The Southbank Centre is a classic example of brutal 60s concrete architecture. Everyone has an opinion (usually negative) on its distinctive design - famous detractors include Prince Charles, who once described it as looking like a "nuclear power station". Yet, if the The West End is the centre of popular culture in London, it is the Southbank Centre that is the centre of true excellence in the arts. Comprising the Royal Festival Hall and the Hayward Gallery, the complex consistently produces classical and world music events and fine art exhibitions of high renown. Over 150,000 hours of music have been performed at the Royal Festival Hall - the largest venue in the Southbank Centre - since its completion in 1951. Welcoming over three million visitors a year, the Royal Festival Hall is primarily a classical music venue. It benefits from the residency of the London Philharmonic Orchestra, London Philharmonia and four associate ensembles. The programme also includes events from opera to the London Jazz Festival. The Queen Elizabeth Hall and the Purcell Room host regular recitals, dance performances and choral concerts. Free lunchtime concerts held in the foyer offer a more relaxed musical experience. The Hayward Gallery has been the originator or host of influential exhibitions since 1968. The colossal Poetry Library houses the Arts Council modern collection, while the BFI Southbank (previously the National Film Theatre) shows 2,000 films (art house and classics) a year alongside many film festivals and director-led seasons. A happy architectural accident has also made this complex the best spot for skateboarding and BMXing in the capital, meaning it is loved by London's counter-culture as much as by its highbrow elite. In the last ten years, the building of Tate Modern and the London Eye adjacent to the centre has been the final step in making the South Bank of the Thames into the beating heart of a thousand years of British culture.
(Image: Southbank Entertainer)
What's on at
Southbank Centre
Jeppe Hein: Appearing Rooms 27th April 2009 - 23rd October 2009 To the art world Jeppe Hein's 'Appearing Rooms' is a...
Price: £0.00
E4 Udderbelly 27th May 2009 - 19th July 2009 Look out for an upside-down purple cow as you're crossing...
Price: Various
Tom Tom Crew 19th June 2009 - 19th July 2009 Australian company Tom Tom Crew arrives at the Southbank's upside down...
Price: Previews 19-21 Jun: £14 (Standard)
London Literature Festival 2nd July 2009 - 16th July 2009 Words, stories and author events are all part of the...
Price: Various
Paul Sinha 3rd July 2009 Have you heard the one about the Indian comedian doctor?...
Price: £15
Rhod Gilbert 10th July 2009 Direct from his sold-out national tour, Rhod Gilbert, the self-styled...
Price: £15
Baby Loves Disco 18th July 2009 Get your little groovers down to Baby Loves Disco, the...
Price: £8
Mayor's Thames Festival 12th September 2009 - 13th September 2009 Over half a million visitors usually attend the Thames Festival...
Price: £0.00
London Jazz Festival 2009 13th November 2009 - 22nd November 2009 If jazz is dead, someone forgot to tell the thousands...
Price: Various
Walking in my Mind 23rd June 2009 - 6th September 2009 'Walking in my Mind' isn't brain surgery but it is...
Price: £9 (Adults)
Deceitful Moon 21st July 2009 - 30th August 2009 Ever since man first landed on the moon - with...
Price: £0.00
Le Cirque Invisible 4th August 2009 - 23rd August 2009 Described as "an aerobic workout for the imagination" by Time...
E4 Udderbelly
Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX
27th May - 19th July 2009
Look out for an upside-down purple cow as you're crossing over the Golden Jubilee footbridge to... More
Ornette Coleman's Meltdown Festival
Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX
13th June - 21st June 2009
Jazz legend Ornette Coleman steps into Massive Attack's shoes as the artistic director of... More
London Literature Festival
Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX
2nd July - 16th July 2009
Words, stories and author events are all part of the London Literature Festival, as... More
Dan Zanes
Southbank Centre: Queen Elizabeth Hall, SE1 8XX
10th - 13th April 2009
This Easter join Dan Zanes for "the happiest concert vibe since Woodstock",... More
Ether Festival
Southbank Centre, SE1 8XX
10th-25th April 2009
The Southbank Centre's festival of electronic music is an eccentric event. Although some of the music is... More
A simply unbeatable location for anyone who loves to keep themselves busy. London's County Hall is at the heart of the South Bank, surrounded by ... More
The area where this hotel is located has become the vibrant cultural heart of London, with theatres, concert halls and art galleries lined-up against the ... More
Words, stories and author events are all part of the London Literature Festival, as you'd expect. Comedy, music and documentaries are also less obvious offerings ...More
Level 5,
Royal Festival Hall,Belvedere Road,Lambeth,
London,
SE1Map
The most comprehensive and accessible collection of poetry from 1914 in Britain, The Poetry Library within the Southbank Centre contains 90,000 items and is still ... More
The Hayward Gallery has been the originator or host of influential exhibitions since 1968. It mounts temporary exhibitions of contemporary and historical art. The gallery, ... More
Stocking a wide range of yarns, needles, patterns and accessories, I Knit started as a knitting community in Vauxhall in January 2006, meeting at the ... More
Festival Terrace,
Southbank Centre,Belvedere Road,Lambeth,
London,
SE1Map
Ping Pong offers diners its signature range of little parcels of deliciousness with a range of over 40 dim sum dishes, from the finest translucent ... More
The concrete promenade along the South Bank greatly benefits from this large patch of green grass for striders, strollers and sightseers to relax on. ...More
Located on the South Bank, in the heart of one of London's prettiest thoroughfares, The London Bicycle Tour Company is ideally placed for a spot ... More
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To the art world Jeppe Hein's 'Appearing Rooms' is a delightful mix of sculpture and architecture, playing with the viewers perception of solid forms. To ...More
Look out for an upside-down purple cow as you're crossing over the Golden Jubilee footbridge to the Southbank Centre from the end of May. It's ... More
Australian company Tom Tom Crew arrives at the Southbank's upside down purple cow, Udderbelly, with its high energy performance combining circus, beat-boxing and acrobatics. This ... More
Words, stories and author events are all part of the London Literature Festival, as you'd expect. Comedy, music and documentaries are also less obvious offerings ...More
Direct from his sold-out national tour, Rhod Gilbert, the self-styled Welsh Misery, makes his only London date this summer at the Southbank's E4 Udderbelly. Before ... More
Get your little groovers down to Baby Loves Disco, the worldwide phenomenon that's getting the whole family out on the dancefloor. The Southbank Centre is ... More
Described as "an aerobic workout for the imagination" by Time magazine in the early 90s, Le Cirque Invisible is a magical mix of illusions and ... More
Over half a million visitors usually attend the Thames Festival which takes place over two days on the banks of the River Thames between Tower ... More
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The Southbank Centre is a classic example of brutal 60s concrete architecture. Everyone has an opinion (usually negative) on its distinctive design - famous detractors include Prince Charles, who once described it as looking like a "nuclear power station". Yet, if the 
