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The London Fiver – Five Ways to Beat the London Heat This Summer

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Sure, London summers don’t get as hot as they do in the United States, but you’d be surprised how warm it can get.  Temperatures in the 70s might seem pretty cool to us, but it’s a little toasty for the average Londoner.  If you want to experience summer the way the locals do, there are plenty of opportunities to cool off throughout Greater London.  Whether you’re chowing down … [Read more...] about The London Fiver – Five Ways to Beat the London Heat This Summer

The London Fiver – Five of the Best Sports Bars

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One could certainly argue that every pub in the UK is a sports bar, since it’s naturally where everyone gathers to watch a match.  Certain pubs, of course, are bound to have their favored teams’ colors adorning the walls and cheering supporters on game day.  However, some places go above this to mark themselves as true sports bars, a place seemingly designed only to watch the … [Read more...] about The London Fiver – Five of the Best Sports Bars

Guest Post: 4 Reasons why it’s Time to Take a London Bus Tour

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Touring a city can be tiresome, right? Especially when you aren’t certain about where the attractions are, or the theatres, maybe even the restaurants or shops? Take London tours by bus especially, and you can open up the city to new possibilities. It’s allows you to see the famous places, get your bearings, know the distances between different attractions and explore. With … [Read more...] about Guest Post: 4 Reasons why it’s Time to Take a London Bus Tour

It’s Official: Crossrail – Aka The Elizabeth LIne – Is Officially Delayed Until At Least 2020

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The announcement has been made. Many suspected this would be the case. Crossrail, London's new underground railway, has had its opening delayed until at least Autumn 2020. The entire line won't open until 2021 at the earliest as well. The new cross-London railway line, which will slash journey times across the capital, was supposed to open last year, but at the last minute … [Read more...] about It’s Official: Crossrail – Aka The Elizabeth LIne – Is Officially Delayed Until At Least 2020

Londontopia Store Alert: New Products LIVE – London Tube Map and AtoZ Map 1,000 Piece Puzzles!

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To start off May, we've imported two beautiful and challenging puzzles from UK manufacturer Robert Frederick (based in Bath). First up is a 1,000 piece jigsaw puzzle of the London A to Z map - a great way to learn the streets by heart! Next up is the London Tube Map - also 1,000 pieces and I hear particularly challenging because of all the white space. Each puzzle is 30x20 … [Read more...] about Londontopia Store Alert: New Products LIVE – London Tube Map and AtoZ Map 1,000 Piece Puzzles!

Laura’s London: Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition – The Design Museum – Our Review – Is It Worth Going?

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Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition has opened at The Design Museum in Kensington and is on until 15 September 2019. A global touring exhibition which started its journey in 2004, has at last reached London where so many of Kubrick's movies were filmed. Marking the 20th anniversary of Stanley Kubrick’s death, the exhibition explores his unique command of the whole creative … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Stanley Kubrick: The Exhibition – The Design Museum – Our Review – Is It Worth Going?

Exhibition Alert: Buckingham Palace to Explore the Life of Queen Victoria at Summer Exhibition Opening

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Buckingham Palace only opens for a few weeks in the Summer when the Queen is away in Scotland. To coincide with each summer opening, there's usually a special exhibition on show (though seeing the Palace state rooms themselves is worth the price of admission!). This year, the Royal Collection Trust will be exploring Queen Victoria's life at the Palace. This year's summer … [Read more...] about Exhibition Alert: Buckingham Palace to Explore the Life of Queen Victoria at Summer Exhibition Opening

London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground

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I found this on Reddit the other day and knew I had to share it. Most first time travelers to London will quickly learn that the London Underground Tube Map is not designed with geographic reality in mind. It has almost no relation to geographic reality in London and you discover these quirks when you try to, for example, connect between lines at Bank. This dates back to when … [Read more...] about London Tube: You’ve Got to Watch This Amazing Mesmerizing Animation That Shows the Real Geography of the London Underground

