Amy Houghton

Do you smell it? That faint waft of pumpkin spice latte in the air? Summer’s sunny days and balmy nights may be behind us, but now it’s time to embrace all the wonderful, cosy things autumn has to offer.  For some, this time of year is all about spooky season, for others it’s about candle-lit evenings in front of the telly with a steaming mug of hot chocolate. For others, it’s about pumpkins galore – a golden excuse to get picking, carving and cooking. As the weather drops, farms in and around London become gourd wonderlands, littered with bright yellow and flaming orange pumpkins. Often there’ll be photo opportunities, craft workshops and spooky goings on thrown in so you can make a real outing of it. Just make sure you book in advance to make sure you get a decent pick of the crop. So, whether you want to stock up on pumpkins to carve into Halloween lanterns or to make masses of soup and pies, here are our favourite places near London for pumpkin picking in 2025.  RECOMMENDED: The best things to do in London in October 2025

It’s hard not to fall in love with Wales. This nation may be small but best believe it is crammed with irresistible Celtic charm, spectacular wilderness and vibrant culture. Even after growing up in Bannau Brycheiniog and spending family holidays up north and along the coast, I still cannot get enough. It’s the perfect place to rejuvenate, to give your mind a rest and to bathe in the warm hospitality of Welsh people. It’s also a hugely overlooked arts and music hub. From Michelin-star establishments, to gorgeous hikes, an official book town and several critically acclaimed festivals, whatever kind of getaway you're after, this is the very best of Cymru.  RECOMMENDED: 📍 The best places to go in Wales 🍴 The best things to do in North Wales 👀 The best things to do in Cardiff🌤️ The best things to do in the UK This article was recently updated by Amy Houghton, a writer from Bannau Brycheiniog, Wales. At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. This guide includes affiliate links, which have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

There are few things that we’d willingly brace the cold for during winter in London. But ice skating is one of them. From around October each year, pop-up ice rinks fill the city, decked out in fairy lights, hosting DJ takeovers and inviting folk to skate late into the night. So, dig out your warmest hats and scarves – soon, you’ll get to romantically glide (or awkwardly stumble) with your loved ones under the backdrop of landmarks like Somerset House, Battersea Power Station and Hampton Court Palace.  Keen to flaunt your best ice moves? Determined to skate at least one lap without clinging onto the wall for dear life? We recommend you book a spot at your chosen rink as early as you can. Here are some of the best rinks to soar across this winter. We’ll be topping up this list as more rinks for the 2025/26 season are confirmed. How much does it cost to go ice skating? The cost to skate at London’s various permanent and pop-up ice rinks varies quite significantly. So far, this year’s cheapest option is Queens Skate Dine and Bowl, where adult tickets are available from £8 (during off-peak hours). The most expensive adult ticket in 2024 was £26 for peak hours at Skate at Somerset House. For cheaper tickets, consider visiting at less popular times.  RECOMMENDED: our ultimate guide to Christmas in London.

Whatever your vibe (and whatever your budget), London’s got it all – and anyone will find something they love here. Historic pubs, leafy parks and gardens and an unmatched restaurant scene make this city worth visiting year-round, but before you’ve booked anything in London, you kind of have to know where you’re going to be based. To get you started, we’ve rounded up the city’s best Airbnbs available to book right now, with expert tips from our local editors.  Should I choose an Airbnb or a hotel in London? London is not short on lovely hotels, ranging from budget to luxury and just about everything in between. But it’s fair to say that even the cheaper options cost a pretty penny – and you’ll often find them in more central, touristy areas in the city. If you want to live like a Londoner, an Airbnb can allow you to properly immerse yourself in a more residential area of London – and all the locally-loved bars, pubs and restaurants that come with it. You’ll find lots of our local tips below, but for a detailed breakdown of the best neighbourhoods to stay in London, check out our ultimate area guide. More of a hotels guy? No problem. Here’s our list of the best hotels in London.  📍 RECOMMENDED: Ultimate guide to the best hotels and Airbnbs in London Who makes the cut? While we might not stay in and review every Airbnb featured, our writers have based our list on expert knowledge of the destination covered, editorial reviews, user reviews, amenities and in-depth research to

The final stretch of 2025 is upon us. And now that we’ve said so long to summer, London’s institutions have begun to enter full festive planning mode. In a matter of months, the city’s skies will be sparkling with Christmas lights, its venues will fill up with classic Christmas tunes and its streets will be lined with colourful Christmas markets. Of course, December isn’t just about Christmas, and there’s plenty more brilliant things to do besides all the festive stuff. Notably, the acclaimed Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo is making its UK debut, it’s the first full month of the Design Museum’s hotly-anticipated Wes Anderson exhibition and the last full month of the bonkers jukebox musical Titanique. Plus, there are the ice-skating rinks, the winter pop-ups and the chilly winter walks followed by cosy pub hangouts. And that’s before we even get on to New Year’s Eve!  Here’s our guide to the finest events, parties, cultural happenings and things to do in London over December 2025. RECOMMENDED: Time Out’s definitive London events calendar.

