All weekend
PUB: Just want to kick back and relax with a pint and a packet of pork scratchings? Our pubs guide has information about all the best pubs in London, organised by area for your convenience. Find a boozer nearby, or see if your favourite made the cut.
LIT FEST: Kings Place is the venue for London Lit Weekend, which explores all sorts of topics from religion to rock'n'roll, poetry to crime, and money to philosophy. See full schedule. Buy tickets to individual events, or get a day pass for £20. 10-12 October
RUMFEST: Rum lovers, head to RumFest at the ILEC Conference Centre in Earls Court for a weekend of tastings, seminars, food, presentations and more. £49.95 per day or £89.90 for the weekend, prebook, 11-12 October
RIVER FESTIVAL: Wilton's and The River is a free mini-festival with music, talks, arts, crafts and good old fashioned family entertainment. Takes place partly at Wilton's Music Hall, and partly off-site. Highlights include a Thames River Police Museum Tour and a performance by the Metropolitan Police Male Voice Choir. Free, reservation necessary for some events, 11-12 October
OKTOBERFEST: The Cygnet Bar near Hackney Wick has a weekend celebrating Oktoberfest with German beers, German sausages, German games, an exclusive Truman’s wheat beer and more oompah and Europop than you can shake a stein at. Free, just turn up, 11-12 October
SEED FESTIVAL: The Garden Museum in Lambeth is the London venue for The Great Seed Festival, a nationwide celebration of food and agriculture. Activities include film screening, children's story time, talks and workshops. 11-12 October
PLAYFEST: Playfest is an evening of five new short plays, in association with Wimbledon Bookfest, taking place at Wimbledon Library. The plays were all commissioned especially for the event. £10, prebook, 11-12 October
KNITTING: The Knitting and Stitching Show is at Alexandra Palace, with exhibitors from the textile industry, workshops and lectures, and a tea room to escape from the hustle and bustle. From £13, prebook, until 12 October
OPEN STUDIOS: Artists currently working in the Wandsworth area are opening the doors of their studios to the public. Browse the website to discover the different art trails you can undertake. Free, 11-12 October
LITERARY FOOTSTEPS: The Literary Footprints Festival continues. This weekend's options include a chance to explore Fleet Street's printing past and an insight into the literary secrets of Smithfield and Clerkenwell. £10, prebook, throughout October
Saturday 11 October
FREE WALKS: Every year London's four local guiding associations put on a day of free walks, with a different theme — this year it's the Georgians and the City. Westminster, Clerkenwell & Islington and Greenwich Guides will each be offering a walk in their respective areas on this theme. Free, see websites for details of individual events.
VISIT A CHURCH: For today only, St Paulinus Church in Crayford hosts an open day. Enjoy a variety of music including an organ recital, church choir performance and the worship band, try to ring its bells and have a tour of the old and new courtyards. Free, just turn up, 10am-4pm
DEER WALK: Peter Burrows-Smith is hosting a Deer of Richmond Park course at Pembroke Lodge, which includes a 30 minute talk indoors followed by a two hour walk around the park. £10, prebook, 10am
OPEN DAY: Today you can visit the historic Ilford Hospital Chapel for free. During the day, there will be free guided tours available as well. Free, just turn up, 10am-2.30pm
MARKET CELEBRATION: Venn Street Market in Clapham celebrates its third birthday and early shoppers get a free glass of bubbly to celebrate. Free, just turn up, 10am-4pm
BOOKS ARE MY BAG: Dulwich Books celebrates this year's Books Are My Bag campaign with a day of events at the shop. The first 100 customers will receive a free Tracey Emin tote bag and free books, and authors and poets will be popping in throughout the day. Free, just turn up, 11am-3pm
CHARITY WALK: Charity CoolTan Arts holds its annual sponsored fundraising walk. Starting at Maudsley Hospital, the 4.8 mile walk ends on Southbank. £5/£10, prebook, 11.30am
AFRICAN CULTURE: As part of Black History Month, the Mayor of London's office has organised Africa on the Square, a celebration of African culture in Trafalgar Square. Expect live music, fashion, dance, stalls, food, plus fun activities for the kids. Free, just turn up, 12pm-6pm
CLOTHES SWAP: The Grafton Pub in Kentish Town hosts Swapaholics clothes swap. Bring your old clothes along, receive a token for every item you bring and use them to buy new items. £5, prebook, 1pm
CITY TOUR: Find out just what the Corporation of London actually is, why the Queen has to ask permission to enter the City and why the ‘Black-Scholes equation’ matters, on Occupy London's tour of the City. Free, prebook, 2pm
MUSIC FESTIVAL: Oxjam Clapham Music Festival brings over 50 live acts from indie to dance, electro, blues, soul and alternative rock to seven different venues around Clapham. The festival is organised by local people and features local artists. All proceeds go to Oxfam. £6/£8/£10, prebook, 2pm-3am
BRIXTON MARKET: Explore Brixton and its popular market with Brixton Society. Email [email protected] to prebook tickets for this guided walk (pay on the day). £3, prebook, 2.30pm
IRISH COMEDY: The London Irish Centre is fundraising through comedy, with a night featuring Aisling Bea and musical comedy legends David O’Doherty and Abandoman. The comedy is followed by a good old Irish Dishgo. £20/£12.50, prebook, 7pm
SOUL FOOD: Classic American soul food meets live music at the Ace Hotel in Shoreditch. Supa Dupa Fly and Grub Club join forces for an evening of food (think blueberry pie and jerk chicken) with R'n'B and hip hop music. The three course meal begins at 7pm with live music from 8pm. £35, prebook, 7pm-3am
ITALIAN FOOD: Eat With is a global community for those willing to share a table with other like-minded foodies over a home-cooked meal. Tonight Monica and Leonardo from Putney cook a four-course Italian meal. £24, prebook, 7.30pm
LIVE AT THE CHAPEL: In a special Live At The Chapel event (at Union Chapel), see the likes of Tim Key, Josie Long, Ed Gamble, Natasia Demetriou and more. £20/£18, prebook, 7.45pm
CUNNING FOLK: Sutton House in Hackney hosts an evening of spoken word and folk music, hosted by Nigel of Bermondsey. £10, prebook, 8pm
CLUB NIGHT: Carwash club night claims to be London's longest running club night, and has just hit 25 years. The celebration involves three of the best DJs from the last 20 years playing disco classics mixed with 1980s anthems. £10-£35, prebook, 10pm
CHAVS VS TOFFS: Club de Fromage disco night at O2 Club Islington adopts a chavs vs. toffs theme tonight. £9, prebook, 10.30pm
Sunday 12 October
SUNDAY ROAST: Nothing says Sunday like a full roast dinner. Have a look at our choice of the best Sunday roasts in London, or check out your other food options.
