India Lawrence

We don’t know about you, but we think we’re pretty damn lucky to have world-class festivals just a tube ride away. Forget trekking across the country to live in a field for five days. When you live in London, you can hop on a tube, and an hour later you’re listening to your favourite artists, tinny to hand, knowing that there’s a hot shower and a cosy bed waiting for you once the day is over. We Londoners love live music, so it’s no surprise that we’re absolutely spoilt for choice when summer rolls around. You’ve got festivals devoted to hip-hop, jazz, leftfield pop, afrobeats, heavy rock ‘n’ roll. Whatever your taste may be, my god does London have a day festival for you. Have a scroll through some of our recommendations and start planning a fantastic summer in 2025.  But be warned, most London festivals get more expensive the later you leave it, and plenty of them will sell out long before summer starts. Grab your tickets right now if you know what’s good for ya! RECOMMENDED: ⛺ The best UK music festivals🌍 The best festivals in Europe

This is about the time when the January blues start to hit pretty hard. It’s dark at 4pm, you’ve got no money left after Christmas and winter feels like it’s dragging on forever. But we’re here to tell you that things are looking up, because 2025 is going to be a corker of a year for the UK.  It turns out that 2025 is going to be a bit of a big one, with a number of landmark occasions being celebrated across Britain. There’s Jane Austen’s 250th birthday in Southampton, as well as the art-packed Folkestone Triennial, a celebration of 200 years of the British railway in York and Bradford’s 2025 City of Culture festivities. Then, there are up-and-coming foodie towns in Cornwall, music scenes that are popping off in Cardiff and Belfast, and the reopening of grand cultural insitutions like the Tate Liverpool.  If there’s ever been a good time to book a trip, it’s now (it might even help keep some SAD at bay). There is so much fantastic stuff happening across the country this year, so read our list curated by local experts of the best places to visit in the UK in 2025, and get stuck in.  RECOMMENDED: 🇬🇧 The 25 best new things to do in the UK in 2025📍The 12 most underrated city breaks in the UK 🏨 The UK’s 13 best new hotels opening in 2025👨‍👩‍👧 6 amazing places to stay with Kids in the UK

Twice a year, fashion Christmas comes to London, bringing with it whole closets full of covetable new looks you’ll dream of wearing. After a successful 40th anniversary celebration last year, London Fashion Week returns in February for another deep-dive into the trends and styles that will be dominating runways, shops and streets in the months to come. Dig out your chicest ‘fit and strut your way to 180 The Strand to join the flocks of fashionistas ogling for a look at the latest looks for Autumn/Winter 2025 (AW25). Don’t know where to begin? Here’s all the information you need.  When is London Fashion Week 2025?  LFW takes place twice a year: in February and September. The next fashion week will be from Thursday February 20 to Monday February 24.  Where is London Fashion Week held?  London Fashion Week usually takes place at the British Fashion Council’s own show space at 180 The Strand. The closest tubes are Holborn and Temple. Several events will also be held at external locations across the city. How do I get tickets to London Fashion Week 2025?  Unfortunately, most of the LFW shows are invite-only, so you can’t buy tickets.  What designers should I be watching out for?  As well as the big names that even the fashion averse know like JW Anderson, Burberry and Manolo Blahnik, LFW also plays host to tons of newer designers. This time around, get to know Sinead O’Dwyer, whose brand is making luxury ready-to-wear accessible for all bodies, using satin, sillicone and more. Che

Amsterdam is one of the world’s best cities, no doubt about it. Every wander down a cobbled street will take you somewhere excited, whether you're a foodie, curious about the Red Light District, or in the mood to party for 24 hours straight. And as a tourism capital, it’s no surpise that it’s overrun with exceptional places to stay, from 18th-century canalside mansions to converted bridge keepers’ houses and seriously high-grade establishments.  So if you’re looking for a tip-top place to bed down after a day of exploring the city’s best museums, attractions and coffee shops, you’ve come to the right place. From the city centre through to De Negen Straatjes, here are the best hotels in Amsterdam right now. Updated January 2025: We re-reviewed Amsterdam’s five-star Conservatorium Hotel to see if it’s up-to-scratch (spoiler: it is). See where we ranked it below! RECOMMENDED:🏠 The best Airbnbs in Amsterdam🌳 Where to stay in Amsterdam 📍 The best things to do in Amsterdam🍴 The best restaurants in Amsterdam🎀 The best boutique hotels in Amsterdam Ella Doyle and Grace Beard are Time Out’s travel editors. At Time Out, all of our travel guides are written by experts. 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. 

