October in London 2018

Giovanni Bellini and Andrea Mantegna, two of the greatest artists of the Italian Renaissance, who were also related by marriage, are presented side by side at the National Gallery. Through major works of art - paintings, drawings and particularly sculpture, which greatly influenced both - the exhibition compares the work of the two artists. The display centres on their depictions of 'The Agony in the Garden'; Mantegna and Bellini's works have hung side by side in the National Gallery since the late 19th century. From further afield are their paintings of 'The Presentation at the Temple'. Mantegna's version comes from the Gemäldegalerie, Berlin and Bellini's from the Fondazione Querini Stampalia in Venice.

Inviting London's cocktail lovers to join in on a big, week-long party, London Cocktail Week is back for 2018 with over 300 bars across town serving a £6 cocktail for anyone wearing a special wristband. You can get a Citrus Blast at Benares, a black cherry negroni at aqua shard and kombucha cocktails are served at Boki in Seven Dials, all for £6 a pop. Go along to the Bulleit bourbon street party in London Bridge, try out Belsazar tastings at Little Bat or sign up for the ultimate Johnnie Walker Scotch blending dinner. Broken Shaker is coming from the US and bringing their award winning cocktails to Madison Rooftop Bar in St Paul's, Schweppes is launching a London Eye Flavour Adventure, taking over the bar at County Hall and the extending the time travelling experience to the London Eye itself. At the heart of the festival is the cocktail village, turning three spaces at the Old Truman Brewery - Back Yard Market, Brick Lane Yard and The Boiler House - into a collection of pop-up cocktail bars, experiences and food vendors with bartenders serving £6 signature cocktails and food pairings.

All-encompassing food affair the London Restaurant Festival returns for its 10th anniversary in 2018, bringing a month-long, mouthwatering array of foodie events to the capital. The annual event takes place during October and incorporates a line-up of the world's top chefs and over 400 restaurants around London. This year's event is centred around the international nature of London's restaurant industry with a focus on ten chosen cuisines that have contributed to making London the culinary capital of the world. Each of the cuisines will be represented by one of the world's best chefs, including Bill Granger, who will fly in from Australia for the occasion; Michelin-starred husband and wife Dylan Jones and Duangporn 'Bo' Songvisava from Bo.Lan in Bangkok, who will team up with som saa; and one of the world's most decorated female chefs Anne-Sophie Pic who holds seven Michelin-stars and will be hosting a dinner at La Dame De Pic. This year's event will also feature chef-hosted events for the first time along with a series of Ultimate Gastronomic Weekends and several other brand new events.

This Halloween, The London Dungeon is hosting Screamfest, its scariest event in 40 years. Billed as the ultimate Halloween event, it will boast the most stories, scares and special effects and see an extra splattering of horror added to the classic shows, including Jack The Ripper, The Great Fire of London and Sweeney Todd. Visitors will be able to take on London's only underground water ride, dodge the grasp of an escaped convict from Newgate Prison and brave an exhilarating vertical free fall drop ride. Additionally, the spine-tingling Seance returns, during which guests will sit around a Ouija board and summon the spirits.

Fast-paced musical comedy sketches and hip hop improvisations from Irish hip-hop musical comedian, Rob Broderick, who seamlessly weaves audience suggestions into his verbal licks. Arriving in London as part of a nationwide tour with his biggest show to date, Abandoman delivers his trademark blend of audience interaction and razor-sharp improvisation. Using a sample-pad necklace he freestyles over high production beats and hooks, Rob creates the kind of vocal effects more associated with Kanye and Drake.

A spin-off of its longer established Parisian sister, the PAD London Art & Design Fair returns to Mayfair in 2018 to bring together exceptional works of modern art, design, decorative arts, photography, jewellery and tribal art. Sixty eight prominent international galleries come together for the occasion, making it a fantastic place to discover museum quality pieces. Expect to find wall-lights by Lalique, 20th century art and collectible jewellery from French designer Lorenz Baumer, former artistic director for high jewellery at Louis Vuitton. The fair, which takes place at the same time as Frieze and Frieze Masters, helps to attract the world's most influential art buyers to London each October.

