London News

🎫 London has a new immersive experience

🆕 Absurd City at Westfield London is a surreal parallel world with 5 districts, each with its own story, quirky installations and hidden rooms:

🛍️ Bloom Street – a bizarre shopping paradise
♻️ Reclamia – discarded objects turned into spectacular creations
🎨 Imaginopolis – a colourful world of art
👾 NEON // NEXUS – a futuristic underground world
💎 Elite HQ – a surreal world of luxury and excess


🎟️ Tickets: from £22.95 (price depends on date and time)
📍 Absurd City, Westfield London, Ariel Way, W12 7SL (Shepherd’s Bush)

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🎨 Johnny Depp’s first major London exhibition is now open

📍 Halcyon Gallery, New Bond Street

📰 On October 13, the actor unveiled a large show of his paintings and sculptures at Halcyon Gallery on New Bond Street. It features floral compositions, psychological portraits and fantastical imagery, many inspired by the outsiders and antiheroes he has played on screen.

⭐️ Highlight: his first-ever sculpture, The Rabbit Man, based on a drawing by his son Jack, made at age five. It echoed a recurring childhood dream Depp had at the same age.

@LondonNews

👓 UK smart glasses: ban them or not?

⚖️ Camera glasses are splitting British society. Courts across the UK have barred them since August, several London venues have restricted them over covert filming, and UK cinemas are weighing bans over piracy. Campaigners are pushing to stop their mass-market sale and want the devices banned.

🧾 On the other side, groups like the RNIB warn that over-regulation could take away a key tool for blind and visually impaired people, who use the glasses to read menus, signs and labels.

🤔 The government said in June it has no plans for specific legislation and points to existing laws. Meanwhile, a YouGov poll found 49% of Brits support a ban in public spaces, and 30% oppose it.

@LondonNews

🏚 London landlord started demolishing a building while a tenant was asleep inside. Now he's suing for £100k

ℹ️ Nicola Saia says he woke up in July 2023 to a loud noise and debris falling from the ceiling. Workers had begun stripping the roof with the landlord's approval, even though Saia was still inside.

📍 The building is the former Cricketers pub in Kennington, right next to the Oval cricket ground. It was a famous music pub in the 1980s, later a Portuguese restaurant, and its roof was used by fans to watch sold-out matches for free.


📰 Saia is seeking up to £100,000 for distress and unlawful eviction. The owner disputes that he was a tenant in the conventional sense.

@LondonNews

🌉 Waterloo Bridge could close over cracks

📰 Cracks and water damage have been found on Waterloo Bridge, and it could be forced to close within three to four years if urgent repairs aren't carried out. Over 25,000 vehicles and thousands of pedestrians and cyclists use it every day, so a closure would put real pressure on neighbouring bridges and roads.

📍 It joins the list of ailing London crossings: Hammersmith Bridge has been closed to cars since 2019, and Albert Bridge got car restrictions earlier this year.

👌 For now, Waterloo Bridge is open as usual.

@LondonNews

☔ London in a nutshell

☀️ Rain at 9, sun at 10, and nobody's surprised.

Mind the gap, but never the vibe.

@LondonCenter

🎤 The legend lives on

📰 A mural of Freddie Mercury has appeared next to London's Wembley Stadium. Titled "I'm Mr. Mercury," the anamorphic artwork by street artist Frank Styles stretches across all 58 of Wembley Park's Spanish Steps — and only reveals itself as a single portrait from one designated viewing spot.

• The mural is surrounded by symbols close to Mercury's heart: koi carp, a nod to his love of Japan, and winged fairy figures tied to his zodiac sign, Virgo that is imagery he once wove into the Queen crest himself.

• The location is no coincidence, too. Wembley is where the legendary Live Aid festival took place in 1985.

📍 Free to view 24/7 through December 2026.

@LondonNews

🧡 London doesn't need summer to shine

🍂 Golden plane trees along the Thames, misty mornings, crunchy leaves in the parks, and that first proper coat-and-scarf weather. Add roasted chestnuts and cosy pubs, and you've got the most underrated season in the city.

