In this guide
Many London award nights are invitation, industry or trade events, and the public watches the broadcast.
A handful do open the doors, and they do it in four ways: tickets on public sale, free fan pens outside the venue, a members’ ballot, and standing on the street. This guide gives every event the way in, the price at face value, and the one thing that stops a booking.
💡 The Short Version: Tickets are on public sale for the National Television Awards (from £25), the Fashion Awards (from £30), the WhatsOnStage Awards and the UK Music Video Awards (£250 plus VAT). The Royal Variety Performance sells to anyone but sells out within a sale day. The BAFTAs and the Olivier Awards give out free fan-pen places outside the venue, through Applause Store, and not the ceremony itself. The Festival of Remembrance is a Royal British Legion members’ ballot. The BRIT Awards, MOBO Awards and Mercury Prize have left London.
Prices are face value, before the booking fees each seller adds. Dates are for the editions named.
Every event and how to get in
These are the events with a route for the public, in calendar order from October 2026. Two have their own page: the National Television Awards and the Olivier Awards. The BAFTA red carpet, film premieres and the Last Night of the Proms do too.
| Event | Month | Venue | Way in | Price | When to book, and the catch |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BFI London Film Festival galas | 7 to 18 Oct 2026 | Royal Festival Hall | Tickets on public sale | Galas £21 to £30; Opening and Closing Night Galas £40 | Galas sell out first. The festival guide has the release dates |
| Royal Ballet and Opera: A Centenary Celebration | 8 and 10 Oct 2026 | Royal Opera House | Tickets on public sale | £9 to £176 | £9 is a Young RBO price on selected performances. About three hours with two intervals |
| Film premieres | Through the year | Leicester Square cinemas and others | Free fan-pen places through Applause Store | Free. Resellers quote £1,999 to £4,000 for a place, and are not an official route | Photo ID for every guest at most premieres. Places are over-allocated |
| UK Music Video Awards | Wed 4 Nov 2026 | Roundhouse, Chalk Farm | Tickets on public sale at ukmva.com | £250 plus VAT a seat; tables of 10 £2,500, of 12 £3,000 | Includes supper and the afterparty. Doors 6.30pm, show 8pm |
| Booker Prize | Sun 8 and Mon 9 Nov 2026 | Queen Elizabeth Hall (readings); Old Billingsgate (ceremony) | Tickets for the shortlist readings through the Southbank Centre; the ceremony is private and livestreamed on YouTube | Livestream free; watch party at London Review Bookshop £7 | Readings 7.30pm on Sunday 8 November. The winner is announced on Monday 9 November, livestreamed 9.30pm to 10pm |
| Festival of Remembrance | Nov | Royal Albert Hall | Royal British Legion members’ ballot | – | Members only, maximum two tickets. Tickets go to the public only if members do not use the ballot |
| Lord Mayor’s Show | Sat 14 Nov 2026 | City of London, from Mansion House | Stand on the route | Free; programme £5, cash only | Sets off at 11am. Almost the whole City is closed to traffic |
| Royal Variety Performance | Fri 20 Nov 2026 | Royal Albert Hall | Public sale, through the charity’s store only | From £75; with aftershow party from £310 | Sold out in every seat category. Photo ID matched to the buyer, black tie, seated by 7pm |
| Fashion Awards | Mon 30 Nov 2026 | Royal Albert Hall | General admission on Ticketmaster | From £30 | Red-carpet access comes only with a hospitality package, by email |
| EE BAFTA Film Awards | Feb 2027 | Royal Festival Hall in 2026 | Free fan-pen places by application through Applause Store | Free | Fan pens only, not the ceremony. Age 12 and over, under 18s with an adult |
| WhatsOnStage Awards | Sun 28 Feb 2027, 6.30pm | London Palladium | Tickets on public sale through LW Theatres | Seats priced on the LW Theatres page; Headliner Lounge £80 a person | Under 4s not admitted; 15 and under need an adult |
| Olivier Awards | Apr 2027 (2026: Sun 12 Apr) | Royal Albert Hall | Free green-carpet fan pens through Applause Store | Free | Pens are outside, with no shelter and no chairs. Age 5 and over |
| BAFTA Television Awards | May 2027 (2026: Sun 10 May) | Royal Festival Hall in 2026 | Free fan-pen places through Applause Store | Free | Fan pens only, not the ceremony |
| Last Night of the Proms | Sep 2027 (2026: Sat 12 Sep) | Royal Albert Hall | Open ballot, five-concert ballot, leftover sale, Day Promming | Ballot £165.20 and £101.96; Day Prom £8 (2026 prices) | Two tickets a booker. Day Prom tickets go on sale at 9.30am on the day |
| National Television Awards | Wed 8 Sep 2027 | The O2 | Tickets on public sale through AXS and Ticketmaster | £25 to £105; red-carpet packages £150 and £270 | Every price carries a booking fee and a venue facility fee |
| Royal Film Performance | Sep (2026: Tue 22 Sep) | Central London | Tickets through Eventbrite | From £150 plus fees (2026) | Black tie, no photography inside, all sales final. The 2027 film is not announced |
| TV and radio studio audiences | Through the year | Studios across London | Free tickets from audience agencies | Free | Over-issued on purpose, so a ticket is not a seat |
⚠️ Moved out of London. The BRIT Awards are at Co-op Live in Manchester in 2026 and 2027, and the 2027 ceremony is on Saturday 27 February. The 2026 MOBO Awards are in Manchester. The Mercury Prize was at the Utilita Arena Newcastle in 2025 and is there in 2026. The Turner Prize exhibition is at MIMA in Middlesbrough in 2026, and BBC Sports Personality of the Year has been at dock10 in Salford since 2020. The BAFTA Children’s Awards ended after the ceremony at Old Billingsgate on 27 November 2022. BRITs Week for War Child still put gigs in London in 2026, at The Garage on 16 February and the Emerald Theatre, with the 2026 programme announced on brits.co.uk.
