A Museum Walk: Discover the British Museum’s Top 10 Treasures

We often travel the world to visit famous museums, while overlooking one of the greatest museums right here in London. If you’ve only visited a special exhibition or have been meaning to explore the permanent collection, this is your chance to make it happen!

Join us for a relaxed, friendly walk through 10 fascinating treasures, from the Rosetta Stone and Parthenon sculptures to the wonders of ancient Egypt and beyond. 

Meeting place: 11:25 am by the information booth.

Advance booking: Entry is free, but booking online is highly recommended to avoid queues. To book, click here.  Book for the 11:30am slot.

Audio guide: An official audio guide costs £6 and covers 12 tours and 299 objects. It presents an excellent value if you are interested in coming to our future tours at the British Museum.  

Top 10 audio guide is a part of this packge.  You can also buy the Top 10 guide separately for £2.99. or simply join us without a guide. An audio guide can be purchased online or at the museum and it is optional for our visit.

To use the official audio guide, download the British Museum app, enter the code provided with your audio guide ticket.  Don't forget to bring your headphones.  

Note:  Even if you don't purchase the audio guide, I recommend that you download the BM app, as it gives you the identification and location of the TOP 10 items in the museum so you can still follow the tour by reading the information board of these items (the audio guide allows you to access the introduction but you generally cannot access the guide for individual items).   

Post-museum walk lunch: Meet at 1:00pm at the Great Court on the ground floor.   Feel free to bring a packed lunch or buy something at the Court Cafés.  There are some tables and benches (subject to availability) in the Great Court. No doubt, we’ll share our thoughts, enjoy good company and have a fun time together. 

All welcome.

A WhatsApp group has been set up for this event.  It you wish to join,  please send your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

#2026-11-24T11:30

SWC Film Club – Wild Horse Nine at The Garden Cinema, London

Posted on behalf of the SWC Film Club….

We continue our SWC Film Club with Wild Horse Nine at The Garden Cinema, London.

Join us on Friday, 6 November at 6:00pm for the screening.

To book, please use the cinema’s ticketing page. [https://www.thegardencinema.co.uk/]

The Garden Cinema has a nice Art Deco bar for a pre-film meet-up, the area has many options for post film food and drinks.

We have a Film Club WhatsApp Group, please message Oliver on 07403 007 173 if you want to be added.

Event Details
Film​​Wild Horse Nine
Venue​​The Garden Cinema, 39–41 Parker Street, London WC2B 5PQ
Date & Time​Friday, 6 November 2026, 6:00pm

From acclaimed director Martin McDonagh (The Banshees of Inisherin), Wild Horse Nine is a darkly comic, thought-provoking tale of two CIA agents confronting their troubled pasts against the dramatic backdrop of Easter Island during Chile’s political turmoil in 1973. The Garden Cinema is an independent venue in central London, nearest Tube is Holborn.

#2026-11-06T18:00

Barbican - Two giants of the concert hall, the Gewandhausorchester and Lang Lang performing Beethoven

The concert may be nine months away,  but the tickets certainly won't be around for that long, hence the advance notice. 

Tonight, to mark the 200th anniversary of composer's death, we'll hear the world's oldest civic symphony orchestra,  the Gewandhausorchester, led by five-time Grammy Award-winning conductor Andris Nelsons, with household name pianist Lang Lang, performing Beethoven. 

To book,  please click here, tickets from £25

Pre-concert F&B: at Barbican Kitchen from 6:00pm.  You can see the food menu here. 

A Whatsapp event group will be set up.  If you wish to join,  please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

Programme

• Ludwig van Beethoven   Symphony No. 6 ‘Pastorale’ – 45’
• Ludwig van Beethoven   Piano Concerto No. 5 ‘Emperor’ – 45’

The evening begins with the composer’s crowd-pleasing Pastoral Symphony. Listen out for a murmuring brook, rumbling thunder and startlingly accurate birdsong. Beethoven represents the nightingale with the flute, the quail with the oboe and the cuckoo with two clarinets. The main focus of the symphony are the emotions that this rural setting inspires. We are invited to feel the happiness of arriving in the country, the disruption of a storm and the peace of its aftermath.

