As we head inexorably towards December, the Christmas domination of The Wick’s news inbox has begun, and who are we to resist the seasonal onslaught any longer?

The Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park are running 24 nights of free activities, starting from Mon 1st Dec until Christmas Eve including carol singing, live music, mulled wine, games, workshops and opportunities to cycle or play tennis with Santa himself. Some events require registration due to limited numbers and you can do that, and see the full line-up of daily events, all at: Winter Adventure.

Meanwhile, a collective of residents who make everything from unique tea to locally forged jewellery are running a collaborative Christmas outlet on Fish Island - The Fishmas Shop - from 4th Dec, with an opening night next Thurs 5 Dec (mulled wine included). It will see a group of makers hailing from all over the world coming together to create a shared home for their work, offering the community a place to discover truly exclusive, locally-made gifts.

Among the group are career changers, people launching their brands for the first time, first-ever sellers, and makers working with recycled materials. Some are using this as the soft launch of new businesses, and everything on show has been made within a few hundred metres of the venue at The Trampery Fish Island Village (inside Studio 31), including unusual items and secret recipes you won’t find anywhere else.

Barge East are brining back their popular Wick Wonderland riverside market every pre-Xmas weekend in December starting Sat 6th Dec with trees, treats, gifts, food and drink and loads more from sustainable local makers. Look out for the Victoria Park Singers special ‘carols by the canal’ performance on Wed 17th Dec, too.

And Sat Dec 6th is also the date for the one-off Mainyard Christmas Market, taking place at Number 90 Hideout, and featuring yet more creativity and Christmassy craft from the local community across a variety of stalls, plus the usual mulled wine attractions and distractions, too.

Tree specialist Hackney Wickmas is now up and running seven days a week at Hackney Bridge, offering only premium-graded Nordmann firs, handmade wreathes, lights, decorations (and free chocolates for everyone). Best of all, they are raising funds for Hackney Wick Food Bank through the decorations sales, and for a £5 donation, will let people go through the tree netter!

🚦The streets of Hackney are going to be quite the sight to behold this Fri 28th Nov, as cycling DJ Dom Whiting - known for his epic collective Drum & Bass on the Bike rides - teams up with smart helmet brand UNIT 1 for the first Own The Night event. It’s free to join, just turn up at the Pub On The Park, London Fields at 6pm on your bike and bring lights, smart helmets, or any gear that shines, ready to turn the streets into a living, moving, dancing light show.

🩰 This Sat 29th Nov there’s a one-off, site-specific performance of Arrival, ( the latest collaboration between choreographer Kirill Burlov, composer J.C. Wright, and artist Anastasia Tribambuka, created in response to Tribambuka’s current exhibition at Felstead Art, Palimpsest. The piece will unfold within the gallery, weaving movement, sound, and projection into a dialogue with the works on display, and engaging with the show’s themes of absence and presence, erasure and return, to trace the shifting layers of memory, identity, and time.

🪿 As previewed in last week’s lead story, Stratford East’s big Xmas panto, Mama Goose, is now open for the festive season, giving a delicious East London spin to the classic golden-egg fairytale. Runs until Jan 3rd.

🧠 Braintopia returns to The Loop on Sun 30th Nov, offering a gym for the mind via an assortment of experiences and practices to get involved with across the afternoon and into evening. Create a collage, draw something, print a t-shirt, make music, sculpture or a simple toastie - it’s up to you, and it’s all free to join in.

🖼️ Bow Arts’ renowned biennial showcase of moving image, digital, and performance art, is back, with Visions Programme 2 led by acclaimed moving image artist Onyeka Igwe, whose own work explores diasporic African life and colonial history. Runs to Sun Dec 21st. at the Nunnery Gallery.

🔊 Known for her vibrant use of colour, humour and evocative imagery, Annis Harrison’s new exhibition, Memory of Joy, is a celebration of heritage, identity, and exuberance through a series of oil paintings infused with sound and movement. The show features an immersive, soundsystem–inspired installation that blends interviews, sound effects and bass-heavy rhythms. Find it at Sugar House Island until Sun 30th Nov.

👂🏽 You’re invited to listen actively to music on vinyl, dance, join in and hear the stories that brought Charlie Dark MBE and DIVINE KIND to the sound system, at a special immersive session tonight Wed 26th Nov, in the UCL Urban Room.

🎶The Indie Amnesty DJs take over the Lord Napier this Thurs 27th Nov where otherwise closeted fans of indie rock anthems can celebrate their love for singalong smashes from The Smiths and Pulp to The Strokes and Wet Leg in public.

🎤 New York dance pop duo Fcukers (pictured above) play a trilogy of live shows at Colour Factory starting tonight Wed 26th Nov and running to Friday, with RIP Magic on support.

🎂 In house and infamous, Half Baked celebrates its 16th birthday at Number 90 on Sat 29th Nov with Shonky, Garrett David live and Reflex Blue supplying the soundtrack until 6am, with a cheeky afters lined-up at Starlane if you want to party for 24-hours solid.

🔊 Round off the weekend with a 3-hour set of pumping acid courtesy of the excellent Paranoid London at Vittora Wharf Studio’s new night Sundays, this Sun 30th Nov.

❄️ If you join the Festive Wreath-Making Class at the Leyton Star on Thurs 27th Nov, not only are all the materials required for your perfect front door accoutrement provided, but you also get a free drink to help get those creative juices flowing.

🧢 Academy Breakin’ Convention are running a series of Open Days for aspiring students of hip hop dance and culture to come and find out more about their ground-breaking Level 3 Extended Diploma in Performance and Production Arts at their Sadler’s Wells East home. There will be free taster workshops, and the chance to discover first hand how you can become a part of the ABC 2026 cohort. Book your place now, as the first one is on Mon 8th Dec. 

🪙 Peabody Community Foundation’s Kerslake Awards are offering grants of up to £2,000 to Tower Hamlets charities, community groups, and resident-led projects in areas where Peabody has homes and services. The will support community-led projects that bring people together, reduce isolation, and improve wellbeing. Apply by Fri 5th Dec.

👥 Connect, learn, and celebrate with Hackney Impact participants, partners, and community stakeholders at their Social Founders Forum (Winter Social) on Tues 9th Dec at Shoreditch Town Hall to find out about opportunities in 2026 on the theme of strengthening social impact.

💁🏽‍♀️ Hackney Council has also launched the second phase of its six-month, UK Shared Prosperity Fund-backed Hackney Impact program to provide practical workshops, coaching, and mentoring to over ninety small local businesses and entrepreneurs, with a focus on supporting underrepresented communities like Bengali, Charedi, Kurdish, LGBTQIA+, and younger entrepreneurs.

🆕 Creative workspace and training hub Poplar Works is expanding, with more studios available alongside their existing collection of resident designers, makers, and London College of Fashion’s Making for Change programme. To celebrate the launch, they’re offering new tenants one month free on a 12-month lease. Info and to book a tour.

💁🏼‍♀️ Tower Hamlets have a free Business Support Projects Launch at the Town Hall on Mon Dec 1st, for a new £400k suite of options for Tower Hamlets residents who want to start a business, providing support to early stage start ups and a specific package of support for female led/owned businesses.