Things To Do In London This Weekend: 7-8 March 2015

This weekend's Things To Do In London, sponsored by thinking bob.

All weekend

The Knitting and Stitching show is at Olympia Central

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, try a new place, or see if your local’s in there.

KNITTING SHOW: The Spring Knitting and Stitching Show is at Olympia Central offering over 200 exhibitors selling craft products, plus workshops in yarn, fabric, patterns, threads, sewing machines or haberdashery. £13 one day/£23 two days, prebook, 5-8 March

FEMME FIERCE: Femme Fierce is an annual festival for female international and UK artists organised by Street Art Agency, taking place at Leake Street Tunnel in Waterloo as part of International Women's Day. See website for programme and tickets. 7-8 March

WOMEN OF THE WORLD: It's the last couple of days of Southbank Centre's Women of the World Festival. See the likes of Sandy Toksvig and Caitlin Moran. Until 8 March

SILVERSMITHING: The Desire Jewellery and Silversmithing show is at Chelsea Old Town Hall, with around 90 individual jewellers and silversmiths exhibiting and selling their work. £6, just turn up, 6-8 March

GOTHIC MAKEOVER: Strawberry Hill House, Horace Walpole's country house in Twickenham, has undergone a restoration of some of Walpole's private rooms, which have now been opened to the public for the first time. £10.80.

Saturday 7 March

Disappearing Dining Club pops up in Dalston

ART TOURS: View more than 70 loaned works currently on display in Stratford. Artists including Dolores De Sade, Felix Friedmann, Sean Ragett, Endri Kousturi, Vanessa Short and Neil Weerdermeester will be present to talk about their work. Free, prebook, various times

ELECTRONIC ARTS: London Electronic Arts Festival takes over Tobacco Dock for a two-day cultural celebration of electronic live music performances, parties, installations, masterclasses, screenings and conversations. Various prices, prebook, until 7 March

CLASSICS DAY:  City Lit's annual Classics Day at the British Museum, covering topics such as appearances of the body in Roman literature and the depiction of sport in ancient Greece. £66/£32, prebook, 9.3oam-5pm

DYE WORKSHOP: Friends of Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park have organised for natural dyeing expert Susie Wareham to lead a dyeing workshop using only natural materials. Includes a walk around Tower Hamlets Cemetery Park to forage for wild plants and flowers. Lunch, along with tea, coffee and biscuits is included in the ticket price. £45, prebook, 10am-3pm

SWAP SHOP: Head to The Water Poet in Spitalfields to exchange your unwanted clothes, shoes and accessories at Mrs Bear's Swap Shop. Take along up to seven good quality items that you no longer want, and replace them with other items. £7.50, just turn up, from 12pm

DISCOVER LONDON: Tour guide Peter Berthoud runs two guided tours today. Oddities of Strand visits a former beach, the scene of an elephant’s execution and the oldest family-run shop of its type on earth, among other things. £10-£12, prebook, 11am. Later on, The Seven Noses of Soho is a chance to visit all of the seven noses, which is believed to bring infinite wealth, plus a very grand eighth nose and a ghost nose. £10-£12, prebook, 3pm

WOMEN'S DAY: Museum of London Docklands runs a day of family events to mark International Women's Day. Hear the tale of the pirate queen who sailed up the Thames and join Mary Driscoll as she recounts her struggles as a match girl who went on strike. Free, 11am-4pm

MORE ART TOURS: The Contemporary Art Society Tour is a bus tour, which offers participants access to artists and curators, as well as visiting galleries. Today it visits a selection of galleries, projects and artist-run spaces in East London. £100, prebook, 11am-4.30pm

VINTAGE FAIR: So Vintage is back at Old Spitalfields Market with over 30 stalls of vintage clothing furniture and antiques. Free, just turn up, 11am-5pm

COMEDY: Bridget Christie headlines Live at the Chapel in Islington, plus James Acaster, Sara Pascoe and sketches from Daphne. Alex Horne is on MCing duty. £20/£18, prebook, 7.45pm

WESTWAY WALK: Tour guide Aidan McManus leads a walk around Notting Hill and surrounding areas, looking at the area's past, from beginnings as London's bohemian quarter, to more recent gentrification. £8, prebook, 12pm

AUTHOR TALK: Young Adult author Gayle Forman is at Foyles on Charing Cross Road to introduce her latest novel I Was Here — a depiction of teen suicide, self harm and loss. Free, prebook, 2.30pm

