London’s RSD city guide

London’s record shops are turning Record Store Day on Saturday, April 18 into a citywide crawl of early openings, live sets and late-night parties, not just a vinyl sale. (timeout.com) Time Out’s London guide says Rough Trade East and Rough Trade West will open at 8 a.m., with live music starting at 11 a.m. at the Brick Lane pop-up and a 7 p.m. headline set from Daytime TV. (timeout.com) The official Record Store Day United Kingdom site says the 2026 releases go on sale only over the counter at participating independent shops on Saturday, April 18, and its homepage says around 300 shops across the United Kingdom and Ireland take part. (recordstoreday.co.uk) That format is the point of the event: Record Store Day United Kingdom describes it as a one-day celebration of independent record shops, and Time Out’s guide focuses as much on gigs, bars and giveaways as on limited pressings. (recordstoreday.co.uk, timeout.com) The vinyl itself is still the draw. Record Store Day United Kingdom’s featured 2026 releases include Charli XCX’s “Party 4 U,” Olivia Dean’s “Live At The BBC,” Wolf Alice’s “Play It Out / Midnight Song (Live in LA),” and Elton John’s remix collection, while Time Out also highlights Black Sabbath, Madonna, PinkPantheress and CMAT among the names on this year’s list. (recordstoreday.co.uk, timeout.com) In Soho, the neighborhood guide from This is Soho says Berwick Street remains central to the day, with Reckless Records, Sister Ray, Third Man Records, Phonica Records and Sounds of the Universe all part of the area’s vinyl circuit. (thisissoho.co.uk) That Soho program stretches past shop hours. This is Soho says POV Record Store Day will run live vinyl disc jockey sets from 3 p.m. to 11 p.m. at The Blue Posts on Berwick Street and from 10 p.m. to 3 a.m. at The Flamingo Club in Kingly Court. (thisissoho.co.uk) Time Out’s guide also points readers beyond record counters, including a Hidden Grooves and Dusty Knuckle record fair in Shoreditch with stock curated by Heavenly Sweetness label head Alfie Panaiotis and Paradise Palms Records’ The Nightlark. (timeout.com) The day lands in a stronger market for vinyl than the one Record Store Day was built for. Time Out says the event began in 2007, when independent music traders were shutting as listeners moved to digital formats, and now frames the same shops as scene-building destinations across London. (timeout.com) For London shoppers, the practical part is simple: pick a participating store, get there early on Saturday, April 18, and expect the queue to lead to a stage, a bar or a dance floor as often as a rack of exclusives. (recordstoreday.co.uk, timeout.com, thisissoho.co.uk)