• Blue plaque to go up in Kensington for Elisabeth Welch
• Childcare in London is really expensive
• The Pru may leave London for Hong Kong
• An Olympic museum will open in 2014
• And finally… a little-known egg eating dinosaur in north London

Photo by Laura Nolte via the Londonist Flickrpool

So, how would Gallagher Snr do on his own, up front with his High-Flying Birds at the O2 Arena on Sunday (26 February).

While short of his younger brother’s stage presence, he’s not short of charm – bantering with the front row about Man City’s Mario Balotelli and Liverpool squeaking through against Cardiff on penalties just hours earlier in the Carling Cup Final.

Oddly, someone bellows out that they love him more than David Beckham. He doesn’t know what to make of that, raising one of those impressive eyebrows.

But it’s the songs that have seen him sell out the O2, while Liam puffs out his chest to smaller crowds. And while Everybody’s On The Run, featuring The Crouch End Festival Chorus, and The Death Of You And Me with its New Orleans brass section, from his solo album shine brightly, it’s the old ones that, still, work best.

He starts the set with (It’s Good) To Be Free – free from Liam, from Britpop, from the past? – and does Mucky Fingers and The Importance Of Being Idle, both from Don’t Believe The Truth and Little By Little, from Heathen Chemistry

Oasis debut single Supersonic gets a stripped-back acoustic treatment, as does Talk Tonight, arguably Noel at his most beautiful and lost. He finishes with Don’t Look Back In Anger and the sections of the crowd still seated raise up and sing along.

They know the song, you see, and they adore Noel for having written it.

By Paul Dietrich.

Image © 2011, Lawrence Watson

Patrick Stewart stars as a tortured Shakespeare, credit Catherine Ashmore

The scene unfolds in Shakespeare’s garden, Stratford. The poet has retired from London to be with wife, Anne Hathaway and daughter, Judith. All sounds rosy and yet it is not. Writer Edward Bond has taken clues from scraps of facts we know about Shakespeare’s life to build a darker portrait.

Shakespeare’s villainy begins with his refusal to block plans to turf out local poor folk from his lands. It’s imagined here as something that tortures Shakespeare in his final days but we’re not convinced. Stewart plays him as a bystander, a liminal figure on the scenes of brutality who doesn’t act on his observations. His indirect involvement to the tragedies seems too flimsy evidence to pin any guilt on him or explain his anguish.

Then there’s his no-love lost relationship with Anne and Judith. This Shakespeare nonchantly goes about his business, deaf to their woes. At one point Anne scratches on his door like the mad woman in the attic he refuses to acknowledge. Judith is a rather lifeless character and that’s nothing to do with Catherine Cusack’s performance. The result is there’s little motivation to see any wrong in Shakespeare’s actions because of a lack of sympathy for his victims.

It’s was always going to be hard to see the Bard as anything less than a genius who gave a voice and a gift to society rather than one who did harm and Bond’s play doesn’t pull it off. Stewart is as watchable and charismatic as ever, the supporting cast fantastic and the scene setting slick, but we left feeling very nonplussed about this anti-hero Shakespeare.

Bingo: Scenes of Money and Death is at the Young Vic Theatre until 31 March. Tickets from £10.

Lucy Jones, The House, 2000. Courtesy Shelter.

40 artists, photographers and designers –- including Jake and Dinos Chapman, Grayson Perry and Antony Gormley — have contributed works to be auctioned off. Each piece of art is inspired by a particular street that holds an emotional connection for the artist.

Tracy Griffin, Shelter’s Director of Fundraising, said: “In these tough times homelessness really can happen to anyone. We hope that people will get bidding to help us raise vital funds.”

You can preview all the artworks online here in order to decide which you’d like to go for. Bidding starts today.

If you’re unsuccessful or simply want to see the artworks in person, they’ll be on display from 5-8 March at Coningsby Gallery, 30 Tottenham Street W1T 4RJ. Entrance is free.

Jeremy Deller, Still from Exodus 2012. Courtesy Hayward Gallery.

The Hayward gallery has done an excellent job of managing to contain these installations with the use of video and by creating a replica of his bedroom. There’s also a café where visitors can sit and relax with a cup of coffee. However, it feels like something has been lost in translation — they may be have been more effective in their original settings.

Deller’s work seems to be whatever takes his fancy at any particular moment. Such freedom is admirable but it keeps the viewer at arms length and you may never feel as if this exhibition speaks to you. The personal slant to his art means that if you haven’t experienced what Deller has, then you won’t be able to appreciate it. If the miners’ strikes, Depeche Mode and the Manic Street Preachers mean nothing to you, then half the exhibition may be wasted on you.

Some of Deller’s work does have a universal appeal, such as his humorous cross-comparison of Britain and Iraq, and his 3D film of bats leaving their roost; but they are in the minority.

This is definitely an exhibition that will divide people. Some may view his art as imaginative and creative but for those who think contemporary artists can be self-absorbed and pretentious, this will only add fuel to that fire.

Jeremy Deller: Joy in people is on at the Hayward Gallery until 22 February.  Admission is £10, concessions available. Ticket includes entrance to David Shrigley: Brain Activity.

You might like to browse our London Artists series.

Shortly after 12pm today, the New Bus for London turned into Graham Road, Hackney, and entered service on the 38 route.

Not that the maiden voyage was a typical journey. A crowd of journos, bus enthusiasts and curious locals had made the trip out to E8 to try it out, with various harassed-looking Transport for London officials and a few policeman on hand trying to keep people off the road. Londonist was among the first on board, climbing up the rear stairs and taking a seat midway along the vehicle’s right side.

After a few minutes, the bus was on its way, tailed by a Routemaster hired by the ‘Sack Boris’ group and daubed with banners decrying its 21st-century replacement as a vanity project. Predictably, the journey was slow given the chaos of cameramen and radio presenters on board, and an incessant alarm sounding every time the bus moved off didn’t help matters (fortunately this was remedied after a few minutes). On the upper deck it quickly became very stuffy, and condensation formed on the windows; normally no problem, but the New Bus has fixed windows that cannot be opened. Eventually the air-conditioning did kick in intermittently, but if things become sweaty on a mild February day, the bus might be a less than pleasant place to be come summer.

A few other random observations:

• The view out of the back from the upper deck is non-existent; annoying if you’re trying to jump on another bus behind.
• The upper deck is also quite gloomy overall, owing to its small windows. While the lights are attractive, they aren’t the brightest.
• A new recorded safety message, advising passengers to be careful when leaving the bus, sounds every few minutes, presumably at the request of a TfL legal eagle
• In another moment of health-and-safety heroism, there’s a sticker at the top of the rear staircase advising users that an open platform is at the bottom.
• Speaking of the open platform: it remained closed for most of the time when the bus was in motion, presumably because it was very full for most of the journey. (update: according to the BBC the rear platform was kept closed on this journey due to a software glitch).

Everybody has an opinion on the New Bus. Boris-bots hail it as a brand new vision of the future for public transportation. Ken-clones deride it as a costly vanity project. The truth is somewhere in the middle. Most people we chatted with seemed broadly positive about the bus, albeit with some of the reservations detailed above.

