Things to do in London this week

No matter what your thoughts on Reece Shearsmith and Steve Pemberton’s beloved BBC horror anthology series Inside No 9, Stage/Fright is a delight, with the duo at the peak of their powers. It dips into the TV show – the first half heavily revolves around the episode Bernie Clifford’s Dressing Room – but it is a rare spinoff that feels totally a thing of the theatre. That’s partly a result of the pair’s long-standing fascination with Grand Guignol, music hall, stand-up and other forms of stage entertainment. It’s a tribute to theatre and stage life in a broader sense. It’s a parting gift, a celebration of Inside No. 9 and its influences, the real wrap party.

London’s beautiful Brutalist masterpiece The Barbican Centre is welcoming in the new season with ‘Concrete Garden’, a cross-arts programme of workshops, talks, screenings and events all celebrating those happy Spring feelings of renewal, growth and wellness. The whole series is inspired by the Barbican’s new major exhibition focussing on the work of American artist Noah Davis whose figurative paintings elevate the everyday and Citra Sasmita’s Curve commission Into Eternal Land explore ancestral memory, ritual and migration. Look out for performances and other special events. 

Anyone who has been to San Sebastian knows that butch slabs of charred, rugged steak are its lifeblood. Ibai, a new Basque grill house appropriately close to Smithfield Market, fulfils its brief with immaculate poise. Situated inside a roomy old factory building, it serves three kinds of steak; black angus, Galician blond and full-blood Wagyu. The names of the men who have raised the cows are on the menu. We tuck into an hilariously large 1kg t-bone steak – a velvet blush on the inside, and alongside an indulgent Ossau-Iraty cheese-and-black-pepper sauce, a mountain of fries and a zingy tomato-and-shallot salad. If you take your meat seriously (and have the cash to spare), you’ll be booking a table now. 

In the month Elon Musk joined the White House staff and US tech giants unveiled a new $500bn AI initiative, director Drew Hancock releases his debut film, Companion. Talk about timely. His feminist comedy-horror dives headfirst into a world involving a sentient sexbot going violently rogue. Which, right now, feels like next Tuesday. The film successfully leans into absurdity, offering a cathartic and darkly funny exploration of gender dynamics and control. It doesn’t delve deeply into the moral quandaries of AI and sentience, but it does deliver the undeniable satisfaction of watching a controlling, entitled man get his ass handed to him by a sexbot.

In cinemas worldwide Jan 31.

There’s something very old-school goth to yuné pinku, as she channelled her love of gothic fables and her Catholic schooling into her latest EP Sacrificial Lamb. The mixtape blends brooding garage and trip-hop with folklore lyrics to create something that sounds ecstatically haunting. She’s invited burgeoning talents Sassy 009 and Oscar Farrell to join her at Phonox for one heck of a moody night out on Brixton.

Phonox, SW9 7AY. Sat Feb 8, 10pm. From £5.

This smart satire from Kelly Jones follows Abigail (Nicole Sawyerr), a struggling young working class playwright whose mum has just died. The cost of the funeral her mum wanted is £4,000 – which Abigail can in no way afford, not least because the Royal Court-coded theatre she was under commission for to write a play about gay termites in space (!) has decided to back out. My Mother’s Funeral isn’t so much about funerals as it is working class dignity and Sawyerr’s performance as the dazed Abigail is heartbreakingly proud. There’s something truly special bubbling under the surface.

The long shadow of a tragic accident looms over the story of two feuding farming families in this gripping debut from director Christopher Andrews. What unfolds in Andrews’ screenplay, co-written with Jonathan Hourigan, has the grim inevitability of a Greek tragedy, no less violent than the feud at the centre of The Banshees of Inisherin, albeit without that film’s Irish black humour. Set in rural Ireland, it feels like a Gaelic version of a Kurosawa film, enhanced by the cut-up storytelling and a sparse, dread-inducing skin-drum score. It’s as bleak and chilly as a winter’s night in the Irish hinterland, and every bit as bracing.

In UK cinemas Fri Feb 7.

