Events and Culture

Club in the Clouds with mixmag at Horizon22 Events

Eastern City BID launched Club in the Clouds in 2025 to bring fun, music and connection to the Square Mile by engaging the local working community in a relaxed sociable environment.

With 360 attendees in partnership with Mixmag, together we transformed Europe’s highest events space into the highest club on the continent with cutting-edge music, stunning skyline views, and an atmosphere that you won’t find anywhere else.

London’s tallest Christmas tree at One Bishopsgate Plaza

In 2025 we erected London’s tallest Christmas tree at Bishopsgate Plaza, this time with tv legend Dermot O’Leary switching on the lights. A stunning musical light show lit up the tree during the busiest times of day to bring festive cheer to commuters and the public. A festive sweet cart was also deployed by Eastern City BID to hand out free treats to passers-by with a snow canon backdrop to add to the festivities, and our local workshops included cookie-decorating, wine-tasting and wreath-making to promote joy and merriment and boost community spirit.

Walking Tours

Walking tours are an effective way for workers to deepen their understanding of the Eastern City’s rich history while highlighting key activations across the area. In 2022, Eastern City BID partnered with the London Festival of Architecture to launch free guided tours led by City of London Guides, taking 48 participants through the area’s historic landmarks, modern architecture, public art and popular food spots. In 2023, the programme shifted focus to LFA installations such as the Urban Playground and included a family activation day at Fen Court that attracted 124 attendees, along with bespoke heritage tours for Black History Month, International Women’s Day and corporate groups, drawing a further 85 participants. In 2024, eight additional free tours were delivered for local employees—some themed around PRIDE and LFA, others uncovering hidden histories and supporting team‑building across the Eastern City.

Evanescent at The Leadenhall Building

In January 2023, Eastern City BID launched Recharge Festival to provide various initiatives to support the mental health of the local workforce and enliven the City at what can be a difficult time of year. With 41,000 people visiting the flagship ‘Evanescent’ giant illuminated bubble installation at The Leadenhall Building, this project brough a lightness and a creative spark to the Square Mile’s tall building cluster.

Elysian Arcs at The Leadenhall Building

The following year, Eastern City BID presented Elysian Arcs – a stunning outdoor sound and light installation by the award-winning design studio Atelier Sisu at The Leadenhall Building. This immersive experience featured 20ft-high rainbow-colored arcs paired with an ambient soundtrack, attracting 35,627 visitors over 19 days and reaching 1 million people through media coverage, with overwhelmingly positive feedback. Additionally, Eastern City BID hosted a series of wellbeing workshops, offering sessions like Sleeping for Success, Restorative Yin, and Mindful Mixology designed to help participants recharge and reset for 2024. The workshops, which saw 120 participants, received excellent feedback, reflecting the success of this holistic approach to promoting wellness and community connection within the Eastern City.

The Observatory at 55 Old Broad Street

In 2025, Eastern City BID commissioned Creative Giants Art to produce two interactive digital art exhibitions – The Observatory, which was hosted in a vacant retail unit on Old Broad Street throughout January. Showcasing a free immersive digital art house, the project sought to explore human experience through the fusion of art, technology and storytelling and bring light and joy to the dark winter months. Both Harmony 2.0 (a group meditation experience using EEG headsets) and Soul Paint (a Virtual Reality journey) collectively attracted 1,741 attendees with 76% of those surveyed reporting an improved understanding of mental health, and 95% expressing an interest in attending similar events in the future.

5&20 Exhibition

Eastern City BID collaborated with Brookfield Properties and the Crafts Council on a public exhibition in the lobbies of 99 Bishopsgate and 30 Fenchurch Street in 2025. Between May and September these spaces hosted a showcase of 20 key objects from the Crafts Council’s archives in celebration of their 20th anniversary. This was a first step in exploring how we can better activate ground floor spaces across the BID footprint and broaden the area’s cultural offering.