It’s far too early to tell whether the vehicle will be a success, and indeed much depends on what happens next. The existing outlay of £11.37m has bought us eight prototype buses. Should the vehicle go into mass production, costs would fall to around the same as a standard double-decker. Of course, that’s a big if, particularly if there’s a change at City Hall in the next few months.

For now, it’s a cautious opening in a new chapter for London transport. There are bound to be technical issues to overcome; these are prototype vehicles, and things won’t always go smoothly (in fact we hear that the bus has been delayed at Victoria  this afternoon whilst engineers work on a few things). And quite what future psephologists will make of the extraordinary obsession with the shape of a bus, which has been one of the dominant discussions in London politics over the last few years, is another matter entirely.

We’ll be riding again later today or tomorrow, to see how it operates in normal, media-frenzy-free usage. If you want to travel on the bus, of which there’s only one in service at the moment, here’s a timetable (pdf) for the first week. From next week, when there are two available, it should revert to this service. Note that at the moment the bus will not be running at night or on weekends.

Previous coverage of the New Bus for London

Lambchop

Tonight, ever-haunting indie rocker St Vincent is at Shepherds Bush Empire with Diagrams. If you haven’t yet caught the Drums — who seem to play in London quite often for a band from Brooklyn — they are at the Roundhouse.

Tuesday, synth-intensive indie band the War on Drugs are at the Electric Ballroom with Weird Dreams.

Wednesday, Sharon Van Etten plays a free Rough Trade East instore gig if you can get a wristband.

Thursday, alt-country band Lambchop is at the Barbican. Psych-folkie Beth Jeans Houghton is at Hoxton Bar and Kitchen with her band the Hooves of Destiny.

Friday, catch singer-songwriter Lindi Ortega at the Borderline.

Saturday, label Fortuna POP! has a showcase at the Victoria featuring Shrag.

Sunday, mellowed folk rockers Ellen and the Escapades are at the Notting Hill Arts Club.

What did we miss, what gigs are you going to this week? Let us know in the comments.

We all know people like the Bliss family in Hay Fever. Friends who are basically rude, but fun, and we let them get away with it. They genially invite you round for a drink, are horrified when you actually arrive, and then point out they have no milk for your tea, nor tonic for your gin.

Noël Coward’s Hay Fever is a study of a family of such characters. Bohemian; joyfully unworried about what other people think; manipulative; unconstrained by social norms. “Abnormal, that’s what we are!” cries the daughter, Sorel Bliss early on in the play. She’s determined to do something about it… for about five minutes, before the next distraction comes along.

The behaviour of this nutty foursome is thrown into high relief when each of the family members invites a guest to stay for the weekend. A diplomat, an ingenue, a hunk and a vamp all duly arrive, bourgeois flies ready to be woven into the Bliss family’s funny but formidable web.

The play, of course, is a well-worn classic. And this is a classy production to match. Bunny Christie’s beautiful set provides the perfect backdrop for a consummate cast. Lindsay Duncan’s matriarch, Judith Bliss, strides around the stage, all wild hair and flowing silks; part Ab Fab’s Eddy, part Norma Desmond. Her range of on-stage shoe changes, from wellingtons to jewelled heels is brilliant. Phoebe Waller-Bridge wins equal laughs as the horribly horsey daughter, where a lack of manners also means elegance and dignity are wanting. And in contrast, Jeremy Northam produces a fantastically nuanced performance as the uptight Richard, lengthy silences conveying his utmost horror that he hasn’t been welcomed into the home, properly introduced to the other guests, or offered a cup of tea.

All-in-all, this Hay Fever is a perfectly polished production of a very good play. It’s laugh-out-loud funny, light, ephemeral entertainment. But if we were being truly critical and asking “Why this? Why now?”, we couldn’t tell you. As a piece of pure fun for people willing to shell out between £30 and £50 for a night at the theatre, it’s perfect. If you have American cousins hoping to see a “claassic Briddish schow” by all means, take them. If you’re a Coward aficionado, or a big fan of one of the cast, see it. But we really couldn’t find anything vital in it: at those prices, with quality revivals so frequent, with such a wide variety of other theatre on offer in London at the mo, we’re reluctant to call this Hay Fever a “must-see”.

Hay Fever plays until 2 June at the Noël Coward Theatre, 85 St Martin’s Lane, Covent Garden, London, WC2. Tickets cost between £16 and £53.50. Visit www.hayfeverlondon.com to find out more.

Lend Lease’s plans for the regeneration of the Heygate Estate were unveiled this week on Walworth Road to much public interest.

The housing will consist of 2,500 new units providing accommodation for up to 4,000 people. The units will be split between high and low-rise buildings built around a central park. There will be a 25% affordable housing allocation as per Southwark Council’s guidelines. This equates to 625 ‘affordable’ units, half shared ownership, half housing association. The existing Heygate estate consists of 1,200, now almost completely derelict, units housing around 3,500 people in 100% affordable housing.

100 metres away in the communal gardens of the now empty Heygate estate the few remaining residents have organised something of a rebuttal. A permanent exhibition has been laid out to address concerns that many local residents have over the planned redevelopment.

Interestingly, there is very little emotional content in the display. The statistics speak for themselves — the most striking of which is the examination into the term ‘affordable’. Once this was classed by surveys into the incomes of tenants in council housing, but now it means a home with a fixed rent at 80% of the market value. In real terms the difference between affordability for existing Southwark council tenants and ‘affordable’ housing proposed by Lend Lease is a 300% increase in rent. The earlier figure of 625 units must not therefore be taken too seriously. Southwark Council promises that in the wider regeneration of the area there will be more ‘affordable’ housing than was available in the Heygate. The reality of the situation is a huge decrease in genuinely affordable housing in the wider Elephant and Castle area.

Image © Andy Day / Kiell.com

This is a sponsored post on behalf of the Barbican Centre.

From Shakespeare to Grime, London is bursting with urban stories. The Weekender returns to the Barbican with two days packed full of art, dance, music, theatre and film for everyone. The cavalcade runs throughout the day on 3-4 March and most events are free.

Watch a FreeStage programme that includes Roxxxan, Dizralie and the Small Gods, young drummers from East London and performance poetry by the Barbican Young Poets. You can also join street dance classes with Boy Blue Entertainment, and make an Opera in a Day led by the Hip Hop Shakespeare Company. With a late surprise guest DJ, Street Food Stalls, the Wah Nails Pop-Up boutique and free running by Streets United you’ll never look at the Barbican Foyers in the same way again!

Follow the event on Facebook and Twitter (#bweekender).

We fear, though, that he’s trying to hold the tide back with one hand. Ever since its inception, when Ken-the-ever-Livingstone first came back from the dead to sweep to victory as an independent, it’s been clear that winning the top job at City Hall was more a matter of being famous and shouty, than of demonstrating managerial skill or sound policy.

Partly this is a matter of history: that 2000 election, when Ken managed to wipe out the more controllable candidate put forward by the Labour machine, set the tone for everything that followed. But also, we suspect, it’s inherent to the role. For one thing, the mayor is the most high-profile individual elected anywhere in the UK: that will inevitably attract the self-publicists.

More than that, though, the mayor’s limited financial power means that the role functions more like a bully-pulpit than a CEO. If you’re trying to cadge more money out of the Treasury, or to shame TfL or the Met police into sorting themselves out a bit, a knack for high-profile shouting may actually be the most useful talent you can have.