The London Eye capsules become time travelling pods as the big wheel puts on a special VIP experience as part of London Cocktail Week. The three-part experience starts at the County Hall where you can sample the Schweppes 1783 range and learn about flavour pairings. Then you'll become a 'flavour explorer' and board the London Eye, travelling back in time to see the city from the eyes of the creator of the popular mixers, Jacob Schweppe. During a 30-minute rotation you can sample bespoke cocktails and personalise your own tipple to taste. Finally, you can visit the Schweppes 1783 bar at London Cocktail Week Village, in East London - the ticket gets you free entry.

Cuban artist Tania Bruguera has been chosen as the next artist to create a site specific art work for Tate's whopping Turbine Hall for the high profile Hyundai Commission. Best known for her politically-engaged projects, she previously brought two mounted police officers into the Turbine Hall using them to provoke debate around crowd control. More recently, Bruguera was at Tate Modern in 2012 with her ongoing project, Immigrant Movement International, when visitors had to pass a lie detector test based on UK immigration questions.

Following his retirement from classical ballet in 2016, Cuban dancer Carlos Acosta returns to celebrate 30 years as a professional dancer, performing a mixed bill at the Royal Albert Hall from 2nd to 5th October 2018. During three decades he has danced with some of the world's most exciting companies (the Bolshoi in Moscow, Ballet Nacional de Cuba, English National Ballet and The Royal Ballet). The programme includes the UK premieres of Christopher Bruce's Rooster including songs recorded by The Rolling Stones and Alrededor no hay nada by Goyo Montero, together with Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui's critically acclaimed Mermaid, and a reworked version of Acosta's Carmen.

The world premiere of David Hare's new play I'm Not Running stars a strong cast which includes Doctor Foster actress Sian Brooke, Alex Hassell and Joshua McGuire. The lead actress will be familiar to most from her TV role in Doctor Foster - a part written especially for her by playwright Mike Bartlett - as well as her appearance in Sherlock in which she played the famous detective's younger sister, Eurus Holmes. In this National Theatre production she takes on the role of Pauline Gibson who has spent her life as a doctor, the inspiring leader of a local health campaign. When she crosses paths with her old boyfriend, Jack Gould, a stalwart loyalist in Labour Party politics, she's faced with an agonising decision. It's billed as "the history of a twenty year intimate friendship and its public repercussions".

Jonathan Pryce and Dame Eileen Atkins share the stage for the first time as the lovebirds in emotional turmoil in The Height of the Storm. Written by Florian Zeller, the Olivier Award winning writer of The Father, the intimate drama is about the fragility of life, told through the eyes of Andre and Madeleine, who have been in love for 50 years but something feels amiss in their relationship on the weekend that their daughter decides to visit. Jonathan Kent, who brought Gypsy, and Long Day's Journey into Night to the stage, directs this world premiere.

London's best known contemporary art fair, Frieze returns to Regent's Park for its 16th edition with over 160 of the most highly respected contemporary art galleries in the world brought together. The most accessible part, the free-to-view Sculpture Park found in the English Gardens of Regent's Park, displays 25 works by leading 20th-century artists. Performance art, talks, specially commissioned art works and curated exhibitions are all part of the fair, most of which is packed into a vast temporary structure in the park with work by around 1,000 contemporary artists crammed in. A combined ticket gets you into sister fair, Frieze Masters, a showcase of Old Masters and art up to the 20th century. The two fairs form the heart of Frieze Week, when galleries and museums across London put onspecial exhibitions and there's a glut of art fairs including Moniker, The Other Art Fair and PAD London.

This October, Somerset House hosts a major UK solo exhibition by British artist Hannah Perry. Titled Gush, the new exhibition explores mental and emotional health, showcasing a diverse body of new work. Visitors will see everything from large-scale dynamic sculptures to immersive sound and film pieces. Central to the exhibition is an immersive film created using a custom rigged 360-degree camera built by Perry. The film surrounds viewers with the contorted, continuously shifted movement of bodies and immerses them with a narration of fragmented spoken word that ebbs and flows with the images.

