Alice French

You don’t have to leave the city to go on an adventure. Did you know you can go ice climbing in Zone 1? Or how about wakeboarding in east London? We’ve picked out London’s most adventurous activities to help you feel invigorated without leaving the M25.

Need a hit of sweet, bitter orange nectar tonight? Of course you do. And we know a few places where you can get your Aperol Spritz on the cheap. Seriously cheap. Here are seven spots in London where you can fill your cup with that trendy prosecco-soda-Aperol mix for a fiver or less.  1. Polpo, £5 (daily 4pm-6pm) Let the gods rain neon orange on us tonight as we quaff at the bar of popular central London restaurant Polpo. They bless us with £5 spritzes every day between 4pm and 6pm.   A post shared by Hannah Trott (@hratrott) on Jul 29, 2017 at 6:56am PDT 2. Wine Rack Belsize Park, £3.99 To paraphrase Kendrick Lamar, Wine Rack’s got a swimming pool full of bargain liquor and we’ll more than happily dive in it. Both a wine wholesaler and (possibly) London’s cheapest bar, Wine Rack does an Aperol Spritz for just £3.99. Belsize Park tube.  A post shared by Wine Rack UK (@wine_rack_uk) on May 13, 2016 at 4:11am PDT   3. The Alwyne Castle, two for £5.95 Whoa! What? The Alwyne Castle in Highbury is participating in an Aperol Social event today and tomorrow (from 5pm), where you can get two refreshing spritzes for the price of one. That sounds like cause for a right royal knees-up. Highbury & Islington tube. A post shared by Robert Maunder (@maunderrob) on Jul 6, 2017 at 12:50pm PDT   4. Bar Elba, £5 This bar, opposite Waterloo station, has taken a fresh approach to helping commuters avoid the platform crush. It’s giving rail season ticket holders 50 percent o

London has more international airports than any other city in the world: six in total. But why? You’ve been Googling it, so we asked airport boffin and comedian Jay Foreman. ‘London’s largest airport, Heathrow, is hemmed in by the suburbs and limited to just two runways,’ he explains. ‘Because it can’t expand, the demand for air travel is met by smaller, single-runway airports around the South-East: Gatwick, Stansted, Luton and Southend.’ None of these are technically in London, however: ‘A combination of high demand and clever marketing has meant these former RAF bases are known as “London” airports, despite being some distance from the capital.’ The big exception is London City Airport: ‘Built from scratch in 1987 on an old dock that was already conveniently runway-shaped,’ adds Foreman, it’s the only international airport apart from Heathrow that’s actually within Greater London. The rest are just blagging it. Love London? Sign up here to get Time Out tips in your inbox every week.

Remember the purple lavender fields blossoming all over London/Instagram all summer? Well, one of them needs your help. Friends of Vauxhall Park will be gathering tomorrow to start the great lavender harvest as autumn creeps in, and they need extra pairs of hands. The work is easy and should be fun, plus you’ll smell great when you leave. Once the flowers are cut, they’ll be distilled into nourishing, relaxing oil, and the proceeds will be put back into maintaining the lovely local park.  If you fancy helping out, just take along some shears and gloves, and be there for 10am tomorrow (Saturday Sep 9) morning.  For more information, contact friends@vauxhallpark.org.uk or visit www.vauxhallpark.org.uk.      

From yoga classes to spa experiences, London has loads of ways we can treat our furry friends – here are five of the best. 1. Puppy crèche A post shared by Shoreditch Dog House (@shoreditchdog) on Aug 10, 2017 at 4:33am PDT If your pup comes to work with you, drop them off at the brand-new Shoreditch Dog House dog crèche on Brick Lane over lunchtime. Not only will you get some work done, but they’ll get to make friends while you do. The Canvas, 42 Hanbury St, E1 5JL. 2. Doga A post shared by Doga Yoga For you And Your Dog (@dogamahny_) on Jul 22, 2017 at 5:22pm PDT Work on your downward dog while your actual dog runs around at a Doga session with Mahny in Shoreditch. These classes, run by a former ‘Britain’s Got Talent’ contestant, are said to increase the bond between you and your puppy pal, and you get a cuddle with other pups in the class, too. Blueberry Bar, 2-4 Paul St, EC2A 4JH. 3. Retail therapy A post shared by Barkers of Muswell Hill (@barkersofmuswellhill) on Aug 21, 2017 at 1:09am PDT Not only is Barkers an emporium of dog treats, accessories and toys, but your little furry friend can get a wash, cut and blow dry while they’re there! It’s like the Oxford Street Topshop for dogs. 70 Fortis Green Rd, N10 3HN. 4. Sunday Brunch A post shared by 🐾 Lana 🐾 (@lana.celine.galore) on Aug 6, 2017 at 12:21pm PDT The Doggy Sunday Brunch at Gaucho Hampstead is just as much a treat for you as it is for your puppy, with a gourmet t

