Oddities of London

The big Egg Hunt

2012-02-09T14:57:00.000Z

With Easter only around the corner, (ahem) it's time to hunt out the colourful eggs the easter bunny left behind. The big Egg Hunt will be running for 40 days and 40 nights all over London, so get out there and find all 200 eggs!

"Over 200 uniquely crafted eggs created by leading artists, designers, architects and jewellers will be displayed in central London. Join the hunt and journey through the city, picking up exciting clues along the way for a truly original and interactive Easter experience. Collect your map or download your app, gather your family and friends and get cracking, with a range of clues to suit even the savviest of Sherlocks. Many a special egg lays hidden and with online competitions bringing hunters together, are you up for the challenge?"

Running from 21st February for 40 days.

Run your own restaurant for a day...

2012-02-08T11:10:00.000Z

If you've ever fancied giving it a go, but haven't got around to it yet, Meatballs will help you host and run your own private restaurant for an evening or lunch. Details below:

"We at the Meatball Family are proud to launch our new Secret Supper Club. This is aimed at all you folks who have always fancied running your own restaurant but for various reasons have not got around to doing it yet.

The Meatballs Secret Supper Club allows you to host and run your own private restaurant for an evening or a lunch. You get to cook the food, act as maitre’d and invite your own guests. (minimum 16) We scurry around in the background making sure that it all works for you.

HOW IT WORKS

Before the big day….

Decide on a date (Saturday lunch or Sunday or Monday evenings or other times by arrangement)
Decide if you want to create your own meatball or simply run the kitchen using our menu
Contact us to organise the logistics, guest numbers, food, menu, drinks, staffing, table timings etc
Come in to the restaurant a few days before your party and perfect your recipe or menu with our chef

On the big day….

You come in at 12 noon or 9am for a lunch, get into your chef’s gear and cook up a storm in the safe hands of our kitchen team
When all is prepared you check your dining room, and welcome the first of your guests
If you are cooking, you then work with the chef to get the meal out as far as main courses or right through the meal if that is what you want to do
Join the guests for desserts and coffee

What it costs….

This, to a great extent depends on you. On booking you pay a £5 a head reservation non returnable fee for the number in the party. This covers the cost of the meatballs for your guests and the organisation of the party. How the rest is paid for is up to you.

You can either pay for the rest of the food consumed and let your guests pick up the drinks or invite your guests on the understanding that it is a paid for evening other than the meatballs or any variation inbetween.

What must be clear to everyone is the basis on which they are invited as the host is ultimately responsible for the bill.

We just aim to make it fun for everyone, email us on info@meatballs.co.uk to make a preliminary enquiry."

Selfridges - Stewed, shoed and tattooed

2012-02-07T10:21:00.001Z

Artist Aasen Stephenson will be working along side Jeffery West and Sailor Jerry's in Selfridges for a short stint in a new pop-up shop, Stewed, shoed and tattooed, starting today.

Aasen will be available to tattoo your new shoes with what ever design you choose, each one will be a unique design, plus you'll also receive a mini Sailor Jerry rum with every purchase.

He'll be in Selfridges from today til Tues 6th March in the mens shoe department.

Kinetica Art Fair

2012-02-06T13:15:00.000Z

"Kinetica Art Fair is a yearly event produced by Kinetica Museum. It brings together galleries, art organisations and curatorial groups from around the world who focus on universal concepts and evolutionary processes though the convergence of kinetic, electronic, robotic, sound, light, time-based and multi-disciplinary new media art, science and technology.

The fair provides an international platform for museums, collectors, curators and the public to view and buy artworks in this advancing field. Alongside the fair we run special events, screenings, tours, talks, workshops and performances."

Running 9-12 February 2012.

Ticket prices: £10 - £15 Day and Events tickets, £8 - £12 Fair only tickets.

The Other Cinema - Brief Encounter

2012-01-27T12:05:00.000Z

Today tickets go on sale for the first time for The Other Cinema, a new baby sister to Future Cinema and Secret Cinema.

'The Other Cinema is a global network of pop up cinemas looking to bring back a sense of community, passion and shared experience to cinema. The Other Cinema is looking for people wherever you are to become cinema partners and run your own Local Cinema. The Other Cinema will screen one beautiful and vital film each month in a growing network of screening partners across the United Kingdom and the world.'

The first screening will be of Brief Encounter, shown inside The Troxy. (Secret Cinema once used this venue to show Bugsy Malone). There will be live music, usherettes and performances all throughout the evening to compliment the film.

Tickets go on sale today at 1pm, runs from 14th - 18th February at The Troxy, tickets £20.

Belle Epoque - party like it's the 1920's

2012-01-25T17:22:00.001Z

Belle Epoque are celebrating Valentines Day this year with A Ball for Lovers and Haters.

Dress up in your finest vintage gear, wear a mask too if you like, and snag yourself a dapper gent or a glamourous courtesan for the evening. There will be aerialists and trapeze artists flying through the air as you wander around decadent surroundings, they are known for their expertise in absinthe, so you are sure to dance the evening away with the green fairy before the night is out.

Held at Village Underground on Saturday 11th February, 8pm - 2am. Acrobats start at 9pm. Tickets are £20.

The Devil and Mr. Punch

2012-01-24T14:04:00.000Z

The Devil and Mister Punch is showing at the Barbican next month, a tall of tragic comedy involving a pair of vaudevillians who are washed up and reduced to performing a puppet show that turns a little odd...

"Featuring a lush score of bass fiddle, gin parlour piano, metronome and bells, this dark but hilarious show is performed on a gloriously theatrical wood-panelled set. Inside this shadowy world live a steaming crocodile, a parade of piggies, the devil and many other extraordinary characters."

Performed by theatre group Improbable, 2nd - 25th February, tickets £16.

Bompas and Parr at the V&A

2012-01-23T10:48:00.000Z

Bompas and Parr are celebrating the launch of their new book 'Cocktails with Bompas & Parr' with a free event at the V&A, where they will be playing around with different flavours and chemicals to create something very different to your usual cocktail bar.

Each guest will receive a Hendrick's gin cocktail.

Thursday 26th January at 7pm inside the V&A Reading Rooms.

Booking is essential, and their events always sell out fast, so reserve a place by emailing readingroomsevents@vam.ac.uk as soon as you can!

Goodbye Mr Muffin - Southbank

2012-01-19T13:35:00.000Z

Goodbye Mr Muffin is running as part of the Death: Southbank Centre's Festival for the Living series for 2 days only.

"Using puppetry, animation and music, Goodbye Mr Muffin tells an uplifting story about the last days in the life of a much-loved guinea pig, Mr Muffin. It was awarded Best Children's Theatre Performance 2005/06 by the Association of Danish Theatre Societies."

