This month take time for you and delight in some of the wonderful activities our museums, galleries, tourist attractions and institutions have in place for you to enjoy. Walk through crisp winter gardens and tranquil grounds, visit outside festive fayres and fun filled ice-rinks, rediscover your love of art with London’s world-class galleries and exhibitions, dine out in luxury igloos and even catch up with Santa before the big day! However, you would like to spend your time, there is lots to choose from and even some last minute shopping ideas to inspire you too.
Looking for that last minute gift? Look no further as London events venue, 10-11 Carlton House Terrace, has launched a campaign to promote event suppliers who offer products and services suitable as Christmas gifts. After many were required to pivot to B2C earlier in the year, the campaign is designed to give those who wish to support the industry a practical and unique way to do so.
Choose from 30+ gift vouchers from an afternoon tea to a private party in one of London’s stunning venues.
Find the full supplier gift list at http://10-11cht.com/christmas/lovelist or search the hashtag #SupportEventSuppliers on social platforms and start gifting.
the Design Museum presents the launch of the specially curated virtual tour of the five-star exhibition Electronic: From Kraftwerk to The Chemical Brothers featuring exclusive interviews from internationally acclaimed artists and ground-breaking designers and visual artists.
Join the digital Facebook event including a live panel discussion and Q&A of industry experts (including electronic artist Daniel Avery, DJ & broadcaster Nabihah Iqbal, design & nightclub historian Dr Catharine Rossi and architect & teacher Pol Esteve Castelló) from the museum on Thursday 17 December, 20.00 GMT.
Tickets are £7.99 and Design Museum Members can join free.
Following the panel discussion, ticketholders will gain early access to the virtual tour.
Find out more here - https://designmuseum.org/exhibitions/electronic-from-kraftwerk-to-the-chemical-brothers/electronic-from-kraftwerk-to-the-chemical-brothers-the-virtual-tour
Hampton Court Palace courtyards and East Front gardens will be transformed into a food-lover's Christmas wonderland, on 11-13 December, at the Festive Fayre 2020 and is the perfect start to your Christmas celebrations.
Soak up the atmosphere and spirit of the season with sing-along festive classics from the East Front Bandstand and indulge in delicious street food with warming festive drinks.
Browse a selection of unique gift stalls, perfect for that foodie Christmas treat or gorgeous special present.
With everything from Christmas pudding to sausages, and brownies to churros, our hand-picked artisan producers and companies are guaranteed to delight even the most committed foodie.
Find out more at the Festive Fayre website. Please note tickets need to be prebooked for the Festive Fayre.
In addition, why not enjoy a skate on beautiful Hampton Court Palace Ice Rink. The COVID-secure open-air ice rink epitomises the very best in festive fun.
Open from Saturday 5 December - 17 January. Please note tickets need to be prebooked for the Ice Rink.
Located in front of the palace, the stunning ice rink offers something for everyone, from novice to expert. Enjoy a daytime skate, perhaps followed by a visit to the palace, or soak in the ambience of an evening session, when the historic Tudor gate is bathed in light. The ice rink is bigger than ever this year, allowing for extra space for you to skate safely.
Over a normal year Harrow welcomes over 10,000 visitors to the School to enjoy historical tours hosted by our expert tour guides. We offer two main types of tours; private groups of over ten guests and open public tours, held on a Saturday four times a year. A historical tour of Harrow School usually lasts between an hour and a half to two hours. Guided tours of the School can be arranged on almost any weekday in term-time or during the school holidays. Guests are taken inside the most unique spaces, from the Fourth Form Room, the original classroom dating back 400 years, to Speech Room, the Boys main assembly hall. Other spaces include the private School Chapel, the War Memorial Building and the extensive school grounds.
This Christmas we are excited to launch to you, Historical Tour Gift Vouchers. These vouchers can be used across the year, at a date which suits you. Why not bring together your closest friendship or family bubble to enjoy a covid safe activity. A gift voucher costs £120.00 for up to 10 guests, that’s £12.00 per person! Follow the below link to purchase today.
https://www.harrowschoolenterprises.com/product/harrow-school-private-tour-ten-guests/
Visitors can enjoy a warm welcome at London Transport Museum in Covent Garden this winter with a line-up of fabulous family festivities and stunning vintage seasonal posters from the unique collection depicting the magic of London during wintertime including classic and contemporary artworks illustrating frosty winter walks, the joy of shopping at the sales and festive fun at London’s historic landmarks. Visitors can also step into a life-sized version of an iconic 1980s poster ‘Cold Winds Do Blow’ by Brian Grimwood to get the picture-perfect wintery snap surrounded by falling snowflake roundels.