A playful, psychedelic entrance installation by artist and illustrator Hattie Stewart welcomes visitors to The Other Art Fair which takes over two central London locations during Frieze Week, the busiest week in the UK's art calendar. The fair - which is owned by online gallery Saatchi Art - returns to Bloomsbury's historic Victoria House and presents a new programme at The College at Old Central St Martins across the road on Southampton Row. All artists have been chosen by a committee of experts making it "worth visiting to truffle out emerging painters" (Financial Times). Femme Fatale Tattoo Studio create a pop-up hand poke tattoo studio, Farmstand host a pop up restaurant and Soho Radio curates the music. With more than one thousand pieces starting at £50 as well as many arty events such as curated walks and live music, this is a completely unstuffy art experience.

One of the three big London art fairs in the capital during Frieze Week in October, Moniker Art Fair shows the international scope of street art and beyond. For its 10th edition Moniker takes up residence in the Old Truman Brewery, a 30,000 square foot space which makes it the largest contemporary art fair with its roots in urban culture. There's room for 40 gallery stands from the likes of Stolen Space, RISE and Jealous Gallery here in the UK as well as international galleries like Thinkspace Gallery from California, Station16 Gallery from Montreal and Gallery Itinerrance from France. While Frieze showcases established names, Moniker champions emerging talent.

Architects Rogers Stirk Harbour Partners have created a clinic especially commissioned for Wellcome Collection's major autumn exhibition, Living with Buildings. Taking over two galleries, this multi-storey exhibition will explore the pivotal role of design and urban planning in human health. On the first floor, visitors will be able to see the 'live build' of the mobile clinic, developed for and with Doctors of the World. The ground floor display features more than 100 objects, including the work of artists and photographers like Giles Round, Andreas Gursky and Rachel Whiteread, revealing how the structures that surround us contribute to our mental and physical health.

Discover over 150 designer-makers at Handmade at Kew and shop for gifts, textiles, jewellery, ceramics, glass and furniture among other things. The craft fair runs for four days and on two of those, Thursday and Friday, there are talks and panel discussions from experts in the craft industry, on subjects like craft in conflict and the future of craft. Makers will be on hand throughout the weekend to talk about the ideas and processes that shape their work, and you can even commission work directly from them.

Renowned for hosting immersive and innovative talks in secret locations across London, New York and Berlin, Lost Lectures are back with their latest project, The Electrograph. Launching in London this October, the event aims to bring one's imagination to life through a series of inspiring talks and events from world-class speakers and performers in a disused power plant. Each evening will present a line-up of four different speakers along with musical performances across an eclectic range of topics. The line-up includes London's foremost Grime photographer Vicky Grout, BBC Economics Editor Kamal Ahmed, experimental psychologist and podcast Dr Suzi Gage, and museum curator Tom Hockenhull. With wall to floor projections, responsive set design and electronic theming, the evenings will be an immersive experience sure to inspired the podcast generation.

The Cake and Bake Show has all the ingredients needed for a delicious day out. With new celebrity chefs and baking shows constantly bursting onto the scene, and the phenomenal success of The Great British Bake Off, baking has become more popular than ever. Bringing The Great British Bake Off television series to life, the tent becomes a stage at the Excel Centre where some of the stars from the current GBBO series as well as former champions give demos. The day will also offer an array of tempting and tasty features as well as star speakers. You can also enter the cake competition, showcase your skills and put your cake creation in front of a high profile panel of judges as well as thousands of visitors.

Two of Shakespeare's most famous stories are uniquely told from the point of view of the female characters in o t h e l l o m a c b e t h at Lyric Hammersmith. These two iconic plays are merged together as the wronged women of Othello take their revenge on Macbeth. Strong themes of toxic masculinity, cycles of violence and abuses of power are examined in the play where "a familiar text is visibly refreshed by being seen from a feminist angle" (The Guardian). The talented creative team includes director Jude Christian (co-director of My Mum's a Twat at the Royal Court) and set designer Basia Binkowska, who won the 2017 Linbury Prize.