Poor Mr Muffin.

From Friday 27th - Sat 28th Jan, tickets £8.

Hammer Horror in the Old Vic Tunnels

2012-01-18T11:05:00.002Z

To celebrate the release of Hammer's version of Woman In Black, The Old Vic Tunnels are holding a series of classic Hammer flicks such as Twins of Evil, Dracula Prince of Darkness and The Reptile.

The Vault Festival will have guests at some screenings, but they are keeping it hush-hush as a surprise...

There will also be a couple of new films that compliment the oldies too, like Let Me In and Wake Wood.

The Flicker Club have a bit of a tradition of reinterpreting film posters for their audience, the 17 posters will be created by SHIV, which can be viewed here over the coming weeks.

Starts from Friday 10th February, with 3pm and 7.30pm showings, tickets are £10 each.

www.thevaultfestival.com

Miniatures at The Wellcome Collection

2012-01-17T13:28:00.001Z

Wellcome Collection are holding a show and tell of tiny objects this Thursday.

The free talks include Steven Connor who will explore dolls' houses, edible architecture and flies. I'm currently reading his book Paraphernalia, which details the desire and relationships towards objects.

There will also be a talk by Isobel Heyman, a psychiatrist who "will explore the fine line between collecting and hoardind and examine the role of the miniature object in obsessive-compulsive disorder".

Also on the bill:

"Tap your toe to the amazing Hot Potato Syncopators ukulele band, featuring their amazing miniature trombone.

Be baffled by the work of nanotechnologists from London Centre for Nanotechnology.

Enter the bonsai sanctuary and contemplate the miniature landscapes of Kew Gardens' bonsai collection.

Is your fear and loathing of the invisible world of insects irrational? Come face-to-face with entomophobia; see dressed Mexican flea dolls insects performing acts of strength and agility, and marvel as fleas perform feats of derring-do at a flea circus, curated by Pestival.

This event is free, drop in any time. Talks are ticketed.

Ticketing for talks:

The first batch of tickets will be released on the day of the event in Wellcome Collection from 10.00. The second batch will be released at 18.00 on the night of the event. Tickets must be collected in person and cannot be reserved online or by phone."

Puppets at the Roundhouse

2012-01-08T19:31:00.005Z

The Roundhouse are having a short puppet theatre run of Invisible Thread's Plucked. The show promises to be a world of surreal adult puppetry, with live video-feed painting, object theatre, puppetry and animation.

"Work on ‘Plucked’ began in 2010 by researching the roles of older women in myth and fairy tale, flight and birds. Artistically we experimented and played with objects and live-feed video projections, live-painting to a spoken narrative, life-size puppets, object theatre and stylised movement. Scenically the intention was for the set to be very simple but suggestive of castles, towers and with some Heath Robinson type elements."

Plucked runs from 17th - 22nd Jan, tickets £14.50.

Coffins at Southbank

2012-01-06T11:46:00.000Z

Southbank are running a series of events dedicated to Death: Festival for the Living, which includes a range of talks, debates, performances and exhibitions of related objects, such as the collection of Ghana Coffins.

The coffins are mainly created by the PA Joe workshop in Ghana and Crazy Coffins in Nottingham. Ghana coffins are traditionally shaped into an object of desire, of the deceased in question, such as a beer bottle, a trainer, a bird, or in the case of a friend of mine, a moustache.

The exhibition runs from 20th - 29th Jan, entry is free.

Death: Festival for the Living runs from 27th - 29th Jan, you can buy day passes for £12 to access most events.

Forkbeard Fantasy Theatre of Animation

2012-01-05T13:09:00.000Z

Another event that's closing very soon is the wonderfully interactive exhibition of Forkbeard's animatronic stage props, puppets, peepshow boxes and much more besides.

The first thing you see as you walk into the room is a life-size puppet unicorn, pulling the strings will make the horse trot, nod and swish it's tail. Further inside are boxes all over the place, turn a crank and look through the hole to see a whole new world come alive before your very eyes; become Godzilla and smash up a city, or see what a horse does on it's day off.

The exhibition finishes on 8th Jan, located inside the Southbank Centre, in the Spirit Level part of the building. Open til 11pm. Free entry.

Bagpuss - Live

2012-01-05T12:51:00.000Z

Soho Theatre is currently showing a live performance of Bagpuss, an old TV animated classic originally created by Peter Firmin and Oliver Postgate.

Bagpuss will be accompanied by his old pals, the mice and their mice organ, Gabriel the toad, Madeleine the rag doll and Professor Yaffle the wooden woodpecker. It's geared towards children with storytelling and songs, but if you loved Bagpuss as a kid, I think you'd enjoy the puppetry just as much as the next little-un.

Running until Sunday 8th Jan, tickets from £11.50.

Grant Museum's a mess...

2012-01-04T13:03:00.000Z

I've blogged about the Grant Museum before, and if you haven't been yet, I urge you to go, the pickled specimens are wonderful and there are bones a plenty.

I'm writing a quick bit about it again as they are having a bit of a re-fit. Although they will be closed until 1pm Mon 9th Jan, from 9th - 13th Jan they will be open again, but hundreds of the specimens that are usually inside huge glass cabinets are, for the time being, laid out all over the floor. A great opportunity to get close up and personal.

They are completely closed on 16th Jan and will open as normal from 1pm 17th Jan.

Silent Movies

2012-01-04T11:27:00.000Z

It seems that The Artist, released this week, has stirred re-newed interest in silent movies. Many places are showing original silent movies with live music, some of which are listed below.

The Prince Charles Cinema are showing a range of flicks along with live piano mainly performed by John Sweeney. You can see The Cameraman which stars Buster Keaton, or go for an old well-known classic, Nosferatu (with music performed by Minima).

14th Dec - 29th Mar. Tickets from £7.

The BFI have silent Hitchcock films running as part of their London 2012 Festival, the BFI have restored The Pleasure Garden, (Hitchcock's directorial debut at the age of 25) The Lodger and Blackmail.

They will be screened at key London landmarks with new orchestral scores by Nitin Sawhney and Daniel Patrick Cohen.

The Genius of Hitchcock - Celebrating Cinema's Master of Suspense will be running from June - Oct 2012.

Barbican are showing two silent comedies, Charley Chase's Crazy Like a Fox, with music by John Sweeney, and a french comedy of errors An Italian Straw Hat, music performed by Andrew Youdell.

Tickets from £7.50, 19th Feb and 22nd Jan.

Meet Alice

2012-01-03T16:20:00.001Z

Meet Alice is a theatre piece created by One by One Theatre where you are the only audience, one by one you are led to a creaky old canal boat called Alice, where upon you will be given a key to use, and step inside.