Families can hunt for hidden Underground roundels nestled among the historic vehicles and answer fun transport trivia questions as they follow our festive winter trail. Get cosy in a magical winter forest filled with twinkling lights to watch an illustrated video story of an utterly awesome Underground journey Santa makes with the ‘Tf-Elves’.
As Christmas Day approaches, Santa will be stopping by to meet families on Saturday 12 and Sunday 13 December, and every day between Saturday 19 and Wednesday 23 December.
If you are looking to up your gifting game this year London Transport Museum has an amazing selection of unique gift ideas from beautiful vintage London transport posters to festive jumpers for the whole family. All of these are available only from the Museum’s Covent Garden shop and online. Visit https://www.ltmuseumshop.co.uk/ Looking for an alternative gift for the family member - Hidden London virtual tours are the gift to give. Giving a unique sight into London’s disused tube stations, book from 3 digital tours to enjoy.
Keeping its visitors, staff and volunteers safe is London Transport Museum’s top priority. The Museum will reopen with the Visit Britain’s ‘Good to Go’ standard and has new one-way routes and social distancing signage in place, as well as hand sanitiser stations throughout the galleries and an enhanced cleaning regime with anti-viral disinfectant that protects for up to 30 days.
Visit www.ltmuseum.co.uk for the latest information on planned reopening dates and times.
This year step into a painter's Winter Wonderland and visit Father Christmas at the National Gallery, Trafalgar Square. A Christmas Experience inspired by the wonderful painting Winter Scene of Skaters Near a Castle by Hendrick Avercamp.
This beautiful, socially safe, experience, is an amazing treat for all the family guaranteed to bring wonder and festive cheer into minds and hearts.
Tickets are selling like hot mince pies! Don't miss out and book yours now! Follow this link: https://www.nationalgallery.org.uk/events
Royal Museums Greenwich’s Queen’s House Ice Rink has been open since 5th December and has been a huge success, featuring on This Morning and Loose Women amongst others! It’s open until 24th January so get your tickets before they go.
Why not buy some corporate gift vouchers for your team or add some as a stocking filler for your nearest and dearest?
Whilst you’re in Greenwich, take the opportunity to catch the Woburn Collection in the Queen’s House before it leaves. If you can’t get down to Greenwich, the Events Team have also got a number of virtual experiences to give you the same unforgettable experience with them from the comfort of your own sofa.
Head to www.rmg.co.uk/venuehire for more details.
Why not indulge and celebrate the festive season by joining us in one of the Winter Domes at Somerset House for an exceptional dining experience within your very own winter dome, set in one of London’s best loved and most iconic open spaces.
Choose from a range of delicious lunch, afternoon tea and dinner menus. The indulgent dishes have been designed by an award-winning culinary team and are a perfect treat for this festive season.
Book your private winter dome for 4-6 guests whilst you can, as this incredible restaurant experience is only running from 03 December 2020 – 01 January 2021.
More details and how to book can be found via Somerset House’s website: https://www.somersethouse.org.uk/whats-on/winter-domes-somerset-house
Treasures from the Thames at Southwark Cathedral
Southwark Cathedral presents a display of artefacts from the River Thames alongside the work of two contemporary artists, Raewyn Harrison and Liz Willis.
These fragments of the past tell stories of London’s first farmers more than 5000 years ago, Roman invaders, and Medieval saints. They paint pictures of fun and frivolity at Southwark’s Tudor inns and theatres and darker images of prison ships and slavery.
This exhibition challenges our concept of rubbish and shows that these lost and forgotten objects can be transformed into something new and beautiful.
