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March 31, 2008
April already? How did that happen? We feel the best way to avoid getting April Fooled is to stay in and watch some TV. Here are a few things you may want to take a peek at! On TV, Londonist likes: Monday, 31 March Poppy Shakespeare (Channel 4, 21:00-22:45) We really enjoyed the book, and are looking forward to the screen version of this quirky drama about the NHS and mental health care in...
Continue Reading "Londonist Stays In"
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Kevin Spacey today hijacked his own promo for new gambling film 21 to slam the BBC for giving certain West End musicals 13 weeks of free publicity disguised as reality TV shows. Whilst recognising that they helped promote West End theatre in general he's clearly got the hump that it's the camp musicals hogging the limelight and cashing in on ticket sales rather than the more serious plays running at theatres like his own...
Continue Reading "The Play's The Thing: Spacey Spouts Off"
Dispensing with the (attempts at) witty chitchat this week and diving right in... Monday: Still time to get tickets for the Last Tuesday Society’s Hendrick’s Cocktail Party tonight. And should you wonder what tenuous connection we’re trying to make between gin and literature (we won’t play the Snoop Dogg Gin and Juice card just yet), hang on there! It’s not so tenuous. On tap at tonight’s party, along with an abundance of Hendrick’s, is...
Continue Reading "The Book Grocer"March 30, 2008
It’s always nice when a band play a venue a lot smaller to those they’ve grown accustomed too, which was exactly what happened this afternoon when Southampton foursome Delays graced the miniscule stage of Camden’s Lock Tavern for Clash magazine. Spending the best part of an hour wowing the assembled fans, media and curious regulars they ripped through a selection of B-sides, covers and old favourites. Everything was stripped back to the core, and whilst...
Continue Reading "Live Review: Delays @ Lock Tavern"
Oxford pulls ahead. Image courtesy of Simon-K's photostream via the Londonist Flickr pool Oxford prevailed. But you probably know that by now. And the view from the shore? Wet. But Londonist was there. In the name of journalism, we packed ourselves into the Doom Bar tent in Furnival Gardens yesterday with 300 of our closest newly acquired friends and did our best not to spill/be spilled on/grind/be grinded on whilst waiting optimistically for the rain...
Continue Reading "The Boat Race: A Round-Up"Advertisement: Londonist Continues Below!
March 30, 2008
So we had Banksy caught in the act and unmasked a while back.... now here's a video apparently of the man himself at work and having his say: Thanks to Gothamist reader Sam Horine for the heads up....
Continue Reading "Banksy At Work And In His Own Words"March 29, 2008
Don't Ever Heckle... is a new column where Londonist interviews some of the most exciting and original comedians currently working on London's live comedy circuit. Don't ever heckle them, because we think they're great. As we're massive comedy geeks, we'll be digging deep, asking why they perform, how they write, what inspires them, and why on earth they do it in the first place. To launch this new column, we talked to Gerry Howell,...
Continue Reading "Don't Ever Heckle: Gerry Howell"March 28, 2008
With a title like "Attractive Repulsion", we were looking forward to this group show tucked away behind Angel tube. Sadly the work on the ground floor didn't seem to be as exciting as the title. From the kitsch pictures of wildlife painted in a style that wouldn't have been out of place in a B&B to big abstracts using bits of product logos and the like, it was a bit underwhelming. Upstairs, thankfully the...
Continue Reading "Review: Attractive Repulsion @ Candid Arts Trust "March 27, 2008
Some people are old before their time. Others are always young at heart. Yet others don't know how to act their age and instead of retiring quietly and fading into the background, decide to form an elderly arts group and go on tour with a dance show. Like the China-wide Beijing Elderly Art Group (BEAG) and The UK Zimmers Both groups are made entirely of performers over 65, and for one night only, they...
Continue Reading "Preview: East Meets West"
London theatre is highly regarded around the world for its resilience, its resourcefulness and downright refusal to stop for anyone or anything. Even during the Blitz, the show went on and so it did when a power cut in the West End disrupted the opening night of a new, star cast play. Playwright Yasmina Reza has had huge, long-running success already in the West End with Art , and her new play God of...
Continue Reading "West End Power Cut: The Show Went On"
Every so often we spend hours getting lost in social networking sites and when it's new bands we're after we turn to myspace. This is how we came across the gentle twinkles of Synth Girl. Mainly a musician for other artists, we loved 'Hurricane Butterfly' (which you can hear online) so got in touch to say hi. It turned out she was actually in a band of her own Toy Toy which with it's...
