The Weekend Planner: Battersea, Balham & Clapham

The heatwave is back with a vengeance, it seems! Keep cool and calm this weekend, and take a look at our events guide if you need some entertainment inspiration.

Beach to Balham

Celebrate summer with the "Beach to Balham" Mauritian pop-up dining experience tonight, hosted by Yummy Choo. The delicious menu includes split pea chilli cakes, fresh coriander satini, Mauritian Cari Poulet, and spiced Basmati rice. As for dessert? The homemade coconut ice-cream with pineapple coulis and pistachios will certainly add to the tropical atmosphere! You’ll spend the evening in a beach-hut style cafe, decked out in your finest island garb – think breezy summer clothing and flowers in your hair. Full location details will only be revealed upon booking.

The Battersea Barge

This Sunday night there will be a cabaret evening taking place on the Battersea Barge. Doors open at 6.30pm and the show will begin an hour later. The barge, famous for its live music, delicious food and great atmosphere, can be found adjacent to the Riverside development. For an entertaining evening, be sure to get yourself down to the river this Sunday!

Clapham Common

The Put Back Festival will take place this Saturday at Clapham Common, in celebration of the area’s diverse cultural past. There will be children’s entertainment, including go-carts, face-painting, a bouncy castle, a super slide and a round of giant pass-the-parcel. For adults, meanwhile, there will be live music, international food stalls and a football match featuring some of Lambeth’s rising stars. This free community event will run from 12pm to 6pm.

Balham Country Market

The Balham Country Market takes place on the first Saturday of every month at the Balham Bowls Club. Baked goods, fresh produce, jewellery, crafts, art and other food items will be on sale, in addition to Fairtrade tea and coffee. The market will run from 1pm to 4pm, and takes place indoors – so you don’t have to worry about any sudden downpours!

Battersea Park

There will be a 10km race tomorrow taking place at Battersea Park at 8am. The race, organised by the Sri Chinmoy AC running club, caters for all fitness levels. If you’re keen for a bout of exercise in beautiful surroundings, then don’t forget to sign up.

Whole Foods Market Clapham Junction

Whole Foods will be hosting a “Coconut Craze” festival this weekend – today there will be a tiki bar with coconut prawns and pina coladas! Tomorrow the Coconut Fair will be taking place, where you will get to meet their coconut suppliers, and sample a variety of coconut dishes accompanied by refreshments from the bar. Sunday is your last chance to visit the tiki bar – and staff will also be on hand to help you open the young coconuts, in which you can pop a straw and make like you’re really on an exotic island. All the events will run from 12pm to 3pm. For more info you can take a look here.

Prudential RideLondon

The Prudential RideLondon cycling races will take place this weekend in central London. There is a family FreeCycle race on Saturday, which consists of an enjoyable eight-mile traffic-free circuit. The three RideLondon Grand Prix races, meanwhile, will showcase the talent of future Olympians, professional women’s cyclists and hand-cycle racing, a celebration of London’s Paralympic legacy. The RideLondon Surrey Classic, a 100 mile race beginning at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park and finishing at The Mall in central London, will take place this Sunday, along with the Surrey Classic, which features 150 professional cyclists and will pass through 12 London boroughs and the county of Surrey.

Even if you’re not participating, you can still go along and show your support. There will be fun community events taking place on Sunday at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park after the cyclists have departed. For information on the best places along the route to view the race, here’s a link to the RideLondon spectator guide.