Some places are still secrets but not these

There was a time when you could easily get tickets to one of the Wednesday night jazz performances at St Martin-in-the-Fields a day before the performance, well those days are well and truly gone.

A few years ago this was a proper secret venue, no one knew they had Jazz here, most knew about the cafe and that it was a church, but that was it.

It seems everyone now knows about the jazz nights and how good a night you will have there (if you get the reserved seating) because the crowd are friendly and it’s a nice atmosphere.

If you haven’t been before your next best chance is on the 7^th July, that’s right, that’s how popular these nights have become. Next weeks reserved tickets are already sold out and the unreserved aren’t always that good so I wouldn’t recommend going.

On the 7^th they have Maroon Town who are most definitely worth seeing and at £9 very, very good value.

Now I’ve always known a lot of Londoners or at least the workers around there know about the Scoop but it seems it’s found it’s way into some guide books because tourists are starting to go there.

They tried a few earlier events and the weather let them down a couple of times but now the season is starting to kick off proper and you should try to get down there while you can.

On Wednesday to Friday this week they have what looks like a very funny open air opera for free. These events are always popular and crowded so obviously this Wednesday will be your best chance of going with a vastly reduced crowd there.

The show is due to start at 7pm on each day but with entry being on a first come basis, get there as early as you can. The easiest way to get there is from London Bridge from the Tooley street exit, here’s a map to the Scoop from their site to help you.

Are there any other secret venues in London you would recommend?

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1. Another secret London place that no travel guide tells you about
2. Secret London things to do near Oxford Street in London
3. Shhh I don’t even want you to tweet this, it’s a secret just for you

There's more to London than just sightseeing

When most people come to London they’ve got a list of places that they want to see and activities that they want to do. Their London sightseeing is all mapped out.

As for activities they may have a couple of signature restaurants they want to try and perhaps a visit to the theatre, but the one thing they often don’t think about is what evening activities they’re going to do after they’ve been sightseeing.

British TV might be considered the best in the world but that’s not what you want to be doing in the evenings in London.

What I’m going to suggest is go to the cinema, now before you shoot me down on that idea, not all cinemas in London are the same and not all cinemas show Hollywood blockbusters.

What I’m talking about is going to the British Film Institute (BFI) on the Southbank where you can see classic films and I mean classic films, see film exhibitions, independent films and yes see a blockbuster on the IMAX screen, the largest screen in England.

This month is a very good example of the sort of thing you could expect. If you are at all interested in films you’re bound to have heard of the Seven Samurai and may even have seen it on TV which wouldn’t have done it justice.

Well the BFI are showing that and a season of Akira Kurosawa, who directed it, films. You’re unlikely to ever get the chance of seeing this or his other films on the big screen so take this opportunity and book your tickets now.

But if that’s too heavy for you they also have a season of Grace Kelly films or in the IMAX various Hollywood films.

If you’ve not been to the BFI go down, have a walk around, try one of the exhibitions or catch a film. I know this is a London activity you’d never think of trying after sightseeing, but believe me it’s worth it and you’ll be surprised what a good evening you have.

Below are other posts worth reading:

1. A London evening treat – See a classic Paul Newman film at the cinema
2. Is the best evening in London on a Wednesday at St Martin-in-the-Fields?
3. Something different to do in the evening in London

Do any London guide books mention this event? No chance!

London bloggers rule, it’s not official, but that’s what I stay

If you only had London guide books you’d never know about this day.

A guide book can tell you about sightseeing, that’s not tough

But when it comes to one-off events they’re totally, utterly stuffed.

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What do I mean, read on and see

No guide books mention the awards for the National Movies.

And that’s a shame if you like to see the stars

There’ll be big Hollywood names doing the red carpet dance.

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You may never have heard of the awards, but believe what I say

Tom Cruise and Orlando Bloom will be there on Wednesday.

Will Robert Pattinson and Daniel Radcliffe make a show

No word yet but you never know.

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If you want to actually be in the venue to say you were there

There’s only balcony tickets left at £50 a pair.

But you won’t see much you’ll be too far away and high

It’s a better atmosphere outside when the stars walk by.

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The stars will arrive from 6.30pm

But to get a good spot get there as early as you can.

It’s on Wednesday at the Royal Festival Hall

Here’s the twitter stream to find out more.

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If you want to see Tom Cruise and other movie stars up close go to the National Movie awards at the Southbank Centre at the Royal Festival Hall on Wednesday 26th. Get there no later than 3pm to get a good spot.

Below are other posts worth reading:

1. London secret venues, St Martins on Wednesdays and the Scoop, not secrets anymore.
2. Enjoy a fun Monday evening in London that you’ll never forget
3. Things to do in London & things to do in London in April for free

Canary Wharf never gets much of a mention in London guidebooks, which shows how behind the times most guidebooks are.

I’m also pretty sure that unless you work there you probably never think of going out there either. You probably think it’s still just a lot of office blocks and not much else.

What you don’t realise is that there are some good restaurants there but more importantly they have some excellent events around there, that if they were in central London you would definitely want to go to.

This coming Tuesday is a very good example, have you heard about the cycle race that is happening around a circuit at Canary Wharf? Of course not, yet with the weather still set to be good, this will be a great event to go and watch.