After the success of the Social Bingo Academy and Underground Bingo Academy, the same pioneering bingo team are back for winter, taking over The Kitty Hawk on a select number of dates. Running on select Fridays and Saturday from 6th October until 15th December, it's part of a bingo revolution that aims to bring the game to a whole new wave of younger, vibrant players who may have previously been scared and intimidated by halls full of master players. The academy will teach these would-be bingo enthusiasts the ropes, from dabbing numbers to new-age bingo lingo. The bingo fun will be served up with a menu specially curated by The Kitty Hawk's chef with dishes including Kellogg's fried chicken, crackling with sour apple and kimchi, and sauerkraut and Montgomery cheddar nuggets.

This autumn, the Science Museum hosts blockbuster exhibition The Sun: Living With Our Star. The biggest ever exhibition to be staged about the Sun, it explores humanity's ever-changing relationship with our nearest star, looking into its power, beauty and dark side though a series of spectacular interactive experiences, unique artefacts and striking imagery. Items on display include beautiful early Nordic Bronze Age artefacts, which reveal ancient beliefs of how the Sun was transported across the sky; details of upcoming NASA and ESA solar missions; and an astronomical spectroscope made for Norman Lockyer, who used it to identify the element helium in 1868.

Emma Rice launches her new theatre company by directing and adapting Angela Carter's evocative final novel, Wise Children, which charts the trials and tribulations of septuagenarian chorus girls Nora and Dora Chance. Rice's first new play since departing from Shakespeare's Globe, Carter's "love letter to the theatre" (as Emma Rice describes it, speaking to The Guardian) is staged at the Old Vic this autumn.

Revered children's author Hans Christian Andersen, played by Jim Broadbent, harbours a dark secret in the attic of his Copenhagen townhouse. A Very Very Very Dark Matter at the Bridge Theatre reveals the secret which he has kept hidden from millions of his adoring readers in Martin McDonagh's new play, a dark and twisted comedy drama which will, no doubt, draw comparisons to his National Theatre and Broadway hit The Pillowman. Directed by Matthew Dunster who previously brought McDonagh's Hangmen to the stage at the Royal Court. NOTE: Contains strong language, sexual references, violence and scenes people may find disturbing.

London rolls out the red carpet for the BFI London Film Festival in October, with a wealth of A-list stars stepping out for premieres of their films. For its 62nd edition, the festival opens with Steve McQueen's female-fuelled heist thriller, Widows. See screenings of costume drama Colette starring Keira Knightley and Dominic West, The Favourite featuring Olivia Colman, Emma Stone and Rachel Weisz, and Peter Jackson's new film, They Shall Not Grow Old, made using restored and colourised from footage shot during the First World War. As well as the red carpet glamour and opening gala razzmatazz there are events for everyone at the festival, from informal post-screening Q&As to films for families and from guest appearances to workshops and masterclasses. As well as over 350 film screenings, a temporary 806-seat cinema is set up in Embankment Garden, one of two venues for the closing night gala - a special screening of Stan & Ollie starring Steve Coogan and John C Reilly.

An exploration of how relationships can become a playground for activity, Modern Couples puts the work of over 40 artist couples on display at the Barbican. Legendary duos like Frida Kahlo and Diego Rivera, Dora Maar and Pablo Picasso and Camille Claudel and Auguste Rodin are shown side by side to reveal the transformative impact these artists had on each other. Love letters, personal photographs, gifts and rare material feature. "Ultimately it is an exhibition about modern art and modern love," - Jane Alison, Head of Visual Arts at the Barbican.

In 2018, Tate Modern presents this century's first major UK museum exhibition of the work of Anni Albers. One of the world's leading textile artists and a significant figure at the Bauhaus, Albers was influential but also under appreciated, making this full-scale retrospective a good opportunity to showcase her contribution to modern art and design. Like other women at Bauhaus, Albers was barred from becoming a painter so instead focused on textiles as her means of expression, rising to prominence with her exploration of the technical limits of hand-weaving. A pioneer in the field, she found used innovative processes to create art from woven fabric. This full-scale retrospective brings together the most important examples of her work, from small-scale creations to wall hangings.

