Something For The Weekend

Alex on: Being a Tourist in Your Own City

I recently had a friend come and stay with me from a far away land, and I have to admit I was fretting over where to take him.  But luckily, he had it all sorted; "Covent Garden!" he shouted, "Soho!", "Parliament!" he reeled out all the top tourist attractions.  And then it dawned on me, as a Londoner, I really don't take advantage of the city.  I mean, tell a fellow Londoner you want to go to Covent Garden, they roll their eyes and sigh "urrgghh, it's sooo touristy".  But it's not! Not really, not if you know where to go.  And I guess that's what this place is for!

So Covent Garden, whats it got to offer?  Well, last night me and the SFTW guys went for a meal at The Rock Garden.  This place is an absolute diamond, with an al fresco area for those rare days of sunshine and an interior that looks like the inside of a maharajah's marquee!  The Rock Garden boasts great food and service, plus an exciting atmosphere.  It's recently changing its menu from Modern European to Modern British, with locally sourced food! A typical meal will cost around £20pp and you get free entry to there Gardening Club. 

Another little gem is The Langley.  Just pass the station this club/bar is rammed full of cool Hoxton types.  Leather sofas, great music and great bar service awaits in this little beaut.  They are renowned for their Thurs night happy hours 5pm-7pm.  So whack on your scarf and shades and wander in. 

Another great venue is The Punch and Judy pub.  This is slap bang in the centre of Covent Garden  and the balcony allows you to look over Covent Garden and watch the street artists with a cold beer in your hands. The beer isn't overpriced and there is always a great atmosphere inside.

So put your rucksack and your hiking boots on and wander around with a map - go on, be a tourist!

KATIE ON: Shakespeare's Birthday

Image courtesy of Andy Bradshaw

Sunday 23 April – 10am–4pm

The Shakespeare's Globe is opening its doors in a free birthday celebration for the man with a quill ion his hand and a skill for spinning a yarn. Head down there for a day of Warriors and Queens - Roman style.

To launch the day, Cleopatra will sail down the River Thames and arrive at the Globe at 10.15am, re-enacting the famous description from Antony and Cleopatra:

‘The barge she sat in, like a burnished throne,
Burned on the water. The poop was beaten gold;
Purple the sails, and so perfumed that
The winds were lovesick with them…’

She will be met by twenty Roman soldiers and a band of musicians to herald the start of the festivities.  Lucky lass...

There's something for everyone: gladiatorial fighting (sorry, no Russel Crowe though), a 'best theatrical death' competition, lessons in how to wear a toga (theyr'e the next in thing), the opportunity to try on Cleopatra's costume, and the chance to take to the world-famous Globe stage and deliver a line or two yourself. There will also be the opportunity to take part in workshops on dance, voice and movement with seasoned Globe professionals.

No booking necessary - just turn up! If the heavens pour down, don’t stress: all activities will be brought inside.

This day is organised as part of the Mayor of London’s celebrations for St George’s Day 2006. What's more, it's 100% FREE.  Shakesperian music to the ears of the skint. 

Shakespeare's Globe:
21 New Globe Walk
Bankside
London SE1 9DT

BECKY ON: the real Eastenders

Not enough people visit Mile End. They're all too busy loading themselves up with cream teas and Prada shoppings bags along the Kings Road, or gathering en masse around a mime, painted silver and pointlessly perching on a podium in Covent Garden... or cricking their necks looking up at the lights in Picadilly Circus with a thousand other tourists. WHICH IS LAME. The truth about London can only really be learned by staring down at the 'ghettos' from a double decker bus in Mile End. Don't believe me? I kid you not peeps. Just check out these fabulous EXCLUSIVE PHOTOS ...

Exhibit 1: note the amicable way in which two friends walk casually past a man on a bike, having strolled peacefully through the park in order to cross the road. Such a beautiful sight. I love the angle of this shot,.. I know, I know,.... amazing. And no muggings in sight.

Exhibit 2 is also interesting, demonstrating life outside a very much open Lidl store - the number one Bow choice for value shopping. Note how the child in front stretches out his arms in glee, no doubt enchanted by the glorious surroundings in which is lucky enough to be growing, from child to adult. What joys.

Exhibit 3 provides a fascinating insight as to the hatted man crossing street theory. Can he really see the traffic when his face is half consumed by his fashionable headwear? Whatever the case, he makes a relatively smooth crossing whilst staring down at his matching trainers. Well done.

Exhibit 4 highlights yet another road crossing, this time by a punk haired gambling man, heading straight for the betting shop. I love the way his trousers flap in that springtime Bow breeze.

Next time you're short on things to do at the weekend,.. I can highly recommend this Mile End bus tour. Take the 277 from Grove Road towards Canary Wharf.

Or call me for more information.

KATIE ON: mini popcorn

SKINT SODS UNITE!!!

There are FREE movie screenings over the weekend... and it only takes 5 minutes out of your life.

Sit back and relax in luxury cinema seats whilst enjoying pocket sized popcorn. Awww... pint sized pops for a pint sized gal. I'm THERE!

