Anyone heading back to work on this cold January day could be forgiven for not feeling the glow of optimism as the new year approaches. And in fact, there is so much to despair about in 2024.
But as Londoners, we can always count on our city’s world-famous cultural delights to cheer us on throughout the year, from music to theatre, comedy, dance, opera and more.
Last summer, The Social Hub, a hospitality company, brought together Europe’s best cities for culture. It examined Europe’s 50 highest-rated hotspots and ranked them by various categories, from the number of museums to theater performances to cultural and historical events on offer. It ranked first, leaving behind London, Berlin, Paris, Barcelona and Rome.
It doesn’t look like London will be losing its crown anytime soon. In our city, there are more than 850 art galleries, more than 300 music venues, nearly 200 museums and more than 240 theater halls, where as many festivals are held every year and thousands of shows are staged annually.
There’s plenty to keep audiences salivating in 2024 at the world’s leading theatre. In the first few weeks of the year alone, Sarah Jessica Parker and Matthew Broderick will be in the Plaza Suite in the West End, while Catherine Tate will scare punters with a cooler act. Enfield Haunted.
Other treats include a new play by Jerusalem writer Jez Butterworth, Sarah Snook (Shiv from Accessory) playing all the characters in the one-woman version of The Picture of Dorian Gray, the Live Aid musical Just for One Day, with Ralf Fiennes as Macbeth. Matt Smith, Michael Sheen and Keeley Hawes are back on stage (in separate shows) and before this March!
Then there’s the new musical Opening Night with Sheridan Smith and the welcome return of great shows like Red Pitch and For Black Boys Who Have Think Suicide When the Hue Gets Too Heavy.
This spring will also see the extraordinary, indefatigable Ian McKellen, one of the greatest actors this country has ever produced, return to the West End to delight audiences with his take on Falstaff.
Is dancing more your thing? While at the beginning of the year it presented Matthew Bourne and Alina Cojocaru, later the Mark Bruce Company will stage Frankenstein and highly acclaimed choreographer Crystal Pite will bring new works to the capital.
Opera fans will have the chance to see spectacular works, from a new staging of Richard Strauss’ Elektra to the classic La Bohème starring Angela Gheorghiu at Covent Garden. English National Opera is bringing back The Handmaid’s Tale and Regent’s Opera is staging Ring Cycle at the Masonic Hall.
But of course we’re looking forward to a fantastic year of not only live performance but also exhibitions on offer to culture vultures.
Just a few of the things to look forward to are Legion at the British Museum (a look at life in the Roman army), Yinka Shonibare’s solo exhibition at the Serpentine South and an exhibition dedicated to one of THE supermodels, Naomi Campbell. This will bring catwalk glam to the V&A and is likely to sell out within 10 minutes.
I’m also looking forward to the Expressionists at Tate Modern, while further ‘out there’ Somerset House is holding an exhibition exploring the irresistible power of cuteness in contemporary culture. Ahh.
Tate Britain’s Women Artists in Britain 1520 – 1920 heralds an incredible year for women artists, with major solo exhibitions from Yoko One (Tate Modern) and Angelica Kauffman (Royal Academy) to Judy Chicago (Serpentine) and the Koreans. A joint exhibition by superstar Haegue Yang (Hayward) and Francesca Woodman and Julia Margaret Cameron (National Portrait Gallery).
Some really successful names in the music world are heading in this direction. Liam Gallagher is performing Definitely Maybe in London, and there’s also the small matter of Taylor Swift coming to the capital. Other notable artists include Foo Fighters, Girls Aloud, Doja Cat, Olivia Rodrigo and Bruce Springsteen.
For those in the know, afrobeats leading star Davido is coming to the O2 and there’s a chance to see hyper-mobile band The Last Dinner Party at the Roundhouse.
As deputy mayor for culture and creative industries Justine Simons told me this week, 2024 looks incredibly exciting even beyond concert shows and exhibitions for other reasons, including the opening of Sadler’s Wells East at Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park .
This 550-seat theater is a milestone in the creation of another cultural hub for the capital, the £1.1bn East Bank project (London College of Fashion and UCL East have already opened there).
This will be followed in 2025 by V&A East, a new museum where more of the V&A’s collection will be exhibited and its new warehouse open to the public, as well as new BBC Music Studios facilities for performance, broadcasting and recording.
If that’s not enough for you, this year also brings a new commission for the Fourth Plinth in Trafalgar Square, one of London’s most visible works of public art. We’ll also hear about the winners of the 2025 and 2027 London Cultural District. . As Simons said, he and Mayor Sadiq Khan “look forward to seeing arts and culture flourish and unite the capital.”
I haven’t even mentioned the wonderful films and TV shows hitting screens big and small, many of which are shot in the capital’s state-of-the-art facilities, as well as the many other art forms and artists.
Whether your favorite stars are coming to town or you’re ready to discover the wealth of extraordinary talent that hasn’t yet passed your notice; Whatever the future holds elsewhere, 2024 promises to be a very rich cultural year in London, so come on. Dive in now.
Nick Clark is Deputy Culture Editor