The ianVisits guide to February's unusual events, tours, lectures and exhibitions happening around London.
Coronavirus: Events may be cancelled and venues closed at short notice, you are advised to check on their websites before making a trip.
Saturday 1st February
Monthly open day at one of London's more curious and delightful museums, devoted to the history of the sewing machine.
2pm to 5pm
TootingMore London events on Saturday 1st February
Sunday 2nd February
Monthly open day at the museum to London's first international airport - in Croydon.
All Day Croydon
Monthly opening of the organ collection, with many playing music through the day.
11am to 5pm
A monthly opening of the Victorian museum of industrial testing equipment.
11am to 5pm SouthwarkMonthly open day at Gatton Park, the core 250 acres of the estate originally laid out by Capability Brown.
1pm to 5pm Reigate
See hundreds of clowns arrive to attend an annual church service.
3pm to : Hackney
Chris Bertish gives an intimate talk about how he crossed the Atlantic on a paddleboard
3:30pm to 10am Greenwich
More London events on Sunday 2nd February
Monday 3rd February
This lecture will offer a surprising exploration of the wide-ranging consequences of Einstein’s ideas, and how they shape our everyday lives.
1pm to 2pm BarbicanThis panel discussion will focus on assessing the implications of the Brexit process for the future of Anglo-German relations.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornNorthern Ireland expert, Brendan O’Leary, assesses what we’ve learnt from previous union break-ups to discover the potential futures that may unfold from the UK’s exit from the EU.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornHear her in conversation with journalist Philippa Thomas as she reflects on speaking out and showing that one person can most definitely make a difference.
7pm to 8:15pm Camden
A book related talk by Robin Ince on anxiety, imposter syndrome, grief and creativity.
7:30pm to : ClerkenwellA note that some sort of vessel of significance is passing through Tower Bridge this evening.
8:30pm to : SouthwarkMore London events on Monday 3rd February
Tuesday 4th February
The speaker is a space scientist who has worked on the Webb’s instruments; she will take the audience on a tour of both systems, showing how they can give us an understanding of the life cycle of our universe right back to the Big Bang.
1pm to 2pm BarbicanA talk about Abram Games (1914-96), one of the twentieth century’s most innovative and important graphic designers.
2pm to 3pm City of London
This talk will shed light on this exciting period in the Big Apple's history
6pm to 7:30pm Notting Hill
Talks about two modern buildings built from concrete.
6:30pm to 8:45pm Euston
A series of lectures exploring the imaginative conservation and reuse of historic buildings
6:30pm to 8pm Clerkenwell
£12.00
Space Architecture: Part 2
Join architect and technologist Xavier De Kestelier as he speculates on the future of architecture beyond planet Earth.
6:30pm to 8pm Kensington
Free
Peace
What factors promote peace and what actions are justified to achieve it? Join us as we discuss the history, ethics, and politics of peace.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornHear Richard Chartres, retired bishop of the Church of England, talk about The Chapel Royal and its reformation.
7pm to 8pm Tower Hill
ultural commentator, journalist and enfant terrible of the Russian music scene Artemy Troitsky, will reveal and explain the shape and thrust of cultural protest in Russia today.
7pm to 8:30pm Bloomsbury
More London events on Tuesday 4th February
Wednesday 5th February
£13.50
Behind-the-Scenes Tour
Get a glimpse behind the scenes at Southbank Centre on a tour that gives a rare insight into the history of the site and the people who have shaped it.
6pm to 7:30pm Southwark
This lecture will ask how these events came to be so notorious, how and why they were remembered on each side, and how they shaped the history of civil conflict and ideas of coexistence and nationhood in the societies that endured them.
6pm to 7pm BarbicanMore London events on Wednesday 5th February
Thursday 6th February
Ceremonial military guns will go bang bang at the Tower of London and Green Park to mark HM The Queen’s Accession to the Throne.
12pm to 1:30pm
Free
Rogues with Rifles
Robert Griffith explores the actions of the 5/60th Rifles during the Peninsular War.
6pm to : Chelsea
This illustrated lecture by Dr. Stephen M. Payne will chart the history and design of the ship and show why she was dubbed ‘Queen of the Seas’!
6pm to 8pm City of London
Witness a mock Victorian surgical demonstration presented within the original architecture of an old operating theatre.
6:30pm to 8:30pm Southwark
An event exploring the significance of ‘women writing women’ – from 18th- century travel writers responding to representations of ‘The East’, to 21st - century retellings.
6:30pm to : Holborn
Free
Capital and Ideology
In the epic successor to one of the most important books of the century, Thomas Piketty challenges us revolutionize how we think about politics, ideology, and history.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornAn expert-led discussion about how hospitals can harness the latest technological developments and what the future of hospitals might look like.