Gewandhausorchester premiered Beethoven’s Fifth Piano Concerto in 1811. The pinnacle of Beethoven’s achievements in this form, it spoke to its audience in fresh, unfamiliar ways. Lang Lang masters its complexities while making it look easy.

 #2027-06-03T19:30

Barbican Hall - Martha Argerich Playing Ravel and more

Tonight,  we will hear the legendary Martha Argerich, arguably the best living pianist in the world,  playing Ravel's piano concerto in G Major M. 82. 

Plus Saint-Saëns’s Carnival of the Animals for 2 pianos and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 7. 

Ticket from £20, to book,  click here.   I expect this concert will be popular,  recommended to book early. 

Pre-concert F&B: at Barbican Kitchen from 5:30pm (early start due to concert starting at 7pm.  You can see the food menu here. 

A WhatsApp group has been set up for this event.  If you wish to join, please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

#2027-02-14T19:00

The Jungle Book at the National Theatre

Join us for a fun-filled evening of music, adventure and jungle magic. After all,  nobody is too old to enjoy a classic.  It will be a perfect show to close our 2026 social calender. 

Directed by Indhu Rubasingham, the beloved tale of The Jungle Book is reimagined with innovative puppetry by two most celebrated puppetry designers Finn Caldwell and Nick Barnes.  This thrilling new adaptation brings the jungle roaring to life on the Olivier stage.

Ticket from £25.  To book your ticket,  please click here. This show is likely to be popular so recommended to book early. 

Pre-show F&B: meet at 5:30pm (early start as the show time is at 7pm) on the ground floor of the National Theatre outside Atrium Cafe which serves light bites and drinks.  The Understudy next door serves more substantial street foods and alcohol drinks (see Menu).     

A WhatsApp group has been set up for this event.  If you wish to be on it, please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOT.com

 

#2026-12-10T19:00

Christmas Party - Come and Celebrate with Us

Join us as we raise a glass to another wonderful year of our walking club and, of course, to the people who make it all happen. 

It’s a chance to thank our webmaster, walk posters and trip organisers for all their hard work, catch up with friends and fellow walkers, and enjoy an evening of good company, good cheer and, hopefully, a little less walking than usual!

The Venue - We’re delighted to be returning to Silver Cross, 33 Whitehall, London SW1A 2BS, for our Christmas party.  The party starts  from 6pm onwards. The pub is just a short stroll from Trafalgar Square. You can find the pub here.

We have a large section of the lower ground floor reserved exclusively for our group. Food and drinks can be purchased upstairs.  The pub will be serving food until 10pm. For the menu, click here.   

The club will also provide some festive nibbles.  

We look forward to seeing you there for a festive evening of friendship, fun and perhaps a few tall tales of walking adventures along the way! 

 A Pub with a Past…

Silver Cross comes with a rather colourful history. First opened as a licensed pub in 1674, it is now part of the Greene King estate. But its past is considerably more intriguing than your average pub.

According to a BBC programme in 1999, Silver Cross was granted a legal licence to operate as a brothel during the reign of King Charles I, and apparently, that licence was never formally revoked.

So, while we cannot vouch for what went on here in the 17th century, we can certainly vouch for the fact that our Christmas party will be conducted with the utmost decorum!

If you’re intrigued by the pub’s colourful history, you can read more here.

 

#2026-12-01T18:00

Barbican - Vaughan Williams and Beethoven with Bruce Liu

After a successful prom season this year,  we continue with our classical music voyage at Barbican Hall with the London Symphony Orchestra, its chief conductor Sir Antonio Pappano and the winner of multiple piano competitions Bruce Liu.  

To book,  please click here.   Ticket from £18.  

Pre-concert F&B: at Barbican Kitchen from 5:30pm (early start due to concert starting at 7pm.  You can see the food menu here. 