Continue Reading "Listen Up: Toy! Toy!"March 25, 2008
Dressing up and going out is quite the thing at the moment, but if it seems to be just a fad for the folks who fancy themselves, we must correct you and point out that bling has been big for Londoners for a long time. Take, for example, the icon of cockney London, the shiny Pearly King. Strutting around draped in sparkly stuff is not new. An evening to celebrate all that is fabulous...
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It’s officially spring, and despite the hideously cold weather, we remain optimistic that spring weather is on its way. And what better way to celebrate the beginning of a new season than with a few delightful things on the telly? On TV, Londonist likes: Wednesday, 26 March The Apprentice (BBC1, 21:00-22:00) It’s another series of the backstabbing, money hungry, tycoon wannabe show we all love. Alan Sugar welcomes another batch of business savvy apprentices...
Continue Reading "Londonist Stays In"
Now that you’ve spent a long, slothful weekend hiding from the snow on your mum’s couch, bloated with chocolate whilst watching endless episodes of the Simpsons and the Hollyoaks (No? Just us?) your brain could probably use a little stimulation. Luckily, London’s art scene is ready for you in this “out like a lamb…” week. If you want to stretch your brain a bit, but don’t want to stray too far from the sitting...
Continue Reading "Arts Ahead"March 24, 2008
Cadbury creme eggs! Don’t you just love ’em? Ha ha, the book grocer sure does! Advance apologies if this week’s serving is full of even more exclamations than usual – we just might be hyped up on milk chocolatey goodness right now. Eventually we’ll crash, feel a bit ill, and begin to suspect that the beady little eyes on those choco bunnies are watching our every move. If the same happens to you (or...
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March 23, 2008
A series celebrating the talent of our friends over in the Londonist Flickr pool who make our site look pretty with their fabulous photographs. Here, they introduce themselves and share their favourite London shots. Full English Breakfast: "Bus photography from the 243" could be a genre of its own and gives you a privileged angle on the state of the nation. I have been shooting film for a few years, mostly black and white, on...
Continue Reading "Londonist Behind The Lens: Dartar"
This week, we offered you the chance to go and see rising star Jack Savoretti on April 1st, enjoyed a triple bill of metal, mayhem and melee, and previewed El Guincho's looped tropical rhythms which are coming to the capital this week. Looking ahead to this week, Easter Monday offers the tantalising line up of R.E.M., Foals, The Duke Spirit and Robyn Hitchcock all at the Royal Albert Hall to celebrate the ICA's 60th birthday....
Continue Reading "Music Choice: Monday 24th - Friday 28th March"March 22, 2008
Whilst often lovingly, and perhaps ad nauseam, compared to Panda Bear's Person Pitch, El Guincho's debut Alegranza! is a more extroverted affair than its most cited point of musical reference. Joyous and celebratory from start to finish, Alegranza! mixes repetitive chanting with looped tropical rhythms to create the best summer pop record anyone could hope to release right in the middle of winter. It's that rare album that makes you feel a bit wrong...
Continue Reading "Music Preview: El Guincho"March 20, 2008
Pirates and Vikings invaded London late last week for a triple bill of metal, mayhem and melee. It was time for us to cover ourselves with red paint and grab our plastic axes - Turisas, Norther and Alestorm were in town. What are the best Scottish exports - whisky, haggis, prime ministers? Nah, we say. The newest product of Scotland to hit London came in the form of Alestorm, a rowdy troupe playing what they have termed "true Scottish pirate metal" which really describes their sound to a T....
Continue Reading "Londonist Live: Turisas @ Electric Ballroom "March 19, 2008
If you have the urge to get quasi-religious this weekend and fancy a night out with a theme of heaven, hell, resurrection and redemption, then you can go to the slightly unlikely location of Kensal Green to find what you're looking for. The Paradise Show at Paradise by way of Kensal Green is the first in a series of Bank Holiday parties at this restored pub. All seven spaces of this theatrical, handsome boozer...
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Random events with no purpose make us giggle - so we're very happy to report that the glory of Leicester Square will be invaded by a bunch of people designed to scare and amuse the tourists this weekend. Yes, those funny folk at Mobile Clubbing are back with... PILLOW FIGHTCLUB! Your mission this Saturday (22 March) is to show up in Leicester Square with a pillow hidden in a plastic bag. At exactly 15.03,...
Continue Reading "Ready, Steady, Fight!"We first heard of 22 year old Jack Savoretti when he appeared on Shelly Poole's wistful solo album back in 2005. Three years later he's back releasing new single 'One Man Band' on March 31st and looking a bit like a young Neil Diamond in the London centric video for the song (above). If you like the sound of him then we've got three pairs of tickets for you to win for his secret...
