Free London Festivals - Summer 2008

This summer London will explode with lots of lovely free summer festivals, so while you have been busy praying for sunshine, we have rounded up the best of the best for you to peruse at your leisure.

More London Festival
07/05/08 - 24/09/08
The More London Festival is taking place throughout spring and summer in The Scoop on the Southbank. Events comprise of free film, free music, free theatre and free children's activities, The Scoop will also be hosting Flava Fiesta and Run4Unity...events runs from May to September. www.morelondon.co.uk

A Taste of Spain 2008
25/05/08 - 05/06/08
A Taste of Spain 2008 features a huge record breaking attempt; at the end of May (25/05/08) Regent Street will be shut off for 'The Largest Sevillanas Dance' featuring hundreds of dancers from Andalucia. In addition to the potentially record breaking dance there will be 'interactive' demonstrations, 'Al Aire libre' dance lessons, food and drink sampling, giveaways and competitions. Then at the beginning of June (04/06/08 - 05/06/08) Spanish celebrations will move southwards to Borough Market where specialist food purveyors from London and Spain will host a mouth-watering showcase of Spanish foods and wines. www.tastespain.info

Africa Day 2008
26/05/08
Africa Day is a fantastic annual free festival takes place in Trafalgar Square on May Bank Holiday that celebrates African culture; the music, dance, arts and crafts, markets, food and drink! This year festival goers can expect performances from  Les Amazones de Guinée, Bassekou Kouyate and many more. www.london.gov.uk

The Coin Street Festival
02/06/08 - 17/06/08
The Coin Street Festival is a series of fantastic free events taking place at Bernie Spain Gardens throughout the summer. Things kicks off in June with the English Ceilidh (02/06/08), Pulse (16/06/08) sets the musical tone with performances from rap artists, electro-pop stars, Romany music and more, Celebrating Sanctuary (17/06/08) highlights the plight of those forced to leave their home countries under threat of persecution through the power of creative music. Turkish Fest (14/06/08-15/06/08) takes place at the Bernie Spain Gardens in July and is a celebrating of the Turkish Culture featuring music, food (lots of it) and dance.....all events at Coin Street will feature a variety of food stalls and workshops. www.coinstreet.org

Stoke Fest
08/06/08
Stoke Fest takes place in Clissold Park, Hackney and in 2008 hopes to attract between 20,000 and 30,000 festival goers. The line up for this year's event is yet to be announced but if last year is anything to go by then visitors can expect DJs galore, performances from some of the hottest bands around, world music, circus performers, plays, local bands and artists with plenty of arts and crafts to keep the little people happy. www.stokefest.co.uk

West London Greenfest
15/06/08
West London Greenfest takes place in Furnival Gardens in Hammersmith and aims to hammer home the message of sustainability and greenness. Tfl will be promoting their Sustainable Travel Roadshow and around 50 environmental groups will be present giving visitors the chance to find out about wildlife gardening, composting, eco-living,recycling and saving energy, solar heating, cycling and other greener ways of getting around. There will also be music and kids activities during this informative but fun June event. www.greenfest.org.uk

West End Live
21/06/08 - 22/06/08
West End Live is a fantastic opportunity to get a taster of those frightfully expensive West End Shows. Now in its fourth year, West End LIVE will feature world-class acts from musicals such as Avenue Q, Buddy, Chicago, Dirty Dancing, Grease The Musical, The Sound of Music, Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Mamma Mia! Stomp and The Lord of the Rings, this unmissable weekend of events takes place in Leicester Square at the end of June. www.westendlive.co.uk

Carnival De Cuba
28/06/08 - 29/06/08
Carnival De Cuba is one of the biggest and best free festivals in London; taking place over an entire weekend in June, Carnival de Cuba brings Latin America alive in Southwark Park. Carnival de Cuba is all about music and dance, performing this year is Charanga Habanera, Eminencia Clasica, Telmary and Ricardo Levya. Visitors to the park can take part in drumming and dance workshops, kids can enjoy loads of free events including face painting before rounding up the days events with a colourful conga procession around the park! www.carnival-de-cuba.com

