Entertainment in London
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Bistrotheque
This converted warehouse offers hilarious transvestite lip-synching in its ground-floor Cabaret Room and high-quality dining in its stylish whitewashed restaurant above. It’s also worth coming just for the Napoleon bar, a moody, slightly decadent room with dark walls (the oak panels came from a stately home in Northumberland) and plush seating; the drinks are expertly mixed and the bar staff always friendly.
reviewed
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Battersea Arts Centre
In the magnificent, mouldering old town hall, this is a friendly, homely, down-to-earth and old sofa-strewn community theatre where staff chat to you and actors mingle in the bar with the audience after the show. Playwrights see it as a valuable nurturer and crucible of new plays and talent. Artistic director David Jubb’s famous ‘Scratch’ program is an excellent exercise in learning about the writing process: a developing play is shown to ever-increasing audiences until it’s finished. Parents can take their kids (to five years old) to The Bee’s Knees cafe for toys, games, storytelling and music.
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Bar Music Hall
This venue's most recent (and most promising incarnation is Bar Music Hall. It's large and therefore rarely too crowded, and hosts some of the hottest nights in Shoreditch. Wednesday's Slipped Disco is all underground acid and clipped electro, and Saturday night's Foreign is all the rage with drag queen DJ Jodie Harsh and fabulous Molaroid, art projections, techno, electro, rave, pop, ragga and anything in between. Oh, and it's free to get in.
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Grapes
One of Limehouse’s renowned historic pubs – there’s apparently been a drinking house here since 1583 – the Grapes is tiny, especially the riverside terrace, which can only really comfortably fit about a half-dozen close friends, but it’s cosy inside and exudes plenty of old-world charm.
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Coronet
A lovesick Hugh Grant munches popcorn here while watching Julia Roberts on the big screen in Notting Hill. The wonderful Edwardian interior, including a gorgeous balcony and even boxes, recalls the glory days of cinema, when filling a 400-seat house for every showing was easy.
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606 Club
Named after its old address on Kings Road which cast a spell over jazz lovers London-wide back in the ‘80s, this fantastic, tucked-away basement jazz club and restaurant gives centre stage to contemporary British-based jazz musicians nightly. Hidden behind a nondescript brick wall, the club frequently opens until 2am, although at weekends you have to dine to gain admission (booking is advised). There is no entry charge, but a music fee (£10 during the week, £12 Friday and Saturday, £10 Sunday) will be added to your food/drink bill at the end of the evening.
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Counting House
They say that old banks – with their counters and basement vaults – make perfect homes for pubs, and this award winner certainly looks and feels comfortable in the former headquarters of NatWest with its domed skylight and beautifully appointed main bar. This is a favourite of City boys – they come for the good range of real ales and the speciality pies (£9.75).
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Earl of Lonsdale
Despite being in the middle of the Portobello Road Market, the Earl is peaceful during the day, with a mixture of old biddies and young hipsters inhabiting the reintroduced snugs. There are Samuel Smith’s ales, and a fantastic backroom with sofas, banquettes and open fires, as well as a recently extended beer garden.
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Moose Bar
We bet you never thought you'd find a sky lodge in the Canadian Rockies in the middle of the West End? This wood-lined space on two floors has a simple ground-floor bar and a downstairs lounge/DJ'n'dance space with antlers for lampshades and cowhide on the seating. The cocktails are reasonable (around £7 to around £9), you can have a bite (of pies and nibbles) to eat and there's dancing until late on weekend nights.
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Café Oto
Café Oto is one of London’s most idiosyncratic and interesting music venues. Set in a converted print warehouse and run by a Japanese–British couple, this place dedicates itself to promoting experimental and alternative international musicians. You’ll find lots of Japanese stars of experimental, jazz and pop music, as well as legendary 1960s folk and rock stars.
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The Place
One of the most exciting modern dance venues, the Place was the birthplace of modern British dance. It concentrates on challenging, contemporary and experimental choreography. Behind the late-Victorian facade you’ll find a 300-seat theatre, an arty, creative cafe atmosphere and six training studios. The Place sponsors an annual dance award, ‘Place Prize’, which strives to seek out and award new and outstanding dance talent.
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Heaven
This long-standing and perennially popular gay club, under the arches beneath Charing Cross station, has always been host to good club nights. Monday’s Popcorn night (mixed dance party, all-welcome door policy) has to be one of the best for weeknight’s clubbing in the capital. The celebrated G-A-Y now also takes place here on Thursday (G-A-Y Porn Idol), Friday (G-A-Y Camp Attack) and Saturday (plain ol’ G-A-Y).
