By the close, the benchmark FTSE 100 was up 170.6 points, or 3%, at 5,707.6.
On Thursday, the index fell 2.4%, while US and European markets also posted sharp declines amid continued anxiety about the state of the global economy.
Friday's biggest gains came from mining giant Anglo American after an uptick in base metals prices and an oil price rally.
Aerospace firm Rolls-Royce also saw big gains, rising 16% after the firm announced annual profits of Â£1.35bn, although it added that it would be cutting its dividend by 50%.
Share indexes in Frankfurt and Paris also rebounded by more than 2%.
On the commodities markets, Brent crude was up 9.3% at $32.86, while US light crude rose 12.0% to $29.36.
On the currency markets, the pound was up 0.74% against the euro at â‚¬1.2878.
The currency was also 0.15% lower against the dollar at $1.4454.
(Close): London's leading share index has closed 3.06% higher, rallying after Thursday's big losses.