Looking for unique London-themed gifts for a loved one? Check out our handpicked gift guide to find the ideal birthday or Christmas present. Or just treat yourself to something nice.
The book: Poems of London
The frenetic pace of London life means being constantly interrupted — whether by a young commuter who's never heard of headphones, a sighting of Bill Nighy in the wild — or simply arriving at your bus stop. Everyman's compendium of poems spans Shakespeare to Sylvia Plath, and Samuel Beckett to Bernardine Evaristo, pulling together a panoply of diverse visions of this layered onion of a city. It's perfect for dipping in and out of for minutes at a time. The kind of gift that'll be used over and over. Poems of London, £11.40. By buying this book via this link, Londonist may earn a commission from Bookshop.org, which also helps support independent bookshops.
The look: London map gown
You know someone with maps of London on their walls, maps of London in coffee books, maps of London swirling around their head. Bet they don't have this natty London map gown though, a classy number from One Hundred Stars printed with the suburbs of 1932 in silky, subdued hues — Regent's Park floating verdantly about the midriff. Ideal for listless days when all they want to do is stay in and pore over antique cartography, sipping tea from their London map mug. London Map Gown, £90
The drink: It's a London Thing cocktail
We're all for sipping stiff elixirs in the shadows of swarthy cocktail bars, but when the spring/summer rays are pounding down on London Fields and Brockwell Park, you simply cannot overestimate the beauty of the bottled pre-mix. Born out of lockdown-inspired bar fomo, Rhythmik Cocktails conjure up 'bar quality' sips, including It's A London Thing — made with 58 and CO London dry gin, fresh ginger and tangy lemongrass. It's a level-up from the usual gin in a tin, and we daresay pairs nicely with anything you care to consume in the park, from street stall jerk chicken, to a Gregg's katsu bake. Just be sure to fridge it first. It's a London Thing bottled cocktail, £13
The snack: Paxton & Whitfield stilton
Harking back to 1742 — better aged than the maturest of cheddars — Paxton & Whitfield has numbered among its illustrious customers Queen Elizabeth II and Winston Churchill. It is safe to presume that the cheese lover in your life would welcome any slab of yarg or comte from this establishment, but the stilton is an especially good idea, because of the beautiful ceramic container it's presented in, something to be cherished long after the cheese has been scarfed — whether as a pencil holder, plant pot or somewhere to stuff more stilton. If you really like this someone, pair the stilton with a robust port from Berry Bros, round the corner. Paxton & Whitfield stilton jar, £23.95
The sound: The Liberty of Norton Folgate
Bar Italia, Threadneedle Street, A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square: everyone has their favourite London song. As for albums? That's a tricker one, but Madness's 2009 masterpiece The Liberty of Norton Folgate — named for a length of street not far from Londonist's former offices — should be on everyone's list: a jaunty wide boy of a thing, with foot-pounding bar songs like Clerkenwell Polka, hand swaying anthem NW5, and the swaggering We Are London ("Down to Chinatown for duck and rice/Along Old Compton street, the boys are nice/On Carnaby, you still can get the threads/If you wanna be a mod, a punk, a ted or a suede head") — all sung by one of the defining voices of the city, Suggs. This, my friends, is the sound of London. Buy it on vinyl for someone dear to you, and it'll get spun more times than the London Eye. The Liberty of Norton Folgate two LP vinyl, £22
The scent: South London Candles
Back in Victorian times, there was genuinely a perfume called 'A Reminisce of Croydon', so you can imagine our joy in discovering you can now buy a scented candle called For the Love of Penge. It's part of the range from South London Candles, and is infused with aromas of mandarin tea, Moroccan spices, orange and patchouli. Quite what these have to do with Penge, we are unsure — perhaps Barbara Brownskirt has an inkling. Nevertheless, the candles — hand crafted in small batches using 100% natural wax — will surely please any home-proud south Londoner. Other aromas include A Summers Day in Greenwich (suitably seaweedy) and Beckenham Stardust, which pays aromatic homage to the area's favourite son, David Bowie. South London Candles, £25 each
The print: Angry Dan's illustrated map of London
"I could look at this for hours" — so said the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, no less, about illustrator Angry Dan's illustrated map of London, a Technicolor topography with something different to pick out every time you lend it your peepers. Some 850 cultural landmarks are packed into this playful cartographical spread — from the mast of Alexandra Palace in the north to its counterpoint in Crystal Palace to the south. It's the kind of artwork that will be appreciated by London dilettantes and old hands alike. Each print comes with a free one you can colour in, too. Get them a pack of Crayolas to go with. Angry Dan's illustrated map of London, £35
The bowl: coal hole bowls
"I've always been fascinated by coal holes". So says artist Simon Tanner, who likes to get up early (before there are too many people around to ask what the heck he's doing) and press a rolled out slab of clay onto one of decorative coal holes studded into London's streets — the first step in the production of his unique decorative bowls. There are already a number of these bowls to choose from (not to mention designs which use the imprint of gravestones of figures such as William Blake and Daniel Defoe), and Simon also accepts commissions. Why not find the nearest coal hole to your giftee, and order them a present they'll be bowled over by. Coal hole bowls, £75
The walk: Look Up London
Everyone has that friend who knows where to find the hidden bust of a lesser-known scientist, or can name the exact date Samuel Pepys first laid eyes on a pineapple. Even so, chances are their knowledge doesn't stretch to the canyony depths of Look Up London guide Katie Wignall. She leads regular tours around the city that winkle out sordid Soho secrets, visit streets so narrow you'll need to hold your breath, and hone in on the feminist side of the Jack the Ripper story. Many of the tours have a focus on the great women who've called London home. Group tours are ongoing, but for an extra special gift you can book a private Look Up London tour, and have Katie personally point out all those things you've walked past 100 times but never clocked until now. Look Up London private tours, from £280 based on a couple or family for a two-hour tour.