It’s no secret that London can be very, very pricey if you’re not careful. But that doesn’t mean there aren’t any options if you’re on a budget. Both big chains and beloved independents offer some very affordable rooms in the Capital – you just have to know where to look. Obviously, being ‘on a budget’ is pretty subjective, but every hotel on this list has rooms for under £200, with many starting under £100 – and even some shared dorms for £12 per person.  Every hotel highlighted here by Time Out’s experts is good value; whether that be because of its location, design, or quite simply, the price. Staying in one of these will give you the kind of buzz only a good deal can deliver. So get booking and then use all the cash you’ve saved on more important stuff. Like, erm, going to the pub.  🛌 Our guide to the best Airbnbs in London Which area is best to stay in London for a good price?  Honestly, it depends on what you’re looking for. There’s cheap options in Shoreditch, just off the South Bank and even in the heart of the West End – so you can save and still be in walking distance to Theatreland or London’s best museums. Or, go further afield to find deals that way, in more residential areas further out. To get a better grip on your options, here’s our handy guide on where to stay in London.  How we curate our hotel lists Headed up by editor Joe Mackertich, our team at Time Out London spend their time reviewing hotels all over the Capital – new openings, old classics and ever

August 2025 update: There's new songs being added to karaoke machines on a regular basis, so we see it as our duty to keep this list bang up to date. Our latest additions include a modern British classic from Lola Young, as well as the bounciest anthem to emerge over the past 12 months from Blackpink's Rosé and Bruno Mars. Whether you’ve got the voice of an angel or you’re totally tone deaf, karaoke unites us all. But heed our warning: choosing the right song is crucial (aka, don’t opt for that Whitney Houston tune if you haven’t the range. And if you don't have good enough flow, steer clear of rapping. Kapeesh?) So we thought we’d help out a little bit. In our list of the best karaoke songs ever, we’ve got everyone from Adele to Toto, and from Frank Sinatra to Ricky Martin. There's even recent singalongs from Sabrina Carpenter and Chappell Roan. Something for everyone. So down that shot, grab that mic and take to the stage. Your audience awaits you. Here are the best karaoke songs ever.  RECOMMENDED:❤️ The best love songs☀️ The best summer songs🎉 The best party songs🕺 The best albums of 2025 so far  

Cardiff is arguably one of the best-kept foodie secrets in the UK. While it might get overlooked in favour of some more famous destinations, all that means is there’s more scrumptious food on offer for those who are wise enough to buck trends and head to the Welsh capital.  Many of the UK’s most innovative chefs have set up shop here, including the likes of Pembrokeshire’s Tom Simmons, and restaurants across the city have inventive, artistic dishes flying out of their kitchens – but don’t get us wrong, Cardiff also knows a thing or two about classic, hearty, comforting food too. Be you after a posh, Michelin-starred spot for a special occasion or just a trusty, locally-recommended spot for a day of sightseeing, here is our handpicked roundup of the city’s best restaurants. RECOMMENDED:🎨 The best things to do in Cardiff🏩 The best Airbnbs in Cardiff🌉 The best things to do in Wales☀️ The best things to do in the UK This guide was recently updated by Sophie Williams, a writer based in Cardiff. At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. 

Boxing Day has all the magic of Christmas Day, just without the stress of cooking a colossal feast or the pressure of keeping the whole family happy. The in-laws have departed, the gifts have been handed out and now you can spend the day slouched in sweatpants, binging festive specials and demolishing chocolate reindeer while nursing a mild hangover. As enjoyable as all that is, we’re here to make the case for getting out and about on December 26.  The day after Christmas, London is mostly free of its usual crowds (except for shopping districts like Oxford Street packed with bargain hunters). That means that, should you leave your house, large parts of the capital city are yours for the taking.  There are the parks and riverside paths for frosty winter walks or the Christmas lights to admire while you brave the Boxing Day sales. The city’s pop-up ice skating rinks are normally open, pantomime season is still in full swing and there are even a few parties lined up . Here are some great ideas for how to spend your day off. RECOMMENDED: Find more festive fun with our full guide to Christmas in London.