Padel Tennis Festival

In partnership with Aldgate Connect BID and Eastern City BID, Central London Alliance and Blue Orchid Hospitality, together we brought a Padel Tennis Festival to the Crescent near Tower Hill from April – September in 2023. The pop-up padel court was hugely successful with 1,595 bookings bringing approximately 6,380 people to the area. The court was fully booked on weekends, evenings and Bank Holidays, and had a booking every single day with an 86% occupancy rate. It received great community engagement with 20 teams from local businesses taking part in a corporate challenge whilst raising funds for charity, two free family fun days and complimentary coaching sessions for two primary schools in Aldgate and Tower Hamlets. The grand finale saw a successful Guinness World Record attempt for the longest continuous padel match at nearly 32 hours, in support of the Lord Mayor’s Appeal and City Giving Day.

Morph’s Epic Art Adventure

Working patterns across the City have undoubtedly changed and in order for the commercial ecosystem to thrive, the Eastern City Bid identified the need to reach new audiences and diversify what this part of the capital has to offer by working with key stakeholders to deliver a significant programme of cultural events and installations to enliven our public spaces and empty properties. One such project was Morph’s Epic Art Adventure, the UK’s first step-free art trail of its kind, in support of the charity Whizz-Kidz and in partnership with 5 City of London BIDs and Wild in Art to deliver the trail. Featuring 6ft Morphs and Mini-Morphs across central London, the installation attracted 11,402 app downloads and 424,947 sculpture collections and Eastern City BID’s Morph, “The London Man,” located at St Helen’s Square, was collected 4,774 times.

Sculpture in the City

The Summer of 2022 marked the beginning of Eastern City BID’s partnership with Sculpture in the City (SITC), an annual public sculpture park delivered by the City of London Corporation and LACUNA that brings arts and culture into the heart of the financial district, resulting that year in 1,430 direct audience engagements—more than double 2021’s total. Building on this momentum, in 2023 Eastern City BID served as activation partner and commissioned SculptureFest, a free family‑friendly event featuring creative workshops and children’s walking tours, attracting 383 attendees, while also supporting London Sculpture Week through guided tours that welcomed 160 participants and producing a bespoke family trail map. The partnership continued into 2024 with support for the 13th Edition’s communications and events programme, with a particular focus on engaging young families through activities such as Art on the Skyline, guided tours, child‑friendly workshops like Little Art Critic TV, and discussions exploring themes including the gender pay gap. In 2025, Sculpture in the City expanded its offer with long‑table dinner events and workshops on topics such as “The Art of Hormone Hacking” and “Mind The Gap,” the latter held in partnership with the Young Women’s Trust.E

Screen on the Green

To showcase the 2024 Paris Olympics & Paralympics and summer staples Wimbledon and the Tour de France, the City BIDS launched ‘Summer of Sport in the City’. Eastern City BID installed an outdoor cinema screen at Seething Lane Garden which was open to the public, and our ‘Screen on the Green’ was also used to host virtual fitness classes and weekly film nights, attracting over 2,600 people across six weeks.
The following year, in collaboration with the City BIDs and the City of London Corporation we kicked off another year of ‘Summer of Sport’ with an opening ceremony at The Guildhall, followed by a social event for local businesses at the Four Seasons Hotel, featuring inspiring speeches from Olympic rower Alastair Heathcote and Andy Sellins of The Change Foundation. ‘Screen on the Green’ at Seething Lane Garden was another highlight, drawing over 2,600 visitors with live screenings of Wimbledon, the Olympics and Paralympics, as well as virtual fitness classes and weekly open-air cinema nights. We also collaborated with An Evolving District Stanhope to bring fun-fair style games to St Helen’s Square, providing free entertainment for the public.

Friday Night Lights

Another sports initiative Eastern City BID is proud to sponsor is Friday Night Lights, a run club that brings together the local community for an energising evening of movement, music, and stunning city views. Participants run 6k covering a loop of the Southbank and showcasing iconic landmarks such as Tower Bridge, St Paul’s, The Tate, The City, and the Thames – all with some tunes to motivate everyone along the way.

Super Tuesdays

To support hospitality, leisure and retail businesses within the BID footprint over the festive period, Eastern City launched ‘Super Tuesday’ campaign in 2022, where stilt walkers and festive choirs spread joy to the public across four Tuesdays leading up to Christmas, and gave away 180 prizes with our ‘Spin the Wheel’ game. We also installed neon angel wings for a photo opportunity moment at 20 Fenchurch Street.

