Are you feeling the love?

It’s the florist’s favourite holiday… yes we’re talking about Valentine’s Day. Now, admittedly it can seem like contrived romance, but if you don’t spend enough time treating your loved one, it can be a good kick up the backside to crank up the lurve! However, if gazing in each others’ eyes over a candlelit meal seems too cliché, there’s a host of different Valentine’s themed events to cater for all kinds of interests. With Valentine’s Day falling bang in the middle of the week, plenty of places are holding early or late celebrations over both weekends. If you’re single, or hate any kind of romance, then there’s also some fun activities and parties going on too.

• 9 – 10 and 16 – 17 February : Film & Fizz at One Aldwych

Enjoy a three-course dinner at Indigo, a glass of Champagne Lallier and watch All The Money In The World or Darkest Hour in the hotel’s private screening room. Tickets: Dinner, drinks & film: £55pp. One Aldwych Hotel, 1 Aldwych, WC2B 4BZ. Nearest station: Charing Cross or Temple. For more information, visit the One Aldwych website.

• 10 February : The Candlelight Club’s Valentine’s Ball

Pop-up vintage roaming nightclub The Candlelight Club host a Valentine’s ball. Featuring live jazz from the London Dance Orchestra and DJ Auntie Maureen, performances from Gatsby Girls, while in the Cabaret Lounge there will be live music from Café Manouche, two cabaret shows hosted by Champagne Charlie, featuring song and dance from Ginger Blush, tap dancing from Josephine Shaker and acrobatics from Deux Ailes. 7pm-12am. Tickets from £30pp. Tables also available. At a secret London location. For tickets, visit the Candelight Club website. For Metro Girl’s review of TCC, click here.

• 11 – 16 February : Valentine’s @ Keats’ House

A series of Valentine’s events at the stunning house where poet John Keats fell in love with Fanny Brawne, who inspired his most romantic verses. Valentine’s Guided Tour: ‘Love is my religion’ on Sun 11 Feb at 11.30am, 1pm and 3.30pm; The Poetry of Desire with Liz Berry and Richard Scott on Wed 14 Feb at 7pm and Late Night Keats: Ah! Dearest Love on Fri 16 Feb at 7pm. Ticket prices vary. Keats’ House, 10 Keats Grove, Hampstead, NW3 2RR. Nearest station: Hampstead Heath or Hampstead. For more information, visit the City of London website.

• 12 February : A Night Of Whitney

A musical tribute to the Queen of love ballads with her greatest hits performed by a full live band. 7pm-11pm. Tickets: Early Bird £12, Standard £16. Jazz Café, 5 Parkway, Camden Town, NW1 7PG. Nearest station: Camden Town. For more information, visit the Jazz Café website.

• 14 February : A Romantic Renaissance @ British Museum 

Daytime talk exploring symbols of love and marriage in the Waddesdon Bequest at the British Museum. 1.15pm-2pm. Free entry. Room 2a, British Museum, Great Russell Street, Bloomsbury, WC1B 3DG. Nearest station: Russell Square or Tottenham Court Road. For more information, visit the British Museum website.

• 14 February : Valentines with Patti Boulaye – Billie and Me

Enjoy a three-course feast while listening to a live performance of Patti Boulaye OBE, singing Billie Holiday. Shows @ 7.15pm and 9.30pm. Tickets: £30 (music, no dinner) or dinner packages start from £69.50. Boisdale, Cabot Place, Canary Wharf, E14 4QT. Nearest station: Canary Wharf. For more information, visit the Boisdale website. 

• 14 February : Shaggers: Valentine’s Special

For those with a naughty sense of humour, head for some stand-up comedy on the subject of sex. 7-9pm. Tickets: £15. Leicester Square Theatre, 6 Leicester Place, Chinatown, WC2H 7BX. Nearest station: Leicester Square or Piccadilly Circus. For booking, visit the Leicester Square Theatre website.

Travel through an ice cave to reach Backyard Cinema’s Snow Kingdom

• 14 February : La La Land – Backyard Cinema

Enjoy a screening of 2017 hit La La Land in an atmospheric Snow Kingdom. Travel through an ice cave, before curling up with your loved one in a bean bag with a hot toddy. 8.30pm. Tickets from £17. Backyard Cinema, 42 Newington Causeway, Elephant & Castle, SE1 6DR. Nearest station: Elephant & Castle. For booking, visit the Backyard Cinema website. For Metro Girl’s review, click here.

• 14 February : Bunga The Musical Valentines Special

Treat your loved one to an immersive musical foodie extravaganza at Bunga Bunga. Feast on a three-course Italian menu while you are serenaded with classic love songs, before dancing the night away until the early hours.7pm-2am. Bottomless menu including free-flowing Frizzante £44p. Bunga Bunga Covent Garden, 167 Drury Lane, Covent Garden, WC2B 5PG. Nearest station: Covent Garden. For more information, visit the Bunga Bunga website.

