Things To Do In London This Weekend: 12-13 April 2014

Snapshot Songs celebrates London’s collective voice, at Barbican on Sunday. Photo: Helen Murray.

All weekend

GAULTIER: Get your high-end fashion fix at Barbican's latest exhibition: The Fashion World of John Paul Gaultier - the first major exhibition devoted to the French designer. £9-£14.50, just turn up, until 31 May. (Then you could always head to the V&A for its Italian fashion exhibition)

DIGITAL KIDS: V&A museum is catering for Easter holiday family visits by holding drop-in sessions for children aged 5+ to stage and perform their own animated version of a Shakespeare play, using their iPads. Free, just turn up

CHOCOLATE: We gave you a heads up a couple of months ago about The Chocolate Festival, and the day has finally arrived. So slobber, slather and salivate your way through tastings, chocolate cocktails, cocoa beauty treatments, workshops and markets this weekend at Islington's Business Design Centre. £5-£35, prebook

ELECTRONIC MUSIC: If you're interested in getting into the music biz then networking opportunities are likely to be high at the London Electronic Music Event this weekend. Held at Rich Mix, there'll be speakers, workshops, debates as well as various performances. £60-£65, prebook

EASTER: It was only Christmas a couple of days ago yet it's already another national holiday, meaning guardians need to generate two weeks worth of ideas to entertain the kids. Luckily we've done the hard work for you, so if you're struggling this weekend, take a look at our London Easter holidays round-up

BICYCLES: London cyclists can learn how to make the most of their bikes at Bespoked – The UK Handmade Bicycle Show, held at Lee Valley Velopark, offering stalls, exhibitors, talks and workshops. £10 per day, prebook

CRAFT: Ally Pally is the location for the Big Stamp & Scrapbooking Show with craft supplies and technique workshops. £4-8, prebook, from 10am daily

MARKET: The Crafty Fox Market is back for a spring-time edition, this time at Peckham's Bussey Building, with 45 different stalls from designers and makers each day plus screen-printing workshops and children's craft sessions. Free, just turn up, midday-5pm daily

THEATRE & JAZZ: A creative re-telling of the Greek Orpheus myth has opened at Battersea Arts Centre. During weekends, stick around after the show for live jazz gigs. £15-£25, until 17 May

Saturday 12 April

TOOT STRUM CRASH: Various music stores and venues offer free taster sessions as part of Learn To Play Day today, so if you've been thinking about trying something new, why not make it a trombone/keyboard/ukulele?  Free, prebook

SPRING FLING: Today is the final day of Fringe! Spring Fling, a two day festival of queer films, parties and talks. See website for full details

NEW HOMES: Affordable, housing, London. A sequence of words that rarely inspires optimism for house hunters in the capital, but the free FIRST STEPS Homes Show at Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre offers brokers, developers and mortgage advisers all discussing new homes in the London boroughs. Free, prebook, 10am-5pm

SILVERSMITHING: Festival of Silver organisation curates Inspired at Goldsmiths' Centre in Clerkenwell – an exhibition of contemporary furniture and modern silversmithing, with pieces available to purchase. Free, just turn up, 10am-4pm

WW1: Members of the 10th Battalion Essex Regiment re-enactment group demonstrate the equipment and kit used by your average Tommy during WW1 (free, just turn up, 10am-4pm), plus author and military historian Peter Hart talks about life in the trenches (free, just turn up, 2pm), both at East Finchley library as part of Cityread 2014

GLOBAL WARMING: Join a British Humanist Association-hosted event at Conway Hall, where experts and campaigners look at how to respond to the threat of global warming. £10/£5, prebook, 10.30am

WW1 CRAFT: All materials are provided at Barbican's art and craft session for children aged 5+, where participants will make a selection of medals, animals and tanks from the First World War. Free, just turn up, 11am

WALK BARNET: Step back in time to 1471 and learn about the Battle of Barnet, the first known ‘friendly fire’ incident in English history, on this guided walk by Paul Baker. £8/£4, prebook, 11am

WALK DALSTON: Farms, markets, gardens, hospitals, refuges, factories, diversity. Learn the history of Hackney in this walk, starting from Dalston Junction station. £8, prebook via sean@walkhackney.co.uk, 11am

WALK PENTONVILLE: Or, join guide Sue Sinton Smith on a new walk discovering the history behind the streets of Pentonville, from Georgian squares to social housing. £10/£7.50, prebook, 11am-1pm

BEER: Catch the last day of Hook Beer Festival, a CAMRA-supported event taking place in a scout hut on the southern side of Surbiton (really). £5, prebook, from midday

POP-UP: Wasted Chic holds a one-day pop-up sale at McQueen cocktail bar in Shoreditch with a focus on up-and-coming London designers. Plus DJs and hairstyling/makeovers. Free, just turn up, 12.30pm-5pm

SWISH: Get your swap on at the SwapAholics monthly swishing event at The Grafton pub in Kentish Town. Bring your unwanted clothes, receive tokens, swap them for something new. Leftover clothes will be donated to charity. £5, just turn up, 1-4pm

WW1 WALK: Blue Badge guide Steve Szymanski's Great War Walk, starting at Embankment station, explores the causes of World War One, its character, impact on London and legacy on our lives today. £10, prebook, 2.30-5pm

OBJECT/BODY/SCULPTURE: Artist Leah Capaldi reflects on the encounter of object, body and sculpture in a durational performance in the Sackler Centre of Arts Education, at the Serpentine Gallery. Free, just turn up, 3pm

KNITTING: Got a knitting project you're working on? Just want to learn a new skill? Then pop along today to The North London Stitch Up at the Windmill Pub in Cricklewood, where knitters of all levels are welcome. Free, just turn up, 3pm

