The capital’s best free events from Feb 23rd-Mar 1st
Happy Monday, {{ first name | Cheapskater }},
Welcome to the final Cheapskate of the month! It’s very nearly March, which means it’s almost International Women’s Day. To mark IWD 2026, we’d love to hear about the inspiring woman-owned businesses or initiatives making a difference in your community. Please share ideas here; we’ll do a roundup in next week’s newsletter!
On another note, we’re looking for amazing new brands to work with this spring. Over the past few weeks, we’ve partnered with National Art Pass, the cashback app Kaldi, the Southbank Centre and the Actors’ Church, to name just a few. We don’t want to blow our own trumpet toooo much, but almost every brand we’ve worked with has come back to work with us again thanks to our incredibly engaged community of readers (AKA you guys)!
If you’d like to get your event or product in front of more than 65,000 people, get in touch. We’re offering readers a 25% discount across all our advertising options; just quote CHEAPSKATER when you email us.
Have a fantastic week,
Clementine x
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MONDAY
👂 Open your ears
Experience the Barbican Estate like never before with Soundwalks Central, a meditative walking tour that offers participants the chance to focus on the sounds of the city.
🗓️ Mon 23rd Feb, 6.30-7.30pm
📍 Barbican
👀 Last chance to see
There are just a few days left to check out this collab between the Imperial War Museum & the designer store Liberty. Also closing this week: this exhibit of works by David Hockney.
🗓️ Until Weds 25th Feb/Sat 28th Feb
📍 Lambeth North/Bond Street
TUESDAY
🧖🏻♀️ Get the glassy look
Calling all K-Beauty fans! It’s the last day of this pop-up at Boots in Covent Garden, where you can try out Dr.Jart’s new cryo mask, see skincare demos & win silly amounts of prizes.
🗓️ Until Tues 24th Feb, 10am-7pm
📍 Covent Garden
🎥 Untold stories
Goldsmiths is continuing its ‘migration on film’ series with a free screening of Largo, a tale of a young Syrian refugee living in foster care, starring national treasure Tamsin Greig.
🗓️ Tues 24th Feb, 6-8pm
📍 New Cross
📚 Competition time!
Trying to read more, but struggling to find the time? Listening to audiobooks with BookBeat might be the answer.
We’re offering one lucky Cheapskate reader the chance to win one year of BookBeat membership (worth over £150) – which means access to one million audiobooks!
To be in with a chance of winning, get someone you know to subscribe to Cheapskate by sending them this link (it contains your personalised referral code): https://cheapskate-london.beehiiv.com/subscribe?ref=PLACEHOLDER_CODE. Once they’ve signed up, you’ll be entered into a draw, & we’ll pick the winner at random.
FYI, click here to get a free 60-day free trial of BookBeat, exclusively for our readers 😍
WEDNESDAY
🎙️ Speak your truth
Head to the Mason & Fifth hotel in Westbourne Park for this spoken word & poetry performance – if you’re feeling brave, you can always throw your name in the hat to perform.
🗓️ Weds 25th Feb, 7-10pm
📍 Westbourne Park
🎭 A trolley problem
Teatrolley is a fascinating, true story from queer history first performed on Hampstead Heath in 1981. See an unrehearsed reading of the play at Canada Water Theatre.
🗓️ Weds 25th Feb, 6-8pm
📍 Canada Water
THURSDAY
🏺 ‘Critics & crockery’
This lecture at the British Museum explores the 18th-century practice of ‘vase hunting’ in southern Italy, & what it can tell us about the power of the British Empire.
🗓️ Thurs 26th Feb, 6-7.15pm
📍 Holborn
😈 Devil on my shoulder
Book quickly for this free screening of Love is the Devil, a film inspired by the life of the artist Francis Bacon & starring Derek Jacobi, at the University of Westminster.
