Electric Summer Battersea Power Station
- Sarah
- 14 hours ago
- 4 min read
It's already been a long hot summer and with temperatures well above 33c last Wednesday, spending time by the river seemed a very attractive option. Even more attractive, was that our invitation was to the launch of Electric Summer at the vibrant Battersea Power Station. I've had a soft spot for Battersea since I lived there from 1989 to 1994. At that time the site was derelict, the power station lacked a roof, and plans for its re-development came and went. I would have loved the area as it now is; full of great places to eat, an excellent fringe type theatre, the Battersea Brewery, shops, and now for this summer - Electric Summer.
So what is Electric Summer exactly? Think classy fun fair and you're a little on the right track.
Rather than being somewhere you simply turn up, spend a fortune and go home again, it's been designed as somewhere you can just enjoy. Entry is completely free, so you can wander around, watch everyone else having fun, enjoy the riverside atmosphere and soak up the music without spending a penny. Of course, if you're anything like us, watching everyone else having fun only lasts so long before you decide you ought to join in.
The attractions are all individually priced, so you can dip in and out as you please. The Big Wheel costs £10 for adults (£8 for children), roller skating starts at £15 for adults (£10 for children), pétanque courts are from £14 per session, while the traditional rides and games generally start at around £4. It feels quite refreshing not to be tied into buying an all-day wristband you'll never fully use.
I was quite tempted by the roller skating, until I remembered that I quite quite like having both my dignity and my hips intact. Instead we stood and watched. It was actually one of the nicest things about the evening. Some people were clearly putting on skates for the first time ever and the staff couldn't have been more patient, helping nervous beginners find their balance while making sure everyone felt confident before setting off. Others whizzed effortlessly around the rink as though they'd been born wearing skates. I watched them with equal parts admiration and envy.
The absolute highlight for me was the Big Wheel. I've been on plenty over the years, but I really wasn't expecting views quite as good as these. Looking across London with the Thames below is lovely anyway, but spotting the Wembley Arch in the distance genuinely surprised me. You get three complete rotations, so there's plenty of time to admire the view and take photographs without feeling rushed. I also noticed the operators carefully balancing the ride before it set off, which was reassuring.
Then there was the chair ride. Judging by the screams coming from it you'd have thought people were being launched into orbit. We had a go and...well...it was really good fun. Fast, breezy and perfect on a hot evening. But scream-worthy? I'm not so sure. Either I'm braver than I thought or everyone else was simply getting into the spirit of things.
No proper fun fair would be complete without those impossible-to-resist games where you convince yourself you'll definitely win this time. There are plenty here, with giant stuffed animals hanging everywhere as proof that somebody, somewhere, has better aim than I do. We wisely decided not to embarrass ourselves, although I did spend rather longer than necessary eyeing up an enormous highland coo.
We finished with pétanque, because frankly it looked civilised. Standing around outdoors with a drink in hand throwing metal balls at another ball? What's not to like? The member of staff explained the rules brilliantly and we nodded enthusiastically, convinced we'd understood everything. Fast forward to a couple of beers for one of us and a couple of glasses of wine for the other, and neither of us was entirely convinced we'd grasped the finer points after all. We still had a great laugh though, which is probably rather more important than winning.
If all that activity leaves you hungry or thirsty, you're well catered for. There are food trucks serving everything from street food to sweet treats, alongside a bar where you can sit with a cold drink and watch the world go by. Given the weather, that proved to be one of the best decisions of the evening.
What I liked most about Electric Battersea is that it doesn't try too hard. It's simply a lovely summer destination where families, couples and groups of friends can spend as much or as little as they choose. Battersea Power Station has already become one of London's great success stories, and Electric Summer feels like another reason to head there while the sunshine lasts. Just don't ask me to explain the rules of pétanque afterwards.
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