This September, head to Bartholomew Fayre in London’s Smithfield – the oldest such event in the world.
This year’s Bartholomew Fayre will take place in the historic splendour of Charterhouse Square on Friday 18th and Saturday 19th September.
St Bartholomew’s Fayre began in 1133 and became an institution: one of the largest fayres in the country and a magical mixture of commerce, amusement and spectacle. Held in the Smithfield area, it attracted dance troupes, contortionists, musicians and orators, along with mercantile activity including the selling of cloth. Families organised their leisure time around it.
The Victorians halted Bart’s Fayre in 1855. But in 2023 the City of London’s Destination City initiative revived it in time for the 900th celebrations of St Bartholomew’s the Great and St Bartholomew’s Hospital.
Since then, Bart’s Fayre has grown seamlessly into its 21st century role, and has proved such an important fixture that in 2027, the newly-opened London Museum is to take the Fayre under its wing.
This year’s fayre will have music and roaming entertainment, crafts and wellbeing tents as well as plenty of food and drink – conjuring the colour and magic of the original Bartholomew Fayre. The band Mediaeval Baebes are playing on Friday night; author Philippa Perry will be cutting the ribbon (a ritual which began at Bartholomew Fayre), plus there will be fire eating, magic tricks, book readings, talks and local walks, diving deep into the rich history of the Smithfield and Clerkenwell areas.
As well as being entertained, at the Fayre you’ll also be able to meet a rich assortment of our friends and neighbours, including The Charterhouse, The Museum of the Order of St John, Bart’s Heritage, the London Borough of Islington and the imminent London Museum, for whom the Fayre is a curtain raiser.
Friday 18 September 4-8pm
Saturday 19 September 1-7pm
Charterhouse Square, EC1M 6AN
Bartholomew Fayre 2026 gratefully acknowledges the support of Islington Council
