I’ve long been a fan of all things 1950s from rock and roll music to swingy skirts to drinks with cocktail cherries, and I’m currently glued to BBC 2’s The Hour, so naturally I was delighted to be given a couple of tickets to a late event at the Museum of London paying tribute to the 'fabulous fifties' last week.

The Museum of London is one of my favourite London museums and not only because it’s literally a stone’s throw from where I currently live. The permanent galleries tell a fascinating story of London’s history from the first people to dwell in settlements along the Thames up until the present day, and there are some great temporary exhibitions too: currently there’s an engrossing exhibition of London Street Photography from 1860 to the present day as well as a fun display of hand-drawn maps of the city in the foyer. Downstairs in the cafe, you'll also find an installation by the Light Surgeons, which is to be the first in a series of media art commissions at the museum.

I’ve been to plenty events at the museum before but this was the first event in their Late series that I’d seen, transforming the entire museum for the evening after the usual closing time. On offer was music from Laura B and the Moonlighters and The Broken Hearts DJs, vintage pin-up makeovers, talks on fifties fashion and popular culture from the museum's curators, dance classes with The London Swing Dance Society, craft workshops from  Tatty Devine, and of course, fifties-style food and drink.

Perhaps unsurprisingly given the current fashion for all things vintage and nostalgic, this was a hugely popular event: the Tatty Devine workshop was so busy that sadly I didn't get chance to join in, but I was lucky enough to get my hair styled by one of the stylists from the Vanity Box, who provided a pop-up vintage salon creating 1950s hair and make-up looks. And as well as tapping my toe to a few fifties tunes, and sampling some chips in a cone, I also snapped a few shots of some of the amazing dancers twisting, strolling and hand-jiving the evening away - for once I managed to remember a camera! It was a great evening for people watching, with some amazing outfits and retro frocks on display, but what's more, it was interesting to see the museum transformed into such a buzzing and lively space for a fun evening event - this was certainly a clever strategy for drawing in new audiences, as well as to approach learning about the history of the 20th century in a different way.

This event was part of a month-long programme across the city to celebrate the 60th anniversary of the Festival of Britain: find out about more events at Story of London.  For anyone who like me, enjoys 1950s music, you might also be interested in this fifties inspired blog written for the event by The Broken Hearts DJs featuring some of their favourite tunes from the decade.

 Every year on my birthday, I try to go and see a ballet. It's the perfect thing to do on a cold January day, bringing a little sparkle and brightness to even the darkest winter evening. This year's birthday celebration (I've just turned a hale and hearty 28, in case you're wondering...) was Matthew Bourne's Cinderella at Sadler's Wells.

Bourne has become synonymous with doing things differently, and his much hyped take on Cinderella is no exception. Here, he takes the lead from Prokofiev's romantic, yet darkly sombre score, composed in the 1940s, and transports the action to London in the Blitz. There's a kind of desperate glitter and giddy gaiety to this fairytale set against a shadowy, desolate landscape of shattered buildings and bomb blasts. Cinderella is a mousy young girl, bullied by her stepbrothers and sisters, but especially by her stepmother: a Cruella-style vamp who struts the stage in a fur coat, downing gins. Her fairy-godmother (or indeed godfather in this case) is a glittering, silver-suited, platinum haired angel who arrives on a white motorbike, and orchestrates a romantic meeting with a wounded airman. But the lovers are separated in London's dark streets, and struggle to find each other as they dance through a dark underworld of violence and wailing air raid sirens, in which time turns upside down and the lines between reality and hallucination become blurred.

Paying homage to everything from the tragic romance of Brief Encounter to the surrealism of the Powell and Pressburger classics of the 1940s (perhaps especially An Affair to Remember); Busby Berkley musicals to Kenneth MacMillan's Romeo and Juliet, this is a delightfully clever, as well as hugely enjoyable, production. I was inspired by the beautiful production design, especially the 1940s costumes. And in spite of the dark and disturbing threads woven through Bourne's world of dancing air-raid wardens and raiding sirens, I loved the final happy ending: a tender, touching, jitterbug-joyous finale to the perfect birthday ballet.

I had been looking forward to the V&A's major autumn exhibition, Diaghilev and the Golden Age of the Ballets Russes 1909-1929 for a while, so I was especially pleased to be invited to go along and see it, as well as to hear a talk about Diaghilev by fragrance specialist Roja Dove, who created a new fragrance especially for the exhibition.

This beautifully-curated show tells the story of  Diaghilev's Ballet Russes, focusing particularly on how he blended dance, music and modern art in his productions to create avant-garde works of 'total theatre', collaborating with some of the most radical artists of his day, such as Stravinsky, Chanel, Picasso, Matisse and of course, the company’s famous choreographer and dancer, Nijinsky. Moving from the dazzling launch of the Ballet Russes in 1909, through the events of the Russian Revolution and the First World War, and into the 1920s, the exhibition also examines the huge influence Diaghilev exerted on 20th century culture, especially in art, design, fashion and theatre, as well as his legacy in terms of contemporary dance.

Exuberant, glamorous and opulent , this exhibition is hugely enjoyable - a carefully-assembled treasure trove of Diaghilev's personal effects and documents, as well as short films, an incredible selection of original costumes, and fascinating visual material such as posters, photographs and backcloths.  Further material relates to the choreography, music and design of Diaghilev's productions, from scores and dance patterns through to set models and costume design sketches, which illustrate the strongly radical and often controversial nature of these archetypally modernist productions.

Walking through this exhibition is a genuinely atmospheric experience: strolling through dramatically lit spaces with a striking red and black colour scheme, we move first through a darkened 'backstage' area and then emerge into a 'stage' complete with backcloth, music and brilliant lighting - for a moment, we too are allowed to take our place in the spotlight. Nonetheless it is the charismatic figure of Diaghilev himself who remains very much centre stage in this enthralling exhibition, as in Roja Dove’s entertaining talk about the man and his influence on the world of fragrances in particular, as well as art and culture more broadly.  

Though I have to admit that I'm particularly intrigued by the world of ballet, and have a special interest in this period, regardless of whether or not you're a balletomane, this exhibition is a fascinating feast to enjoy - rich, evocative and full of bohemian splendour.

The exhibition runs until 9 January and there's also a blog by the exhibition's co-curator, Jane Pritchard, on the V&A website.

[All images via the V&A]