Dying of boredom - please share interesting pursuits/ hobbies you have come across.

As the name suggests, I'm a big fan of sewing! I used to do mainly cross stitch and embroidery, but now I make almost all my own clothes. It can be as cheap or expensive as you choose it to be (even machines can be found relatively cheaply in charity shops if you look). Absolutely loads of online resources. You can use bedding to practice (my first ever item of clothing was made from a picnic blanket!).

It brings me immense joy and has done wonders for my mental health. Huge advocate for creating 😍

A language
An instrument
Choir
Knitting / Crocheting

I have an allotment. And I love to read ☺️

I sail on a little Capability Brown landscaped lake in Cheshire. It’s pretty safe. I wouldn’t venture out to sea in my dinghy. I am plucking up the courage to try a big lake, maybe once I’ve got my RYA level 3.

Download the app on your phone. It shows you where they are hidden using gps. It's a bit like the Poekmon hunts, but much better as you have physical things to find.

It's free to pay or for about 50p per week you can be a premium member and have more things to find.

@AsYouMightBe I do very similar to you- lots of literary 'research' (only for me) & visit places where my favourite writers lived & are buried.
I am in a reading group. I read a lot & attend online classes / presentations/ lectures. I go to a lot of exhibitions. I love walking tours of cities.
I'm rarely bored.

Clay target shooting. Find a ladies shooting event for starting off or get a private lesson. There's something about a woman with the gumption to pick up a gun that makes her good company.

Outdoor swimming, especially in very cold water.

Urban sketching. Look on Facebook for local groups

Foraging - wild food, food for free.

@Abracadabra12345 - you just sign up on the website /app: https://www.geocaching.com/play. Think it's £25 a year. Well worth it! You can plan entire walks around where there are geocaches to find.

Other ideas:

My 12 year old DD has just taught herself to crochet via YouTube tutorials and has just crocheted a jumper for herself! (Not her first project).

Reenactment - https://www.historic-uk.com/LivingHistory/ReenactorsDirectory/ - can involve making your own costume, research into your historical period of choice etc etc. If you like Tudors then I can recommend a group!

I've just finished researching the history of the owners and occupants of my Victorian house (we have almost all the deeds), which has been fascinating!

I know you do some volunteering OP - there are so many other opportunities. Trustee, school governor, Samaritan (or other helpline volunteer, eg Childline), magistrate, local litter picking groups etc etc.

How would you get started on that?

My DD volunteers for the Cinammon Trust and loves it

Ceramic painting / pottery - I've always loved going to those cafes where you can paint something, then they glaze and fire it! I'm still tempted to get myself a second hand kiln and get all the unglazed pots and paints! I can lose myself for hours doing it

Giving back through volunteering is very rewarding. Local food bank or the Cinnamon Trust where you walk the dog of an elderly person who cannot get out

You live in London - the world's your oyster.

In thr years I have loved in London I have done - kickboxing, kung fu, a postgraduate economics qualification, countless walks/exhibiitons/gigs, yoga courses, jewellery making, creative writing, sewing classes, open air swimming, community volunteering.

I did this many years ago with custard slices. If you are ever in Swansea, the first bakery inside the market, opposite the butchers, Whitewalls entrance. They came out tops.

Get into cryptic crosswords. It’s fun, mentally stimulating, and makes you feel very smug.

Netball?

leagues4you.co.uk/couch2court/

Parkrun? Volunteering as a Marshall or running.

Geocaching - you will find so many brilliant hidden places in London that you have never seen before.

Martial arts? I took up karate at 45 & absolutely loved it. Fittest I’ve been in my life! I only quit after an injury but that was at work! Made loads of friends, some of whom I’m still in touch with.
Sculpture.
Crystal healing or any other “ alternative” therapy. I did a reflexology course which was very interesting & met one of my closest friends there.
Calligraphy
Maybe try water sports again - you could well be better at them as an adult

Sorry posted too soon! I also make terrariums with the cuttings. Kits are quite cheap to buy and once you know what you're doing you don't even need a kit. I pick up empty jars in charity shops.

I buy cuttings of indoor plants on Etsy and then propagate from the plants once they've grown, I now have lots of different interesting house plants and gift the cuttings to friends.

I love this idea! Love getting post and really don't write enough these days, so will be doing this 😊

Sewing - should be lots of courses in London and it is such a great skill to be able to make clothes that fit you exactly and mend or adjust old clothes.
Pottery - so absorbing to do, and again, really great to make things for yourself and use them.
Painting - I'm an absolutely rubbish artist, but I really enjoy the process, maybe a paint by numbers thing to start with?
Cinema membership - depends where you are in London, but I remember some do a number of free tickets/cheap tickets. Maybe take yourself to see a film at random once a week, something you wouldn't usually see?