Calling all punks…. The Stranglers take me right back to my heyday and they still hold a special in my heart, especially as at the time of their success I was living near their home town Guildford where I also saw them perform live. I was a proper fan…with proper punk credentials. During the late […]
World’s Best Martini Challenge Final
Calling all Martini Lovers: Fancy beating those January blues? OK, it may mean putting dry January on the back-burner, but what better way than attending the World’s Best Martini Challenge which storms back into town following on from the success of last year’s competition. This year’s #MartiniTour is returning to London and will crown the […]
Pinter 5 at the Harold Pinter Theatre
Pinter Wonderland… Pinter at the Pinter is a unique theatrical event, presenting together – for the first time ever – all his 20 one-act plays. Harold Pinter is vintage; an evergreen, 20th Century classic. Born in Hackney, London, in 1930, he lived with Antonia Fraser from 1975 until his death on Christmas Eve 2008. He […]
Bottomless Brunch at Hotel Xenia in Kensington
Hotel Xenia Brunch: It’s funny how ‘Brunch’ has found its way into the cosmopolitan vernacular. Once upon a time, it was a humble and homely affair; a family meal, usually consisting of eggs and bacon, often enjoyed after church. But now? Brunch is the ‘Sunday Service’ for urban millennials – frequently seeking a hangover cure […]
Sk:n – HydraFacial Treatment
A fabulous facial in West London at Sk:n Winter takes its toll on our skin; my summer glow is long gone and a rather more pale and tired complexion has taken its place so I was delighted to be invited along to one of UK’s leading skin specialist clinics Sk:n at my local branch in […]
Caroline, or Change at London’s Playhouse Theatre
Caroline, or Change comes to London’s West End… Tony Kushner and Jeanine Tesori’s 2003 musical has been on my must-see list for some time. Michael Longhurst’s production started life at Hampstead Theatre, moving to Chichester and now making a very welcome transfer to the Playhouse in London’s West End. This wonderfully original and quirky production takes […]
Circus 1903 at the Royal Festival Hall
The Golden Age of Circus: Contemporary Circus is all the rage lately; Barnum & Bailey’s film ‘The Greatest Showman’ is an international hit, and the rise once again of circus arts is very apparent. Over the past few years, I have found myself thrilling to a whole new the world of entertainment – one which […]
That Night Follows Day at the Southbank Centre
That Night Follows Day – a production by Tim Etchells & Forced Entertainment A Family Affair… Christmastime – perhaps more than any other time – evokes a sentimentalised childhood, a familial idyll that bears poignant relation to the complex, ambivalent truths of actual experience. What better time to see this touching theatre production of ‘That […]
Patri – Indian Train Journey Inspired Dining
Patri – Street Food Inspired by India’s Railway Food – Northfields, Ealing: Northfields in Ealing is a bit off my beaten track, but well worth the visit now that exciting new Indian restaurant Patri has opened its doors. Patri – meaning ‘train track’, and ‘furnace’ – recreates food served on North India’s iconic rail network. […]
Aladdin at the Hackney Empire – Review
Pantomime in East London – Aladdin: Love it or hate it, pantomime season is well and truly upon us…. Panto is a quintessentially British institution, but it was in fact developed from the Italian street theatre of the commedia dell’arte in the 16th Century. Here in Britain, we have made it a very Christmassy tradition […]