Southbank Centre: Your culture fix
Get the inside scoop on Dawn French’s latest book, join the London Philharmonic Orchestra and hear from Arundhati Roy.
What’s on Festivals & series Art & exhibitions
Play it for laughs
We were tickled to learn that the world’s biggest smile was created by dentists in fancy dress. Schedule in your next smile with our latest Inside Out events, full of warmth, comedy and hope for the future.
This week, Dawn French brings her signature humour to the Royal Festival Hall, the London Philharmonic Orchestra finds the fun in their concert 2012: Rapture and Revelry, and Arundhati Roy asks us to imagine a better world.
find out more →Reading room
In Conversation: Dawn French & Bernardine Evaristo
MON 19 – MON 26 OCT
Streaming from the Royal Festival Hall, the number one-bestselling author and comedian Dawn French discusses her new novel, Because of You, in conversation with Booker Prize winner Bernardine Evaristo.
World of good
Arundhati Roy: Azadi
THU 22 – THU 29 OCT
In conversation with journalist Razia Iqbal, the author and activist draws on her new book of essays, Azadi, to reflect on the nature of freedom against a backdrop of growing authoritarianism and consider what it means to be free in a post-pandemic world.
find out more →Back to square fun
2012: Rapture and Revelry
WED 21 – WED 28 OCT
Strauss’ Le bourgeois gentilhomme, based on a French comedy, ends with an ‘omelette surprise’. Intrigued? Get a taste for music with a sense of humour with conductor Sir Mark Elder and the London Philharmonic Orchestra in a free online event.
Among the Trees
UNTIL SAT 31 OCT
A 9,550-year-old spruce tree is the subject of just one of the gobsmacking artworks on display in our exhibition – now in its final weeks – which explores our relationships with trees of all ages.
Mariele Neudecker, And Then the World Changed Colour: Breathing Yellow, 2019, at Among the Trees, Hayward Gallery, 2020. © Mariele Neudecker 2020. Courtesy of Hayward Gallery. Photo Linda Nylind.
Everyday Heroes
UNTIL SUN 1 NOV
Paramedics, shop assistants and bus drivers are just a few of the everyday heroes depicted in our free outdoor exhibition. Take a stroll around our site and admire poetry and portraits celebrating key workers and frontline staff.
Installation view of artworks by Silvia Rosi and Juergen Teller at Everyday Heroes. Copyright the artists. Photo Linda Nylind.
find out more →discover what’s on
Material wealth
Philip Pullman on La Belle Sauvage
It’s Philip Pullman’s birthday on Monday, but we’re not going to sing to him because he finds it difficult to write with music playing in the background. Discover more about the author’s process and his return to the His Dark Materials trilogy in this podcast.
The low-down
Meet the musician: Roderick Williams
Have you ever wondered how it feels to sing alongside an orchestra? Get to know baritone Roderick Williams ahead of his online performance of Handel’s Apollo e Dafne with the Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, available from Thursday 29 October.
read now →Ready to rumble
Recipe: spicy lamb kofta from Arabica
No, it’s not the washing machine halfway through a cycle or your phone vibrating in your pocket, it’s the sound of your tummy rumbling at the thought of Arabica’s spicy lamb kofta. Satisfy your cravings with our recipe.
Enjoy your visit safely
London has been designated a Tier 2 zone. This means that when you’re indoors, you can’t mix with people from different households or from outside your support bubble. You can still come to the Hayward Gallery and our environment is still safe and Covid-secure. However, you must now move through the gallery only with people from your own household or support bubble. As always, maintain social distancing and make sure you wear a face covering at all times in the gallery. There’s plenty of hand sanitiser available to keep your hands clean. We look forward to seeing you soon.
find out more →Make their day
Supporting our independent craft makers
Show some love for local makers by wrapping up in British-made knitwear, sipping from a mug made by a London-based ceramicist or decorating your nest with a conversation-starting sculpture, all crafted with care.
shop now →Support the Southbank Centre
We continue to face challenges and uncertainty as we look to our future. If you feel that you can make a donation, no matter how small, you will be making a huge difference.
Text 70085 with the code SOUTHBANK 20 to donate £20, SOUTHBANK 10 to donate £10 or SOUTHBANK 5 to donate £5. Texts cost your donation amount plus one standard rate message. Thank you.
donate online →Name that tune
Plug in for toe-tapping music
Need a musical break? Try one of our playlists to discover new artists and shake it out with a dance around the room. We’ve got mixtapes hand-picked by Joan As Police Woman, Marius Neset and Susheela Raman, to name a few.
listen now →Lend us an ear
Learn something new with our podcasts
Our podcast series features conversations with great writers, comedians, thinkers and musicians. Consider women on the page with Roxane Gay, spend an evening with Roger Daltrey or mull mental health and creativity with Matt Haig and Jordan Stephens.