@LondonNews

⛸ London's open-air ice rinks schedule this year

🎄 Christmas is closer than we think. The opening dates for London's festive outdoor ice rinks are already out:

🏛 Queen's House Ice Rink
18 November 2026 – 3 January 2027

⚡ Glide at Battersea
6 November 2026 – 3 January 2027

🏛 Skate at Somerset House
11 November 2026 – 10 January 2027

👑 Hampton Court Palace
20 November 2026 – 3 January 2027

🎡 Hyde Park Winter Wonderland
19 November 2026 – 3 January 2027

❌ Ice Rink Canary Wharf
Not opening this year


@LondonNews

🚂 Ruislip Lido Railway opens for a two-day special

📰 This weekend, the UK's longest miniature railway (with a track gauge of just 30.5 cm) is running trains every 15 minutes through woodland and around Ruislip Lido. Visitors can also check out the locomotives, join a depot tour, and browse the gift shop.

📅 September 19-20, 11:00-17:00
🎟 Tickets on the official website

@LondonNews

🇬🇧 Bank of England holds rate at 3.75%

📰 The BoE's Monetary Policy Committee voted 6-3 to keep rates unchanged, with the minority pushing for a 25bp hike to 4%. The call largely matched analyst expectations, even as inflation hit a 5-month high – UK CPI rose 3.1% y/y and 0.5% m/m in August.

ℹ️ Governor Andrew Bailey signaled a possible future hike amid energy market volatility, saying that for now rising energy prices have had limited pass-through to pricing and wage growth, but the longer this instability persists, the more it will feed into inflation – and the more likely a rate hike becomes to bring inflation back to the 2% target.

📆 Next MPC meeting: November 5.

@LondonNews

👂 A "quiet space" appears in the London Underground as part of a new trial

📰 Rush-hour crowds can be a real barrier for neurodivergent travellers. TfL, together with NOOK pod and the charity Autistica, has trialled a calm space at Ealing Broadway station – a small low-stimulation nook with acoustic shielding, soft seating and nature-scene panels, open until 2 October and accessible to wheelchair users, pushchairs and assistance dogs.

ℹ️ Autistica's research with neurodivergent people found that having somewhere quiet to retreat to can boost confidence and help people keep travelling independently instead of avoiding journeys altogether.

📍 A second calm space opens this autumn at the London Transport Museum in Covent Garden, as part of TfL's £3m-a-year, five-year accessibility push.

@LondonNews

🇬🇧 London Sunday – https://londonist.com/london/weekend/things-to-do-in-london-this-weekend-1-2-august-2026
🎶 Camden's Jazz Cafe festival hits Burgess Park with Ari Lennox, Smino & Durand Bernarr, noon–10pm.

🎭 Top pick: The Comedy About Spies at the Adelphi. Also on: Hadestown, ABBA Voyage, Now You See Me Live.

🆓 Free today: evensong at St Paul's, Speakers' Corner, Horse Guards Dismounting Ceremony. Open museums: Royal Academy, Saatchi Gallery, Natural History Museum.

🚇 Piccadilly line still closed this weekend — check TfL before heading out.

Enjoy your Sunday, London!

https://t.me/LondonClub

📚 J.K. Rowling could get a payout from the largest AI copyright settlement ever

📰 Anthropic https://www.itv.com/news/2026-07-22/bloomsbury-book-publisher-wins-payout-in-11bn-anthropic-copyright-settlement to pay $1.5 billion to settle a lawsuit over using pirated books to train its Claude AI – now finally approved by a U.S. court.

🔹 The deal covers ~482,000 works, including 14,087 titles from Bloomsbury (Rowling's publisher, also home to Sarah J. Maas and Susanna Clarke). Each title gets ~$3,000, split between author and publisher. It's unclear if the Harry Potter books are included — Rowling hasn't commented.

🔹 Filed in 2024, the case is being called the largest copyright recovery in U.S. history, and one of the first major AI-vs-authors settlements.

🎵 London's getting a free jazz jestival

📰 Ronnie Scott's – London's legendary jazz club – https://www.ronniescotts.co.uk/find-a-show/ronnie-scotts-street-party-2026 a free street festival in Soho on August 1st. Two open-air stages on Frith Street, five hours of live music, DJ sets and jazz for everyone. On the lineup: Blue Lab Beats, Daniel Casimir Big Band, Shae Universe, Guvna B, Summer Pearl, Marlon the Pannist and the club's own Gospel Choir. Plus outdoor bars and family-friendly activities.

