Short notice, but here’s something I got via Facebook…. CLUB NIGHT - FREE THE STREETS! - 13 November 2008 In the summer, the Manifesto Club launched a campaign against booze bans, standing up against the petty bureaucracy that sucks the life out of public spaces. A whole host of activities are either banned outright or only allowed with official permission. As well as booze bans, there...

..Or Nightmares. Ruby’s top Halloween Treats are here!!! Firstly a massive big up has to go out to my Friends over at Bringstuff. Tonight for one night only they will be teaming up with the Almighty Celebrity Murder Party for a night of frightful fund-raising for Charity Camp Cando. BringStuff headed up by Giacomo and Katy, are the people that brought you Black and White Ball and more recent...

Tube driver this morning -“The next station is trendy Acton Town.” ….ermmmm,Since when?

I went to Legoland Windsor a few weeks back. Rain, queues, expense, queues… you get the picture. The kids loved it. But I was amused to see that the personnel at London City Hall have been updated. Boris, Ken: there they are…

Has anyone been to this exhibition yet? Anyone willing to come along? =)

A little bit Harder!!

I was coming on the tube home tonight (well the bus and the two tubes, working in Staines sucks), reading the London Paper as usual. I have for the last week or so tried to delude myself that there is NO finacial crisis and everything is NOT going to get more expensive by reading various books on the way to work; however having stayed at the Boys house I was today without any books and therefore h...

mystery symbols I’ve been working in Soho for many years, and have always wondered about the weird little symbols that one sees carved into kerbstones. What are they for? How old are they? Are they cut into the stones before or after the kerb is laid? Maybe some of London’s kerbs are cut from ancient Celtic megaliths? What does a triangle mean? A cross? An X with dots? A little arrow? ...

I finally got my own enormous, gorgeous carpet from Afghan Action. I posted about this London/Afghan charity before, and the good work that they do offering training, education and a good living within Afghanistan. Now I have an example of the craftsperson’s work on my floor and it is utterly stunning. It’s so nice to get something for the home that is fair trade and will last a lifeti...

Oooh Ooooh! Pirate Party Alert!Of all my favourite things to do, dressing up as a pirate has to be to be top on my favourites list. Pirates are simply the best, striped tights and pantaloons or wench blouses with buckled bootsyou cannot fail to look super cool and dangerous when you are a pirate.Even better is doing so whilst having access to a boat - and best has to be while you are partying on a...

Stoke Newington is CRAWLING with police this morning. You’ve never seen so many police. All over the frigging place. “What are they doing?”, you ask. Busting a major crack ring? On the trail of a terrorist cell? Nope. Catching cyclists. Yep - you heard me right. They have Stokey on lock-down so that they can bust people for riding down alleys without dismounting, running red ligh...

For the second time this week I was late this morning.There were 5 Fire engines, two police vans, and a emergency response unit as I exited Hammersmith pink line and made my way over to the Broadway Centre…A bomb maybe? or a security alert? NO… a fucking suicide. I am awfully sorry if you think I am being unsympathetic, but I don’t think its fair. I have suffered depression, as h...

Always a beautiful station, Southgate has surpassed itself since its recent renovation and restoration. If any tube stop deserved a visit on it’s own credentials its this one. A Beautiful example of Art-Deco Design, the surrounding shopping arcade and one-wayflatter the lovely Island station in the middle!

I’m digging this subversive little sticker I spotted on a wall in Upper St, Islington last night Makes me want to go and look up the facts about the information that TFL gathers about my movements. That’s TFL plus any government/council busybody or their mates. And, no doubt, the police. If you can’t make out the URL on the sticker, it’s: http://www.neoexternalism.co.uk In...

london night busSo I got invited to a particularly posh awards to do in beautiful London town the other day. The usual free champagne, wine and beer flowed all night long and by 11 o’clock the night is going well (or so I thought) I decide to meet up with some friends around Liverpool street… and the next thing I know I am asleep on a night bus and it is 3am. How did this happen, well quite obviou...

HMS Belfast, Tower Bridge, rain & a blasting sunsetA storm over the Thames this evening proved once again who runs the lighting around here. Once the rain let up after supper, this full-arc (sometimes double) rainbow sprang from (according to where we stood, anyway) the Tower over the HMS Belfast and Tower Bridge to bury itself behind City Hall. (click any of the images to enhugify). More afte...

North side post rain - click for the bigger picture!

Mack is leaving us this week, so were having a VERY last minute meet up tomorrow at Armanos cafe Tower Bridge…. “The bread is fantastic, contributing to sandwiches that blow the likes of Pret a Manger out of the water.” Flavour MagazineWith a reveiw like and a riverside veiw that i doubt we can go wrong - then we have the company of one Blogging LA’s finest to ice the cake!...

To the man with the face piercings on the No. 134 bus at 6:30 a.m.: thanks for showing me that chivalry is not dead. As the bus pulled up and opened its door, you smiled, did a little bow and waived me to go on first. First, a definition from Wikipedia (bold is mine): “Chivalry is a term related to the medieval institution of knighthood. It is usually associated with ideals of knightly virtu...

I’ve learned two crucial things about living in London, in the most interesting and dangerous ways possible, since arriving for a month-long visit three weeks ago.Indulge a dim American tourist for a second, if you will … Sure, I’ve visited London before. One of the great cities of the world, and probably a close second to NYC for my favorite.I stayed four summers with my parents...

Although, technically, we are homeless as we do not have a fixed address. We are in a better position than most homeless people, however. We are the middle class of homeless: we work, we go to the cinema, we both have Oyster cards. We are lucky. My former employer has allowed us to store our severely diminished personal effects in the basement (we had to throw out about three quarters of our stuff...

Dear Karen Buck, As you will know Dub Vendor record shack Ladbroke Grove is closing this Wednesday 25th June after over 28 years of business. Dub Vendor was key in bringing Jamaican and Carribean music to London and has played a central role in the Ladbroke Grove community.Whilst we must accept the closing of the store I am extremely concerned that we may lose the mural on the side of the store, o...

Hey, Londoners. It’s Mack, the captain wrangler for Metblogs. I’m on loan here from Los Angeles for a few weeks (all right, I’m on holiday with my wife and kids, and rudely crashing your party) but I had to share: On our first weekend in town, we stumbled into the sort of exhibit that smacks you smartly across the chops and reminds you that Modern Art Needn’t Suck: If you h...

Living in Westminster, I get to see a lot of homeless people. It is the policy of our Borough to discourage giving cash. They might be scamming. They might use it to buy smack. I don’t know. If people feel that they have spare cash to give, then maybe they should just do what their hearts tell them to do. I don’t give cash. I can’t spare it. Not one pence. But, I can give other s...