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Social
The Social remains one of the best places for a good night out in Central London thanks to the fact that it steers well clear of catering to the regular West End crowd. You can have a lunch here of beans on toast or, indeed, spaghetti hoops on toast, and follow it up with a quiet drink in the stylish wood-panelled upstairs bar, or descend into the downstairs area, revel in live or DJ music and £6 cocktails until late.
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East Village
Basement club that sees house lovers flocking from all over London, especially for one-off nights featuring some of New York’s finest. Other events range from disco to dancehall and dubstep to drum and bass.
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Bar Blue
This stylish bar attached to Vinopolis and close to the Thames has floor-to-ceiling windows and a colour scheme supposedly derived from a bottle of Bombay Sapphire Gin. The stools, the bar, the ceiling – everything but the nearby river – are bluer than blue. It’s a convenient place for a cocktail before or after a performance at the nearby Shakespeare’s Globe.
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John Snow
This used to be one of Soho’s most popular pubs, but after throwing out a gay couple for kissing in April 2011, its popularity nose-dived. It’s a shame because it is otherwise a classic pub, with no music, just plenty of chat and cheap ale, lager, bitter and stout from British brewery Sam Smith’s.
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Medicine Bar
Still one of the coolest bars along Upper St, the Medicine Bar attracts 30-something clubbers and drinkers, as well as a younger crowd. One reason you'd come to this converted dark-red pub, with low sofas and dim lighting, is its music, ranging from jazzy funk to hip-hop; another attraction is minor celebrity spotting - you might catch sight of your fave DJ, model or TV star (if you can see through the crowds, that is).
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Underworld
Hear ye, all ye metal heads out there! The Underworld awaits! Metallica, Black Sabbath, Sepultura and other skull-clad screamers have made their appearance either live or as a DJ’s choice in this underground warren beneath the World’s End pub. It’s got plenty of nooks and crannies for ritual head-banging, but it does also host some ‘softer’ musicians such as KT Tunstall and Radiohead.
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Twickenham Rugby Stadium
The home of English rugby union. There is a museum here that showcases old matches in the video theatre and has a collection of 10,000 items of rugby memorabilia. You can go on a guided tour of the stadium and museum (adult/child/family £14/8/40) at 10.30am, noon, 1.30pm and 3pm Tuesday to Saturday and at 1pm and 3pm on Sunday. There are no tours on match days and the museum is closed on Mondays.
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Bradley’s Spanish Bar
Bradley’s is only vaguely Spanish in decor, but much more authentic in its choice of booze: San Miguel, Cruzcampo, Tinto de Verano (red wine with rum and lemonade) and – teenager favourite – Sangria. Punters are squeezed under low ceilings in the nooks of the basement, while a vintage vinyl jukebox plays out rock tunes of your choice.
reviewed
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Young Vic
One of the capital’s most respected theatre troupes – bold, brave and talented – the Young Vic grabs audiences with winning performances such as the astonishing Kafka’s Monkey, starring Kathryn Hunter, which returned to the Young Vic in 2011 after a triumphant world tour. There’s a lovely two-level bar-restaurant with an open-air terrace upstairs.
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Catch
It doesn’t look like much, but Catch is one of the best nights out in Shoreditch. Upstairs you’ll hear anything from ‘90s to funk and hip hop, as well as a great selection of new and established bands. Downstairs you get a big house-party vibe with DJs who mix up pretty much anything from chart hits to electro and techno. Downstairs is free, it’s open late and it’s really fun.
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Carling Academy Islington
Many complain about Islington Academy's lack of atmosphere - it is, after all, set in a shopping centre - but all agree that the artists' line-up is pretty top class: Franz Ferdinand, Kings of Leon, and even Tom Jones have played here. The acoustics are excellent and the discerning crowd is serious about their music. The adjacent Bar Academy hosts up-and-coming groups and can be a great place to see new talent.
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Lamb
The Lamb’s central mahogany bar with beautiful Victorian dividers (also called ‘snob screens’ – they allowed famous and well-to-do punters to drink without having to suffer the curious gaze of lesser citizens!) has been a favourite with locals since the day it opened in 1729. Nearly 300 years later, its popularity hasn’t waned, so come early to bag a booth. It has a decent selection of Young’s bitters and a genial atmosphere perfect for unwinding. The Lamb is a five-minute walk from Russell Square tube station; walk down Guilford St then turn right at Guilford Pl.
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Ye White Hart
This riverside Young’s pub in Barnes was formerly a Masonic lodge; it’s huge, traditional and welcoming downstairs, but the temptation in warmer months is to head to the balcony upstairs for choice Thames views and river breezes or plonk yourself down at one of the riverside tables. When Boat Race day arrives, the pub is deluged by beer-toting spectators angling for the best views.
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