warehouses. From £9.50, 10.30am to 1pm.

Día de los Muertos at Camden Market | Camden Market, NW1 | 1 November | Free
Day of the Dead is a Mexican tradition of remembering loved ones who’ve passed, not with mourning but with altars, marigolds, sugar skulls and celebration. Camden Market brings it to life at Hawley Wharf for a full six hours: mariachi bands, Catrina parades, face painting, a chocolate workshop and papel picado crafting, plus Mexican food and drink stalls throughout.

Super Spooky Cabaret for Kids | 📍Jacksons Lane, N6 | 27 October - 1 November | (£)
An hour of circus and magic for little Halloween fans at Jacksons Lane, come in costume. Two shows daily, ages 4 and up, £15 a ticket.

The Merry Wives of Crouch End | 📍Hornsey Moravian Church Hall, N8 | 28 - 31 October | (£)
Crouch End Players are a local amateur theatre company, and their Halloween run is a Shakespeare comedy with a North London twist: two women outsmarting a man who thought he had them figured out, set in Crouch End with local landmarks and neighbourhood gossip written into the script. Four nights over half-term at the Moravian Church Hall, plus a Saturday afternoon show at 2pm. £10 Wednesdays and Saturday afternoon, £14 everything else.

The Signal-Man & The Trial | 📍Charles Dickens Museum, Bloomsbury, WC1N | 30 October - 1 November | (£)
James Swanton, the actor The Telegraph called “the scariest man on TV”, performs two Dickens ghost stories in the house where Dickens actually lived. Widely considered the most frightening thing Dickens ever wrote. Three evenings over Halloween weekend, 4pm, £25.75.

Frieze Sculpture 2026 | 📍Regent’s Park, NW1 | Until 1 November | Free
Last weekend to catch 11 international artists’ work installed across Regent’s Park’s English Gardens. It’s been there since September but Sunday is the final day.

Spine-Chilling Cellars & Ghost Hunt | 📍Stephens House & Gardens,  N3 | 30 - 31 October | (£)
Stephens House opens its cellars for Halloween, with ghosts hidden in the trees and a prize for anyone who finds them all. Hunt runs from 1pm, closes at 4pm. £5.50 per person, children over 2.

Halloween at the King of Prussia | 📍King of Prussia, N3 | 31 October | Free
A multi-generational Halloween day party at one of Finchley’s most familiar pubs. All ages, drop in on the day.

Finsbury Park Cabaret: Halloween Spectacular | 📍The Old Dairy,  N4 | 31 October | (£)
Finsbury Park is getting its own cabaret night, and the first one lands on Halloween. The launch show brings together different acts rather than one continuous performance, with singing, comedy, dance and a little old school cabaret glamour. Kiki Noir is among the performers, mixing cabaret with Portuguese and Brazilian music and dance. Doors 7pm, show 8pm. There’s also an optional Thai dinner you can order in advance.

Horroway Road Halloween Costume Party | 📍One Eighty One, N7 | 31 October | (£)
Go dressed as your favourite musician, dead or alive. One Eighty One is turning Holloway Road into “Horroway Road” for Halloween, with Spin Doctor and guests playing all vinyl sets until 2am. Tickets are £5 and include a glass of Halloween Prosecco. 9pm to 2am.

Halloween Party at the London Art Bar | 📍Holborn, WC1H | 31 October | (£)
The London Art Bar is keeping Halloween simple: costumes, cocktails and dancing. Come dressed as weird, scary or elaborate as you like, with a DJ playing through the night and the bar mixing cocktails until 11pm. Starts at 7pm.

Club de Fromage Halloween Special | 📍Dingwalls,  NW1 | 31 October | (£)
Club de Fromage is going full Halloween at Dingwalls. Come in your most gruesome costume for four hours of big pop songs, Halloween tunes, ridiculous dance offs and mass singalongs, with the stage covered in horror props and Club de Fromage’s costumed characters causing trouble in between. There’ll be confetti cannons and Halloween cocktails too. 11pm to 3am. 18+ only.

Trick or EAT Halloween Trail | 📍Stoke Newington | 31 October | Free
Take a bag of tins trick or treating with you this Halloween. Trick or EAT adds food bank donation stops to the usual neighbourhood trail, with homes and shops around Hackney collecting longlife food for Hackney Foodbank while families are out collecting sweets. Follow the map, drop off a tin or packet at each stop and carry on trick or treating. The idea has collected more than 14 tonnes of food since it started eight years ago. 3pm to 8pm.

Halloween Spooktacular at Capel Manor Gardens | 📍Capel Manor Gardens, EN1 | 26–31 October | (£)
This half-term, Capel Manor’s 30 acres of gardens go haunted — and the horror maze runs through the Manor House itself, in partnership with immersive horror specialists The Dread House. Every paying child picks their own pumpkin from the patch and takes it home; there’s also a deadly disco, animal talks and feeding, creepy crafts, and live entertainment across the site. Book online to save (it’s £15/£20 on the door). 10am to 4pm, last admission 2pm. Under 3s free.

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