Morning, London! Happy Thursday, and Happy World Book Day to all those tiny humans heading out the door dressed as wizards, detectives, or a last-minute character assembled from a tea towel and optimism. Well done to everyone involved.

Another couple of days of sunshine as we land in your inbox. Feels like the city remembered how light works again.

Plenty of good things happening across London this week. Hope this helps!

🙏 If this makes your week a bit easier, pls think of two parents who'd love it, or drop it in a WhatsApp group. Takes 20 seconds. Please don’t ignore me 😂.
Appreciated, kind Londoner!

🚻 Piccadilly Circus Tube Loos Dubbed ‘London’s Newest Tourist Attraction’. Refurbished public toilets at Piccadilly Circus Tube station have reopened, complete with a colourful mural. Entry costs 80p. A bargain compared to most West End tickets. Full story

🎟️ Your Lottery Ticket Might Actually Get You Something This Week. Normally we would not recommend gambling… but one Lottery ticket gets you free entry to hundreds of heritage sites this weekend. London's well represented on the list. Full story

🍗 First Gambling, Now Fast Food. Sorry. Chick-fil-A is opening its first London restaurant today in Kingston upon Thames. Famously addictive chicken sandwiches, waffle fries and lemonade. Plenty of fans and plenty of critics, but either way the queues will probably be long. Full story

🌳 Epping Forest. Jump on the Tube for a bit and suddenly London disappears. Just trees, muddy paths and kids climbing things they probably shouldn’t. Perfect when everyone needs a bit of fresh air and zero planning. 🚆Central Line: Loughton

🌊 Whitstable. Just over an hour from St Pancras and you’re by the sea. Pebble beach, colourful huts and kids trying their luck crabbing in the harbour. Famous for its oysters, though most families stick with fish and chips and an ice cream. Particularly good if the forecast says sunshine.🚆St Pancras → Whitstable (~1h20)

👒 The Jane Austen Experience @ 11 John Prince's St
Date & Loc: Mar 5 onwards, Marylebone W1G
Step into Regency London inside a Marylebone townhouse once home to Jane Austen’s brother. Four floors of games, costumes and biscuits… plus the occasional bonnet.
Age: 4+ | Price: £11.50 (under 5 free) | Info

🎵 First Steps: Family Steps @ Shipman Youth Zone
Date & Loc: Mar 5 (Thu), Beckton E16
Songs, instruments, stories and plenty of chances to explore and wiggle.
Age: Under 5 | Price: No cost | Info

🐛 The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show @ Pentland Theatre
Date & Loc: Mar 5-8, Finchley N12
Eric Carle’s classics leap from page to stage with 75 colourful puppets, music and storytelling magic.
Age: 1+ | Price: from £15 | Info

🗡️ Samurai: Myth and Reality @ British Museum
Date & Loc: Daily, Bloomsbury WC1B
The real story behind Japan’s legendary warriors. It explores how the samurai rose to power, shaped Japanese society and became one of history’s most enduring myths.
Age: 7+ rec | Price: No cost for under 16s | Info

🐒 Dear Zoo @ Lyric Hammersmith
Date & Loc: Mar 5, Hammersmith W6
Rod Campbell’s lift-the-flap favourite comes to life with puppets, music and plenty of audience interaction. Which animal will be the perfect pet?
Age: 2+ | Price: from £15 | Info

🐛 The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show @ artsdepot
Date & Loc: Mar 5-6, Finchley N12
Eric Carle’s classics leap from page to stage with 75 colourful puppets, music and storytelling magic. A joyful introduction to theatre for little ones.
Age: 1+ | Price: £15 | Info

🐻 The Everywhere Bear @ Little Angel Theatre
Date & Loc: Mar 5-Apr 19, Islington N1
Julia Donaldson’s heartwarming tale comes to life with music and expressive puppetry as a lost classroom bear sets off on a big adventure.
Age: 3–8 | Price: From £13.50 | Info

🎨 Mini Masterpieces @ Dulwich Picture Gallery
Date & Loc: Mar 6 (Fri), Dulwich SE21
Journey through the Gallery spotting people, places and animals in the paintings, followed by messy-play art-making activities.
Age: Under 5 | Price: £16 for the family | Info

👶 The Baby Show @ ExCeL London
Date & Loc: Mar 6–8, Royal Docks E16
A big baby and parenting expo with brands, talks and plenty of kit to try.
Age: Everyone | Price: £18 | Info

🌌 Astronights @ Science Museum
Date & Loc: Mar 6, 13 + Apr 24, South Kensington SW7
Not cheap, but quite special. Sleepover at the Science Museum with space-inspired workshops and shows, then sleep among the exhibits.
Age: 7–11 | Price: £80 | Info