• 14 February : My Funny Valentine

Listen to the love songs of the late Frank Sinatra performed live by the London Concert Orchestra and singers Matt Ford and Emma Kershaw. 7.30pm. Tickets: £16.50-£42.50. Barbican Centre, Silk Street, City of London, EC2Y 8DS. Nearest station: Barbican or Moorgate. For booking, visit the Barbican website.

• 14 February : Sing-a-long Moulin Rouge!

Watch and sing-a-long at a screening of Baz Luhrmann’s musical movie Moulin Rouge! 8.30pm. Tickets: £16. Prince Charles Cinema, 7 Leicester Place, Chinatown, WC2H 7BY. Nearest station: Leicester Square or Piccadilly Circus. For more information and booking, visit the Prince Charles Cinema website.

• 14 February : A Valentine’s Evening With The Stars

An evening of events at the Royal Observatory Greenwich, including a romantically themed planetarium show, a chance to look at the moon through the 18-tonne Victorian telescope and spend time in the Meridian Courtyard with a glass of fizz, standing on the Prime Meridian of the world. Two hour sessions start @ 5.25pm, 5.30pm, 6.45pm and 6.50pm. Tickets: Adults £40, Conc/Members £34. Royal Observatory Greenwich, Greenwich Park, Blackheath Avenue, Greenwich, SE10 8XJ. Nearest station: Greenwich, Maze Hill or Cutty Sark (DLR). For booking, visit the Royal Museums Greenwich website.

• 14 February : Valentines Late Night Piano Recital

Music lovers can soak up the romance during a performance by one of the UK’s leading concert pianists, Warren Mailley-Smith. Listen to the music of Mozart, Chopin, Gershwin and more in Christopher Wren’s West End church. 9.30pm-10.30pm. Tickets: £17. St James’s Piccadilly, 197 Piccadilly, St James, W1J 9LL. Nearest station: Green Park. For booking, visit Eventbrite.

• 14 February : Valentines Date @ Queens

Queens have teamed up with Fever to offer a special Valentines package. Enjoy an ice skating session, meal for two at MeatLiquor, a bottle of Prosecco and a red rose for every woman. Tickets £59. Queens, 17 Queensway, W2 4QP. Nearest station: Queensway or Bayswater. For booking, visit the Queens website. For Metro Girl’s review of a recent visit to Queens, click here.

• 14 February : Make Your Own Gin Workshop

Go on an immersive sensory masterclass before making your own bespoke bottle of gin. 6.30pm-9.30pm. Tickets: £85 (includes masterclass, gin tasting, 3 gin cocktails, nibbles, a 500ml gin made by you to take home along with Fever Tree and Hildon water goodies). 58 Gin Distillery, Hackney Downs Studios, 3-17 Amhurst Terrace, Hackney, E8 2BT. Nearest station: Rectory Road. For booking, visit Eventbrite.

• 14 – 16 February : Pop-Up Cinema @ Rivoli Ballroom

Watch classic movies Pretty Woman, Gentlemen Prefer Blondes or Bridget Jones’s Diary in the striking 1950s surrounds of the Rivoli Ballroom. 8pm. Tickets: £12. Rivoli Ballroom, 350 Brockley Road, Crofton Park, SE4 2BY. Nearest station: Crofton Park. For more information, visit the Rivoli Ballroom website.

• 15 – 16 February : Pitch Black

Heighten your senses on a wine and cocktail tasting session in the dark. Ninety minute experience for over 18s only features four drinks. 6.30pm or 8.15pm. Tickets from £39. At a secret central London location. For more information, visit the Pitch Black website. Read Metro Girl’s review.

• 16 February : (Art) Lovers @ Dulwich Picture Gallery

Late-night Valentine’s opening of Dulwich Picture Gallery, featuring live portrait session, spotlight talks, printmaking workshop, sketchmating and Valentine’s storytelling. 6pm-10pm. Tickets: £12. Dulwich Picture Gallery, Gallery Road, Dulwich Village, SE21 7AD. Nearest station: West Dulwich or North Dulwich. For booking, visit the Dulwich Picture Gallery.

• 16 – 17 February : Hester’s Hideout Valentine’s Special

A weekend of Moulin Rouge! Valentines fun at decadent drinking den Hester’s Hideout in Exmouth Market. Featuring an immersive Moulin Rouge! singalong on Fri 16 with crooning from Mister Meredith and Whisky Falls. Meanwhile, HH is transformed into Kitty’s Kabaret Lounge on Sat 17 for burlesque, cabaret, can-can and cocktails. Live shows start at 9pm. Tickets from £8. Hester’s Hideout, 106b Farringdon Road (Basement), Clerkenwell, EC1R 3EA. Nearest station: Farringdon or Angel. For more information, visit Hester’s Hideout website.

Or Valentine’s events for everyone (single and unattached)

• 9 -10 February : Movie Nights At The Museum

Time Out London presents film screenings at the Natural History Museum’s amazing Hintze Hall. Films include E.T. The Extra Terrestrial, Alien, District 9 and Gravity. Tickets from £29. Natural History Museum, Cromwell Road, Kensington, SW7 5BD. Nearest station: South Kensington. For booking, visit Time Out London.