But there’s a danger to all this, too. That is, that we pick mayors who are brilliant at getting their names in the paper, but rather less skilled at running anything. It’s no coincidence that London has had a pair of mayors better known for their media work and a string of high-profile gaffes, than for their actual policy achievements.

Focusing on the most high-profile candidates also risks dividing London. The role has become as polarising as the US presidency: to put it bluntly, we have yet to have a mayor who large numbers of Londoners don’t hate.

Perhaps most frighteningly, both Boris and Ken seem all but indestructible. After everything they’ve done, every mistake they’ve survived, it’s surprisingly hard to think of a screw-up either could make that’d be serious enough to finish them off for good. That’s great for their careers – but rather less brilliant for their accountability.

All this means that May’s election will be fought on personality as much as policy – so this week, we’ll be taking a look at the personalities in question. Londonist is avowedly impartial; but it’d be a tad misleading to pretend that the two leading candidates for the role don’t provoke strong feelings.

So, we’ve asked a pair of guest writers to present the case against each of them. Tomorrow Tom Barry, better known as Boriswatch, will be explaining why Johnson doesn’t deserve re-election. On Wednesday, Chris Mounsey, a libertarian activist and blogger who goes by the name Devil’s Kitchen, will give us the view of Livingstone from the right.

Later in the week, we’ll take a closer look at the candidates’ biographies. And we’ll be asking – what would it actually take to finish either of them off?

In the meantime, though, what do you think? Is O’Donnell right, that politics-by-shouting-match is holding London back? Or is it the only thing that’ll make the voters sit up and take notice of the real issues?

Knitting by Heather Brown, photo by M@

Fancy going on a picturesque journey from dark to light in Mr. Walpole’s magnificent Gothic castle…as a tale of mystery and terror unfolds?

Artemis Productions and Strawberry Hill Trust present The Sign of the Strawberry by Dianne Cutlack, directed by Christina Artemis. The play takes the audience on a unique journey through Strawberry Hill’s restored rooms, written specifically for the 18th Century pile. The story gives the house’s former owner, Horace Walpole, a leading role, and culminates in a Ghosts’ Ball in the Gallery of Strawberry Hill.

The Bournemouth-based innovative theatre company Artemis Productions supports new writing and provides a platform to develop new work.

The play runs 20-29 March 2012 at Strawberry Hill House, Twickenham, and a Gala Night performance will be held on 26 March to raise money for Strawberry Hill’s continuing restoration projects. Get your tickets for evening performances at 7pm, or for the afternoon matinee on Saturday 24 March at 1pm.

To whet your appetite, take a look at the photos we took of Strawberry Hill House just before it reopened a couple of years ago.

Nintendisco (Wednesday). More than a two-bit idea...by at least six bits.

London events for people with curious minds.

Monday 27 February

CLIMATE CHANGE: Seen those glowing blue halos currently engirdling London’s columns? They’re part of an artwork called PLUNGE, highlighting the possible maximum rise in sea levels in the next 1,000 years. To coincide with the installations, a debate about climate change takes place tonight at the ICA involving representatives of art, religion, politics and law but, unusually, not science. FREE, 7.30pm

SPACE: Is there anything left to discover in the solar system or have our probes already done us sufficiently proud? Imperial’s Zita Martins tells the Royal Society where potential revelations might be unearthed/unMarsed/unTitaned. FREE, 6.30pm

Tuesday 28 February

MATHS: Come back from your lunch break an expert on non-Euclidian geometry courtesy of this short lecture at UCL. FREE, 1.15pm

ARCHITECTURE: Ever taken a wander round RIBA’s art deco headquarters on Portland Place? The impressive space is open for your perusal, along with several exhibitions and talks about architecture, in a special late opening tonight. FREE, 6pm-10pm

MEDICINE: The Royal Institution takes a look at intensive care medicine, with an excellent panel that includes Kevin Fong, Richard Barnett and a triage of clinicians. £10, 7pm

DEATH: Should euthanasia ever be an option, and under what circumstances? A sobering debate in a non-sobering location, as the Big Ideas forum returns to The Wheatsheaf. And they’ve got a Baroness on the bill. FREE, 8pm

Wednesday 29 February

SCIENCE IN THE MEDIA: Hear about good, bad and ugly examples of science reporting, from a distinguished panel that includes Mark Henderson, Jim Al-Khalili and Elaine Fox, at London School of Economics. FREE, 5.15pm

LATES: The Science Museum once again welcomes a late-night adult audience, with music, wine and one of the world’s finest collections of scientific and technological artifacts. Tonight’s theme is the science of surgery. FREE, 6.45pm

DANCE LIKE MARIO: Vibe Bar in Brick Lane hosts Nintendisco — a night of retro-gaming, music and drinking, for anyone who remembers the halcyon days on the Megadrive, NES and SNES. FREE, from 7pm

Thursday 1 March

ASTRONOMY: A new exhibition opens at the Royal Observatory today. Measuring the Universe: From The Transit of Venus to the Edge of the Cosmos is the wordy title of the show, which looks at how we work out the vast distances in the universe. FREE, runs until 2 September.

FUTUROLOGY: Jon Turney and panelists discuss the future, from the perspective of the past and present. Or something. Join them at the JZ Young Lecture Theatre at UCL before heading into the Grant Museum for a free glass of wine. FREE, 6pm

ENERGY EFFICIENCY: What can engineers do to improve the energy efficiency of homes? Find out at the Dana Centre tonight. FREE, 7pm

GREAT MINDS: Understand the thought processes of Einstein, Picasso and the ancients, and learn to paint an abstract masterpiece. They’ve set themselves up with an ambitious bill at this month’s Salon event, this time held in the University Women’s Club in Mayfair. £10, 7.30pm 

GEEK COMEDY: An unusual night at the Camden Head, where representatives of Gosh Comics and Orbital Comics try their hands at a spot of stand-up. £3, 7.30pm

Did we miss anything? Let us know below. And to tip us off about future events, email matt@londonist.com

In the second week of our third Olympic Borough, Hackney, songwriter Ruairidh Anderson tells the story of Hackney South MP and early 20th Century rogue, Horatio Bottomley.

Over the years London has played host to many gangsters and criminals but one name you’re unlikely to find sandwiched between Jack the Ripper and Mad Frankie Fraser is the less terrifyingly named, Horatio Bottomley who sounds more like a sad rejected extra from the Muppet Show than an evil genius.

All songs are free to download from Songs From The Howling Sea. Lyrics can be found here.

Previously in Hackney

• Mrs Basil Holmes: saviour of London’s graveyards

Previously in Greenwich

• Joseph Druce: mudlark and Maori Chief
• Anne Boleyn: Marriage and May Madness
• General James Wolfe: Battles, Brothels and Broken Hearts
• Martial Bourdin, The Exploding Anarchist Of Greenwich

Previously in Tower Hamlets

• Charlie Brown: Uncrowned King of Limehouse 
• Angela Burdett-Coutts, Queen Of The East End Poor
• Jamrach’s Menagerie, Rhinos & the Ratcliffe Highway
• Moris ‘Two-guns’ Cohen
• Emmanuel Swedenborg, Veruca Socks and Heavenly Secrets
• John Newton, Goebbels, Star Trek & The Slave Trade
• Eliza Marchpane, Mozart, Vol Au Vents And The Wapping Streets
• Isambard Kingdon Brunel, Ships, Bones And Bad Breath

After a brief and fairly lousy experience going cold turkey on caffeine, we’ve found ourselves addicted anew to the potent beans, and are re-launching our London Blend series this week, in which we seek out some of the capital’s finer coffee establishments.

