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All weekend
MARKETS: It's a busy weekend for vintage fairs, markets and the like. See a full list of shopping events taking place.
PUB: Just want to kick back and relax with a pint and a packet of pork scratchings? Our pubs guide has information about all of the best pubs in London, organised by area for your convenience. Find a boozer near you, or see if your favourite made the cut.
JAZZ FESTIVAL: Canary Wharf's summer of free events continues this weekend with a free jazz festival. See website for full schedule. Free, just turn up, 15-17 August
FOOD FESTIVAL: Get your taste buds tingling at Foodies Festival in Battersea Park all weekend, with a plethora of food stalls, a vintage tea rooms and food market and a chilli eating challenge. From £12 per day, prebook, 15-17 August
FREE BIKES: To celebrate the fourth anniversary of the Barclays Cycle Hire Scheme (she doesn't look a day over three), the hire fee is being dropped this weekend, provided you dock every 30 minutes. There are also special cycling events taking place this weekend. More details here. 16-17 August
GO TO THE BEACH: Camden Beach is back at the Roundhouse. Why not head there with friends and pull up a deckchair? It’s free, and feels like being at the British seaside (it’s even got the capricious weather). Free, just turn up, until 23 August
SCI FI: Loncon 3 is the 72nd World Science Fiction Convention and its at Excel until Monday celebrating all sci fi in all forms, including film, TV, art, comics, anime and manga, and gaming. There will be costumes, memorabilia, art and special guests. Day admission on Saturday and Sunday is £50, 5-day passes also available, check website for details. Until Monday 18 August
FLOATING CINEMA: The boat of fun floats into Paddington this weekend, offering open air film, music, food and workshops from Central and Eastern Europe. See website for times and prices.
STEAM TRAINS: Enjoy a steam train ride on the Metropolitan Line between Rickmansworth and Chesham. See full journey details here. £10-£55, prebook, all weekend
MUSIC: The epic BBC Proms are in full swing at the Royal Albert Hall. Consult our guide to making the most of your Proms experience and consider our top ten highlights from the programme. This weekend there's a performance of Lest We Forget, a poetry event and more to choose from. Promming tickets from £5.
Saturday 16 August
MID CENTURY: Bettina Scarlett’s Mid Century Market returns to Hammersmith with a strong focus on all things 50s. Stallholders are experts in the era, selling items such as true vintage clothing and unique handmade jewellery. £3, 10.30am-4pm
BEER FESTIVAL: The Great British Beer Festival returns to Olympia, with 900 different real ales, ciders and perries available, and over 55,000 happy drinkers expected to attend. £10 in advance/£12 on the door, 11am-7pm
FAT BUDDHA YOGA: FBY is a more lively approach to traditional yoga, with music to accompany the class, which is open to everyone. Best of all, it takes place on a rooftop — the rooftop of Queen of Hoxton to be precise. £8, prebook (tickets go on sale five days before), 11am
ODDITIES OF STRAND: Discover London's smallest maze, one of its most surprising shops, quirky sculpture, a poor elephant, music video history, the demise of the bowler hat and much more in the company of Pete Berthoud. £10+bf, prebook, 11am-1pm
COFFEE TASTING: Drink Shop & Do in King's Cross now has a sister coffee shop, Drink Shop & Dash, which offers regular Saturday morning coffee tastings with a trained barista. £15, prebook, 11am
RECORD FAIR: Dig A Little Record Fair heads to a new location this month. Eltham GPO hosts the daytime meet up for anyone interested in music. As well as specialist sellers being on hand with records to sell and trade, there will be DJs providing the music. Free, 12pm-6pm
FAMILY FESTIVAL: The Elephant and the Nun is a family festival in Burgess Park, Southwark. Expect the usual village fair events (stalls, pet show, live music) alongside Africa Live, an event showcasing African culture , and activities for children at the BMX track. Free, just turn up, 12pm-8pm
SEVEN DIALS: The shopping area in Covent Garden hosts Spotlight, a summer festival consisting of stage performances, a solar cinema and a literary salon. Shopping happenings include discounts in stores such as Pepe Jeans and Fred Perry, a pop-up Karine Jackson salon and shoe customisation at Superga. Free, 12pm-7pm
CIDER FESTIVAL: The Old Ship Inn in Hackney has a cider festival, with over 30 ciders to try and live music. Free, just turn up, from 12pm
LEGO MOVIE: The whole family can watch favourite The Lego Movie outdoors for free at Regent's Place Plaza on Euston Road. Free, just turn up, 1pm
DRAWING SALON: Death Drawing by Art Macabre comes to The Book Club in Shoreditch, combining life drawing and an exploration of death rituals. Examine the Prehistoric period, sketch "Queens of the Bone Age" and learn about the evolution of human anatomy. £10 in advance, £12 on the door, 2pm
CHARITY GIG: Oxjam Clapham presents Summer Shakedown, an afternoon of music, DJs, fun and games at the Bread and Roses pub, Clapham. Artists playing on the night include: Forleigh and 3/4, Kenesha, Mark Mathews and Paul Freeland alongside a raffle, face painting and other various stalls and special drinks promotions including an Oxjam Cocktail. £3, just turn up, 4pm-11pm