The archives of the Bishopsgate Institute are a treasure trove of LGBTQ+ history with extensive collections of cuttings, badges, banners, leather jackets – and even a set of wizard’s robes. Lead by the legendary Stefan Dickers, the special collections and archives manager at the Institute, these 90-minute sessions will acquaint you with the collection, which comprises more than 10,000 LGBTQ+ titles, and the individual archives of Stonewall, Switchboard, the Terrence Higgins Trust and the UK Leather and Fetish Archives. 

‘Vogue: Inventing the Runway’ takes you on a journey through the evolution of fashion shows, from intimate salons to today’s epic, celebrity-filled spectacles. Step into the front row and backstage at some of fashion’s most iconic moments, all projected on Lightroom’s massive 360-degree walls. With immersive animations, a killer soundtrack, and jaw-dropping visuals, this exhibit celebrates the creativity and drama that turned runway shows into cultural milestones. Save up to 33% with student tickets at £10 and adult tickets at £19.

Get adult tickets for £19 (down from £25), or student tickets for just £10, only through Time Out Offers.

In the early twentieth century Brazil was a country shackled by artistic conservatism but bursting at the seams with vibrant indigenous and immigrant cultures, so the modernists decided to create something new and totally Brazilian. That new Brazilian cud is on display here, and it’s gorgeous. The 10 artists in this show mash together indigenous aesthetics, art history and influences from the new European avant garde with a social consciousness and desire to address the challenges of life in Brazil. Poverty, racism, immigration, radicalism and more colour than your eyes can handle.

A highlight of Kew Gardens’ annual orchid festival, this series of late openings invites visitors into the vibrant tropical environs of the Princess of Wales Conservatory after dark for a special evening of entertainment celebrating Peru, the subject country of the 2025 festival. Guests will be able to sample snacks and cocktails crafted by Peruvian chef Ángel Chávez as they take in a series of live music and dance acts hailing from the Latin American country. There’ll also be an opportunity to hear from some of Kew’s resident scientists about the Gardens’ pioneering scientific research projects in Peru, and of course, a chance to get up close to the colourful orchid displays. 

Get ready for a fun night at Shuffleboard Bar London, where you can enjoy one hour of shuffleboard, a pizza, and a pint or glass of wine, all for just £15.95 each. Set in a cool, graffiti-covered private area, it’s the perfect spot to unwind, challenge friends, and even throw in a victory dance. With live sports, classic arcade games, and a fully stocked bar – including a DJ and an authentic London Bus – you'll find endless entertainment. Open Monday to Sunday from midday to 10 pm, it's the ultimate destination for a unique night out in the heart of London.

Get a game, pizza and a choice of a pint or a glass of wine at ShuffleBoard Bar London for £15.95, only through Time Out Offers.

Get cosy this Valentine’s Day at the Prince Charles and explore their rotating programme of cult, arthouse and classic films, alongside recent Hollywood blockbusters. Veering away from the typical romcoms, the Prince Charles Cinema is offering a line-up of more obscure Valentine’s friendly films, from Wong Kar Wai’s paean to the agony’n’ecstasy of buttoned-up emotions ‘In the Mood for Love’, romantic classics ‘True Romance’ and ‘Casablanca’, Céline Sciamma’s glorious period romance ‘Portrait of a Lady on Fire’, the wonderful ‘Before’ trilogy and rom-com faves like ‘When Harry Met Sally’. 

In the short, dark days of midwinter, it’s pretty rare you get a chance to bask in the sun’s warm glow. That is, unless you pay a visit to Greenwich’s Painted Hall over the next couple of months to catch Luke Jerram’s latest installation. A to-scale sculpture of our sun, complete with sunspots and filaments, Helios is the most recent addition to the British artist’s ongoing series of large-scale celestial installations. Accompanied by a soundscape created by acclaimed composers Duncan Speakman and Sarah Anderson, the seven-metre-tall sculpture is suspended from the ceiling of the Old Royal Naval College’s magnificent Baroque dining hall. 

The annual celebration of the UK’s best art graduates returns, this time in a new venue. New Contemporaries is always a chance to see what the art schools are churning out, an opportunity to spot some potential stars of the future and to take the pulse of young art in the UK right now. 

New Contemporaries is at the ICA, Jan 15-Mar 23 2025. More details here.