Things to Do in North London in May 2026

Sicily Fest | 📍Business Design Centre, N1 | 30 Apr - 4 May | (£)
Now in its eleventh year, Sicily Fest is the largest Sicilian food and drink event in London and this year it runs for five days at the Business Design Centre on Upper Street. Etna wines, artisan pasta, pistachios, panelle, pizza fritta, cannoli and more, with live music throughout.

Jung Festival | 📍Canopy Market, King's Cross, N1C | 1 - 4 May | Free
London's first Korean food festival lands at Canopy Market in King's Cross over the bank holiday weekend. Jung is named after Jeong, the Korean concept of warmth and connection that comes from sharing food, and that spirit runs through the whole thing. Around 20 food traders and 10 independent Korean brands, going well beyond the kimchi and Korean fried chicken you might already know. Free to visit. Friday 12pm to 8pm, Saturday to Monday 11am to 6pm.

Indie Jewellers' Market | 📍Coal Drops Yard, N1C | 30 Apr - 4 May | Free
Over 70 independent jewellery designers across five days at Coal Drops Yard, with a completely different lineup each day. Precious metalwork, gemstones, ceramic charms, Murano glass and statement pieces, all from makers you won't find on the high street. A Korean food festival runs alongside for four of the five days. 11am to 6pm.

Bruce Castle Heritage Quarter Open Day | 📍Bruce Castle, N17 | 3 May | Free
A medieval church, a Tudor manor house, Victorian cemetery chapels and a community pub. All in one corner of Tottenham, all open on the same day. Bruce Castle Museum runs free curator-led tours from noon, there are heritage walks, bell ringers at 10.30am, and a guest talk at 2.30pm. Tea and cake at the Old Kitchen Cafe. Runs 10.30am to 4pm.

Temi's Closet London Pop-Up | 📍Indra Gallery, N1 | 1 - 2 May | Free
Temi's Closet has been running pop-ups in Lagos and next week it comes to London for the first time. Over 20 Nigerian fashion brands at Indra Gallery in Shoreditch, with designs spanning ready-to-wear, swimwear, jewellery and more. Cocktails from Yewa Cocktails and matcha from Ardi Matcha on site. Runs 10am to 7pm both days.

London Zoo's Big Birthday Bash | 📍Regent's Park, NW1 | 2 - 4 May | Included in zoo entry
London Zoo turns 200 this year. To celebrate, they're throwing a bank holiday street party with fairground games (Hook a Flamingo), face painting, a BBQ, birthday cake, jelly and ice cream. On Monday, local musical historian Martin Nelson performs songs from the 1900s in the historic Lubetkin penguin pool. Worth going for that alone.

Roots 2 Love | 📍Kilburn Square, NW6 | 1 - 2 May | Free
A two-day free festival celebrating Kilburn, the people who live there and the stories that don't always get told. Friday evening opens at Metroland Studios with live music, food and radio from 6pm. Saturday takes over Kilburn Square and the market with DJs, live performances, maypole dancing, gardening workshops, a story archive booth and a Wall of Belonging. 1pm to 7pm. All are welcome.

May Day Fair at Kentish Town City Farm | 📍Kentish Town, NW5 | 4 May | £1 adults, 50p children
Kentish Town city farm are throwing a May Day fair. Animal handling, maypole dancing, food stalls, cake and a raffle. It gets busy, so arrive early. 12pm to 4pm.

Museum Late: Garden of Medicinal Plants | 📍Regent's Park, NW1 | 6 May | Free
The Royal College of Physicians opens its garden after hours for an evening among 1,000 species of plants, almost every one with a link to medicine. Expert physician guides lead garden tours at 6pm, 6.30pm and 7pm. Inside, there's a mini display of botanical books from the Heritage Library and the rest of the museum to explore. Free tea and coffee all evening. Runs 5.30pm to 8pm. Book in advance.

