Indoors
Indoor things to do in London: 36 events this week (27 Jul to 2 Aug)
Indoor things to do in London, all in person. Exhibitions, theatre, comedy, talks and art across the city, with the date and venue on every listing.
Get the app
The Importance of Being Oscar
Hit Machine
The Fools That Are Left
The Oresteia
Tender
The Guilty
Relaxed Mornings in the Magic Garden
Design Camp for ages 11 to 14: Create a Shoe Prototype
Future Observatory: Tools for Transition
Life’s a Fairy Tale
Clare Woods: Garden Without Seasons
Age UK Richmond Rainbow Cafe
Youth Arts Crafting Change
London Sewing Machine Museum – monthly open day
Day Funk DJs
Tomorrow's Warriors: Extraordinary Summer Showcase
Scrum Presents Acting + Q&A with Sophie Fiennes, Declan Donellan & Nick Ormerod
PalesTEENian
We Had Fun
Workshop: porcelain paper clay with Victoria Burgher at Nunnery Gallery
Film Screening: South by South – Ja’Tovia Gary
Pub Quiz
Heritage Craft and Mudlarking Festival | Meet the Mudlarks
There Are No Honest Poems About Dead Women: Jemma Desai
Exhibition Talk – Lucinda Dickens Hawksley on Anny Thackeray
Christie’s Lates
Chardchakaj Waikawee: Youth
But, Still Exhibition at St Margaret's House
Plein Air Art Workshop: Love Parks Week
Celebrate Pride Month with us at Pride & Pages, our welcoming LGBTQ+ book group!
TAKING UP SPACE
Through Our Eyes
'Richmond’s Rebel Women Free Trails for Families'
Exhibition on Screen: Cezanne - Portraits of a Life
Second-hand Bookshop
Nosferatu (1922) with live score at Wilton's
When the weather turns, London moves inside, and the city has more rooms worth being in than almost anywhere. Galleries and museums, theatres and studio spaces, comedy clubs and lecture halls all keep their doors open whatever the sky is doing. An afternoon indoors here can be as full as any spent outside.
This guide leans on the categories that tend to happen under a roof: exhibitions, theatre, comedy, talks, and art. It is a grouping by category rather than a promise about the venue, so use it as a guide to indoor-leaning events rather than a guarantee of shelter from the rain.
Every listing below is something you attend in person, with its date and venue shown. The page draws fresh dates from each of those categories, so there is usually a mix of the quiet and the lively to choose from.
Venues to know
- Riverside Studios 3 events this week
- Design Museum 2 events this week
- Southwark Presents 2 events this week
- Hampton Court Palace 1 event this week
- British Library 1 event this week
- Pitzhanger Manor & Gallery 1 event this week
How we pick
OnlyHere tracks live listings from over a hundred London venues, councils, and programmers, refreshed nightly. Picks favour events with confirmed dates, real venues you can find on a map, and editorial notes written by us, not the promoter. Prices and dates come from the listing itself; we never guess.
Frequently asked questions
What to do in London when it rains?
Plenty. Museums are the obvious answer, but the city also runs a steady stream of comedy nights, live music, craft workshops, and film screenings on any given day. South Bank and the West End are easiest to navigate on foot between venues. This page updates daily with what's actually on.
What to do on a rainy day in London?
Pick a neighbourhood and go deep rather than rushing across the city. Shoreditch has a dense run of galleries and intimate gig venues. Covent Garden and the South Bank keep you covered literally and figuratively. Markets, escape rooms, and afternoon jazz sets all hold up well when the weather turns.
What are good indoor activities in London for adults?
Beyond the big institutions, London has a strong circuit of cocktail masterclasses, life drawing sessions, pottery evenings, and seated live music. Prices vary a lot: free entry at most national museums, ticketed workshops typically in the mid-range. Evenings in Peckham, Hackney, and Soho tend to have the most independent options.
What can you do in London on a Sunday?
Sundays skew towards later starts and longer afternoons. Brunch-into-exhibition is a reliable format. Jazz sessions run through the afternoon in a number of South London pubs. Some theatres and comedy clubs programme Sunday matinees that sell out less quickly than weekend evenings, so they're worth looking at.
What indoor things can you do in London that are free or cheap?
The national museums charge nothing for permanent collections, which covers a serious amount of ground. Beyond that, free comedy preview nights run most weeks, several galleries have pay-what-you-can entry, and a number of music venues are free before a certain hour. Weekday afternoons are generally quieter and sometimes cheaper.
How many indoor things to do in london are listed right now?
There are 36 events listed on this page right now. It updates daily.