Family Day at London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE

London Mithraeum Bloomberg SPACE is hosting a free family day on Thursday 29 October, from 10am to 4pm. The session is called Poems from the Past, and the whole idea is to write and decorate your own Roman-inspired poem. It's aimed at children aged 7-11, though all ages are welcome, and it forms part of the UK's National Year of Reading 2026.

To get the context, you have to understand where this is. The Mithraeum is a cultural hub built into the European headquarters of Bloomberg, and the experience starts with a journey seven metres below the street to the remains of an ancient Roman temple. Down there, you'll find Roman artefacts uncovered during recent excavations, displayed alongside contemporary art commissions that respond to the site. It's a place that regularly brings in site-specific work, like Folkmoot by Irish artist Anne Ryan, which drew on the temple and the layered history of the City of London. That's the backdrop for the day: a Roman temple sitting right under the modern city.

The workshop itself is a creative one, so it's less about listening and more about doing. You'll be writing your own poem inspired by the Roman world and then decorating it, with the temple ruins just a few steps away to draw from. It's a good fit for the National Year of Reading, too, so it's as much about getting kids to write as it is about the history.

It's free to attend, but you'll need to book a 30-minute time slot in advance. The day runs from 10am to 4pm, with a Quiet Hour from 3:30pm to 4pm for anyone who needs a calmer environment. You'll find it at 12 Walbrook, London EC4N 8AA.