The London Fiver – Five Atmospheric Subterranean London Bars To Visit

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Today, underground is a word that tends to conjure images of secrecy and exclusivity when it comes to places.  When it comes to London, the underground is synonymous with the city’s subterranean train service.  Of course, there is also the original meaning and applied to bars; it can mean any number of drinking establishments that can be found below the London streets.  The … [Read more...] about The London Fiver – Five Atmospheric Subterranean London Bars To Visit

The Fiver – Five of the Highest Bars in London

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One of the best things to have with a good drink is a view.  Lots of places out there have rooftop bars or observation towers where one can get a cocktail, a pint, or a glass of wine and gaze out over the horizon.  London certainly has its share of high-altitude drinking establishments that rank amongst the highest in the UK and in Europe.  Whatever you’re in the mood for, each … [Read more...] about The Fiver – Five of the Highest Bars in London

Ten Small Craft Breweries to Visit in London

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Craft beer is the wave of the future.  So many new breweries have sprung up in the last few years it feels as if they’re reproducing at the same speed as rabbits.  The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) estimates there are 125 craft breweries in the city spread out amongst the boroughs and neighborhoods.  With so many throughout Greater London, it can be hard to determine which ones … [Read more...] about Ten Small Craft Breweries to Visit in London

Ten Unique Tea Rooms for Your Afternoon Tea in London

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Tea has been an important part of British culture since the 17th Century, and you’d be hard pressed to find a society on this side of the globe that loves it more.  While coffee houses preceded tea rooms in London, the culture quickly flipped when Thomas Twining opened the city’s first tea room in 1707.  Now you can find them in every borough and neighborhood.  While many offer … [Read more...] about Ten Unique Tea Rooms for Your Afternoon Tea in London

Springtime in London: Top Things to Do in London This Spring

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Spring appears to have sprung early in London this year. With the winter weather finally starting to thaw, spring is upon us, and that means an array of seasonal events in London.  The city is awash with festivals, sporting events, and ceremonies from March through May and there is enough variety to find something anyone will enjoy.  We have identified our top ten favorite … [Read more...] about Springtime in London: Top Things to Do in London This Spring

Top 10 London: Ten Places in London for the Perfect Selfie

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Simultaneously the most hated thing tourists do but also the most popular thing they actually do. Ever since cell phones got cameras, a self-shot (or “selfie”) photo is the norm for most of us.  Whether you want to capture a memory or blow up Instagram while you’re in London, the city certainly has plenty of excellent spots for a selfie.  Of course, there are places not to take … [Read more...] about Top 10 London: Ten Places in London for the Perfect Selfie

Laura’s London: Take a First Look at the Beautiful Restored Painted Hall in Greenwich – Re-opening in March!

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Editor's Note: We have a real treat this week - Laura was given an exclusive tour of the newly restored Painted Hall in Greenwich before its re-opening so we're chuffed to bits that she's written up a huge report about it. Please consider subscribing to the Londontopia Magazine as it allows us to commission great articles like this. As reported here recently, The Painted … [Read more...] about Laura’s London: Take a First Look at the Beautiful Restored Painted Hall in Greenwich – Re-opening in March!

Top Ten London: Top 10 Most Romantic Places in London

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Love is in the air when February rolls around, and London is a great place to experience it.  Most people might think that Paris would be the best place to spend Valentine’s Day, but the UK capital has a charm to rival its competition across the Channel.  If you’re in London on February 14th, you might want to consider one of the ten places below to spend the holiday with … [Read more...] about Top Ten London: Top 10 Most Romantic Places in London

Check Out This Amazing Animated Visualization of London’s Tube Lines

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I can't stop watching this animated visualization of London's Tube Lines. It first made the rounds on Reddit and then it went viral on Twitter. It was made by Twitter user Baggma and I've linked to the original Tweet below. My favorite bit is the Elizabeth line coming in at the bottom, then creeping back away (it's recently been announced its delayed, probably for several … [Read more...] about Check Out This Amazing Animated Visualization of London’s Tube Lines

New in London: Mariage Frères Elegant Tea Room and Museum is Now Open in Covent Garden – We Send Laura Porter to Check it Out!

