The free Freddie Mercury display opens at the V&A on 24 October and Holland Park's ticketed Halloween night is on the 31st. 40 dated listings to 14 November.

The two dates to plan around this month are Saturday 24 October, when the V&A opens its free Freddie Mercury display, and Saturday 31 October, when Holland Park becomes the Playful Park of Peculiar for the evening. That one is free but needs a ticket: the first batch has gone and more are released on 15 October. Before then, the Chelsea History Festival finishes on Sunday 4 October, and Wildlife Photographer of the Year opens at the Natural History Museum on Friday 16 October.

Every listing below was read from the organiser’s own page on 3 October 2026 and links back to it. Prices are the ones the organiser publishes; where no price is shown, the organiser did not give one on its listing. For places that are open whatever the month, see our guide to things to do in Kensington.

This week

  • Chelsea History Festival, final day Sunday 4 October, at the National Army Museum, the Royal Hospital Chelsea, Chelsea Physic Garden and other venues off Royal Hospital Road. Sunday’s programme has 32 sessions, eight of them free; paid tickets run to £40. Our festival page has the counts. (Chelsea Heritage Quarter).
  • NIGO: From Japan with Love, final day Sunday 4 October, Design Museum, 224-238 Kensington High Street, W8 6AG. The ticketed exhibition on the Japanese designer closes this weekend. (Design Museum).
  • Es Devlin: Other Worlds, open now to 4 April 2027, Design Museum. The first European retrospective of the stage designer and artist. Adults from £17.09, students and concessions from £12.82, children from £8.55. The museum is closed on Tuesday 13 October. (Design Museum).
  • Man to Man, with Tilda Swinton, to Saturday 24 October, Royal Court Theatre, Sloane Square, SW1W 8AS. Manfred Karge’s play. Tickets are £15 to £74.50 and the run is sold out; the theatre sells £15 Monday tickets online from 9am on the day, releases returns at midday, and offers £25 TodayTix Rush tickets at 10am, Tuesday to Saturday. (Royal Court Theatre).
  • Blood of my Blood, Monday 5 October to Saturday 7 November, Royal Court Theatre. Joy Nesbitt’s play is set on a South Carolina plantation in 1862. Tickets £15 to £30, all £15 on Mondays. (Royal Court Theatre).
  • Berliner Ensemble: De Profundis, to Wednesday 7 October, 7.30pm, no performance on Monday 5 October, The Coronet Theatre, 103 Notting Hill Gate, W11 3LB. Oscar Wilde’s prison letter, performed in German with English surtitles. Tickets £20 to £100. (The Coronet Theatre).
  • An Evening with Celia Imrie: The Elegant Hustler, Monday 5 October, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall, 5 Sloane Terrace, SW1X 9DQ. The actress on fifty years of film, television and theatre. £36.50 to £56.50 plus fees. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Silver Sunday Warm and Welcome Space, Monday 5 October, 10am to 3pm, Clore Learning Centre, Kensington Palace, W8 4PX. Free, no booking. A drop-in for older residents. The rest of the programme is in our Silver Sunday guide. (Kensington and Chelsea Council).
  • The Tallis Scholars: Rachmaninov Vespers and Arvo Pärt, Wednesday 7 October, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall. From £21.50, including the hall’s £4.50 transaction fee per booking. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Silver Sunday tours of the National Army Museum, Thursday 8 October, from 11am, Royal Hospital Road. Free, booked on 020 3713 8737. (Kensington and Chelsea Council).
  • Glass Door Sleep Out, Friday 9 October, overnight, Duke of York Square, SW3 4LY. The homelessness charity’s sponsored sleep out; you wake up on World Homeless Day. Each sleeper is asked to aim for £250 in sponsorship. (Glass Door).
  • Reinhardt Buhr in Concert, Friday 9 October, 8pm to 9.30pm, The Tabernacle, 34-35 Powis Square, W11 2AY. A live-looping musician who plays guitar, electric cello, didgeridoo, hang drum and more. (The Tabernacle).

One closure to note: the Natural History Museum is closed on Friday 9 October for a charity gala (Natural History Museum).

Next week

  • Open Art Market, Saturday 10 October, 10am to 5pm, Phillimore Walk, W8 7RG. Original art and handmade pieces sold by the artists. The Open Art Sketch Club meets there at 12pm for a guided sketch walk, back by 3pm. Our markets page has every date. (High Street Kensington).
  • Voices of Soul, Saturday 10 October, 7pm, Cadogan Hall. Soul and Motown from the 35-piece Down for the Count Orchestra. £34.50 to £59.50, limited availability. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Justin Hayward: The Story in Your Eyes Tour, Monday 12 and Tuesday 13 October, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall. The voice of the Moody Blues. £49.50 to £64.50, limited availability. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Movana Chen: Questioning the Line, Wednesday 14 to Saturday 17 October, 7.30pm, with a 2.30pm matinee on the Saturday, The Coronet Theatre. Dance and sculpture from the Hong Kong and Lisbon artist. £25. (The Coronet Theatre).
  • Clara Sophia in Concert, Thursday 15 October, 8pm to 9.30pm, The Tabernacle. Vocals, handpan and guitar from the music duo. (The Tabernacle).
  • Wildlife Photographer of the Year, opens Friday 16 October, runs to 11 July 2027, Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD. Adult off-peak tickets from £17, members free. (Natural History Museum).

