26 Things to do in Leicester Square

Leicester Square in London’s West End is not just the place for red-carpet film premieres. It’s a public square with daytime shopping and dining plus evening theatres, clubs, and nightlife. The area also covers London’s Chinatown and Trafalgar Square so there’s something for everyone.

See world-class art at the National Gallery

Taking up the whole of the northern side of Trafalgar Square, the National Gallery is a wonderful art gallery. Free to visit, inside there are over 2,300 paintings dating from the mid-13th century to 1900.

And these aren’t just any paintings as these are European art masterpieces. You’ll recognize loads of artworks from big names such as Rembrandt, Michelangelo, Velázquez, Rubens, and Leonardo da Vinci.

It’s a beautiful building so it’s worth going in even if you think you’re not an art lover.

Experience the Magic on a London Christmas Lights Bus Tour

This is your chance to see London at its most festive! During the holiday season, hop aboard a Tootbus double-decker for a special Christmas lights tour that showcases the city’s dazzling decorations.

This tour departs from Coventry Street (just steps from Leicester Square) and takes you past iconic illuminated landmarks including Regent Street, Piccadilly Circus, and Trafalgar Square.

A live guide shares stories of Christmas past and present as the city sparkles around you.

The tour is available in English plus 8 other languages via audio guide, and it’s wheelchair accessible too.

Discover Harry Potter Filming Locations on a Guided Walking Tour

Calling all Potterheads! This 3-hour walking tour takes you to over 10 filming locations from the Harry Potter movies across London. Your magical journey starts at the iconic Platform 9¾ at King’s Cross Station before heading to the Leicester Square area and beyond.

Along the way, you’ll visit actual film locations and see places that inspired J.K. Rowling while writing the books. In Leicester Square, you’ll hear about the premiere of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows – Part 2 and visit a shop that made all the paper props for the films.

The tour continues to London Bridge where you’ll see the Millennium (aka Wobbly) Bridge and the Leaky Cauldron.

Watch The Phantom of the Opera at Her Majesty’s Theatre

Since 1986, theatre goers have enjoyed one of the world’s most popular musicals, The Phantom of the Opera, at the stunning Her Majesty’s Theatre. This visual spectacular has mesmerised over 145 million viewers across 41 countries with Andrew Lloyd Webber’s iconic score featuring classics like “Music of the Night,” “All I Ask of You,” and “Masquerade.”

The site has hosted productions since 1705, and the current theatre opened in 1897 with lavish Victorian architecture influenced by the French Renaissance. Relax pre-show in the Champagne bar located in the foyer and admire the décor, before heading into the auditorium to be royally entertained like the thousands before you down the years.

Stand in the famous Trafalgar Square

Surrounded by historic buildings, everyone has heard of this public square.

There are four plinths for statues in the corners of Trafalgar Square. Bronze statues stand on three of them and the Fourth Plinth has a changing display of contemporary artworks.

The two fountains are lovely to see and there’s the very tall Nelson’s Column too.

Trafalgar Square is closed to traffic on the north side so this wide promenade has lots of street performers – usually including a few ‘floating Yodas’!

Lots of annual public events take place here including Chinese New Year and St Patrick’s Day celebrations.

Peruse portraits of famous British people at the National Portrait Gallery

This was the first portrait gallery in the world when it opened in 1856. The National Portrait Gallery has a collection of portraits of historically important and famous British people.

Yes, there are paintings of kings and queens but there are also photographs of today’s celebrities.

It’s free to visit the main galleries and there are pay-for temporary exhibitions too.

Be a big kid in the LEGO Store

With fun on two floors, this is the largest LEGO store in the world. And it’s very ‘London’ from the 6.5m Big Ben (with a working clock that’s illuminated at night) to the life-size LEGO tube carriage where you can sit between a Queen’s Guard and William Shakespeare to pose for pics.

There are photo opportunities aplenty here as there’s also a red telephone box, Royal Mail postbox, and the Leicester Square tube roundel (just so you don’t forget where you are). Obviously, they want you to buy while here so the shelves are lined with loads of kits and the Mosaic Maker is a real highlight (if you have deep pockets).

You sit in what looks like an ordinary photo booth yet the photo it takes is transformed into your own personalised LEGO kit! You get a box of all the pieces needed plus a printout of your photo to use as build instructions.

See the latest release at Vue West End

If you want to see the latest cinema release, this Leicester Square cinema is a good choice. There are nine screens with 1,388 seats. The stepped seating ensures everyone has a great view.