We all want to be absolutely glowing and super fresh-faced. Alas, living in London can really get in the way of having dewy, delicious skin. That’s thanks to the combined efforts of pollution and air-conditioned offices, as well as the added bonuses of harsh weather, booze, sun exposure, dehydration and – our least favourite – the inevitable passing of time. Just thinking about what we put our skin through is enough to give you frown lines. Happily, there are loads of great spas, treatment rooms and estheticians in London who can give your face a break and a much-needed zhuzh. Whether you’re after a relaxing, soothing facial massage, some instant radiance, a total skincare overhaul or something a little more intense such as microneedling or laser treatment, read our pick of facials in London.  RECOMMENDED: The best spas in London. 

Peckham locals have always been proud of the area’s brand: a melting pot of cultural vibrancy, eccentric individuals, and an artsy, young DIY crowd thanks to nearby Goldsmiths University and Camberwell College of Arts. It rivals Dalston and all those other East End upstarts as the place to hang out, and it’s the perfect spot for new restaurants to find their feet. Here are some of the best in the area, as well as a host of notable places to eat just down the road in Camberwell, too.  RECOMMENDED: The best 50 restaurants in London. Leonie Cooper is Time Out London’s Food and Drink Editor. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines.

Breakfast is the most important meal of the day, and luckily for London, the city caters to every possible whim. These days, London isn’t just home to the fry-up, but the ubiquitous smashed avocado on toast, bowls of shakshuka and many more besides. In fact, London genuinely might be the best place to eat breakfast in the world. Whether you’re the kind of person who favours a posh restaurant over a greasy spoon, or who champions a caff over a swanky hotel, we’ve rounded up the ultimate list. From morning mezze to croissants, udon noodle bowls and south Indian platters – it’s all here. RECOMMENDED: Breakfast’s a little too early for you? Try one of London’s best brunches instead. Leonie Cooper is Time Out London’s Food and Drink Editor. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines. The hottest new openings, the tastiest tips, the spiciest reviews: we’re serving it all on our London restaurants WhatsApp channel. Follow us now to tuck in.

Hearing the squawk of a nearby gull while you inhale the salty sea air is almost as integral to the fish ‘n’ chip ritual as mushy peas and tartare sauce. But that’s not to say that excellent landlocked chippies don’t exist in the UK: you just need to know where to look. Thankfully, no matter where you are, you can trust that this list has got the best of the best when it comes to fish ‘n’ chips, whether that’s at a beachfront cafe frying up daily catches or a city-centre institution which has really mastered its batter craft. Get the salt and vinegar in hand and tuck in: here are the best places for fish and chips in the UK. RECOMMENDED:🍺The best pubs in the UK🍝The best restaurants in the UK☀️The best beer gardens in the UK🏖️The best seaside towns in the UK This list was written by Lucas Oakeley, a freelance food writer for Time Out. 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.

If you boil a sauna down to its nuts and bolts, it’s essentially just a really hot room and some water to create steam with. Wild, then, how much of a positive affect those two simple ingredients can have on our bodies, healing weary muscles, doing wonders for our skin, and helping all the horrible toxins we insist on putting in our insides get back out. Saunas originated back in Finland back in the Middle Ages, where almost every house had one – imagine! In modern London, we’re not all so lucky as to have our own personal spa, but there are a wealth of top saunas around the city. From plunge pools and infrared therapy rooms to Finnish-style homages and ones soundtracked by DJ sets, you’ll find the steam sesh for you in the capital. Check out our video of 10 of the best spas in London: RECOMMENDED: The best spas in London

Want a drink? You've come to the right place. This is Time Out’s list of best bars in London, our curated guide to London’s drinking scene, featuring the buzziest booze dens in the capital right now. If it’s on this list, it’s excellent. These are the 50 places we'd recommend to a friend, because we love drinking in them and have done many times over. From classy cocktail joints to delightful dives, hotel bars, speakeasys, bottle shops, rooftops and wine bars, London's got them all. But what makes a truly good bar? Well, our critieria for inclusion on this list is simple; a menu of genius drinks is important, but so is overall vibe – there’s no point having the perfect paloma if you have to drink it in a bar that smells of bins. To make the Top 50 a bar has to be fun, full of lovely folk, be inclusive and also look the part.  The latest additions to our list include Below Stone Nest in Chinatown, Rasputin’s by London Fields, Bar Lina, an Italian aperitivo spot underneath the famous Soho deli, Jumbi hifi bar in Peckham, Oranj's vertitable wine warehouse in Shoreditch, and Helgi’s, a suggestively Satanic rock bar in Hackney. Now go forth and booze. RECOMMENDED: Like bars? Then you'll love London's best pubs.  Leonie Cooper is Time Out London’s Food and Drink Editor, and she'll have a dirty gin martini if you're buying. For more about how we curate, see our editorial guidelines.