Many of the objects on display feature in Lara Maiklem’s bestselling book Mudlarking: Lost and Found on the River Thames and Raewyn and Liz have made work specifically for this exhibition that responds to the locations and finds that Lara has written about. You can purchase a signed copy of the book via our online shop here: www.southwarkcathedralshop.org
Treasures from the Thames is on display at Southwark Cathedral now until mid-January 2021. The Cathedral is open every day and free to enter. For more information visit www.cathedral.southwark.anglican.org
As the UK prepares for Christmas unlike any other, St Paul’s is finding new ways to celebrate in 2020. One of our most popular Christmas concerts is ‘A Celebration of Christmas’ which includes performances of some of the nation’s favourite carols. These include Once in royal David’s city and Hark the herald angels sing, as well as other seasonal pieces by the Cathedral Choir, and a performance from the City of London Sinfonia of Sleigh Ride – the most popular piece of Christmas orchestral music ever!
‘A Celebration of Christmas’ will be livestreamed on 17 December 2020 from 7pm, made possible by the generous support of our partners Lloyds Bank who are keen to bring Christmas cheer into the homes of the nation and the world. The concert usually garners an audience of over 2000 people inside the Cathedral, but this year will be enjoyed by many more at home.
A Celebration of Christmas - Live Stream Thursday 17 December 7 - 8.30pm
FREE | This event is available to experience as a live stream only. There is no attendance at the Cathedral this year.
To register please click here.
We would like to take this opportunity of letting you know what other services and events will be taking place in the run up to Christmas.
On Tuesday we marked the end of National Grief Awareness Week with a special Evensong and at 6pm our Dome was lit up for the first time this year in yellow and blue in conjunction with The Good Grief Trust and Remember Me, our online book of remembrance for those who have died as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. To submit a tribute to a loved one who has died as a result of the pandemic, free of charge, visit www.rememberme2020.uk
We are continuing our fundraising for a physical memorial of Remember Me, in the form of an inner portico entrance in the Cathedral and need to raise £2.3m for the physical memorial.
The services below are open to the general public but will be ticketed with all details to register for tickets found on the St Paul’s Cathedral website under Advent and Christmas 2020.
- Saturday 12th December 5.00pm to 6.00pm Ceremony of Carols; Benjamin Britten
- Sunday 13th December 5.00pm to 6.15pm La Nativite du Seigneur
- Sunday 20th December 3.00pm to 4.00pm Light in the Darkness
- Wednesday 23rd December & Thursday 24th December 4.00pm to 5.10pm Christmas Carol Services
- Thursday 24th December 11.30pm to 12.30am Midnight Eucharist
We do hope you will be able to join us, whether it is witnessing the lighting up of the Dome, enjoying the livestream or attending one of the services which we hope will bring a bit of festive cheer at the end of a difficult and unprecedented year.
After a truly challenging year, indulge and celebrate by joining Syon Park this festive season at their pop-up, covid-safe restaurant. Syon Park have partnered with the Eventist Group (restaurant & catering specialists) to put together some unforgettable culinary treats to reward yourselves with.
This is a once in a lifetime fine dining experience beneath the stars at the iconic and sensational Syon House & Great Conservatory. For the first time in its history, The Duke of Northumberland’s London home is available to the public in the most magical and unique way.
Come to Syon Park for an exceptional dining experience within your very own luxurious igloo, set amongst the spectacular grounds of Syon Park’s Great Conservatory.
Syon House Igloos runs from 3rd to 23rd December. To avoid disappointment, we really recommend you book now and have something wonderful to look forward to www.syonhouseigloos.com.
Syon House Igloo & Great Conservatory bookings and reservation queries: 07592 071619 info@syonhouseigloos.com
In addition, the Gardens and Arboretum at Syon Park will be open every day from Boxing Day 26th December 2020 to 3rd January 2021.
Syon has a remarkable 600 years of garden history spanning from the gardens of the Abbey, where the priest Richard Whitford argued with Thomas Cromwell’s agents, through the sixteenth century plant collection of William Turner, the formality of the seventeenth century, the rise of the Brownian landscape in the eighteenth century, the great plant collection of the nineteenth century through to the extraordinary rise in interest in domestic gardening in the 1960s.
Why not book a ticket and come for a walk around the lake with your family in a haven of calm and tranquillity.
There is free parking for all, a coffee shop and importantly toilets for visitors. Click https://www.kxtickets.com/whats-on/syon-park-gardens to book tickets.