Islington Gardeners Annual Plant Sale | 📍Olden Community Garden, N5 | 10 May | Free
A community garden in Highbury, open for an afternoon plant sale with shrubs, veg, herbs and houseplants from local gardeners. Homemade scones and cake on the side. Proceeds go to St Joseph's Hospice, the Harington Scheme and Copenhagen Street Food Bank. Rain or shine. Bring bags. 2pm to 4pm.

Victorian Law and Madness: Female Identity in the Writings of Wilkie Collins | 📍St Marylebone Parish Church, NW1 | 6 May | (£)
In Victorian England, an inconvenient woman could be declared mad and locked away. Wilkie Collins wrote about it. This talk by Dr Anne-Marie Beller explores how Collins used novels like The Woman in White to expose what the law did to women. Held in the crypt of the church where Collins was baptised. 6.30pm to 7.30pm, questions after.

London Fortean Society: Hoax | 📍Conway Hall, WC1 | 7 May | (£)
A ghost who scratched, a witch who murdered, and a woman who convinced an entire village she was a princess from a made-up island. All three were hoaxes. All three captivated the public. Madeleine Pelling discusses her new book on these three women and what their stories reveal about truth, panic and who gets believed. Doors 6.30pm, starts 7pm. Tickets from £8 to £15 plus a £2 venue levy.

Global Explorers Spring Fair | 📍Denton Road, N8 | 9 May | £1 adults, 50p children
Weston Park Primary in Crouch End is throwing open its doors for its annual spring fair, themed this year around Global Explorers to mark David Attenborough's 100th birthday. There's an animal encounters room where kids can handle live animals, the World's Tallest Bubbleologist, two bouncy castles, face painting, a tiki bar, international food stalls and a grand raffle draw at 4pm. 12.30pm to 4.30pm, everyone is welcome.

Monthly Bar Night at Novelty Automation | 📍Holborn, WC1R | First Thursday of every month | Free
A small arcade in Holborn where every machine is handmade and nothing is suitable for children. Think seaside funfair, but stranger and funnier. On the first Thursday of every month they open late with a bar. Free to get in. Tokens cost £6 for 5, £10 for 10, or £28 for 35 — you need about 35 to try everything.

From Woolwich to the Emirates | 📍Islington Council LDP Office, N5 | 8 - 31 May | Free
Every Arsenal shirt tells a story. London Jersey Gallery are staging a free pop-up exhibition near Emirates Stadium tracing the club's history from its origins in Woolwich in 1886 to today, through the kits worn across 140 years. Curated by Abdul Rashid Zakari, it's a look at how design, culture and memorable eras are woven into the fabric of the game. Free to visit throughout May.

Forty Hall Farm Plant Sale | 📍Forty Hall Farm, EN2 | 9 - 10 May | Free
Forty Hall Farm is a working organic farm in Enfield with its own vineyard, and this weekend it's throwing open its farmyard for a plant sale. Thousands of organically grown vegetables, herbs and flowers, including rare and heritage varieties, for gardens, allotments and window boxes. Saturday has first pick of the plants alongside Neapolitan pizza and wine from the vineyard. Sunday adds a farmers' market with 30 food stalls. Arrive early, bring boxes. 10am to 3pm both days.

North London Curated | 📍Floral Hall, Crouch End, N8 | 10 May | Free
North London Curated is a monthly popup at Floral Hall on Crouch Hill with a curated mix of vintage, preloved and independent brands. Small and considered. Curated, not crowded, as they put it. 10am to 5pm.

Courtyard Market N6 | 📍St Augustine's Church Halls, N6 | 10 May | Free
A monthly artisan market in a Highgate church hall with local makers and handmade gifts.

Friday Knights Movie Club: Bottoms | 📍Kings Cross Continental Stores, N1 | 12 May | (£)
A film screening at a bar in Kings Cross rather than a cinema. This month it's Bottoms, the 2023 queer teen comedy about two unpopular best friends who start a high school fight club to hook up with cheerleaders. Satirical, chaotic and very funny. Starts 7.30pm.