You’ve probably seen London Duck Tours’ yellow truck-boat hybrids around London. The clever cruisers are a staple in and around the River Thames. But the tour operators are set to disappear next month.  London Duck Tours are being forced to shut down in September, after 15 years of service in the city. Their central London launchpad has been acquired by Thames Water for the Thames Tideway Tunnel development, and they couldn’t find an alternative access point for their tour vehicles. The strange yellow sights will be missed by Londoners and visitors alike, but the reason they must quack it in is for the good of the Thames. The Thames Tideway Tunnel development is set to stop 39 million tonnes of raw sewage from spilling into the Thames every year.  ‘[It] will be a sad day for the company, which was going from strength to strength, but it was vital not to delay construction of this much-needed infrastructure project,' says John Bigos, managing director of London Duck Tours. ‘Tourists worldwide and Londoners will surely miss our iconic bright yellow DUKWs travelling around town. They have become a landmark in their own right. I would like to thank our staff, many of whom have been with London Duck Tours from the start, and the 1.8 million passengers that have travelled on a London Duck Tour,’ he adds. If you want to bid London Duck Tours a personal farewell, make sure you grab one last tour before September 18, when the tours will be ending for the foreseeable future.  Sightse

Over the past year or so you may have seen these mysterious notes stuck on bins, lampposts and leccie boxes, just hanging there waiting to cheer someone up. They’re kind of like those things your mum has stuck up in the kitchen telling you to ‘dance like nobody’s watching’, but out on the streets – thus edgier. The man behind the mysterious messages, Andy Leek, decided to spread some words of encouragement and advice to his fellow city dwellers after feeling the need for a little inspiration himself. We all need a bit of love sometimes, and this guy is spreading it far and wide. The colourful notes have given us the boost we need on a Monday morning, reminding us that we can get that report done and will send out those emails. But above all, they’ve made some cracking Instagram posts. Here are some of our favourites. (With thanks to Adam Qureshi.) A post shared by parishahmir (@parishahmir) on Aug 22, 2017 at 5:20am PDT A post shared by WWD (@whatwedo.bh) on Aug 21, 2017 at 3:39pm PDT A post shared by Will Heffernan (@willscitylife) on Aug 13, 2017 at 11:02am PDT A post shared by Hannah Harding (@hannahkaty) on Aug 20, 2017 at 6:38am PDT A post shared by @georgiew71 on Aug 5, 2017 at 4:09am PDT A post shared by "Oh, the places you'll go..." (@whatclairedidnext) on Aug 14, 2017 at 10:14am PDT

Heading to Carnival today? Whip out any lime, emerald or khaki clothes you’ve got. This year’s event is going ‘Green for Grenfell’.  Local community groups and businesses have come together to organise the initiative and are encouraging everyone to come dressed in the colour. The idea was inspired by some local school children, who decided to wear green as a sign of remembrance for their friends and family that were affected by the fire in the west London tower block. There will also be a minute silence on both days of Carnival at 3pm to respect those that sadly passed away, and the Lancaster West Estate, which the tower is part of, will be made into a quiet reflection zone for people to pay their respects. Everything you need to know about Notting Hill Carnival Here's a route map for this year's event 

A post shared by Ben Eine (@einesigns) on Jul 12, 2017 at 11:58am PDT Well known for his circus-style lettering around Old Street and Shoreditch – and his awesome tribute to the Grenfell Fire victims earlier this year – Ben Eine is now creating a unique pop-up called the Data Dollar Store. His prints normally sell out quicker than you can say ‘OMG I FREAKIN’ LOVE STREET ART SO MUCH,’ so this pop-up is a rare chance to get your hands on one of his limited editions. But wait – put your wallets away. Eine doesn’t want your stinkin’ money.   He wants to get paid in your ‘personal data’… All very mysterious, and yeah, a little creepy. The pop-up is aiming to question customers’ awareness of cybercrime and is being done in partnership with cyber security giant Kaspersky Lab, so maybe that’s a clue as to what they have in store. The Data Dollar Store will be open in Old Street Station from Sep 6-7, 8:30am-7pm. Find out more about Ben Eine and his work on his Instagram. Want more art? Simply click right here.