But first, a quick gastronomic trip down memory lane. Above is a map of all the places we’ve visited so far. We’ll be adding to it in the coming months, and if you’ve got a particular recommendation you think we should know about, drop it in the comments.

This Week In London’s History

• Monday – 27th February 1900: The Labour Party is formed at the Memorial Hall on Farringdon Street.
• Tuesday – 28th February 1975: A southbound Northern Line train overshoots the end of the platform at Moorgate Station, accelerating into a dead-end tunnel and crashing into a hydraulic buffer and then a brick wall at about 40mph. 43 people die, and many more are severely injured.
• Wednesday – 29th February 1928: The ‘Leap Year Cocktail‘ is invented by the Savoy Hotel’s head bartender, Harry Craddock. According to the Savoy Cocktail Book (1930), the cocktail “is said to have been responsible for more proposals than any other cocktail that has ever been mixed”.
• Thursday – 1st March 1826: Chunee, a tame elephant at Cross’s Menagerie on the Strand, is executed in a barbaric manner.
• Friday – 2nd March 1717: The Theatre Royal Drury Lane hosts The Loves of Mars and Venus, the first ballet to be staged in Britain.

Random London Quote Of The Week

If you do not want to live among wicked people, do not live in London.

Richard of Devizes (Benedictine monk, 1192)

Picture by Homemade via the Londonist Flickr Pool.

Monday: Join the Secret Chiefs to hear artist, Charlotte Rodgers, talk about bones, roadkill, the occult and sculpture at the Devereux pub, WC2R 3JJ from 8.30pm (£2).

Tuesday: Big Ideas consider what it means to die well with a talk and discussion at the Wheatsheaf W1 from 8pm (free).

Wednesday: Women, don’t propose. Go to Cringe Night and read from your teenage diary at the George, Strand from 7.30pm (free entry).

Thursday: Enjoy readings and Q&A at the new Deptford Lounge with Pulp Fiction: The Deadly Dames Rewrite from 7.30pm (free).

It’s First Thursday. Go art nuts (free).

Friday: Parlour Arts put on a show to celebrate the end of their exhibition, The Body Sublime with live dance and poetry performances from 6.30pm at Queen’s Crescent, Kentish Town (free).

Saturday: The Barbican Weekender explores urban stories with art, dance, music and film in the foyers (free).

Have a go at ballroom dancing at Greenwich Dance’s Strictly Ballroom Tea Dance from 2pm (£5/£4 conc. includes cup of tea and slice of cake).

Nigel of Bermondsey and Vanessa Woolf will be sneaking up on the roof of a derelict concrete wonderland, the Brandon Estate near Elephant and Castle, SE1/ SE17 from 9.30pm for storytelling and songs about the Afterlife (£2). If you want to go, email neckingernell@yahoo.com.

Sunday: The brilliant Reverb festival presents Voices Now, a day of choirs singing their hearts out at the Roundhouse from 11am-9.30pm (free).

Check out our things to do in London for free page for more.

Photo by Buckaroo Kid via the Londonist Flickrpool.

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Here at the Londonist, we hold a few beliefs. One is to care more about whether music is good or bad, than about whether it should be categorised as Pop, Jazz or Electronic; Baroque, Classical or Romantic. Reverb 2012, therefore, is right up our street as the festival celebrates a new generation of performers who have broken away from staging ‘traditional’ classical concerts, and who capture a variety of musical styles over one evening. Its opening night last Friday certainly had it all. In the Roundhouse foyers were DJs and sets covering a range of broadly contemporary styles, while the main act came from the world class Orchestra of the Age of Enlightenment, conducted by Sir Mark Elder.

Another belief we hold is that the world would be a better place if it became more acquainted with Hector Berlioz! Although the 19th-century French composer is hardly an obscure name, he is not quite quoted in the same breath as Bach, Beethoven and Brahms, and we think that he should be. He composed some of the most innovative symphonies ever written – which in their own day defied established musical genres – and the OAE more than made the case for him by performing an abridged version of his symphony, Roméo et Juliette.

With most of the audience seated at tables, and each of the five performed movements preceded by an informative explanation, the atmosphere was unique. Although people were free to get up and buy a drink at any time, once the music had started everyone was so transfixed that they didn’t want to. There was no question of the OAE either dumbing down or hamming up the musical output in response to its new surroundings, and it played at its brilliant best. There was one hiccup in that the scene set in Juliet’s tomb had to be performed without most of the brass section, when it was discovered that they had already gone home! They hadn’t realised they were needed again for the final movement, but the strict musical loss was more than made up for by the sheer novelty value, and ‘show must go on’ spirit.

The good news is that, because Reverb 2012 is spread over two weekends, it means there is still time to go. Tomight, Imogen Heap performs her a cappella soundtrack for the 1928 French surrealist silent film The Seashell and the Clergyman, with acclaimed UK choir The Holst Singers. On 3 March, the London Contemporary Orchestra presents works from 20th- and 21st-century composers, including Radiohead’s Jonny Greenwood and Gabriel Prokofiev. The programme includes the European Premiere of the latter’s Concerto for Bass Drum and Orchestra, and there are DJ and live sets from members of the LCO and Roundhouse Music Collective. On 4 March there is a day celebrating some of the UK’s best choirs, including the BBC Singers and Roundhouse Choir. This event lasts from 11.00am to 9.30pm, and there is no need to book tickets in advance. It is free, and you can just turn up whenever you want.

Check out the Reverb 2012 website for full details of all of the concerts. All performances will be streamed live on the Roundhouse website and on Roundhouse Radio but, as the opening night showed us, there’s nothing quite like being there!

Photo: The Night Shift on Friday provided the perfect start to Reverb 2012, © Joe Plommer

• Weekend crime: serious shooting in Ilford, serious stabbing on the Finchley Road.
• Weekend crime II: fatal stabbing in Camden.
• Oxford Street McDonalds closed (briefly) by Workfare protestors.
• Crossrail bans any lorry not fitted with safety features to protect cyclists.
• Heathrow Express staff are on strike.
• On the splendid library related Twitter tiff between Jamie Oliver and Joan Bakewell.
• Arrests made in general licensing crackdown.
• Urban explorers issued ASBOs by TfL.
• Finally: beware of ridiculous goats in Surbiton today.

Allotment, by peterphotographic via the ever-blossoming Londonist Flickr pool.

John Ford’s scandalous play is a straight-up tale of love, betrayal and incest. Annabella has a city full of suitors but it’s her brother Giovanni who entices her into a passionate and sordid downfall. There’s murder, a marriage and moral corruption and yet Ford’s uncompromising play never judges, rather lays down the grim fate of the siblings’ love affair for us to decide.