A Whatsapp event group has been set up.  If you wish to join,  please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

• Programme 
• Ralph Vaughan Williams   A Pastoral Symphony (Symphony No 3)
• Ludwig van Beethoven   Piano Concerto No 3
• Ralph Vaughan Williams   Symphony No 8

With its expressive beauty and folksong-like melodies, Vaughan Williams’ 1922 A Pastoral Symphony was long thought to be an affectionate portrait of England’s rolling hills. But within those four slow movements lie an anguished, ultimately hopeful, response to World War I. Composed 34 years later, Symphony No 8 was premiered during the dawn of the new Elizabethan age. It’s a tauter, more rhythmic work, at times dance-like, yet still offering moments of deep introspection.  

Mozartian elegance and grace surround Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No 3, a work that nevertheless includes moments of profound beauty, especially in the yearning second movement. 

 

#2026-11-26T19:00 

Inside Aardman: Wallace & Gromit and Friends at Young V&A

In Aardman’s 50th anniversary year, go behind the scenes of your favourite stop-motion animations and explore how Aardman’s iconic characters and worlds are brought to life. 

A joyful, educational, and highly tactile experience and a "must-see" expo that combines nostalgia with iconic sets, original models, and interactive, hands-on activities. 

Tickets £11 or £5.5 (Art Fund).  To book your ticket, please click here.  Book the 2:30pm slot. 

A Sunday walk has been posted to link this event with a late Sunday morning stroll and lunch at the Approach Tavern - 6 mins walk from the Young V&A.    

Pre-expo Meeting Place: For those who are not coming to the morning walk, but the exhibition,  you have options of meeting the group at the lunch pub before 2:20pm or inside the exhibition from 2:30pm onwards.  

Post-expo Meeting Place:  At the Approach Tavern from 4pm onwards for drinks/tea/cafe/pudding/dessert. 

A WhatsApp group will be set up for this event.  Please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom if you wish to be on it. 

#2026-11-01T14:30

BBC Prom: Berlin Philharmonic and Beethoven Violin Concerto

Our last Prom of this year is with Berlin Philharmonic, its chief conductor Kirill Petrenko, and Grammy Award-winning violinist Augustin Hadelich playing beloved Beethoven Violin Concerto and more...

To book your ticket: please click here.   Alternatively,  you can buy day promming ticket from 9:30am on the day, costs £8.    

Pre-Prom meeting place: at the steps of the Albert Memorial for picnic (weather permitting) from 5:30pm.  

Interval and Post Prom meeting place: outside Door 3. 

There will be a WhatsApp group set up for this event.  Please email swcsocialATgmailDOTcom with your mobile number if you wish to be on it. 

Programme 

Beethoven Violin Concerto in D major 42’

Interval

Scriabin Symphony No. 3 in C minor, ‘The Divine Poem’ 50'

Augustin Hadelich violin

Berlin Philharmonic

Kirill Petrenko conductor

#2026-09-03T19:00

Photography Exhibition - Between Light and Shadow by London Independent Photography (Ealing)

This event is posted on behalf of our resident photographer Robin.  

I'm pleased to be joining seventeen other photographers for our exhibition at St Mary's church as part of the Ealing BEAT Arts Trail.

Fellow SWC walkers are welcome to attend the private view on 3 September 7:00pm - 9:30pm, at St Mary's Church W5 5RH. 

Direction:  South Ealing tube or 65 bus from Ealing Broadway.

#2026-09-03T19:00 

Frida - The Making of an Icon or other paid or free exhibitions at Tate Modern

A nice way to celebrate the August Bank Holiday for those staying put.  

Discover the extraordinary story of how Frida Kahlo became one of the most influential artists of all time, a cultural phenomenon, and an internationally recognised commercial icon. 

The exhibition showcases over 30 of Kahlo’s most iconic works that introduce her ‘many selves’ – the dedicated wife, the intellectual, the modern artist, and the political activist. Alongside treasured garments, jewellery, photographs and memorabilia, there are over 200 works by her contemporaries and the artists she inspired from later generations, celebrating her lasting impact on those who continue to reimagine and reclaim her remarkable story. 

Ticket £25,  Art Pass £12.5, Tate member Free.  Book 5:30pm slot.   

Exhibition Meeting Place:   at the entrance to the exhibition or inside if you are here early.   