Want to do something special on February 14 but keen to avoid all the mushy, saccharine nonsense that Valentine’s Day usually involves? There are loads of loved-up spots in the city, as well as unusual events and alternative date options.  Skip the clichés – goodbye petrol station flowers, naff chocolates and soulless plastic presents – and treat your beloved to something different. From cult movie marathons to absinthe tastings, get your nose out of the crappy-card rack and check out these alternative romantic things to do in London. RECOMMENDED: Your guide to Valentine’s Day in London.

It’s 2025. New year, new you, right? Perhaps your new year’s resolution was to get more cultured, in which case read on, because we have some excellent dance picks for you this January.  Many of the big Christmas productions, including Matthew Bourne’s Swan Lake, and the Royal Ballet’s Cinderella, continue their runs throughout January, but personally I can’t wait to do away with all the glitter and pomp of the festive season and get my teeth into some new, experimental contemporary works. Most exciting on the January bill is Resolution 2025, The Place’s annual celebration of brand-spanking-new dance, and the UK’s biggest event showcasing fresh choreographies.   Here’s what you should be watching this January.  MORE STAGE: Dance classes in London Best theatre shows this yearBest theatre shows this monthBest comedy shows this month

What is a spatial audio festival, you might be wondering? If you go to Polygon Live LDN, you’ll probably find out. The gist is seeing live music in a 360-degree arena surrounded by high-tech lights and loads of crystal-clear speakers – a spectacle which event organisers actually call a ‘spaceship’. Artists on the lineup so far include dreamy Pakistani-American singer Arooj Aftab, electronic legend Jon Hopkins, and composer Cosmo Sheldrake. This is one for audiophiles looking for something a bit more immersive. 

Wake up babe, a new house and techno festival in London just dropped. Legendary house DJ Jamie Jones has announced he is bringing a brand-new festi to the capital this summer, taking over Boston Manor Park with one of his world-famous Paradise parties. Spread across four stages, Paradise in the City promises to have ‘cutting-edge sound and state-of-the-art production’, all produced by partners LWE. The line-up hasn’t been anounnced yet, but it’s going span to a variety of techno and house DJs, all hand-selected by Jones. Expect a day of four-to-the-floor belters with an Ibiza vibe. 

All of London’s hippest and hottest people will once again be making the pilgrimage to Peckham for the tenth edition of electronic music bonanza GALA. Returning in its usual slot over the late May bank holiday, the festival is celebrating reaching double digits with a stellar three-day line-up curated in partnership with NTS radio, plus some of the city’s most acclaimed music and nightlife brands. Friday’s slightly mellowed line-up features headline sets from Floating Points, Moodymann and Theo Parrish, while Avalon Emerson, Ben UFO and KiNK get top billing on a Saturday line-up that leans towards the heavier end of the dance music spectrum, with curation from Chapter Ten and The Cause. Headlined by Caribou, Floorplan and Hunee & Antal, the festival’s closing day features artists from Rhythm Section, plus several stalwarts from London’s queer party scene. Also on the line-up across the three days are: Anz, Batu, Bradley Zero, Gideön, Heléna Star, Horse Meat Disco, Hudson Mohawke, Michelle Manetti, Surusinghe, Tash LC and many, many more. 

Yes, the landmark exhibition opening Somerset House’s 2025 season is all about soil. Unless you are a pedologist, you might question if SOIL: The World At Our Feet will be worth your while. Can a topic as humdrum as the dirt beneath our feet be interesting? My answer is: sort of.  The exhibition is part science display, part art show, part anti-climate change call to action. If you think it sounds a tad confused, that’s because it is. Other than just ‘soil’, it is hard to sum up exactly what this exhibition is about. ‘Soil abounds with life,’ reads the wall text that begins the exhibition. ‘Look down’ it tells us, hoping to inspire awe at the ground we walk upon. It opens with some quite beautiful up-close images of bacteria, and planet-like photographs of microbes making patterns in earth. Not so pretty are the zoomed-in black and white photos of bugs – including a very scary ant – and grim up-close videos of slime mould. Not for the squeamish, but great if you’re into that stuff. Then there’s a nice immersive installation showing beautiful time lapses of seed germination and roots growing. After this everything gets a bit more random.  Can a topic as humdrum as the dirt beneath our feet be interesting? Sort of.  The bulk of the show is made up of artworks inspired by nature, made with natural materials (sometimes literally made with soil), or pertaining to some wider theme about the natural world. There’s definitely some cool stuff in here, including an Ana Mendieta super-