The action unravels with Annabella’s crimson bed playing centre stage, the bedroom’s red walls and vampire posters acting as a fitting match for a production which plays upon teenage lust and adult violence. Nick Ormerod’s vivid design coupled with the taut choreography gives fluidity and pace which often brushes aside the dense textual language. With the cast, nearly always ever present, racing from scene to scene, the performance comes in at a brisk two hours. It’s a clever move which, only on occasions, stifles the play’s deeper notes.

This is the challenge of the play, to lend pathos to these tragic lovers and handle the sensational and graphic violence. But Declan Donnellan’s production just about has its cake and eats it, giving us the gore-fest, passion and drama whilst reaching for the emotional heart. It’s a strong ensemble cast with Jack Gordon playing a Giovanni with just the right level of pity and depravity. Lydia Wilson is a mesmerising Annabella, her asymmetrical hair matching both her teenage naivety and brazen sexuality. But it’s Laurence Spellman’s Vasques, suited, violent and snorting coke likes he’s in a Tarantino movie, who really steals the show.

‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore is another thrilling production from a company which ranks amongst the UK’s most exciting and reliable.

‘Tis Pity She’s a Whore runs at the Barbican until 10 March. Tickets from £21

Mayoral candidate Jenny Jones and fellow Assembly member Darren Johnson launched the plans outside City Hall last week – though not without hitches, as a More London official stopped them taking photos while someone nipped back to their offices to collect forgotten security passes (photo from @Mayorwatch). Yes, even our elected representatives need permission to use the space outside City Hall.

The Greens say savings would come from these areas:

• Public transport fare cuts funded by revenue from a Pay As You Drive scheme (which we looked at last week)
• Extending RE:NEW home efficiency refurbishments to cut energy bills
• Lower rents through more social and co-operative housing, and more rights for private tenants would keep rent rises closer to CPI
• More street markets to lower food costs
• Extension of the London Living Wage, increasing incomes for low earners from £6.08 an hour to £8.30

Jones said:

In the Green vision for London, the capital would become a more affordable place to live, work, travel and relax.

Of course there are caveats to that. You’ll obviously save far less if you own your home and drive, but if you’re in such a position you’re arguably less likely to need the extra (average) £375 a year; low income earners would receive more than the average, but then again an increase in wages could benefit local businesses as the money gets spent. This plan is clearly about making London a more equitable place, is that a goal we can argue with?

Every week we select a photo from the Londonist Flickr pool, taken in the last seven days, that illustrates this season or time of year in London.

It looks like Spring may have arrived this week, as evidenced by Laura Nolte’s shot of the crocuses in Cannizaro Park.

But before we confine her to the annals of history, and the irreverent masses of international exhibition spaces, we should remember that she is very much a living, practising artist and this free show of new contemporary paintings at Victoria Miro is vibrant, vivid and distinctly unsettling.

The pieces, while understandably lacking the tonal intricacies of the vast body of work displayed at the Tate, do have a remarkable power over the room they inhabit. The curators have given each painting room to breathe. The subject matter of the pieces tend to be repeated motifs of quasi-biological forms ranging from distinct body parts to amoebic cellular shapes. There is an allusion to her famous polka dots in the repetition of the symbols, but gone are the formulaic sequences of her accumulation pieces. These works are altogether freer and more challenging.

The sculptures dotted around the lower level of the gallery represent her strongest work in years. Fantastical, kawii-inspired organisms who seem to have spilled out of the paintings as tangible examples of Kusama’s visions and hallucinations.

It seems to be a trend to align smaller free shows with Blockbuster exhibitions. Remember, the Hockney at the Royal Academy is being complemented by the Alan Cristea show, not to mention Damien Hirst’s Tate retrospective supported by Gagosian’s worldwide ‘spot painting’ exhibit.

Yayoi Kusama | New Works is at Victoria Miro, 16 Wharf Road N1 7RW until 5 April. Open Tuesday – Saturday 10am-6pm, free entry.

Having a Laugh - portrait by Viramati

Monday: Get your politics at Lolitics with Andy Zaltzman, Wil Hodgson, Shit Theatre and Danielle Ward at the Black Heart, Camden from 8pm (£3).

Tuesday: Catch work in progress from Edinburgh ‘Best Newcomer’ nominee 2011, Cariad Lloyd doing character comedy at the Leicester Square Theatre Lounge, 7pm (£7).

Wednesday: Pleb Talks on Leap day tackle the state of the world and the notion of time with Phil Kay, Sara Pascoe and Naz Osmanoglu in Covent Garden from 8pm. £7 tickets still available.

Thursday: Luke and Harry Dot Dot Dot are allegedly appearing at the Hen and Chickens at 9.15pm, although there’s nothing on the H&C listings as yet. Still, check out their tumblr for a video and reviews. Ones to watch?

Friday: Robin Ince, known for being an angry man on the permanent verge of a stroke, discovers happiness through science at Finchley’s Arts Depot from 7.30pm (£13 / £11).

Saturday: Comedy isn’t often performed in beautiful venues so grab tickets for Milton Jones, Doc Brown, James Acaster and The Boy with Tape on His Face at the Union Chapel. Live at the Chapel starts at 7.45pm (£16).

Now, watch Naz Osmanoglu and his Love Bin:

Tip us off to intelligent, alternative, friendly comedy gigs, clubs and shows around London: tips@londonist.com.

Having a Laugh portrait photo by Viramati via the Londonist Flickrpool

We are fascinated by these intricate, intense and delicate pen and ink drawings, mixing up people, landmarks and transport in a new and dizzying fashion. Laura Jordan’s cityscapes were brought to our attention by @zefrog, who liked them so much he bought one.

A graduate of the London College of Communication, Jordan’s work captures “social, political and architectural movement”. New work, ‘Run Riot Run‘ is a commentary on the student protests, the Royal Wedding and the London riots all in one. Can you spot a Beefeater nicking off with a telly and Boris biking away? Is that a black cab being flung over the gates of Buckingham Palace? Just what is Bride Kate doing on that balcony? While the chaos is captured on CCTV, engineers beneath the surface continue to improve the tube, serenely unaware of what’s kicking off above.

You may need to look at these illustrations larger – in which case visit Laura’s Flickrstream.

Run Riot Run will be on show at Delicate Mayhem in Covent Garden. If you want to purchase prints, please contact the gallery.

Browse other London Artists.

These new figures continue to illuminate the events of the summer, details of which have been hard to grasp due to the speed of the judicial process. 71% of convictions so far have been for burglary or violent disorder. Violent disorder sentences have been subject to a 50% increase in average sentencing from 5 to 10 months.

Within the prisons and Young Offenders Institutes themselves we have seen a 200% rise in staff appointed to suicide watch duties. There have been a number of cases of convicted rioters being assaulted upon entering correctional facilities by inmates. Prison governors had to be reminded of the importance of prisoner safety by the Prison service on 19 August after two young men on remand for riot related offences were hospitalised in a ‘nasty attack’. Meanwhile the prison population figures remain unpublished. The Ministry of Justice set the ‘useable operational capacity’ for UK prisons at 88,093 in September 2011. This month’s population bulletin from the Prison service has seen a change in that figure to 89,335. A difference of 1,242, not quite 1,500 but you get the idea. Overcrowding in prisons is apparently a very discretionary concept.