HALF MARATHON: It may be too late to take part in the Royal Parks Foundation Half Marathon 2014, but there's nothing stopping you turning out to cheer on those hardy runners. The route takes in the likes of Buckingham Palace, the London Eye, Houses of Parliament, Royal Albert Hall, Hyde Park, The Green Park, St James’s Park and Kensington Gardens. Be warned that road closures will be in effect. Spectators can also take part in the Food and Fitness Festival.
ANTIQUES: Adams Antiques Fairs returns to the Royal Horticultural Halls in Victoria. Dealers specialising in antique linens, fine jewellery, silver, ceramics and paintings come from all over Europe to form over 140 stalls. £4, prebook, 10am
VISIT A BARN: Harmondsworth Barn is also known as the 'Cathedral of Middlesex'. The barn is now owned by English Heritage and today, it opens its doors to the public. Free, just turn up, 11am-4pm
CHANTAL AKERMAN: JW3 centre in Camden has a day dedicated to filmmaker and artist Chantal Akerman to mark the mid-point in a 24 month retrospective. The day will include short papers, panel discussions, artist talks, a screening of interviews and a related documentary on Chantal Akerman. £6, prebook, 11am-5pm
OLD MAP WALK: Walk with old maps from the Tyburn conduit to the cottages where social reformer Octavia Hill began her work. Trace the site of the Workhouse and the Pleasure Gardens. Along the way encounter Robert Adam’s first London house, the Georgian splendour of Lord Harley’s Estate and at the end of an almost hidden alley, the Grotto Ragged School. £10, prebook, 11am
HONEY SHOW: Learn all about bees and beekeeping at Twickenham & Thames Valley Bee-Keepers Association's annual Honey Show at The Apiary in Twickenham. Free, just turn up, from 1pm
GUIDED WALK: Paul Baker leads an Anthony Trollope walk, meeting at the Eleanor Cross in front of Charing Cross station. The walk explores both his life and works, including the Barchester Chronicles and the Palliser novels, and will be followed by the option of tea with members of the Trollope Society. £10, prebook by email, 2pm
WARREN HOUSE: Enjoy the autumnal colours at the historical mansion as part of the National Garden Scheme. There will be free tours of the property by Vicky Good, author of The Warren House Tales, and tours of the historic gardens by head gardener Andrew Fuller. Tours are free after buying tickets to the house but prebook is essential, email [email protected] to get your place. £3.50/free, prebook, 2pm/3pm/4pm
DIWALI FESTIVAL: There's a free celebration of the festival of Diwali in Trafalgar Square, all welcome. There's arts, crafts and storytelling for children, a Street Bazaar, stage performances, food, drink and fitness classes. Free, just turn up, 2pm-8pm
BARN DANCE: The whole family can take part in a Barn Dance at Cecil Sharp House in Camden. No experience is required as simple instructions will be given as the dance is taking place. £7/£5, prebook, 2.30pm
DRUMMING WORKSHOP: As part of AfroRetro's School of Uganglish month, there's a Busoga Drum workshop in Cambridge Heath. Listen to the sounds of the Busoga Drum and the Talenga Clan and learn to beat the Busoga style drums. Free, prebook, 3pm-7pm
COMEDY SHOW: The Camden Comedy Club hosts a stand up comedy show at Camden Head, about obscure people from history. £5, prebook, 4.30pm
PENNY READINGS: Head to The Clore Ballroom at Southbank Centre for The London Penny Readings. The event, which celebrates the triumph and struggles of human life, follows on from the Victorian tradition where people could listen to literature being read aloud, all for the cost of one penny. Readers include writer and patron of The Reader Organisation Erwin James and Frank Heweston, Greenpeace activist. Free, prebook, 5pm
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