What's on

Science takes centre stage inside our Science Cabaret, full of high energy live shows and performances. Discover the science behind attraction, giggle away at award-winning comedy or make your own scientific mocktail!

Help us build a record‑breaking paper DNA helix and discover how the code of life is assembled, decoded and understood.

Make your own black hole-inspired decorative ornaments with theoretical physicists studying the surprising science behind these extreme objects.

Watch a giant sand sculpture of the iconic Crystal Palace take shape across the festival weekend—presented by the Museum of Architecture.

Make art inspired by maths and its connections to the Islamic print tradition of Ebru marbling.

Build your very own rocket mice and launch them into the air using the power of a squeeze!

Check out luminous cells and soundscapes inspired by molecular biology, before creating your own contributions to our glowing gazebo gallery.

Take a trip to Antarctica and find out what it's like to conduct research on the coldest, driest and most remote continent on Earth!

Explore the Royal Parks' incredible wildlife and unique heritage through hands-on activities for all ages.

Explore new flavours and ingredients, as chefs and scientists whip up dishes for you to sample right there and then!

Join a paper folding workshop and watch a live demo of a foldable Mars heat shield, revealing how creative ideas are shaping future spacecraft design!

Explore hidden stories from the Great Exhibition of 1851 through a textile art installation created by our Young Producers.

Exhibition Road is transformed into an open-air art gallery with ten new works painted live over the weekend, exploring how scientific ideas move through time.

Join Nostalgia, the UK's first steel band as they welcome you to play, learn, and explore the rich heritage of steelpan music.

Snap a photo against one of our large-scale backdrops and take home a memory of your own Festival day!

Invent, draw and print playful, imaginary machines which you can take home or exhibit with Royal College of Art graduate Tamsin Loxley.

Become a curator for the day with Assemblage Collective! In this hands-on workshop, you’ll design your very own miniature exhibition by crafting and designing a paper concertina.

A bold and thought-provoking artwork exploring Imperial College London's history and heritage.

From robotics to new materials, meet the student innovators, researchers and start-up founders whose emerging technologies are reshaping everyday life and tackling global challenges.

Sample delicious planet-friendly dishes and discover practical ways to reduce your food footprint.

Step inside a tent full of surprises for curious minds— visualise sound, learn about hydrogen heroes and create with the Inventors Lab!

Create waves, test sea defences, trigger a storm in a teacup and step inside a world-class hydrodynamics lab to discover how engineers protect coasts!

Create your own wearable art with artist Gayle Chong Kwan in this hands-on creative workshop.

Explore the Natural History Museum’s Nature Discovery Garden and join their Learning and Science teams to discover the range of plants and animals that live there.

Witness a stunning spectacle as handmade puppets, created from bamboo and dyed cloth, move along Exhibition Road.

Investigate the art of printing, and the science of pigments, in this hands-on creative workshop from the Science Museum!

Head to our Family Stage and enjoy a programme packed with interactive performances, music and science shows especially for families.

Head to our Main Stage for a jam-packed schedule of vibrant and lively music, from Jazz and classic brass bands to Cuban and Congolese fusion!

Take an architectural tour of the stunning V&A, guiding you through the history and design of a building every bit as fascinating as the objects it contains!

Take part in a ‘walkshop’ around South Kensington to learn about nature, biodiversity and wildlife in London.

Learn about epilepsy and design your own seizure-predicting jewellery, helping to inspire the future of wearable technology supporting people with epilepsy.

Antibiotics have changed all our lives, but resistance to them is catching up. Play a game to explore antimicrobial resistance and discover how you can help protect these life-saving medicines.

Explore the past, present and future of medical imaging and robotic surgery through interactive games.

Consider your relationship with the different organisms living inside your body through this interactive art installation.

Climb like a gecko, reflect like a beetle, or sense heat like a dog's nose as you explore the potential of nature-inspired materials.

Visit our fun-packed tent for stories, sing-alongs, and rhyme and movement sessions for children under 5 and their families.

Ever wondered what happiness sounds like? See how scientists turn serotonin signals into music in this interactive blend of neuroscience and art!

Step inside an immersive and interactive digital art piece that explores the strangeness of the quantum world and challenges perceptions of our role in shaping reality.

Make your own mini zine that creative reflects on how invisible disabilities like Sickle Cell Disease can shape people’s everyday experiences.

Create your own textile body bots with artist Woo Jin Joo and bring them to life using pull-string mechanisms!

Set inside the 1970s living room of a Caribbean family in London, this immersive experience explores how genes, culture, community and migration shape health and identity.

Get creative while practising French and German language skills! Write a poem, enjoy storytelling, experiment with cyanotype printing or write a love letter inspired by Queen Victoria and Prince Albert.

Pick up a petri dish, choose your fabric and create your own textile art to take home inspired by the fascinating world of the vaginal microbiome.

Make your own junk sculpture using upcycled and everyday materials!

Discover secrets behind the brilliant facades of Exhibition Road during a short tour of the neighbourhood with the South Ken Culture Quarter.

Step back into 1851 and explore the many perspectives surrounding the Great Exhibition on this guided walk with Iya London.

Step onto the dancefloor and get ready to shine in a fun beginner-friendly Bollywood dance class with researchers exploring how stars are born.

Bring your best moves for Earthbeat, an immersive dance experience for all ages, inspired by secret worlds pulsing beneath our feet.

Come see chemistry brought to life through amazing reactions, slime and explosions at this family-friendly science show!

Join our Biology Ballerina for an exploration of the natural world through pliés and pirouettes.

Part-disco, part-scientific experiment, join us for a unique movement session that delves into the deeply personal nature of time.

Discover the beautiful Royal Parks at the top of Exhibition Road and their instrumental role in hosting the Great Exhibition of 1851.

Musicians and historians bring to life a recently rediscovered work by one of Victorian Britain’s most celebrated musical figures.

Uncover the Royal Albert Hall’s surprising role as a gathering place for London’s LGBTQ+ community, from covert acts of self expression to moments of bold queer visibility.

Enjoy a quieter, calmer environment to explore our Adults Only Zone with fewer crowds by signing up for this bookable relaxed session.

A relaxed session for families with neurodivergent members who may need a quieter, calmer environment to explore the Family Fun Zone.

The Great Exhibition of 1851 was the largest public event in its history, hosting 100,000 exhibits inside a giant Crystal Palace. But how should we reflect on its legacy 175 years later?

Three leading researchers make the case for their work being the next big thing in science—with the audience crowning a winner!

Discover how turning leaves into lifesaving vaccines could help African nations take control of their health security.

Explore what happens inside our brains, within our communities and across our history when people make music together.

From the first landing to scientists discovering the strongest signs yet of ancient Martian life, join a five‑decade journey of robotic exploration of the Red Planet.

Doodle along as architects and engineers explore how modern design, values and science could shape a 21st century Crystal Palace.