London Entertainment

Londons nightlife and entertainment scene offers something for everybody, whether you want loud clubs, trendy bars, or a traditional London pub, you will have no problem finding something suitable here. There is an excellent theatre and music scene and an interesting events calendar.

Nightlife

London has a vibrant nightlife scene with many clubs, trendy bars and a large gay scene. There is something to suit all tastes here. The London club scene is considered the most diverse in Europe, and stands alongside the worlds great clubbing cities. There is a huge mix of music and a regular showcasing of both the best established DJs and rising stars. Hip-hop has seen something of a re-birth in recent years but there is also a wealth of trance, garage, and R and B venues as well as plenty of options for those who like 1970s and 80s pop.

There are night venues to be found all over London, but some of the most established in Central London include Caf De Paris in Leicester Square, a vast establishment with three different bars, and Funky Buddha in Mayfair, which is very popular with Londons trendiest fashion and music crowd. The nightlife scene in London tends to change pretty regularly, but there are a number of listing magazines, such as Time Out, which can give you a good guide as to whats hot while you visit.

London has a busy and lively gay scene, still traditionally focused around Old Compton Street in Soho, but with a number of smaller centres and gay friendly venues across the capital. Soho is certainly the best starting point, where you will find a range of clubs, bars, traditional pubs, cafs, and gay themed shops. Its a lively area to stroll around and find a place to suit your tastes. Prowler, on Brewer Street, is the most well known gay lifestyle shop in London and a good place to find information. Some of Londons most established gay clubs include G-A-Y, which is particularly popular with a young pop-loving crowd, and the legendary nightclub Heaven, but even within this area of central London you will find huge diversity.

For many, one of the real charms of London is to find a traditional London pub and enjoy a simple evening with some tasty pub food and good drinks, and there are pubs dotted around the entire city, ranging from modern gastro-pubs to large pub chains but also plenty of small old-style local pubs.

Theatre and music

Many people rate London ahead of New York as the theatre and music capital of the world and its not hard to see why. The capital has a vast theatre scene with many big budget productions but also a large fringe scene showcasing new talent and more abstract themes.

The main theatre district is located in the West End around the Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square areas, although the National Theatre is located on the South Bank. An evening at one of Londons biggest theatres is certainly not a cheap night out, and many productions are heavily booked in advance. However the half price ticket booth in Leicester Square is a great place to pick up discounted and late booking tickets. If you dont have a strong preference for a particular show, then this is the place to head, where something will always be available.

There are always highly respected and well-known actors and directors working on the London stage and the official London theatre website is a good place for up to date information www.officiallondontheatre.co.uk.

Similarly, London has a wide music scene with classical, jazz, and many other music styles well represented. There are five major orchestras in the city and a host of small, local music groups.

The Royal Opera House, which underwent a major renovation in the 1990s, is a fantastic venue with a rich history, and a must visit for any opera and ballet lovers.

Festivals

London has a good range of events and festivals with large international festivals, impressive Royal displays and plenty of smaller ones, with some of the most significant being:

• The Chinese New Year celebrations at the end of January/early February see the streets of China Town in Londons Soho light up with impressive displays with many colourful Chinese dragons dancing through the streets.
• Fleadh is a great early summer festival of mainly Irish music taking place in Finsbury Park, North London. The festival has attracted some top international acts over the years, including Van Morrison and Bob Dylan.
• Trooping the Colour in June is perhaps the most famous of the Royal Festivals, celebrating the Queens official birthday with gun salutes and a royal procession along the Mall.
• Notting Hill Carnival is probably Londons most famous festival, taking place over two days around the August bank holiday. The vast street festival has great food, music, with huge crowds and many imaginative costumes.