New skills, new theatre and a New Year extravaganza
Get 2025 off to a flying start.
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Don’t miss the free London New Year's Day Parade
Make a lively start to 2025 at the free, family-friendly London New Year's Day Parade.
8,000 participants sing and dance their way through the streets of central London: look out for marching bands, cheerleading routines, floats and stunt riders. Singer Peter Andre makes a special appearance this year, performing hits such as Mysterious Girl, and BBC Radio 1 DJs Melvin Odoom and Rickie Haywood-Williams spin tunes from a Tootbus, all contributing to the electric atmosphere.
The parade begins at 12pm, giving you plenty of time to shake off the previous night’s festivities and find a prime position for watching the action. It passes landmarks including Piccadilly Circus, Trafalgar Square and Parliament Square. Even better, the event supports local charities through the London Boroughs’ Competition, raising over £2.5 million to date.
The London New Year's Day Parade takes place from 12pm on Wednesday 1 January, and it's free to attend.
Learn a new skill in 2025
Discover your passion, learn a new skill or try a new hobby, with hundreds of short courses starting at Morley College London this January. Topics include visual arts, music, fashion and textiles, creative writing, London history, dance, photography, and technology, with centres handily located in Waterloo, Chelsea and Ladbroke Grove.
An acclaimed Annie Ernaux adaptation
Five actors paint a portrait of a woman in a rapidly-changing world, in an inventive play spanning more than half a century. This is Eline Arbo’s adaptation of The Years — the celebrated memoir by Nobel Prize-winning writer Annie Ernaux. It comes to the West End in January, following a rave-reviewed run at the Almeida Theatre.
Unleash your inner Babe Ruth
There's a new immersive sports bar in town... and it's big news for baseball fans! Moonshot — by the fine folk who brought us Sixes Social Cricket — has just swung into Westfield London. Grab a baseball bat, take a swing, and shoot for the moon (or a home run), in between enjoying US-inspired refreshments.
Dive into Dickensland
For over 150 years, people have sought out the London locations associated with Charles Dickens. Now, Lee Jackson’s book traces the fascinating history of this literary tourism, exploring the real Victorian London and a fictional city shaped by generations of tourists, fans, and heritage entrepreneurs.
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