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Aerial Views of the Southbank Centre and Visitors

Royal Festival Hall

Welcome to one of the world’s leading performance venues

Situated in the heart of London, on the banks of the River Thames is the Southbank Centre’s Royal Festival Hall, a beacon for arts and culture for over 70 years.

The 2,700 capacity Royal Festival Hall auditorium fast became one of the world’s landmark performance venues when it opened as part of the 1951 Festival of Britain. And since the introduction of the Greater London Council’s ‘Open Foyer’ policy in 1983, this Grade I listed building has been open daily, free for anyone to visit and enjoy its light spacious interior.

Find out the latest events happening in our Royal Festival Hall, and discover the best places to eat, drink and shop while you’re here.

What’s inside?

On now & coming up

More info for Quentin Blake: The Southbank Parade
A trio of illustrations by Quentin Blake depicting members of an orchestra; a woman in a long dress playing a violin, a person in a wheelchair plating the cymbals and a man in tails playing the flute
Art & exhibitions

Quentin Blake: The Southbank Parade

The much-loved illustrator and author celebrates the 1951 Festival of Britain for this installation
Site wide
Tickets Free
More info for TONIC FLOW: A Communal Chorus in Colour and Sound
Two women jump in the air in front of a brightly colored, geometric mural on an outdoor basketball court.
Art & exhibitions

TONIC FLOW: A Communal Chorus in Colour and Sound

Imagine a future overflowing with hope through a collaborative sound and visual installation
Royal Festival Hall
Tickets Free
More info for Southbank Centre Tours
A concrete brutalist building with the London Eye and Big Ben in the background
Tours & activities

Southbank Centre Tours

See our spectacular venues from a whole new perspective during our 75th anniversary year
Across the site
More info for Gaia x BBC Concert Orchestra: Sounds of the Earth
Left: A giant inflatable Earth globe among green trees. Right: A full orchestra performing in front of a massive pipe organ.
Classical music

Gaia x BBC Concert Orchestra: Sounds of the Earth

Under the glow of Luke Jerram’s replica of our planet, hear a concert of heavenly works for strings
Royal Festival Hall
More info for Gaia x Eric Whitacre: Eternity in an Hour
A man with medium-length brown hair and a denim shirt poses with his hand to his chin against a neutral background.
Classical music

Gaia x Eric Whitacre: Eternity in an Hour

Time melts away beneath a stunning replica of Earth with a spellbinding electro-choral concert
Royal Festival Hall
More info for Luke Jerram: Gaia
Luke Jerram's Gaia on display in Belfast, with audience members silhouetted in front of it
Art & exhibitions

Luke Jerram: Gaia

Gaze in awe-struck wonder at Luke Jerram’s striking replica of our planet, suspended above our stage
Royal Festival Hall
More info for Billy Corgan: Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness
Billy Corgan in a black double-breasted coat stands in an empty theater with blue lighting on the stage behind him.
Gigs

Billy Corgan: Mellon Collie & the Infinite Sadness

Revisit the decade-defining album with the frontman and creative force behind The Smashing Pumpkins
Royal Festival Hall
More info for Letters Live
Performers at a Letters Live event standing onstage in a line.
Literature & poetry

Letters Live

A surprise all-star cast brings remarkable correspondence to life through unforgettable readings
Royal Festival Hall
More info for The Rest Is History: The Ultimate Victorian Adventure
Hosts of The Rest is History standing against a beige background.
Literature & poetry

The Rest Is History: The Ultimate Victorian Adventure

Hosts Tom Holland and Dominic Sandbrook weave an epic live tale of history’s most daring expedition
Royal Festival Hall
More info for The Rest Is Football: Bursting Onto the Stage
Three men, Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer, and Micah Richards, sitting and smiling on a sofa in a studio.
Literature & poetry

The Rest Is Football: Bursting Onto the Stage

The popular pod goes live for the first time, with Gary Lineker, Alan Shearer and Micah Richards
Royal Festival Hall
More info for The Rest Is Politics: The Special Relationship
Hosts of The Rest is Politics US and UK sitting together on a green and brown bench.
Literature & poetry

The Rest Is Politics: The Special Relationship

Goalhanger's top political voices unite for debate, analysis and disagreeing agreeably
Royal Festival Hall
More info for The Rest Is Entertainment: Live
Two presenters on a dark stage with Christmas lights: a blonde woman in a red dress and a man with a beard and glasses in a Fulham Football Club Christmas sweater.
Literature & poetry

The Rest Is Entertainment: Live

Get gossiping with Richard Osman and Marina Hyde in this live show of their popular podcast
Royal Festival Hall
More info for Stanley Tucci: Film, Food and Me
Black and white image of Stanley Tucci wearing a plain T Shirt.
Literature & poetry

Stanley Tucci: Film, Food and Me

Join for a deliciously entertaining conversation between Gary Lineker and Stanley Tucci
Royal Festival Hall
More info for The Rest Is Politics US: Trump on a Knife Edge
A smiling blonde woman in an orange patterned shirt poses next to a man in a blue suit and purple tie, who is holding up a peace sign with his right hand.
Literature & poetry

The Rest Is Politics US: Trump on a Knife Edge

Be a part of the discussion about the political future of the United States with the popular podcast
Royal Festival Hall

View more events in What’s on

For your visit

Royal Festival Hall Southbank Centre

The Royal Festival Hall is open six days a week.

Tuesday – Sunday, 10am – 11pm
Monday, closed.

A Black man with long dark hair sits smiling among the seats of the Royal Festival Hall

Play a part in every performance

Name a seat in our Royal Festival Hall and help support the future of arts and music at the Southbank Centre.

Find out how to name a seat

While you’re with us

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