Entertainment in London
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Bethnal Green Working Men’s Club
This is a true rags-to-riches story: BGWMC was on the brink of bankruptcy, its working men about to become destitute and pintless, until a clever promoter spread the news of trashy burlesque nights taking place in the club’s main hall – sticky carpets, shimmery stage set ‘n’ all – and (literally) overnight, half of London stormed the venue, making it one of the most successful and popular clubs in the capital. There are regular burlesque bonanzas in addition to tassel-twirling contests, alternative Eurovision nights and many more sweet selections. Check the website for what’s on when you’re around.
reviewed
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Churchill Arms
This traditional English pub is renowned for its Winston memorabilia, chamber pots, golf bags suspended from the ceiling and butterflies under glass. It’s a favourite of both locals and tourists (what either group makes of the Winnie/lepidopterous connection is anyone’s guess), and you’ll have to fight your way through scrums of punters at the horseshoe-shaped bar for a pint. The attached conservatory has been serving excellent Thai food for two decades.
reviewed
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Ten Bells
This landmark pub, opposite Spitalfields Market and next to the area’s striking church, is famous for being one of Jack the Ripper’s pick-up joints, although these days it’s about as far from a museum piece as you can get. In fact, ask most of the young and hip crowd about the history, and few will have any idea that this beautifully decorated, airy and friendly place has anything sinister about its Victorian past.
reviewed
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French House
French House is Soho’s legendary boho boozer (with a good restaurant downstairs) with a history to match: this was the meeting place of the Free French Forces during WWII, and De Gaulle is said to have drunk here often, while Dylan Thomas, Peter O’Toole and Francis Bacon all frequently ended up on the wooden floors. Come here to sip on Ricard, French wine or Kronenbourg and check out the quirky locals.
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Prospect of Whitby
Once known as the Devil’s Tavern, the Whitby’s said to date from 1520, making it the oldest riverside pub in London. It’s firmly on the tourist trail now, but there’s a smallish terrace to the front and the side overlooking the Thames, a decent restaurant upstairs and open fires in winter. Check out the wonderful pewter bar – Samuel Pepys once sidled up to it to sup.
reviewed
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Captain Kidd
With its large windows, fine beer garden and mock scaffold recalling the hanging nearby of the eponymous pirate in 1701, this is a favourite riverside pub in Wapping that only dates back to the 1980s. There’s a restaurant predictably called the Gallows on the 1st floor.
reviewed
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Pear Shaped
Advertising themselves as 'London's second-worst comedy club', Pear Shaped is the place to destroy the hopes of enthusiastic amateurs.
reviewed
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Ronnie Scott's
London's legendary jazz club has been pulling in the hep cats since 1959.
reviewed
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Wembley Stadium
Wembley Stadium, in northwest London, has been the city’s premier national stadium since it was built in 1923. It’s where England traditionally plays its international matches and where the FA Cup final is contested in mid-May. Its greatest moment came when the victorious England captain, Bobby Moore, held the World Cup trophy aloft in 1966. Controversially, the great stadium and its two landmark towers were demolished in 2001, and even more controversially, the new 90, 000-capacity, state-of-the-art Norman Foster–designed complex, due to open in 2003, hosted its first game four years late: the FA Cup final in 2007. Even though it was abysmally late and cost twice the ori…
reviewed
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Milk & Honey
Milk & Honey’s number one ‘House Rule’ reads: ‘No name-dropping, no star fucking’, so prepare for a tight-lipped but glamorous clientele at this cocktail bar. It’s a members’ club that lets nonmembers in on weeknights (though it’s preferred if the plebeians stick to the beginning of the week), and you have to phone in advance to reserve your own private booth for a two-hour slot. Once you’re there, you have to ring the bell and whisper your name into the buzzer, the speakeasy way. This practice is heavenly if you like privacy and great drinks, and hellish if you prefer a more down-to-earth atmosphere. It’s worth sampling the vast and exquisite cocktail list.…
reviewed
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BFI IMAX Cinema
The British Film Institute IMAX Cinema is located in the centre of a busy round-about (there are plans to pedestrianise it in the not-too-distant future). The cinema screens the predictable mix of 2-D and IMAX 3-D documentaries about travel, space and wildlife, lasting anywhere from 40 minutes to 1½ hours, as well as recently released blockbusters like Star Trek à la IMAX (DMR and digital titles cost £13.50/8.75/9.75). The drum-shaped building sits on ‘springs’ to reduce vibrations and traffic noise from the traffic circle and subways beneath it, and the exterior changes colour at night. And size does matter here: the 477-seat cinema is the largest in the UK, with a scre…
reviewed
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Matter
London's newest superclub, courtesy of the Fabric crew, Matter is the latest word in high-tech club design. No regular nights, just a busy roster of visiting promoters.
