How to Keep Kids Entertained at a Wedding in London (Guide 2026)
Children at a wedding are lovely. They’re also the reason the photographer is waiting, the speeches get interrupted and someone’s cousin is carrying a screaming four-year-old out of the room.
It’s not bad parenting. A wedding is exciting, there’s a lot going on, and every adult in the room is looking at someone else. Children notice that straight away, and they start looking for attention far more than they normally would.
We’ve worked as children’s entertainers at weddings in London for years, and the weddings that run smoothly have one thing in common: the children had somewhere to be and something to do. Here’s how to set that up.
Why Children Get Wild at Weddings
Wedding days are long, the schedule is full of waiting around, and the kids are usually dressed up and told to stay clean. Add a room full of adults who are busy with each other, and you get running, screaming, tantrums and children constantly demanding attention.
A kids entertainer at a wedding gives that energy a place to go, so the day stays about the couple.
When to Book the Entertainment
A wedding day is long, and you only need the entertainment for part of it. A typical session is two hours (more on that below), so the question is which two hours.
Our advice: start it when the ceremony ends. After the ceremony comes the longest stretch of waiting, with photos, drinks and canapés. The adults are busy, and nobody is watching the children. That’s when they get restless, loud and demanding. A session that starts then covers the photos and the drinks reception, and the children are tired and ready to sit down by the time the meal begins.
The alternative is straight after the meal. If your biggest worry is the speeches, which are hard for children who’ve finished eating and can’t sit still, book the session for then instead. The children have their own room and their own show while the adults enjoy the speeches.
If you’re not sure which suits your day, tell us your timings in the booking form and we’ll advise.
Give the Children Their Own Room
If you remember one thing from this article, make it this: a separate room for the children’s entertainment.
Children’s entertainment needs music, and the entertainer usually needs a microphone. That can’t happen at the same time as a DJ, a band or the adults’ conversation. A separate room means the children can be as loud as they like, and the adults can enjoy the day without competing with a magic show.
How Many Entertainers Do You Need?
It depends on how many children are coming:
- Under about 20 children: one entertainer is usually enough.
- 20 to 30 children and above: we recommend two people.
- Over 30 children: two is definitely the way to go.
The second person doesn’t have to be another entertainer. A magician and a face painter, or an entertainer and a balloon modeller, work well. While one half of the children are with the entertainer, the other half are getting their faces painted or choosing a balloon. It keeps everyone busy, and nobody ends up running into the adults’ area.
What Kind of Entertainment Works at a Wedding
Not every children’s act works at a wedding. We don’t recommend anything themed unless that’s what you want, because a superhero in the middle of a formal wedding can feel out of place.
What works best is generic entertainment. We’re usually booked in one of two ways:
- As magicians, for a more elegant feel that fits the day.
- As general entertainers, or our classic party. This has everything: games, a magic show, music and dancing, balloon modelling and tattoos.
Entertaining children at a wedding isn’t much different from entertaining them anywhere else. It’s the same high-energy performance, designed to keep all ages entertained from start to finish. What’s different is the context, and we’ve done it at plenty of weddings.
A quick note on ages: when we say children, we mean ages 2 to 11. Anyone over 11 counts as an adult when it comes to entertainment.
How Long Should the Entertainment Last?
Two hours is what we’re usually booked for. By then the children are tired, most of the important moments of the day have passed, and they’re happy to play quietly with what they’ve been given.
That’s the other reason balloon modelling works so well at a wedding. When the entertainer leaves, the children have swords, dogs and hats to play with. They can stay in the room with some supervision and keep themselves busy.
We can do three or four hours, or more. It’s just a lot for children to keep up with high-energy entertainment for that long, so we’d only recommend it if there’s a reason.
What the Venue Needs to Provide
We don’t need much:
- A decent-sized room with no chairs or tables in the way
- Access to electricity
- A table for the entertainer to set up on
- Lots of space for the children to run, play and enjoy themselves
Who Looks After the Children?
There needs to be a responsible adult in the room at all times. Our entertainers perform and entertain, but they can’t be responsible for minors. A parent, relative or a member of the wedding party staying in the room is enough.
If you have babies or toddlers who need naps, bottles or close care, that’s a different service. Wedding childcare is separate from entertainment.
Wedding Children's Entertainers in London
Getting a quote
Rico Kids is a London children’s entertainment company with 5-star ratings on Google, Trustpilot and Facebook, and we’ve twice been awarded Best Children’s Entertainer in London. We cover all of London, and we travel outside London for an additional fee.
It doesn’t matter if the couple or the wedding planner is booking. To get a quote, fill out our booking form and tell us in the comments what you’re looking for. Weddings are different from birthday parties, so we create a custom quote for your wedding children’s entertainment.
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