On Sundays, it’s common to find yourself stuck for entertainment: you’re done with partying for a while after a big Saturday night and you’re looking for something quiet but interesting, but half the things you’d normally do are closed. Never mind – London has you covered with plenty of oddball museums, enchanting markets and interesting pastimes to fill your Sundays.
Horniman Museum
This quirky museum houses both an aquarium, full of rare creatures and corals, and a contrasting collection of taxidermy and mummies fit to give anyone the creeps. The collection also houses ancient artefacts from Africa, old musical instruments and plenty of fascinating anthropology. Entry to this gem located in Forest Hill in southeast London is free, though there’s a charge for the aquarium. Enjoy a drink from the café when you’re done and explore the garden. Open 8am-sunset on Sundays, 100 London Road, Forest Hill.
Brixton Village and Farmer’s Market
This is the place to try out artisan food and pick up some fresh locally-grown produce, a few minutes’ walk away from Brixton tube station. Brixton Village is a historic arcade that now houses a collection of small local businesses like Honest Burgers and Agile Rabbit as well as international cuisine from East Asia, Africa, South America, the Caribbean and India. Open 10am-2pm every Sunday.
Rooftop Cinema Club
With three locations spread over London you’ll have no problem getting here from the Shaftesbury Premier London Paddington. This is a perfect way to spend a summer Sunday evening: watching popular and classic movies on a comfy chair on a rooftop as the sun sets over London. You’ll have excellent views of the skyline as well as wireless headphones so you can enjoy the soundtrack in all its glory – and the show will go on if it rains. Tickets from £14.
Vintage shopping
Hit up Annie’s in Camden Passage, Islington, for genuine vintage clothes – beloved by Kate Moss and regularly raided by film producers for period dramas like Brideshead Revisited. Charming and unique, it has a big focus on 1920s flapper style but you can also find day dresses from the ‘30s, ‘50s skirts and plenty of accessories including fur hats, shoes and parasols. Great value and good fun to browse through even if you’ve got no space in your luggage for vintage bargains.
Freud Museum
The celebrated psychologist Sigmund Freud joined his father in London shortly before the beginning of WWII, and he brought his famous couch: the one where his psychoanalysis patients lay for Freud’s “talking cure”. This along with his wide-ranging collection of books and ornaments is preserved just as they were during his lifetime in the house where he lived, arranged by his daughter Anna after he died in 1939. Wander through his art and literature collections and learn about the man, his life, his theories and his tastes. 20 Maresfield Gardens, adults £6.
Columbia Road Flower Market
One of London’s most beautiful markets to wander through, this market is only open on Sundays. Wander through stalls bursting with colourful flowers as well as shrubs, herbs, bulbs and more, all for sale as cut flowers or ready to plant in your garden, from dawn until 2pm. Go early to get the pick of the crop, or go late to grab a bargain if you’re not picky – or just to have a look around. Even in the dead of winter it’s a glorious sight. There are also plenty of galleries and interior design shops along Columbia Road, as well as Lily Vanilli – a baker well-known for her fabulous creations for celebrity clients.