The calendar
Dates are the next confirmed ones. Where the 2027 date is not out, the 2026 date is shown as a guide.
- October 2026: the BFI London Film Festival runs 7 to 18 October, with galas at the Royal Festival Hall. A Centenary Celebration at the Royal Opera House is on 8 and 10 October. The UK Theatre Awards are on Monday 12 October, an industry event.
- November 2026: the UK Music Video Awards are on Wednesday 4 November. The Booker shortlist readings are on Sunday 8 November and the winner is announced on Monday 9 November. The Lord Mayor’s Show is on Saturday 14 November. The Royal Variety Performance is on Friday 20 November. The Fashion Awards are on Monday 30 November. The Festival of Remembrance is in November; the 2026 ballot closed in June and was drawn on 8 and 9 July.
- December 2026, January 2027 and March 2027: none of the events on this page falls in these months.
- February 2027: the BAFTA Film Awards, with a register-interest page for the 2027 fan pens on Applause Store (in 2026 applications closed on 8 February for the ceremony on 22 February). The BRITs are in Manchester on Saturday 27 February. The WhatsOnStage Awards are at the Palladium on Sunday 28 February.
- April 2027: the Olivier Awards. The 2026 ceremony was on Sunday 12 April.
- May 2027: the BAFTA Television Awards (2026: Sunday 10 May). The Ivor Novello Awards are on Thursday 20 May, an industry event. The Festival of Remembrance ballot opened on 27 May in 2026, and the Last Night of the Proms ballot opened on 16 May in 2026.
- June to August 2027: the Last Night of the Proms open ballot closed on 9 July in 2026, and the Festival of Remembrance draws were on 8 and 9 July.
- September 2027: the National Television Awards are on 8 September. The Last Night of the Proms was on Saturday 12 September in 2026. The Royal Film Performance was on Tuesday 22 September in 2026.
The free route: Applause Store fan pens
Several of the free ways in run through one agency, Applause Store, which issues free fan-pen places for the BAFTA Film Awards, the BAFTA Television Awards, the Olivier Awards and some film premieres. A fan pen is a standing area beside the red carpet, outside the venue, from which you watch the guests arrive. It is not a seat at the ceremony.
- Register a free account, then use Register Interest on the event’s page. It emails you when places are released.
- Places are over-allocated, so admission is not guaranteed, and entry is first come, first served.
- Photo ID rules are printed on the ticket, and a photo or scan of an ID is not accepted.
- Applause Store says anyone found selling a free place has it voided. Never pay for one.
The red-carpet canopy for the BAFTA Film Awards at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, a former venue for the ceremony. Photo: Tom Morris, CC BY-SA 3.0.
The nights that sell tickets
Royal Variety Performance
Friday 20 November 2026, Royal Albert Hall. A variety show in front of senior members of the Royal Family, filmed for worldwide broadcast over Christmas and New Year. The official aftershow party is at the Natural History Museum, behind the hall. Show tickets start at £75; show and aftershow packages start at £310, the party alone is £245, boxes start at £2,600 and access tickets are £325.
The catch is the sale. The Royal Variety Charity is the only supplier of tickets, and the 2026 sale opened at 9am on Friday 27 February 2026, announced the day before. Its store lists every seat category as sold out. The charity’s mailing list gives advance notice of the next one. At the door you need photo ID matched to the buyer, tickets are not transferable or resaleable, the dress code is black tie or evening dress, and doors open at 6pm with everyone seated by 7pm.
Festival of Remembrance
Royal Albert Hall, November, with an afternoon and an evening performance. The Royal British Legion allocates tickets by ballot. For 2026 it ran the ballot for members only. The ballot opened on 27 May 2026 for four weeks, winners could buy a maximum of two tickets, and the draws were on 8 July for the evening show and 9 July for the afternoon. Entrants needed their membership number.
The catch is membership. Some sites still say the afternoon performance is open to any member of the public; the Legion’s own ballot page says members. It adds that if the ballot is not used up, tickets go on sale to the general public later in the year.
The Fashion Awards
Monday 30 November 2026, Royal Albert Hall. General admission starts at £30 on Ticketmaster, linked from the Fashion Awards tickets page, and gets you into the ceremony.
