Whilst British ladies hopeful Elena Baltacha's out on Court 2 today and homegrown Chris Eaton's making tantalisingly promising progress into round 2 elsewhere, a dedicated police squad are cracking down on ticket touts outside the All England Club and removing obsessive fans to a safe distance. We gave you the lowdown on how to get hold of legitimate tickets for the tennis on Monday but with all that tedious queuing, touts are always going......

You can tell the vintage of an Ethiopian male by the team he favors... Granddads like Liverpool, dads ManU, and young men Arsenal. The emerging generation seems to be leaning toward Chelsea. Why all British? The BBC, of course. Next to Coke and Pepsi, Arsenal was the most visible Western brand in the country. So says Angry Monk, taker of the above shot of a taxi driver in Awasa. His observations will come as......

One of Banksy's most famous stencils - the maid of Chalk Farm - got an augmentation this week. Some japester of a joiner added a mantelpiece on Sunday evening. But street art is the most ephemeral of mediums, and the rogue fitting was removed faster than you can say chim-chimeny. Fans of Banksy might like to visit the Andipa Gallery (or 'Galley' as they accidentally call themselves in the press release) on Walton Street,......

Having treated audiences at the May 2007 All Tomorrow's Parties' "ATP vs. The Fans" festival to her gentle brand of Northern Californian folk, Mariee Sioux returns to the UK this week to play a series of London gigs. A childhood friend of Rough Trade favourite Alela Diane, Sioux also grew up in the mountainous, artist-friendly town of Nevada City, a landscape which can be heard speaking through both singer's works. With a languid step......

Hello Jeff! Ho ho ho and a bottle of rum - it's Christmas time! Happy Saint Jesus Day, to almost all of you! And what an event it is - a time for giving, sharing, and taking; a time for thinking about the past, as well as looking forward to the future, all the while contemplating the here and now; a time of remembrance and joy, coupled with inebriation, rage, and light misogyny. And......

Every day this month the Londonist team will be pointing you in the direction of a Christmas present that (with a bit of luck) you won't already have on your list. Climb up onto our collective lap and we'll see what we can move from our sack to your stockings... It seems that everywhere we’ve gone recently, we’ve had the opportunity to buy environment-friendly souvenir and decorative tote bags. Gone are the days when......

Hundreds of fans flocked to Leicester Square last night for the London premiere of The Golden Compass. Fans who braved the slightly rainy weather were treated to glimpses of stars Nicole Kidman and Daniel Craig, along with the thirteen year old star of the film Dakota Blue Richards and director Chris Weitz. Based on the first book in Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials trilogy, Northern Lights, the film has been the subject of much......

Fans of pomp and circumstance will line the streets of the City tomorrow to watch one of London’s fine old traditions unfold. Each year, the City of London gets a new Lord Mayor (most certainly not to be confused with the more well-known mayor who inhabits the glass testicle near Tower Bridge). Indeed, the office of Lord Mayor is so tied up in the ceremonial that the official web site doesn’t even bother to......

In celebration of their 25th anniversary, avant-garde music magazine The Wire will be keeping the capital busy this month with a series of gigs under the banner Wire 25. Whilst many of the events are up our street, we were most excited to hear that two of the gigs were being organised by one of our favourite promoters, [no.signal]. Their evening with Tony Conrad this past June at St. Giles-in-the-Fields was the most fun......

Once again the artists are out in front of the eggheads and politicians. Earlier we covered tonight’s experiment in direct economic democracy at The Albany – effectively, attendees pay a £10 tax to join The Albany’s mini-society, and they all get a say on how the pot will be spent. Just imagine if council tax operated on the same basis! If that weren’t enough financial excitement, tomorrow the new Radiohead download comes out – priced......

The Aftershow. It's got that exclusive ring to it, smacking of VIP-ness and celebrity glamour. How exciting then, when it was announced that O2 Prince shows would also have an aftershow party at nearby Indigo where you - the people, the fans - could get intimate access to the Purple Hero of Pop, party with his band and generally have one stonking night to remember. But of course, being so little and not, in......

Nobody would have guessed that Stephen Tyler is a mere 59 years old judging by his performance at last night’s Hyde Park Calling finale with Aerosmith headlining a day of stellar bands. Strutting around the stage like only he can, Tyler had the audience in the palm of his hand from the opener “Love in an Elevator”. Whilst Aerosmith undoubtedly stole the show, Hyde Park Calling was a three stage festival which showcases the best......

Read our review of Saturday's Muse show here. George Michael may have been the first artist to play Wembley last weekend, however two of the most significant new shows at Wembley is set to be Muse’s two night stand at the stadium this weekend. Fans have been waiting for 9 months since tickets first went on sale, and now this weekend it seems that some of the most impressive gigs to ever hit Wembley......

In 2003, at the height of a summer of insufferably hot tube travel, Ken and TfL launched a competition “Cooling the tube” to try and draw out a brilliant, original, workable and economic solution to the annual Big Sweat. £100k was up for grabs. Nobody won. News today, though, that TfL are getting ready to trial the whizzy idea of putting blocks of ice under passenger seats to cool things down makes us wonder......

The congestion zone, bloated and gorged on the wallets of London motorists, finally loosened its belt this morning. A doubling of girth was observed in the ensuing westerly bloat, which takes in some of London's richest inhabitants. Fans of JG Ballard will be intrigued to learn that the area approximating to Chelsea Marina is included on the extreme western fringe, as though on purpose. But what's the reaction? Mixed, of course. And the overall......