The official details:
Cinema Peroni free film screenings in London will be taking place at a variety of eye-catching locations across the capital. Projections are expected to take place at 8pm. To maintain the element of surprise, the locations are limited to the street name or area so keep your eyes peeled.

Friday 7th April
Projections will be taking place on Regent Street and Pall Mall.

Saturday 8th April
Soho projections will be centred around Golden Square, Old Compton Street, Dean Street, Greek Street and Brewer/Sherwood Street.

Friday 21st April
Chelsea's projection will take place on the Kings Road.

Saturday 22nd April
Shoreditch and Clerkenwell will be the scene of the final Peroni Cinema projections.

Enjoy...

SIMON ON: French dissing...

Aaaaw it’s not all fun and games over Easter. Not to put a dampner on things of course, but our Simon, a British expat working over in France has got a bone to pick with the way the French work…

“Easter’s depressing, because Good Friday (in a mainly Catholic country no less) is not a public holiday. There are no days off "in lieu" elsewhere in the year either - particularly ironic because "in lieu" comes from the bloody French in the first place. Also, fixed date holidays falling on weekends do not get you the following Monday off. You can end up with pretty big bank holiday withdrawal on Good Friday.

We get grumpy at Christmas time too: there's no Boxing Day, and if the 25th is on a Saturday or Sunday then Christmas is just like a regular weekend, except for turkey and treats. Cause for some gloating this year in France though, as the 1st, 8th, and 25th of May are all bank holidays, (labour day, end of WW2, and ascension respectively). Don't get jealous too quickly though - last year the 1st and the 8th fell on the weekend and of course, we got no days off in lieu..."

Makes you kind of glad you work here, really, doesn't it.

Alex On: Eggscellent

Wow! the Head Honcho's (Dan and Becky) have deemed me worthy enough to post my own, erm, post?!!

So, let me introduce myself, I'm Alex, I work at lastminute.com, on both the Restaurant and the Theatre sections on the site.  I have a lovely pair of coconuts (direct from Spamalot) and I'm a closet rock star.  I say closet as i can't play any instrument, apart from the Trombone - hardly rock and roll and i cant sing/dance/sway/tap feet - only a few minor hitches really.

Anyway, lets get down to the weekend, it's a beaut! 4-days of rest I hear you say, but NO! I see it as 4 days of pure indulgence of high octane adventure. So, I guess the best way to do it, is to tell you what I'll be up to.  Tonight I'll be in my local pub, enjoying the first of many glorious pints of pure delight, and I'm sure I'll then head off to some sort of dive that passes itself off as a club.  Fri night I'm hosting a poker night.  It's rather unusual for me to be excited about staying in, but there's something strangely awesome about this event, it's my first time hosting, and it feels almost like some sort of passage into manhood.  Anyway, I digress, Sat night, I'm heading off into Camden,   where I'll be drinking in the worlds biggest pub (probably), The Worlds End.  Then I'll trek below to it's sister club, The Underworld, where there will be some pretty funky gigs, including Robin Black who has been highly recommended to me - check out their outfits!  And then it turns into an awesome Indie night, playing everything from Red Hot Chili's to System of a Down to The Libertines.  Then on Monday, I'm off go-karting. Hows that for High Octane? I may even dress as toad from Mario Kart!

Happy Easter! (and i apologise for the atrocious pun, i promise that the next title will be much better)

KATIE ON: Body Bits

Hello weekend lovers,

My name is Katie - I'm a lastminute.com blog bandit and a lover of all things 'weekend'.  I do my best to explore the quirky side of London, the UK and hey, let's not limit ourselves.. the WORLD.  I'll try and pass a few 'hot happenings' on now and then.

First off, Becky and I braved the giant squid carcass at the National History museum a few weeks ago and barely managed to keep our dinner in. NOW, in a bid to push our 'I'm tougher than you" levels, we'll be heading to The 'Body Exhibition' at Earls Court.  Forget giant calamari rings... this is the REAL deal.  Human bits... and lots of 'em.

A collection of 22 life-sized, whole human bodies are on display in 'Bodies - The Exhibition', accompanied by 260 assorted organs and body parts. They are stripped of their skin and plastinated in various poses.  Work it baby, love the camera...

The point of the exhibition is to teach people about the compexities of the human body. It's one for all ages - and in an age of obesity and other health problems, it may just make you look at your own inner workings in a different way.  'My body is a temple' and all that jazz...

I'm not sure if my stomach can handle the pressure but i'm definitely going to put it to the test. Lovely pictures to come... watch this space. You have been warned.

Ticket prices

Event dates
Opens April 12

Event times
11am - 6pm daily
Late night Thursday until 8pm

Last tickets and entry 1 hour before close

Venue:
The Museum Hall at Earls Court Exhibition Centre

Bloc and Roll

If Easter weekend wasn't expressly designed for getting trashed in dark, dingy clubs until 7AM (that's SEVEN AM), then I'm the Pope. Thankfully, Greg tells us that those nice Soulwax boys (who also double up as the awesome 2ManyDjs) have got a stellar line up at their Radio Soulwax night on Saturday. Bloc Party, Babyshambles and The Rakes will all play DJ sets at Canvas in Kings Cross alongside Zoe Ball (?!) and the accurately titled People Are Germs. There's loads of tickets still available for credit card waxing so go here now children.

