Black History Month runs throughout October at venues across the city (Sep 1-30)

Time to celebrate London's 'Magnificent Seven' cemeteries during the Month of the Dead with talks, tours and workshops

Last chance to see 30,000 poppies from Paul Cummins' famous 2014 artwork marking the start of the Great War - at the Tower of London until November 11

Tate Britain stages a retrospective of American war photographer and surrealist Lee Miller from October 2 to February 2026.

Last chance to see the Serpentine Pavilion 2025, designed by Bangladeshi architect Marina Tabassum in homage to South Asian vernacular architecture, is in Kensington Gardens to October 26

Twinkle Toes: Dance Umbrella takes to the floor with contemporary and classic events across London (Oct 2-31)

One day only: the legendary Peckham Conker Championships take place at the Brick Brewery in SE15 on the afternoon of October 4.

The charming Charles Dickens Museum on just as charming Doughty Street celebrates its 100th birthday with an exhibition on his life and work (throughout 2025)

Awards, events, galas, celebrities - the London Film Festival takes place Oct 8-19

Straight from the studio: The Other Art Fair at the Truman Brewery on Brick Lane is the perfect opportunity to buy direct from emerging artists (Oct 9-12)

The Royal Albert Hall ships in an authentic Japanese soil and sand dohyō (ring) and a roof reminiscent of a Shinto shrine for the Grand Sumo Tournament - prepare for giant prices (Oct 15-19)

'Dress Codes' at Kensington Palace explores royal fashion codes over the centuries - with a brilliant fashion catwalk display by young designers (ends Nov 13)

Time to a spot of art shopping at Frieze Art Fair and Frieze Masters in Regent's Park (Oct 15-19) with the free sculpture show running until Nov 2

Woooo-hooooo! Halloween comes to Kew Gardens with an eerie trail winding through the darkness (Oct 17-Nov 2)

The Imperial War Museum examines the period immediately after the Second World War in a new exhibition: 'Emergency Exits: The Fight for Independence in Malaya, Kenya and Cyprus (Oct 17-Mar 29 2026)

Book in for sculptures, songs and stories across WC1 for the annual Bloomsbury Festival (Oct 17-19)

The Wildlife Photographer of the Year exhibition at the Natural History Museum runs until next June (2026)

'The Edwardians: Age of Elegance', another excellent exhibition from the Royal Collections Trust, is at the King's Gallery at Buckingham Palace (to Nov 23)

Life beyond Earth? Find out at the Science Museum's ticketed show, with tons to see including a 4.5 billion-year-old meteorite. Suitable for 8+ (to Feb 2026)

Last chance for British artists Edward Burra and Ithell Colquhoun- surrealists and documenters of the UK's underworld in the 1930s/40s, sharing a show at Tate Britain (to Oct 19)

A month left to see 'Grayson Perry: Delusions of Grandeur' features 40 new works in the august, oddly cool, surroundings of the Wallace Collection (to Oct 26)

Science fans descend on the ExCel for a weekend of workshops, talks, experiments, films, demos - day or weekend tickets available Oct 18/19 with Schools Day Oct 20

For three flamboyant years, Covent Garden club Blitz drew the clubbers of the early 80s. The Design Museum picks over the fashion, the fun and the funk (to Mar 2026)

The London Literature Festival takes over the South Bank Centre from Oct 21 to Nov 2, with writers, readers, performances and kids' stuff

The Barbican's exhibition 'Dirty Looks: Desire and Decay in Fashion' looks at the unromantic side of fashion and its radical protagonists (to Jan 2026)

Last chance for 'Ancient India, Living Traditions' at the British Museum (to October 19)