Most people will know a fair bit about the last French royals: the exuberant wealth, the massive hair, the questionably true confectionary-themed catchphrases. And perhaps the most iconic thing about the late kings and queens of France? The Palace of Versailles.  Versailles: Science and Splendour explores the marvellous scientific research and discoveries that took place at the royals’ fabulous home before all the guillotining took place. Told in chronological order, the exhibit offers up digestible and fascinating bits of information about science, art and design – with treasures of the era to match – spanning the last years of the French monarchy from Louis XIV’s ascension in 1643 to the French Revolution in 1789.  Louis, who liked to call himself the Sun King – because what is more essential to humans than the Sun? – set himself the task of giving Versailles the biggest glow-up it would ever see when he came to the throne. And to do that, he needed technology. We learn about the engineering feats that were needed to create Versailles’ symmetrical gardens (the biggest ever made in the style), and how the royals used hydraulic power to channel more water into their fountains than supplied the whole of Paris.  It does a great job paying homage to under-the-radar figures, especially women Gems on display include gilded astronomical devices, the earliest models of pregnancy, a stunningly detailed moon map and the Breguet No. 160: one of the most intricate and expensive watches

The Bell in Ticehurst is the manic pixie dream girl of boutique hotels. In Ticehurst, a sweet East Sussex village, the 16th century pub and hotel is a local legend. Its beautiful upstairs room, kitted out with bespoke baroque-style wallpaper and grandiose chandeliers, still hosts the town hall meetings. On a Sunday evening in October, the downstairs pub has a merry, community feel, with seasoned locals propping themselves up at the bar alongside the trendy down-from-Londoners who inhabit the inn’s seven rooms for weekends away.  For décor, the Bell’s interior designer, Richard Brett, has taken a whimsical page straight out of Lewis Caroll’s Alice in Wonderland. There are riddles written on the walls and pillars made entirely out of dog-eared books. The room I stayed in, one of four outside lodges, had the word ‘pretty’ written on its concave ceiling over and over again, in a hypnotic spiral (a bit weird, but also kind of fun). The place also has a mad art collection belonging to the Bell’s owner, which includes a Tracey Emin, Graham Sutherland and a Banksy.  As arty as it is, The Bell also has a quaint English charm about it, with its communal areas populated by squidgy arm chairs, low ceilings showing off exposed tudor beams, taxidermied critters and abundance of fireplaces. Inside the room was just as cosy: the bed was immense and plush, with crisp, white sheets. I was more than happy to spend an hour soaking myself in the pristine bathroom, which had a roomy bathtub and p

  Who said ballet had to be boring? MADDADDAM, inspired by Margerat Attwood’s post-apocalyptic sci-fi trilogy of the same name, has a plot to rival a blockbuster movie. Sure, capturing three complicated dystopian novels, and all the world building within them, is a lot to take on for a 2.5 hour ballet. Somehow, Wayne McGregor pulls it off.  Now stay with me here; in Act One we meet Snowman, a dishevelled survivor of a major pandemic, dressed in rags and a battered red baseball cap. Snowman, AKA Jimmy, lives among the mysterious blue humanoid ‘Crakers’, who move about the stage like organisms in a harmonious ecosystem. Snowman believes himself to be the last human alive. We encounter other survivors too; the rifle-wielding Toby, who battles the hideous pig-human hybrid monsters (pigoons); Ren, a former stripper; and the thuggish Painballers, a gang of violent criminals.  The most important part though is a nostalgic dream sequence, where we are introduced to Crake, Jimmy’s childhood best-friend-turned-creepy-Steve-Jobs-super-scientist, and the love of Jimmy’s life, Oryx, a mysterious but pure-hearted former sex worker hired as an assistant to Crake, played by a buoyant and beautiful Fumi Kaneko. When Kaneko is on stage, dressed in a silky blue dressing gown, all eyes are drawn to her. Her deft movements give off an ethereality that others simply cannot. Joseph Sissen’s Snowman/Jimmy is a fantastic counterpart. His effortless performance is packed with strength and heart, and t

