Lighting up West London – Lightopia. I’m a sucker for things that sparkle and light up the sky. Fireworks, sparklers (of course) and now lanterns are all on my list of guilty pleasures so I was pleased to be invited to the launch of Lightopia, a series of light-based installations set amongst the Palladian grandeur […]
Bellillo Italian Restaurant Fulham- Review
Fulham’s Neighbourhood Bit of Naples – Bellillo. I went on a trip to Naples a few years ago to try to locate the best Neapolitan pizza. Sadly I got ill and couldn’t fulfil the mission, but with exciting new pizzerias like Bellillo opening up in London maybe I can save myself the airfare? Bellillo is […]
Moto, Covent Garden – Review
A Japanese Beverage Bar and Shop in Covent Garden – Moto I’m really excited by the way small independent operators are bringing a sense of gastronomic diversity and authenticity to Covent Garden. We loved the Lady of the Grapes wine bar and now recently opened in the same street is Moto. Describing itself as the […]
SKÄL – Review
Husmanskost at SKÅL in Notting Hill. It’s a family affair at SKÅL, the new Islington neighbourhood Nordic restaurant serving a contemporary take on traditional ‘husmanskost’ (home-cooked) food with a twist. Dad’s in the kitchen (Chef Lauri Hilli) with mum Angelique and daughter Emma managing the front of house. Situated in a Grade II listed building […]
Puccini’s La Bohème at the Royal Opera House – Review
The Ultimate Operatic Romance? La Bohème at the Royal Opera House. With our relentless hounding of pop culture icons through the media such as Princess Diana or Amy Winehouse, we are a culture just as obsessed with the ‘femme fragile’ as the late 19th-century audience for whom the consumptive female heroines of Giuseppe Verdi’s La […]
Tramp 50th Birthday Celebrations
Getting Tramped at 50! Iconic London nightclub Tramp has just celebrated its 50th birthday and we were invited to the official birthday celebrations at a star-studded Christmas party. Guests were a who’s who of the London party scene and with a wonderful live band and DJs and the champagne flowing freely, a good time was […]
La Traviata at the Royal Opera House – Review
La Traviata by Giuseppe Verdi – A Revival Worth Catching. It’s the 25th anniversary of Richard Eyre’s landmark production of Giuseppe Verdi’s La Traviata and so with the latest revival having just opened at The Royal Opera House, Covent Garden, we were delighted to be asked to review. La Traviata has one of the great […]
The Ocean at the End of the Lane – Review
Neil Gaiman’s novel on stage at the National Theatre – perfect entertainment for older kids. Coming from the fertile imagination of author Neil Gaiman, the National Theatre’s adaptation of his novel The Ocean at the End of the Lane has just opened with a scary flourish at the NT’s Dorfman Theatre. As with the hit […]
A Taste of Honey – Review
Shelagh Delaney’s A Taste of Honey returns to the stage. Bijan Sheibani’s production of Shelagh Delaney’s 1958 groundbreaking classic A Taste of Honey has just opened at the Trafalgar Studios. The play hasn’t been seen in the West End for 60 years but like me, you might know the terrific BAFTA-winning film starring Rita Tushingham. […]
VyTA Italian Restaurant Covent Garden – Review
La Dolce Vita at VyTA Covent Garden. VyTA describes itself as ‘an elegant Italian lifestyle experience’; in practice, it’s an all-day restaurant handily located in the heart of Covent Garden market ‘open from dusk till dawn serving breakfast and brunch through to dinner and beyond’. New pre-theatre or late-night options in Covent Garden are always […]