About M@

Sort of. According to the BBC, firefighters have been tackling a ‘major blaze’ in the former Museum of Mankind, which is an empty and separate bit to the famous parts of the RA that we’re all familiar with. The fire was discovered around 2 O’clock …

Rarggggh! Rargggggh! That’s the sound of the London Monster, submitted by an anonymous reader. A clever concoction in which the iconic buildings of London have somehow merged together to form a giant tourist-eating beastie. (May not be based on actual events.) It’s probably not the …

…if only. No, we’re not going anywhere really, and we certainly won’t be playing any Riff Clichard songs (apart from maybe The Young Ones – bit of a guilty pleasure, that). But we will be taking a short break on Monday, as it’s a public …

The imminent Carnival reminded us that we don’t get to explore the streets of west London as often as we’d like. One person who certainly does, though, is Zef. The walls of Ladbroke Grove are festooned with his stencilwork, particularly the gun logo, shown on …

The yoof of today. They’re just too brainy for their own good. Take Peter and Paula Imafidon, a pair of twins from Waltham Forest. They both just passed a GCSE in statistics. Age six. Jesus. When we were six, the closest we got to statistical …

A tribute to the capital’s alleys, ginnels and snickleways. 6. Crown Passage, SW1 Where? There can’t be many shortcuts that lead to a Royal Palace, but, by Jove, here’s one. The aptly named Crown Passage spills out onto Pall Mall, close to the redbrick St …

Just one of the nerdilicious diversions on Metro Bits, a website celebrating the world’s metro/tube networks. As well as logos, you’ll find a fascinating section on metro architecture, the world’s best views from tube trains, loopy track topologies and plenty of lists. There’s even a …

Keep your diaries clear for 16 and 17 September, when Londonist’s favourite event, Open House weekend, will once again be unlocking its many doors for all and sundry (whoever the mysterious ‘sundry’ might be). For the few readers not familiar with the concept, it’s a …

This week’s entry, a literal Marble Arch – comes from Paul Carstairs, who gives us a rare insight into the creative process: Got bored watching “Congo” on Film Four, started fiddling on the laptop and made this for you. Not bad for being continually distracted …

This day in London’s history 1952 Joe Strummer is born in Ankara, Turkey. The lead singer of punk icons The Clash may not have been born here – few great Londoners ever are – but his band became synonymous with the capital after a series …