We enter to a room set up like the backstage area of a fashion show. A row of light-up mirrors, and dressing tables littered with makeup, lines the wall. Strips of tape map the floor marking the standing spots for the models: Naomie, Kate, Cindy. ‘Models, be yourself!’ a hand drawn poster tells us before we enter the Lightroom’s main space, a massive box in that has projections on all four walls and the floor. It’s a fun touch, but this is all the physical stuff you get to see at Vogue: Inventing the Runway.  A collaboration between Vogue magazine itself and the Lightroom, the ‘exhibition’ is essentially a 50-minute documentary film, which covers a lot of ground, taking us on a whistlestop tour of fashion’s greatest hits. It’s not entirely clear whether the film is meant to be a history of the clothes, the designers, the runway, or of Vogue and fashion reporting. The non-chronological piece, split into chapters under themes like ‘The Audience’ and ‘Disruptors’, plays on a loop – it’s designed so you can walk in at any moment and the film will still make sense. Covering the first couture house in the 1850s (Charles Frederick Worth), going all the way up to Pharell Williams’s first Louis Vuitton collection in 2023, and Maison Margiela’s Spring Summer ‘24 glazed doughnut models, it makes a lot of ground. All of this is atmospherically narrated by Cate Blanchett’s soft drawl.   If you want to look at massive images beautiful clothing, alongside cinematic music, this is a fun exp

If you don’t like tuna, this one’s not for you. But if you do, listen up. Los Mochis City has pinched Juno head chef Leonard Tanyag to come up with an omakase experience centred complelety around a massive Bluefin (which he chops up in front of you). The 10-course menu takes you on a tuna odyssey of sushi big hitters including sashimi, nigiri and maki, all with a nod to Mexico. Stand outs include the sticky rice and the tostadito. Admittedly, the vibe of Los Mochis City is a bit City Boy, but if you can look past all the gilets and briefcases, there’s much to be enjoyed. At £195 per person (plus an extra £110 for wine or sake pairings), this is one for a very special occasion. If you don’t fany the tuna ceremony, Los Mochis has a huge à la carte menu of sushi, tacos, crudos and more, plus multiple tasting menus including a vegan option. 

The Olivier Award–winning dance company for dancers of Black and Asian descent will bring it’s double-bill to the Royal Opera House this November, following its May run at the Barbican. Acclaimed choreographer Mthuthuzeli November explores the purpose of life in The Waiting Game, while If At First, by Sophie Laplane, the Choreographer in Residence at Scottish Ballet, contemplates the complexity of humanity, heroism and self-acceptance.  

Krumping, freestyle hip-hop and contemporary will merge in the UK premiere of ‘4/4’ by acclaimed aussie dance company Chunky Move. Going since the mid 1990s, Chunky Move is known for innovative, genre blending and intensely physical choreographies. Prepare to work up a sweat just watching these dancers. 

London’s best club according to Time Out is throwing a third birthday bash this August. Colour Factory is putting on day-to-night party to celebrate turning three in style. On the decks will be takeovers from queer Latinx collective 2CPerrea, afro-portuguese label Prícipe and nigerian-colombian collective Baile Ijó. Expect 12 hours of eclectic and global beats, from techno, to amapiano. Oh, and there’s going to be a bucking bronco and bouncy castle, only right for a birthday party. Buy tickets online here. 

New Year, same train strikes. It’s been well over two years (coming up to three) since London’s rail workers first started striking over issues like pay, working conditions and job security. And while in recent months industrial action in the capital has mellowed (ASLEF voted to approve a pay deal and then called off strikes on November), the strikes aren’t completely over.  Over the Christmas and New Year period several smaller-scale strikes took place across London’s transport network, and more industrial action is taking place for several months on Avanti West Coast services. These have already begun, and they’ll last until the end of May (at least).  Those Avanti strikes kicked off on New Year’s Eve. Here’s everything we currently know, from dates to which services and lines will be affected.  RECOMMENDED: All you need to know about the train strikes across the UK.Find out how to get to London’s airports during strikes here. When are the next London train strikes? The Avanti West Coast strikes took place on New Year’s Eve and January 2, and will follow every Sunday between January 12 and May 25. Find out more here. Which rail services will be impacted by train strikes this weekend, February 1-2? This weekend strikes will only take place on Sunday February 2, and they’ll be restricted to Avanti West Coast services. In London, Avanti West Coast operates out of Euston station.  How long will the London train strikes last? The Avanti West Coast strikes will last five months