PIXIE LOTT: Pop star Pixie Lott performs to an intimate crowd at Pizza Express on The Strand. £35-£99 (doesn't include food or drink), prebook, 5.30pm/9.30pm

DINNER DANCE: Disappearing Dining Club takes over a basement space in Dalston for a dinner dance, complete with cocktail, canapés and a four course dinner, followed by DJs and dancing until late. £56 (0r £10 for just after dinner party), prebook, 7pm

HAVEN'T STOPPED DANCING YET: The 70s and 80s soul, funk and disco pop-up club, “for people who remember the tunes first time round and still want to party”, celebrates its fifth birthday at The Trafalgar Tavern in Greenwich. There are prizes for the best outfits and dance moves along with free retro sweets and ice pops. 10% of profits from HSDY nights go to Cancer Research UK. £15, prebook, 7.30pm-midnight

COSMONAUTICS: There's a screening of Russian indie film Cosmonautics at the new, not-for-profit, volunteer-run Deptford Cinema. A 35 year old business man suddenly one day finds his life is going nowhere and decides to become a professional cosmonaut. 18+. £3, prebook, 8pm

DARK CIRCUS: Join in with an evening of abandoned dancing, pleasure seeking and entertainment, from aerialists and fire harlequins to burlesque dancers and DJs, at the Dark Circus Party. Takes place at Victoria Embankment. £25, prebook, 9pm-3am

ELECTRONIC MUSIC: The Vault Festival at Waterloo is taken over by the Activia Benz music label, showcasing a mix of electronic music in a labyrinth of old access tunnels and secret chambers. £10, prebook, 10.30pm-3am

Sunday 8 March

Tower Powerhouses raises money for London's Air Ambulance

SUNDAY ROAST: We’ve updated our list of the best Sunday roasts in London, now with ratings and a map. Take your pick, or check out your other food options.

ANTIQUES FAIR: Over 400 antiques stalls will be at Alexandra Palace, selling antiques, collectables, fashion, furniture and curiosities. James Lewis from Bargain Hunt will be there for free valuations, so take along your antique treasures to get them valued. £3 with this voucher (otherwise £6/£12), 9.30am-4.30pm

TOWER POWERHOUSES: Raise money for London's Air Ambulance at this family challenge event. Follow clues around the City of London course and discover how the Tower of London and the powerhouses within it are connected with the City. Register, 10am-1pm

OLD MAPS: Walk with old maps around Covent Garden. Explore the Duke of Bedford’s parish within a parish, developed where once monks from Westminster Abbey grew food. Encounter Charles Dickens's office, the building where Jane Austen lodged and England’s finest barn. £10/£9, prebook, 11am

ARTS FAIR: Fashion and Arts Fair at Red Gallery in Shoreditch showcases photography, short films, independent designers and music. £2 donation to Greenwich Sustainability Hub, just turn up, 12pm-6pm

DOCHOUSE: This year's DocHouse International Women's Day screening is Dreamcatcher. The film is about a former teenage prostitute who worked the streets of Chicago, before becoming a powerful advocate for change in her community. Followed by a Q&A with Kim Longionotto hosted by journalist Kira Cochrane. £11.50/£9, prebook, 3pm

SCREEN REBELS: Screen Rebels at The Proud Archivist is a showcase of theatrical style performances of short film scripts. The scripts are performed by a cast of professional actors and enhanced by original live music composition. Free, prebook, 6.30pm

FOLK DANCING: The Society For International Folk Dancing is at Cecil Sharp House in Camden for an evening of circle, line, partner and set dances from Europe and beyond, accompanied by a live band. £9/£8, just turn up, 7pm

SHORTS ON TAP: Shorts on Tap is at 93 Feet East in Brick Lane, screening seven short films for International Women's Day, plus a chance to discuss the films with their directors. £3, prebook, 7pm

MERCHANT OF VENICE: Acclaimed actors Derek Jacobi and Samantha Bond join the Folger Consort on stage at the Sam Wanamaker Playhouse for a performance of music and poetry, with passages from Shakespeare’s The Merchant of Venice. £10-£60, prebook, 7.30pm

ALICE IN WONDERLAND: Barbican hosts the UK premiere production of Unsuk Chin’s operatic adaptation of Alice in Wonderland, featuring the BBC Symphony Orchestra. Age 12+. £10-£30, prebook, 7.30pm. See other Alice in Wonderland events going on in London.


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This weekend’s Things To Do In London This Weekend is sponsored by thinking bob.


Other good stuff

Catch up on all latest features, see what we like in theatre and arts and browse more things to do in London.

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