Photo by bobaliciouslondon from the Londonist Flickr pool

• Olympic Park tickets may be restricted to first week only
• Immigration could be good for our schools
• Andrew Gilligan takes a ride on the New Bus for London
• Tate nearly chucked their national photography archive in a skip
• Sky Arts announced a new city hall drama that sounds a bit like Borgen

Tiger pig, spotted at Waterloo by lovepiepenbrinck via the Londonist Flickrpool.

The experience promises to be totally immersive, transporting the audience into the very heart of the opera and leaving no doubt that the stunning ‘Un bel dì vedremo’ will reduce many (much more than the usual sniffers) to tears.

Here’s the trailer. If anyone can tell us why the Royal Opera House has used Hollywood voiceover man over it, do let us know.

See Madam Butterfly in 3D at Apollo Piccadilly, Cineworld West India Quay & other Cineworlds, Picturehouses and Odeons around London from 5 March.

Their rise is thanks to an avid fanbase across the country who have supported them, promoted their gigs and given them a room on tour, a following they are eager to repay. Their grass roots attitude makes them unique in professionally managed industry and has given Tribes the experience to thrive, and by dominating the Camden scene they are bringing the areas heritage up to date.

As Tribes tour the UK as part of the NME tour Londonist caught up with bassist Jim Cratchley.

How would you describe Tribes Sound and what makes it special
We all agree that it’s British Rock No Roll. A lot of people try to pin us down as grunge without listening to us, but as soon as people hear us they realise were not heavy enough to be a grunge band.

Which British bands inspire you?
Me and Johnny we were brought up listening to the Rolling Stones and The Beatles and Led Zeppelin and that sort of thing. Of course there’s Black Sabbath so we have some roots in the heavier stuff. But it a love of the Stones which we all share and we think informs our music.

Is there anyone contemporary who you admire?
There are loads of really good bands coming through. When people say guitar music’s dead they’re probably not looking hard enough. There’s a band called Sharks from Leamington, who are a total balls out punk band, a band from London called Whales In Cubicles who are like a heavy Pavement. We really admire the Horrors too cos their friends of ours.

How did Tribes get together and decide to form?
Me and Johnny grew up together in the midlands and I’ve known him since we were six or seven. Dan and Miguel have known each other since they were kids growing up around Maidenhead. We all kind of met up in Camden: Johnny was living there, I was down for college with Dan and was all just came together in various Pubs in Camden that we used to drink in. We decided we wanted to form a band cos we didn’t really hear anything around that we felt any particular affinity with. We wanted to start a band that we really wanted to hear, rather than what the scene dictates.

So why Camden, what’s so special about it and it’s musical legacy?
We didn’t decide to be a Camden band; it was just where we were living and started to rehearse. It became a centre for us and the whole community got behind us and load of the pubs put our demos on. It’s a great place and the musical heritage is really special like the Clash and the whole Britpop scene too.

Where’s good to hang out in Camden?
We used to rehearse at a place next to the Hawley Arms so we used to drink in there a lot. The Lock Tavern is probably my favourite pub, or the Crown and Goose- the food’s awesome there and there’s always a good crowd, it’s an easy place to just hang out.

What’s your favourite London venue?
Maybe the Electric Ballroom, we did a gig there in October which was fantastic. Bigger wise the Shepherds Bush Empire is fantastic, but there are so many great little venues.

If you could play anywhere in London, where would it be?
We’d love to play either Alexander Palace of Brixton Academy. My first gig in London was at Brixton Academy and I’ve been going back there ever since and it has such a great history.

What’s the London gig scene like for bands starting out?
It can be tough cos there are hundreds of bands try to get gigs, but there are a lot of people out there giving support.

What’s most exciting about the huge NME tour?
It’s one big three week party really. Two Door Cinema Club and Metronomy are two band be really respect, especially Two Door because of the way they’ve done it They didn’t jump on any hype, they just put they’re album out and kept plugging away and they’ve become bigger and bigger.

Where were you when you found out you were on the tour?
We were in our manager’s office talking about something completely unrelated and he got a phone call saying we were booked on it. We found out about four or five months before and our album wasn’t our yet and we were still unsure about how tickets for the Electric Ballroom we’re selling, so when we found out about the tour we knew we had something else to work for after the album had come out.

How exciting is it to finally have a debut album coming out?  
It’s brilliant. It’s by no means the end goal. It’s like having to start again at day one, when we got signed that was another day one. It feels like a massive weight off, because were a touring band so we just want to be playing it and get around to doing new stuff that we haven’t necessarily played before. So we’re really excited.

What are the main themes on the album?
When we started out people were maybe expecting a hard and fast rock album, but I think the highlight are the softer songs  like Half Way Home which I think is the most British song  on the album. Although Alone Or With Friends is essentially a dance song with a British swagger trip.

Is guitar music still important and is it going through a resurgence?    
There have always been hundreds of bands and people will never stop picking up guitars. Maybe it hasn’t been in the charts as much recently, and you keep reading about who’s gonna save guitar music, but it doesn’t really need saving. It’s probably harder to get noticed because the industry doesn’t want to be seen backing guitar music as it’s not bankable whereas quick fix electro pop seems to be coming and going every three weeks- a string of one hit wonders.

You seem to have gathered and avid following why have people latched onto you?
We’re a hard working band and we did everything ourselves doing out own gigs and trying to get involved with people who are interested in the band. We’ve got regional Tribes- people who got in contact and said they wanted to help so they get free stuff if things like the album in advance, and that’s really important with how we started and something we’re maintaining. We want to stay involved with the people who put us where we are by being interested in the band. Maybe that’s why they feel the connection with us.

Do you think you appeal to a particular kind of fan?
Our gigs always go mental, the fans are crazy and jumping around like lunatics. We did a gig in Sheffield invaded four times by rabid kids which was great.

Do you think Tribes can change the world? Do you want to?
Of course we want to it would be great. But there’s a 101 things you need to do to change the world, but yeah we’re up for it.

Tribes play Shepherds Bush Empire 27 April. Debut album Baby is out now.

Most people know that independent galleries are mainly found in Mayfair, but there is a collection of contemporary art galleries in Pimlico that you may not have seen.

One of these galleries is Long & Ryle and it’s currently showcasing the latest paintings by Maro Gorky. The best way to describe Gorky’s work is ‘if you loved Hockney’s current exhibition at the Royal Academy, you’ll enjoy these’. She uses the same bold and bright colours as Hockney, but with delineation akin to Magritte.

Gorky’s small selection of landscapes seem to capture the essence of the Tuscan scenery she’s painted, but it’s when her works take on a more surreal tone that they become more absorbing. The peacocks roosting in a tree that’s in the shape of a peacock’s feather is a personal favourite because it flirts with surrealism but remains grounded in reality. The only downside to Gorky’s work is that it may be a bit too similar to Hockney’s to truly differentiate itself in the burgeoning London art scene.

If you like her works then they are available to purchase, or you can simply browse and bask in the vivid colours.

Maro Gorky: The Geometry of Nature is on at Long & Ryle Gallery, 4 John Islip Street, SW1P 4PX until 24 March. Entrance is free.