They might have a combined age of 239, but there’s no stopping the Rolling Stones. The rockers were on tour just last year, taking their Hackney Diamonds Tour off around the USA and Canada.  Last week we had tantalising news for Stones fans, because Mick Jagger and co were rumoured to be going on a European tour this summer, with multiple London shows. Alas, it wasn’t to be. The band have apparently since shelved tour plans.  The Stones last played London in 2022, with two sold-out shows at BST Hyde Park. The ‘Gimme Shelter’ singers were expected to announce a summer 2025 tour with concerts in Barcelona, Rome, Amsterdam, Paris, and the Big Smoke. An insider recently told the Sun: ‘Promoters had been locked in discussions with The Stones about coming to the UK and Europe. ‘There had been hope the gigs would take place this summer but it’s not worked out. ‘And now it’s been shelved. But Mick, Keith and Ronnie love to perform live shows so there’s a hope that the promoters can lock in dates for next year.’ Here’s to hoping the band might get some dates in for 2026.  RECOMMENDED:🎤 The 25 best major music tours and concerts coming to the UK in 2025, from Oasis to Dua Lipa🎵 The best gigs and concerts in London this month How many nights were the Rolling Stones rumoured to be playing in London? The now-quashed rumours said that the band would play four nights in the UK capital.  Potential venue The rumour was that the Stones would perform at Tottenham Hotspur stadium.  When are th

We’re not quite sure how Londoners managed before the internet. We’d be lost without our Apple Pay, and don’t ever expect us to go anywhere without following the route on Citymapper.  And we know the phone signal in London is awful right now, but things could be looking up, because soon a free wi-fi network will be launched across central London. Westminster City Council, supported by Sadiq Khan, is trialling a new two-month scheme where people in Westminster will have access to a ‘seamless roaming experience’. For the next two months only, visitors and locals will be able to sign in to the free wi-fi using just one log-in, and then automatically connect at a range of different locations.  More than 50 locations across the borough, including Westminster’s public libraries, Berwick Street Market and the pedestrianised part of the Strand, have now got free wi-fi. QR codes have been placed around the locations to make signing up as easy as possible.  The service is called Connected London WiFi. It aims to create a ‘seamless roaming experience’ and to tackle ‘digital inequality’ among Londoners by providing easy-to-access, free internet connectivity. If the scheme is a success, there’s hope that it will be made a permanent fixture in Westminster.  Geoff Barraclough, the borough’s cabinet member for planning and economic development, said: ‘Every one of us has struggled to get high-speed mobile connections in central London, especially in busy areas such as Oxford Street and Coven

Don’t lie, you’re convinced that if you were on The Traitors you’d be able to catch a lier straight away – those silly Faithful are missing all the obvious clues. Well, now’s the chance to test out your theory, because applications for The Traitors series four are officially open.  Think you’ve got a genius game plan for taking it all the way to Endgame? Would you play dumb? Put on a fake Welsh accent? Or throw all your fellow players under the bus? If you want to go on the game of lying and deceiving, here’s all the information you need to apply to The Traitors S4.  How to apply to The Traitors You can apply to be on the next series online here now. According to the application, the casters are looking for ‘fun, smart and strategic players to take part in the ultimate game of trust and treachery’.  Applicants must be over 18 and fill in the online form, which asks if you would prefer to be a Traitor or a Faithful. The application also requires a photo, short video and your game plan to win. Get ready to reveal all, because the application also asks for the biggest lie you’ve ever told, and for examples of when you had to choose between your heart and your head.  When do applications close? Applications for The Traitors series four close on February 9.  An official live version of ‘The Traitors’ is coming to the West End next year and tickets are now on sale. 200 UK companies just signed up for a permanent four-day working week. Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out

Over the past few years we’ve seen train strikes, junior doctors strikes, airport workers strikes and more. Now, security guards at some of London’s biggest museums have decided to take industrial action over pay and working conditions.  People are being urged not to visit the Science Museum, Natural History Museum or V&A (including Young V&A and V&A East) during February, as staff will carry out the ‘longest ever strike’ at the institutions. Around 100 workers, who are members of the United Voices of the World (UVW) union, are expected to walk out across the three museums. All of the striking workers are employed by Wilson James, an outsourced private security contractor.   The UVW called the action ‘unprecedented’ and ‘the longest strike in the history of all three institutions’. Staff are walking out to demand a pay increase, improved sick pay, and full parity with directly employed museum staff. The union is asking the public to show solidarity with workers by not attending the museums during the strike, which will go on throughout the whole of February.  Bayo Owolawbi, a security guard at the Science Museum and UVW representative said: ‘We have been ignored and treated with utter disdain for too long. ‘We have been undermined but we do not undermine ourselves. We are strong, united and we will work hard to get justice.’ A Wilson James spokesperson said: ‘At Wilson James, we place the highest value on our colleagues’ contributions to protecting and enhancing visitor exper

