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Festivals, Fairs & Fetes
Festivals, Fairs & Fetes
Smoothies, cows and the Notting Hill Carnival... it can only be the line-up for London’s summer festivals, fairs and fêtes. A rich and varied mix means there’s something for all the family, for the innocent and the underage.
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Holloway Arts Festival 2008
Whittington Park, London, N19 3NP20th June 2008 - 12th July 2008
The Holloway Arts Festival sees music, dance, comedy, literature, film and arts performed and discussed over three weeks in North London this summer. Plenty of the festival is aimed at kids but one part you can take the whole family to is The Big Day Out. It's a free outdoor carnival on Saturday July 5th at Whittington Park with a host of fun events and performances. On the main stage, from 2pm-6pm, local and international artists and performers range from Balkan gypsy to trumpet, trombone and tuba music. There's theatre from The Rowan Arts Production Club, dance on stilts from Scarabeus as well as arts and crafts to look at and create. Kids will love joining in with the mask making and sing along sessions with Mr Boom.
Westminster Abbey Choir School Fete
Westminster Abbey, Dean's Yard, SW1P 3PA12th July 2008
Birds of prey soar over the Dean's Yard at Westminster Abbey on Saturday 12th July as part of their summer fete entertainment. The falconry display is supplemented by dog agility demonstrations and Morris dancing to bring the fun of a village fete to the famous old abbey in the heart of Westminster. Join in the auction, admire the flower arranging and see the giant balloon release while you have a look around the stalls and cheer on the traditional tug-of-war. Musical entertainment comes from the abbey choir, folk-singing by the Singing Madrigals and a street organ entertainer. A great way to spend a summer Saturday and, even better, entrance is free.
Bermondsey Carnival & The Event
Southwark Park, London, SE16 2UA12th July 2008
The Bermondsey Carnival takes revellers through the streets of Southwark, celebrating summer with a colourful parade. Starting at Spa Gardens and heading along Southwark Park Road, the carnival finishes at Southwark Park where 'The Event' offers further family entertainment. The theme for the carnival this year is 'Countdown to 2012', as we get geared up for the Beijing Olympics this summer and look forward to London hosting the games. At 'The Event' you can enjoy live music from seventies soulsters Heatwave, ska and reggae covers from The Camden Cowboys, tribute band Abba Forever and classics from The Rat Pack Vegas Spectacular.
Lambeth Country Show
Brockwell Park, London, SE24 0EN19th & 20th July 2008
The countryside comes to South London for a weekend, cows and all, as the leafy expanse of Brockwell Park welcomes herds of hairy visitors, accompanied by brilliant live music. It's a weird and very entertaining mixture: city kids get to soak up a taste of rural England - falconry shows, a fruit and veg competition, steam engine displays and the like - then restore their urban cool with two days of top soul and reggae with Omar, Alton Ellis and some of Brixton's finest soundsystems. A fantastic free family festival and a tribute to the enduring spirit of London's liveliest borough.
Alexandra Palace Children's Summer Funfair
Alexandra Palace Way, London, N22 7AY26th July 2008 - 7th September 2008
The free family funfair returns for the summer to this well-known landmark affectionately referred to as "The People's Palace" or "Ally Pally". The elevated position of the Victorian entertainment centre offers great views over North London, and the wide open grassy parkland makes this an ideal spot for a funfair. No wonder they've been holding them here for the past hundred years. This fair, run by Mannings Funfairs, includes stalls, prizes, dodgems, rides and refreshments. Once you've won all the teddy bears you can carry home, it's worth checking the boating lake, pedalos for hire, children's play area and skate park nearby.
Innocent Village Fete
Gloucester Green, London, NW1 4NR2nd & 3rd August 2008
This is the second year for Innocent Smoothies' version of a village fete, which includes all the things Londoners think go on in the country: barn dancing, ferret racing, duck herding and the unspeakable horror that is Morris dancing. There's a folksy line-up of musicians, incluing the James Taylor Quartet, Imelda May, The Ukelele Orchestra of Great Britain and Earl Okin. You'll also find a huge range range of kids' activities. A farmers' market, smoothies, massages and a reading area complete the picture of a thoroughly relaxing day in the park, and though it's not free, you can hardly go wrong for £7.50 a ticket.