Each performance will be tailor made for each individual person boarding Alice.

To book a place you must reserve by emailing Alice@meetalice.co.uk with your preferred date.

I emailed them for more information, and received the following:

You can Meet Alice 10 - 15 January from 8 - 10 pm

Please confirm what date you'd like to come. You will then be given a time-slot and await details of the location of our meeting nearer the time.

This is a Pay What You Can Event. Though we won't ask for your money, there will be a hat happy to receive any donations.

Spaghetti Western Orchestra

2012-01-03T12:19:00.000Z

Well, it's a new year, and it's been a while, and I think it's about time I got this blog up and running again..

Spaghetti Western Orchestra are a group of musicians that perform music from movies such as The Good, The Bad and The Ugly and Once Upon a Time in the West.

"The gang of comic musicians underscore these compositions with sound effects - blowing on bottles, crushing Cornflakes, and 'playing' coat hangers, apples, squeaky toys, rubber gloves, bicycle pumps, nail clippers and more - recreating the punch-ups, gunshots and jangling spurs that define the gun-slinging West."

Performing at Southbank's Queen Elizabeth Hall from Jan 6 - 11.

Tickets £20 - £30

Live Taxidermy and Tea

2011-10-17T16:49:00.003+01:00

This Halloween, The Robin Collective will be teaming up with Animal, Vegetable, Mineral for a totally unique and thoroughly informative tea party.

Join us to learn the ancient art of taxidermy and indulge in an incredible afternoon tea at the Tour de Force Theatre, Hackney. The workshop will be given by Amanda’s Autopsies’ eponymous proprietor, a leader in the field and crusader in the recent resurgence that taxidermy has seen – she has a modern and inventive take on the skill and never uses animals that were killed for the purpose.

Attendees will also be able to dive into the ultimate afternoon tea banquet, mixing modern experimental cooking techniques with time honoured English tradition – alongside Earl Grey and crumpets, visitors can expect to inhale Victoria sponge cake from balloons and sip cucumber sandwich punch.

What goes better with a cup of tea than a selection of delicate patisseries and a spot of animal artistry?

Gorge and gouge your way through this macabre adventure and join us in the taxidermy Renaissance now!

Tickets £25 (limited time offer of £20 to our subscribers)
Saturday, 29th October
Shows at 3:00pm and 7:00pm

Buy tickets from here.

Floating Cinema

2011-08-06T16:39:00.000+01:00

The Floating Cinema is around the East End area on the River Lee, Bow Back River, Regent's Canal and Hertford Union Canal. The newly painted-up boat has a screen on it, which has been developed for the CREATE11 summer festival.

It's a little confusing to work out what films are being shown and when, but pop along to their website and have a look at the events list. One thing that did catch my eye was the Fancy Dress Fantastic Mr Fox, which starts at 8 til 10.30pm, at Three Mils River Lee, E3 3DU.

They will be projecting the film onto the canal banks right next to the 3 Mills Studios, where the film was originally made. There will be prizes for the best dressed.

The Floating Cinema has various ongoing events until 18 September.

David Bowie walk

2011-08-05T16:36:00.000+01:00

learn about how David Bowie lived out his life around the South London area by attending a walk about town, followed by a club night at the O2 Academy in Islington.

The walk will start at Brixton, 4pm, then the Bowie Night at Feeling Gloomy club for 10.30pm. The club plays 'gloomy music', songs that have sad lyrics, but still make you get up and shake it about.

"Feeling Gloomy is hitting the streets, taking people to a few parts of London associated with the early life of David Bowie. Expect to learn a lot about the Bowie story (and hear a few of his tunes played live along the way!) starting with his birth in 1947 and finishing in 1974, when Bowie brought the glam-rock phase to a close."

Buy tickets here, or call 0844 477 2000.

Tickets are £4.50 each.

Tiger Lillies: Soho Songs

2011-07-22T13:23:00.001+01:00

The Tiger Lillies are back in London for a while at Soho Theatre with their strange mix of punk and cabaret with a huge dose of macabre story telling. This set will be based on frontman Martyn Jacque's life in Soho during the 80s, so expect plenty of sad, but very funny, stories of working girls, drug addicts and late night boozers.

Video here of one of their songs to get a rough idea of what to expect

The Show starts tonight at 9.30, tickets are £12.50 - £20 each.
Runs until Friday 5 August.

Vintage festival @ Southbank - 50% OFF OFFER!

2011-07-15T12:59:00.000+01:00

I posted about this event a while ago, get tickets cheap!

Friday or Sunday Pass + Revue Show for just £30 (reduced from £75). Or book a Friday or Sunday pass without the evening Vintage Revue for just £20 (reduced from £60)!

Run Riot Offer: Vintage at Southbank Centre

29th - 31st July at Southbank Centre

Vintage is a three-day party, a big dressing-up box and a collector's dream, celebrating the 1920s to the 1980s. As part of the weekend, for the first time, all six levels of Royal Festival Hall are transformed into a multi-venue playground celebrating vintage styles in music, fashion, food and culture - with eight Vintage nightclubs offering seven decades of British cool. Ticket holders will enjoy over 13 hours of music, fashion, film, art, design, and dance each day.

Curated by style guru Wayne Hemingway and his wife Gerardine, the festival showcases 150 DJs and exclusive catwalk shows with Jo Wood and Pearl and Daisy Lowe inside Royal Festival Hall. Indulge in a range of vintage-inspired cocktails and food, with free hair and make-up and dance sessions available to all ticket holders.

Each evening features a Vintage Revue focusing on either electronic, soul or British hits, with artists including legend Percy Sledge (pictured), Booker T and Heaven 17 plus guests Norman Jay, Andrew Weatherall, Jocelyn Brown and 10CC.

Run Riot Offer: More than 50% off!

This fantastic offer gives you ticketed access to Royal Festival Hall on Friday 29 July or Sunday 31 July for the Vintage extravaganza. To join us at London's best-dressed party and experience the stunning evening Vintage Revues, book a Friday or Sunday Pass + Revue Show for just £30 (reduced from £75). Or book a Friday or Sunday pass without the evening Vintage Revue for just £20 (reduced from £60)! Call 0844 847 9910 or visit Southbank Centre's Ticket Office in person and quote 'Run Riot' when booking to claim your tickets.

For the full line-up visit vintageatsouthbankcentre.co.uk

Disclaimer

•Valid for Vintage at Southbank Centre on Friday 29 July or Sunday 31 July only (12 noon - 1am) • Subject to availability • Southbank Centre has the right to withdraw this offer at any time

Amanda Palmer @ The British Library

2011-07-11T15:37:00.003+01:00

Amanda Palmer will be playing a very small gig at the British Library on September 5th, it only holds up to 200 people, so tickets will sell out fast! She will be playing ukulele acoustic.

