Discover the stories behind the art, with people you'll enjoy sharing them with.
Your Saturday begins over coffee, with friendly introductions to a small group of fellow art lovers, all aged 45+.
It's an easy way to meet new people who share your interests. Coming on your own? We'll help you feel welcome from the start.
From the first introductions to the lunch reservation, we organise everything. Just turn up, enjoy the art and let the conversation unfold.
people have signed up to PLY
everyone in the group, so nobody is the odd one out
kept small enough that everyone actually talks
Three galleries, chosen in person
Together, you'll visit three carefully chosen galleries, where each gallery's director will guide you through the current exhibition. Hear about the artists, discover details you might otherwise miss and ask the questions that spark your curiosity. You don't need to know about art to enjoy it.
Twenty minutes on foot, in short stretches
Everything is a few minutes from everything else. Bruton Street to New Bond Street, New Bond Street to Cork Street, and a short stroll to lunch. About twenty minutes of walking across the whole morning, on pavements, at a talking pace.
Nothing about it is a route march, and there is time to look properly at each stop.
Comfortable shoes are all you need. Some galleries have a few steps or a lower floor. If that is a concern, tell us when you book and we will plan around it.
A relaxed two-course lunch, a few minutes' walk away
Then settle in for a relaxed two-course lunch nearby, with plenty to talk about and time to get to know each other. One table, booked in advance, from one o'clock.
Two courses, one table, no clock watching
You choose from the set menu on the day. Tell us about allergies or anything you would rather avoid when you book, and we pass it to the kitchen well in advance.
Drinks are settled at the table, so everyone pays for their own and nobody has to do sums at the end.
How the morning runs
- 10:15am
Coffee and introductions. Your host is there first, the table is booked, and you will already have said hello in the group chat, so this is more like meeting friends of friends than strangers.
- 11:00am
Into the first gallery. The director talks for ten minutes or so about the artist and the show, then it is yours to wander and ask.
- 11:40am
A few minutes' walk to the second gallery. Same again: a short talk, then time to look.
- 12:15pm
The third gallery, on Cork Street, where seven galleries sit within a hundred yards of each other.
- 1:00pm
Lunch. Two courses, one table, and as long as we like over them.
- 2:30pm
Say your goodbyes, or don't. Plenty of groups carry on.
You'll be in good company
This Saturday is only open to people aged 45 and over, so nobody spends it as the odd one out by a generation. Twelve like-minded people, all here for the same reason, and most of them coming on their own.
Your PLY host looks after the introductions, keeps everyone together between galleries and makes sure nobody is ever left on the edge of a conversation, in the gallery or at the table.
A few days before, the group chat opens, so by the time you reach the coffee stop you will know names and somebody will already have said something funny.
It is the same hosting we put into the PLY Weekend Away and the Country Escape. This is the Saturday morning version.
What happens afterwards
The day is the start of it, not the end.
The group chat stays open
Everyone keeps talking after Saturday lunch.
A reunion dinner
Within a month, same people, one long table.
First pick of the next one
And everyone from your Saturday is in Your People on PLY.
Easy from anywhere in London
Everything happens inside a few streets of Mayfair or Fitzrovia, so it is easy from anywhere in town. Meet at the coffee stop, and lunch finishes a couple of minutes from the tube.
Three minutes' walk to the coffee stop. Jubilee, Piccadilly and Victoria lines.
About ten minutes. Central and Elizabeth lines.
Where lunch ends, two minutes from the Bakerloo and Piccadilly lines.
Fitzrovia Saturdays meet near Oxford Circus instead. We send the exact meeting point, with a map and who to look for, as soon as your place is confirmed.
One Saturday. Twelve places, and no more.
Per person, everything below included
Saturdays, 10:15am to about 2:30pm
Guests, every one of them 45 or over
Whichever Saturday suits you, booking works the same way.
What your £69.99 covers
- A small hosted group of 12, all 45 or over
- Your PLY host, from coffee to the end of lunch
- Coffee on arrival
- Three gallery visits, each with a talk from the director
- A two-course lunch, table already booked
- The group chat, a few days before
- Your itinerary and the meeting point in writing
What you sort out yourself
- Getting yourself to Mayfair
- Anything you drink at lunch, settled at the table
- Comfortable shoes, and an umbrella in case
Questions, answered honestly
Almost everyone comes on their own, and that is rather the point. Your host does the introductions over coffee, so by the first gallery you already know a few names.
No. The directors talk about the artists and the work in plain English, and questions are welcome. Curiosity is the only thing you need to bring.
About twenty minutes across the whole morning, on pavements, in short stretches of a few minutes each. Some galleries have a few steps or a lower floor. Tell us when you book if that is a concern and we will plan around it.
Two courses from the set menu at a restaurant a few minutes from the last gallery, with everyone seated together. Tell us your requirements when you book and we pass them to the kitchen well ahead of time.
No. This Saturday is open to anyone aged 45 or over. If you enjoy it, membership gets you into our smaller Experiences through the week too, but there is no obligation at all.
Yes. Book two places and tell us when you fill in your details, and we will keep you in the same group. Plenty of people come solo, so you will not stand out either way.
You can move to another Saturday up to 48 hours before. Reply to your confirmation email and we will swap the date. Inside 48 hours we cannot move it, as the galleries and the restaurant are already expecting you.
You get a confirmation, then a quick note asking for dietary requirements and a mobile number for the day. A few days before, the group chat opens and you get the meeting point and the itinerary. On the day, all you do is turn up.
Whatever you are comfortable in. Galleries and the restaurant are relaxed, and comfortable shoes help. It is mostly indoors, so an umbrella covers the walks between galleries if it rains.
"I visited every one of these galleries before choosing them. The directors love talking about the work, the rooms are beautiful, and lunch afterwards is the part everyone remembers."
Karen
Founder, PLY