Old Masters, Sevres porcelain, and the armoury that sent Henry Moore off on a lifetime of shapes inside shapes. A nineteenth century house behind Oxford Street, free to walk into and almost always empty.

The King's Library tower, Magna Carta and the Lindisfarne Gospels in a gallery that costs nothing, and the most welcoming place to sit down in central London.

One of the finest plaster ceilings in London, chosen by a woman in 1623, in a house five minutes from the Piccadilly line that reopened in 2023 and costs nothing to enter.

Open House London 2026 runs 12-20 September, opening 800+ buildings across all 33 boroughs for free. Here's my pick of 15 buildings and tours worth booking or queuing for.

Once the Public Record Office and the 'strongbox of the Empire', the Maughan Library only opens its Round Reading Room to the public one weekend a year, during Open House London.

10-11 Carlton House Terrace has hosted a Home Secretary, Gladstone's Thursday breakfasts and a wartime hospital — and once a year, during Open House London, anyone can walk in and see it for free.

Canary Wharf Winter Lights is a free light trail across the docks every January. When it runs, what has been shown, which artworks stay all year, and the best route, with my photos from the 2024 edition.

London Open House Festival is the annual celebration of London’s most fascinating buildings. During the past three decades, the organizers have always put together the most captivating programmes, inviting curious Londoners to explore impressive homes, best-known historic buildings, or astonishing pieces of architecture that grant limited to no access to the public throughout the year. For two weeks only, our capital's most fabulous places open their doors to explorers FOR FR

Sky Garden London is free at the top of 20 Fenchurch Street. How to book, when tickets are released, walk-in and ID rules, the view, the plants, and the building's melting-car past.

Free summer Sunday concerts at the Regent's Park bandstand with the Regent's Park Music Festival: when they run, what plays, and the bandstand's history.