Sophie Tighe

London sex shops aren’t what they used to be. Gone are the days of furtively peeling back a dusty old velvet curtain or sneaking off into some grotty basement to browse through a dusty DVD collection.  These days, the capital’s adult stores are often loud, proud, and quite pleasurable experiences to be inside. Not to mention they're way more diverse, with loads more places for women and queer people to get their kicks.  Whether you’re after a discrete little vibrator or a full-on latex maid’s costume, you’ll find it all in here, from saucy lingerie to sex toys, nipple clamps to ball gags. Go forth and let your freak flag fly, London! RECOMMENDED: The not-so-secret new wave of London’s sex-positive parties

There is no doubt about the fact that one of the best things to do in Bologna (if not the best thing to do) is to eat here. And, since the most delicious food in the world is Italian and the best food in Italy is in the norteast region of Emilia-Romagna, you are in for a treat. In addition to the amazing restaurants in town, the capital of Emilia-Romagna si famed for its legendary university, swelteringly hot summers and as home to the most quintessential of all Italian dishes: spaghetti bolognese. So pack your stretchiest sweats and head to beautiful Bologna.  Done something on this list and loved it? Share it with the hashtag #TimeOutDoList and tag @TimeOutEverywhere. Find out more about how Time Out selects the very best things to do all over the world.

‘Vardy v Rooney’ will play Tuesdays only at Wyndham’s Theatre until January. In April it transfers to the Ambassadors Theatre for a ‘normal’ run. The world can be divided into two groups: those who remember where they were on October 9 2019 and those who were living under a rock. For the benefit of you rock-dwellers, October 9 was the day Coleen Rooney posted an explosive revelation on her social media channels. Unbeknownst to her millions of followers, even her family and friends, Rooney had quietly been conducting an investigation into who from her inner circle had been leaking stories about her and her family to The Sun newspaper. The infamous ‘reveal post’ ended with the now iconic line ‘It’s……….Rebekah Vardy’s account’. Playing on Tuesday at Wyndham’s Theatre in the West End for the next couple of months, ‘Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial’ is a pretty faithful stage retelling of the 2022 libel case that followed, as Vardy took Rooney to court to prove her innocence. Fans of a courtroom drama have a lot to be excited about as Lisa Spirling’s production proudly announces that all dialogue delivered from the witness stand is taken directly from the court transcripts and indeed it does write itself (albeit with some judicious pruning from editor Liv Hennessy). There is no need for additional funny quips as the testimony given by Lucy May Barker’s Vardy is funnier than anything any writer could fathom. Under cross-examination at one point, she begins ‘If I’m being h

If I had a pound for every time I Googled 'Where’s good to eat in Kings Cross' I… would probably be able to afford a slap-up dinner at Decimo. Despite its prime location and a doubtless eye-watering amount of regeneration money, Kings Cross still seems to lack that intangible vibe that makes a neighbourhood somewhere Londoners flock to of a weekend. That probably explains the 'special occasion' prices and clientele at Decimo, a Spanish-Mexican eatery located on the 10th floor of The Standard hotel. High above the Euston Road, chef Peter Sanchez-Iglesias has created a buzzing mid-century lounge filled with cacti, succulents and terracotta tiles. This is a see and be seen restaurant, with most tables being taken up by groups of friends struggling with the low-lighting to document every dish or couples shyly grinning over a bottle of tempranillo on that all important third date. Decimo’s wide-ranging menu invites diners to begin with small plates all tapas fans will recognise – tortilla, jamon, croquettas – before moving on to a more than substantial second half featuring meat, fish and a range of vegetable mains. A word of advice – stay put in the para picars. The single ham and cheese croquetta is as good as any I’ve had in Spain, oozing salty, smoky goodness. The simply named bread and oil turns out to be a mountain of chargrilled sourdough chunks swimming in olive oil I have to stop myself drinking with a spoon. We’re confused when the server sets down a small marble plinth

Kushiage is Japanese pub food – deep fried nibbles on a stick. Here at Dai Chi, we’re told, they ‘take simple pub food, and elevate it’. It made me smile to think that 6,000 miles away a waiter in Tokyo might be serving up an ‘elevated’ version of cheese-and-onion crisps or Scampi Fries to bemused diners. It’s clear the staff are passionate about this new endeavour from the team behind Angelina in Dalston, a much beloved Japanese-Italian fusion eatery.  Dai Chi’s set menu continues in the same vein, combining the crown jewels of both cuisines to create something genuinely unique. The creamy burrata was dotted with bright orange salmon roe nestled on bitter leaves, soft mouthfuls of hamachi were sprinkled with sweet soy and truffles flown in from Italy. This is where the menu shines: fusion dishes that prove a small mouthful can be more than the sum of its parts.  It might sound a bit obvious, but later on the menu leans quite heavily on the deep-fried skewers with two of the six courses being entirely fried (three if you’re pescatarian). Meat-eaters will enjoy the slight reprieve from breadcrumbs when presented with the braised pork, which really did melt in the mouth. But even this is topped with a ‘frickle’ – that’s a deep-fried pickle to you and me. The final savoury dish was a welcome, simple bowl of rice topped with a raw egg yolk and seasoned with something called umo and kombu hitofuri – a sprinkle of which managed to hit sweet, salty and umami all in one.  Fans of Sha

★★★★ 4/5 The world can be divided into two groups: those who remember where they were on October 9 2019 and those who were living under a rock. For the benefit of you rock-dwellers, October 9 was the day Coleen Rooney posted an explosive revelation on her social media channels. Unbeknownst to her millions of followers, even her family and friends, Rooney had quietly been conducting an investigation into who from her inner circle had been leaking stories about her and her family to The Sun newspaper. The infamous ‘reveal post’ ended with the now iconic line ‘It’s……….Rebekah Vardy’s account’. Playing on Tuesday at Wyndham’s Theatre in the West End for the next couple of months, ‘Vardy v Rooney: The Wagatha Christie Trial’ is a pretty faithful stage relling of the 2022 libel case that followed, as Vardy took Rooney to court to prove her innocence. Fans of a courtroom drama have a lot to be excited about as Lisa Spirling’s production proudly announces that all dialogue delivered from the witness stand is taken directly from the court transcripts and indeed it does write itself (albeit with some judicious pruning from editor Liv Hennessy). There is no need for additional funny quips as the testimony given by Lucy May Barker’s Vardy is funnier than anything any writer could fathom. Under cross-examination at one point, she begins ‘If I’m being honest’ to which David Sherborne, QC remarks ‘I would hope you are being honest, since you’re in the witness box in the High Court’. A thous