Other Paid Exhibitions:  

(1) Tracy Emin - A Second Life, Ticket £22, Art Pass £11, Tate Member free

(2)  Julia Le Parc - Light, Colour, Action,  Ticket £15, Art Pass £7.5, Tate Member free

Other free exhibitions throughout the museum. 

Post Exhibition F&B:  We continue with our immersive Mexican cultural experience with a visit to the Mexican restaurant Wahaca Southbank, Belvedere Road, SE1 8XX.

A table for 6 has been booked for 19:30. All seats have been taken now.  But feel free to contact the restaurant to arrange for another booking. 

A WhatsApp group will be set up for this event.  if you wish to be on it,  please email your mobile number to swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

#2026-08-28T17:30 

Pete's 'Big Birthday' [updated Friday 21st ]

As many of you will now know, it is my 80th birtday on 21st August, and I'm having a party on Saturday 22nd August from 5pm. All SWC walkers are invited. I've put some invites with the destination on various WhatsApp groups - please ignore any rsvp by date and feel free to just turn up, just don't expect to get a burger until later on!

The venue will be a members club bar on Acton High Street that I'm involved in, which will be for our sole use. It has a courtyard garden and, of course, good beer. 

There will be a BBQ offering burgers. The numbers are now fixed, but you can RSVP to petegat80@gmail.com to get a reply with the location.

 Gifts not required!.

Transport

There are some disruptions, so check with Journey Planners!

• The club is a 17 minute walk from Acton Town station. Turn right after the barriers to exit the station, walking in the same direction slightly uphill then use Google. The bus stop (S Acton Town) is currently closed for roadworks. For bus E3 or 70 to Acton Old Town Hall from Acton Town station keep walking to the next stop after crossing the road. 
• From Acton Central on the Mildmay (Richmond) line it is a 5 minute walk. Turn left out of the station and then left again downhill to the High Street.
• From Ealing Broadway take the frequent SL8 or 207 bus (direction White City) to Acton Old Town Hall (approx 8 minutes). Exit the station and turn left down hill. At the lights turn right for the bus stop outside Sainsburys.
• From Ealing Common take the frequent SL8 or 207 bus (direction White City). Exit the station and cross the road to then turn left for the bus stop.
• From Turnham Green, take the E3 direction Greenford. Exit the station to turn left under the railway line, then shortly cross the road to the bus stop by the Green. Note that the district line has engineering works and Piccadilly line trains are stopping at Turnham Green on Saturday. To walk is around 25 minutes.
• From Shepherds Bush on the Mildmay (Clapham Junction), take the frequent SL8 or 207 bus to Acton Old Town Hall. Exit the station to the bus stop outside.
• Farringdon to Ealing Broadway is relatively quick and easy.
• Acton Old Town Hall is on a night bus route! 

#2026-08-22T17:00

BBC Prom: Shostakovich Symphony No 10

Our second Prom of the season is Shostakovich's devastatingly powerful Symphony No 10.  Premiered after Stalin’s death in 1953, it’s a work whose fierce rage, violence and grief tell a terrifying story of life in the dictator’s Russia. 

To book your ticket: please click here.   Alternatively,  you can buy day promming ticket from 9:30am on the day, costs £8.    

The Prom starts at 7pm.  Meet at the steps of the Albert Memorial for picnic (weather permitting) from 5:30pm.  

There will be a WhatsApp group set up for this event.  Please email swcsocialATgmailDOTcom with your mobile number if you wish to be on it. 

Programme 

Édith Canat de Chizy Skyline (Concerto for three percussionists, timpani and orchestra) 20’ 
BBC co-commission: UK premiere 

Interval

Shostakovich Symphony No. 10 in E minor 55’

BBC Symphony Orchestra

Cristian Mǎcelaru conductor

#2026-08-18T19:00

BBC Prom: LA Philharmonic and Beethoven Symphony No 6

We open this year's SWC prom season with LA Philharmonic and its music director Dudamel.  After two decades of absence from the prom, it will be a real treat to hear them on this rare occasion. 

To book your ticket: please click here.   Alternatively,  you can buy day promming ticket from 9:30am on the day, costs £8.    

Post Concert F&B - Due to the early start of this prom at 6pm,  we will meet after the concert at The Dutchess of Kensington, 25 Gloucester Road for food and drink.  A table for 8 is booked,  there are two places still available, first come first served. 