Things are getting more and more expensive here in Europe, and many of our reliably ‘cheap’ cities aren’t so cheap anymore. The hotspots in Greece, Spain, Italy and more are plagued with overtourism and prices are starting to look similar across the board. But don’t fear: if budgets are tight this year, there’s still plenty of spots that won’t break the bank.  The best part? These are the spots with less tourists and less crowds, and the flights there are likely to be much cheaper too. Of course, it goes without saying that a ‘cheap city’ is highly subjective, depending on a whole load of factors: which city you’ve travelled in from, what time of year you’re visiting, how bougie your tastes are and all the rest of it. On our list of cheap destinations in Europe, we’ve got everything from thriving capital cities to underrated towns. Ready to see a different side of Europe and afford dinner out? Read on for the cheapest (and best) cities to visit in Europe in 2025.  RECOMMENDED:🌃 The most underrated travel destinations in Europe🏰 The best city breaks in Europe📍 The most beautiful places in Europe🌊 The best places to ‘coolcation’ in Europe At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by local writers who know their cities inside out. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. This guide includes affiliate links, which have no influence on our editorial content. For more information, see our affiliate guidelines. 

Summer's finally here! And that means it's high time you dug out last year's swimsuit (faintly bobbly though it may be) and took it for a spin in one of London's many gorgeous outdoor pools. But don't even think of heading to your local noisy, chlorine-scented indoor swimming baths. When the temperatures soar, lidos are the only way to go. I'm one of the growing band of Londoners who's been bitten by the outdoor swimming bug, and braved the waters at every al fresco pool I can find in this city. Yep, the water's a bit chilly. But that's the whole point: to feel that rush of exhilaration you only get once your body adjusts to the cool water and starts gliding through it like a dolphin (or in my case, a geriatric elephant seal – I said I'm a keen outdoor swimmer, not a good one).   The seriously dedicated will head to wild swimming spots where you bob about face to face with aggy ducks and the odd bit of pondweed. But if you want to get a proper swim in, lidos are the easiest, freshest way to do it. Heated or unheated, regimented lanes or wide open water, serious fitness or chilled family fun – these are all of London’s best lidos and outdoor swimming pools for making a splash in this summer. RECOMMENDED:🏊 The best swimming pools in London.🌡️ The best saunas in London. 💦 The best waterparks in London

Work-dos are a hard art to master. How do you find something that strengthens your team spirit and that everyone in the office, across multiple generations, is actually going to find fun?  Stuck for ideas? You’re in the right place. Whether you’re after some healthy competition among co-workers or an activity that requires all your colleagues to work together, London has a load of classic and quirky ways for your team to let their hair down. So, take notes, we’ve rounded up the best of them. These are some of the top places in the city to go to build your office bonds.  RECOMMENDED: The best office party venues to hire in LondonThe top London venues for a private bash 

One hundred years ago, a strange curtained box appeared on Broadway in New York City. If you went inside and slotted in 25 cents, you’d emerge with eight sepia tinged photos of yourself in a matter of minutes. It was the Photomaton – the world’s first fully automated photobooth. Fast forward to the 21st century and photobooths are in bars, train stations, cinemas, record shops and on streets all over the world. The Photographer’s Gallery is marking a century of the machines with Click!, an archival exhibition exploring their imperfections, their quirks and their most famous fans. Naturally, there’ll be a working photobooth for visitors to take their own snap.

The UK’s first major retrospective of acclaimed Ukrainian artist Boris Mikhailov is coming to the Photographers’ Gallery. A ‘kind of proto-punk’, Mikhailov has been capturing and commenting on life in Ukraine since the 1960s – from the everyday consequences of the collapse of the Soviet Union to the realities of people living on the edges of society – through photography, conceptual work, painting and performance art. Ukrainian Diary brings much of that work together to illustrate the tumultuous social and political changes that have shaken Eastern Europe over the past fifty years.

In 1978, Zofia Rydet decided that was going to photograph the inside of every Polish household. Aged 67, she began knocking on doors and asking occupants if they’d be willing to partake in her project. She continued to knock on doors for the next three decades, collecting everyday stories and creating ‘one of the most important achievements in 20th century Polish photography’. More than 100 of Rydet’s prints will be on display at the Photographers’ Gallery alongside books and personal letters offering extra insight into her sociological mission.