But be prepared for high prices as West End cinema trips are rarely a bargain.

Find a famous statue in Leicester Square Gardens

Surrounded by trees, Leicester Square Gardens is in the centre of Leicester Square. It was redeveloped in 2012 with fountains added around the William Shakespeare statue plus more seating.

The Grade II listed (must be preserved) marble figure stands on a pedestal flanked by dolphins at the centre of a fountain. Jets of water shoot up 2 metres into the air and the fountain is lit at night.

Another prized memorial in Leicester Square Gardens is the bronze statue of Charlie Chaplin sculpted by John Doubleday.

Party the Night Away on a London Bar and Club Crawl

Experience London’s legendary nightlife with an action-packed bar and club crawl through the West End. This 6-hour party tour takes you to five of the city’s best venues in Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus, and Soho with friendly hosts leading the way.

You’ll get free entry to all five bars and clubs (saving up to £50 on entrance fees alone), complimentary shots throughout the night, and exclusive drink discounts. It’s perfect for solo travelers looking to meet new people or groups wanting to discover London’s party scene without breaking the bank.

See a show or dance the night away at Café de Paris

Since its grand opening in 1924, the opulent Café de Paris has hosted more than nine decades of nightlife. The grand sweeping staircases and glittering chandeliers make this a fine place to make a night of it.

See a blockbuster at Cineworld Leicester Square

The Empire Leicester Square is a well-known cinema now operated by Cineworld. It’s one of the Leicester Square cinemas used for film premieres and first runs.

It’s a multiplex with 9 screens including an IMAX with laser projection and 3D options. Be warned, seeing new releases in Leicester Square is never cheap.

Play the tables at the Empire Casino

This is a 24-hour Vegas-style casino on the north side of Leicester Square. Table games include blackjack, poker, and roulette and there are plenty of slots too.

The Carlsberg Sports Bar offers multi-screens of Premier League matches, NFL, and more. Or head up to the Icon Balcony Bar for cocktails on the terrace overlooking Leicester Square.

Listen to the bells on the Swiss Glockenspiel

Where M&M’s World now stands was the Swiss Centre until 2008. While most don’t miss the building, there was some sense of loss that the glockenspiel on the outside was gone.

A version of it (redesigned and restored) returned on a 10-metre pole in the pedestrianised Swiss Court in 2011. It features 11 moving Swiss figures against a traditional Swiss alpine backdrop.

There are 27 bells, 4 Swiss Jacomas representing bell ringers, and 2 clocks at the top of the structure. The bells chime and a five-minute performance takes place five times a day, Monday to Friday, and eight times a day at the weekend.

It’s a nice quirky find to see in action.

Eat and shop in Chinatown

London’s Chinatown is relatively small compared to the Chinatowns in US cities but it’s still great for food shopping or dining at the many restaurants.

Red Chinese lanterns often hang over the side streets and the decorative Chinese gates, at either end of pedestrianised Gerrard Street, make the best photo ops.

Whether you want to grab a pork bun from the Golden Gate Cake Shop on Macclesfield Street or pick up a waving Hello Kitty, this is the right place to be.

Enjoy A night at Leicester Square Theatre

This 400-seat theatre is just off Leicester Square. It’s been lovingly restored with two bars in the main theatre and an intimate bar downstairs with a capacity of up to 70 for cabaret-style performances.

Expect to find comedy plus improv, magic, and family shows, so really, something for everyone.

Oh, and in a previous incarnation, this was where the Sex Pistols played one of their first gigs on 15 November 1976.

Laugh the night away at The Comedy Store

This is an over-18s-only specifically designed stand-up comedy venue. It launched the careers of lots of ’80s’alternative comedians’ such as Rik Mayall and French & Saunders, as well as Paul Merton and Ben Elton.

The comedy week has topical news-based comedy on Tuesdays and improv based on audience suggestions on Wednesdays and Sundays.

Every Thursday, Friday, and Saturday it’s classic stand-up comedy, and the last Monday of the month is open mic.

Grab cheap theatre tickets at TKTS

Originally known as the Official Half Price Ticket Booth, TKTS has been on the south side of Leicester Square since 1980.

There are other theatre ticket sellers in the square but this is the only official one as it’s run by the Society of London Theatre (SOLT) with all profits supporting the theatre industry.

Open seven days a week, TKTS has tickets for shows on the day and up to a week in advance. Not all are discounted but many are and the range available is always good.

