Tower Hamlets has a vibrant arts scene, and a host of family and community activities. We hope you find something to enjoy.
For more events taking place in Tower Hamlets this month, visit our What’s on Guide for arts and entertainment listings.
 Music, film, workshops, heritage, exhibitions and more form the varied, month-long programme of events and activities to mark Black History Month 2021 in Tower Hamlets. See below for some highlights and head over to the ‘what’s on’ listings for the full programme.
The Museum of London Docklands have a great programme for Black History Month. You can learn about key moments in London’s Black history with an interactive timeline, drop in to a weekend storytelling session with Soup Stories, inspired by the new display ‘Feeding Black: Community, Power & Place’ and explore the stories of past Black Londoners with a digital trail for the whole of half term week.
Local organisation Trapped in Zone One are creating two new community murals in Tower Hamlets which showcase the rich diversity of the borough and honour a community champion who is an inspiration to young people in Tower Hamlets. For details of how you can get involved in these free creative workshops please visit their website.
Alternative Arts presents ten black artists who have been invited to exhibit their photography at the Brady Arts Centre during Black History Month. Covid confinement has inspired a series of stunning portraits and observations about Motherhood, Superheroes, Identity and Rituals past and present. The show is a celebration of black culture, perception and moving personal experience. It is also available online.
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Lon-art Creative powered by Tower Hamlets offer two events to reflect on what it is to be a Black British woman. First a physical panel talk, taking place at Restless Being venue, discusses the journey of Identity of Black women in the UK, and an online workshop that will open a conversation about ‘colourism’, ‘sexuality’ and ‘hair’ herstories led by our Shero artist Rachelle Romeo. Lon-art aim to highlight the herstories of black women in Britain, their experiences, struggles and achievements through the arts.
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London Throughout the Decades
Genesis Cinema are screening a film season showcasing key London films by black filmmakers.
This begins in the 1970s with Horace Ove’s Pressure telling the story of the British-born son of an immigrant family from Trinidad who finds himself adrift between two cultures. Franco Rosso’s Babylon captures the trials of young black youths in troubled London in the early eighties. Isaac Julien’s Young Soul Rebels from 1991 portrays the meeting of youth culture and identity politics in this part-thriller, part-gay love story. Shola Amoo’s a Moving Image, a multimedia feature about gentrification in Brixton, incorporates fiction, documentary and performance art. Films are £5.50, or free to Tower Hamlets residents.
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 Fun Palaces are back! October 2 sees the return of free family events on the Boundary Estate, St Margaret’s House and Half Moon Theatre. Fun Palaces support local people to co-create their own cultural and community events sharing and celebrating the genius in everyone. Fun Palaces are free to attend and open to all.
Boundary Estate Fun Palace is a resident made Fun Palace at Virginia Primary School. Activities will include interactive history with the Metropolitan Archives, the exciting world of pathology with the Royal College of Pathologists, meet the Spitalfields Farm's chickens, weaving workshops, pop-up tennis courts with Tower Hamlets Tennis, clowning fun with Told by an Idiot, Hip-hop and rap workshop, how to make marvelous machines from everyday things and much more!
Join St. Margaret’s House in Bethnal Green for their annual Fun Palace. A free event for all ages. Activities will include bath bomb workshops, sensory workshops, yoga, meditation, a digital business workshop, visioning workshop, arts and crafts and more.
Half Moon’s theme this year is oceans and water. Join them to create a Fun Palace throughout their building and garden with an inspiring programme of events for all ages, celebrating arts and culture. Dip into one or two events or stay for the whole day!
 Utopia is a multimedia group art exhibition showcasing the theme of the wider ECOfeminism festival through the work of 75 UK and London-based International artists.
The ECOFeminism Festival is inspired by the movement that started in the 70s, exploring the relationship between nature and women. The Exhibition is accompanied by an extensive programme of events including a wide range of workshops for all ages, performances, talks, and artist-in-residence programme.
Utopia is open at The Art Pavilion, Mile End Park from Thursday 7 to Sunday 17 October
The Festival also presents a conference discussing the evolution of ECOFeminism and a short film festival exploring the theme in the categories of experimental, animation, fiction and documentary by UK and International Filmmakers. Screening at the Genesis Cinema.
 A new exhibition at Tower Hamlets Local History Library & Archives
The Vanished East End highlights the huge social and economic changes in the area, including the now vanished industrial landscape and the deregulation of the financial markets. The group show features work from the 1970s and the 1980s by acclaimed photographers Tom Hunter, Diane Bush, Mike Seaborne, Brian Griffin and Syd Shelton.