When a place rates itself as assuredly (in huge bold letters, no less) as Good Hotel does, it’s natural to feel a little sus. But it’s true: Good Hotel really does make you feel good. Service is cheery and laid-back without being overly casual, the food leaves nothing to complain about and – maybe it’s the luxurious silence of the area or perhaps the proximity to gently lapping water – I visited in 2024, and I don’t know if I’ve ever had a better night’s sleep in the city. Aside from all that, guests can walk out of Good Hotel feeling extra gratified by virtue of its ‘do good’ DNA. Why stay at Good Hotel? As you walk along Royal Victoria Docks, this huge black shipping container is impossible to miss. Originally built as a Danish prison, this floating hotel docked in London in 2016 after sailing across from Amsterdam. Its founder, Marten Dresden, had come up with the Good Hotel concept four years prior while travelling in Guatemala. Now, each night you spend there pays for a week of school for a child in South America, with profits also going towards hospitality training for long-term unemployed locals (lots of whom become Good Hotel employees).  The hotel also hosts regular community workshops and events that guests can attend. There are comedy nights, yoga classes, salsa classes, kids art clubs and, if you’re in the mood to be extra good, litter-picking around the local area. What are the rooms like at Good Hotel? Throughout the hotel, the interiors are slick, earthy-toned

One of the more recent additions to Wimbledon Village, Good Fortune Club is bright and buzzy with a sprawling menu of Cantonese dishes, the best known of which is its handmade dim sum. Stop by with a large, hungry posse to pack your table with bamboo steamers and sample har gau (shrimp-filled dumplings,) xiao long bao (pork soup dumplings), cuttlefish cake and more.

Of its four south-west London outposts, DropShot’s Leopold Road location serves up hefty brunches on the daily. The portions here are breathtakingly generous, and the tennis-themed menu goes well beyond the standard eggs benny or avocado on toast; think mozzarella and chilli jam-filled potato pancakes andbig fat slices of French toast laden with monterey jack cheese and fresh pesto, or loaded with tiramisu cream and berries. The coffee is fantastic, too.

Crack Comedy Club brings pre-party laughs to Tunnel 267 – Wimbledon’s only nightclub – every Saturday night from 8pm to 10pm. For standup sets from four or five comics, tickets are £25 for general admission on the door or £21.50 if you book online in advance. You can also buy tickets that include dinner from a local restaurant beforehand, and if you stick around afterwards you’ll get free entry to Tunnel’s clubnight. Three in one. 

This quirky, tiki-themed minigolf course first popped up in Dalston's Efes in April 2015. A decade later, that debut site is no more, but you can now find Plonks outdoors in London Fields and under the arches at Borough Market. The Hackney course, which recently got a big ol’ refurb, takes you through a ‘Polynesian themed putt paradise’ complete with a tiki forest, a volcano canyon and octupuses. There are plenty of satisfying holes that fire your ball onto tricksy little mechanisms, a loop the loop, and a lot of impossibly steep ramps. All in all: it’s a great place for a plonking party. Prices start from £9.35 per person per play. 

There's a real sense of fun to this deliberately rough-around-the-edges course. Party tunes blare from speakers, graffiti jazzes up the walls and it's made from ‘twisted junk, car booty and charity shop shizzle’. Junkyard Golf Club has four courses – Gary, Pablo, Dirk and Bozo – that are all fabulously chaotic and mildly freaky. Depending on which challenge you take on, you’ll be putting past pirate pigs, dishevelled nightclub urinals, terrifying giant clown heads and a UV rave room. There's also a second location in Camden for more of the same.  Prices start at £12 for nine holes at off-peak times (Sunday to Thursday) and go up to £21 for 18 holes on busier days (Fridays and Saturdays). And as any good crazy golf should, Junkyard has a menu of themed cocktails to keep lubed up before, during and after your game. 

What is it?  Technically several adjoining markets, this sprawl of stalls stretching from Camden Town tube to the Regent’s Canal is London’s fourth most popular visitor attraction. In its recent heyday, around 250,000 people came here every week to shop, sample street food and soak up the distinctive, still-grungy atmosphere. Camden Lock Market is an arts-and-crafts haven while the Stables Market is a trendy spot for everything from quirky furniture to fetish clothing. Nearby Buck Street Market on Camden High Street has had a shipping container revamp. As you saunter through the different markets, don’t be surprised to see grungy teenagers and old punks on the street corners. Camden feels more mainstream than it did in the ‘90s, but it’s still one of London’s most rock ‘n’ roll neighbourhoods. Why go?  To get lost in a one-of-a-kind maze of art, garms, antiques, accessories, books and endless street food.  Don’t miss The Cheese Bar – London’s only fully fromage focused restaurant – for all manner of gooey, cheese-based delights in a classy, low lit space in Stables Market.  Ticket info  No tickets needed.  When to visit  Camden Markets are open everyday of the week from 10am until late.  Time Out tip If you find the lunch queues and options a bit too much in the main Camden Lock Market, cross the road to Buck Street Market where you’ll find food that is just as great and are more likely to find a free spot to sit.  RECOMMENDED: London’s best markets

