Saving up for that week in the sun? You can still have fun.
Tonight: Lockstock is a free arts festival at Camden Lock this afternoon from 2pm till 1am. 6 stages of music and comedy plus outdoor art, food and all that Camden madness plus a busking stage, if you're feeling that way inclined. Free.
Free Tango dances al fresco at Spitalfields from 7-9.45pm. Beginners can take a lesson at 6.30pm to get them going. Under the canopy, Bishops Square, just off Brushfield Street, E1.
Mosey on down to Granville Arcade, Brixton Village for a "party night of visual feasts" celebrating the space and community. Bring your own booze, 7-10pm, free entry.
Friday: InTransit Festival enters its final weekend with an innovative promenade performance with drumming, theatre and music using junk on the street. Move Me takes place at 2pm, 3pm & 4pm - free - on Portobello Road. Later at 7pm, trail through Notting Hill with the Gate Theatre to discover the Knowledge Emporium and help build the Big Book Of Everything We Know (£5).
V&A Summer Camp starts tonight - late until 10pm - and runs throughout Saturday, celebrating the virtues of self-reliance and resourcefulness that can come through design and making with folk music and storytelling in the beautiful Madejeski garden. Free admission.
Baggy Mondays at the Social is recommended by Facebook friend Manu for fans of "Madchester classics and Friday night boozing". Free admission.
Saturday: Fans of reality TV dance shows head for Leicester Square where Barclays Live are searching rather unoriginally for Britain's next dancing superstar. 10 acts will perform and 5 will be selected to be put to the final vote. Telly's boogying bad boy Brendan Cole will be doling out 'expert' judging advice along the way and holding a public dance masterclass. Free, 11am-5.30pm.
Take a walk round Radical St.Pancras & Somers Town with Mike Berlin at 11.15am, starting Housmans Books. Walk is free but email [email protected] to book a space.
Dust off your tea dress (not compulsory) and visit the Water Poet Barn & Garden Party, Folgate Street, E1 for an old fashioned afternoon of silent cinema, bingo and live jazz. Midday till late, free entry.
Another one from InTransit: Join in with a thrilling BMX chase around the streets of North Kensington with The Bicycle Thieves, Meanwhile Gardens at 2.30 and 5pm (£4).
The Lightning Seeds are headlining the free Croydon Summer Festival on Lloyd Park today, supported by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas! 1-8.30pm.
Sunday:
Burgess Park gets Brazilian fever with Carnaval del Pueblo between midday-10pm (free) while Croydon Mela takes over Lloyd Park between 1-8pm (free).
Learn to bowl on Brick Lane between noon and 6pm with Vauxhall Motors Bowling Club. And we mean flat green bowling like the old folks do, not ten pin.
It's Green Sunday at Arcola's new Dalston Eastern Curve Garden between noon-6pm, free, drop in anytime.
Monday: Join the Secret Chiefs and take your Tarot cards - they're discussing divination upstairs at the Devereux pub, WC2R 3JJ. 7.30, talk begins 8.30pm. £2, all welcome.
Or catch underground horror classic "Pieces" from 1982 at a free screening at The Alibi, 91 Kingsland Road. Screening at 9pm. Open till 2am!
Tuesday: Try working your way through the Maze of London Trivia, Trafalgar Square.
Wednesday: Uncover new comic talent at Hackney School Drop-Out Comedy Bin open mic night with 18 acts at Anatolia Bar, Mare Street E8 3NS. free admission from 8pm.
Help keep London thrifty - let us know about cheap and free events happening in your hood. Email [email protected], leave a comment or tweet us @londonist. And please do let us know if you follow up on our cheap suggestions - were they any good?
