The Weekend Guide: Westminster & Pimlico

Happy Friday, everybody. Here’s our roundup of all the events taking place in your area this weekend! It’s definitely time to relax after the hot weather and royal baby fever.

London Triathlon

The Virgin Active London Triathlon will be held this weekend – even if you’re not participating, you can still go along and cheer on the athletes! The race is concentrated around the ExCel centre, so anywhere nearby will provide you with a great view.

BBC Proms

The music extravaganza is now in its third week, with Proms 18, 19 and 20 taking place this weekend. Tonight at 5pm, the third installment of Wagner’s epic, entitled “Siegfried” will be performed, whilst Prom 19’s show tomorrow night will feature the music from Wagner’s tragedy “Tristan and Isolde”. Rounding off a weekend of Wagner will be Sunday’s 4.30pm show, the final part of his “Ring of the Nibelung” series. For further performance details, visit the official BBC Proms website. All shows will take place at the Royal Albert Hall.

Regent’s Park

Enjoy some open-air theatre at Regent’s Park with the Sound of Music, which opened yesterday. The show will run until 7 September, with matinee performances at 2.15pm and evening performances at 7.45pm. Rediscover some classic favourites with this 50’s musical!

Cinnamon Kitchen

In celebration of 100 years of Indian cinema, the Cinnamon Kitchen has teamed up with Picturehouse cinemas for a pop-up film and food evening this Friday and Saturday night. The terrace has been converted into a temporary outdoor screen – “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” will be shown tonight, whilst “Life of Pi” will be played as Saturday’s entertainment. Delicious food on offer includes roasted tilapia with mustard and coconut, lamb mince kebab wrapped in roomali roti, stir fry chicken with garlic and red chillies, tangy potatoes in semolina shell, clove-smoked salmon with coconut and ginger, and much, much more. Visitors will also receive a special popcorn-infused rum cocktail. Tickets are priced at £35 per person, including film ticket, cocktail, canapés and bowl food. You can find them at number 9 Devonshire Square.

Millbank Tower

The 29th floor of the Millbank Tower will play host to The Wandering Chef’s pop-up food and film event this Saturday night. The evening is appropriately entitled “The Pig Lebowski” – no prizes for guessing which film you’ll be watching! The menu for the night includes chipotle glazed ribs with pickled onion salsa salad, mustard glazed hotdog with gibriche salad and chips, and macaroni cheese with chilli apple relish. The event comes courtesy of the Grub Club, a pop-up restaurant initiative. Saturday’s start times are at 6.30pm and 7.15pm. Tickets for the film and food are £25.

Buckingham Palace

The Summer Opening of Buckingham Palace will take place this Saturday. What’s more, 2013 marks 60 years since the Queen’s coronation.  As a result, there will also be a special exhibition in the palace ballroom displaying memorabilia used or present on that day in 1953 – dresses, robes, uniforms, paintings and other special objects. Items of particular interest include the Queen's white satin coronation dress, designed by Norman Hartnell, the Queen's Robe of Estate, made from English purple silk, and the Diamond Diadem. The State Dining Room,  meanwhile, will be done-up to mimic the atmosphere of the last Coronation Banquets, complete with porcelain, silver-gilt and flowers.

The palace will be open to the public until 29 September, so do make sure you stop by this summer.

Regent Street

It’s the last of the Summer Streets events this Sunday - the theme this time around is “The Gardens of Regent Street”. For a traffic-free day of fun, take a stroll down the road, where wheelbarrows used as planters will provide a lush garden atmosphere. There will also be jazz performances, acrobatic shows and a busking competition. Nike will provide dance activities, whilst Anthropologie will feature a living wall outside the store. There will also be poets available to write odes and ballads on command, if that’s your cup of tea. Many of the shops and restaurants will be holding specials and tasters throughout the day.

So there you have it! Let us know on Facebook or Twitter regarding any events we may have missed! Don't forget to like our Pimlico area page on Facebook. 

From all of us here at Douglas and Gordon, have a wonderful weekend.