🎈 Mr Men Little Miss Takeover @ Battersea Power Station
Date & Loc: Mar 6-8, Battersea SW8
A treasure hunt through Battersea Power Station tracking down Mr Men and Little Miss characters with a special map, plus interactive activities. Free.
Age: Everyone | Price: No cost | Info

🔭 Tiny Planet @ Half Moon Theatre
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Whitechapel E1
With breathtaking puppetry, original live folk songs and earthy percussion, uncover the mysteries that keep this little globe turning.
Age: 5+ | Price: £9 | Info

🎭 Musical Theatre Workshop @ Roundhouse Studios
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Chalk Farm NW1
A full musical theatre session: singing, acting, movement; with professional theatre people, for an actual fiver. For teenagers with a lot of feelings and nowhere to put them.
Age: 15-17 | Price: £5 | Info

🎶 Relaxed Saturday Live @ St James’s Piccadilly
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Piccadilly W1J
A relaxed family concert with soprano Betty Makharinsky and pianist Pavel Timofeyevsky. A welcoming atmosphere where children can move around, sing and dance!
Age: Everyone | Price: no cost | Info

💃 Ballroom Boogie x Toasty Tots XL @ Southbank Centre
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Southbank SE1
Dance party. Saturday morning energy, proper loud music, some sweating likely.
Age: 5–11 | Price: no cost | Info

🎙️ On Air Radio Bootcamp @ Roundhouse Studios
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Camden NW1
A one-day deep dive into radio production for teens. Learn to record, edit and create your own show with guidance from industry pros.
Age: 15–17 | Price: £10 | Info

🐛 The Very Hungry Caterpillar Show @ Blackheath Halls
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Blackheath SE3
Eric Carle’s classic stories burst to life with colourful puppets, music and plenty of wriggly magic. A joyful first theatre trip for little ones.
Age: Everyone | Price: from £15 | Info

💃 Improvising with Ascension Dance @ Southbank Centre
Date & Loc: Mar 7 (Sat), Southbank SE1
Watch dancers create movement on the spot and explore how imagination turns nothing into something.
Age: 5-11yo | Price: no cost | Info

🦸 Thumbelina: Tiny But Mighty @ Upstairs at the Sydenham Centre
Date & Loc: Mar 7–29, Sydenham SE26
Hans Christian Andersen meets the Marvel franchise in a musical about the world's smallest superhero and her battle with a villainous arthropod.
Age: Everyone | Price: from £4 | Info

📚 Together Space March Family Event
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Walthamstow E17
World Book Day-themed family day at Gnome House with cooking workshops, bookswaps, soft play, collage and an inflatable activity run.
Age: Everyone | Price: £12 | Info

🌿 Brave Bettie @ Jacksons Lane
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Highgate N6
A magical woodland adventure told through poetry, songs and storytelling.
Age: 3–8 | Price: £14 | Info

🎻 LSO Family Concert @ Barbican Hall
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Barbican EC2Y
Selling out fast! Free workshops, the London Symphony Orchestra in full flight during it, and a free crèche if you've got a younger sibling who can't sit still. Sundays don't get much more civilised.
Age: 7–12 | Price: from £6 | Info

🧱 London Brick Festival @ Royal National Hotel
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Bloomsbury WC1H
Speed builds, giant displays, minifigure traders and a dedicated building zone, basically every LEGO fan's fever dream for a Sunday.
Age: Everyone | Price: from £6 | Info

🌶️ Chilli Seed Planting and Pot Decoration @ The Garden Museum
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Lambeth SE1
Decorate recycled coffee cups and plant chilli seeds to grow at home. 11am–12.30pm, free and genuinely useful. You will have actual chillies by summer.
Age: 3+ | Price: No cost | Info

📚 World Book Day Special @ Gnome House
Date & Loc: Mar 8 (Sun), Walthamstow E17
A morning of book-themed fun with art workshops, cooking sessions, sensory play and soft play. Come dressed as your favourite character.
Age: All ages | Price: £12 | Info

🐻 We're Going on a Bear Hunt @ The Radlett Centre
Date & Loc: Mar 10-11, Radlett WD7
Little Angel Theatre's stage version of Michael Rosen's classic, stunning puppets, live music and a bear who turns out to be less terrifying than advertised. Bit outside London.
Age: 3-6yo | Price: £15.50 | Info