London Craft Week | 📍Various venues across London | 11 - 17 May | Free
Once a year London Craft Week opens up studios, workshops and galleries across the capital so you can see how things are actually made. Over 1000 makers, designers and craftspeople taking part, covering everything from watchmaking and calligraphy to lampmaking and far beyond the usual. Workshops, demonstrations, talks and studio tours throughout the week.

Springtime Garden Tour | 📍The Charterhouse, EC1M | 12 May | (£)
The Charterhouse in Clerkenwell has been standing since the 14th century and most Londoners have never been inside. On 12 May their horticulture team lead a walk through the historic square and hidden walled courtyards, talking through how they tend these spaces for the residents who still live there and for local wildlife. Spring is a good time to go.

St Pancras Waterpoint Open Day | 📍Camley Street, N1C | 16 May | Donation

In 2001 this Victorian water tower was sliced into sections, lifted by one of the largest cranes in the UK and moved 700 metres down the road to save it from demolition. Built in 1872 to supply water to St Pancras station's steam engines, the Grade II listed Waterpoint was designed by the office of Sir George Gilbert Scott, the architect behind the grand Gothic hotel attached to St Pancras station. The top floor viewing platform, inside the original cast iron water tank, has views over King's Cross, the Gasholders and St Pancras. Open monthly by donation, next date 16 May, 10am to 4pm. Book in advance, entrance on Camley Street near the Natural Park.

Haringey History Fair 2026 | 📍Bruce Castle Museum, N17 | 16 May | Free

Once a year, Bruce Castle Museum in Tottenham hosts a full day of talks on the hidden history of Haringey. It's free, open to everyone, and consistently one of the most interesting days in the North London calendar. This year's lineup includes a 1928 Hyde Park arrest that became a national scandal, the 60-year journey of a Tottenham woman from Antigua, and a Quaker proto-feminist who challenged Adam Smith two centuries ago. Doors 10.15am, talks from 10.45am to 4.45pm.

North London Organic Gardeners Plant Sale | 📍Winchmore Hill, N21 | 16 May | Free
A church hall in Winchmore Hill taken over by organic gardeners selling their own homegrown plants. Veg seedlings, flowers, herbs, shrubs, perennials, fruit and houseplants. Tea, coffee and homemade cake. It's only on for two hours so don't leave it late. 10am to 12pm.

Barnet Classic Car Show 2026 | 📍Barnet High Street, EN5 | 17 May | Free
Once a year, Barnet High Street closes for a parade of classic cars. They then park up on the top deck of The Spires shopping centre car park for a display until 3pm, where you can get up close, chat to owners and, if you're lucky, sit in the driving seat. Live music from Boxty and refreshment stalls throughout. Raises money for Noah's Ark Children's Hospice. The parade starts at 10.30am.

Primrose Hill Summer Festival | 📍Regent's Park Road, NW1 | 17 May | Free
The annual Primrose Hill Summer Festival returns with a dog show, street food, live music and artisan stalls.

Belsize Walk: Artists, Refugees and Spies | 📍Haverstock Hill, NW3 | 17 May | Free

In the 1930s, a few streets in Belsize Park were home to Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth and some of Britain's most notorious Soviet spies. This free walking tour connects both stories, starting with the refugee artists who fled Hitler and helped shape British Modernism, then moving to the Lawn Road flats where Soviet agents were recruited. Led by local historian Averil Nottage. Two departures: 11am and 2.30pm, the afternoon walk is followed by tea and cake. Free tickets via Eventbrite, numbers are limited..

Pint of Science | 📍Various pubs across London | 18- 20 May | (£)
Pint of Science is a three-day festival where scientists ditch the lecture theatre and take their research to the pub instead. Over 150 researchers talking about everything from particle physics and neuroscience to AI, climate and mental health, all in the informal setting of a local. Started by two scientists at Imperial College in 2012, it now runs in nearly 500 cities worldwide. £5 a ticket.

