If you only go to one festival this year, make sure it's the
Thames Festival. Taking place along the south bank of the river, from Westminster Bridge all the way along to Tower Bridge, the two-day event promises oodles of entertainment across four zones.
Zone 1 events include Festival Freedom Stage where unique musical acts such as
Sam Sallon,
Tawiah,
The Invisible,
Saravah Soul,
Delta Maid,
Son of Dave and
Ska Cubano will be performing.
In Zone 1 you'll also find free photography masterclasses laid on by Olympus, together with magazines What Digital Camera and Amateur Photographer. So if you don't know your aperture from your ISO number, or think that depth-of-field is something only farmers care about, then these masterclasses are for you.
The Thames Festival Market brings together lots of food vendors and crafts traders. More than 300 stalls from across the country will be present, so pop along to see what they have to offer.
For those aged between 13 and 19,
BBC Blast will be running a number of workshops focusing on film, radio, theatre and dance.
Zone 2 highlights include the Festival Fireworks display, being held on Sunday between Waterloo Bridge and Blackfriars Bridge.
Also on Sunday is the Night Carnival, an unmissable coming together of more than 2,000 dancers, musicians and entertainers.
It's not every day you can build sand castles on the banks of the River Thames, so you'd better check out Thames Beach. You'll find it on the foreshore by
Gabriel's Wharf.
In Zone 3 there's the Tate Movie Project, an art, film and animation event, with tips and tricks on film-making offered to children by professionals from BAFTA, Aardman and CBBC.
On Saturday there'll also be the popular Feast on the Bridge, where Southwark Bridge is shut off to traffic and turned into a giant dining area. If you've ever fancied having dinner outside on a bridge, here's your chance. Try food from some of the UK's top sustainable producers and wash it down with booze from the bar on the bridge.
Zone 4 features the Thames Festival River Parade. The event, taking place on Saturday, will see the river awash with boats, ships and yachts of all shapes and sizes.
Sunday sees the Sing for Water charity event, a mass singalong raising money for
WaterAid.
The Thames Festival has lots more events besides the ones mentioned above – click
here to find out more.