It’s hard not to like Dishoom. The Indian restaurant chain is known for its indulgent, creamy black daal, addictive ‘chicken ruby’ curry, and legendary breakfasts, where you can get a naan stuffed with bacon and a fried egg.  The chain already has seven locations across London, and it’s just announced a brand new opening. Dishoom has revealed it will open a new ‘all day bar-café’, called the Permit Room, in Notting Hill this spring.   The Indian joint has applied applied for an alcohol licence and planning permission at 186 Portobello Road, with the licence requesting to be from 8am to 11pm.  The new spot is going to be a bit more casual than its other restaurants, focussing more on cocktails and sharing plates than sit-down meals. Cocktails on offer will include a ‘mango lassi punch’ and ‘kiwi colada shimmy’. For food, they will have small plates as well as crowd-pleasers like half chicken tandooris and chef’s lamb curry.  Dishoom already has Permit Rooms in Brighton, Cambridge and Oxford, but this will be the first to open in the capital. Dishoom describes its sister brand as ‘a salute to Bombay’s permit rooms, beer bars and drinking holes’ – bars that opened in the Indian capital in the 1970s after prohibition was lifted. The 7 best new London restaurants opening in February 2025.  London’s best dim sum restaurants.  The hottest new openings, the tastiest tips, the spiciest reviews: we’re serving it all on our London restaurants WhatsApp channel. Follow us now to tuck i

Soon, spring will be here, and then it’s summer which means on thing: festival season. We’re already dusting off our Uniqlo bags and Salomons, and we can taste that sweet mango White Claw.  All Points East has just announced the newest headliner for its 10-day extravaganza, and this is one for the DNB heads. Legendary duo Chase & Status will headline the Vicky Park festival in August 2025. The  drum ’n’ bass pair are joining headliners RAYE, the Maccabees and Barry Can’t Swim, who will play APE on different dates.  When are Chase & Status playing All Points East? They will take to the Victoria Park stage on Saturday, August 16 2025. Their show will be part of their RTRN II DANCE takeover. Who will support Chase & Status? So far, it’s announced that they’ll be joined by Overmono, Sammy Virji and Nia Archives.  Image: All Points East When do tickets go on sale? General sale kicks off at 10am on Thursday, February 13. Get tickets on the APE website here. Is there a presale? Yes. The presale goes live at 10am on Wednesday, February 12, also through the APE website.  How much will tickets cost?  Expect tickets to start from around £75 (excluding booking fee), though prices will increase as more tickets are sold. What’s been said about the festival? Chase & Status said: ‘Bringing RTRN II Dance to Victoria Park this summer is massive for us and to do it with these artists is super exciting for our home town. We’re ready to bring the energy and make it a night to remember with ev

Overtourism is a hot topic these days. From protests in Barcelona, to tourist taxes being introduced in Edinburgh, Manchester, and possibly Wales and Cornwall, and some destinations even banning holiday lets, countries around the world are doing what they can to mitigate the effects of too much tourism, while still reaping the benefits of visitors.  Now, Redditors have revealed which places they think suffer the most from overtourism around the world, and it’s not so surprising that a few UK locations made the cut.  In the UK, the Scottish capital of Edinburgh was mentioned – one user described the city centre as a ‘tartan theme park’ where there’s a ‘total lack of balance now’. The Lake District also got a shout out, with one person saying: ‘It’s jaw-droppingly beautiful and most of the scenery is packed into a smallish space, so I understand why it’s popular with tourists and often crowded. But it ruins the vibe when you have visitors everywhere clogging the streets and roads, driving up prices, overwhelming accommodation, and overflowing bins.’ Other UK spots that have too many visitors according to Reddit were Glencoe, the Isle of Skye, Snowdonia, the Cotswolds, and, not surprisingly, London.  Can we really blame people for wanting to go to beautiful, historic and culturally rich places? Absolutely not. But that also doesn’t mean that it’s not an issue for local people too. Where do you think suffers from too many tourists? Read more about which places around the world su

Second homes. Whether you think they are a waste of resources or that we should have the right to own as many houses as we want, there’s no questioning that they’re a factor in the current shortage of homes in the UK. Now, one local council wants to double rates of council tax on second homes and make the city a ‘fairer place to live’.  From April, second homes in Oxford will be faced with a 100 percent premium charge on council tax, as the local authority has just given the new measure the green light. An estimated 668 homes within the city council's boundary will now have to pay double their standard rate. Oxford City Council’s deputy leader Ed Turner said: ‘We really want to make Oxford a fairer place to live. If people have a second home in Oxford, it's only right that they make an appropriate contribution for local services. ‘We need this money, and I think we will be charging from the first moment that we legally can.’ The historic council tax hike on second homes in Oxford was supposed to come into action on April 2024 after being approved in February 2023, but the council was told they had to give home owners 12 months’ notice before the increase.   Edinburgh is introducing a tourist tax for overnight stays. Three UK cities are the world’s most popular places to buy a second home.  Plus: how much council tax is going up in every London borough. Stay in the loop: sign up to our free Time Out UK newsletter for the latest UK news and the best stuff happening across th