Buy tickets here for 5th September, starts at 6.30.

Bompas & Parr - The Truvia Voyage of discovery

2011-07-07T12:31:00.000+01:00

Quick one as tickets are selling fast!

Bompas and Parr have an arrangement with Selfridges to put on a big show, details below:

"Truvia® Voyage of Discovery - An emerald green boating lake, a crystal island with thousands of stevia plants, a fleet of rowing boats and a gushing waterfall – six storeys above London’s busiest shopping street – in celebration of the Truvia® sweetener brand arriving in the UK.

If you have a professional connection with the food industry (for example chef, restaurateur, nutrition consultation, food technology/science, retail food management, procurement, and formulation, food industry media, food related trade association, or similar) please click here to book your ticket.

This event is for over 18s only. Please arrive promptly for your selected ticket time. The event experience lasts approximately one hour."

The King's Head - Theatre Pub

2011-07-06T13:24:00.000+01:00

The King's Head hold regular theatre and opera shows within the pub, since 1970. Recorded as the first pub theatre founded in England since the days of Shakespeare, so to go see a show there would be like stepping back in time.

The venue is very small compared to most theatres,

but it's the atmosphere that counts:

"The building itself has been around since the mid 1800s and the backroom where the theatre is located was previously a boxing ring and a pool hall. Various elements of the theatre, including the red velvet curtains and theatre lamps have been recycled from other famous venues including the Theatre Royal Haymarket, Lyric Shaftesbury and Scala Theatre."

Plenty more shows coming up, and they play more than one production in a week, or over a season, so if you miss one production, you can probably catch it a little way down the line at a later date.

Tickets around £10 each. 115 Upper St, Islington, Greater London N1 1, UK

Frightfest 2011

2011-07-02T12:12:00.000+01:00

Frightfest is back on for another year at the Empire cinema with 2 screens again, the main and the discovery. The main screen holds all the major screenings, while the discovery shows low budget, or straight to video style movies.

There will be plenty of movies to choose from starting from Thursday 25th August, to Monday 29th August. Each day will show on average 7 films back to back. If you can deal with 5 days worth of intense movie watching, you can pick up a weekend pass for £160. Or if you want day tickets, they are £25-£48, depending on what day you choose. Single ticket prices are £11 each.

It's always a good atmosphere, with cheers and applause for a good death scene, and they quite often have the actors and directors in for a bit of a Q&A after some movies. Sometimes you'll see movies a year before they are released in general cinemas, and you'll have the chance to see a few flicks on the big screen that would have otherwise gone straight to video.

Tickets on sale now, from Empire Cinema Leicester Square.

Takashi Murakami at the Gagosian Gallery

2011-06-30T10:19:00.000+01:00

Takashi Murakami, a contemporary Japanese artist who works with a variety of mixed media will be showing some of his work at the Gagosian Gallery for the next month.

Murakami's work is usually based on manga-style mass media and pop culture, which he turns into 30 foot sculptures or "superflat" paintings.

"Murakami's style, called Superflat, is characterized by flat planes of color and graphic images involving a character style derived from anime and manga. Superflat is an artistic style that comments on otaku lifestyle and subculture, as well as consumerism and sexual fetishism."

The exhibition will be on from June 27 - August 5, 2011 at Gagosian gallery,

6 - 24 Britannia Street. Open Tues - Sat 10am - 6pm.

Lullaby Duckie Show - All night theatre lulls you to sleep

2011-06-21T21:49:00.000+01:00

This theatrical piece will take place over an entire night, you'll be treated to storytelling, soothing visuals and pretty little lullabies as you lay in one of your booked beds. When booking you will need to state what size; single, double or triple bed, and remember to bring your PJs and toothbrush.

As you watch the night unfold in the Pit of the Barbican (which has been transformed into a bedtime haven) you will nice and snug with bed side lamps, curtains for privacy and even some bed-time cocoa.

To finish off the event, which would be the coming of the morning, you will be served breakfast before departing at around 9am.

Lullaby at Barbican starts at 10.30pm, Friday 24th June - Sunday 24th July 2011. The event ends at around 9am the following day. Tickets cost £42.00, which includes breakfast. Please note that this event is for ages 16+.

Roof Top Film Club

2011-06-19T15:25:00.000+01:00

I know the weather hasn't been great lately, but this event does run up until September 30th, so it's got to get a little better at some point, right?

If you fancy taking your chances with outdoor filming, then have a go at The Queen of Hoxton pub's Roof Top Film club, where they will be showing mostly mainstream movies, 5 days a week.

"there's no need to worry about talking because everyone is issued with a pair of wireless headphones. While you're watching, exploit the appetising menu. And yes, you can smoke if you wish."

Pub located at Queen of Hoxton, 1-5 Curtain Rd, EC2A 3JX. View the weekly program here. Rooftop Film Club only seats 100 people, so book early to avoid disappointment. Tickets are £9 plus booking fee.

Art Car Boot Fair

2011-06-16T13:12:00.001+01:00

If you fancy a bargain, and a piece of art from the likes of Damien Hirst, Polly Morgan or Tracey Emin, then get down the the Art Car Boot Fair this Sunday.

There will also be plenty of entertainment

on the go while you have a nosey around;

"Amazingly frivolous and fantastic entertainments. A band on a car! Fashion icon Pam Hogg! The fabulous Sarah Stockbridge as a human snowstorm!! Exclusive! Big Fat Gypsy Fortune Teller! Live magazine production from a car boot with Five Dials! Draw your own book cover with Penguin Classics! Get your portrait done Star Trek style with Jessica Voorsanger! All this and much much more!"

Entry fee is £3, food and drink available. Entrance corner of Brick Lane and Buxton Street, 12-6pm. Pre-selling entry from 11am to an orderly queue.

Accomplice: London: Immersive theatre

2011-06-13T11:19:00.001+01:00

The Accomplice is run by The Chocolate Factory, although it will not be playing inside the theatre. Instead, you have to trek around the South Bank on a mission, you'll find clues and cast members dotted around in pubs, shops and on a few street corners.

You'll be part of a small group, the streets become the stage,

and you are part of the act.

"Using the sprawling backdrop of the city as its stage, utilizing elements of improv theatre and scavenger hunt, Accomplice will make you laugh, think, and experience the city in a whole new way."

There are only a few tickets left, so get in quick to join the race to find out whodunit. Saturdays and Sundays only. Begins every 30 mins 12pm-4pm. (Except 2pm) Last approx 2.5-3hrs. Tickets £29.50.

