City AM’s Pub of the Week: The Abitrager February 25, 2026 This week’s Pub of the Week is The Abitrager on Throgmorton Street The Arbitrager is one of those pubs that feels so inextricably linked to the Square Mile that it couldn’t exist anywhere else. As many readers of this newspaper will know, arbitrage is the buying of a commodity in one market and selling it [...]
David Attenborough London documentary wanted to ‘rebrand’ rats February 19, 2026 Showcasing that a population of non-native constrictor snakes live in central London wasn’t enough for the makers of David Attenborough’s recent London documentary, who have revealed that they also wanted to “rebrand” the capital’s rats. Some estimates suggest there could be 20 million rats in the capital, and it is every Londoner’s worst nightmare to [...]
Chiharu Shiota and Yin Xiuzhen at the Hayward Gallery February 18, 2026 As you walk into one gallery in this new exhibition, a thick weave of string forms a kind of nightmare spiders’ web around a dozen institutional-looking beds. Once a month, these will be occupied by volunteers, bringing an element of performance to Chiharu Shiota’s installation. There’s a sense of child-like wonder as you navigate narrow [...]
‘Hundreds of outdoor drinkers’: City AM’s Pub of the Week is The Wren on Watling Street February 18, 2026 If you’re looking for a man in finance, go to TikTok, where videos streamed millions of times tell you to go to Watling Street. It’s the skinny lane with St Paul’s Cathedral at the end and four pubs along it, where in the summer hundreds tightly pack with al fresco pints. Ye Olde Watling, where [...]
Fascinating Wimbledon exhibition reveals players drank champagne on court February 18, 2026 Suzanne Lenglen was the Serena Williams of her day. It was the Roaring Twenties and the six-time Wimbledon women’s singles champion was practically unbeatable. How? In breaks between games, she would neck champagne or cognac, passed to her by either her father or her coach. She gave it up once but then went back to [...]
Dracula review: Cynthia Erivo is overwhelmed in tech-heavy production February 17, 2026 Dracula review and star rating: ★★ How much further can this trend for incorporating live video in theatre productions go? In Kip Williams’ adaptation of Dracula, it is often not like being in the theatre at all. Far too often it feels like watching a film at the cinema, with giant video screens playing pre-recorded [...]
Bond girl Maryam d’Abo is ‘compelling’ in new London play February 17, 2026 Spanish Oranges review and star rating: ★★★★ “Those legs of yours,” purrs Jay Villers’ Ivo to his wife Fiona in the new play Spanish Oranges. For the actor Maryam d’Abo, who played opposite Timothy Dalton’s Bond in The Living Daylights, it’s another decade, another man with emotional issues as she takes on her first stage [...]
BFI Flare 2026 announces full line-up, from Heartstopper to Russell T Davies February 17, 2026 BFI Flare 2026 runs from 189 – 29 March at BFI Southbank The UK’s dedicated LGBTQ film festival BFI Flare has announced its full line-up for 2026, the year in which the event celebrates its 40th birthday. BFI Flare features world premieres of the latest LGBTQ cinema, as well as talks, events and workshops for [...]
Harry Styles will curate Meltdown music festival in London this summer February 16, 2026 Harry Styles has a busy London summer ahead of him. Having already put on sale a 12-night run at Wembley Stadium, the musician has announced that he’ll curate an entire music festival in the capital. The Meltdown festival takes place at the Southbank Centre between 11 – 21 June and celebrates a wide array of [...]
Shadowlands theatre review: Hugh Bonneville grips in grief drama February 16, 2026 Shadowlands theatre review and star rating: ★★★★ There are ample ways to soak up the Paddington movie franchise live in the capital right now. If you’re not going to listen to songs about “M-M-M-M-Marmalade” at Paddington the Musical, then why not invest in Hugh Bonneville, who returns to the London stage for the first time [...]