Offering a rare opportunity to visit Kew Garden's Temperate House after dark, Temperate Tipples invites you to taste drinks from around the world in the beautiful Grade I listed glasshouse. With over 12 wines and six beers to sample - all from temperate regions - there's sure to be something to tickle your taste buds. Will it be white wine from New Zealand, rose from Argentina or beer from Japan? Over half of the wines are also vegan friendly. Knowledgeable Kew experts will be available to chat about the venue's work and projects and visitors will be able to learn about the growing process behind each of the tipples.

The Royal Parks Half Marathon sees 16,000 runners passing through four of central London's best loved parks, an iconic stretch of the Thames and some of the capital's most famous landmarks. What's more, at 13.1 miles, it's a manageable run for those still daunted by the colossal feat of a full marathon. Starting and finishing in a wonderfully autumnal Hyde Park, runners pass Buckingham Palace, St James's Park and the Houses of Parliament before following the river to Blackfriars Bridge and back. The next leg takes them under both Admiralty and Wellington Arch, through Green Park, all around Hyde Park and Kensington Gardens (through avenues of beautiful autumnal trees) before passing the Royal Albert Hall and across the finish line. As much fun for spectators as the runners themselves.

London embraces the nationwide Chocolate Week this October with a number of sugary sweet events across the city that celebrate the most talented chocolatiers. The Canopy Market gets taken over by Cocoa Runners (featuring over 20 chocolate makers from around the world), the Sanderson hotel has a chocolate sculpture in the lobby and a special chocolate themed menu in the restaurant - partnering with chocolatier William Curley - and Paul A Young and Adam Handling have collaborated to create an exclusive five course tasting menu, priced at £70 per person, at his restaurant, Frog by Adam Handling in Covent Garden.

This winter, the historic Sutton House plays host to Tea Break Theatre's Frankenstein. The thrilling, immersive production is a feminist interpretation of Mary Shelley's classic novel, encouraging audiences to reflect on female identity and the role of women in society. In this modern version, Victor brings a female creature to life: the ideal woman who fails to live up to his expectations. Audiences will leave pondering the ultimate question: who is the real monster? It's the perfect production for Halloween.

Brits Critics Choice award winner Jorja Smith ends her biggest tour to date with a one-night-only gig at O2 Brixton Academy. Her star is certainly on the rise with a sold-out UK tour and new single 'Let Me Down' earning the young vocalist glowing reviews across the board. Jorja has supported mega-star Bruno Mars, she's collaborated with Drake and in 2018 she's also appearing as part of Somerset House Summer Series. Since releasing 'Blue Lights' - "a fantastically introspective and clever piece of songwriting" (NME) - Jorja has released the classically inspired 'A Prince' which featured the vocal talents of Maverick Sabre and then the soulful Cadenza produced 'Where Did I Go?' which Drake proclaimed was his favourite track of the moment in an interview with Entertainment Weekly.

Five days of artistic, scientific and literary events, immersive exhibitions and performances in unusual locations, the Bloomsbury Festival brings more than 200 events, most of them free, to the literary district of London. On Friday 19th October Roll Up Store Street presents a free outdoor street party with a circus theme. Sunday Funday brings a day of fun for families to Brunswick Square. A Suffragette Scavenger Hunt is just one of six events celebrating Bloomsbury women at this year's festival which takes on the theme of Activists and Architects of Change. There are bold new theatre and dance pieces at Bloomsbury Theatre from new talent coming out of RADA and Central St Martins. You can get a tour of The Principal, Bloomsbury's famous landmark hotel, fresh from its recent refurbishment; its ballroom provides the location for the festival's grand finale concert. It all takes place at venues across Bloomsbury, from major institutions like the British Museum, University College London and the Wellcome Collection to quirky spaces and family favourites like Coram's Fields.