Hunterian Museum - The Royal College of Surgeons

2011-06-09T15:21:00.000+01:00

The Hunterian Museum is housed inside The Royal College of Surgeons. It displays a vast collection of preserved specimens created by 18th Century surgeon John Hunter.

He was mainly self-taught, but was at the forefront of scientific approach to anatomy. There are rumours that he used cadavers taken by body snatchers so he could develop his skills, but of course such practice was illegal, so nothing is documented to say otherwise.

In this museum you'll find all sorts, from animals and insects, to diseased organs and parts of the human body in jars. The museum quite often do lectures on certain subjects, so it's worth joining their newsletter for future events.

Opening hours are Tues - Sat, 10am - 5pm.

The Hunterian Museum is located inside The Royal College of Surgeons of England, 35-43 Lincoln's Inn Fields, London, WC2A 3PE

Somerset House Outdoor screenings

2011-06-08T09:55:00.000+01:00

This year Somerset House, from 27th July - 7 August, are showing some more all time classics on the big screen under the pale moonlight.

Bring your own picnic, make sure you have plenty of cushions and blankets (you'll be sitting on the concrete flooring in the middle of the Fountain Court) and bring something warm for when the sun goes down.

Some of the films this year include:

THE SPY WHO LOVED ME - Thursday 28 July

DIE HARD / ATTACK THE BLOCK - Saturday 30 July

CHINATOWN - Tuesday 2 August

SCOTT PILGRIM VS THE WORLD - Thursday 4 August

GREMLINS / TROLL HUNTER / TREMORS - Saturday 6 August

Tickets go on sale tomorrow.

All screenings except Double Bills, Triple Bills and Opening Night:

£14.50 + booking fee. Double Bills, Triple Bills and the Opening Night :

£18.00 + booking fee.

Doors open 18.30, DJs from 19.30 and films start at 21.15

The Last Tuesday Society curiosity Shop

2011-06-06T11:22:00.000+01:00

The Last Tuesday Society Shop is fast becoming a well know curiosity shop in the east end of London, but just in case you are one of the few that missed the memo, here's a little bit about it.

It is run by Viktor Wynd, a collector of the strange and unusual. The shop looks quite small from the outside, but there is a fairly large basement area that has a treasure trove of wonders galore. There is a fee to get down there, it's treated as a semi-musuem, but most of the items on display are for sale.

You'll find specimens in jars, medical displays, victorian Erotica, taxidermy, voodoo and plenty more. Most pieces are overpriced, but if you want an afternoon out, it's a great place to take an out-of-town friend for something a bit different.

11 Mare Street, E8 4RP. Open Wed - Sun 12 - 7pm.

The Edible Gingerbread House

2011-06-02T11:33:00.004+01:00

Hungry? Good, because from the 3rd June at the Brunswick Shopping Centre, there will be a full sized ginger bread house.

"Featuring an edible gingerbread house featuring meringue clouds, a cupcake lawn, and a pond filled with sweets. Inside, there will be shelves made from Bourbon biscuits, pictures on the wall made from sweets and giant edible gingerbread men."

You can see a video of the house coming together here.

There will also be activities for the kids, and all funds are going to Great Ormond Street Hospital Charity.

From 3rd - 5th June, 11am - 5pm.

£2 suggested donation / £2 for gingerbread masterclasses.

Pop Up Screens - Anchor Man, Big Lebowski, Ghostbusters

2011-05-26T13:18:00.001+01:00

Got nothing on this bank holiday weekend? Why not re-visit some cult classics and pop along to the Pop Up Screens at Ravenscourt Park. Each film is to be shown on a large screen outside in the park, where you can also have a few beers and eat a good range of Tucker's Exotic burgers (Buffalo, Ostrich, Springbok, Wild Boar or Wildebeest) while you watch your chosen movie.

Doors open at 7pm every night, tickets are £7 each or £18 for a season ticket.

Films are as follows, Friday 27th: Anchorman, Saturday 28th: The Big Lebowski, Sunday 29th: Ghostbusters.

Tatty Devine - Jewellery Shop

2011-05-25T13:42:00.000+01:00

If you are after something a little different to the usual boring gold or silver necklace, then have a wander down to one of Tatty Devine's colourful little shops. There is one situated on Brick lane,

and the other more central in Covent Garden.

Tatty Devine is run independently by two ladies, Harriet Vine and Rosie Wolfenden, both are the original creators of all their shop wares. Most of the pieces are cut acrylic silhouette, but there is also the choice of leather, wood, veneer and enamel if that's more your thing.

They also can make bespoke pieces, there is always the option of having your name on a necklace (or your favourite band, boy, girl etc). It isn't just for girls, there is also a nice selection for the modern chap too.

Perfect for gifts, but it'll be hard not to buy something for yourself too. You can also purchase jewellery from their website too if you can't spare a lunch time to have a good look around their shop.

Grant Museum - New location

2011-05-23T14:05:00.001+01:00

A couple of months ago the Grant Museum moved to a new area within the UCL, which was a bit of a worry for me, as the original room was lovingly overcrowded with specimens, and the old cabinets looked timeless, it was obvious that nothing had changed in over 100 years.

But, even though I hate change when it comes to museums, they have done quite well. The new area houses all the original specimens still, only now you can actually see them all clearly, as before the bottles and bones overlapped each other within the cabinets, so it was difficult to see anything housed at the back.

"The Grant Museum is the only remaining university zoological museum in London. It houses around 67,000 specimens, covering the whole Animal Kingdom. Founded in 1828 as a teaching collection, the Museum is packed full of skeletons, mounted animals and specimens preserved in fluid. Many of the species are now endangered or extinct including the Tasmanian Tiger or Thylacine, the Quagga, and the Dodo."

The Grant Museum's new home is now in the Rockefeller Building, and public opening hours are Mon - Fri, 1-5pm.

Free Tomato Plants - Trafalgar Square

2011-05-19T13:07:00.002+01:00

Trafalgar Square will be renamed for one day only tomorrow as The Tomato Square. B&Q will be hosting the event, where they will be giving away 100,000 tomato plants.

There will be helpers dressed as giant tomatoes, plus hiding in one of the plants will be a ticket for the Chelsea Flower Show.

The plants will be unloaded from the lorries at 6.30am, so make sure you get there early to see it at it's full potential. (100,000 plants in Trafalgar Square would make a very colourful scene).

Les Trois Garcons - Restaurant

2011-05-18T13:43:00.000+01:00

Les Trois Garcons is a beautiful restaurant situated in East London's Shoreditch area. It used to be a victorian pub, and still has much of the trimmings. You can still see the old sanded glass within the walls, and the bar still sits at the back of the venue.