reviewed
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Wimbledon
The All England Lawn Tennis Championships have been taking place here in late June/early July since 1877. Most tickets for the Centre and Number One courts are distributed by ballot, applications for which must be made the preceding year. Try your luck by sending a stamped self-addressed envelope to the All England Lawn Tennis Club (PO Box 98, Church Rd, Wimbledon SW19 5AE). Limited tickets go on sale on the day of play, though queues are painfully long. The nearer to the finals, the higher the prices. Prices for outside courts are under £15, reduced after 5pm. You might be better off going to the men’s warm-up tournament at Queen’s Club, which takes place a couple of wee…
reviewed
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George & Dragon
Once a scuzzy local pub, the George (as ye shall dub it if you value your Shoreditch High St cred) was taken over and decorated with the owner’s grandma’s antiques (antlers, racoon tails, old clocks), cardboard cut-outs of Cher and fairy lights, turning this one-room pub into what has remained the epicentre of the Hoxton scene for more than a decade. It’s one of the most exciting places to go out, with a great jukebox, though it tends to get packed out at the weekends. Some of the best DJ nights in London are on offer here, with cabaret performances taking place on window sills. It’s total fun and mindless hedonism. Definitely not a place for a quiet pint.
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Fabric
Consistently rated by DJs as one of the world's greatest, Fabric's three dance floors occupy a converted meat cold-store opposite the Smithfield meat market. Friday's FabricLive offers drum and bass, breakbeat and hip hop, Saturdays see house, techno and electronica, while hedonistic Sundays are delivered by the Wetyourself crew.
reviewed
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Viva Cake Bitches
An evening with the self-declared Viva Cake Bitches usually kicks off in the late afternoon with tea, cake and sandwiches served by girls on rollerskates. Other diversions include dominos, knitting, baking and, if plans come off, a beauty bar, before the evening steps it up a gear with classic rock 'n' roll bands and jive-dancing. Remember to raid the dressing-up box for some vintage wear before you turn up.
The original among London's latest 1950s tea-dances, the irrepressible Viva Cake began life at the Bethnal Green WMC, but has since taken up a residency at the red-brick St Aloysius Social Club near Euston train station.
reviewed
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Donmar Warehouse
A not-for-profit company that has forged itself a West End reputation.
reviewed
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Plastic People
Taking the directive 'underground club' literally, Plastic People provides a low-ceilinged subterranean den of dubsteppy, wonky, funky, no-frills fun times.
reviewed
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Princess Louise
We might have used the word gem before, but we take all of the other instances back. This late-19th-century Victorian pub is spectacularly decorated with a riot of fine tiles, etched mirrors, plasterwork and a stunning central horseshoe bar. After an eight-month renovation, it’s looking even better. The old tiles and plasterwork have been scrubbed up, and Victorian wood partitions have been reinstated, giving punters nooks and alcoves to hide in. There are Corinthian columns too, would you believe? Beers are Sam Smith’s only, and, at £2 a pint, it’s a wonder anyone ever leaves.
reviewed
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Lamb & Flag
Good pubs can be hard to come by in over-touristy Covent Garden, but the Lamb & Flag makes up for any character or soul the area has lost – the interior is more than 350 years old, with creaky wooden floors and winding stairs, there’s live jazz on Sunday afternoons and, come sunshine or summer evenings, it’s a miracle if you can approach the bar for all the people crowding outside. Its setting is equally charming: the main entrance is on top of a tiny cobbled street, but you can also reach it from the backstreet donkey path that’ll make you think of Victorian England.
reviewed
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Comedy Store
One of London's first comedy clubs, featuring the capital's most famous improvisers, the Comedy Store Players, on Wednesdays and Sundays.
reviewed
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Last Days of Decadence
A brand new club that opened in the height of the recession, this is a place that celebrates the 1930s through its heady, abandon-fuelled parties and through its Great Depression–inspired name. Not that it sticks to 1930s music, however – you’ll find regular nights hosting DJs such as the out-there trannie DJ Jodie Harsh on Fridays’ Circus, and Last Days of Decadence’s eponymous night that mixes up D&B, nu-rave and jungle. On a quieter note, there are free jazz gigs on Tuesdays, and Monday nights are life-drawing classes – £10 a go.
reviewed
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Egg
Egg has the most superb layout with three exposed concrete rooms (across three floors), a garden and two gorgeous tropical roof terraces (relieving the edgy, exiled smokers). Some say it would fit perfectly in New York’s meat-packing district thanks to its design, but it’s ours and we’re keeping it because it rocks. Located off York Way, the club hosts ‘omnisexual’ nights, with a mix of electro, minimal and house. At weekends, a free shuttle bus runs here, every 30 minutes between 10pm and 2am, from outside American Carwash on York Way.
reviewed
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Passing Clouds
One of those little flickers of nightlife brilliance, Passing Clouds is a ‘members club’ that actually hosts massive parties open to everyone (admission around £8) and go on until the early hours of the morning. The music is predominantly world oriented, with a lot of African influence and regular Afrobeat bands; the parties are a healthy mix of DJs and live music with a multicultural crowd that really makes you feel you’re in London. The decor is makeshift bar, colourful lanterns and tropical titbits, and the atmosphere is just exhilarating. Well worth checking out.
reviewed