What is it?  In business for over 300 years, Fortnum & Mason is as historic as it is inspiring. A sweeping spiral staircase soars through the four-storey building, while light floods down from a central glass dome. The iconic eau de nil blue and gold colour scheme with flashes of rose pink abounds on both the store design and the packaging of the fabulous ground-floor treats, such as chocolates, biscuits, teas and preserves. A food hall in the basement has a good range of fresh produce; Fortnum’s Bees honey comes from beehives on top of the building. There are various eateries, including an ice-cream parlour. The famous hampers start from £60 – though they rise to a whopping £6,000 for the most luxurious. A sweeping spiral staircase soars through the four-storey building, while light floods down from a central glass dome. The iconic F&M eau de nil blue and gold colour scheme with flashes of rose pink abounds on both the store design and the packaging of the fabulous ground-floor treats, including chocolates, biscuits, teas and preserves. What does it sell?  A food hall in the basement has a good range of fresh produce; Fortnum’s Bees honey comes from beehives on top of the building. There are various eateries, including an ice-cream parlour. The famous hampers start from £60 – though they rise to a whopping £6,000 for the most luxurious. The first floor is for homewares: china- and glassware as well as finishing touches such as silver scoops for stilton, F&M coloured linen

What is it? Part of an esteemed UK chain, Harvey Nicks is a one-stop shop for luxury fashion and lifestyle goodies. Though it may have been in its Knightsbridge pad since 1831, it stays true to its ethos of bringing new and innovative products to a wider audience.  What does it sell?  Makeup junkies should head to the ground floor beauty and perfumery space to pick up established brands like Charlotte Tilbury and Shu Uemura, or to glowup with treatments from the Light Salon, Shavata, Duck & Dry and Nail’d It. Womenswear takes up the next three floors, with swimwear and a Denim Gallery on the third levels, while menswear can be found down in the basement. The clothing rails are full of top labels such as Alexander Wang, Balenciaga and Givenchy, and there’s an excellent array of accessories and beauty buys from luxurious brands such as Tom Ford and COR (whose soap contains real silver). Finish off proceedings with lunch on the fifth floor, where the buzzy food department is located along with The Fifth Floor Cafe, Burger & Lobster, Trullo and Madhu’s Brasserie.  Opening times Monday to Saturday 10am – 8pm, Sunday 11:30am – 6pm (browsing from 11.30am – 12pm).  Time Out tip  Forget Vinted and Depop – if you’ve had a recent wardrobe cull, Harvey Nichols will take any high-end pieces that are still in decent condition. It’ll do all the hard selling work for you, all you need to do is drop the items off. Once they’ve found a new home you can get  a Harvey Nichols voucher with a sw

Can you believe that the Central line has been operating beneath London for a whopping 125 years? Yep – it opened as the Central London Railway on July 30 1900, ferrying Londoners between Shepherd’s Bush and Bank for the grand price of two pence. It was extended to Liverpool Street in 1912, then to Ealing Broadway in 1920. Fast forward a century and a bit, and the red line now stretches from West Ruislip and Ealing Broadway in the west to Hainault and Epping in the east, supporting an estimated 4.5 million journeys a week.  To mark the Central line’s 125th birthday, TfL is putting on a treasure hunt. The anniversary hunt is happening from 10.30am to 3.30pm on Saturday, September 20 along the line’s original route from Shepherd’s Bush to Bank. It’ll start with participants picking up a pack at Shepherd’s Bush station, then following a bunch of clues all the way to Bank. There’ll be several questions at each station and you’ll be able to figure out their answers by paying close attention to surrounding posters, plaques and artwork. If you get stuck, TfL Ambassadors will be nearby to check your progress and offer hints.  Image: TfL from London Transport Museum's collection The hunt is part of London’s wider Open House Festival, which will see iconic buildings like 10 Downing Street, Lincoln’s Inn, City Hall and Senate House open their doors to the public. Many of the stations on the Central line are listed buildings themselves, including the Grade I listed entrance to Bank and