Tinsel Trail

In 2023 for Christmas, Eastern City BID launched the Tinsel Trail campaign, transforming the Eastern City into a magical festive destination with the aim to attract new audiences to the footprint through diverse and inclusive festive activities. The events within the campaign included MOSAIC 2023 where we partnered with Arnaud Lapierre Design Studio to create a 20ft mirrored green Christmas tree installation at Pan Pacific London, reflecting commitment to sustainability. The launch event, attended by 50 guests, celebrated this eco-friendly artwork.

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Collaborating with Aviva UK, artist Jasper Toeli, and Trees for Cities, Eastern City BID also launched the “Be the Tree” installation, allowing participants to project their faces onto a 20ft tree using video mapping, with 333 visitors engaging online. An 18ft Christmas tree was installed at St Helen’s Church, accompanied by a festive lighting ceremony attended by 60 community members. Additionally, a series of workshops, including candle and wreath making, engaged 131 participants, strengthening local partnerships. At Leadenhall Market, festive events featured carol performances, snow machines, and giveaways to support local businesses. Lastly, a Winter Wonderland Snow Globe at Fenchurch Street Station attracted 180 visitors, enhancing the festive atmosphere in the Eastern City.

Festival of Light

In 2024 we celebrated Christmas with London’s tallest Christmas tree at Bishopsgate Plaza. The official light switch-on was hosted by special guest Dame Joan Collins. Wider festive programming included bauble, candle and jumper-making workshops for local employees, trees at three local churches, a light projection on to 55 Old Broad Street and ‘IMPULSE’ interactive seesaws at St Helen’s Square – the latter attracted 10,501 people and footfall across the whole Eastern City area was up by 23% compared to December 2023. The events received significant media coverage, including from Secret London, VisitLondon, City AM, Country & Town House, TimeOut and more.

Easter Egg Trail

In 2024, Eastern City BID’s Easter Egg Trail encouraged families and visitors to explore nine landmarks across the area using a mapped route of hidden bespoke eggs, supported by hospitality discounts and a competition to win an overnight hotel stay. In 2025, The Big Egg Hunt—organised by Elephant Family and Clarence Court—turned London into an open‑air gallery with over 100 artist‑designed sculptures raising funds for endangered Asian wildlife. Several large‑scale eggs were showcased across the Eastern City, including Liverpool Street Station, Leadenhall Market and the Leadenhall Building. Using a free app, visitors tracked and “collected” eggs to unlock rewards from local retailers, creating an interactive, family‑friendly experience blending art, culture and conservation.

Valentine’s Day

In 2024, Eastern City BID partnered with Leadenhall Market to celebrate self‑love with a striking Giant Neon Love Heart installation in the market’s central atrium. The activation offered photo moments, competitions and complimentary Valentine’s treats, encouraging visitors to interact with the piece by sharing 2,968 self‑care messages, taking part in 2,335 conversations and capturing 3,172 photos. The following Valentine’s Day, Eastern City BID continued the theme of spreading joy by hiring a branded flower cart to hand out roses during peak times, alongside hosting a series of floral bouquet‑making workshops for neighbouring businesses.

Black History Month Market

Eastern City BID is committed to championing diversity and inclusivity in The City. Alongside the Black History Month walking tours that we commissioned, we also celebrated with a Black Culture Market which showcased black culture, creativity, and entrepreneurship and brought together a vibrant community of black-owned businesses offering unique products and handmade creations. More than just a shopping experience, the event invited everyone to reflect on the importance of Black History Month and support the continued growth of black entrepreneurship in the City.

Diwali Celebrations at Leadenhall Market

For Diwali, Eastern City BID activated Leadenhall Market for a vibrant celebration filled with music, dance and creativity. The public enjoyed high-energy performances as Bollywood dancers as Dhol drummers filled the Market with rhythm, colour, and festive spirit. Afterwards we held a lantern lamp-making workshop where visitors crafted their own glowing creations.

Eastern City

We work to bring a vibrant and thriving Eastern City through a range of events highlighting art, culture, sport, wellbeing, seasonal moments and networking.

Some of our event highlights