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The world's most exclusive purveyor of luxury teas and France's oldest tea house, Mariage Frères, has opened its first UK tea emporium in Covent Garden. In addition to being a new tea house in London, it also contains a small museum dedicated to tea. I've been waiting for this one as it was supposed to open in September 2018 but, due to delays with its heritage building, … [Read more...] about New in London: Mariage Frères Elegant Tea Room and Museum is Now Open in Covent Garden – We Send Laura Porter to Check it Out!

Harry Potter News: Gringotts Bank Coming to the Harry Potter Studio Tour in April

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The Harry Potter Studio Tour is continually changing and updating to make sure they have a steady stream of repeat visitors. Today, they've announced that they'll be opening up Gringotts Bank to visitors. From the press release: For the first time ever at Warner Bros. Studio Tour London – The Making of Harry Potter, visitors are invited to enter the set of Gringotts … [Read more...] about Harry Potter News: Gringotts Bank Coming to the Harry Potter Studio Tour in April

London Alert: London’s Classic Routemaster Bus Heritage Routes To Stop Running on Weekdays

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The Routemaster is an icon of London (see our article on its history here). Our image of London is so suffused with it, that even though the bus was long ago taken out of regular service, it still serves that purpose. Several buses are kept in good order and operated on Heritage Routes through central London for tourists to still enjoy. Seeing a Routemaster on the roads, with … [Read more...] about London Alert: London’s Classic Routemaster Bus Heritage Routes To Stop Running on Weekdays

London Alert: The Painted Hall in Greenwich to Re-Open in March After Multi-year Restoration

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Great news! After being closed for almost two years and undergoing at £3 million restoration, The Painted Hall at the Old Royal Naval College in Greenwich will be re-opening to visitors! This place is sometimes referred to as the UK's 'Sistine Chapel' and it's an incredible sight to see in person. If you've been the Greenwich the last few years, you may have been … [Read more...] about London Alert: The Painted Hall in Greenwich to Re-Open in March After Multi-year Restoration

Top Ten London: Top 10 Things to See and Do in Bromley

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The London Borough of Bromley is the largest in greater London, covering fifty-nine square miles.  Like many of London’s boroughs, it was formed in 1965 by the London Government Act of 1963 and was created out of the Metropolitan Boroughs of Bromley and Beckenham as well as the Urban Districts of Penge, Orpington, and Chislehurst.  Being the biggest of London’s boroughs, there … [Read more...] about Top Ten London: Top 10 Things to See and Do in Bromley

London History: The Medieval London Murder Map Released by University of Cambridge

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This is fascinating. The Violence Research Centre out of the University of Cambridge has taken the data of recorded murders in the Tudor era and plotted them on a map, which provides a macabre and fascinating look at crime in London in the middle ages. About the map: First digital map of the murders recorded by the city's Coroner in early 1300s shows Cheapside and Cornhill … [Read more...] about London History: The Medieval London Murder Map Released by University of Cambridge

Alexandra Palace’s East Wing Opens To the Public After £27 Million Restoration – See Images of the New Interiors!

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It's so lovely to see London's iconic buildings get a new lease of life after restoration. The latest building in London to get the treatment is Alexandra Palace. While not really a 'palace' in the palace sense, Alexandra Palace has been a destination for entertainment since it was built in the Victorian Era. It's most famous as the place where the BBC started broadcasting … [Read more...] about Alexandra Palace’s East Wing Opens To the Public After £27 Million Restoration – See Images of the New Interiors!

London Alert: The Annual Black Friday-Cyber Monday Sale is ON! Huge Discounts! Details Inside!

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Hey Everyone! Just a quick post to let everyone know that our annual Black Friday to Cyber Monday Sale is now ON in the Anglotopia Store. We have huge discounts on maps, magazines, books, subscriptions and more! The sale ends on Monday and if we run out of stock on anything, that's it! We have tons of great fits for the Anglophile in your life. Don't miss out. We would urge you … [Read more...] about London Alert: The Annual Black Friday-Cyber Monday Sale is ON! Huge Discounts! Details Inside!

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