Things To Do In London: Tuesday 9 December 2014

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colorful yarn balls with needles
Get your knitting needles out at The Fleming Collection

Listings

CHRISTMAS IS COMING: And although we’re not fattening up any poultry, we have put together a bumper page of all festive goings on in London. We’ll be updating it throughout December, so keep checking back.

DURAN DURAN: Intense Books opens a pop-up exhibition of photos taken from Duran Duran's Careless Memories, a limited edition coffee table book by photographer Denis O'Regan at the Chelsea Gallery on London’s Kings Road. Until 15 December

CITY WALK: Take a guided seasonal walk through the City, exploring the history of celebrating Christmas, from early medieval customs to many Victorian traditions. Be reminded of the joys and pathos of Dickensian London including the iconic A Christmas Carol. £8, prebook, 11am

KNITTING: The Fleming Collection in Mayfair hosts an informal knitting drop-in session. Knitters can bring along their own knitting to work on or knit a square for a blanket, which will be donated to Knit for Peace. Needles and wool will be provided as well as tea, coffee and mince pies, and everyone, including beginners, is welcome. Free, just turn up, 1pm-3pm

CREATIVE WRITING: Drinks, Thinks & Inks is a social writing event taking place at The Proud Archivist in Haggerston. During the evening, people are invited to free their creativity and try writing exercises. £10, prebook, 6.30pm

FREE TALK: Join a debate about Greece’s role in the European financial crisis, at the LSE’s Hong Kong Theatre. Browse more free lectures here. Free, prebook by emailing, 6.30pm

NAKED FESTIVE FEAST: Take part in a healthy festive supperclub hosted by Tess Ward at The Garrison on Bermondsey Street. Tickets include a welcome cocktail followed by three course meal, tea and petit fours to finish. £45, prebook, 7pm

SCRUNCHIE: In a move that would make Carrie Bradshaw recoil in horror, The Indytute runs a scrunchie-making workshop at Boxpark in Shoreditch. Upcycle materials to make a festive hair scrunchie. All materials provided. £12, prebook, 7pm

AUTHOR TALK: Lionel Shriver, author of We Need To Talk About Kevin which was made into a film starring Tilda Swinton, is in conversation with Fiammetta Rocco, literary editor of The Economist, at the Royal Society of Literature. Shriver reflects on being an American novelist who has chosen not to live in America, and why she likes to craft characters who are hard to love. £12/£8, prebook, 7pm

DISRUPTIVE DESIGNERS: It’s Nice That guest-curate an evening of talks with designers Miriam Elia, Alex Chinneck, Hefin Jones and Visual Editions at the Design Museum. The topic is disruption, and all of these designers have disrupted the status quo in the worlds of publishing, storytelling, architecture and space exploration. £14/£10.50, prebook, 7pm

WINE & CHEESE: Join a food and drink tasting dedicated to France: discover six different French regions through six wine and cheese pairings. The event takes place at Amathus Knightsbridge. £15, prebook, 7pm

FOLK MUSIC: Three of England’s finest folk musicians — Andy Cutting, Sam Sweeney and Rob Harbron — perform in Leveret at Cecil Sharp House in Camden, an acoustic gig performed in the round. £14, prebook, 7.30pm

COMEDY: Whenever we see Adam Riches it feels like our cheeks might fall off with laughing too much. This is sketch comedy on amphetamine, with outrageous amounts of audience participation. He’s doing a month-long run at the Soho Theatre: book now. £10-£20, prebook, 9pm

BLOOD: Today’s opportunities to donate blood are at Brewers Hall in the City, the Hop Exchange in Southwark Street, Lambeth Town Hall in Brixton and the usual donor centres. See site for terms and conditions. Scared of donating blood? Watch our video.

Find more London events in our Free & Cheap events listings.Want to see your event in these last-minute listings? Email us at hello@londonist.com at least 48 hours before the event, and we will consider it for inclusion. Note: due to high volumes of email, we can’t always reply.


Give the gift of Pact this Christmas

Want to be as buzzing as these guys on Christmas Day? You know what to do

Love coffee? We recommend you try out Pact Coffee. We first met them last year and have since become loyal customers of theirs. This London start-up is on a mission to get the UK drinking better, fresher coffee by delivering it straight to our homes and offices. Now, clearly in the festive spirit, they're offering new customers their first 250g bag for only £1 with free next-day delivery, just use the code LONDONISTXMAS at checkout. Get yours here, or for more info and T&Cs click here.

They also offer coffee Christmas gift bundles for the caffeine lover in your life, check those out here.

This week’s Things To Do In London is sponsored by Pact.


Good Cause of the Day

Head to Hither Green on 20 December for a day of Christmassy cinema, with a singalong Frozen for the kids at 11am (tickets are £5 for kids, free for accompanying adults. They're all sold out online, but you should still be able to pick some up from local shops) or It's a Wonderful Life from 7pm. Tickets are £10, which includes wine tasting, mulled wine and mince pies. Hither Green Cinema is supporting local charity Lewisham Opportunity Pre-School, the only group in the area that has 50% of its children with special needs so all the kids can integrate and play with one another. For every £1 raised on the day, Hither Green Cinema will donate £2, so go along and give generously.

From The Archive

Last year, we brought you a recent history of Selfridge's Christmas window displays (the man himself being the pioneer of festive frontages). From wishlists to a white Christmas, which is your favourite?