As if that's not enough, you can even go to the roller disco there on Friday night and spend your whole Easter wheeling around an old railway goods yard. Remember: we're here to make your life better.

BECKY ON: better late than never...

It seems we were a little busy towards the end of last week and didn't have a chance to post about what the weekend was about to hold, but needless to say, there was very little lounging around doing NOTHING!

Friday was DIRTY CURRY NIGHT,... so I met up with some friends on Brick Lane - the very best place in London to fill your face with the best that India has to offer, and it's hardly wallet bashing stuff. About eight of us bought our own booze and sat around a steaming mass of naan, rice, meat and sloppy sauces in sizzling dishes, talked about nothing (although Ghosts were a main topic of discussion as Sarah had just been on the JACK THE RIPPER TOUR, which she said was really cool). Anyway,.. all in all it was less than a tenner a head, so we could afford to move on to GREEN AND RED, (hit it up) a tequila bar round the corner. Poor Darren was feeling a little worse for wear by that point, but I made friends with a lovely American girl called Christine. Brick Lane is always good for mingling, and this trendy bar is really good for chatting as the music's not too loud and the measures are quite HUGE. Nice one.

Then we went off to the RHYTHM FACTORY, just down the road, which was open til 4am! Most of us were too busy talking and making friends with mad people to go dancing though, and I ended up safe at home in bed by 3am. A relatively early night, really...

Saturday was rather fun... I had a friend in town so we took a walk round Victoria Park, really nice in the sunshine. Aaaah, I really feel like spring is here at the moment!! We had a pint in the ROYAL INN, right near the park, a very nice pub, if a little smoky. I wouldn't recommend a trip there just because.... but if you're passing, grab a pint of Leffe beer,.. mmmmmm, my new FAVE!! Then of course, it was time to head to Brixton to meet some folks from work and a few other friends, all down for dancing at KEIRETSU's gig at THE TELEGRAPH. This pub is mental... I'd never been before and it was a short bus ride up Brixton Hill, a long queue and a SIX QUID charge to get in, but I suppose it was worth it because Tim and Russel's band KEIRETSU were fantastic! They're an "11 piece live breakbeat fushionism band" and they rock!  We had to jump around a lot, and at one point I was so tired that I forget I was drinking bottled beer and picked up some bloke's pint by mistake. Luckily he was more amused than annoyed, but it could have been nasty had we not been in such a nice place. The crowd seemed really cool, actually... check out our Katie below with her Swede, (bless!)

On Sunday a few mates and I headed to Islington for some food and ended up getting a load of Braham beers for £1.50 each in the MEDICINE BAR, and we had these wicked comfy couches all to ourselves. AWESOME. A great place to lounge away a Sunday afternoon!! However, DON'T GO TO LE MERCURY. It's a little restaurant quite nearby on Upper Street that looks deceivingly charming. I mean, they even had a Spongebob Squarepants window box fergodssake!!! But NO. Don't do it. We ordered roast dinner and the meat was so tough I had cramp in my hand for AN HOUR and could barely hold my beer back in the MEDICINE BAR afterwards. It gets good reviews here and I don't understand it. It was cold too, and they didn't even serve potatoes with the roast. WTF??? You can't have a roast with no potatoes. LAME. Avoid like the plague.

So all in all, a good WEEKEND for me, marred only slightly by the Le Mercury experience. But I'd highly recommend all the other things I did, especially KEIRETSU... Check out their upcoming gigs here!

IS IT FRIDAY YET???

BECKY ON: disco a la death...

Ooooh I love it when the sun shines! I'm sure it cures a hangover more than a bacon butty and a cup of Earl Grey, but don't tell my mate Olaf down in Benjy's coz he'd get scared. I think I'm his best customer. Anyway, last night was FUN. You should definitely hit the DEATH DISCO at the Notting Hill Arts Club on a week night. I can't believe I'd never been before, it was really cool! I think I liked it even more because it reminded me of the places I used to visit out in NYC. Especially Brooklyn. The old and dusty warehouses with concrete floors and wall pro jections, and music so loud it busts your ear-drums, and air so thick with smoke that it burns your throat for hours when you haven't even taken a drag. Aaaah, the magic of a good old fashioned trash pit, (sigh)

The bands were fab too, especially the first one, Oki Dog. The lead singer was mental, this crazy chick in a red dress, jumping up and down on the speaker and almost knocking my wine (bottle) over. Parka were good too, everyone was dancing. It wasn't too rammed, beer was £2 before 9pm and best of all, it was FREE to get in. Dan even met Alan McGee, look. I didn't even know who he was. Well I'm obviously not 'cool'. (If you're not either, he signed bands like Oasis and Super Furry Animals, just so you know). But yes, all in all it was an excellent night. I'll be going back with my mates pretty soonish, no doubt! DO IT!