Ariana Grande may not have been on tour in six years, but boy has she been busy. In the time since her Sweetener tour in 2019, Ariana has released two albums (Positions in 2020 and Eternal Sunshine in 2024), launched a cosmetics brand and was awarded the role of Glinda in the two-part movie adaptation of Wicked, the first film of which earned her an Oscar nomination.  Finally, though, she’s ready to get back on the road. The multi-talented pop star has announced The Eternal Sunshine tour, which will start in June next year. And London has got lucky – at the moment, it’s the only stop on Ari’s tour in the UK.  Even better, she’ll be playing not one, not two, but 10 nights at the O2. Five initial dates were announced, then five more were confirmed when presale began. We have a feeling these tickets will be incredibly Popular – here’s all the information you need if you want to be there.  When is Ariana Grande playing in London?  The yes, and? singer will be performing at London’s O2 Arena on the following dates: August 15 2026 August 16 2026 August 19 2026 August 20 2026 August 23 2026  August 24 2026 (new date) August 27 2026 (new date) August 28 2026 (new date) August 31 2026 (new date) September 1 2026 (new date) When do tickets go on sale?  General sale for The Eternal Sunshine Tour will kick off at 10am on Thursday, September 18 over on Ticketmaster here.  Presale details There will be several opportunities to get your hands on tickets ahead of everyone else. An artist p

Nearly a year on from when the band last played Blighty, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds have announced that they’re returning for a very special one-off gig. They’ll be playing Brighton’s Preston Park next summer in what will be their only UK performance of 2026. Right now, the band is touring New Zealand and Australia as part of their Wild God Tour, which stopped by the UK back in 2024. Those shows last year garnered rave reviews from critics, who called it ‘hugely moving’, ‘deeply powerful’ and ‘utterly immersive and enthrallingly delivered’. So, fans can expect something just as brilliant in Brighton.  Nick Cave has a special affinity to the Sussex city. The Australian singer and his family lived there for 20 years but moved back to LA in 2015 after the death of his son. In his announcement of the exclusive show, which featured a video of his face and lyrics projected on Brighton landmarks, Nick said: ‘I am thrilled beyond words to return to my beloved Brighton with The Bad Seeds to play Preston Park. It’s a homecoming! It’s going to be big, bad and beautiful. An epic show!!!’ Here’s everything you need to know about Nick Cave’s exclusive Brighton show next year, and how to get tickets.  When is Nick Cave playing Brighton’s Preston Park? Nick and the Bad Seeds will be performing at Preston Park on Friday July 31, 2026. Image: Outside Organisation   When do tickets go on sale?  General sale for the gig launches at 10 am on Friday, September 26.  Is there a presale?  A presa

It's the final fortnight of the 2025 Women’s Rugby World Cup, and that means that England's Red Roses could be just two matches away from glory. But although they're the bookies favourites to win, they'll still need plenty of cheering on to fend off France in the semi-final at 7pm on Saturday September 20. Meanwhile, the six-time cup winners New Zealand will square up to Canada at 7pm on Friday September 19, to decide which of them will make it to be big final, which will be played at Twickenham at 4pm on Saturday September 27. In short, things are hotting up, and women's rugby supporters and converts are preparing to join the scrum at watch parties across the city. Thanks to Asahi’s Rugby Like Never Before campaign, more than 1,000 pubs across the UK (and dozens in London) have pledged to screen every match of the tournament, making it the most accessible women’s rugby tournament to date. On top of that, the final is on track to break records, with crowd of 82,000 expected to descend on Twickenham Stadium. That would make it the most attended women’s rugby match in history.  Such an historic occasion shouldn’t be missed, especially because you’ll have to wait another four years before the next one. So, here’s our roundup of London’s greatest spots to watch the Red Roses scrum, tackle and try their through the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025.   The best places in London to watch the Women’s Rugby World Cup 2025 The Official Fan Zone at Battersea Power Station Situated in the sh

In case you missed it, Ed Sheeran has released a brand new record. His eighth studio album Play, which came out last Friday (September 12), was completed while the singer was travelling India, and features songs inspired by traditional Punjabi and Persian music. To celebrate Play’s release, Ed Sheeran has launched a two-day pop-up in the middle of London.  The Play Store is at Outernet on Charing Cross Road on Tuesday, September 16 and Wednesday, September 17. Open from 11am to 8pm, fans can pre-book a slot to guarantee entry, or try their luck and just turn up.  Decked out in the album’s bright pink branding, the pop-up will have a range of Play hoodies, sweatshirts, t-shirts and tote bags, vinyl and cassette editions of the album (some signed by Ed himself), a doodle wall for fans to write on and screen-printing stations for t-shirts and posters. Fans will also be able to enter a raffle to win a limited-edition, hand-painted pair of Nike Air Jordan trainers (Ed’s favourite shoe brand, apparently) that’ll be customised à la Play, a live in-store.  While you’re here, there are still tickets available for Ed’s ‘intimate’ shows in Manchester and Coventry later this year – the perfect opportunity to sport your newly acquired merch.  Lewis Capaldi is headlining BST Hyde Park 2026.  Get the latest and greatest from the Big Smoke – from news and reviews to events and trends. Just follow our Time Out London WhatsApp channel.  Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out London New

