Great 'cheap things to do in London' Hunt

katiewoos_2

Fabulous thread but feel it needs bumping x

cinderfella

'Makeup' was right on her comments regarding the Royal Opera House. Its fantastic for ballet & can be 'yours' for a £10 seat approx. Needless to say the reason why it is so cheap is because there are some very generous benefactors subsidising the performances.
Down river at Greenwich the Woolwich ferry is free, There you will find the 'Cutty Sark' & The National Maritime Museum including the Royal Observatory.
I am not sure whether the National Portrait Gallery in Trafalgar Square has been mentioned (free) as is the St Martins in the Fields opposite ( free classical music). The Barbican charges 'silly money' for their unbeatable classical music performances (near Moorgate).
When you are walking around London be aware that below you is a maze of Underground passages. I can't imagine that these are free to wander around as there must be a fair amount of policing involved.
The Victoria & Albert museum now house the contents of the old Covent Garden Garden based Theatre Museum. These used to include videos of Ballet (Fonteyn & Nureyev) & much more.
There is one place in London that I have wanted to visit for a long time & I will do so when I return to the UK. Its really only for ballet lovers and must strictly be booked in advance. It is open during term times on Tuesdays & Thursdays (I believe) and is the White Lodge Museum in Richmond Park. Lots of memorabilia relating to the Ballet. As indeed there is at Ivy House in the North London home to the Prima Ballerina Anna Pavlova who died in 1931 and based at the London Jewish Cultural Centre.
:beer:

It might interest people to see what London looked like in the 1920's:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TwahIQz0o-M

Remember that although the film looks idyllic, times were hard for Londoners. The health service only arrived in 1948 & holiday camps became popular in the 1950's.

xfive71

If you in London, get a groundling ticket for £5 at the Globe theatre. Yes, you do have to stand throughout the show but you get the action up close and personal. Before the show starts, the actors usually mingle in-character amongst the groundlings. Usually if I get tired, I leave at half time. Don't feel like I'm wasting a ticket if it is only a fiver.

ernie-money

I've heard that there's a bar inside the Gherkin and that you can go up there and have a drink or whatever, but I've searched for it, and all I can find is a venue for private functions. Is it possible to go up there at all, or is it only if you're attending a function or whatever that you get access?