Continue Reading "Win: Jack Savoretti Tickets"March 18, 2008
For those of you in London this Easter weekend, there's a treat for you. Oh yes. Good Friday will indeed by very good because that's the evening of the Hendrick's Spring Masked Ball, a most glorious night of gin-flavoured hedonism, elaborate costume and fantastic facewear. Organised by the decadent chaps of The Last Tuesday Society, we know from their reputation at previous balls that this is going to be rather fabulous and as well...
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This Saturday London’s comic lovers can pop out to Mile End and discover what’s lurking in the UK’s small comics scene. The fifth year of the UK Web & Mini Comix Thing is happening at Queen Mary, and it should be a grab bag of indie delights. A look at the list of stuff on show reveals a pretty good menagerie: you can check out comics about friendly beavers, depressed dinosaurs, ninjas in various...
Continue Reading "Preview: UK Web & Mini Comix Thing"
Yes, this is one of those "last chance to see" posts. This time, (you'll just have to imagine the drum roll) it's the Henry Moore exhibition in Kew. But it really does warrant the attention. You are not going to see such a fine range of Henry Moore work in the flesh in such beautiful surroundings for a long time. Well not without doing lots of intercontinental travelling. Don't believe us? Check out fellow...
Continue Reading "Gimme Moore, Moore, Moore at Kew - Last Chance!"Advertisement: Londonist Continues Below!
March 17, 2008
Tate Britain is mid-way through its run of Turner-nominated painter Peter Doig’s exhibition, and this weekend we ducked in from the rain to catch a bit of the sublime. Doig employs immense canvases upon which he layers textured melancholic colour upon colour, executing incredibly complex fragments that appear effortless from a distance. The exhibit follows his beginnings at Chelsea Art School in London through to his most recent work rendered in Trinidad, where the...
Continue Reading "One Art: Peter Doig @ Tate Britain"
You’re right. Easter is early this year. And yes, like you, we can’t wait for the Bank Holiday weekend. Is there anything nicer than a four day weekend? You’ll probably want to rest up this week to prepare for the madness of the weekend, so here are a few things you can relax with. On TV, Londonist likes: Tuesday, 18 March One Life: Rock Star Parents (BBC1, 20:35-23:15) We find the title of this...
Continue Reading "Londonist Stays In"
Our friends at Film Friends Forever are holding their monthly film night tomorrow night, and they have an absolutely cracking line-up of Oscar, Bafta & other award winners and nominees. Check out the viewing list here, all to be enjoyed in Corbert Place, Truman Brewery from 6.30pm - there's animation, arthouse, short music movies and live music as well as £3 beers. Sounds good? Yes, it does and it should, seeing as this monthly...
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We began this week with a great big gaping void: the very excellent London Word Festival has come to an end (though you can watch highlights here), and our nearly 40-day-long combination chocolate and carbon dioxide fast has left us, well, a bit snippy (we’ll certainly be biting the heads off those cloyingly cute Lindt bunnies come this weekend). In short, we didn’t have great expectations for the week. Yet, after taking a look...
Continue Reading "The Book Grocer"March 16, 2008
Hooray for 4 day weeks! And hooray for many seasonal celebrations. If only it would stop raining we'd be radiant with joy. This week we definitely can't afford to see the glorious New York City Ballet at the Coliseum (up to £95 a ticket!) so we made do with the reviews. Neither can we cover the costs of a bank holiday break away from the city but, hell - why would we want to...
Continue Reading "London On The Cheap"
A changeable week around the capital, as we caught up with the marvellous Black Cab sessions, saw Laura Marling live at Union Chapel on Tuesday, got excited about Radiohead playing the Beeb, had a quick chat with quickly rising stars Clocks, finally conceded that not even Ken can save the Astoria, and realised that Damon Albarn may have his fingers in too many pies. Meanwhile, looking ahead to this week things are rather quiet as...
Continue Reading "Music Choice: Monday 17th - Friday 21st March"March 15, 2008
The joy of living in such a multi-cultural metropolis, is that there is always a party going on somewhere. Now you might have thought that it was enough already that this week starts with Guinness and St. Patrick and ends up with that mega-choc-fest, Easter…. but arguably the most interesting knees-up this week is the Persian New Year Festivities: Nowrooz. And as there are something like 40,000 ex-pat Iranians living in London (most of...
Continue Reading "Nowrooz-et-an Pyruz. And a Happy New Persian Year to you!"