Last updated on March 29th, 2022What do you get when you weave Kate Prince’s hip hop choreography together with Sting’s greatest hits, a dance company with superpowers and a story that centres on the plight of refugees? You get Message in a Bottle, a dance-off at the Peacock Theatre which is dizzying to watch and…
The London Blog
Follow me and my London Blog for a capital round-up of London's historical, quirky and unusual places. Visit some of city's best museums and galleries, get a supreme peek at Royal London, and grab a seat next to me as I eat my way around London's restaurants.
Luisa Miller at the English National Opera
Last updated on February 20th, 2020I braced Storm Dennis’s ferocious embrace on Saturday night for a dose of operatic drama in the company of the English National Opera’s Luisa Miller. This is the ENO’s first staging of Verdi’s fifteenth opera and one which I have been longing to see for years. Written when Verdi was…
Alice’s Adventures Under Ground at the Royal Opera House
Alice’s Adventures Under Ground at the Royal Opera House is as mad as a box of frogs. The much-loved children’s tale of delicious nonsense has been condensed into a 55-minute rollercoaster of an opera, written by Irish composer Gerald Barry and directed and designed by Antony McDonald. Anything is possible during this topsy-turvy muchness of…
Northern Chords Ensemble at King’s Place
Last updated on May 1st, 2020The Steinway piano was happily purring away on the King’s Place stage on Sunday night, with virtuoso Daniel Lebhardt on keys. He was in the musical company of his other Northern Chords Ensemble bedfellows, Benjamin Baker on violin and Jonathan Bloxham on cello. BBC New Generation Artist Timothy Ridout and…
Must-see Art for Kids in London
Last updated on September 25th, 2024It’s all very well dragging the kids to London’s big-name museums, but which galleries and museums will your children actually like? And once you’re there, which painting, sculpture or object will they really appreciate? London is one giant artscape, and with most of it free, it’s hard to decide where…
Review: The Great Gatsby Immersive London
Last updated on October 1st, 2020There was a beckoning green light when I arrived at Gatsby’s Mayfair mansion on Wednesday for The Great Gatsby Immersive London. The night was tender, the drinks flowed, the conversation was titillating, and there was just the right glitter and glitz you’d expect from one of Gatsby’s infamous lawn parties….
Amélie the Musical review
Last updated on May 14th, 2024Merci Amélie the Musical for bringing some much-needed sunshine to a bleak and midwintery London. The petite French girl that we fell in love with in the 2001 film is treading the boards at The Other Palace in a production that’s a billet doux to Paris and is as enchanting as…
A Guide to London Art Week 2019
Last updated on December 2nd, 2019London Art Week, a six-day festival where art adrenaline courses through the veins of St James’s and Mayfair, kicks off on Sunday, December 1. Galleries and auction houses across both areas throw open their arty doors to the public with 32 exhibitions dedicated to pre-contemporary art. There’s also a range…
The Moon and beyond – National Maritime Museum
Last updated on August 17th, 2020Old blue eyes Frank Sinatra and Tintin wanted to go there, whilst Constable, Turner and Kubrick were all infatuated with it. The moon has always held us in spellbinding fascination, as far back as the Ancient Mesopotamians. And over at the National Maritime Museum in Greenwich, you can go to…
Sticky Mango – Restaurant Review
Last updated on October 22nd, 2020I have a real loathing of places which refer to themselves as London’s “best-kept secret,” but Sticky Mango actually deserves the accolade. It’s not wedged into Southbank’s busy arteries which overflow with humdrum chain restaurants. Instead, this Waterloo outpost is quietly but conveniently located on Coin Street, close to the…