 A new monthly comedy night from Brick Lane Circle on 16 October at the Kobi Nazrul Centre in Spitalfields. This month’s line up includes Edinburgh/HBO star Darius Davies with The Impish Scribe, Sharlin Jahan, Gbemi Oladipo, Asif Baul MC and Ollie Fox.
 “We may never see change in our life time, but if we can plant the foundation for change then the future shall be brighter.” Come along to the Genesis Cinema on Wednesday 13 October and see the debut of the film made by young people in collaboration with the sensational IMD Legion after a week of workshops earlier this summer to explore black identity and leadership in 2021. Participants used dance, spoken work and poetry as a creative response to recent events including the death of George Floyd and the Black Lives Matter movement. “Our differences make as beautiful, our skin colour makes us unique! Many cultures facilities growth, our lifestyles Educate us and red blood cells we bleed unite us!
 In Search of Possibilities is the latest exhibition from the international exhibiting group Prism. Following their popular 2020 online exhibition ‘In search of (im)possibilities’, this years exhibition sees this diverse and group showcase a range of textile practices with a fine art approach.
The exhibition aims to bring a different perspective on the medium of fabric, thread and mixed media, dispelling the common myths surrounding textiles and opening minds to the variety of possibilities. Artists will be available to discuss the exhibition and its themes with visitors throughout.
In Search of Possibilities is on view at The Art Pavilion in Mile End Park from Thursday 21 to Sunday 31 October
 Head over to Victoria Park for some spooky goings on in October Half Term. Join in with a Spooky Sticker Hunt, some beastly bulb planting and some creepy arts and crafts! All sessions are free and no booking is required. For more information contact victoriapark@towerhamlets.gov.uk
 The Space's Winter Season includes the venue's 25th anniversary celebration, London Horror Festival, climate change festival Good COP, Bad COP 26 and an original Christmas play, Arctic Sonder. It’s a full body workout with shows set to chill the spine, tickle the ribs, exercise the brain cells and warm the heart. Topics covered range from the female teenage experience to what it's like to lose your memory with heaps of new writing, a musical comedy, cabaret and African story-telling to enjoy. Audiences have the option of staying home this winter as the majority of our shows will be livestreamed by our award-nominated team.
 This year Bengal History Week has been extended to the whole month of October 2021 to celebrate the 50th year of Bangladesh’s independence.
This year’s programme sees a wide variety of heritage and cultural talks and events, walks and performances including “Add another lak to it” at the Kobi Nazrul Centre.
Bengal History Week is designed to help increase interest in Bengal’s history and introduce historians and scholars to new audiences in non-academic settings. Book to participate - listen to the speakers and share your knowledge and perspectives with others.
 Four Corners present a collaborative display in partnership with Oxford House, showcasing images by photographer Philip Cunningham documenting youth culture in Bethnal Green during the late 1970s. These atmospheric images will be displayed in local shop windows, transforming Bethnal Green’s busiest highstreet into a public photography exhibition. It continues at Oxford House Cafe, which housed the basement darkroom where Cunningham originally developed his photographs.
The collection captures daily life, friendship and street culture - from a pearly king gently cradling a newborn, to local children enjoying the ‘playgrounds’ of the day - London’s bombed-out building sites. This exhibition is free. Visitors can collect a map from either Four Corners or Oxford House and step back in time with Youth of Yesterday, offering a unique insight into the history of growing up in Bethnal Green.
Image © Philip Cunningham
 After a sold-out run in April, immersive theatre collective 27 degrees return with their interactive outdoor experience Behind closed doors. Inspired by choose-your-own-adventure books, this individual audio show invites audiences to explore the iconic streets of Spitalfields and wander through a labyrinth of stories accessible via mobile phone. The show combines sound design, mobile technology, miniature art installations and live performances behind house windows. The experience takes place on 5-9 October in the streets of East London. Booking now open.
Tower Hamlets Council coronavirus updates
We continue to work with Public Health England, the NHS and a wide range of partners to ensure we're doing everything we can, in line with the government advice, and urging our residents to do the same. Please regularly check www.towerhamlets.gov.uk/coronavirus for the latest advice and subscribe to updates.
If you are organising arts or cultural events, either online or at your venue in Tower Hamlets, please submit listings to our What’s On pages.
Use #TowerHamletsTogether to highlight your event and enter wider conversations about activities and support available to the local community.
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