A diverse line-up of artists display an array of affordable contemporary art in Battersea Park for the Affordable Art Fair, which has become a well-loved institution on London's art scene. It's an event that strips away the pretension of the art world and gives buyers a chance to pick up some really great work at fair prices, ranging from £100 to £6,000. This year you can take part in a self-portrait masterclass inspired by the blockbuster Frida Kahlo exhibition at the Thursday Late View, discover upcycling techniques and explore the trend for terrariums. Central St Martins Short Courses will be offering still life workshops and Turner Prize winner Richard Deacon CBE showcases limited editions of his abstract works. A fun, family day out, the art fair is accessible to connoisseurs and the merely curious.

Discuss and digest the written word with Salman Rushdie, Akala, Mary Beard, Carol Ann Duffy, Sue Perkins, Melvyn Bragg and Olafur Eliasson at this year's London Literature Festival. Marilynne Robinson is 'in conversation' at the 2018 festival where you can enjoy an evening with Roger Daltrey for the exclusive London launch of his new memoir Thanks a lot, Mr Kibblewhite: My Life. Held over eleven days across Southbank Centre's 17-acre site, the festival features a packed programme of exclusive appearances, live readings, newly commissioned performances, talks, debates, poetry, visual displays, workshops, award ceremonies, book launches, free activities and family events. Coinciding with half term week, the festival includes Pram Jam: Words and Rhymes, daily Bedtime Stories and Rise and Rhyme in the mornings.

Written by 35-year-old American writer, Lauren Gunderson, "the most popular playwright in America today" (The Guardian, quoting American Theatre magazine), I and You is a "perky two-character study in adolescent confusions and cosmic mysteries" (New York Times). Game of Thrones star Maisie Williams plays Caroline, a girl who's housebound because of illness. Confined to her room, she has only Instagram and Facebook for company... until classmate Anthony bursts in. An unlikely friendship develops and a seemingly mundane piece of homework starts to reveal the pair's hopes and dreams - as well as a deep and mysterious bond that connects them even further.

A mother holding her baby, a child from a remote village in the jungle in Sierra Leone, a series on the all-female teams of majorettes in South Africa and a double portrait of a pair of shoppers in London are the four photographs shortlisted for this year's Taylor Wessing Photographic Portrait Prize. Open to professionals, emerging artists and amateurs alike, the major international photography award - worth 15,000 pounds to the winner - goes on display at the National Portrait Gallery and is a highlight of the autumn arts calendar each year. The prize consistently attracts a high level of expertise yet the 'open to all' caveat means there's always an element of surprise. The In Focus display at this year's exhibition shows previously unseen prints from a new body of work by Japanese photographer Rinko Kawauchi.

Adrian Lester, Jason Manford and Clive Rowe - reprising his Olivier Award-winning role - star in a semi-staged version of the classic musical comedy, Guys and Dolls, staged for just three performances this October at the Royal Albert Hall. Directed and choreographed by Stephen Mear, it also features Joe Stilgoe, Meow Meow and the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. This New York tale of gamblers, gangsters, nightclub singers and one missionary features some of Broadway's greatest show-stoppers, including Luck Be a Lady, Sit Down, You're Rockin' the Boat and My Time of Day. With such a strong cast this feel-good show is sure to be a sell-out success.

RumFest, the UK's largest celebration of rum, returns for its 12th year in 2018. Taking place at ILEC Conference Centre in Earls Court, the festival is a celebration of rum and its growing popularity. There will be more than 400 rums to sample, savour and purchase, including access to ultra-premium and rare rums. There will also be the opportunity to take part in seminars and master classes conducted by industry experts including Ian Burrell, RumFest founder, who'll be leading a tasting on both days, showcasing five rare and expensive rums with a combined retail value of £1,500. This year for the first time London Rum Week, a week-long celebration of rum, takes place at bars all over the capital the week before RumFest,from 15th until 21st October.