Wild Health: People, Nature & One Health | 📍ZSL, Regent's Park, NW1 | 19 May | (£)
The health of humans, animals and ecosystems are more connected than most people realise. This evening at ZSL in Regent's Park brings together three researchers to explore what that actually means in practice, from how climate change drives infectious disease spillover to chemical pollution affecting marine predators and the measurable benefits of children spending time in nature. Talks and panel discussion, part of ZSL's Wild Talks series marking their 200th anniversary.

The Podcast Show | 📍Business Design Centre, N1 | 20 - 21 May | (£)
The Podcast Show takes over the Business Design Centre in Islington for two days in May. Whether you already make a podcast or have been thinking about starting one, it's a mix of live stage shows, panel sessions, 150 plus speakers and networking across the industry. Past speakers have included Louis Theroux, Elizabeth Day, Gary Lineker and GK Barry.

Criminal: An Untold History | 📍Museum of Homelessness, N4 | 21 May - 25 Jul | Free

For 400 years in Britain, being homeless has been treated as a crime. The Museum of Homelessness in Finsbury Park open a new exhibition in May tracing that history alongside the resistance that pushed back against it. New work from artists including 10Foot, Gemma Lees, Spelling Mistakes Cost Lives and Surfing Sofas alongside historical material. Open for 10 weeks only, closing 25 July.

Friday Knights: The Ultimate Bar Society Social | 📍Penderel's Oak, WC1V | 22 May | (£)
A pub evening for law students and aspiring barristers in Holborn. No elevator pitches, just conversation, games and affordable drinks with people figuring out the same path as you. 7pm until late.

London Rivers Week | 📍Various locations across London | 23- 30 May | Free
Most Londoners walk past rivers every day without knowing they're there, buried underground or hidden behind walls. London Rivers Week, now in its 10th year, is a week of walks, talks and events encouraging people to discover the waterway closest to them. This year's theme is Know Your Local River.

Heroes of the Air | 📍RAF Museum, NW9 | 23 to 31 May | (£)
The RAF Museum is running a week of half-term activities for kids. Three things to choose from: building your own aircraft out of Lego bricks, flying a remote control helicopter around a timed course, and a paper plane contest to see whose design travels furthest. Sessions run throughout each day, £3 to £5 per child, adults free. Ages 3 and up.

Family Day at Regent's Park Open Air Theatre | 📍Regent's Park Open Air Theatre, NW1 | 24 May | (£)
Regent's Park Open Air Theatre is running a family day on 24 May with a full programme of outdoor entertainment. A ticket includes The Marvellous Myth Hunter, a live adventure show with swordfights and games for 5 to 11 year olds, a Bach to Baby harp concert on the lawn, the Fly-Kid family rave for under 10s, sensory play for under 5s and finger sports, an interactive game where kids race their fingers through illustrated courses. Food on site. Morning entry 9.30am, afternoon entry 2pm. Adults £18, children £15.

Art Walk: Women Artists in Hampstead | 📍Burgh House, NW3 | 27 May | (£)
A walking tour through the Hampstead streets where Helen Allingham, Kate Greenaway and Milein Cosman actually lived and worked. Led by historian Carol Seigel, starting and ending at Burgh House. 90 minutes, maximum 12 people. Book early.

Tenderness and Rage | 📍Wellcome Collection, NW1 | 29 May - 3 Jan 2027 | Free
Tenderness and Rage is a new exhibition at Wellcome Collection exploring the AIDS epidemic in the UK and the lives of people living with HIV today. Photography, film and archival materials bring together two stories: the everyday acts of care during the crisis and the activists who fought for dignity and treatment. At its centre are two photographic series by Gideon Mendel, one documenting patients on AIDS wards at Middlesex Hospital in the 1980s, the other sharing perspectives of HIV activists worldwide. The exhibition gives particular focus to women living with HIV, whose voices are often left out of the story.