The whole place is full to the brim with decoration, a mish-mash of chandeliers of all colours, shapes and sizes, handbags hang from the ceiling all over the place, taxidermy can be seen on the walls, and when you first walk in a bull dog dressed in a tiara with giant butterfly wings greets you with a grumpy face. (hardly surprising really!)

The food is lovely, although it is at the higher end of the price spectrum, you get plenty for your money, everything is cooked and presented perfectly. I inadvertently ate 5 cakes while I was there as part of my 3 course meal, which was the ultimate highlight to my visit.

Menu available here, Prices are £40.50 for 2 courses, £47 for 3, there is also the taster menu at £63.50 (but the whole table must order this).

Elemental - Antique Furniture

2011-05-17T22:14:00.000+01:00

Ever fancied owning a book case that used to be a Operating Theatre's storage cabinet? Then look no further than Elemental. Housed in Spitalfields, they collect old pieces of furniture from factories, print rooms, hospitals, schools and dentists, then tidy them up to sell as household decoration.

The shop itself is great to have a look around in, even if you're not interesting in making a purchase, there are some really lovely vintage pieces that look like they belong in a museum.

Prices vary depending on what you are after, there are also wall decorations, lights, chairs etc to add to the mix.

The Bridge Cafe - Shoreditch

2011-05-16T11:26:00.000+01:00

I'm usually quite intimidated by coffee houses as I don't really know my coffee that well, so generally I order a Latte, to keep it safe. But here, in The Bridge Cafe, the staff are incredibly friendly and the atmosphere so laid back, you can sit at the bar downstairs and have a chat with the bar staff. They will custom make anything for you, and seem to like a bit of a challenge.

The whole place looks like it's been there for 100 years, where in actual fact it only opened beginning of last year. The bar downstairs has a row of stalls, and the place is decorated within an inch of it's life, they love boxing, so have a few vintage mementos dotted around among the old phones, clocks, prints, etc.

If you go upstairs, it is full to the brim with gold hilted sofas and armchairs, fabric decorates the ceilings and walls, and gold framed pictures hang on every wall space. It's all dimly lit by small lamps dotted around, and it's so chilled, people talk among themselves quietly to not ruin the atmosphere.

Prices are average for a good cup of java, and the place is open til late (they opened the door for us at 1.30am once, as we were pining at the door to let us in for one coffee) they also serve alcohol, cakes and snacks.

Photos by Cherie City

Dennis Severs' House

2011-05-16T11:23:00.002+01:00

If you have ever fancied yourself in a still life painting, then this is the place. The whole house is a time capsule created by artist Dennis Severs, there are ten themed rooms which portray different historical periods, and everything inside has been left as if the occupants (the fictitious Jervis family) have just up and left, food has been left on the table and beds are unmade.

Led through the rooms that really do look like a still life painting, you are asked to play an imagination game of what you think may have happened to the family, where did they go? Are they hiding?

Your imagination will help bring the place to life.

Booking needed, with various dates available, check the website for details.

Beautiful images found here,

where there are plenty more to look at.

Bunker PLC

2011-05-10T15:48:00.001+01:00

A quick one as tickets are selling fast, Bunker PLC takes place in an abandoned World War 2 bunker:

"Presented with Japanese grindhouse personality, but maintaining a 1930s horror movie charm, Bunker PLC is best described as a surreal 60-minutes of hands-on role-playing, where your role is to experience what a post-apocalyptic research facility is like when its contained within a damp, subterranean concrete fortress."

You'll be seeing prosthetic corpses being opened up, unsettling futuristic actors will accompany you throughout the event, and you'll be given protective overalls to wear.

Event runs from now til Sun 15 May. Tickets £7 each.

The Vintage Festival at Southbank Centre

2011-05-10T10:28:00.001+01:00

The Vintage Festival is back for another year, it will be celebrating Music, Fashion, Film, Art and Design, have make-overs, a dressing up box, and have a vintage market to dot around in.

The festival sections itself off in decades from 1920s to the 1980s, so whatever era you are into, it should have it covered. Running over 3 days, the Royal Festival Hall will be set dressed over its 6 floors to make it a multi-venue playground. Here they will house live performers, catwalk shows, food and cocktails and vintage retailers.

Southbank Centre will also be hosting a huge outdoor vintage marketplace which will have tea-parties, creative workshops, themed bars and a funfair.

To gain access to the Royal Festival Hall, you'll have to buy a pass for Fri, Sat or Sun at £60, but the outdoor market will have free access, with paying events. Runs from 29th - 31st July 2011

Hendrick's Horseless Carriage of Curiosities

2011-05-09T13:45:00.001+01:00

If you're looking to get outside of London for a while, why not go to Brighton for the Brighton Festival Fringe. There will be art, theatre, music and events a plenty to keep you busy from 7 - 30 May.

The highlight would be to venture onto the Hendrick's Horseless Carriage of Curiosities, where for £100 a head, you can dine and be entertained by the very dandy crew whilst surrounded by beautiful decorations and curiosities. If that is a tad steep for you, don't worry, they are also running a few smaller events throughout the festival period that would be worth taking part in.

The Carriage will be at the festival from 20th to 30th May.

The Pale Blue Door

2011-05-06T13:10:00.000+01:00

The Pale Blue Door started out at an out-of-work project by set designer

Tony Hornecker. He created a dining experience at a secret location in the East End by making an interactive restaurant that was made out of old materials, furniture and anything else he could get his hands on.

The entertainment consisted of drag acts, who serve you at your table by crawling through a tiny door, or come up through a hatch, (which you get to do too, the house has been made so you can play and explore).

They are holding a new event, A Night of Murder, Mystery & Intrigue, and it runs from May 19th - 5th June. It's £35 for 3 courses, coffee and a half bottle of wine, plus entertainment and dancing til late. You can view the menu here. Booking only available via email: thepalebluedoor@gmail.com

Chap Olympiad - The Dandy Gentleman's game

2011-05-05T09:59:00.001+01:00

The Chap Olympiad is back for another bout of dandy fun and games, don your braces, slick back that hair, straighten up that tash, and join in themed sporting events at a Georgian Square in Central London.

There will be plenty of live music, sideshows and refreshments, and there will be games such as The Bounders Discipline, where chaps approach a lady, behave like cads and the one who is slapped hardest around the face wins. You can also take place in the 3-trousered limbo, run to a limbo and try to get under it. Points are deducted for underwear revelation.

If you're not sure what to wear, get yourself a copy of The Chap, it holds all the information you need to know how to be the perfect chap.

The 2011 Chap Olympiad is taking place on Saturday 16th July 2011. Tickets are on sale now, and they always sell out fast, so get in there quick!