Canada Day
30/06/08 - 01/07/08
On a Monday in Late June visitors to Trafalgar Square will come sporting the maple leaf on Canada Day! The event will take place in the evening and will feature music from the acclaimed Kathleen Edwards, The Trews, Jesse Cook and The McDades. The next day will host an impressive range of activities for all the family to enjoy, some brand new and some firm favourites from past festivals like the battle for the Trafalgar cup in the street hockey tournament! www.canadadaylondon.com

Watch This Space
04/07/08 - 14/09/08
The Watch This Space Festival is a fantastic opportunity to get your theatre kicks for free! This summer the space outside the National Theatre will be transformed into an outdoor theatre. This year there will be the chance to see international world premieres of specially commissioned new work, as well as a sparkling mix of British and international street theatre, bands, club nights, dance, cabaret and spectacle. The festival runs from July to September so whatever you do, don't miss it! www.nationaltheatre.org.uk

The Big Dance London
05/07/08 - 13/07/08
The Big Dance London Festival will hit various venues across the city this July. Big Dance 2008 is a week long celebration of dance in all its styles and forms and is open to everyone to join in! You can organise your own dance event or take par in an exiting event, schools, colleges, clubs and other organisations are being encouraged to take part and get dancing either for fun or for charity! www.london.gov.uk/bigdance


RISE
13/07/08
The Rise Festival in Finsbury Park brings together Londoners for a day of music and entertainment in July. The main message of the day is that London is united against racism and that we can live together in harmony in our capital city. This festival is a huge affair and attracts big names in music, last year the likes of Kelis, Jamelia, Skatalites and St. Etienne performed while the ace Bill Bailey had people laughing their tits off in the comedy tent. 2008's event promises to be just as good, so check back for line up details. www.risefestival.org

The Lambeth Country Show
19/07/08 - 20/07/08
For those of you unfamiliar with the Lambeth Country Show - or festival - it's a family-friendly smorgasbord of music, arts, crafts, funfair rides, outdoor zoos and steam engines. All presented with a typically South London vibe - as in plenty of sunshine, reggae, brass bands, warm smiles and chilled beers in the July sunshine. www.lambeth.gov.uk

Carnaval del Pueblo
03/08/08
Carnaval del Pueblo is the biggest Latin-American event in Europe and takes place every August in Camberwell's Burgess Park. The festival is a diverse and multicultural event and has a history of attracting international stars from amongst the 19 Latin American countries, Europe and London who perform in four different stages attracting over 130,000 music lovers! The festival is made up of music, dance, workshops, children's activities and a colourful and striking costumed float procession of some 19 floats that make their way from City Hall before travelling the 3 miles to Burgess Park...this really is an event not to be missed! www.carnavaldelpueblo.co.uk

Notting Hill Carnival
24/08/08 - 25/08/08
The Notting Hill Carnival takes place every year on August Bank Holiday weekend and is the highlight of the summer festival season. Europe's biggest street party brings people together as the streets of West London come alive with colour. Six disciplines make up the Notting Hill Carnival. Mas' (masquerade), Steelband, Calypso (political, social and satirical commentary, set to music), Soca (the traditional music of Carnival, a fusion of Soul and Calypso), Static Sound Systems, and Samba...all of which make the Notting Hill event so special and interesting. If you have never experienced carnival before then don't miss this wonderful day to remember! www.mynottinghill.co.uk

Thames Festival
13/09/08 - 14/09/08
The Mayor's Thames Festival signals the end of the festival season taking place in Mid-September and featuring some fantastic events and entertainment on land and water. Visitors to the Thames can expect open air arts, pyrotechnics, illuminations, river events, street theatre, massed choirs and music. Also, this year marks the festival's 10th Anniversary and so expect things to be bigger and better - from the Al Fresco Ballrooms in unique riverside settings, to themed feasts on Southwark Bridge, to the festival's climactic event, a spectacular Night Carnival and the ultimate fireworks display. www.thamesfestival.org

Not all line-ups and details are currently available so check back as summer approaches for more information on these fantastic free days out!