Summer Festival
V & A Museum of Childhood, London, E2 9PA3rd August 2008
A family friendly one-day festival at the Museum of Childhood includes live music by ska band the Tragic Roundabout - recently seen performing on the bandstand at Glastonbury. Street performers, rickshaw rides, face painting, food stalls, children's activities and games aimed at kids of all ages add to the fun at the free day out. With the the largest collection of toys, dolls, dolls' houses and games in the world the museum certainly knows how to entertain the kids and this outdoor festival is just one of a number of summer family activities they're putting on throughout August.
Trafalgar Square Festival 2008
Trafalgar Square, WC2N 4JJ7th - 23rd August 2008
For the fourth year running, August sees Trafalgar Square filled by a program of music, theatre, dance and art - a further reason to enjoy this beautiful space at the heart of our capital. Lasting for three weeks events take place in the evenings from 6pm, Thursday to Sunday, and there's something different every day so our advice is just to get down and see what's happening. The pedestrianised Trafalgar Square is a lovely spot in summer, a natural meeting place in the heart of the capital, and it's great to see it used in such innovative ways.
Taking inspiration from Beijing 08, a theatrical spectacle from UK and international artists including The Flying Dragon Circus.
Zoo Nation and 'Bend it...', as seen at the Greenwich + Docklands Festival, capture the spirit of the Olympics with a fusion of dance and sport.
Miss High Leg Kick and Spanish dance company Factoria Mascaro are the artists presenting Zones 1 to 6 and dancing through London's landmarks.
Underage Festival
Victoria Park, London, E3 5SN8th August 2008
I'm probably not the only twentysomething in London who finds the idea of a festival aimed at fashionable 14-17 year olds pretty disturbing. Shouldn't children that age be sitting on benches smoking cigarettes and failing to communicate with members of the opposite sex, rather than doing stuff that's actually cool? The star performers will be Gary Glitter and Jonathan King... only joking. We've actually only heard of four of the bands on the line-up - The Horrors, Foals, Bonde Do Role, Mystery Jets - but that's almost certainly because we're old fogies who don't understand MySpace, rather than because there's anything wrong with the actual acts. Taking over Victoria Park, there's strictly no alcohol allowed, and by all accounts the kids at these events are more concerned with music and fashion than with drinking Strongbow and losing their V-plates. Bizarre, but probably a lot of fun if you're 16.
A Country Affair - Hampton Court Palace
The Green, London, KT8 9AU23rd - 25th August 2008
For a taste of the sweet simplicity of rural life this wonderful fair is a lovely outing for families during the summer holidays. Essentially it's a three-day rural fete on a significantly larger scale than you would find in a little Devonshire village. It's clean, wholesome fun. Geared to entertain every member of the family, there are fair rides for children and lots of hands-on fun and games. Farm animals, sheep-shearing and falconry displays are particularly popular with youngsters. The Green nearby Hampton Court Palace where the fair takes place is awash with beautiful stalls and displays. The varied shopping experience includes colourful marquees selling high quality crafts, horticulture, and lifestyle products. Morris and folk dancing are always a big part of the day and very entertaining to watch. A miniature railway, bars, archery, fairground rides, climbing walls and an eclectic raft of bands are all highlights. It's a great way to escape the city and experience something different to our capital's more urban offerings.
Notting Hill Carnival 2008
Ladbroke Grove, Notting Hill and Westbourne Grove, London, W10 5QZ24th & 25th August 2008
The Sunday of Notting Hill Carnival weekend is officially Children's Day with a shorter parade route but there's loads for kids to enjoy on both days, not least the bright colours of the floats, the dancing, elaborate costumes and Caribbean music. The carnival is spread over a huge area, and can get very crowded, so be prepared for an exhausting but fun-filled day out. For pre-school youngsters the annual Notting Hill Nursery Carnival at Kensington Memorial Park, taking place on 11th August, gives nursery school children their very own carnival, away from the crowds. And, if your kids want to get a good look at the colourful costumes without the mayhem of the street festival take them to Alexandra Palace for the Grand Carnival Costume Splash on 16th and 17th August where face-painting and mask-making features alongside the fancy dress on display.
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