Terracotta Far East Film Festival

2011-05-04T10:00:00.000+01:00

It's hard to find Far Eastern films anymore, but the Terracotta Far East film festival has come to save the day, with plenty of UK premieres to keep you busy for a few days.

The festival starts in the Prince Charles Cinema with The Lost Bladesman, a Mandarin flick, it seems like a typical dynasty style movie, but if you are after something a little bit silly instead, then give Helldriver a go;

"An alien-spawned, mysterious mist blankets the northern half of Japan, transforming those who inhale it into ravenous, flesh-eating zombies"

Yakuza Weapon also seems like a good pick for those into blood and gore:

"A wild combination of hard-boiled gangster action, manga-style comedy and splattering special effects"

The films run from Thurs 5th may, to Sun 8th May 2011, ticket prices are £8.50 for non Prince Charles Cinema members.

Sexual Nature - Natural History Museum

2011-05-03T13:31:00.001+01:00

I know this isn't a big London secret, but it does involve unusual taxidermy,

which I love, so bare with me while I introduce you to Natural History Museum's Sexual Nature.

The general idea is that they show you nature's most bizarre and intimate secrets of the animal world, but the best part is they have some taxidermy that has been hiding in the Natural History's vaults for some time back out on display. The taxidermy mainly involves animals in mid-copulation, but there is also Guy the gorilla, loved and remembered as the most popular animal in London Zoo.

Go have a visit and maybe learn some sexual facts and figures, I'm sure it'll come in handy for a pub quiz or two. Running now until 2 October 2011, open 10am - 5.30pm Mon - Sun, tickets; Adult £8, Children and concession £4.

Little London Fields Festival - June 2011

2011-05-02T16:20:00.002+01:00

The Little London Fields Festival will be running over 2 days. It will be showcasing a wide variety of independent bands ranging from rockabilly to pop, they'll also have an art & craft market which will have over 70 crafters, designers and artists, this section will include installations, talks and workshops.

You can enjoy live performances from local poets, artists and creative types at the custom built Art House. If you get hungry, there will be around 20 local food traders to take your pick from, and a chance to sample a selection of ales and cocktails too.

The Little London Fields Festival takes place at London Fields Park, on June 4th - 5th. Entry and events are free.

Through a Glass Darkly - Magic at the Old Operating Theatre

2011-05-01T14:43:00.001+01:00

The Old Operating theatre is holding a night of victorian-inspired magic, mind-reading and Séances. The event Through a Glass Darkly has been put together to showcase how Victorian fraudulent mediums tricked their customers into believing they were talking to their dead relatives and loved ones.

There will be demonstrations of illusions, mentalism and conjuring throughout the evening on 28th May, starting at 7pm inside the Operating Theatre.

(A place already streaming with atmosphere as countless amount

of people would have died on the operating table)

Tickets are £15, booking advised as there are limited spaces.

Soho's Secret Tearooms

2011-04-30T15:39:00.003+01:00

Hidden away above The Coach & Horses pub, is Soho's Secret Tea Room, which takes place every tea time in the Private Eye Dining Room. All you have to is ask to be taken upstairs and you'll be lead to this little secret haven, accessible via a staircase behind the bar.

They have homemade cakes, 16 different teas to choose from, and you can enjoy your beverages whist listening to 40's swing and jazz played on a gramophone.

The Private Eye Dining Room is open Monday to Sunday, 12-8pm. Keep up to date with events and shows on their facebook page.

Nancy Fouts at The Pertwee, Anderson and Gold Gallery

2011-04-28T11:27:00.000+01:00

Nancy Fouts' found objects and taxidermy based artwork is currently showing at the Pertwee, Anderson and Gold gallery, (co-founded by actor Sean Pertwee). She likes to use two unrelated objects to make something entertaining and enjoyable for the viewer.

To promote the show's opening, the gallery drove a coffin (from the show)

in a hearse around London as a publicity stunt.

The gallery will be showcasing Nancy's exhibition 'Un-think' until 12th May.

East End Film Festival - Movie MayDay

2011-04-27T10:22:00.002+01:00

Tonight is the opening night of The East End Film Festival, but they will also be running a free day of cinema, live music, cinema trailers, virtual tours, filmmaking competitions, quizzes and talks all over the East End area on 2nd May, 12pm - 8pm, at 88 different venues.

"Movie MayDay forms the closing day of the East End Film Festival, a festival offering a jam-packed, week-long celebration of cinema.

It is a FREE event. You don’t need tickets, so just head along to our information point at the Vibe Bar on Monday the 2nd of May.

Disclaimer: Please assume, unless otherwise stated in the programme, that all films are certified 18."

You can pick up a map of the events at the Vibe Bar (located at the Truman Brewery, 91 Brick Lane) there will be other bits and pieces to explore and get involved in here before you head out to the movies, such as swapping DVDs, book shopping, and the start of a Gorilla Film Magazine Treasure Hunt.

Steamboat Bordello

2011-04-26T12:25:00.001+01:00

I thought I'd better get this one up today rather than tomorrow as it's almost upon us, and if you wanted to go, best buy tickets now as there is limited availability.

Steamboat Bordello will be setting off this Sunday (1st May) aboard the Dixie Queen paddle Steamer at 5pm, they will be travelling along the Lower Thames until 10pm. You can buy cruising class tickets at £40, or 1st Class VIP dining tickets at £70.

"Step on board this Mississppi-style paddle steamer for a vintage night of 'rogues, riverboat gamblers, good time girls, snake oil salesmen, fallen southern belles, confederate rifles, yankee doodle dandies... recreating the kinds of floating palaces you'd see going down the Miss' from New Orleans to St Louis. Tonight they're going for a 'Mad Hatter's Boat Party' theme so think Alice in Wonderland. "

Crossness Pumping station

2011-04-26T10:43:00.001+01:00

Throughout 2011, Crossness Pumping Station

will be open for a few selected days only. These dates are:

March 27th, May 1st, June 26th, 18th Sept, and 23rd Oct.

Every event is £5 entry fee, no reservation required, expect for 18th September, which is part of the Open House London events, and it will be free. Admission between 10.30am until 4pm.

"Crossness Pumping Station was a sewage pumping station opened in 1865 as part of the redevelopment of the London sewers. It is located beside the Thames at Crossness, in South East London.

What is so interesting about Crossness is the grand scale and detail of the design. Inside, the cast iron work is very ornate and the building's Romanesque style evokes something much grander than a sewage works."

Lots more photos and a detailed description of Crossness here.

Udderbelly, drinking and entertainment

2011-04-25T12:26:00.002+01:00

If you want to enjoy the sun with a cool beer, then look no further than Udderbelly's very own garden at the Southbank Centre. It's impossible to miss as it's right next to the giant upside purple cow.