FOODIE SOHO: City of Westminster guide Joanna Moncrieff leads you around Soho to discover the area's food and drink heritage together with its hidden cocktail bar scene. Starts by Leicester Square tube and ends with sampling Indian spice cocktails at Imli Street. £10+bf, prebook, 4pm

JAZZ: Legendary jazz club Ronnie Scott's sees a performance from Georgie Fame, who has been on the music scene for over 50 years and has three number one hits under his belt. £35-£55, prebook, 6pm

AMIRI BARAKA: Earlier this year poet, novelist, playwright, music critic, editor, and cultural organiser Amiri Baraka passed away. Institute of Contemporary Arts today hosts a memorial performance to mark his life with readings by poets and speakers. £10, prebook, 7pm

GREEK COMPOSER: Musicians Anastasis Sarakatsanos and Katerina Clambaneva collaborate to produce an evening of music at St Ethelburga’s Centre for Peace and Reconciliation, exploring the works of cherished Greek composer Manos Hadjidakis. £13.20, prebook, 7.30pm

LOCAL CHOIR: London Contemporary Voices choir performs a number of contemporary arrangements including songs by Bon Iver, Bat For Lashes and Dirty Projectors, plus beatboxing by BeatFox, at St John-at-Hackney on Lower Clapton Road. £8, prebook, 7.30pm

GIG: Folk singer and songwriter Tom Brosseau (excellent name) returns to London as part of his UK tour, marking his first solo release in five years. Catch him at Sebright Arms. £8, prebook, 8.30pm

COMMUNICATION: Canopy of Eyes at The Cockpit theatre explores the development of modern human communication and its impact on behaviour and health, through song, music, clowning and interactive text. £10/£8, prebook, 9pm

CAPULET BALL: A night of music, madness, Montagues and Capulets, inspired by Baz Luhrmann's 1996 film and organised by Queen Mab Collective. Fancy dress encouraged and held in a 'secret' east London location. £40/£35+bf, prebook, from 9pm

CONEY ISLAND PARTY: A club night inspired by the New York island, Coney Island Party puts on cabaret, limbo competitions, fairground games and even a hotdog eating contest alongside the more expected DJ set and dancing. £5-£10, prebook or turn up at Bethnal Green Working Men's Club before 10pm for cheaper tickets, 9pm-2.30am

POETRY: Have a poem written for you about whatever you like by Writer in Residence in Soho, Sarah Perry, at the Soho Theatre Bar. Free, just turn up, 1.30pm-5.30pm

Sunday 13 April

MARATHON: Today is the 34th London Marathon. If you're taking part, well done you and best of luck. If you're not, why not head on down to support those who are? The atmosphere is great. To find out more about the route and timings visit the website here. The main race begins at 10am

BUS GATHERING: Head to London Bus Museum at Brooklands for its Spring Gathering celebrating 75 years of RT-type buses with entertainment for the kids and bus rides for all. Adults £13, kids £7, open 10am-5pm

ANTIQUES: Pick up a treasure at the Royal Horticultural Hall in Victoria with Adams Antiques Fair, supposedly the longest running monthly antiques fair in London. £4, prebook, 10am-4.30pm

WINE: Tobacco Dock in Wapping is the setting for The Real Wine Fair, with seminars, shopping and offerings from 130 winemakers, plus food and drink specialists. £20/£15, prebook, 10am-6pm

PSYCHIATRY: Psychotherapist and lecturer Dr James Davies investigates why psychiatry is such a big business and whether it can do more harm than good, in this Conway Hall Sunday lecture. £5/£2, prebook, 11am

THAI FOOD: Celebrate Thai New Year at Fairground on Kingsland Road as Busaba Eathai takes over three floors with a pop-up restaurant, cookery classes and cultural dancing. Free, just turn up, midday-11pm

ORCHESTRA: If you're travelling through St Pancras station today, leave a bit of extra time to enjoy Alex Mendham & His Orchestra, who will be playing jazz and pop from the 1920s and 30s. Free, just turn up, midday-2.30pm

WRITING: Join a Keats-themed writing workshop led by Keats House Poet in Residence, Jo Shapcott. The house and gardens will be used for inspiration. £20/£15, prebook, 1.30-4.30pm

TEXTILES: Fashion and Textile Museum on Bermondsey Street offers a curator tour of their ARTIST TEXTILES Picasso to Warhol exhibition so you can find out more about the works as well as the ethos of the museum itself. Free, just turn up, 2pm

BENGAL: Celebrating Bengali music and the arts at Rich Mix, Bengal to Bethnal Green includes talks, performances and discussions from both contemporary and traditional musicians. Free, just turn up, 3.30-5.30pm

FILM: Catch a screening of 1978 film Girlfriends at BFI Southbank, described by the BFI as a "woefully neglected gem [that] celebrates the comedy and confusion of young single life in New York". £8.50-£12.10, prebook, 6.30pm

LGSO: London Gay Symphony Orchestra presents a spring concert at the lovely St Sepulchre-without-Newgate by Holborn Viaduct, with a theme of "enduring epics and emotions". £8-£12, prebook, 7pm

FLEET SINGERS: Fleet Singers sing Fauré’s Requiem and other 19th century French music at St Anne’s Church in Highgate. Free (donations welcome), just turn up, 7.30pm

LONDON'S ZEITGEIST: A couple of weeks ago we introduced you to Snapshot Songs, a project that celebrates London's collective voice (or 'zeitgeist'). Tonight is the first of two performances at Barbican that feature 150 musicians coming together to perform the collection of Londony songs composed especially for the project. £10/£5, prebook, 7.30pm

Other good stuff

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