Before 9pm, Books, free events

Stories and songs performed in a traditional bardic style.

Toby Litt, Gregory Norminton and James Miller read stories they have written about climate change, which form part of a collection edited by Gregory Norminton.

A gallery talk by curator Frances Willis about the exhibition of the writer's illustrations and the clothes that inspired her.

The Beguilers fill The Front Room at Queen Elizabeth Hall with tender, mellifluous singing and finely wrought harmonies inspired by the poems of Blake, Shakespeare, Joyce, Clare and others. Composed by Fred Thomas, these songs invite your imagination to be moved, released and ultimately beguiled. The Beguilers are…

Meet the museum scientists and learn how the insect, plant, mollusk, vertebrate and marine life specimens are documented and conserved.

Go behind the scenes of the geology department and find about current research projects as well as learning how the team keeps track of the thousands of specimens the venue houses.

Learn about the work and creative processes of Keiko Masumoto.

Meet Julia Lohman and discover how she works with unusual materials such as seaweed.

The two authors, who wrote Storme and Greays Hill respectively, sign copies of their books.

The authors sign copies of their local history books, including Pedroche's London's Lost Power Stations And Gasworks and Mason's Walk The Lines: The London Underground Overground.

The recently published authors discuss their work and experiences within the publishing industry.

Paintings, drawings, prints, ceramics, photography, sculpture and poetry inspired by the woodland, waterways and rivers of Gloucestershire, exploring the notion of the in-between.

Inky Fingers present this bike-themed slam (yeah, bike-themed) in partnership with Edinburgh Festival of Cycling.

An illustrated talk about birds in the Yorkshire Dales National Park by the Species Officer.

Test your literary credentials in teams of up to five members. Please arrive for 5.45pm. Booking is essential.

The author signs copies of Love, Revenge and Buttered Scones.

A forensic anthropologist talks about how they give unidentified bodies a name and the techniques that are used to assist police investigations.

Looking for something to do at lunchtime? Southbank Centre, Coin Street and The Reader Organisation invite you to come along and take part in a regular reading group on Thursdays in the Saison Poetry Library. It's a place to relax, a chance to make new friends and a fresh way to share reading. No preparation needed…

The group discuss the selected books for the month.

An informal monthly reading group for book lovers, who enjoy chewing the fat. May's text is The Family Fang by Kevin Wilson, while in June, members will discuss The Plot Against America by Philip Roth.

Purchase a variety of second-hand books.

Listen to short readings of work by authors.

This discussion coincides with the launch of an edited volume by Lord Owen disclosing selected documents from his archive while cochairman of the International Conference on the former Yugoslavia.