📍 Frith Street, Soho | Aug 1 | Free entry

🆕 A once-in-a-lifetime collection of ancient Egyptian treasures has arrived in London for the first time

📍 NEON at Battersea Power Station

📰 After a five-year world tour taking in Paris, San Francisco, Sydney and Tokyo, " https://feverup.com/m/503872 at a brand-new venue at the historic Battersea Power Station. More than 180 original treasures, each over 3,000 years old, are on loan directly from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo — in the UK for the first and only time.

ℹ️ Highlights include the original coffin that once held the mummy of Ramses II, along with sarcophagi, animal mummies, royal masks, jewellery and amulets, many of which have never left Egypt before. Ramses II ruled Egypt for nearly 67 years and is remembered as the warrior-king who helped define the height of Ancient Egyptian civilization.

📜 Oldest surviving fragment of Homer's "Odyssey" was on display during the London leg of Nolan's new film promo tour

It's over 1,700 years old!

More https://t.me/MovieNews ⬅️ here.

🏇 https://thecarmen.co.uk/history/cart-marking/London's Ancient Vehicle-Branding Ceremony

📆 Saturday, 18 July – Guildhall Yard in the City of London hosts one of the capital's quirkiest traditions.
Up to fifty vehicles will be branded with a red-hot iron, the ancient origin of vehicle licensing. The tradition dates back roughly 500 years, when a mark was burnt onto a cart's wood once its owner had paid for a licence. It's the second biggest event in the City of London after the Lord Mayor's Show, run by the Worshipful Company of Carmen.

👍 Expect everything from handcarts and steam engines to hydrogen-powered vehicles, presented one by one to the Sheriffs, Wardens and Master Carman in full ceremonial robes.

📍 Guildhall Yard, City of London
🕙 10 AM – 4 PM
💷 Free

#events #free #culture

🦆 3,000 rubber ducks are about to take over Paddington Basin

📍 Merchant Square, Paddington Basin
🎫 Free to watch

📰 On 30 July, up to 3,000 rubber ducks https://duckrace.cosmiccharity.org.uk/ into Regent's Canal at Merchant Square for the annual Cosmic Rubber Duck Race – raising money for the children's and neonatal intensive care units at St Mary's and Queen Charlotte's Hospitals.

💷 Sponsor a duck for just £3 (no limit on how many), and if yours is first to bob 100 metres to the finish line, you win a pair of return Eurostar tickets — plus extra prizes from Haidilao, B.Duck and DCUK.
Ducks go in at St Mary's footbridge at noon, race for two hours, then get scooped straight back out — no stray ducks left drifting through London. And that's just the warm-up: later the same day, 22 teams face off in the Dragon Boat Regatta, the real main event.

✈️ Stansted launches its first-ever night trains to London

📰 From July 3 to September 25, extra Stansted Express trains https://www.timeout.com/london/news/stansted-express-first-night-trains-070326 every Friday night until 5am Saturday, roughly every 30 minutes, linking the airport with Tottenham Hale (connecting to the Victoria line night tube). Some early-morning services will continue to Liverpool Street.

📆 After September 25, operator Greater Anglia will review demand before deciding whether to keep the service.

🛂 Also from July 8, children aged 8 and 9 will be able to use e-gates at Stansted (down from age 10), as long as they're at least 120cm tall and travelling with an adult. The change applies at 13 UK airports plus UK border points in Paris and Brussels.

#transport

7️⃣ unique things to see in London – 100% free

1. The lift at the Standard
📍 10 Argyle Street
✅ Only accessible if you're heading to Decimo restaurant or Sweeties bar

2. Natural History Museum escalator
📍 Cromwell Road, South Kensington
✅ Entry is free

3. Thin House
📍 Thurloe Square, South Kensington
✅ Spot it near South Kensington tube station on your way to the museum

4. Rainbow Tunnel
📍 N1C 4AG
✅ Just steps from King's Cross St Pancras station

5. The man inside the clock
📍 Outside Paddington Station

6. Sky Pool
📍 Embassy Gardens
✅ Residents-only for swimming, but worth spotting on your way to Battersea Power Station

7. Fake 10 Downing Street
📍 10 Adam Street, WC2R 0DE
✅ No entry, but a great photo spot


#places #free

🐉 A dragon spotted over London

📰 Londoners looked up and saw a dragon soaring across the sky — and yes, it was real. The giant flying creature is part of HBO’s promo campaign for https://t.me/movienews. No CGI involved.

🐲 The animatronic dragon features 23 moving parts that recreate realistic flight movements. It took three months to build, has an 8-meter wingspan, and stays airborne thanks to turbines hidden inside its legs.