A celebration of the autumnal fruit, Borough Market hosts a day of activities in honour of the apple. An annual tradition, Borough Market's Apple Day celebrates the 2,500 varieties of apples. Local historical theatre group the Lion's Part will present a series of music, songs and performance while October Plenty will see the Berry Man, the Autumn incarnation of the original Green Man, who will be decked with wild fruits and foliage and carry an apple tree, lead a procession from Shakespeare's Globe Theatre to Borough Market. The procession also features a huge Corn Queene effigy heavy with 'Plenty' that will be dismantled and thrown into the crowd at Borough Market. The Apple Day also includes a number of traditional games, talks about endangered apple varieties and Morris dancing. Chef Kathy Slack will provide the food, cooking up a range of apple and harvest themed dishes while the market's traders will present apple focused goods like apple biscuits, apple cake and cider.

Telling the story of soul legend Etta James, Vika Bull stars in this narrative concert about the blues singer and her turbulent life. Since its world premiere in Melbourne in 2013 At Last - The Etta James Story has packed out theatres in Australia and New Zealand, including three seasons at The Sydney Opera House. Having wowed British audiences in 2017, Vika and the Essential R&B Band start a 23 date visit, with two finale shows at London's Cadogan Hall on Monday 22nd and Tuesday 23rd October 2018. The show features some of her best loved songs including Tell Mama, Something's Got A Hold On Me and her signature song At Last.

Bono, The Edge, Adam Clayton and Larry Mullen Jr are back on the road with their eXPERIENCE & iNNOCENCE Tour, which comes to The O2 on Tuesday 23rd October 2018. The Irish quartet are so huge there will never be an end to their commercial success and there's no debating that U2 put on a tremendous live show. A sequel to the 2015 tour which saw "U2 reinvent the arena show" (Rolling Stone), this new arena production is staged in the round and features multiple performance areas. If you saw 'U2 at the BBC' with Cat Deeley, when the band performed an intimate gig at Abbey Road Studios, you'll want to see this.

Tate Britain presents London's first comprehensive retrospective of Edward Burne-Jones in 40 years, showcasing 150 of his works in a wide range of media. The last, and arguably the most romantic, of the Pre-Raphaelites, Burne-Jones was one of the art world's leading figures of the European fin de siecle and a pioneer of the symbolist movement. Offering a parallel universe based on myth, legend and the Bible, he disengaged from the modern world and often challenged society. Through a display of paintings, stained glass and tapestry, this exhibition will show how he worked with a wide range of materials to pioneer a radical new approach to narrative in his works.

Thirteen years after Silent Alarm was released to widespread critical acclaim, Bloc Party will play their seminal debut album live and in full for the first time at handful of special shows across six European capital cities, culminating with one night at Alexandra Palace on Wednesday 24th October. Achieving multi-platinum sales and earning Bloc Party a Mercury Prize nomination, the album has since been heralded as one of the most influential and important of the decade by Pitchfork, Q, Newsweek, Spin, Complex and Clash, and was named it as one of the best albums of all time by NME.

John Fogerty and the Steve Miller Band perform on the opening night of BluesFest which returns to The O2 this October, expanding to four nights for the first time. Grammy-winning Fogerty is set to perform Creedence Clearwater Revival in a greatest hits set at his first UK headline show for 10 years while the Steve Miller Band plays its first UK show since 2012; both will be their only UK shows of the year. The four-night festival takes over all areas of The O2 complex, including the 14,000-capacity Arena and Indigo at The O2, filling the stadium with brilliant blues and legends of rock 'n' roll.

Taking place during the October half term, the Ski & Snowboard Show has something to entice all skiers, from first timers to seasoned pros. Visitors to the show in Battersea Park get the chance to get up close and personal with the stars of the ski and snowboard scene and marvel at their impressive stunts on Mount Battersea - a 50ft real-snow kicker. As well as all the latest gear and winter gadgets to buy, there's an ice skating rink, late night apres ski on the Friday and Saturday, live music, comedy, all sorts of Alpine food - from crepes to tartiflette - as well as screenings of some of the best ski films.