PS- our earlier plan for picnic is scrapped due to restrictions of RAH for bringing food and drinks into their premises. 

Interval Meeting Place - meet outside door 3 at the interval

There will be a WhatsApp group set up for this event.  Please email swcsocialATgmailDOTcom with your mobile number if you wish to be on it. 

Programme 

Beethoven Symphony in No. 6 in F major, ‘Pastoral’ 39’ 

Interval

Thomas Adès Dante – Part 1: Inferno 45’

Los Angeles Philharmonic 

Gustavo Dudamel conductor 

#2026-08-11T18:00

Opera Holland Park - Un ballo in maschera by Verdi

Un ballo in maschera is based on the real life assassination of King Gustav III of Sweden in 1792.  It is a dramatic and emotional charged opera that blends romance, political intrigue and tragedy.  Verdi's rich orchestration and memorable melodies make the opera both captivating and deeply moving. 

Booking is already open.  Tickets from £65.  To book,  please click here. 

Other discounted tickets available - for details, click here 

(1) Inspire tickets at £26, for people who cannot afford regular tickets or first time to OHP,  you need to fill in an application form online (recommend you do this asap before the booking opens), once approved, book online from Apr 8 at 10am.

  

(2) Limited tickets available for Monday Rush tickets at £40,  booking for this performance opens on Aug 3 at 1pm.

(3) Blue Light Scheme for key workers - please inquire with the box office    

A Whatsapp group will be set-up for this event to help co-ordination and deleted post the event.   Please email socsocialATgmailDOTcom if you wish to be on it. 

Weather looks fine for picnic.  We will meet for picnic at the Dutch Garden behind the Opera Marquee from 6pm.   

Spooky Men's Chorale

A slightly unusual outing at the Union Chapel just minutes from Highbury and Islington Station.  Tube (Victoria Line), Overground (Mildmay and Windrush lines) and National Rail (Great Northern) 
The Spooky Men's Chorale always provides a great evenings entertainment. Seating is unreserved so SWC attendees can stick together.
Doors open at 6:30 pm so if you arrive about 5:30pm, there's a chance to grab a pre-concert bite at one of the nearby hostelries. Ones to consider are ...

• The Famous Cock Tavern at 259 Upper Street 
• The White Swan (Wetherspoons) 255/256 Upper Street 
• The Hen and Chicken Theatre Bar 109 St Pauls Road, N1 2NA

There's also a range of restaurants in Upper street and a Little Waitrose in Holloway Road should you wish to picnic in Compton Terrace Gardens. Compton Terrace Garden is open to dusk and may be found either side of the short road leading up to the Union Chapel where there's plenty of bench seats)
Get your tickets at https://www.gigantic.com/the-spooky-men-s-chorale-tickets/london-union-chapel/2026-08-05-18-30 

During their last gig here in 2024 they played to a packed  audience with the setting sun illuminating the Rose  Window above the dais. The Chorale emerged onto the right hand balcony to sing their introductory Georgian table song. As ever, stunning harmonies enhanced by the amazing acoustics at the Chapel. Reconvening on the Stage they started their first set with the Spookmeister combining a mix of thoughtfulness and silliness in his narrative.  Songs included Dolly Parton's Jolene and a light-hearted "Team Building Exercise" exploring interplay in the modern workplace. The Chorale came to the two isles to sing "The sweetest kick (in the heart)"  before returning to the stage with songs that included  "We’ll Give it a Go", "Tee Tee Tay Tay" (references to Tina Turner and Taylor Swift), two Ukrainian folk songs and finishing with Queen's Bohemian Rhapsody and Whitney Houston's "I Wanna Dance with Somebody". The audience were on their feet by then and the Chorale received a rapturous standing ovation. 

#2026-08-05T18:30

The Car Man by Matthew Bourne's New Adventures

Following our last two successful outings to see Matthew Bourne's innovative dance productions,  I am delighted to organise another trip to Sadler's Wells to see Matthew Bourne's award winning The Car Man.  

