London On The Cheap

By Kira Last edited 189 months ago
London On The Cheap
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We are happy to announce this very special installment of London On the Cheap, where your London week ain’t merely cheap…but utterly free! Whee! Yes, it’s early in the month, and your pockets are a-burnin’, but save some of that stash for next week, when we present London On the Not So Cheap. Joking. (Maybe.)

Monday: Gay Pub Bingo Night! More promising words were never written. Join host Timberlina, unquestionably the best drag name we’ve heard yet, with music from DJ Hey Baylen & DJ 50 Pence. Free on the door, £1 per game. And heyo — £2 Fosters and house spirits all night. Starts at 8.30. At Royal Vauxhall Tavern. Tuesday: You like your electro, and some ill-advised leather pants suffocating somewhere in the back of your closet points to an allegiance to gritty rock, but every now and then a bit of soothing classical is in order, especially after the mayhem of the weekend. Tonight and tomorrow night, the New London Orchestra presents two free concerts of both beloved Edwardian classics and some pieces as yet played in the UK. Tchaikovsky, Gershwin, and Ibert are some programme standouts. Call the Cadogan Box Office on 020 7730 4500 for complimentary tickets.Wednesday: Today and tomorrow, Borough Market will be jumping on the Taste of Spain merriment by hosting a celebration of Spanish cuisine, featuring live demos from leading chefs in addition to experts dishing out tips on Spanish products and ingredients.Thursday: Fancy yourself a treasure hunter? Maybe you, too, were obsessed with the concept of having an illicit sleepover in a museum and diving for treasure in the penny’d wishes of a museum fountain after reading The Mixed Up Files of Mrs. Basil E. Frankweiler as a wee one. Tonight, Museum of London provides the next best option: a late night treasure hunt with artist Yaa El-Sherbini at the Museum of London. Free, 6-9 pm.Friday: Ah, the outdoor film season is finally upon us! There’s nothing like summertime al fresco entertainment. Take one of the 800 seats in open-air Scoop Amphitheatre by 9.15 for the free showing of the brilliant Usual Suspects. In the event you’ve been living under a rock all these years, here’s your chance to finally find out what the hell your mates are referring to when they creepily croak the words Keyser Söze.Saturday: Fellas, don your oxfords and waistcoats, ladies, get dolled up in any low-waisted dress approximating lingerie, and get ossified at the Prohibition party tonight at Bourne & Hollingsworth. Floor show (including Charleston dancers and Gramophone DJs) starts at 9. Free entry.Sunday: Head out to the fair Hackney’s fair Clissold Park today for Stokefest, a free, independent arts festival that attracts an impressive 20 – 30,000 visitors and is a happy continuation of the Stoke Newington Midsummer Festival. 12-8pm.

Perhaps instead, you fancy the razzle dazzle spectacle of a Dragon Boat Festival, get thee to Chinatown to celebrate popular Chinese national hero and poet, Qu Yuan.

Or, you could go on a massive spending spree because somehow, a week of free events in London need not apply to you. LUCKY.

Image courtesy of ohad’s flickrstream

Last Updated 02 June 2008