7pm to 8:15pm South KensingtonMore London events on Thursday 6th February
Friday 7th February
Kathrin Pieren and Susan Gordon from the Jewish Military Museum uncover the important contribution of Jewish women in the First and Second World Wars.
11:30am to : Chelsea
Using recently catalogued papers of the Board, this talk examines how the country faced up to this crisis of public health.
2pm to 3:30pm Richmond
A panel discussion will discuss topics surrounding anti-racism, social inclusion and the problems faced in the 1970s/80s and how those issues are still prevalent today in the Punk scene.
6:30pm to 8pm Barbican
£20.00
Murals of Tibet
Photographer Thomas Laird tells the story of his 10-year journey across Tibet to remote monasteries and temples, to document some of the greatest treasures of Buddhist culture.
7pm to 8:30pm Camden
More London events on Friday 7th February
Saturday 8th February
Home to Doorkins Magnificat, Southwark Cathedral are delighted to be hosting this day all about cats.
10am to 5pm Southwark
Hear about Anita's feisty, challenging and sometimes fiendishly clever, but always wonderful mogs, as well as their eccentric owners. Battle lines are drawn daily, usually involving claws and teeth!
2pm to 4pm Notting Hill
More London events on Saturday 8th February
Sunday 9th February
Harmful practices due to belief in witchcraft have seen a huge increase in the past six years both globally and in the UK and Kirsty Brimelow QC and author and campaigner Syd Moore have joined forces to expose this phenomenon.
3pm to 4:30pm HolbornMore London events on Sunday 9th February
Monday 10th February
A lecture exploring what – in light of the 2019 General Election – both the new Government and the railway industry needs to do on the challenges facing UK rail.
6:15pm to 7:30pm Vauxhall Bridge
Discover the remarkable scientific artefacts and stories housed in its extensive, world-class archives
6:30pm to 10pm St JamesMore London events on Monday 10th February
Tuesday 11th February
This lecture looks at the mythology that has gathered around the Golden Ratio, and also consider the fairness of cake-cutting, and changing choices in "the Monty Hall problem".
1pm to 2pm BarbicanIn his talk, Andy Mitchell CBE, Chief Executive Officer at Thames Tideway Tunnel will outline the background to the Thames Tideway Tunnel project.
4:30pm to 7:30pm Pimlico
Free
The Death of Stalin
Following a full screening of The Death of Stalin, director Armando Iannucci will take part in a Q&A based on politics in film and TV.
6pm to 8:30pm HolbornAn "in conversation" with the leading human rights lawyer, Cherie Blair CBE QC
6:30pm to : ClerkenwellA series of lectures exploring the imaginative conservation and reuse of historic buildings
6:30pm to 8pm ClerkenwellJoin best-selling author, historian and broadcaster Tracy Borman as she gives a lecture on ‘Henry VIII and the men who made him’.
7pm to 8pm Tower Hill
An illustrated talk taking you through the railways which defined and served the Crystal Palace.
7:30pm to 9pm Upper Norwood
More London events on Tuesday 11th February
Wednesday 12th February
A 1-hour talk on the development of the great cemeteries of South London.
2pm to 3pm Clerkenwell
Maria Charalambides, a Professor in Mechanics of Materials will discuss her varied research career and how it has recently moved into tackling the plastic pollution crisis affecting our land and sea.
5:30pm to 6:30pm South Kensington
Make your own medical romance cover, play surgical Top Trumps, join a mystery treasure hunt, and hear short talks on the often surprising history of emotions in surgical care.
6pm to 9pm Harley Street
Free
Ideals Made Concrete
A special edition of BBC Radio 3’s Free Thinking explores how visions of a better future are realised through architecture and design.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornJoin circadian neuroscientist, Russell Foster as he explains what we know about sleep, how it is measured, how it affects us, and what are the causes and consequences to our health of poor quality or lack of sleep.
7pm to 9pm HolbornMore London events on Wednesday 12th February
Thursday 13th February
Free
Future Commuter
Ever wondered what the future of transport might hold? Well, now is your chance to navigate the twists and turns of travel with Imperial experts...
6pm to 9pm South Kensington
Daniel Kowalsky, one of the principal international experts on the subject, examines the controversial role of the Soviet Union in the Spanish Civil War in the light of the opening of Russian archives.
6pm to 7:30pm Holborn
£18.00
Orchids: After hours
Explore the orchid festival after dark in these evening events taking you into the world of Kew and Indonesia.
Starts at 6:30pm Richmond
Take a peek behind the scenes this Valentine's with HistFest at the Museum of London's Archaeological Archive
6:30pm to 9pm IslingtonIn October 1726, Mary Toft was found to have given birth to 17 rabbits in Godalming, Surrey, or did she?
