London offers its visitors varied attractions this season

London will be welcoming a fantastic selection of new exhibitions, entertainment, activities and fun for all in the next coming months.

Attractions

Chocolate Kitchen

Hampton Court Palace, from 14 February 2014
Visitors will be in for a sweet treat as King George I’s royal hot chocolate will once again be served in the newly restored Chocolate Kitchen. This will be the first of many experiences that Historic Royal Palaces will unveil in the Baroque palace to commemorate 300 years since George I’s accession to the throne. The 18th century ‘Chocolate Kitchen’ will combine the re-creation of historic interiors with live interpretation and an innovative audio visual display which will show visitors how this royal beverage was made by Thomas Tosier-personal chocolate maker to George I and George II. Visitors will discover how royal hot chocolate was prepared but and also have the chance to sample this royal Georgian delicacy.

Lee Valley VeloPark

Opening 4 March 2014
Lee Valley VeloPark, the world’s premier cycling venue and home to the iconic London 2012 Velodrome and Olympic BMX track, will open on 4 March 2014, with sessions from £2 for club riders and £4 for individuals. As part of the opening programme, the Velodrome will welcome back the heroes of the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games on 14 and 15 March for the grand finale of Britain’s top annual track cycling series – Revolution – the first major event to take place there after the Games. The outstanding venue will feature everything from learn-to-ride programmes for children who have never been on a bike before, coaching, major championships bringing the world’s best riders back to the venue, all ability sessions for people with additional needs, and programmes for schools, clubs and leagues.

Sutton Hoo and Europe AD 300–1100

British Museum opens 27 March 2014
A new display of the British Museum’s unparalleled early medieval collections which include the famous Sutton Hoo treasure is scheduled to open in Room 41 in March 2014 made possible through a generous donation by Sir Paul and Lady Jill Ruddock. It is the first full refurbishment of the gallery since 1985, involving replacement of the flooring and roof, and renovation of the internal architecture. Marking 75 years since their discovery, the gallery’s centrepiece will be the finds from the Sutton Hoo ship burial in Suffolk, one of the most spectacular and important discoveries in British archaeology. Excavated in 1939, this grave inside a 27m-long ship may have commemorated an Anglo-Saxon king who died in the early AD 600s. It remains the richest intact burial to survive from Europe.

Phyllida Barlow Tate Britain Commission 2014

Tate Britain, 31 March – 2 November 2014
Sculptor Phyllida Barlow will unveil her largest and most ambitious work in London to date for the Tate Britain Commission 2014. The annual commission invites artists to make work in response to Tate’s collection of British and international art and to the grand spaces of the Duveen Galleries at the heart of Tate Britain. For over four decades Phyllida Barlow has made imposing, large scale sculptural installations using inexpensive, everyday materials such as cardboard, fabric, timber, polystyrene, plaster, scrim and cement. Her distinctive work is focused on her experimentation with these materials, to create bold and colourful three-dimensional collages.