The weekend post is brought to you by Yamaha Music London – Chappell’s in celebration of Silent June
All weekend
FAB FREE FESTIVAL: Greenwich & Docklands International Festival is bursting at the seams with free, outdoor, theatrical and circus-style entertainment, from Friday night right through to Sunday. Find the full programme here, or just head for Greenwich and saunter into something extraordinary. Until 29 June.
WEST END MUSICALS: West End Live brings the biggest West End musicals out of the theatres and onto Trafalgar Square to perform songs from the shows to an adoring audience. Free, just turn up, 11am-6pm Saturday, 12-6pm Sunday.
FOODIE FEST: Taste London herds pots of top restaurants together in Regent's Park for the tenth year running. Be canny and plan your attack on the food if you're going to make the most of it (and get your money's worth). Basic entry £28 on the door, "crowns" for food £1=2 crowns, average dish 8-10 crowns. Good luck.
VIETNAMESE FESTIVAL: Vietnam Open Festival celebrates Vietnamese art, fashion, music, crafts and food on the Southbank Riverside Walkway, Upper ground, SE1 9LT (Behind the ITV London Studios). Don't miss the water puppets! Open 12-9pm Saturday, 10am-9pm Sunday
DOCUMENTARIES: Open City Docs screens the brightest and best new documentaries from around the world and lets you meet the makers, mostly at Bloomsbury Theatre. Check the website for tickets and times.
ALLY PALLY ARTS & MUSIC: Community festival AP & Beyond lays a trail of a music and arts all round Alexandra Palace and its locale. Find open artist studios, live music, installations, picnics, workshops, exhibitions, a film tent, plus Palace Gates Summer Fete on Sunday afternoon. Browse the full listings for more.
CHARING CROSS FEST: Foyles and Blackwells lead a celebration of Charing Cross Road's literary and musical history with talks, debates, quizzes, music, author appearances, ukeleles and free nibbles from Chipotle! Free but reserve your place for events through the online programme.
OPEN ARTIST STUDIOS: ARThouse Open Studios Festival in Richmond begins on Saturday, with around 500 artists opening up their studios, homes, gardens and garages to the public for two weekends running. Includes Eel Pie Island Summer Open Studios, and a chance to explore the working boat yards of Eel Pie Island. Download the brochure here. Free, just turn up.
HERITAGE RAIL: Ride heritage trains and coaches on the Epping Ongar Railway (OK, strictly speaking that's Essex, but it's vintage trains and Tube150 related). Book your tickets for all day heritage travel, adults £20, kids £10 (discount for online booking). Also happening 28 June - 1 July.
THEATRE & TECH: Witness cutting edge storytelling through a fusion of new theatre and technology at TimeWave Festival, Innovation Warehouse in Smithfield Market.
KIWIS: Kiwi House sets up in Park Crescent Gardens for a mini-festival weekend as part of the build up to the New Zealand team campaign for Rio 2016. On Saturday there's a BBQ and music and on Sunday, there's more BBQ plus an evening of comedy with Jarred Christmas and friends. Tickets £10, 11am-late
SADLER'S WELLS: Sample some homegrown, world-class dance at Sadler's Wells. Tickets still left for both nights from £8 standing, starts 7.30pm
SINGING: Voices Now Festival is a celebration of all things vocal at the Roundhouse. Concerts come from Only Men Aloud and the London Gay Men's Chorus, BBC Singers and Harrow Schools and the Hilliard Ensemble. There are also some free events and a Come and Sing workshop. Festival pass £40, check the website for more details.