When he was running through what he would say in the run up to his side's match with Queens Park Rangers last Saturday, we're guessing Coventry City manager Micky Adams, once in charge at nearby Fulham, hadn't reckoned on the above request. Fans often have transport problems in the last few miles before reaching a big game, but, when one of the sides playing is marooned, bold actions are called for. Coventry's team bus......

A tribute to the capital’s alleys, ginnels and snickleways. 10. Took’s Court Where? Piddling little dogleg to the East of Chancery Lane. Yes, we’re back near Samuel Johnson Land again. What? Surely London’s least grimy alley. Sandblasted and scrubbed to the point that you could eat your dinner off it whilst performing open heart surgery. The largely useless route was built just before the Great Fire by a chap called Thomas Took (and not......

Early May sees the domestic football charabanc trundling to its terminus for another year, top deck swathed in streamers and bunting for the winners and survivors, lower deck sheltering the shellshocked who’ve slipped at the last. Few grounds in the country will witness such a nail biting conflict of triumph and despair as the Kassam Stadium in Oxford where the home team must win to retain league status while our very own Leyton Orient......

The new series of Doctor Who (Sat 7.15pm BBC1) is well underway now – and what do you think? So far it has elicited a muted response from the only critic who counts; not a good start, although he does say that this Saturday's offering is "flipping great" and it's onwards and upwards for the rest of the series. Fair enough – but what did the incredibly dedicated, oh-so-devoted fans over on the Digital......

How can the majority of England fans drag the cameramen and reporters away from focussing on a violent minority? Tonight from 7pm at The Offside Bar, 271 City Road, London EC1, over a hundred fans who will be travelling to Germany will be meeting the media to seek support for their campaign for good news stories this June. They will be expressing their concern at the constant anti-German angle to much of the pre......

Easter Weekend brings more choices for clubs and bars than the already impressive amount London normally offers. So we've put together a quick guide to what we think are the best nights this weekend. Go out safe in the knowledge that there's no work the next day and dance til your feet hurt ladies! Friday It's the monthly XFM Remix Night hosted by Eddie Temple Morris at East London's Cargo club. Fans of the......

(Mustn't make 'taking the biscuit' pun. Mustn't make 'taking the biscuit' pun.) A new piece of concept art in Selfridge's basement is really taking the biscuit. Arse. Fans of Sim City will be delighted to hear that the game has at last seemingly been released in the eagerly anticipated biscuit format. A team of artists led by Song Dong is creating the 12 m 'city' out of assorted digestives, custard creams and, yes, even......

It seems like we can't stop talking about musicals, even though we prefer our theatre with fewer songs and more interesting restrictions. However, yet another new musical has been announced for September this year and we think it's worth a mention. Wicked will transfer from Broadway to the Apollo Victoria, trailing three Tony Awards and a reputation as Broadway’s best-selling show for 82 consecutive weeks. The musical showfills in the backstory of the witches......

In a previous life, before blogging turned our heads, we actually used to read literature. Studied a few books too. In fact we spent more than one evening working our way line by line through the likes of James Joyce and Samuel Beckett, but one novel we always came back to was Laurence Sterne's 'The Life and Opinions of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman'. We were always bemused by the fact that Sterne managed to out......

After initially finding the new Doctor Who to be too British (presumably because the good Doctor wasn't riding around on a motorcyle firing off machine guns) the SciFi channel have pulled a u-turn and are set to begin broadcasting the first season (or 27th season if you like) this March: Commenting on the deal Candace Carlisle, Senior Vice President, BBC Worldwide Americas, said: “The new production has fantastic storylines and production values and has......

- Police have said they are investigating whether the two men suspected of the Clapham Common attack had abused a woman nearby shortly beforehand. - Ronaldo has 'strongly denied'' the rape claims. His agent called them a "product of imagination and fantasy". - RMT calls Metronet's plans to sub-contract out maintenance 'dangerous'. While the LibDems blame Brown for the mess. - Fans clash in pubs near Selhurst Park after Brighton Hove Albion and Palace game......

Cripes, we not really sure where to start. So many exhibitions and only 31 days to see them all in – just remember to pack your brolly because looking outside it seems winter is here again. Tomorrow marks the opening of Edvard Munch by Himself at the Royal Academy. There are over 150 works on display, mostly self-portraits, that span the stylistic and psychological changes he went through during in his career. To put......

It's proper gig going weather now, so no 'it's a shame to waste the nice weather' rubbish, get thee to a venue and immerse yourself in the glory of music. And then come back stinking of cigarette smoke because the girls next to you spend more time holding their fags in a posey manner near your face, instead of actually smoking them. Anyway, more details of a gig we mentioned on Wednesday. The Sways......

Adverts for horrors like Barbra Streisand's Guilty Pleasures are polluting the airwaves with increasing regularity now, so it's time to prepare ourselves for the terrors of music aimed at the non-discerning Christmas market. We've still got enough interesting releases to bring to you this week, though. It's a bit guitar-y this week. Shout Out Louds - Howl Howl Gaff Gaff Shout Out Louds are from Sweden, they play guitars, and they've just released an album......

Bloc Party - Silent Alarm Remixed The bank holiday took a little longer than expected, hence the late delivery of your friendly neighbourhood album review slot. So without further ado... Remix albums are a strange beast that sits in a pen marked Fans And Purists Only. They either tend to be an environmentally unfriendly waste of paper and plastic full of blips, beats and other such noises never intended to be heard over the......