The London Tweed Run

Are your sartorial senses dismayed by today’s lycra-clad cyclists? Celebrate proper cycling attire at the annual Tweed Run, a refined bike ride through London in which all participants are dressed in tweed. Many of the bicycles used match the traditional clothing, and you’ll see unicycles and vintage bikes amongst the mass of cyclists. Places for participants have now been allocated, but spectators can watch along the route – keep an eye on the Tweed Run website for details. 13 Apr

The E4 Udderbelly Festival

Get ready to giggle as the upside-down purple cow returns to the South Bank for another summer of top comedy, circus and cabaret. Not only does the E4 Udderbelly Festival give you the chance to see hilarious acts such as Richard Herring and Stephen K Amos, but the festival space also boasts a huge outdoor bar which is great for sunny afternoons. Visit the festival website for ticket and schedule information. 12 Apr-14 Jul 

Asia House Festival

Immerse yourself in the Orient at the fourth Asia House Fair, which features the best in arts, crafts and design from across Asia. More than 35 stalls will be present, offering unusual handmade gifts from the likes of China Life, Memsahib and Treasures from the Silk Road. Visitors can also enjoy Afternoon Tea in Mackwood’s Tea Room. Entry is free and you can check the fair’s opening times on the Asia House website. 12-14 Apr

The RHS Orchid and Botanical Art Festival at Royal Horticultural Halls

See spectacular displays of orchids at the Royal Horticultural Society’s show, which presents displays from prominent British and international growers. Visitors can also shop for beautiful plants, listen to talks by orchid experts and marvel at the largest botanical art display of the year. Tickets are £8 and can be booked on the RHS website, where you can also view the show’s opening times.  11-13 Apr

Spring Open Weekend at the London Transport Museum Depot, Acton

Celebrate the 150th anniversary of the London Underground at the London Transport Museum’s Depot, which houses more than 400,000 items. As well as seeing the Metropolitan Steam Locomotive No. 1 in steam, families can ride the model railway, listen to talks, see fascinating displays and even make their own model steam train. Tickets are £10 and the event runs from 11am-5pm both days. 13-14 Apr

More London events

The dungeon has been terrifying visitors in its current location at London Bridge for almost 40 years. But it will close at the end of January and re-open in the underground vaults of County Hall on the South Bank in March.

Owners Merlin Entertainments promise the new dungeon will be “bigger, bolder and better”. Some of the attractions’ favourite characters, including Sweeney Todd and Jack the Ripper, will be making the move to County Hall. They’ll be joined by new villains, including a murderous Henry VIII “virtually played” by actor Brian Blessed; and gunpowder plotter Guy Fawkes.

Rides at the new London Dungeon will take visitors condemned to execution on a turbulent journey along the Thames; provide a “deadly drop” of three storeys; and a disorientating journey through Bazelgette’s Victorian sewer system.

Fans of The London Dungeon will be pleased to know that the usual band of torturers, plague victims, giant cockroaches and rats will be providing live shows and scares at the new venue.

The London Dungeon, Tooley Street is open until 31 January 2012. The new London Dungeon at County Hall opens 1 March. Prices for the new venue remain same same. Book tickets

London is enjoying superb weather for this weekend’s annual Mayor’s Thames Festival as you can see from this photo. It was taken yesterday in The Scoop and you can see Tower Bridge in the background. And it’s not over! I’ll be heading down to the river later to enjoy today’s festivities and the spectacular parade and fireworks this evening. The event coincides with the Paralympic Games Closing Ceremony.

Have you ever been to the Mayor’s Thames Festival? What was your highlight?

As part of this weekend’s Liberty festival, visual artist Sally Booth will create a live drawing installation on the South Bank tomorrow. The large, 3D structure has been designed in collaboration with sculptor Tim Norris.

“It’s a wood and voile structure and it’s a panoramic format,” Booth explains. “It takes its design from architecture around the South Bank. I work on long, thin panoramas and this puts together lots of panoramas. You’ll get a jigsaw effect of the views along the South Bank.”

The drawings will be visible from outside the structure, and people will be allowed inside at regular intervals during the afternoon and between 6pm and 7.30pm.

Booth has created similar works on the South Bank in previous years, which have involved public participation (see video below). But this time she’ll be working alone.

“I did three of these in 2009 but this is a bit more ambitious. This one is going to be mine. It will end up being a composite panoramic view of the South Bank. This view will encompass the river, Waterloo Bridge and the National Theatre. It’s all my drawings this time.”