The red carpet is the catch. The British Fashion Council sells red-carpet access only with its hospitality packages, which are tables, club and boxes, by email to fashionawards@britishfashioncouncil.com.
WhatsOnStage Awards
Sunday 28 February 2027, 6.30pm, London Palladium. The organiser calls them the only major UK theatre awards nominated and voted for by the public, and 2027 is the fourth time they have been at the Palladium. Seats are sold by LW Theatres, with the booking fee and a £2 restoration levy included in the price shown. Two add-ons are sold with a seat: the Headliner Lounge at £80 a person and the Star Suite at £140, each with a VIP entrance and a reserved table up to 60 minutes before the show. The Supporter package is £1,600 plus VAT for two premium seats, two passes to the pre-show drinks and entry to the party for two.
The catch is age. Under-4s, including babes in arms, are not admitted, and anyone aged 15 or under must be accompanied by an adult.
UK Music Video Awards
Wednesday 4 November 2026, Roundhouse, Chalk Farm Road, NW1 8EH. A seat is £250 plus VAT, tables of 10 are £2,500 and tables of 12 are £3,000, and each price includes the show and the afterparty. The timetable runs from doors and a drinks reception at 6.30pm, supper at 7.15pm and the show at 8pm to the afterparty at 10.30pm, with bars closing at 12.30am. The dress code is “anything goes”. Chalk Farm on the Northern line is the nearest Tube.
The catch is VAT. The £250 is before VAT, so the bill is higher than the number on the page. Tickets are sold at ukmva.com.
The invitation-only and industry nights
These are industry, trade or private events.
| Event | Date and venue | What the public can do |
|---|---|---|
| Ivor Novello Awards | Thu 20 May 2027, JW Marriott Grosvenor House, Park Lane | An industry event with press accreditation. Amazon Music livestreamed the red carpet and backstage in 2026 |
| Music Week Awards | May (2026: 7 May), JW Marriott Grosvenor House | A music-trade event whose 2026 tickets sold out. Register interest for 2027 on musicweekawards.com |
| UK Theatre Awards | Mon 12 Oct 2026, 8 Northumberland Avenue | An industry event. The theatre nights with a public route are the Olivier Awards and the WhatsOnStage Awards |
| Booker Prize ceremony | Mon 9 Nov 2026, Old Billingsgate | Private, with a free livestream and ticketed watch parties in bookshops |
Continue planning your London trip
- 📺 National Television Awards Tickets — seats from £25 at The O2, and the red carpet
- 🎭 Olivier Awards Tickets — free green-carpet places and the prize draw
- 🎬 BAFTA Red Carpet — free fan pens for the film and television ceremonies
- 🌟 Film Premieres in London — how to watch the Leicester Square carpet
- 🎶 Last Night of the Proms Tickets — the ballots and the £8 Day Prom
- 🎞️ BFI London Film Festival — the galas and the cheap tickets
- 📺 Free TV Show Tickets in London — the free studio-audience route
- 🏟️ The O2 Travel Guide — getting to the National Television Awards
- 🏛️ South Kensington Area Guide — the Royal Albert Hall neighbourhood
Common questions
Can the public go to award ceremonies in London?
To some. The National Television Awards, the Fashion Awards, the WhatsOnStage Awards and the UK Music Video Awards sell tickets to anyone. The BAFTAs and the Olivier Awards give out free places in fan pens outside the venue, though not at the ceremony. The Festival of Remembrance is a members' ballot. Most others are invitation, industry or trade only.
Are the BRIT Awards still in London?
No. The BRIT Awards are at Co-op Live in Manchester in 2026 and 2027, and the 2027 ceremony is on Saturday 27 February. BRITs Week for War Child still put gigs in London in 2026, at venues including The Garage and the Emerald Theatre.
Are the Mercury Prize and the MOBO Awards in London?
No. The Mercury Prize was at the Utilita Arena Newcastle in 2025 and is there in 2026, and the 2026 MOBO Awards are in Manchester.
How do I get into a red carpet event in London for free?
Applause Store, a free audience-ticket agency, issues free fan-pen places for the BAFTA Film and Television Awards, the Olivier Awards and some film premieres. Places are limited and allocated, entry is not guaranteed, and anyone selling a place has it voided.
Can anyone get tickets to the Royal Variety Performance?
Yes, on general sale, but it sells out. The 2026 show is on Friday 20 November at the Royal Albert Hall. Tickets opened at 9am on Friday 27 February 2026, and the charity's store lists every seat category as sold out. Prices start at £75. Join the Royal Variety Charity's mailing list for advance notice of the next sale.
Can the public go to the Festival of Remembrance?
Through a ballot for Royal British Legion members. For 2026 members entered between 27 May and late June and could buy a maximum of two tickets. The Legion says tickets go on sale to the general public only if members do not use up the ballot.
How much do award ceremony tickets cost in London?
From free for a fan pen to £25 for a National Television Awards seat at The O2, £30 for the Fashion Awards, £75 for the Royal Variety Performance and £250 plus VAT for the UK Music Video Awards, which includes supper and the afterparty. Prices are face value before booking fees.