Later in October

  • London Gay Symphony Orchestra: 30th Anniversary Concert, Sunday 18 October, 6.30pm, Cadogan Hall. Includes a world premiere by Mark Bowden. £24.50 to £34.50, limited availability. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Boram Kim: Gwantong 18, Thursday 22 to Saturday 24 October, 7.30pm, The Coronet Theatre. A dance solo. £20 to £40. (The Coronet Theatre).
  • The Simon & Garfunkel Story, Friday 23 October, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall. £37.50 to £50.50, limited availability. (Cadogan Hall).
  • High Street Kensington Halloween trail, Friday 23 to Saturday 31 October, Kensington High Street. A map through the shops with hidden clues and treats; the trail guide is due soon. Our Halloween page lists every shop event. (High Street Kensington).
  • Freddie Mercury: Splendid Things, opens Saturday 24 October, V&A South Kensington, Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL. Free, no booking. Eight looks from his career on a trail across the museum. See our guide to the display. (V&A).
  • Frankenstein (1931) with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, Sunday 25 October, 3.30pm and 7pm, Cadogan Hall. The Boris Karloff film with a new score by Michael Shapiro played live. £29.50 to £64.50, limited availability. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Bellows Across Borders, Sunday 25 October, 2pm to 3.30pm, The Tabernacle. London Accordion Orchestra hosts the Akkordeon-Studio-Orchester Bielefeld. Our story on the concert. (The Tabernacle).
  • The Big Kensington Flea Market, Halloween edition, Saturday 31 October, 10am to 4.30pm, Phillimore Walk, W8 7RG. The vintage market with a gothic theme. (High Street Kensington).
  • Halloween at the Design Museum, Saturday 31 October, 3.30pm to 7pm, Design Museum. Free family drop-in for ages 5 to 11, no booking: mask-making, a Samhain trail and monster drawing. (High Street Kensington).
  • Playful Park of Peculiar, Saturday 31 October, 4.30pm to 7.30pm, Holland Park, entrance on Kensington High Street, W8 7RG. Free but ticketed. The first tickets have gone and more are released on 15 October. (High Street Kensington).
  • Halloween at the Natural History Museum, Saturday 31 October, 7pm to midnight, Natural History Museum. A vampire-themed evening in the galleries, 18+ only with ID. From £65, members from £58. (Natural History Museum).

November

  • The Longest Yarn 2: Britain at War, Monday 2 to Thursday 12 November, Royal Hospital Chelsea, SW3 4SR. An 80-metre knitted and crocheted exhibition of wartime Britain, ticketed. Our Royal Hospital page has its November programme. (Royal Hospital Chelsea).
  • John Simpson: The Leaders and Lunatics Tour, Wednesday 4 November, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall. The BBC world affairs editor on stage. £16.50 to £68.50 plus fees. (Cadogan Hall).
  • The Last Princesses of Punjab, final day Sunday 8 November, Kensington Palace. The exhibition on Sophia Duleep Singh is included in palace admission. (Historic Royal Palaces).
  • Governor’s Lecture: Dr Philip Mansel, Wednesday 11 November, Royal Hospital Chelsea. The historian of France and the Middle East. £30 per person, including a drink. (Royal Hospital Chelsea).
  • A Concert for Remembrance Day: Dona nobis pacem, Wednesday 11 November, 7.30pm, Cadogan Hall. £24.50 to £52.50. (Cadogan Hall).
  • Hands-On History: First World War artefacts, Saturday 14 November, Royal Hospital Chelsea. Free drop-in, suitable for all ages, handling objects more than a century old. (Royal Hospital Chelsea).
  • Open Art Market, Saturday 14 November, 10am to 5pm, Phillimore Walk, W8 7RG. Art and handmade pieces from independent artists, with the Sketch Club from 12pm. (High Street Kensington).
  • The Afronauts, opens Saturday 14 November, runs to 19 December, Royal Court Theatre. Ryan Calais Cameron’s play about Zambia’s 1964 space programme. (Royal Court Theatre).

Bonfire night: there is no display in the borough. The nearest big one is Battersea Park on Saturday 7 and Sunday 8 November, covered on our fireworks page. For Remembrance Sunday on 8 November, see our Remembrance Sunday page.

Regular events

  • Palace in the Park walking tour, every Wednesday and Sunday until 20 December, Kensington Palace. A guided walk through 300 years of the palace’s history. The next is Sunday 4 October. (Historic Royal Palaces).
  • Duke of York Square Food Market, every Saturday, 10am to 4pm, Duke of York Square. 45 stalls of food and drink. The next is Saturday 10 October. (Cadogan).
  • Kensington Farmers Market, every Sunday until 20 December, 10am to 2pm, Phillimore Walk, W8 7RX. Fish, fruit and vegetables, bread, meat, eggs and flowers. The next is Sunday 4 October. (High Street Kensington).

Getting there

Cadogan Hall and the Royal Court are both a short walk from Sloane Square station. The museums are reached from South Kensington, Phillimore Walk and the Design Museum from High Street Kensington, and the Coronet from Notting Hill Gate. Our tube and travel page has the lines, roadworks and travel lists what is closed, and parking in Kensington sets out the borough’s charges.

This page is rewritten as organisers confirm new dates. Dates can still change, so use the links before you travel. More in our What’s On section.

Send us your event

Running something in Kensington, Chelsea or Notting Hill? Email hello@thekensingtonpost.co.uk with the date, time, venue, price and a photo. Listings are free of charge, and yours goes on this page and in the diary on our What’s On section.

Sources

Image: “Cadogan Hall, London 01” by Paul the Archivist, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons (https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cadogan_Hall,_London_01.jpg).