Dear {{ first name | Cheapskater }},
Creating this email has been very exciting for us as it marks the first time in our five-year history that we’ve sent Cheapskate out on a Friday! Ahead of long weekends, we often get emails from readers asking us to share information about free bank holiday-specific events, which inspired us to create this super special one-off edition.
We also wanted to give a shout out to the many of our readers who will not be taking time off work or other regular commitments this weekend. We know that bank holidays don’t mean much in many sectors, so for those of you who will be working through the long weekend, we’re sending love and solidarity (Kate will be working on Monday too!).
Fingers crossed for a sunny few days - and have a great weekend!
Kate and Georgia x
PS. Congrats to our readers Becky, Bonnie, Brooke, Jack, Jorge, Jaspreet, Neha, Scarlet & Ross, who each won a pair of tickets to Good News / Bad News, a new comedy night in Tufnell Park (as promoted in our most recent newsletter). Scroll down for two(!) fab free-to-enter competitions…
EVENTS
Spicy tamarind margs
DRINK 🍸 Waterloo
Friday-Sunday, 12-6/8pm
Drinks brand Smirnoff is giving away spicy margaritas “alongside some other fun surprises” at Observation Point, Southbank, over the long weekend.
Before Diana Died
PARTY 💃 Walthamstow
Friday, 9pm-2am
Party the night away at the Exale Brewery which is hosting Before Diana Died - an iconic-looking club night exclusively featuring hits from the 1990s.
Big doughnut giveaway
FOOD 🍩 various locations
Friday, from 12pm
Crosstown is giving away 800 peanut butter caramel & banana doughnuts today from its Soho, Brick Lane, Battersea Power Station & Canary Wharf stores.
Wonderful waterways
FESTIVAL 🎉 Maida Vale
Saturday-Monday, 10am-6pm
Celebrate the best of life on London’s waterways at IWA Canalway Cavalcade, which is returning to Little Venice with live music & special boating activities.
Affordable art market
SHOP 🛍️ Westbourne Grove
Saturday, 10am-5pm
Open Arts Spaces, the affordable art market ft. paintings, pottery, textiles, jewellery, accessories, postcards & more, is returning to Portobello on Sat.
Competition time! 💃✨
Fancy attending a night centred around uncensored storytelling by everyday people, paired with live music & art? You’re in luck!
We have a pair of tickets to give away for a RAW Listening Night themed around “intimacy” at the Old Queen’s Head in Islington on May 13. Expect a DJ set, artist pop-up, live music & other special activities at this exciting, one-off event.
To enter the draw, simply respond to this email with ‘RAW’ by Monday - & we’ll then pick a name at random. Good luck! 🤞
Yard Sale’s ‘slice day’
FOOD 🍕 Tufnell Park
Saturday, 12-4pm
Yard Sale is giving away free pizza slices from its new Tufnell Park store (plus there’ll be some beers on the house). Join Yard Sale’s email mailing list to qualify.
(Almost) Ikebana
WORKSHOP 🌸 Aldgate East
Saturday, 2-4.30pm
Paint & arrange flowers with a set of prompts, breathing exercises, discussion & shared cups of organic herbal tea at this Whitechapel Gallery workshop.
Disco & Friends
PARTY 🪩 Hackney Wick
Saturday, 3pm-1am
Two More Years is throwing an all-day disco party this Sat. Disco & Friends, which provides a platform for diverse, new-found disco talent, has free entry all day.
Drop-in drawing
WORKSHOP 🧑🎨 South Ken
Saturday, 11am-4pm
The V&A is hosting a drop-in drawing workshop for families of all ages, where kids can complete challenges & add their drawings to a giant mural.
The green meet
LEARN/SHOP 🌿 Putney Bridge
Sunday, 11am-4pm
Fulham Palace is hosting its annual green meet, which features various hands-on, sustainability-themed activities for all ages. Free if you pre-book.
Help keep Cheapskate going!
If you are able to do so, then please buy us a digital cup of tea ☕️.
We don’t charge anything for Cheapskate, so support from readers like you helps us keep doing what we’re doing each week.
You can also financially support us by clicking on our links (like this one!).
Second hand Sundays
SHOP 🛍️ Forest Hill
Sunday, 10am-3pm
Horniman Museum & Gardens’ second hand market (which sells pre-loved clothes, games, books, toys, unwanted gifts & more) returns this Sun.
Blackhorse Beer Mile
DRINK/PARTY 🍻 Blackhorse Road
Sunday, 12-11pm
The Blackhorse Beer Mile is back! It’s a fantastic free event which stretches across nine breweries, wineries & brandy houses along Blackhorse Lane.
Volunteer-run fiesta
EAT/DRINK 🎨 West Norwood
Sunday, 10am-4pm
More than 70 traders will be offering street food, fresh produce, handmade gifts & more at West Norwood Feast. There’ll also be children’s craft activities.
Market at the mansion
SHOP 🛍️ Beckenham Hill
Monday, 10am-5pm
So Last Century is hosting a vintage market at Beckenham Place Park this Mon, featuring 50 well-known vintage traders, delicious street food & live jazz.
Bonus competition! 🎶
South London MC Pinty has curated a line-up of his favourite local DJs, producers & singers to kick off the bank holiday weekend at Peckham Levels this Saturday night - & we have five pairs of tickets to give away!
Expect a mix of rap, house & jungle, & for Pinty & Co to keep you dancing all the way to 3am.
To enter the draw, simply respond to this email with ‘MC Pinty’ by 8pm today - and we’ll then pick the names at random. Good luck! 🤞
And for dessert...
🤔 We’d love to know what you think about our bank holiday edition and whether you’d like to see more one-off Cheapskate newsletters like this one. Please share your feedback here:
What did you think of our bank holiday special?
🧡 Help your colleagues, family & friends get the best out of London for free by referring them to Cheapskate using your unique code: {{rp_refer_url}}.
👟 I’m doing a long walk with friends just outside of London this weekend & am excited to try out my new “water-friendly” trainers. I’m also a bit too obsessed with my new cap…
🍜 If you happen to be near Westfield White City on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday in the near future, Japan Centre Ichiba is now selling dishes (including ramen, udon noodles & katsu curry) for just £5 all day.
💪 Want to try ClassPass & get access to hundreds of gyms & classes across London? Here's an exclusive free trial (with a whopping 72 credits to use in a fortnight).
😴 PSA: if you’re looking for new pillowcases for spring, this gorgeous set is currently on sale. These silk ones are discounted too (as is this lovely silk neck pillow filled with dried lavender & flaxseed, which I also have my eyes on!).
💌 I loved writer & producer Amy Jones’ recent Substack newsletter about roast chicken. On the subject of Substack, I also like journalist Rebecca Reid’s funny & candid musings on life. A final rec is Curious Peoples, a bi-weekly five-minute escape into the world of history, science & art (sign up here!). If you’ve got any newsletters to recommend, we’d love to hear about them!
We try to only include accurate information, but sometimes things can change. Everything included in the newsletter is accurate to the best of our knowledge at the time the newsletter is sent out. Sometimes we make money from the links we include (like this one or this one!) but we only recommend things we genuinely like. You can also support Cheapskate by buying us a coffee or making a monthly donation.