The earliest of London's winter ice rinks to open, the Natural History Museum's annual icing-over of its gardens kicks off from 25th October. The 1,000 square metre rink outside Alfred Waterhouse's imposing building is surrounded by 80,000 glowing pea-lights dangling from the overhanging trees and a sparkling 30 foot Christmas tree. Additional attractions include a smaller 100-square-metre rink for youngsters and a stylish balcony cafe/bar when you can warm your hands and insides on hot chocolate. Big-foots amongst you will be pleased to know that skates go up to adult size 15, while penguin skate aids are available for £5 on a first come first served basis.

Lee Evans comes out of retirement to perform in the third instalment of The Jamie Lloyd Company's Pinter at The Pinter season, presenting a series of Harold Pinter's short plays. Evans will perform the poignantly witty Monologue where a man sits alone addressing an absent friend. He appears in a mixed bill alongside stage and screen favourite Meera Syal in the hilarious sketch Apart From That. The programme also includes a moving double-bill of meditations on loneliness and isolation starring Keith Allen, Tamsin Greig and - at select performances - Dame Penelope Wilton performing the witty monologue Tess, written for her by Pinter.

Showing the enduring power of Peanuts, 70 years since Charlie Brown was created, original drawings by Charles M Schulz are displayed alongside works inspired by Snoopy, Charlie and the rest of the Peanuts gang. Artists and designers who've paid homage to the comic strip characters include Kim Jones, of Dior Men's, who has loaned his sweatshirts and first edition books, and Ryan Gander who presents a new film and flag to fly over the Somerset House courtyard. The exhibition shows the enduring influence of Schulz's drawings on varied groups including Vietnam War veterans, NASA scientists and satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo, which gets its name from Charlie Brown. Free monthly artist led talks give greater insight into the show while a series of late night events include an 'Unrequited Love' special on Valentine's Day.

For its second production since taking over from the Tricycle, Kiln Theatre presents the world premiere of Stephen Sharkey's stage adaptation of Zadie Smith's breakthrough novel. This stage version of Zadie Smith's debut work, White Teeth, features a live band and follows the fortunes of two families from Bangladesh and Jamaica plus a plethora of other characters who make up the everyday chaos of Kilburn High Road.

David Threlfall, best known as Frank Gallagher in Channel 4's Shameless, and Rufus Hound reprise their roles as Don Quixote and Sancho Panza in James Fenton's "lovely, music-filled production" (The Guardian) of Cervantes' classic novel which originally premiered at the Royal Shakespeare Company's home in Stratford-upon-Avon in spring 2016. Miguel de Cervantes' novel tells the famous, farcical story of a deluded knight accompanied by his faithful squire. Threlfall is "the almost perfect" knight says Dominic Cavendish reviewing the original production for the Telegraph. The RSC production "does profound, joyous justice" to Cervantes's great work says the Financial Times: five stars.

After a successful outing last year when 25,000 people went to Africa on the Square the free festival returns for a fourth time. Celebrating African culture with performances by African drummers and live music in Trafalgar Square, the festival fills the central London square with an African market, food stalls and lots of activities for kids. In addition there's a packed line-up of entertainment with live music, DJs and dancing.

The Diwali celebrations return to Trafalgar Square in October. The colourful festival of lights, which has religious significance for Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, is celebrated each year with a free concert of contemporary Asian music and dance, with traditional religious music and rites to open and close the show. You can also sample South East Asian vegetarian cuisine, enjoy children's activities, buy colourful trinkets, don a sari and see Lord Ganesh adorned with marigold garlands at this celebration of the victory of light over darkness.

The 'Absolutely Fabulous' actress and comedian, Joanna Lumley, who first came onto our screens as Purdey in the New Avengers in 1976, takes us through her life story which started in London in the swinging '60s. Beginning as Jean Muir's house model and muse, she moved on to proper modelling before her acting career started, landing her roles in Coronation Street, On the Buses, Dracula and as a brainwashed Bond Girl in On Her Majesty's Secret Service. But for a whole generation, she will always be known as Patsy. Before the 30 date tour started Joanna said, "Nothing like this has come my way before, and I may have to be dragged off with a hook at the end of each show... I think it will be fabulous."