• 10 February : The Dark Side of Love – A Valentine’s Ball

A masked ball spanning four floors at the Century Club, featuring eerie, exotic and eccentric performers, drinking and dancing. 9pm-3am. Tickets from £12. The Century Club, 61-63 Shaftesbury Avenue, Soho, W1D 6LQ. Nearest station: Piccadilly Circus or Leicester Square. For more information, visit A Curious Invitation website.

A ‘Sultry Kiss’ at Dirty Martini
© Michael Franke

• 10 – 14 February : Valentine’s @ Dirty Martini

Dirty Martini will be hosting a Valentine’s Party on 10 Feb, as well creating a special limited-edition cocktail for lovers at their London bars. The Sultry Kiss (£7) is made with Beefeater Gin, Hibiscus Syrup, Licor 43, Aperol, Lime Juice, Egg White and Peychaud Bitters. The Valentine’s Party will take place on Sat 10 for both singles and couples and will feature happy hour until 8pm and DJs. Available at branches in Bishopsgate, Covent Garden, Hanover Square, Islington, Minories, Monument and St Paul’s. For more information, visit the Dirty Martini website.

• 10 and 17 February : Silent Disco @ View From The Shard

Enjoy a Silent Disco 800ft above London in the viewing galleries at the top of The Shard. Tickets: £37.50. The View From The Shard, Joiner Street, SE1 9SP. Nearest station: London Bridge. For booking, visit Time Out London. For Metro Girl’s review, click here.

• 12 February : Live Comedy @ Cutty Sark

Laugh yourself silly at a comedy gig in the 19th century surrounds of the Cutty Sark. Doors 6.45pm, starts @ 7.15pm. Tickets: £17.50. Michael Edwards Studio Theatre, Cutty Sark, King William Walk, Greenwich, SE10 9HT. Nearest station: Cutty Sark (DLR), Greenwich or Maze Hill. For booking, visit the Royal Museums Greenwich website.

• 13 February : Speed Dating

Singles up for some fun can enjoy a night of speed dating at events by Date In A Dash at two London locations. Islingon for 23-35 years and Richmond for 30-50 years. From 7.30pm. Tickets: £15-£20. At One Kew Road, 1 Kew Road, Richmond, TW9 2NQ. Nearest station: Richmond; or Dead Dolls House, 181 Upper Street, Islington, N1 1RQ. Nearest station: Highbury & Islington or Essex Road. For booking, visit the Date In A Dash website.

• 14 February : Madame Tussauds London Lates with Prosecco

Late night opening of Madame Tussauds so you can check out the waxworks without the crowds or children! Enjoy a complimentary glass of Prosecco before checking out the waxworks, the Spirit of London Ride, the Marvel Superheroes 4D Show, Alien: Escape and more. From 8pm. Tickets from £29. Madame Tussauds, Marylebone Road, Marylebone, NW1 5LR. Nearest station: Baker Street. For booking, visit DesignMyNight.

• 14 February : Faulty Towers Dining Experience @ EDT

Enjoy an immersive dining experience as the hit show Faulty Towers Dining Experience comes to East Dulwich. Feast on a three-course meal served by Basil, Sybil and Manuel as the chaos unfolds around you. 7pm-10pm. Tickets: £54 (includes three-course meal and two hour show). East Dulwich Tavern, 1 Lordship Lane, East Dulwich, SE22 8EW. Nearest station: East Dulwich. For more information, visit the EDT website.

Party in the tunnels at the Vault Festival’s Bleeding Heart Ball

• 16 February : Nature Morte Late View @ Guildhall

Snub Valentine’s to explore life and death at a late-night opening of the Nature Morte exhibition. Enjoy a night of music, art, taxidermy, drawing, and cocktails and explore the themes of still life. From 7pm-10pm. Tickets: £15. Guildhall Art Gallery, City of London, EC2V 5AE. Nearest station: St Paul’s. For more information, visit the City of London website.

• 17 February : Bleeding Heart Ball

An underground anti-Valentine’s party of passion, excitement and risk as part of the Vault Festival. Expect to see gypsy folk and brass heavy bands, gender-bending cabaret, awe-inspiring interactive theatre performances and jaw-dropping circus acts. There will be roaming puppetry, menageries and masked revellers, costumes and characters, naughty nooks and secret lairs for absinthe fuelled hedonism. 10.30pm-2.30am. Tickets: £16. The Vaults, Leake Street, Waterloo, SE1 7NN. Nearest station: Waterloo. For more information, visit The Vault Festival website. For Metro Girl’s blog post on The Vault Festival’s highlights, click here.

• 17 February : Silent Sounds Boat Party

A silent disco while cruising down the Thames. 7:45pm-11.30pm. Tickets from £25. The Dutch Master (departs from Tower Millennium Pier), City of London, EC3N 4AB. Nearest station: Tower Hill, Tower Gateway (DLR) or Fenchurch Street. For tickets, visit DesignMyNight.

Follow my blog with Bloglovin