#lockdown ideas

This is going to get lonely and boring quickly (as evidenced by how much I’ve posted tonight…).

Come at me with ideas on how to pass the time. Please please please…

Finding entertainment for the whole family is an extreme sport, as I'm sure all parents know. This situation was made even worse by the lockdown enforced in many countries over the world.

go onto omegle

reenact macbeth by reading out loud all of the lady macbeth parts (maybe the witches too just to spice things up)

even better if you don't need a play book or anything to do so and you just casually happen to know macbeth off by heart already

hope that someone out there also has a copy of macbeth and that they read out all the other parts and boom before you know it it's a two person play

I know there are a lot of these lists going around at the moment, but here’s my personally curated one 

THEATRE, OPERA AND BALLET

National Theatre at Home

The Globe Theatre is offering a selection of free content from their archive

Broadway Shows - Free 7 day trial available

New York Met - Free Opera programme

Marquee - Dance, Opera and Theatre on demand Free 30 day trial (includes RSC productions such as David Tennant’s Richard II and Paapa Essiedu’s Hamlet)

The Royal Opera House - programme of free online content via their YouTube channel

Hampstead Theatre - streaming performances of previous productions with a new play weekly.

Digital Theatre - Not Free but one month subscription is available for £9.99 with no minimum contract

The Wind In The Willows play - Free Live stream for children and adults alike!

Leave a Light On and West End Acoustic: The Quarantine Sessions - West End stars performing live-streamed concerts for a small fee (directly to the artists)

The Show Must Go On - Free Classic Musical Theatre

CULTURE & EDUCATION

Missing a visit to the museum? Museum and Gallery virtual tours

Sir Patrick Stewart is reciting a ‘Sonnet A Day’ over on Instagram and Twitter

Save With Stories - Storytelling, song, dance and poetry for children while raising funds for  @savethechildren and @nokidhungry 

MyStorybook.com - Make story books online for free 

TV & STREAMING

Love horror? Shudder has extended it’s usually 7 day free trial to 30 days for free. Here’s how you can get the offer. 

HBO is making 500 hours of programming free to stream on its its HBO Now and HBO Go platforms (not available in UK - Only available in territories with access to either platform, sorry)

This Free Streaming Service Lets You Watch Over 30,000 Movies Just for Having a Library Card

COMICS

How to get Twelve Free Online Marvel Comics (also works in UK but use the international site)

HEALTHY MIND & BODY 

Oti Mabuse - Strictly Come Dancing professional dancer live streaming free dancing classes on Instagram Live and YouTube daily

Debbie Allen - Free Dance Classes on Instagram Live

The BodyCoach - Free daily P.E. classes with Joe Wicks on Instagram Live

Max Whitlock - Olympic Gymnast (plus his wife and adorable toddler Willow) are streaming ‘The Whitlock Workout’ and ‘Gymnastics with Max’ for free on YouTube and Instagram

Just Rain App - Android Store and Apple Store links

Do Nothing For Two Minutes - Exactly what it says on the tin!

Calm - A customisable meditation experience

Weave silk - Drag your mouse around the screen to create otherworldly shapes and patterns.  

Sound Drown - A selection of calming sounds to relax to from rain, birds and even coffee shops.

Jack Monroe is offering Lockdown cooking ideas to make with depleted food availability (she answers as many as possible at #JackMonroesLockdownLarder 5pm GMT daily on Twitter)

YOUR DAILY DOSE OF CUTE

(Some of my favourite animal accounts on Instagram)

Hummingbirds - need I say more?!)

STUNNING wildlife photographer - and the adventures of her gorgeous bush dog

Foster Kittens

More Foster Kittens

Even MORE foster kittens - plus the cutest little boy and their doggos

Maru & Hana - Maru the cat likes boxes. A lot.

Loki the Wolfdog - Pretty self explanatory!

Blue Clover Rabbitry - Just in time for Easter… The cutest little bunnies you will ever see.

JUST FOR GIGGLES

Love dogs? How about a dog doing Yoga?

Missing sport? This sports commentator is using his skills to commentate on everyday life, and the results are hilarious!

Richard E Grant is reciting ‘Withnail and I’ Isolation Quotes over on Instagram and Twitter (the giggles are an added bonus)

Silly Sausage Hiddles - Just a link to my especially adorable and/or silly Hiddles Content <3

CREATIVITY 

[Thanks to Mymodernmet.com for these links]

DRAWING

20+ YouTube Channels to Learn How to Draw for Free

Learn to Draw Anything with These Handy Online Resources and Books

Learn How to Draw a Horse Head From 3 Different Angles

Learn How to Draw a Magical Unicorn in 6 Simple Steps

How to Draw a Dragon With These Easy Step by Step Instructions

Learn How to Draw Any Type of Human Nose With a Few Simple Steps

Perfect Your Portraiture by Learning How to Draw a Face Step by Step

Learn How to Draw Human Hands With This “Handy” Step by Step Guide

Step-by-Step Doodle Tutorials Make Complex Subjects Easy to Draw

Learn How to Draw a Dog with This Simple Step-by-Step Sketching Guide

Follow These 4 Easy Steps to Sketch Any Landscape You See

PAINTING

50+ Painting Ideas That Will Inspire You to Pick Up a Brush Right Now

30+ Watercolor Painting Ideas for Beginning Artists and Seasoned Professionals

Learn to Paint with 403 Free Episodes of Bob Ross’ “The Joy of Painting” on YouTube

This Step-by-Step Tutorial Shows You How to “Grow” Watercolor Flowers on Paper

13 YouTube Channels to Teach You How to Paint for Free

Learn How to Paint a Colorful Sunset in Easy to Follow Steps

How to Make Your Own Stencils + Thousands of Free Ready-to-Use Downloads

PHOTOGRAPHY

18 Best Online Photography Classes Guaranteed to Improve Your Creativity

Learn Photography With 99 Hours of Free Online Lessons From School of Visual Arts

Annie Leibovitz Is Teaching Her First Ever Photography Class, and Anyone Can Attend

EMBROIDERY

10+ Most Popular Embroidery Stitches You Can Learn for Free on YouTube

15+ Hand Embroidery Patterns Ready to Download and Start Sewing

How to Make Your Own Free Embroidery Pattern (and Download Others for Free)

KNITTING AND CROCHETING

20 Free Crochet Patterns You Can Start Stitching Today

How to Crochet: Learn the Basics of This Time-Honored Handicraft

10+ Popular Knitting Stitches You Can Learn for Free on YouTube

Learn Amigurumi: The Adorable Art of Knitting and Crocheting Small Creatures

SEWING

Here’s Where to Find Thousands of Sewing Patterns for Fashion-Forward DIY

Shibori Dyeing: How a Centuries-Old Japanese Art Is Still Used to Customize Cloth

COLOURING

100+ Museums Turn Their Collections Into Free Downloadable Coloring Books

Top 5 Places to Download Thousands of Free Adult Coloring Sheets

Adults Are Filling Drawings with Calming Patterns Instead of Just Coloring Them In

Last but by no means least: this AMAZING list of creative things to try

MOST IMPORTANTLY, do things that you WANT to do, not what you feel you SHOULD be doing. In these unprecedented times your mental health comes first. Don’t feel guilty for not wanting to do anything more than binge watch Netflix (I personally recommend Tiger King), or reread your favourite books, while eating comfort food.