As thousands of students make their way to UK university campuses to start a new academic year, thousands more are beginning to flick through uni prospectuses, book open day visits and craft their personal statements for entry in 2026. They’ll also be looking at a whole bunch of different league tables, like the Daily Mail guide, the QS World University Ranking and Uni Compare. If those weren’t enough, another ranking has been added to the mix.  The Guardian’s ranking has assessed things like student satisfaction, student to staff ratios and career prospects of 123 universities to compile its ranking for 2026. And there are no huge surprises.  Oxford University was crowned the best university in the UK for the second year in the row. The historic institution scored a perfect 100 out of 1000 from the paper. Its received 94 out of 100 for students’ satisfaction with the university’s quality of teaching (the highest score of all the ranked institutions) and found that 92 percent of grads move onto graduate level jobs or further study within 15 months. It also had the best student to staff ratio (9.1) and ranked number one in 16 subjects, including medicine, criminology, languages, philosophy, physics and economics.  The only area that Oxford didn’t do so well in was in student satisfaction, with the quality of feedback earning a score of 76 out of 100 (Leeds Trinity topped this category with a score of 92.6).  Photograph: Shutterstock Second place went to Scotland’s St Andrews

Like Coldplay, Ed Sheeran is one of those artists that seems to be perpetually on tour. The singer-songwriter has been playing to cities across the planet for his +-=x Tour [The Mathematics Tour] since 2022, and will finally conclude it in Las Vegas later this month. But he clearly can’t sit still for long. Before Ed’s current tour has even ended, he’s announced four arena shows in December ahead of starting an entirely new tour for his upcoming album Play in January. And two of those freshly announced concerts will be here in the UK.   Although his chosen venues have capacity for tens of thousands of fans, these gigs are ‘intimate’ by Ed’s standards (he’s used to enormous sold-out stadiums). He said in a social media post: ‘Coming to play some shows in Europe, these shows will be more intimate than a stadium show obvz, but still will be incredible. I love playing these venues so much.’ Here’s all the information you need if you want to get your hands on tickets.  When is Ed Sheeran going on tour in the UK?  He’ll be coming back to the UK for more shows in December, on Dec 5-7. What tour dates have been confirmed so far?  The singer has only confirmed two UK dates in December. They are at the Coventry Building Society Arena on December 5  and Manchester's Co-op Live on December 7.  December 5 – Coventry Building Society Arena December 7 – Manchester, Co-op Live View this post on Instagram A post shared by Ed Sheeran (@teddysphotos) When do tickets go on sa

You’d be hard pressed to find an airport that doesn’t induce even the slightest bit of stress. From ensuring you have an up-to-date passport to proving that your suitcase will in fact fit in the overhead locker, there’s a whole load of logistics involved in flying before you can really kick back and relax. But, of course, there are airports that make the process a lot more bearable than others – and those that make it even more nightmarish. So, to help you avoid as much stress as you can next holiday, Which? has revealed its ranking of UK airports for 2025. It quizzed around 4,600 of its members plus 1,100 members of the public on their airport experiences over the last 12 months.  While Exeter was crowned the best of the bunch, Manchester Airport emerged as the worst airport in the UK. Manchester Terminal 3 was the worst of all with an overall customer score of 43 percent, followed by Terminal 1 with 47 percent and Terminal 2 with 53 percent (narrowly beating London Luton).  Terminal 3 was given just one star for its queues at airport security, its seating and its range of food and shopping outlets. It earned two stars in all of the remaining categories, including its staff, toilets, and passport control queues.  It said: ‘It’s a mystery as to why Manchester Airport can’t drag itself from the bottom of our table after all the money spent on it: £1.3bn in the past few years. ‘Visitors complain of long walks, a lack of seating, disorganised and stressful queues, plus the usual