You can enter the beer garden for free, there is plenty of bench seating space and a large bar sponsored by Magners, prices are actually better then most bars/pubs around that area. The place is covered in fake grass, and decorated with purple cows and funky flowers.

They are open now for food and drink, and the shows run from the 28th April. There will be plenty to choose from, such as comedy, music, cabaret and theatre, and the tickets are reasonably priced.

Burlesque and life drawing - Dr Sketchy's UK

2011-04-24T12:52:00.000+01:00

Ever fancied giving life drawing a go, but just didn't feel confident enough in your drawing abilities to pull it off? Well, it doesn't matter at Dr Sketchy's, non-artists are encouraged to attend and give it a go, the best part is, you get to draw a lovely burlesque lady in her finest show costumes.

The events began in Brooklyn in 2005, Molly Crabapple is the founder (and illustrator). Then in 2007 they opened a London version, plus 80 more Dr Sketchy's in other cities around the world.

The event usually consists of several drawing challenges, such as drawing the model in 2 minutes, incorporating a monkey into your image, or not looking at your paper as you draw. It's all very silly and fun, there are hosts who will keep you laughing, and the music is retro goodness spun by Graham Russell, who always posts up his set lists after the show if you needed to know what that random song was called.

They mainly use burlesque ladies, but sometimes there may be male models, or even transvestites for your viewing pleasure.

Most events take place in relevant pubs such as The Queen's Head, men and women welcome, booking essential as tickets for events sell out fast.

London Burlesque Week - April 26-30 2011

2011-04-22T14:16:00.002+01:00

A friend of mine, Tabitha Taboo,
will be performing at The London Burlesque week,
there will be plenty of other lovely ladies performing for the next few days too.

"With a packed schedule of highprofile events, celebrity following and a loyal and rapidly expanding fan base, Chaz Royal's London Burlesque Week showcases the most eclectic and diverse acts in burlesque - pushing the boundaries of the art of the strip and the tease to the max and delivering the electric atmosphere of an unbeatable night out."

We'll be watching Tabitha Taboo along with a bunch of other newcomers on
Friday 29 April at the London Newcomers Contest 2011
at Bush Hall, Shepherd's Bush.

There are plenty of other events to go to, if male striping takes your fancy, then try the All Male Revue "starring the Best in Male Burlesque Strip Tease sprinkled with Variety & Neo Cabaret, at Soho's legendary Madame Jojo's". Or there's the full week pass for all events, so you don't miss a thing.

The Experimental Cocktail Club

2011-04-22T11:18:00.000+01:00

After dinner last night, we walked into China Town and found a door that had marks and scratches all over it, and no signs to indicate what was behind it. The marks on the door are there so you know you've found the right one I assume, as shown on the one-page website of The Experimental Cocktail Club.

We hadn't made reservations, so our friend who took us had a word with the woman at the door. If you try getting in this way rather than reserving, expect a bit of umming and erring, a judgemental look up and down, and a "well, we can't guarantee seats at a table as you haven't reserved, but, well, ok you can come in" style treatment. We tottered up the stairs, handed in our bags and coats (free of charge) into a cloak room, and then onto the second floor of the club, as the first floor was a little larger, but more crowded.

The place was lavish. From the moment you set eyes on the door, to the 1920s decor, it felt very much like a speakeasy. The music was old style swing and jazz, low enough so you can hear each other talk rather than shout. We reached the bar (which had an old piano embedded in it) and ordered our cocktails. Cocktails here are roughly £10-£11 each, but they are the best cocktails I have ever tasted. The barman mixed up our orders with care, it took a long time, but worth the wait. The first one went down like a fire in the throat, (I love sensation foods and drinks) the second was a smooth chai latte style affair. We all swapped drinks so we could try a few different flavours, and there was not a bad one in the batch.

After a few minutes standing at the bar, a very dapper chap said that we could go sit at the now-empty table until the next reservation turned up. We stayed for a while and didn't get shifted out, so it's probably just luck if you get a table without a reservation.

It's a shame I didn't visit the bathroom, as teapots have been transformed into lights. Well, I'll be going back at some point, it's the perfect place to get away from the usual loud business man type clubs and bars, and into somewhere with class, atmosphere and good drinks.

The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec

2011-04-21T12:38:00.003+01:00

Luc besson's (Leon, Fifth Element) The Extraordinary Adventures of Adèle Blanc-Sec is playing in selected cinemas next week for a short run (from Friday 22nd). It looks like a crazy mix of antics involving monsters, would-be suitors, cops, and other distractions. Steampunk style Indiana Jones perhaps?

I'll be seeing it at the Odeon in Covent Garden, but Curzon will also be running it.

The Vaudevillains, by Les Enfants Terribles

2011-04-21T12:21:00.004+01:00

For the past 3 years I've made sure that I have booked tickets for any show that Les Enfants Terribles Theatre Company have done. For the previous two shows, (The Terrible Infants and Ernest and The Pale Moon) they performed at the Udder belly.

I checked the bill this year, and to my horror, they were not there. So frantically I scoured the web until I found their website and Facebook page, and was delighted to see that they were showing The Vaudevillains!

"A macabre musical of murder and music hall, When Charlie, the owner of the Empire is found dead, each of the other acts on the music hall’s bill is under the glare of suspicion. In a musical number explaining the possible motivation of each, we are treated to the tales of conjoined (s)triplets The Ceberus Sisters; the multiple murderous personalities of Albert Frog and Mr Punchy; and the silent story of mime artist Gaston Gasteau, amongst others."

it's very funny and macabre, the story of the (s)triplets was very entertaining, the mime Gaston carried the most laughs, and Albert Frog with his puppet Mr Punchy was a horror to behold.

The show is playing at Charing Cross' The New Players Theatre. until 14th May.

Tickets are a bargain as all seats are £21.

Added: 11% off ticket price with WhatonStage.

Robin Collective's The Working Gentleman's Comedy Club

2011-04-21T11:45:00.000+01:00

I've been watching The Robin Collective for a while now, and although I was quite interested in the Bee Hive event they produced last month, I just didn't feel the drive to go visit (it was difficult to work out times they would be open, and it seemed that most of the events would be taking place during working hours).

But, this month, they have caught my attention once again, this time with an event called The Working Gentleman's Comedy Club. They promise Tobacco Brownies, Whisky Jellies and sexy lounge singers, all of which tickle my tastebuds no end.

They quite often work with Bompas and Parr, who I also follow very closely for news of events and strange foody goings on.

They will be setting up the event at The Old Queens Head in Islington,

and tickets cost £10 for standard admission,

or you can pay a little extra for VIP table treatment.

More about the event, and their past events here.