The answer is loads! London is a great place to visit any time of the year. I send a regular seasonal newsletter to subscribers so sign up here. I like to share all this good info on my blog too, so here goes, scroll down for theatre, museums and galleries, foodie stuff, shopping, parks and palaces, music and sport.
I’m not a fan of the no booking fad that restaurants in London are so keen on. I’m not a fan of queuing nor of wandering around to find a restaurant that has a table. But The Barbary in Covent Garden has been on my list of ‘must visit’ restaurants for a while now so when I was in the area early one evening for a play at the nearby Donmar Warehouse, I thought I’d give it a try and hurrah there was space at the bar for 2! Top tip is to arrive at 5.15pm and to do so before Time Out makes it their number one restaurant in London as I fear it will be even more busy now!
Once a year London lets us into its hidden treasures, the many fine buildings which we usually can only see from the outside. Open House weekend is when it happens and it’s one of my favourite times to be exploring London. Some of the buildings are accessible all year, some only for an entry fee but during Open House weekend, a huge list of buildings are there for us to enjoy and it’s all free!
London has lots of great music venues such as Ronnie Scott’s, 606 Club, Roundhouse and I would happily count the Jazz Cafe among these. It’s a fun place to see live music and I went there recently to test it out for 2017 and I wanted to tell you how it went.
If you fancy seeing royal carriages, fine horses and trying on some costumes, then the Royal Mews is well worth a visit. It’s just around the corner from Buckingham Palace but most people walk past it without realising the treasures inside. So, join me on a visit… Continue reading
As a lucky resident, I look forward to the Notting Hill Carnival every year and make sure I get out and about and enjoy the world’s second largest street carnival right on my doorstep. It splits views in the neighbourhood with many residents making sure they are nowhere near and boarding up their houses against the feared hoards, while others, like myself, enjoy the vibe, the music, the food, the costumes and the all-round good time. Continue reading
Every year the Serpentine Gallery in Hyde Park delights us with a new, fiercely original Pavilion commission for the summer. So I was eagerly looking forward to the arrival of 2017’s design from Francis Kere, for the 17th summer Serpentine Pavilion and was not disappointed. Continue reading
Touted as THE restaurant opening with Clare Smyth at the helm the Michelin Female Chef of 2017, former chef and chef-partner at Gordon Ramsay 3 star Michelin restaurant and in charge when the stars were earned and retained. Could anything live up to that? Very short answer: yes, Core by Clare Smyth is wonderful! Continue reading
This year’s special exhibition at Buckingham Palace is Royal Gifts and it showcases gifts that Her Majesty The Queen has received in her official capacity. Sadly we don’t get to see what Prince Philip might give her on her for her birthday but the Royal Gifts exhibition is worth a visit. Continue reading
Zip lines, I’ve known a few… It began with a 3 sector zip in Jamaica, which went well apart from a slightly strained arm caused by grabbing the wire too vigorously in an attempt to lose speed as I hurtled towards the cushioned tree at the finish line. Then I moved up to an 11 stage zip line back and forth across a deep ravine in Swaziland which was rather ambitious and I have to admit to being a little scared despite it being perfectly safe. So when I heard of a big zip line coming to London so I was excited and apprehensive at the same time. Continue reading