#media

🪧 London locals fight back against AI data centre

📰 Residents near Brick Lane, East London, are protesting a 5,200 sq m data centre planned for the historic Truman Brewery site: citing noise, ugly design, and heavy water/power use (as much as 15,000 homes) amid the city's worst drought in decades.

👌 The UK government approved it anyway, overruling Tower Hamlets Council and the Save Brick Lane campaign, saying economic benefits outweigh the downsides:
• Mayor Lutfur Rahman: the centre will do nothing for "the activity, vitality and character" of the area.

• Housing Minister Matthew Pennycook: it'll give City of London traders faster, lower-latency connections.



@LondonNews

🇬🇧 How it was

🎉 One of London’s biggest celebrations was back last weekend.

@LondonNews

🇰🇷 London to host its first Korean food festival

📰 This May, King’s Cross https://www.timeout.com/london/news/londons-first-ever-korean-food-festival-is-coming-to-kings-cross-next-month-040126 a hub of Korean cuisine as the city hosts the debut of Jung Festival — a large-scale gastronomic event celebrating both traditional and modern flavors of South Korea.

🍛 Around 30 vendors will gather at Canopy Market, serving everything from classics like kimbap and bulgogi to desserts such as kkwabaegi (twisted Korean doughnuts). Popular London spots like Cheemc, Kiwa, and Hoho London will take part, while Hongdae Pocha will recreate the vibe of 1970s Korean bars.

🛍 Visitors can also shop for Korean ingredients — from sauces to kimchi kits.

📅 May 1–4
🎟 Free entry

#food #events #free

🚌 Free buses & DLR rides extended in East London

📆 Free travel on several bus routes and DLR sections https://www.timeout.com/london/news/three-london-bus-routes-and-two-dlr-lines-are-now-free-to-ride-for-two-months-040726 until May 26, 2026.

👉 Bus routes: 108, 129, SL4
👉 DLR sections:
• Greenwich ↔ Island Gardens
• Woolwich Arsenal ↔ King George V

💳 Passengers still need to tap in with Oyster or contactless – the fare is refunded automatically.

🚲 The Silvertown Tunnel “bike bus” also remains free.

#transport #free

🍺 Dogs get “beer” in London

🐶 To celebrate National Pet Day (April 11), Market Place Food Hall is serving free dog-friendly drinks till April 13, including a non-alcoholic “Doggy Guinness” and fun juice-based cocktails.

📍 Locations: Vauxhall, St Paul’s, Leicester Square (St Paul’s closed Sunday). One drink per pet, while supplies last.

#free #pets

🇬🇧 Wireless Festival in the UK has been canceled

📰 Kanye West (Ye) https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c4gxk3kxjr0o to headline in London, but backlash over past antisemitic and pro-Nazi remarks led to a swift decision: the UK denied him entry, citing public interest (via BBC).

🙅‍♂️ Organizers canceled the festival and will refund tickets, calling antisemitism unacceptable. Sponsors like PepsiCo, PayPal, and Diageo pulled out. Campaign Against Antisemitism criticized the organizers’ approach.

😔 Ye previously apologized for his statements and said he is ready to engage in dialogue with the UK Jewish community.

#concerts #celebrities #events

🌮 River Walk Market is back in Battersea

📆 London’s riverside market by Battersea Power Station https://batterseapowerstation.co.uk/events/river-walk-market/ every Sunday until the end of August, featuring local food, drinks, and artisan goods. Expect a rotating lineup of vendors, including Acai Island, Biltong Boss, Chillie Brothers, plus newcomers like Borough Cheese and London Vermouth.

📍 Easy to reach: Battersea Park, Tube (Battersea Power Station), or Thames Clippers.

#wheretogo #food

🚴🏼 £13M cycle route approved in London

📰 A new Cycleway C72 https://www.timeout.com/london/news/a-vast-new-13-million-cycle-route-is-coming-to-northwest-london-032926 in northwest London, linking Wembley Central and Harlesden. The route will run along quieter residential streets and partially on protected lanes.

📍Harrow Road will get a dedicated cycle lane due to safety concerns (90 accidents in 3 years). The project, developed with Brent Council, aims to improve both cycling and pedestrian infrastructure. 87% of residents supported the plan. Detailed design work is now underway and will take about a year.

#roads #projects #trasport