The Half Moon is an iconic Putney pub and live-music venue at 93 Lower Richmond Road, London (SW15 1EU), staging live music essentially every night since 1963. Its stage has carried The Rolling Stones, The Who, U2's first sell-out UK gig, K.D. Lang's UK debut and Kate Bush's first public show, and it remains a working grassroots room today — the regular New Moon Monday showcases up-and-coming acts from around the world, alongside touring bands, acoustic sets, singer-songwriters and comedy. It reopened in April 2026 after a full refurbishment, with a new upstairs bar and menu. Around 220 capacity with a full backline including keys and an in-house engineer; welcomes originals and covers across rock, indie, acoustic, blues and folk.
Putney · Every Sunday · Free
The Half Moon Open Mic
Putney's Sunday-night free open mic at 93 Lower Richmond Road, SW15 1EU — full backline including keys, in-house engineer, 15-minute slots.
Open mic at a glance The Half Moon · London
Sunday
Open mic night
Apr 2026
Listed since
03 Jun
Last verified
Free
Entry
15 min
Slot length
Community
Listing status
Run a London open mic? List it free — verified within 48 hours
Last updated: 3 June 2026
The Half Moon Open Mic — Quick Facts
Putney's Sunday-night free open mic at 93 Lower Richmond Road, SW15 1EU — full backline including keys, in-house engineer, 15-minute slots.
We need your help verifying thisWas this open mic on recently?10 seconds, no signup
The Details
Everything you need before you turn up
DaySunday
Start20:00
Sign-up19:30 walk-in
Slot length15 min
EntryFree · all ages
Capacityc. 220 standing
Performer typesMusic
Sound engineerIn-house, included
View on map
Where
The Half Moon93 Lower Richmond Road
Putney
London SW15 1EU
Putney, London — check venue website for parking and nearest station.
Highlights
Free entry for all
Full backline on stage
In-house sound engineer
Walk-in sign-up
Music welcome
How do you rate this open mic?One tap, no sign-up required.
Spotted something wrong with this listing?Closed, moved night, different start time? Let us know and we'll re-verify within 48 hours.
What’s on in London this week — or see what’s on across the UK.
About The Half Moon
About This Open Mic
Every Sunday in Putney, London
Kicks off at 20:00, sign-up from 19:30
Free entry for performers and audience
15-minute slots
Full backline on stage
Part of the London open mic directory
The Night
The Half Moon Putney has hosted live music since 1963 — Rolling Stones, Kate Bush, and U2 all played early gigs here. The Sunday open mic carries the same heritage credentials: a proper stage, proper monitors, and a sound engineer who treats each act like a paid set.
Format runs 210 minutes across roughly 14 acts at 15 minutes each. The crowd is heavy on local songwriters and cover acts who want to test material in front of an attentive room — typically 100-130 people.
Sign-up process
Sign-up at the bar from 7:30pm. The list closes at 8pm sharp, and slots are called in order. There is no advance booking.
Getting there
93 Lower Richmond Road, SW15 1EU. 6 minutes from Putney Bridge (District Line) or 10 minutes from Putney Rail. Buses 14, 22, 39 and 74 stop on Lower Richmond Road.
The venue
Two rooms — front bar and the music room at the back. Pub food until 9pm, full bar throughout. The music room has a raised stage, drum kit, monitors, and decent natural reverb. Capacity 220 — biggest open-mic room in SW London.
What's on stage — equipment and backline at this venue, verified regularly.
PA + monitors
Drum kit
Guitar amp
Bass amp
Keys / keyboard
4 vocal mics
In-house engineer
The Night at a Glance
How The Half Moon’s Sunday night runs.
19:30Sign-up
20:00Kick-off
23:30Last songs
23:00Venue closes
Every Sunday 15-min slots Free entry
Find The Half Moon
93 Lower Richmond Road, Putney, London SW15 1EU
Planning Your Sunday Night
Arrive by 19:30 to sign up for a slot. Entry is free and the open mic typically runs until 23:30. Full backline is provided — just bring your instrument and pedals.
Part of the London live music scene.
What should you charge for paid gigs?Most open mic musicians are ready for paid work sooner than they think. Check live UK rates by role, city, and venue size.
Try the Rate CalculatorCommon Questions
Seven things people ask before turning up at London's The Half Moon open mic.
Walk-in sign-up only, opens at 19:30. Arrive early — slots fill on the night. See other London open mic nights for alternatives.
Full backline: drum kit, guitar amp, bass amp, vocal mics, plus an in-house sound engineer. Bring your own instrument and pedals.
15 minutes per act — typically 4 songs solo.
Yes — free entry for performers and audience. Most London mics are free; browse the list.
Yes — full bands welcome and the backline is set up for it.
93 Lower Richmond Road, Putney, London SW15 1EU.
Mostly fellow musicians, friends and London regulars across the London open mic scene. London open mic crowds tend to listen attentively.
Keep up with London
One email a week with live music near you. Free, and it keeps grassroots rooms full.
Help keep grassroots venues open in London
—A UK venue stops hosting live music every 5 days — and turning up is what keeps a room open. Get a free weekly email of gigs in London. Unsubscribe any time. Privacy.
See what’s on in London over the next four weeks →
Booking or playing in London? The GX Index publishes what UK gigs actually pay, by city, band size and venue type, and the GX Index reports set out the methodology and the sample behind every figure. Both are free to read and free to cite.
Keep exploring: the UK gig directory for what's coming up, the venue directory for rooms that book live music, the open mic finder for recurring stage time, and what's on across the UK this week. The blog covers pricing, contracts and getting booked, and about GigXchange explains who runs it and why. Something not right on this page? Tell us — or start on the home page.
Run an open mic in London?
Add yours to the directory free. 2-minute submission, verified within 48 hours. Reach 1,000+ London musicians.
Looking for paid gigs, not open mics?