Avoid the crowds - see some fantastic art for free

There are currently a number of 'big name' art exhibitions drawing big crowds in London including Picasso at Tate Britain,  Lucian Freud at the National Portrait Gallery and David Hockney at the Royal Academy. I'm sure these are all excellent exhibitions but at around £14 for a ticket, they're not cheap options and it seems a shame to pay so much for art that you have to see over the top of other people's heads.  Far better, I say, to take advantage of many of the free exhibitions available which bizarrely enough are sometimes less crowded than the paying ones.

I had this in mind when I found myself near the Tate Britain at lunchtime one day last week with an hour to spare. My main objective was to see an exhibition by the photojournalist Don McCullin that I'd read about. This was smaller than I'd expected - may be around 30 or so photos in total - but certainly didn't disappoint. The pictures, all black and white, were typically bleak but thought provoking, particularly the pictures of homeless people in East London which were taken in the 70s and 80s but could have been taken yesterday.

With abit of extra time on my hands, I had a quick look at some of the other parts of the Gallery. They are currently previewing an interesting-sounding exhibition called Family Matters that starts in October and which will show the way in which families have been portrayed in art through the ages. I can't imagine many family portraits like this nowadays.

I also saw the Chris Ofili painting 'No woman, no cry' which as well as being a beautiful piece of work is a tribute to Stephen Lawrence.

Finally, I watched a short piece of video art called 'High Wire' by Catherine Yass. I'm not usually that keen on video art but if you're a fan of 'Man on Wire' then you'll enjoy this short film of a man balancing on a tightrope suspended between two tower blocks (somewhere in London I think but I couldn't quite work out where). For some reason he doesn't walk all the way across but stops about two thirds of the way across and walks backwards to where he started - very nerve wracking even though you know he's unlikely to fall off.

So all in all an hour well spent.

Iain Sinclair Talk at Foyles Bookshop

Earlier this week I went along to Foyles Bookshop on Charing Cross Road to listen to Iain Sinclair in conversation with Patrick Wright. I'm not familiar with Patrick Wright's work (he's a writer, broadcaster and academic) but I've read some of Iain Sinclair's books, including London Orbital, which chronicles a journey he made around the M25 and the stories behind the places he passes through. He packs alot of information in to his writing and tends to jump from topic to topic (although always in a very knowledgeable way) so it can be hard to follow his chain of thought sometimes. Having recently read and really enjoyed an interesting article he wrote about cycling for the London Review of Books I have decided that his writing is probably best appreciated in small doses.

Iain read extracts from his new book, Ghost Milk, which will be published in July. This is based around the impact of the 2012 Olympics although judging from the write-up about it on his website, it draws in a wide range of other issues too. He and Patrick also discussed a number of other London and Olympic-related topics including the way Hackney has changed over the years (not positively in their view: 'Now everything that was interesting about [Dalston Lane] has been destroyed or is under threat.') and the relationship between China and the West. I'm not sure that I agree with everything that was said but Ghost Milk looks like it should be another interesting book for anyone interested in the past, present and future of London.

The talk was part of the Listen*Read*See London programme of events that Foyles are running this week. That particular programme finishes tomorrow but Foyles hold regular free events at their Charing Cross Road branch and a few events at some of their other branches too. As well as talks from novelists and other writers, they have jazz in the cafe there a few times a week. You need to reserve a place in advance for the talks but I like the fact that this means you don't need to worry about turning up ages in advance to secure a place which can sometimes be the case with free events. I've already booked a place to hear Evan Davis talk about his perspective on the British economy in a couple of weeks time.

Free Theatre in London

London offers some great opportunities for free entertainment, especially in terms of live music but it's generally more difficult to find free theatre performances. That will change over the next few weeks as there are some great opportunities coming up.


This week sees the start of the summer season at The Scoop at More London. Over the course of the summer there will be theatre, music and films all on offer for free at this outdoor venue next to City Hall. It all begins this Wednesday with 'Shakespeare Happens: The Tragedy of Macbeth' which is described as high energy, interactive and colourful. Apparently it aims to bring the look of a graphic novel to life on stage so I'm guessing it may be a different take on Shakespeare! This production runs until 30 May and there are a series of other theatrical performances throughout June including a contemporary take on The Canterbury Tales and a play about rival tour guides competing with each other (Citiest of Cities). July at The Scoop is dedicated to free music but theatre returns in August with 'Around the World in 80 Days' and Brecht's 'The Mother'. It's a great venue but I would recommend wrapping up warm and taking a cushion if you want something soft to sit on.

If musicals are more your thing, then don't miss West End Live in Trafalgar Square on 18 and 19 June. This is an annual celebration of the big West End shows which includes hits from around 20 of the current big hits such as The Lion King, Mamma Mia! and War Horse.