It’s almost Lunar New Year, which means that we will be ushering in a new era defined by the Chinese zodiac signs. On Wednesday, January 29 it will become the Year of the Snake, which represents wisdom, transformation, intuition and resilience.  Chinese New Year, AKA the Spring Festival, is a commemoration of the new lunar calendar, and is celebrated in many South Asian countries including Korea, Vietnam, Thailand, Indonesia, Singapore, Taiwan, Malaysia and the Philippines, as well as in many diaspora communities around the globe. If you’re looking for a celebration in London but don’t want to face the West End crowds, we have you covered. Here are some of the best alternative Lunar New Year events for 2025.  RECOMMENDED: 🐍 The ultimate guide to Lunar New Year in London 2025.🥾 London Chinese Lunar New Year Parade 2025: start time, route and everything you need to know. Year of the Snake at Greenwich Peninsula Greenwich Peninsula will be transformed into a festival of Lunar New Year activity on February 1, ushering in the year of the snake with a host of performances, workshops and tasty treats. More info here.  Feb 1. Greenwich Peninsula, SE10. Free.  Lunar New Year at London Museum Docklands Did you know London’s original Chinatown wasn’t located in its current spot neighbouring Soho, but in Limehouse? Celebrate in the location of London’s OG Chinatown at this free festival organised by the London Museum Docklands, including Chinese folktales, handicrafts and the dragon da

Over the past few years, London has lost a number of amazing LGBTQ+ venues. Icons of the gay scene G-A-Y Late and The Glory are gone, and it’s been reported that more than half of London's LGBTQ+ venues closed between 2006 and 2022. So, it’s always great news when we hear about a new queer venue opening in the Big Smoke – it’s not all doom and gloom.  Plans have been revealed to open a new ‘inclusive’ queer venue at the site of former gay men’s club XXL in Bankside, Southwark. Southwark Council has pledged £1.5 million to go towards the new LGBTQ+ venue, which is due to open in 2026 and will include a theatre and workspace. XXL club closed in September 2019 despite fierce rejection and a petition with 5,900 signatures asking for it to stay open. Although XXL wasn’t saved, it was agreed that the site would be kept as an LGBTQ+ space.  ‘Borough and Bankside Liberal Democrat councillors successfully suggested the Council should agree a memorandum of understanding with the developers to protect this as an LGBTQ+ space when XXL closed,’ Councillor Victor Chamberlain told Pink News. ‘I’ve been working with the council and developers since to ensure this happens and encouraged the council to use CIL to make this a viable space to operate. ‘This is a good step forward, but we need a Southwark LGBTQ+ strategy that was agreed to be developed following a successful Liberal Democrat motion last year to ensure we can see even more LGBTQ+ spaces and businesses in the borough.’ The new spac

At the end of 2024, plans for the West London Orbital (WLO) got a step closer to coming true. If you haven’t heard about the proposal to operate a new Overground line between Hendon and Hounslow (mostly using existing tracks), we wrote about it in February and October last year – we recommend reading those articles to get some background knowledge.  For those of you already in the know, there’s been an exciting development. In December London Mayor Sadiq Khan said there was a ‘feasible solution’ for the project. In a London Assembly written response to a question from Lib Dem Gareth Roberts, Khan said that delivering the WLO was one of his priorities.  Khan said: ‘The current stage of development is now nearing completion. To deliver the scheme, funding would be needed from local sources and national Government as well as TfL and Greater London Authority.’ Now, a new map created by Metro has revealed all of the stations that could be served by the WLO. The new line would connect Hendon, Brent Cross and West Hampstead in the northwest with Hounslow in the west, and through the upcoming Old Oak Common HS2 station, Harlsden and Acton. It could also see a few new stations built.  All the stations that could be on the West London Orbital Hendon Brent Cross Cricklewood West Hampstead Neasden Harlesden Old Oak Common Acton Central South Acton Lionel Road Kew Bridge Brentford Syon Lane Isleworth Hounslow Clapham Junction In March tube fares will increase to help pay for TfL’s ambit