🗓️ Thurs 26th Feb, 5.30-8.30pm
📍 Oxford Circus
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FRIDAY
🎎 ‘To Ebb is To Flow’
The V&A’s latest Friday Late is all about artists from East & Southeast Asia, & includes DJs, zine making & a sound installation inspired by Chinese spiritual traditions.
🗓️ Fri 27th Feb, 6.30-10pm
📍 South Kensington
🤘 Punk pride
Fri marks the first day of Slits are Girls, a new sculpture commission inspired by the punk heritage of both west London & South Africa, at The Showroom in Marylebone.
🗓️ Fri 27th Feb-Sun 7th June
📍 Edgware Road
SAT - SUN
🏰 Step back in time
Explore the fascinating history of Highgate at Lauderdale House’s Heritage Weekend, which boasts a packed schedule of history-themed talks & activities.
🗓️ Sat 28th Feb-Sun 1st Mar
📍 Archway
💡 ‘Light Up Kilburn’
Make your wintry evenings that bit brighter with this lights festival in Kilburn Grange Park, which is inspired by local biodiversity & issues pertaining to women in the area.
🗓️ Fri 27th & Sat 28th Feb, 5-9pm
📍 Brondesbury
🎨 See art for less
Europe’s largest artist & designer fair returns to Chelsea Town Hall this weekend. Plus, south of the river, the Black Culture Market is back at Brixton’s Department Store.
🗓️ Sat 28th Feb-Sun 1st Mar
📍 Sloane Square/Brixton
❤️ L is for the way…
About Love is an exhibit that’s, well, about love. The works on display at CasildART Contemporary explore the ‘L word’ as an energy that shapes the world around us.
🗓️ Until Sun 1st Mar, various times
📍 Marble Arch
LOOKING AHEAD
🎭 Ever wished the actors at the theatre were performing just for you? Well, your dreams may come true at this ‘part confessional, part peep show’ at the Barbican Centre.
🤓 The Science Museum’s next Late is all about Star Trek, with objects from the franchise’s archives, plus DJs, speakers & performers inspired by the beloved series.
🍉 THE Harry Styles will be curating this year’s Meltdown Festival at the Southbank Centre. Lineup TBA.
🎞️ In early March, the 25th anniversary of Amélie is being celebrated with more than 100 free cinema screenings across the UK. Book here.
And for dessert...
🍼 Nooshee is a start-up creating the world’s first breast pump you can use while you snooze (yes, really!) – & they’re looking for mums to try it overnight. Want to help shape the future of pumping? Sign up here to take part in their user trial (where participants receive a goodie bag & a voucher of their choice!).
🏳️🌈 Celebrate the final day of LGBT+ History Month this Sat with Queer Frequencies: Shifting Shapes Live, a free evening of spontaneous collaboration which pairs improvising dancers with live musicians, & gives the audience the opportunity to watch, listen, dance or even draw!
😎 It’s still buy one, get one free on all glasses at Meller, including this slick maroon number – perfect for manifesting the summer months. - Clementine
🧑🏻🍳 Looking to hop on the air fryer trend? These bad boys on Amazon are under £50 (!) – let us know what you end up making with them! Plus, if you buy anything at all on Amazon, make sure to use our affiliate link here 🧡
🏙️ I had a big treat the other week – I was invited to try the set lunch menu at Oblix, the restaurant on the 32nd floor of The Shard. For £39 you can enjoy a three-course meal (with sirloin steak & spicy vodka rigatoni on the menu) while overlooking the most jaw-dropping view in the country… or possibly the world! I highly recommend as a special treat or with visitors new to London. - Kate
💌 Valentine’s Day may be over, but there’s still a chance to celebrate love at this poetry workshop in Hackney Wick that’s run by a lovely Cheapskate reader. Tickets start from £5!
☪️ Ramadan is well underway, & at the London Designer Outlet in Wembley, fasting visitors can receive complimentary dates at the shopping centre’s Guest Services, as well as free iftar platters at Big Moe’s. Find out more here.
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