February means LGBT+ History Month, and London always celebrates in style. Art tours, kids’ events, stand up comedy and resurfaced plays are all in the offing this year — and plenty more besides.
Special LGBT+ History Month events in London for 2026
There’s a loooot happening to celebrate LGBT+ History Month 2026 in London. Here are some of the many events that’ve caught our eye.
LOVE LETTERS: Free exhibition Love Letters at The National Archives in Kew spans over 500 years of devotion, longing, sacrifice, heartache and passion — and around a third of the documents feature same-sex relationships, showing that Love is Love, regardless of who it involves. View expressions of love from the famous and the unknown in LGBTQ+ history, including a passionate plea for clemency from Oscar Wilde’s lover, and the wills of both Anne “Gentleman Jack” Lister and her partner Ann Walker, showing the depth of their love. The correspondence shines a light on same-sex relationships at a time when they were considered forbidden, and shows what it has meant to be queer throughout history. FREE, 24 January-12 April (sponsor)
RADICAL ROOTS: Two LGBTQ+ plays written in 1980s London (namely Where To Now, and John) are resurfaced from the archives and read out by local playwrights, at Hackney Showroom. 1 Feb
ISLINGTON’S PRIDE: For one borough, Islington has had a huge impact on the UK’s path to greater equality. At a free talk at Islington Museum & Archives, Sean McGovern explains why. 2 Feb
NATIONAL GALLERY: Gallery Educator Dr Tilly Scantlebury whisks visitors through the National Gallery’s collections, pausing to look at various works through a ‘queer lens’. A great way to see paintings in a fresh light. FREE, 2 and 15 Feb
OUT AT SEA: Greenwich’s National Maritime Museum hosts another edition of Out at Sea — a free, day-long festival celebrating queer maritime history through time. With workshops, storytelling and special tours of the museum, it’s fun for all the family. FREE, 7 Feb
OFF THE GROUND: Bold Mellon Collective mark LGBT+ History Month with Off the Ground, a trio of experimental, ‘risk-taking’ performances at artFix in Greenwich. FREE, 7 Feb
LATIN PARTY: Identidad, libertad and the vibrant corazón of Latin Queer London is celebrated in style at Exilo, hosted at Euston’s Zodiac Bar. If you like your queer heritage embodied by salsa, perreo and merengue, you’ve found your jam. 7 Feb
BRITISH MUSEUM: A generous scattering of LGBTQ+ tours of the British Museum take place over February (although if you can’t make these ones, they happen every month). Desire, love, identity — an LGBTQ tour of the British Museum is free, but can sell out, so get on it! FREE, 7, 15, 21 and 27 Feb
LGBTQ+ TATE MODERN: Tate Modern hosts LGBTQ+ themed tours each month, in which you get to explore works of queer artists and hear the stories behind them, and there’s one on Sunday 8 February and Sunday 15 February 2026. Just show up on the day. FREE, 8 and 15 Feb
LGBTQ+ WESTMINSTER: Philip Scott leads another of his queer tours of Westminster this month, taking you on a journey from the Stuart period to the present day, meeting the likes of trans fencer Chevalier D’Eon de Beaumont, and Oscar Wilde along the way. 13 Feb
QUEER TOURS: Nick Collinson — aka The Urban Rambler — runs two tours this month: Queer Soho: Sex, Scandal & Subculture (14 Feb) dives into the narrow streets that’ve offered anonymity and opportunity in equal measure over the decades and centuries, while Queer Docklands: Secrets, Sailors & Survival (28 Feb) plunges into an arena of cargo and crowds, sailors and strangers, and fortunes made and lost with the tide. 14 and 28 Feb
QUEER COMEDY: February’s edition of Laugh-Able — held at Wanstead Library — is an LGBT+ History Month special, hosted by David Ferguson and headlined by Ted Hill. It’s pay-what-you-can. 18 Feb
OPEN ARCHIVES: LSE Library in Holborn opens up its LGBT+ history archives for a laid back day where you can take a tour, and chat to curators. FREE, 19 Feb
THREADS OF HISTORY: LGBTQ+ museum and gallery Queer London reopens in February, following a two month redevelopment. On Wednesday 25 February it hosts Threads of History: AIDS Memorial Quilt, Club Kali & Queer Heritage, which brings voices from across the community to discuss the space’s newly curated displays. 25 Feb
LGBTQ institutions in London
A few more LGBTQ+ institutions getting up to plenty over February — and every other month of the year!
🎥 The Arzener (Bermondsey): Dedicated LGBTQ+ cinema. Screenings this February include Twinless and the Chronology of Water.
🗄️ Bishopsgate Institute (Liverpool Street): Home to various archives.
🏳️🌈 Common Press (Brick Lane): Beloved bookshop which hosts a slew of events for queer creatives.
🕺 Dalston Superstore (Dalston): Drag brunches, speed dating, monthly mingles and open decks.
💃 The Divine (Dalston): Raucous cabaret, lip-syncing, Traitors watch-alongs and club nights.
🎤 Queer Comedy Club (Archway): Tuck into a glut of LGBTQ+ stand-up shows most days of the month.
Dig into our archive of LGBTQ+ articles
And for the morning after the night before? Put on the kettle and dip into Londonist’s LGBTQ+ back catalogue:
🏳️🌈 Heaven, The Gay Ultradisco – And The Story Of Terry Higgins
🏳️🌈 10 Great LGBTQ+ Books Set In London
🏳️🌈 A History Of Soho’s LGBTQ+ Bars
🏳️🌈 London’s Obsession With Drag Brunches
🏳️🌈 London’s Queer, Sex-Positive Spaces: How They Lift Us Up, And Let Us Down
🏳️🌈 ‘Sodomite’s Walk’ And Other Secrets Of 18th Century Queer London
🏳️🌈 “I Created A London Club Night For Queer People Of Colour”
🏳️🌈 “Why I Started A London Trans Choir”
🏳️🌈 “I Quit Football Because Of Homophobia – Then I Discovered The London Titans”
🏳️🌈 Pelted with Offal, Mud and Dead Cats: A Travesty In Clerkenwell
🏳️🌈 Their Majesties: Meet Croydon’s Queer Royalty“
🏳️🌈 Learning London’s LGBTQ+ History Empowered Me To Walk The City’s Streets”