Booth works on semi-transparent materials, which she says reflects her own sight: “Because I’m visually impaired I see things a bit soft and out of focus. I use a lot of line drawing and simple shapes because I don’t see the detail. I found this method echoed my vision in some way.

“For me it’s like that all the time but it’s quite beautiful. On the one hand it makes things more difficult but at the same time there’s a softness to it.”

The Liberty festival celebrates deaf and disabled artists, with three days of live music, dance, comedy, family entertainment and more. This year marks the 10th anniversary of Liberty.

Following the Liberty festival, Booth will take part in an open studio event as part of Merton Arts Trail during the last two weekends in September. She also has a one-day exhibition at Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Club, where she was an artist-in-residence, on 13 November.

Sally Booth at Liberty festival, 1 Sep on the riverbank outside the National Theatre. Live drawing from 1pm to 6pm, open to the public from 6pm to 7.30pm.

To celebrate, commuters were treated to scenes from Shakespeare’s Two Gentleman of Verona performed live on a train by Two Gents Productions, and comedy on the platform from duo Abandoman.

Blackfriars South station is just a 15-minute walk from some of London’s top cultural institutions, including Shakespeare’s Globe, Tate Modern and Royal Festival Hall. The Blackfriars project will be fully completed by the summer.

Win tickets to spellbinding theatre show Murmurs, and stay nearby in luxury serviced apartments, SACO Waterloo.

Murmurs at the Southbank Centre is a stunning blend of theatre, dance and illusion, telling the story of a woman fleeing reality.

There’ll be no night buses for you as SACO Waterloo apartments are within walking distance of the Southbank Centre. Here you’ll enjoy a luxury two-night stay, with your own kitchen and panoramic views across the Thames.

Enter now to win two nights in London with tickets to Murmurs

We love this photo of twinkling lights in London by veeste. The photo shows St Paul’s Cathedral from the Southbank.

If you’ve been out and about in the evenings enjoying Christmas lights in London, share your photos with the Visit London Flickr group.

Colourful corals, tropical fish and giant clams all feature in a new Fiji display at the Sea Life London Aquarium.

To celebrate the launch, there’s a host of family-friendly events over the Easter holidays, including an Easter trail, face painting, competitions and South Pacific themed talks.

The aquarium is sponsoring a special Marine Protected Area in Fiji, which will help to ensure the long-term protection of the area’s beautiful coral reefs and marine life.

We’re on the look-out for more Fijian culture for our World in London series. Let us know your recommendations in the comments below.

The most expensive painting to be sold at auction – Nude, Green Leaves and Bust 1932 by Pablo Picasso – went on display for the first time in the UK at Tate Modern today.

The painting was sold at Christie’s, New York on 4 May 2010 to a private collector for a world record price of $106.5m. Now you can see it in London for free!

You’ll find Nude, Green Leaves and Bust in the new Pablo Picasso room on Level 3 of Tate Modern, where it’ll be on show for two years.

I was fortunate to dine at the newly refurbished OXO Tower Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie on London’s South Bank this weekend. The restaurant’s sweeping views over the city, excellent food, cocktail menu and live music made it an evening to remember.

Taking over the eighth floor of the iconic OXO Tower building, the OXO Tower Restaurant occupies one half of the floor with the other occupied by the OXO Bar and Brasserie. This popular venue first opened in the 1990s and recently underwent a refurbishment which added the striking curved white Corian bar designed by Shaun Clarkson ID.

We began our evening with pre-dinner drinks in the bar. Spoilt for choice, the Swinging Dixie was delicious and we especially loved the bar’s tiki-style cocktail, Pleasure Boat.

There are two choices for dinner, either the OXO Tower Restaurant or the OXO Brasserie. We ate in the latter. Seated by the huge windows overlooking the most spectacular views of the River Thames, I enjoyed the scenic skyline with St Paul’s Cathedral standing out. The restaurant was buzzing with people, live music and an open kitchen meant we could see the chefs at work. The atmosphere was perfect for a Saturday night.

The pan-Asian menu had so much choice that we needed some help with our selection. For starters, we had slow braised lamb shank gnocchi and the grilled Saudi prawns with Israeli couscous salad which were both delicious. For our main courses, we enjoyed the roasted pink duck breast with puy lentils and grilled Toulouse sausage and the roasted venison.

Because the cocktails were so incredible, we decided to have another one instead of dessert without any judgement from our waiter! The service we received throughout the evening was wonderful and we had the pleasure of meeting Armi, an Assistant Manager at the Brasserie who looked after us and made sure we had a fabulous evening.

The OXO Tower Restaurant, Bar and Brasserie