The Rosetta Vase, 2011 © Grayson Perry. Courtesy Victoria Miro Gallery

The exhibition allowed Perry to bring together a myriad of chronologically and socially diverse pieces from the heart of the British Museum’s vault set along side his own contemporary work. That word; ‘contemporary’ becomes the focus of the exhibition. “Everything was contemporary once,” says Perry as he challenges us to revaluate the criteria we use to determine artistic and social value.

In the course of this wonderfully curated exhibition, Perry elevates his childhood Teddy bear into a microcosmic world of his own creation. His own fantastic sense of imagination interweaves with historical relics from all four corners of the world spanning millennia in their provenance. The remarkable achievement of the exhibition is the seamless consistency of the aesthetic message despite the individual pieces’ varied origins.

Short incisive explanations and observations, written by Perry himself, are dotted amongst the exhibits and should not be ignored. The scope of subject matter approached is staggering from authenticity to craftsmanship to sexuality. Yet there is a tremendous sense of adventure and fun in the approach and not once is there a feeling any dogma is being asserted.

By Sunday evening this exhibition will disband sending its individual pieces back to their various homes after which they will never meet again. Perry has managed to achieve an incredible commentary on the art world but more importantly on the issue of modernity itself. Do everything you within your power to make it before closing time come Sunday.

Grayson Perry: The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman closes on Sunday 26 February. All advance tickets are sold out so you will have to queue to get same day tickets from 9am or become a member to get free unlimited entry to this and all exhibitions. Tickets £10.

The British Museum is open till 8.30pm tonight.

Last Saturday’s launch of Hackney Homemade Food Market promises lots more yummy Saturdays to come.

Home made quesadillas, pickles and sauerkraut (and that’s just the offering from one vendor ), boozed up hot chocolate, freshly made pasta, katsu curry, a delectable assortment of baked goods, meats, and cheeses ranging from ultra sharp to super oozy were on offer and will be again.

A full list of vendors can be viewed on the market’s website. Hackney Homemade Food Market returns tomorrow from 11am to 4pm on the grounds of St John’s at Hackney Church adjacent to Hackney Central.

Luckily, Saturday sees Corsica Studios drafting in a slice of continental cool in the form of Berlin’s Workshop Records, who since 2006 have curated a winning mix of esoteric house and techno over a series of crucial vinyl releases. Workshop’s recognizable hand-stamped records are a mark of quality for the music contained within -– untitled and unhurried takes on techno and house –- tracks that occasionally diverge into disco or darker territories but never take the easy route.

Like the best independent labels theirs is focused around a circle of friends with a shared vision and a release policy that suggests the records come when they’re ready, not when the schedule demands. On Saturday, Workshop’s founder Lowtec will be aided by young experimentalist Kassem Mosse and the superb Move D, whose latest release for the label — a brooding nine minutes of looped vocals and ecstatic disco strings – could be his best work yet. Completing the mouth watering line-up are Even Tuell and UK producers Altered Natives and DjRUM.  It’s hard to find apt reference points for artists who show scant regard for genre conventions or following dance music’s obvious dynamics. But if you’ve followed Ricardo Villalobos’ techno experiments, dig Theo Parrish’s deep house voyages or are enamoured by the the slo-mo thump of Nicolas Jaar, Saturday’s showcase looks set to offer a warming brew of dancefloor excellence.

Workshop Records London – Move D, Kassem Mosse [live], Lowtec, Even Tuell, Altered Natives, Djrum, El Kid [live], BNRY [live] – Saturday 25^th Feb, Corsica Studios, SE17 1LB. Tickets are available here.

Photo used with permission from Move D

New details of the Olympic Closing Ceremony have emerged. By ‘details’, we mean a vague teaser from creative director Kim Gavin about “the best of British music” both ancient and modern, rather than the customary classical-only finales from former games.

Here’s what we know, in an equally vague but handy bullet format that you may or may not choose to sing to the tune of Rolling in the Deep:

• There’s a firework show, beating like a heart,
• Reaching a fever pitch, over the Olympic Park.
• “An elegant mash-up” from Adele to Elgar,
• No one’s been named quite yet; expect more than one star.
• David Arnold’s the only one confirmed,
• As musical director, or so the role is termed.
• Four thousand artists, taking to the stage,
• They do it for the prestige and not the minimum wage.
• CHORUS: We could have kept it small…etc.

We’ll be back with a less-cringeworthy account of the acts and format when we have more details. In the meantime, you can listen to Gavin and Arnold talking about their vision in this video, which also includes footage of the stadium lighting being tested.

The mayor promised to increase river journeys to 12m per year but the current estimate stands at around 3m journeys, apparently due to a lack of strategic planning and funds being diverted to the cycle hire scheme and the cable car instead.

London Assembly chair Caroline Pidgeon said:

“It’s frustrating that progress is so slow on expanding a service that has so much potential. Our last report described the Thames as London’s forgotten highway and unfortunately in many ways it still is.”

Compared to the Tube and buses, the river is under-used as a form of transport, but it is inherently less convenient, albeit considerably more civilised — fine if you want to travel from Canary Wharf to Blackfriars, for example, and your destination is within walking distance of the pier, but impractical for many journeys. The higher fares are also a deterrent — a single adult ticket on the Thames Clipper is £5.40 if using Oyster PAYG compared to £2.70 on the tube (though weary travellers can’t get a G&T on the Tube).

The Clipper service expanded its routes last year and remains an alternative when the Jubilee line and DLR fail, although during this week’s round of tube delays @thamesclippers was besieged by complaints about long queues for tickets.

A City Hall spokesman told the BBC that the mayor has already asked Transport for London to produce a new strategic plan for riverboat services.

Photo by BethPH

“Pure Evil Goes Pop!” is a departure from the artist’s street art work. The images delve into the dark side of celebrity worship, taking Andy Warhol’s obsession with capturing beautiful, famous people as its inspiration.

All are welcome to attend the launch party on Thursday 1 March. The artist will be there to answer questions and free beers will be provided by Saint Lager.

What’s more, go to the Boxpark Facebook page now and you could be in with a chance to win a signed print of Pure Evil’s “J.F.Kennedy’s Nightmare”.

Pure Evil Goes Pop opens on 1 March at Boxpark Shoreditch for the entire month of March.

To find out more visit Boxpark online, like Boxpark on Facebook and follow @Boxpark on Twitter.

Watch cross country running on Hampstead Heath on Saturday / Photo by Clive.N Totman

• Reverb festival of contemporary classical music begins at the Roundhouse.
• Hyper Japan fills Brompton Hall at Earls Court with all things J-culture, that’s food, fashion, music, art and more (tickets £12 on the door,).
• The Camellia Festival is in full bloom at Chiswick House and Gardens (£8 for Camellias, free entry to house & gardens).
• Reel Islington Film Festival presents screenings, Q&As, workshops and other filmy events Friday through to Sunday (events range from free to £5).

Friday:

• The National Army Museum stays open late to show off its War Horse exhibition from 5.30-9pm (free entry).
• The Cats Pyjamas late view celebrates the opening of the Age of Elegance exhibition at Guildhall Art Gallery from 6-10pm (free entry).