🐉 Gozon the Dragon Slayer @ Museum of the Order of St John
Date & Loc: Mar 11 (Wed), Clerkenwell EC1M
Family workshop. A storytelling session exploring the tale of Gozon the Dragon Slayer and other dragon legends. Followed by playtime for little explorers.
Age: Under 3s | Price: No cost (booking req) | Info

🐷 Peppa Pig's Big Family Show @ Alban Arena
Date & Loc: Mar 11-12, St Albans AL1
Baby Evie is on the way and the whole Pig family needs your child's help to get ready, decorating, building, general oinking chaos. Live on stage. Note: Outside London.
Age: Everyone | Price: from £12 | Info

🌍 Kish Kush @ Polka Theatre
Date & Loc: Mar 13–15, Wimbledon SW19
Two strangers meet for the first time. They speak different languages but share a longing to understand each other. A gentle show celebrating cultural differences.
Age: 3–8 | Price: £13 | Info

🔬 Exciting Science @ Lyric Hammersmith
Date & Loc: Mar 14 (Sat), Hammersmith W6
A brand new show putting the exciting back into science, with whizzes, bangs, pops and splurts. Messy and loud and exactly what science should be.
Age: 4+ | Price: £12 | Info

🌈 The Magic of India Holi Colour Dance Festival @ SC Open Space
Date & Loc: Mar 14 (Sat), Swiss Cottage NW3
Bhangra, dhol drummers, safe washable colour powder, DJs and Indian food in Swiss Cottage. You will need to do laundry afterwards.
Age: Everyone | Price: from £11 | Info

🎵 Megson Family Folk Show @ Kings Place
Date & Loc: Mar 14 (Sat), King's Cross N1
Award-winning folk duo Megson blends heavenly vocals and warm harmonies into a folk concert for younger children.
Age: 0–8 | Price: £12 | Info

🧘 Little Tweaks @ Fulham Pier
Date & Loc: Mar 15 (Sun), Fulham SW6
A joyful mindful movement session where little ones stretch, dance and breathe alongside their grown-ups.
Age: 2-5yo | Price: £10 | Info

🎶 Move & Groove with Planet Play @ Chickenshed Theatre
Date & Loc: Mar 21, Barnet N14
Adults get an achievable workout while little ones get live music, puppets and laughter.
Age: 0-3yo | Price: £9 | Info

🏡 A Squash and a Squeeze @ Little Angel Theatre
Date & Loc: Until Mar 21, Islington N1
Julia Donaldson's beloved farmyard-chaos story in a gorgeous puppet adaptation.
Age: 3-8yo | Price: TBC | Info

🐉 Book Reading and Draw-Along with Alex Barrow @ Young V&A
Date & Loc: Mar 21 (Sat), Bethnal Green E2
Hear If I Had a Dragon read aloud, then join illustrator Alex Barrow to draw your own fiery creations.
Age: 3–8 | Price: £5 | Info

🦖🕺 Dino Disco for Kids @ Natural History Museum
Date & Loc: Apr 4, South Kensington SW7
A family-friendly silent disco inside the museum, complete with headphones, dancing dinosaurs and multiple DJs to choose from. Big energy, big smiles.
Age: 6–12yrs | Price: £20 | Info

📚 Children’s Book Readings @ Well Walk Theatre
Date & Loc: Wed and Fri, Hampstead NW3
Storytime at the theatre bookshop with tales read aloud by house performers. Sessions run in English and French.
Age: All ages | Price: No cost | Info

🎼 Family Sundays @ Royal Opera House
Date & Loc: Various dates, Covent Garden WC2E
These go fast but still some dates available. A relaxed family day with creative activities, short performances and chances to explore music, dance and storytelling inside the Royal Opera House.
Age: Families | Price: £20 | Info

🎨 Mundo Pixar @ Wembley Park
Date & Loc: Ongoing, Wembley
Step inside the worlds of Toy Story, Coco, Cars and more in this large-scale immersive Pixar experience, packed with life-size sets.
Age: All ages | Price: from £22 | Info

🐙 Octonauts @ Horniman Museum and Gardens
Date & Loc: Ongoing, Horniman SE23
Pick up a free trail and join the Octonauts crew on mini-missions around the museum. Hunt for shells, discover Octofacts and head to the Sound Garden for a bonus outdoor adventure.
Age: Everyone | Price: no cost | Info

🦸 Superhero City Adventure @ Kensington Gardens
Date & Loc: Ongoing, Kensington Gardens SW7
A self-guided outdoor adventure where kids follow clues around the park, solving puzzles and completing missions to become city superheroes. Easy to start anytime.
Age: 4–8yrs | Price: £6 | Info

Got any comments or suggestions? Feel free to reply; I’d love to hear from you.

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