7:15pm to 8:30pm Camden
£12.00
Lucian Freud in Paddington
An evening of William Feaver discussing the first part of his biography of Lucian Freud.
7:30pm to 9pm Paddington
The ‘Dark Side of Jewellery’ is, of course, funerary jewellery, which played such a big part in the Victorians’ social attitude to death, funerals and mourning.
7:30pm to : HighgateA talk about historic crimes such as The Great Train Robbery and the techniques used to bring the criminals to justice and how modern resources could have resulted in a faster result.
7:30pm to 9pm Farringdon
£5.00
Mermaids
This talk will trace the myth around the oceans & look at different varieties of Mer-folk & their encounters with humans.
8pm to 10pm Southwark
More London events on Thursday 13th February
Friday 14th February
Free
Hell's mile
Using survivors' own accounts, Terry Brighton gives voice to the men who rode down the 'Valley of Death' at Balaklava with the Light Brigade.
11:30am to : Chelsea
£18.00
Orchids: After hours
Explore the orchid festival after dark in these evening events taking you into the world of Kew and Indonesia.
Starts at 6:30pm Richmond
£25.00
Hendrix Flat Friday Late
Expect live music, DJs, drinks, film projections and exclusive access to parts of the house usually closed to the public.
7pm to : Mayfair
More London events on Friday 14th February
Saturday 15th February
Join a guide to explore the many architectural surprises at the Charterhouse.
2:15pm to 3:45pm Clerkenwell
A documentary film which recounts the lives of passengers travelling on the longest rail route in the world - the Trans-Siberian Railway.
3pm to 5pm Bloomsbury
More London events on Saturday 15th February
Sunday 16th February
£12.00
Low Tide Walk
Wade in a wild river and experience a different perspective of London history and urban wildlife.
11am to 1pm Deptford
More London events on Sunday 16th February
Monday 17th February
£11.00
The (Wrong) Aeronauts
The true stories of the fearless first women of flight
7:15pm to 8:30pm Camden
More London events on Monday 17th February
Tuesday 18th February
Bus travel in South London is London but not as you know it. Adults tell children there are no monsters, most of the time this is true, but not always.
2pm to 5pm Forest Hill
Dr Alex Hildred (Mary Rose Trust) will challenge long-held perceptions regarding diversity in Tudor England.
5:15pm to 6:30pm Euston
We explore the philosophy and politics of immigration detention and ask whether the state should be allowed indefinitely detain people who have committed no crime.
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornThis hour long lecture with two short films of ten and five minutes reveals a story of forgotten heroism while portraying the mainly white, homophobic England of just over one hundred years ago.
6:30pm to 7:45pm Kensington
Hear the story of one of the most tragic, cataclysmic and romantic episodes in history, and examine the circumstances of Anne's fall.
7pm to 8pm Tower Hill
Cruise speaker Graeme Payne talks about a cruise down the Amazon on the "Braemar".
7pm to 9pm City of LondonMore London events on Tuesday 18th February
Wednesday 19th February
This talk will tell the story of the growth and development of East London.
2pm to 3pm Clerkenwell
This lecture uses examples from cutting-edge science and medicine to explore the ethical questions which advances in robotics, personalised medicine, transplantation and artificial intelligence pose for doctors, patients and society.
6pm to 7pm BarbicanA series of lectures exploring the imaginative conservation and reuse of historic buildings
6:30pm to 8pm Clerkenwell
£7.50
Nerd Nite London
This February, we’ll be learning about the lost letters of the English alphabet, discover the secrets of better building design and bust some data mining myths.
7:30pm to : Bethnal Green
More London events on Wednesday 19th February
Thursday 20th February
Free
Phases
Including imagery from NASA, Phases juxtaposes a light-based installation with a selection of astronomy-inspired collection items not usually on public display.
10am to 5pm AldwychExploring the concept of the hero, this lecture begins before the walls of Troy, with Achilles, and ends in the 19th century with Garibaldi, one of the first heroes of the age of mass-media.
2pm to : Greenwich
The lecture discusses the Cato Street plotter identities, motives and impact, and the forgotten fact that their failure ended British revolutionary fantasies for a century.
6pm to 7pm BarbicanGame theory is the 'science of interaction'. This talk will explain some insights of game theory and apply them to current politics.
6:30pm to 8pm Holborn
£10.00
The future of food
Hungry to know how you can eat more sustainably? Curious about the future of the food on our plates?
7pm to 9pm South Kensington
This talk is based on Simon Morris’s research for the Camden section in the London Topographical Society's forthcoming catalogue of London Parish Maps.
7:30pm to 9pm Hampstead
More London events on Thursday 20th February
Friday 21st February
Join Dr Peter Chasseaud as he discusses how maps and aerial photography were used in military operations in the First World War.