The queues can be long but you can see the full list of what’s on sale on the website or the displays outside the booth. Booking fees are included in the advertised prices and you can pay by MasterCard, Visa, or cash.

Buy brightly-coloured candy at M&M’s World

Why is an American chocolate shop one of the most popular tourist attractions in London? Well, it’s the only M&M’s World in Europe and there are four floors of chocolate!

You enter through a 1963 London double-decker bus and get sucked into the photo ops everywhere. Make your blends from a full range of both milk chocolate and peanut M&Ms at the Rainbow Wall of Chocolate.

Or try the M&M colour mood analyser to hear your colour announced to all. (You want to be blue as it’s the coolest.) The bright lighting, colours, and loud music make this an ‘in your face’ type of shopping experience but it is hard to deny it’s fun.

There’s more merchandise than you thought possible from mugs and clothing to jewellery and towels. The candy isn’t cheap here but this is a place for gift shopping that’s open until midnight Monday to Saturday.

Grab a coffee before a movie at Picturehouse Central

This is so much more than a cinema as the ground floor is a rather excellent cafe with top-notch tea and chocolate brownies. And that all-important free wifi too, of course.

The mezzanine level is where to stop for lunch or a drink in the evening. Back to the movies, this is a seven-screen arthouse multiplex that shows quality blockbusters and independent, classic, foreign-language, and documentary films.

You’ll soon see why many become a member here (and it’s not just to get into the Members Only Bar).

Get snap happy in Piccadilly Circus

A circus just means a junction and five busy streets connect at Piccadilly Circus. Considering there’s not that much to do here, Piccadilly Circus still gets around half a million visitors daily.

Consider it a colourful backdrop so take a seat at the Eros statue to people watch, or get a photo of the huge iconic video adverts.

Do look out for the rare police public call box between Piccadilly and Regent Street. It looks like a miniature Doctor Who TARDIS and dates from about 1935.

Catch a movie at the Prince Charles Cinema

Down a side street off Leicester Square, the Prince Charles Cinema is the only independent cinema in central London. Unlike other West End cinemas, the ticket prices are pretty cheap and there’s an annual membership for further reductions.

You won’t see the latest releases here but you will find a selection of cult, arthouse, and classic films, as well as all-night movie marathons, on the two screens.

And the sing-a-long events are great fun as you learn dance moves and practice your cheers before the show so expect everyone to get up when the songs start. Do note, that the PCC has drinks and popcorn for sale but no hot or smelly food is allowed.

Shop and dine at the Japan Centre

In London since 1976, the Japan Centre flagship store has been on Panton Street since 2017.

The traditional ‘depachika’ (the Japanese word for a basement food hall) has specialist food rooms, all set around open kitchens and a central dine-in courtyard.

There’s a miso room, a dedicated tea room where you can try and buy lots of different blends, and a sake room with experts on hand.

The take-out deli section of the store has noodles, including ramen and hand-pulled udon, Japanese curry, and a range of gyoza and tempura.

In the main shop, you can buy dry goods like seaweed as well as fresh fish for making sashimi. There are non-food items such as cookware, beauty products, and manga comics too.

Be Spoilt for Entertainment at the Hippodrome Casino

A stunning late-Victorian building, the Hippodrome has been a theatre, music hall, nightclub, and now a huge casino.

There are five floors of gaming, including a dedicated poker deck and private poker rooms. Open 24 hours a day with free entry and no membership required. There’s no dress code so anyone (over 18) can just walk in.

The Matcham Room (named after Frank Matcham who designed the building) is where they stage the Theatre shows.

Admire the art and the building at Canada House

This is the High Commission (diplomatic office) for Canadians in London but any of us can go inside to see the Canada Gallery for free. There are paintings, sculptures, and more showcasing Canadian talent.

And there’s usually a temporary special exhibition too. The building is also rather lovely so they offer free tours once a month (book on the website).

Hang out with dead people at the Body Worlds Exhibition

Gunther von Hagens’ Body Worlds exhibition has been touring the world since 1995 but it now has a permanent home in Piccadilly Circus.

As a museum of the human body, on display are a series of plastinated posed corpses and internal organs. Yep, all of the anatomical specimens in the exhibition are real.

This isn’t a small museum as there are seven floors of exhibits, including some animals too. Think of it like Madame Tussauds, except much gorier.

---

Leicester Square

Leicester Square, London WC2H 7LU, UK · Google Maps