Today's Things To Do In London is sponsored by the European Literature Festival, presented by EUNIC London. Scroll down to find out more about the UK's first European Literature Festival.
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Things to do today:
VOTE! Today's the day we decide who our new mayor is. Make sure you get out there and vote. Polling stations are open from 7am-10pm
FREE FITNESS: Get fit for free this Thursday at Leyton's Jubilee Park. Join this morning's bootcamp and get ready for summer in the sunshine. Free, prebook, 10am
WOOLY MAMMOTHS: Over 200,000 years ago, Ilford was home to mammoths, elephants, rhinos, deer — even lions. Hundreds of their bones were unearthed 150 years ago and became property of the National History Museum. See some of the bones back at the Redbridge Museum for this special exhibition on the Ice Age. Free, just turn up, 10am-4pm
MEMORIALISING SHAKESPEARE: This year, the 400th anniversary of Shakespeare's death has been commemorated with festivals, productions, exhibitions and more. But how was his death originally marked in 1616? This Guildhall Library talk with Professor Emma Smith examines how Shakespeare was mourned by his peers all those centuries ago. £6.47, prebook, 6pm
BEER WITH ISLAND RECORDS: South London's UBREW hosts a night of great brews and live music. Sample Island Records Session IPA and Jamaica Porter, meet the brewers behind them and hear some of the city's most exciting new music. £6.34, prebook, 6.30pm
SCI FI BOOK CLUB: Celebrate yesterday's Star Wars Day by joining London Sci Fi and Fantasy Book Club at Waterstone's Piccadilly. This month's book is The Mechanical by Ian Tregillis, so come along and indulge your nerdy side with some coffee and sci-fi chat. Free, just turn up, 7.30pm
More things to do after today's sponsor.
Don't miss the UK's first European Literature Festival!
The European Literature Festival, presented by EUNIC London is in the city from 27 April-9 June 2016. Over 60 writers and poets from more than 30 countries will be involved in events and projects throughout the festival.
There are two huge events you shouldn't miss:
ELN Writers' Showcase
Catch six of Europe's most talented storytellers at ELN Writers' Showcase at the British Library on 11 May. Join Rosie Goldsmith and English novelist Kate Mosse, whose 2005 novel Labyrinth has been translated into more than 37 languages; as they travel to the Turkish prison cells of Burhan Sönmez’s Istanbul to Dorthe Nors Copenhagen streets; to Gabriela Babnik’s plains of Ouagadougou — discovering thrilling narratives from every corner of Europe.
Tickets for ELN Writers' Showcase on 11 May, at 6.30pm cost £8-£12 and are available from the British Library website.
Criminal World: Detective Fiction in Europe
On 13 May, get involved in some sleuth-like goings-on at Criminal Worlds: Detective Fiction In Europe. Lifting the lid on crime and intrigue in Europe, writer and broadcaster Barry Forshaw and bestselling crime novelists, Peter James, Kati Hiekkapelto (Finland) and Volker Kutscher (Germany), cast their forensic eyes towards the celebrated and lesser-known works of European detective fiction.
Criminal Worlds takes place on 13 May 2016 at the British Library at 6.30pm. Book your tickets now from the British Library website.
Today's Things To Do In London is sponsored by the European Literature Festival, presented by EUNIC London.
STORY JAM: Get stuck on this south London storytelling evening at Canvas and Cream. Tonight's word wrangling comes courtesy of Sarah Liisa Wilkinson with A Girl With No Hands and Jen Pearcy-Edwards telling A Cat's Tale. £8/£6, just turn up, 7.30pm
GREAT GATSBY: Travel back to 1922 with Living Literature at tonight's Fitzgerald event. Dress in your finest flapper-esque clothing and experience the prohibition era of The Great Gatsby at Senate House with bathtub gin and jazz. Just swell. £40/£20, prebook, 7.30pm
COMEDY: There's some funny stuff going down tonight at the Camden Eye as Monkey Business Comedy Club presents the award-winning Fiona Sagar, bringing along a preview of her new work. £8.80, prebook, 8pm
MORE COMEDY: There's a feast of made-up-on-the-spot comedy at tonight's Grand Comedy Improv. One of the scene's finest, Paul Foxcroft, is joined at the Wheatsheaf by Charlotte Gittins from Austentatious, and and bear-botherer Dylan Emery. £7 on the door, £5.50 online, 8.30pm
WONDERGROUND: Roll up, roll up — it's Wonderground's Opening Spectacular tonight. Sit back and be entertained by the very best in cabaret, circus, sideshow and music — a true night of variety at Southbank. £17.50, prebook, 9.30pm
Good cause of the day
It's your last chance to grab tickets to Channel 4's Comedy Gala 2016 which is storming the O2's huge stage tomorrow night, in aid of Great Ormond Street Hospital. A stageful of hilarity, including Michael McIntyre, Russell Kane, Aisling Bea, Alan Carr, Warwick Davies and loads more, are sure to get your giggles flowing — to raise money for a new operating theatre at the hospital. Tickets start from £40, 7.30pm, 6 May