Saturday 22 June
COMICS: East London Comics and Arts Festival takes place at York Hall, Bethnal Green and promises a relaxed and interactive day among independent publishers and makers and a showcase of the best of indie comics and graphic art. Most talks are sold out but general admission is just £3, just turn up, 10am-7pm
KENSAL GREEN CEMETERY: It's an Open Day, with separate tours of the cemetery and catacombs available from 11am. Free entry to the open day, tours £4 each. Open 11am-5pm
SMALL CHARITIES: A mini-festival in Russell Square bigs up small charities with charity stalls, live entertainment and giant games to play. Free, just turn up, 11.30am-4.30pm
BRIXTON WINDMILL: Join the parade up Brixton Hill from Windrush Square to Windmill Gardens where the Cakes, Puddings and Pies themed festival takes place with live music, farm animals and "midsummer merriment". Free, just turn up, 1-6pm
FOLK FEST: The One World Folk Festival takes place on Lordship Rec, Tottenham with music and dance performances from local folk and world music groups, plus the Big Lunch so take a picnic. Free, just turn up, 1-5pm
THE EYE OF RA: Join the Petrie Museum and singing group Gaggle in performing a midsummer rite on the Wilkins Roof Garden, UCL, Gower Street. Exorcise your demons through Gaggle's song, make an amulet, drink cocktails, have fun. Free, drop in (but arrive early to ensure entry) 1-4pm
OKINAWA DAY: Spitalfields Market turns Japanese for London Okinawa Day, with classical and folk music and dancing, food and drink, craft stalls and Karate demonstrations. Free, just turn up, 11am-6pm
FREE CONCERTS: Fete de la Musique is a programme of free concerts by diverse French artists at L'Institut Francais in South Kensington. Free, just turn up, music starts 5pm
DIAMOND QUEEN: For the first time in the capital, London Diamond Transgender Day is celebrated with the Diamond Collection Concert at the Greenwood Theatre, SE1. Tickets from £20, starts 6.15pm
SITE-SPECIFIC MUSIC: Scanner: Flow Forms explores the music of John Downland and the notion of 'flow' beneath Spitalfields itself in a collection of venue-specific installations and performances. Part of Spitalfields Music Summer Festival. Tickets £20, performances at 3.30, 5.30, 6.30 & 8.30pm
FILM MUSIC: A concert of orchestral pieces from films can be enjoyed at St Paul's Covent Garden tonight, courtesy of Camden Chamber Orchestra. £10/£8, just turn up, 6.30pm
ROCK N ROLL: Mill Hill Music Festival ends with a Rockabilly band, The Polecats playing in Allianz Park, NW4. Tickets £12 advance, £15 on the door, music starts at 8pm
STREET SOUNDS: Rose Royce and Rapper's Delight are just two of the music acts entertaining at the Street Sounds Summer Ball at the Coronet Theatre in Elephant. Live music and loads of DJs (including "hear the drummer get wicked" Chad Jackson) keep you grooving till 3 in the morning. Tickets £39.50+bkg, starts 8pm
VELONOTTE: Explore Victorian London by bike, at night with Velonotte, an eccentric sounding nocturnal event on wheels, broadcast live on Resonance FM, where you're encouraged to dress Victorian and are promised a secret performance at the end of it. Register online, suggested donation £5.50, starts 11.30pm
MIDNIGHT WALK: Night owls may enjoy the CoolTan Arts Largactyl Shuffle Summer Solstice Midnight walk from Tate Modern to the Maudsley Hospital, Denmark Hill. Free, just turn up, 11.45pm
Sunday 23 June
ST PAUL'S: City of London Festival begins with the Festival Service in St Paul's Cathedral at 11.30am, followed by an organ recital at 4.45pm. Both free, just turn up, the service is likely to be popular.... The festival runs until 26 July with lots of free events. Read our preview for highlights.
NEW RIVER: Get a taste for it in its 400th anniversary year with a walk and talk along the pretty Islington stretch plus a pub stop with Pete Berthoud. Starts Canonbury Station, tickets £10, 11am-1pm
TRAVEL WRITING: The first Kings Place Travel Festival has sold out its Michael Palin session and all Sunday passes but you can still book for talks, workshops and spoken word events.
RIVINGTON STREET: There are limited free tickets still available for Rivington Street Festival, Shoreditch, with entertainment across two outdoor stages, 10 venues, a market and more. Free but you must register, runs 12-10pm
MARCO POLO: artsdepot in Finchley present two performances of Along the Silk Road - the Travels of Marco Polo told through music and dance. A 5.30pm performance is in English, 8.30pm performance in Farsi, take your pick! Tickets £20 (concessions £10).
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The weekend post is brought to you by Yamaha Music London – Chappell’s
Drop by Yamaha Music London - Chappell's on Wardour Street this Saturday and you can marvel at a whole range of silent instruments in action as the Street-Nelms Jazz Quintet and the Abraxas classical ensemble play simultaneous sessions in the same room silently, on the hour, every hour, from 12-4pm.