'Loosely based on Bizet’s ever-popular opera (Carmen),  The Car Man has one of the most thrilling and instantly recognisable scores in New Adventures’ repertoire.

The familiar 19th Century Spanish cigarette factory becomes a greasy 1950s garage-diner in the American Mid-West where the dreams and passions of a small-town are shattered by the arrival of a handsome and enigmatic stranger. Fuelled by heat and desire, the inhabitants are driven into an unstoppable spiral of greed, lust, betrayal and revenge.

Matthew Bourne’s vivid storytelling combines with one of the most passionately dramatic scores ever written, with music by Terry Davies featuring Rodion Shchedrin’s Carmen Suite (after Bizet’s Carmen), to create a dance thriller like no other.

The Car Man will ignite your senses and leave you breathless.'

Tickets from £15, to book, please click here.  At the moment, good availability for £15 seats, but I would advise book early as cheap seats are the first to go. 

Pre-show F&B will be at The Wilmington, 69 Rosebery Ave, EC1R 4RL,  a gastro pub near the theatre from 5:30pm.    

To assist easy co-ordination on the day,  there will be a Whatsapp group setup for the event.  If you wish to join the group,  please email your mobile number and your name to swcsocialATgmailDOT.com.  Note: I will not respond to request for personalised email communications for this event.   

 Note: you need to set your Whatsapp privacy setting to give me the permission to add you to the group.  I had a couple of incidences that I was unable to add people to the group.  My invitation did not reach the recipient either.  

Theatre: When a King meets a President...

Springwood at the Hampstead Theatre (next to Swiss Cottage Underground)

A new play, with a cast including Robert Lindsay, about a meeting between King George VI and US President Roosevelt in 1939. Will the "special relationship" survive a diet of hot dogs and beer? Will the US support Britain in the coming war?

Four of us have booked tickets for this, and there is still good availability. Do join us!

Details of the play and how to book here

**** Meet-up pre-theatre for this play is from 6pm in the  Core Cafe in the Swiss Cottage Leisure Centre. This serves burgers, pizza, wraps, soup and baked potato and has an aerial view of the swimming pool, giving it an “at the beach” vibe. It is self-service/order at the counter, so no need to eat (or even drink) if you don’t want to.

Menu here

Chess Fest in Trafalgar Square

Request to post this, from our regular chess player. 

Chess Fest is in Trafalgar Square on Sunday from 12pm to 7pm. For info, see here

#2026-07-12T12:00

V&A East in Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

Tonight,  we are heading to the East London to visit two new V&A East Museums,  V&A East Museum and V&A East Storehouse. Both opened last year and already have become must-visit museums in London.  

Two museums are 15 mins walk apart.  Entrance to both museums are free,  but charges apply for special exhibitions (see below). 

East Storehouse:  This is a museum like no other.  It is a radical new 'working museum' where visitors explore more than half a million stored objects in an open-access warehouse rather than traditional curated galleries.  It exposes the behind-the-scenes life of a museum,  letting visitors to see conservation work live and even to book appointments to handle selected objects through its 'Order an Object' system.  It houses David Bowie Center and is the permanent home of the artist's archive.  

East Museum:  A museum of contemporary life, focuses on youth culture, creativity and communities that shape the modern Britain.  Apart from permanent collections,  a special exhibition 'The Music is Black, a British Story', celebrates 125 years of Black British Music with more than 100 sound tracks played directly to your headset.  More than an exhibition, through immersive sound, fashion, photography, instruments and multimedia installations,  it explores the power and impact of the Black British Music. You need to buy a ticket for this special exhibition.  

To Book,  please click here.  Book 18:30 slot.  If you wish to spend more time in this exhibition, book an earlier slot. 

No official pre-museum meet as people may wish to visit one or both museums at different times,  except if you attend The Music is Black - meet in the queue at 6:30pm or inside the exhibition.  

Post Museum F&B: We will meet at 8pm at the main entrance of East Museum.   Picnic if weather permits or a F&B venue (TBD) in Stratford Westfield.  More detail to follow. 

A WhatsApp group will be set-up for this event.  If you wish to be on it,  please email swcsocialATgmailDOTcom. 

#2026-06-18T18:30