There’s no denying that London has its fair share of not-so-nice areas. The capital city is home to all 10 of the UK’s pickpocketing hotspots, crimes on the Underground are reportedly up by 1.3 percent and we all have a local alleyway that is best avoided at night. But, it turns out that there are also several parts of London that boast some of the lowest crime rates in the country. And one south London neighbourhood has just been named the safest place in the entire UK. Security training platform Get Licensed has ranked the UK’s local authorities according to how safe they are. It compared police-recorded crime with year-on-year change in crime severity, reoffending and antisocial behaviour, and counted CCTV in public spaces to determine its ranking.  The south London town of Sutton emerged as the nation’s safest place to live. It had an annual crime rate of 61 per 1,000 people and saw a 2.75 percent fall in crime year on year. Get Licensed also counted 230 public CCTV cameras per 1,000 people in Sutton and found a reoffending rate of 15.74 percent (the average rate across the whole of the UK is 26.5 percent). It added that ‘when there are crimes in Sutton, they tend to be robberies or thefts, with little to no reports of weapons possession’. Overall, the town earned a safety score of 8.09 out of 10.  Sutton wasn’t the only London postcode to score highly. In fact the list of the top 10 safest areas in the country was dominated by the capital city. Kingston-upon-Thames was n

Oxford railway station is in the midst of an enormous multi-million pound makeover. And while it promises to bring a brand-new entrance, track and platform and almost 10,000 new jobs (all good things!), the work involved has been somewhat inconvenient for drivers through the city.  Botley Road, one of Oxford’s main roads, has been closed since 2023 for the work on Oxford Station to take place and locals have complained that the resulting traffic has gotten out of hand. Now, a congestion charge in the city centre has officially been approved, in an effort to help ease the queues.  The council hopes that the temporary fee will raise £3.2m, which would go towards further transport improvements in the city. Luke Marion, the managing director of Oxford Bus Company, said the charge was ‘great news for passengers’, will deliver fast journeys and ‘free up all the resource we've got that's currently standing still out in traffic jams out there’.  Photograph: Shutterstock There is opposition to the charge, though. Pressure group Open Roads for Oxford has said it’ll be launching a legal challenge against the decision. Its chair Paul Major said: ‘The council are simply not listening to the very real and evidence-based concerns being raised, not only through their consultation, but also by people and groups who have raised their concerns at council meetings. This is simply not acceptable.’ Here’s everything you need to know about Oxford’s new congestion charge.  Oxford congestion charge

Now that we’ve hit mid-September, London uni campuses are beginning to fill up with a new batch of freshers. Thousands of students are moving to the Big Smoke for the first time, armed with IKEA kitchen utensils, fancy dress costumes for every occasion and a stash of their alcopop of choice. Obviously, they’re here to learn and become the leaders of tomorrow, too.  Next year, that could be you. And as freshers week 2025 kicks off, the Guardian has released its ranking of UK universities to help next year’s students pick the best destinations. The paper looked at eight measures of performance for its ranking, covering every stage of a student’s time at uni, from entry requirements, to teaching satisfaction to graduate prospects.  After evaluating around 40 of the unis here in the capital city, the Guardian named London School of Economics (LSE) the best university in London for 2025. It landed fourth on the overall ranking with a total score of 93.8 out of 100.  Photograph: William Barton / Shutterstock.com The uni earned 89.4 out of 100 from final-year students for quality of teaching and 76.2 for the quality of feedback and assessment. It performed particularly well in the ‘continuation’ category (the percentage of first year students continuing to second year) with 96.4 percent and in the ‘career after 15 months’ category, with 93 percent of grads in jobs or further study.  When it comes to specific subjects, LSE ranked first in the UK for law, accounting and finance, and

Here’s a home truth. A recent study showed that you’d need to be earning at least £110,000 a year as a household to be in with any chance of buying an average house in London’s Zone 1 or 2. That’s no easy feat.  That’s why people make the move to commuter towns – to save on the cost of living in London without giving the city up altogether (there’s constant flow of fantastic stuff happening here, after all). And handy new research by real estate company Savills has now discovered which three commuter towns offer the best value of all. It looked at the average price of properties within five kilometres of a railway station and season ticket costs in 350 different locations and compared that total to the average cost of owning a property in Zone 2. It also looked at the Index of Multiple Deprivation — which looks at things like crime rates, employment and education — to filter 'locations in the least deprived 20 percent in their wider region'.  After all that assessment, three areas emerged as the ‘best value’ commuter towns within around 30 minutes of the Big Smoke. Here’s a closer look at them.  Shenfield, Essex In the posh Essex town of Shenfield, you’re looking at around £427,000 for an average three-bed home and £4,008 for a year-round season ticket. That would save around 45 percent compared to what you might spend in Zone 2.  It’s a 51-minute journey on the Lizzie line to Bond street or a 23-minute journey to Liverpool Street on mainline services. In the town itself, loc