As it gets closer to Halloween for LAist, a contributer recollects her tale of staring down the serial killer, Richard Ramirez, otherwise known as the Night Stalker. Must think happy thoughts -- okay, free organic chocolate chip cookies for Los Angeles -- now that's a happy thought. Other happy Los Angeles thoughts include an interview with Jack Kehler of The Big Lebowski (he was the Dude's landlord), a beautiful and magical photographic moment in Venice......

London went back to work this morning in a mood universally described as ‘jittery’. We must be vigilant, say the authorities, for the alert status remains ‘Critical’, and further attacks are deemed likely. The authorities are certainly being vigilant. Heathrow’s Terminal 3 was closed for a time yesterday, on the discovery of a suspect package. And in St Albans, a dodgily parked white Ford Transit was cordoned off after its owner could not be......

Now I know my ABC, won't you come and spray with me. These typographic shutters have been around the Shoreditch area for AGES, but we couldn't resist featuring them in the wake of the Brooke Shields Alphabet mystery. The letters were created at least a year and a half ago by Eine, and many are still there. We've tracked down a fair few, but have to acknowledge Dave Gorman for several. He's captured the......

What was that we just said? Well, that mostly wraps things up for Londonist in '06... Yeah right. What we should have said is that mostly wraps things up for London in '06 because according to ABC we are ho ho ho fucked. Check out that headline: London Braces for Attack; 'Miracle' If There Isn't One Are you braced? We're not braced. We have a nut roast to worry about and a Christmas episode......

There was a strong display of British talent at the International Emmy Awards. Graham Norton was there too. The success of Brit shows has sent the Americans into a remake frenzy according to The Times: Life on Mars, the BBC time-travel drama starring John Simm about a Manchester detective who is catapulted back to the 1970s, won the best drama award. David E. Kelley, the producer behind Ally McBeal, is now writing an American......

Josie Long was the winner of the BBC New Comedy Award in 1999 at the tender age of 17. In that year she was also a runner up in the So You Think You're Funny? competition. She won best newcomer in the Chortle Awards 2001-2003 after which she took time off performing to complete her English degree at Oxford university. Since her return to stand up she has toured in support of Stewart Lee......

A flight from L.A. to London in February of last year is back in the headlines after it was revealed that the flight went ahead despite one of the engines catching fire only seconds after take off: Air traffic controllers monitoring a British Airways jumbo jet were stunned at the pilot's decision to try to "get as far as we can" after an engine caught fire on takeoff, a transcript of discussions between the......

If you cast your mind back to the middle of August you might remember we reported on the upcoming Strip Poker Championships at the Cafe Royal. To be honest we were a little cynical about it, but we heard from a couple of people afterwards that it wasn't as horribly seedy as we might have imagined, and so when the opportunity arose to interview the eventual winner (Jon Young , pictured above wearing only......

These listings appear every Wednesday. If you want to let us know about any upcoming science or technology events, you can contact us on LondonistSciTech@Gmail.com. This week's summary was brought to you with the help of Inky Circus ....thanks Inky! Event of the week Pixar: 20 Years of Animation opens at the Science Museum this Saturday. Prebooking is strongly recommended cause, us inkettes dunno, it’s Pixar and they are easily the coolest geekiest most-badass......

With the oppulent car-crash that is the Brits lingering long in the memory like the stench of a shared student bathroom, it seems appropriate that the ABC (Audit Bureau of Circulation) average monthly circulation figures for the UK's rock mags should just be released (courtesy of Blabbermouth). So which of the rock tribes reigns supreme? Which rag attracts the readers? Well, looks like £50 Man is currently ruling the roost with Emap's Q the......

By now, Londonist's unhealthy infatuation with The Pipettes should be no secret; there was talk of a restraining order at one point. If there's some polka-dotted action going down in town, it's a dead cert we'll be there. Go ahead, we dare you: next time you see The Pipettes, just yell 'Oi! Londonist!' and see what happens. For those of you who've yet to pop your Pips cherry, here's a handy intro. Having recently......

We at Londonist are practically wetting ourselves with excitement at the arrival of Lost (Wed 8.30pm/10pm C4, 10.50pm E4). Especially after reading the god-like Mark Lawson's hyperventilating piece about it in Friday's Grauniad. We're even prepared to believe, having talked to our American friends, that this is programme that will, indeed, "eclipse Desperate Housewives", as the C4 microsite has it. And the television in the Londonist dungeon was tuned to 4 every Wednesday for......

Lots of stuff happening on the terrorist hunt front. Nine more people have been arrested under anti-terrorism laws in Tooting. Three women in Stockwell were detained on suspicion of harbouring offenders. Yasin Hassan Omar, thought to be the Warren St bomber, was arrested in Birmingham but three other suspects remain at large. ABC have released pictures of devices found in the car at Luton several weeks ago and shots of the shattered carriages and a......

As a website that is sometimes confused by those of little brain with an American product (yes we are part of the Gothamist network, no we are not an American website) we were amused yesterday to see that some of the worst home-grown telly ideas from the last couple of years have found new life on American television networks. The Guardian reported yesterday: Over 40 years since the Beatles touched down at JFK, America......

We've been banging on about them long enough, so it's with great delight that we bring you the wonderful news for genuine Londonist favourites The Pipettes. Last night saw the band's hard-gigging finally pay off when they signed to the Memphis Industries label, home to the likes of The Go! Team, Fort Lauderdale and Blue States. If you're really lucky, and quick, you'll be able to pick up a copy of the ABC EP,......

Ahh, the good old days of the gentlemen spy: bowler hats, poison-tipped umbrellas, cigarette cases and, best of all, no David Shayler. What's made us all misty-eyes for the golden years of espionage? The discovery of a KGB 'spy's guide to London' in the latest bundle of MI5 files released to the National Archives. "Apparently seized by the Germans from a Russian agent captured in Paris during World War II," only to fall, "into......

Rather than produce a simple list of the bands we think deserve your attention in 2005, Londonist is going that little bit further for you. Below is the first in a short series of articles on the gems you should be aware of. If you like the sound of The Pipettes, be sure to enter the competition at the bottom of this article. The Pipettes are after your feet. Specifically, your dancing feet. Armed with......

One Foot in the Grave didn't work and The Office didn't really cut it, but the Americans aren't ones to give up, especially when it means they can make loads of money out a of a television series without really having to think about it. The latest news is that Fox Broadcasting has ordered half-a-dozen scripts for a US version of EastEnders, which will follow the lives of a blue-collar family in Chicago. The guru......