The Paddington Bear Experience is coming to South Bank in May!
Get your tickets for The Paddington Bear™ Experience, officially coming to South Bank in May 2024.
In the coming year exciting new attractions and restaurants prepare for launch in South Bank, while our iconic cultural institutions are once again setting the bar high with a stunning lineup of new productions, performances and festivals to look forward to.
Here’s a look at what’s new in South Bank in 2024 to keep an eye out for...
Lucky Voice karaoke is coming to The Sidings
London’s favourite karaoke bar Lucky Voice is coming to South Bank in the spring, opening at The Sidings centre adjoining Waterloo Station.
The latest addition to the Lucky Voice family, which includes locations in Soho, Holborn, Liverpool Street and Islington, will boast eight private karaoke rooms and an intimate bar area to keep the party going long into the wee hours. The launch of Lucky Voice is part of the next stage of development at The Sidings, joining other major brands also located in the centre such as BrewDog and Nando's.
Magical new immersive experiences
If all things go according to plan, two highly anticipated immersive experiences are due to open in 2024 in South Bank; Labyrinth and The Paddington Bear Experience.
“A fusion of storytelling, music, circus, puppetry and spectacle”, Labyrinth is a huge purpose-built venue at The Sidings that will host Les Enfant Terribles' hit immersive show Alice’s Adventures Underground. Labyrinth will also contain the Underland cocktail bar, while an accompanying restaurant, The Rosarium, is already open.
Meanwhile, over at County Hall, work is underway on The Paddington Bear Experience. The plans for the experience were first announced in March 2023 and what we know so far is that “visitors will get to help Paddington and The Brown family prepare for a very special day in this multi-sensory, interactive experience”.
More new restaurants and bars
2023 was an exciting year for South Bank’s dining scene with a slew of new restaurants and bars opening including Lasdun and Forza Wine at National Theatre, La Gamba at Southbank Centre, The Victory at Waterloo Station and Peacock at County Hall.
There are yet more openings in store in 2024 too, including a branch of the popular Lebanese restaurant Comptoir Libanais arriving at Southbank Centre in the spring and another new pub, the Waterloo Arms in Waterloo Station.
Also on the horizon is South Bank’s first dedicated comedy club, Big Belly, slated to establish itself at the Southbank Central Development near Oxo Tower Wharf.
Comptoir Libanais
Lambeth Palace to reopen for tours
The historic Lambeth Palace has been the official London home of the Archbishop of Canterbury since the 13th Century and is only open to the public for Open Day tours. There have been no tours in recent years due to substantial restoration works, although happily these are scheduled to be completed in time for summer 2024.
Following a major renovation that has seriously upped the building's sustainability credentials, the Palace plans to reopen for guided tours from the summer. The popular Open Garden Days will also return in 2024, presenting a unique opportunity to explore one of London’s largest and oldest private gardens.
2024 theatre highlights
Following a phenomenal 2023 that saw scores of acclaimed new shows making their debut on the National Theatre's South Bank stages, the NT is all set to continue its run of success with more eagerly anticipated productions on the lineup in 2024.
In February, Welsh national treasure Michael Sheen plays Nye Bevan in Nye, “a surreal and spectacular journey through the life and legacy of the man who transformed Britain’s welfare state”.
In March the NT presents Underdog: The Other Other Brontë, an irreverent new play by Sarah Gordon about the Brontë sisters makes its debut. And in April Dickens meets PJ Harvey in London Tide, a new thriller based on Dickens' Our Mutual Friend set to original songs by the acclaimed singer-songwriter.
Meanwhile, over at the Old Vic, 2024 kicks off with the world premiere of a brand new musical Just For One Day (26 Jan-30 Mar). The musical relives the story of the iconic Live Aid concert and the stars who brought the event together. Starring a 26-strong cast, it is packed with hit songs by the likes of Bob Dylan, David Bowie, The Who, U2, Queen, The Police, Elton John, Paul McCartney and Diana Ross.
Michael Sheen plays Nye Bevan in the NT's surrealist new play Nye
On the big screen at the BFI
There’s always something exciting coming up at London’s iconic BFI Southbank cinema. For 2024, in addition to leading festivals such as BFI Flare (13-24 March) and London International Film Festival (Oct), major themed seasons to look forward to include an Italian neo-realist cinema season (May-Jun), Tigritudes, a two-month survey of African cinema (June-July), a special stop-motion animation season (Aug-Oct) and a James Baldwin season (Oct-Nov).
Over at Britain’s biggest screen, the BFI IMAX, fans can look forward to more screenings of Christopher Nolan's finest films as the acclaimed director receives a BFI fellowship in February. On the blockbuster side of things, the much-awaited Dune: Part Two is scheduled for release in March. Shot in IMAX and starring Hollywood's hottest young actors, it will no doubt cause frenzied excitement once the official screening dates and ticket sales are announced in the coming weeks. Watch this space!