11:30am to : Chelsea
£12.00
London's queer landscape
This LGBTQ History Month, an exploration into London's evolving queer landscape through time.
6:45pm to : Barbican
More London events on Friday 21st February
Saturday 22nd February
This day of talks will look at different aspects of how the Victorians amused themselves.
All Day Southwark
£20.00
Japan Now
With the eyes of the world on Tokyo 2020, Japan Now returns for its finale, exploring the big issues with writers, translators, filmmakers and artists. A keynote day of talks.
9am to 6pm CamdenMore London events on Saturday 22nd February
Sunday 23rd February
50th anniversary green bus running service centered on the Epping Ongar railway.
All Day North Weald
A monthly open day at a quirky transport museum housed in an old water pumping building.
10am to 4pm Enfield Town
Three floors filled with teddy bears in this annual show and fair.
10:30am to 4pm Kensington
A free community event marking 200 years since the Cato Street Conspiracy plot was discovered.
12pm to 3pm Marylebone
More London events on Sunday 23rd February
Monday 24th February
A series of lectures exploring the imaginative conservation and reuse of historic buildings
6:30pm to 8pm ClerkenwellDavid Sainsbury will set out a new theory of economic growth which explains why the G7 countries have experienced slowing rates of labour productivity over the last twenty five years
6:30pm to 8pm HolbornMore London events on Monday 24th February
Tuesday 25th February
See lots of people from the City of London's livery companies, in their full regalia running around Guildhall tossing pancakes.
10:30am to 2:30pm City of London
More London events on Tuesday 25th February
Wednesday 26th February
£12.00
The English Carthusians
A lecture by medieval history expert Lucy Beckett on the Charterhouse and Carthusian order.
1:45pm to 3pm Clerkenwell
Robots are going to take our jobs eventually – in fact it’s already started. This is a comical, yet real, look at what the future looks likes and ways to future-proof yourself and your business.
6pm to 8:30pm Holborn
£5.00
Dressed for War
Bestselling author and historian Julie Summers reveals how the identity of 'Vogue' magazine was forged in the Second World War.
6:30pm to : Chelsea
A talk about Lucian Freud by William Feaver, for many years the art critic for The Observer
6:45pm to : Shoreditch
Authors Leyla Daybelge & Magnus Englund will be giving an illustrated talk about the story of the Isokon, the Pritchards artistic network and the legacy of the Bauhaus artists during their time in Britain.
7:30pm to 8:30pm Hampstead
More London events on Wednesday 26th February
Thursday 27th February
£8.00
Historic Swiss Cottage
In this talk Tudor Allen describes the history and development of Swiss Cottage.
2pm to 3pm Clerkenwell
A panel discussion on the British monarchy’s use of mass media from the 1930s.
6pm to 7:30pm Euston
£18.00
Orchids: After hours
Explore the orchid festival after dark in these evening events taking you into the world of Kew and Indonesia.
Starts at 6:30pm RichmondDiarmaid MacCulloch introduces his ground-breaking biography of Thomas Cromwell, the self-made statesman who sent the kingdom on a Protestant course for centuries.
7:30pm to 9pm Richmond
More London events on Thursday 27th February
Friday 28th February
Former Scots Guards officer Hugo Clarke discusses the project he led while serving in Iraq to establish a new Basrah museum.
11:30am to : Chelsea
Hyperloop is potentially a revolutionary means of future passenger and freight transportation system.
2pm to 3:30pm Strand
£18.00
Orchids: After hours
Explore the orchid festival after dark in these evening events taking you into the world of Kew and Indonesia.
Starts at 6:30pm Richmond
£15.00
Night on the Tiles
Party like it’s 1999 and you’re dancing in a disused Underground station.
6:45pm to 10pm Covent Garden
To mark the publication of his biography, One of Them, an "in conversation" about his extraordinary life.
7pm to 8:30pm CamdenAn illustrated talk by Dr Leo John De Freitas on Sir John Tenniel, the Victorian illustrator and cartoonist.
7pm to 8:30pm Clerkenwell
More London events on Friday 28th February
Saturday 29th February
Update on the project to build Gresley class P2 No. 2007 Prince of Wales – Britain’s most powerful steam locomotive
11am to 1pm Covent Garden
An open morning at The Courtauld Institute of Art to find out more about The Courtauld's short courses offered throughout the year for anyone with an interest in studying art
11am to 1pm Farringdon
This immersive session explores attitudes to and experiences of poverty in Britain from the 1834 Poor Law Reform Act to the mid-twentieth-century introduction of the Welfare State.
11am to : City of London
Annual festival -- music, fun, procession and charity bar.
2pm to 5:30pm SurbitonCome and meet Jeff Jones who tells the extraordinary story of the birthplace of boxing in London's East End.
2pm to : Whitechapel