Have you ever wanted to watch the sun set over London from The Shard, but can’t bear the thought of forking out the entry fee?  Well, tonight Londoners are being given the chance to ascend that pointy skyscraper at dusk, and take in those skyline views free of charge.  You’ll also get a free Corona beer, and see The View from The Shard turned into a tropical beach, complete with window-facing hammocks, special guest DJs and Insta-worthy photo opportunities. Entry is between 8-10pm tonight from the London Bridge entrance to The View from The Shard (apparently 8.08pm is the prime sunset-viewing time). You must be over 18 to participate, and it’s first come first served, so get there early to join the queue.  The Shard, 32 London Bridge St, SE1 9SG. Prefer boozy views? Have a look at these rooftop bars in London  

Denim lovers, listen up: J Brand are putting on their first ever UK sample sale this September. The Cali-cool fashion label (best known for its seriously-skinny skinny jeans) will be flogging some cut-price clobber in Hackney, with discounts of up to 80 percent.  Starting at £35, both womenswear and menswear will be on offer, including classic denim, leather jackets, T-shirts and a careful edit of its Ready to Wear collection. You’ll find the sale at The Box, which provides an independent platform for emerging and established designers, and it’ll be open all day from Thursday to Sunday, September 7-September 10. Get ready to cheat on your favourite pair of battered old jeans.  Sep 7-Sep 10 at The Box, E9 6LT.  Can’t make it? Tick a few of the 100 best shops in London off your bucket list instead. 

Have you ever wondered what your home might have looked like before the Great Fire of London or during wartime Britain – before the focal point of the room was your TV? Well now you can poke around London homes and interiors across four centuries – without leaving your own living room, thanks to a new virtual tour of the Geffrye Museum.  With a few mouse clicks, you can visit a grand drawing room from a nineteenth-century home, an ‘urban flat’ from 1935 and the chapel used by the residents of the Geffrye almshouses for more than 200 years, before they became a museum. There’s even a room devoted to different chairs through time, paired with their likely owners. And there are little snippets of information about why a house would feature certain things and where different eras would have taken their inspiration – whether that was fancy France, or their family home.  Sure, the virtual tour is convenient, but the museum itself has a lot to offer (the beautifully airy garden room just by the coffee shop for one) so it’s also worth the trip to go and see it. It’s also free.  You can take the virtual tour here, or see the Geffrye IRL at 136 Kingsland Road, E2 8EA. Want more? How about The Shard’s completely terrifying virtual reality slide.

This week, Big Ben’s bongs ceased (temporarily, he shall ring again in 2021), due to repair works – leaving London longing for his bonging. How will we be able to tell the time without it? To replace that ringing in your ears, you could try sitting on the bus during the school run or watching back-to-back episodes of ‘Countdown’ on All 4… Or you could follow our advice and go find somewhere fun to hear the bells.  St Paul’s Great Tom strikes the hours, just like our beloved Ben, but also sounds at the death of senior royal family members and some prominent Catholic figures. The famous cathedral holds the second-largest ring of change bells in the world, with an impressive 12 bells ring-out every Sunday. Westminster Cathedral This church bell, named Edward, was a gift from the Duchess of Norfolk in 1910, inscribed with a prayer of protection over England. Upcoming events include the Battle of Britain Service on September 17 and St Matthew’s Day on September 21 when Edward’s ‘prayer’ will be heard over the capital. Docklands Ringers The Docklands Ringers groups across south-east London promote the dying art of bell-ringing. Active in 11 locations, they hold bell-ringing training every Thursday. Go along and learn to ring, or just to listen. Sanderstead Handbell Ringers Two teams of handbell-ringers are based at All Saints’ Church in South Croydon. The Sanderstead 2 O’Clock Bells group dedicate their Monday afternoons to learning and teaching the unsung art of the handbells.