Saturday:

• It’s Potato Day at the Garden Museum with 80 plus varieties of seed potatoes for sale by the single tuber and a ‘potato friendly’ menu in the ace veggie cafe. Visit the ‘Garden City to Green City‘ exhibition, check out the local history display and have a walk around the lovely garden while you’re there (museum admission £6).
• The National Maritime Museum marks the close of its Traders exhibition with a full day of family friendly events around the East India Company and a family history fair 11am-6pm (free entry).
• Westminster Archives explore ‘Dickens, Death, Disease in Victorian Westminster‘ between 10am-3pm with talks, a walk and things to see (free entry).
• Hampstead Heath hosts the English National Cross Country Championships and launches its Festival of Sport and Wellbeing. Olympians will be in attendance and races start at 11am (free to spectate and explore the wonderful Heath).
• The Rotaract Club of Westminster attempts record breaking for the most number of simultaneous swimmers at Porchester Baths, Bayswater between 11.30am-1.30pm in aid of charity, End Polio Now. Swimmers, spectators and supporters warmly welcome (suggested donation £2-3 for spectators, £5 for swimmers).
• In anticipation of Oscar Night, dress fancy and go to Club de Fromage for a Not the Oscars film special clubnight, 10.30pm-3.30am (£8 before midnight).

Sunday:

• The Russian Sun Festival, Maslenitsa jollies up Trafalgar Square with family fun from 1.30-6.30pm (free). Take a look at the new Fourth Plinth statue whilst you’re there.
• The Brixton Yogathon will raise money for the Prison Phoenix Trust through the medium of sponsored sun salutations at Yogapoint SW2 from 10am, take part, support them.
• Take a pub tour of Belgravia from 2pm (£8, please book).
• Rich Mix host Awards Night, screening the Oscars live with a ceremonial glass of bubbly on arrival from 9pm (£9). Also, the Water Poet pub in Spitalfields screens two of the Best Picture nominees, The Tree of Life and Midnight in Paris from 6.30pm (£8).

Other good stuff:

• Books and spoken word
• Sci/tech/nerd stuff
• Theatre, dance, opera, classical music and exhibitions
• Things to do for a fiver or less
• Free things to do in London
• Museums and Galleries
• Cabaret, parties and alt-performance
• Stand up and sketch comedy
• Gigs to go to

Browse all latest arts and events features and make your tummy rumble with our latest food and drink content.

The judgement doesn’t deny the right to protest at St Paul’s but does ban the actual encampment. About ten tents had been packed up by yesterday with what the Standard describes as “die hards” remaining; but the camp’s acknowledged attraction for homeless people (and with rough sleeping on the rise, who can blame them) does make us wonder if the people remaining are all “die hards” or a mix of protesters and vulnerable people with nowhere else to go.

The City of London has called on the camp to disband itself, though protesters say the corporation’s lack of an eviction timetable is “reckless”. However, don’t expect all activity to cease at St Paul’s; Occupy in Finsbury Square and the School of Ideas are still running and unaffected by the ruling, so campers could just move location and keep a standing protest going at the Cathedral.

Photo by sinister pictures from the Londonist Flickr pool

Maybe an aircon future. Maybe.

Every four years (well, twice now) we’ve had a few proposals come up from one candidate or other that sound like great ideas. They’re the sort of things that everyone would agree with, but then never happen. Why? Mostly because they are (technically or financially) impossible. Here are four regular manifesto perennials that you should take with an air-conditioned tube train full of salt.

“I’ll give you air-conditioned Tubes!”

Many a Mayoral candidate has tempted us with air-con for the tube – that is, the deep lines: Bakerloo, Central, Jubilee, Piccadilly, Northern and Victoria (the shallow lines are already getting air-con). What a wonderful idea! Who could possibly disagree with this? Well the second law of thermodynamics, that’s who. Air-conditioning doesn’t destroy heat – it moves it from one place to another; from inside the train, to outside the train — and doing so creates more heat. Unfortunately, ‘outside the train’ on the Tube is a few inches of hot, stale air. Without massively upgrading the ventilation the running tunnels would get hotter, making the air-con’s job even harder and bringing the platforms to boiling point (visit the New York Subway in August for an example of this).

We’ve had competitions that came up with nothing, but at least two ideas of how tube trains might be cooled are under research: Siemens have a plan (PDF) to make a lighter, more efficient train so that some air-conditioning can be used without increasing overall heat output, and there was an idea that we could run air-conditioning only on the above sections of lines. But at heart, when some electioneer promises you a freezer-cold Victoria line they are either willfully lying or an idiot.

“I’ll open the Tube later!”

This one isn’t physically impossible, so much as very, very hard. Could the Tube run later? Yes, it does on New Year’s morning. However, they only manage that by missing out regular maintenance and safety inspections. Could these be rearranged to avoid Friday and Saturday evening? Maybe, but not while the Upgrade Programme is running (unless you want it to take even longer), and — as per the 2006 proposals – only by delaying Saturday and Sunday opening times (causing huge inconvenience for shift workers reliant on early trains). Then there are our dear unions, who don’t want to work later for the most part and would relish the opportunity to renegotiate their contracts. Better for everyone that we all get a night bus; mayoral candidates who don’t think so are very courageous indeed…

“I shall give South London Express Buses!”

The provision of express buses in London is a lovely idea — sadly the absence of any express roads for the express buses to run on makes it a non-starter. With lots of main roads in south London two lanes wide, and the best being only four, and all of it busy, any express bus would probably sit in the bus lane indicating despondently to overtake its non-express counterpart. Comparing the existing express X68 against its stopping brother the 68, between Norwood Library and Kingsway, you save four minutes according to the timetable. If your candidate tempts you with this they are a profound optimist, have never driven in London or have secret dreams of finishing the Ringways.

“I’ll make a no strike agreement with the RMT!”

No, you will not…

In a neat segue from last week’s Glass and Steel, this selection looks at some of the dozens of churches built by, or under the auspices of, Sir Christopher Wren after the Great Fire of London. Today these numerous and magnificent pieces of architecture, whether built of red brick or Portland stone, are hemmed in by the commercial buildings of the City (see St Margaret Patten, St Vedast and St Bride’s, above).

The spires of Wren’s churches once dominated views of London. Describing a painting of the 1680s in his seminal biography of London, Peter Ackryod writes about:

“The great steeple of St Mary-le-Bow… followed by that of St Clements Eastcheap and St Peter upon Cornhill, St Stephen Walbrook and St Michael Crooked Lane, as well as those of forty-seven other churches designed by Wren and his colleagues.”

Just as Wren rebuilt churches of centuries standing after the Fire, many of his own buildings were damaged or destroyed in the Blitz and it is remarkable that so many survived. Even those that didn’t, like Christ Church Greyfriars (last in the selection above) have been put to good use as public gardens.

Today, some face threats to their survival no less real (albeit less dramatic) than the Blitz. Decay, for example, is jeopardising the journalists’ church, St Bride’s (image nine). But whatever their usage, Wren’s churches — like St Paul’s towering above them — are as important to London as all the glass and steel in the world. All together now:

Oranges and lemons, Say the bells of St. Clement’s.
You owe me five farthings, Say the bells of St. Martin’s.
…

With thanks to contributors to the Londonist Flickr pool for their images: Brron, tezzer57, Karenb Photos, Lux ex Tenebris, Downtime_1882, curry15, richwat2011, paulitzerPix and tonybill.