GREASE SING-ALONG: Get caught up in one of the most famous musical films of all time in this sing-along screening of Grease at Royal Festival Hall on Southbank. The on-screen lyrics and vocal warm-up mean there are no excuses for not joining in. Leather jacket optional but encouraged. Part of Festival of Love. £16, prebook, 7.30pm
SEX IDIOT: Bryony Kimmings brings her 2010 show Sex Idiot back to Southbank Centre for a limited run. The comedy confessional shows Bryony tracing her sexual history when she discovers she has an STI. Not one for the kids, perhaps. £17, prebook, 7.45pm/9.30pm
MASSIVE CEILIDH: Go reeling at the Roundhouse with the Ceilidh Liberation Front as they lay on "the biggest folk dance event there ever was" to the sounds of "bass-fuelled psychedlic folk" from Gentle Mystics and "a kaleidoscope of vintage Afro-Atlantic styles" from Family Atlantica. Ceilidh was never this cool. Tickets £15/£12 adv+bkg, £17 on the door, 8pm-2am
SUMMER OF LOVE: Barfly in Camden hosts an evening celebrating the music of the 60s and 70s, plus everyone gets a free go on the Monte Carlo-style roulette table. £4 advance, £5 after 11pm, from 10pm
Sunday 17 August
RAPPING PENSIONER: This week's St John’s Sunday Service in Waterloo features brilliant rapping pensioner Ida Barr, who puts an old-time music hall twist on modern music with her own brand of Artificial Hip Hop. Part of Watch This Space Festival. Free, just turn up, 10.30am
LOVE THE LEA: Celebrate the rivers of the Lea Valley at Love The Lea Festival (PDF) at Walthamstow Marshes Picnic Area. There's live music, boat trips, sound walks, pond dipping and other river-based fun. Free, just turn up, 11am-5pm
GARDEN MARKET: Cottons Garden Market on Kingsland Road is a market with a community feel, selling jewellery, clothing, high end street food and offering plenty of places to sit down and take in the atmosphere. Every Sunday. Free, just turn up, 12pm-6pm
FAMILY FUN: Keats House in Hampstead has a family fun day themed around the sea. Explore all things deep through activities aimed at all ages. Free with admission, just turn up, 1pm-4pm
DAZED AND CONFUSED: Phoenix Cinema in East Finchley is screening Richard Linklater's Dazed and Confused, partly out of appreciation for Boyhood, and partly because of rumours that Linklater will be making a "spiritual follow up" to Dazed and Confused soon. £5, prebook, 2pm
BANDSTAND CONCERT: Head to Horniman Museum in Forest Hill for a free concert, performed on the Edwardian Bandstand. This week is the turn of London-based, internationally-origined Wara. Free, just turn up, 3pm-5pm
OUTDOOR THEATRE: Fulham Palace has a family-friendly (5+) production of Pirates of Penzance by Illyria Theatre Company. Frederick, an apprentice pirate, born on 29 February, quits the pirate ship and falls in love with a girl on land — then he learns he is contracted to the pirates until his 21st birthday, not his 21st year. Takes place in the Walled Garden. £15/£8, prebook, 4pm
FILM SCREENING: There is a screening of How We Used to Live at Hackney Picturehouse, followed by a Q&A with writers Bob Stanley and Travis Elborough. Prebook, 6pm
DANCE CLASS: The Book Club in Shoreditch launches All Twerk and No Play dance session. Lear how to master the art of tweaking, the dance phenomenon that has become much popular recently — no previous experience needed. £8+bf, prebook, 6.30pm
CHARITY CABARET: Leicester Square Theatre has a one-off cabaret show with West End stars such as Anton Du Beke, Summer Strallen and the 2014 cast of Miss Saigon. The evening will raise money for abandoned and abused orphans in Manila, the Philippines. £25/£35, prebook, 7.30pm
NEW PLAY: What I Remember And How Things Will Be is a new play at The Rag Factory. Twelve years in the waiting, Meredith and Tom are to meet. It explores first love, what it teaches us and the legacy it leaves behind. £8, prebook, 7.30pm
Camden Fringe
London’s biggest performing arts festival, Camden Fringe, started on 28 July. Everyday throughout the festival, we’ll be bringing you our pick of shows to catch that day. This weekend’s suggestions are below:
A Fucked Up Wonderland is a sleazy take on the traditional tale of Alice and co. At Etcetera Theatre, 16-17 August
Confessions of a Rabbi's Daughter follows Rachel Wiseman's dreams of becoming a Rabbi's wife, and the upheaval that comes when she is close to achieving it. Upstairs at the Gatehouse, 17 August
Botheration, The Bearded Woman isn't about Conchita Wurst, but explores what it feels like to be a proper grown up. Adults only. 17, 22 and 23 August
Have You Tried …
…Wingit? If you want even more ideas for things to do in London then this new app should be able to help. Using an algorithm to scan social networks, Wingit checks your location and promises to find great London events happening near you in real-time. From performances to pop-ups, screenings to street art, download the free app today to see what’s going on just round the corner.
This weekend’s Things To Do In London is sponsored by Wingit.
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