Bloomsbury Festival 2026: Free Events and October Highlights
Bloomsbury Festival runs throughout October 2026. Start with free photography, then plan a live-scored horror film or a Diwali dance afternoon.
Some London festivals ask you to commit to an entire weekend. Bloomsbury Festival 2026 is an invitation to keep coming back. Its 20th-anniversary edition runs 1–31 October, spreading music, performances, exhibitions and workshops across more than 40 venues in the neighbourhood.
For a satisfying first visit, resist the urge to tick off everything. Choose one anchor event, leave time to wander, and save a second date for later in the month. These three picks offer quite different ways into the programme.
Start with a free photography exhibition ##
20 Years of Bloomsbury Festival Photography opens in Brunswick Square Gardens on Saturday 3 October and runs until 31 October. Stuart Keegan’s images look back over two decades of the festival, making this a useful introduction if you have never been.
The official listing gives 8am–6pm for the opening date and marks the exhibition as free, with no booking needed. It also points to displays in the Edit Lounge of The Imperial on Russell Square and in Greater London Properties’ Judd Street windows. Check access hours separately before making an indoor display your main destination. View the exhibition listing.
Book a Halloween film night with live organ ##
On Friday 30 October at 9pm, Bloomsbury Central Baptist Church hosts Nosferatu, the 1922 silent film, with improvised accompaniment by organist Aaron Hawthorne. The appeal is the combination: a familiar horror classic experienced with a score being created as the images unfold.
The advertised price is £15. The venue is 235 Shaftesbury Avenue, WC2H 8EP. This is an evening to book deliberately, rather than a casual stop on an afternoon stroll. Check the performance and booking details.
Try a free Diwali dance afternoon ##
The AKDC Diwali Take over is on Saturday 31 October, 2–4pm, at Holy Cross Church, 98 Cromer Street, WC1H 8JU. Its programme combines a drawing and painting workshop, an intergenerational Kuchipudi performance and a chance for the audience to join a dance-along.
The organiser lists it as free and open to walk-ins, with no dance experience required. It is a welcoming choice if you prefer to participate in an event rather than sit and watch. Read the official event page.
How to plan your Bloomsbury Festival visit ##
The festival is spread across different buildings and outdoor spaces, so check the address of each booking. Free does not always mean unreserved: use the admission instructions on each listing. Our pick for this coming weekend is the photography exhibition from 3 October; the film and dance afternoon are ideas for the end of the month.
Browse the full official programme for your preferred date, and keep Londonfy’s This Week page handy for more London plans.
Details checked 28 September 2026. Cover: Bedford Square architecture in Bloomsbury (January 2024), No Swan So Fine, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0. Layout crops may apply; photograph remains under that licence. Neighbourhood image, not an event venue or festival photograph.