Basically what they’re going to be doing is having a high speed race around a short circuit with various sprints in the race. As far as I know this is the first time it’s been held so no one knows exactly how it will go, but cycle sprinting is one of the most incredible sights to see in sport.

When cyclists are going at full speed you won’t believe the sound and speed. Also what’s good about this event is that the race starts at 7pm and is only on for an hour so it fits nicely into the evening.

If you want to experience the whole thing and maybe get some signatures of riders get there for 6pm as the riders will be warming up and doing signings from then. Click Tour Series at Canary Wharf for more info and then scroll down that page until you get to the Tour Series link.

If you’re not going to go to this event would you have gone if it was in central London?

Also if you subscribe to our blog you won’t miss unusual events like this.

Below are other posts worth reading:

1. The most unusual thing to do in London this week
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3. Things to do in London & things to do in London in April for free

What are you going to do this Saturday night?

Chances are whatever it is it won’t be as much fun or as good value as the comedy night at the Just the Tonic comedy club.

One of the problems with going out in London on a Saturday night is that entry prices for everything gets a bit silly.

What we like about Just the Tonic is that even though they increase their prices it’s still an unbelievably low £15 entry with near pub prices at the bar.

There are very, very few other comedy clubs in London that don’t try to make up for charging you a low entry, by then over-charging you on drinks when you get in.

Hats off to Just the Tonic for not going down that road.

As for the comedy this Saturday, when I tell you they have Rich Hall headlining, with three other comics you better book now. Once a comedian has been on telly, that it’s, he’s known and people feel safe going to see him.

At the time of doing this post the Just the Tonic website are saying there are only 50 odd tickets left. That says it all really. Book now and you’ll have a great Saturday night out.

To recap – Rich Hall will be at the Just the Tonic comedy club in London on Saturday. Doors open at 9.30pm and tickets cost £15. Click Just the Tonic to book tickets.

Below are other posts worth reading:

1. What was the last comedy club in London you went to? I bet it wasn’t Just the Tonic
2. Brighten up a gloomy Monday in London by booking a comedy night.
3. The London comedy club scene is more than just the Comedy Store

I should have let you know about this earlier so apologies for that, because now you need to get in on this quickly because tickets are going fast.

Lyric Hammersmith have started their monthly Sunday comedy nights and they have some impressive names headlining. This Sunday they have Ed Byrne with Andy Parsons and Dan Antopolski supporting.

I’ve never seen Dan before but if they have him on with the likes of Ed and Andy I’m sure he must be very good. The MC is Richard Herring of Hitler Moustache fame.

All in all this looks like an excellent night of comedy and with tickets at either £15 or £10, it’s very good value. The show starts at 8pm and here’s the comedy link to the Lyric Hammersmith site so that you can pick your seats.

You’ll also see that over the next couple of months they will also have Stewart Lee and get this Noel Fielding headlining. If I were you I’d book now before everyone knows.

Sorry again for the delay and it’s just like what we say, there is so much good stuff always on in London that it’s very easy to miss things. Subscribe to our blog so that you don’t miss out.

Andy Parsons will be there

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1. Comedy nights in London don’t get much better at this price
2. Brighten up a gloomy Monday in London by booking a comedy night.
3. A free comedy club night in London worth your attention

Great comedy in a great venue

In London we’re blessed with having so many things that we can choose to do in the evening. That we forget about the lesser known comedy clubs in London.

It doesn’t matter who you are, everyone likes to have a good laugh. Yet when was the last time you went to a comedy club. You’ve probably been to the cinema in the last couple of weeks, maybe the theatre, definitely to a restaurant. But for some reason you never get round to going to a comedy club.

But why is that? I know before I started doing this blog I hardly went to comedy clubs because one I thought the acts would be offensive. Two I thought they probably weren’t any good because I hadn’t heard of them. Then finally there was the cost.

If you fall into any of those categories, it’s time to wake up, things have changed a hell of a lot.

In London if an act is known to likely cause offense, the club will have advertised that fact well in advance so you know what to expect.

As for the standard of comics, in London it’s very high. Because there are so many good comics to choose from, London clubs only put on established acts and when they don’t, they advertise it as a newcomers night.

With regard to cost, that really isn’t an issue these days. For instance the comedy club I’m highlighting today, Just the Tonic, only charges £10 for a Friday night.

Now I’ve been to their shows and never been disappointed and unlike most clubs where you’re bum has gone numb after sitting on a hard seat. At Just the Tonic because the club is in a theatre, seating comfort isn’t an issue.

This week they have a particularly strong line up which is I why I wanted to let you know about this. Chances are you haven’t heard of these guys but take a look at their bios and you’ll see they’re all top draw, with a little bit of top shelf thrown in.

For a good comedy club in London try Just the Tonic. They hold comedy on Friday and Saturday nights. It’s £10 on Friday and £15 on Saturday. The club is just off Leicester Square at the Leicester Square theatre.

So what was the last comedy club in London that you went to and did it have a line up as good as this for just a tenner?

Thanks for your time.

Below are other posts worth reading:

1. The London comedy club scene is more than just the Comedy Store
2. Comedy nights in London don’t get much better at this price
3. A free comedy club night in London worth your attention