For us, none other than the amazing tradition of Christmas markets is what gets us in the Christmas spirit, and so we have gathered some of the fantastic Christmas markets in South London that are definitely worth checking out in your local area this year!
As the sun finally begins to show its face, we’re bringing you a list of the best spots to don your sunnies, slap on the suncream and settle in for an afternoon of cold ones in the London sunshine. From riverside sundowners to boozy lunches on the terrace, Putney’s got an exciting little assortment of al fresco possibilities and we’ve rounded them up just in time for the Bank Holiday.
With the gradual, yet steady closing-down of local cinemas and theatres that has been happening in Britain for decades, we thought it a good idea to use our platform to pay homage to one of the oldest theatres in South London that has survived this unfortunate decline in entertainment venues, and continues to showcase cutting edge theatre and events to this day....
Season's greetings! There is no better way of getting into the Christmas spirit than by attending your local christmas markets. Wrap up warm with the family or a few friends, stroll down to your local market and enjoy the rich warming smells of mulled wine and mince pies, whilst trying to remember the lyrics to your favourite carols. We've got the round-up; check out where your local market is happening and make sure you're there!
Run your fingers along their spines, cast your eyes up and down the shelves, flick through the pages and sit cross legged on the floor engrossed in the words resting in your lap. Escape the dull, uniform, needlessly clean chain bookshops that are a stalwart part of any high street or soulless shopping centre. South London has its fair share of independent bookshops where hidden treasures can be found, prices are right and the shelves hold countless stories to lose yourself in.
Ever feel like you’re stuck in the same old routine? There are dozens of ways you can shake it up in South London and expand your skill set. We’ve done all the research for you, whether you simply want to improve your cooking skills or fancy trying to learn some exciting circus tricks to impress your friends! If you’re looking for fitness-related classes here, have no fear! We believe these deserve a list of their own. So, here’s our top picks for 22 places to learn a new skill in South London!
Pop-up restaurants are for those who sometimes need a little push to try something new. With a residency of sometimes as little as six weeks, pop-up restaurants are perfect spots to receive top quality and often unique food that is always limited edition. This blog will take you through some of the best pop-up restaurants you can find in South London.
In the third installment of our series explaining the origins of the names of the areas of South London we will be focusing on the great London Borough of Southwark. Along with Lambeth, Lewisham and Greenwich it forms part of what we like to call the 'four shark teeth' of South London. We might have included Wandsworth in that list because it does look a little - actually a lot - like tiger shark tooth. Go on, search the boundaries of Wandsworth and then compare it against a tiger shark tooth. You'll see, you will all see. Anyway, less about fearsome fish and more about the reason behind the names of areas. Southwark is probably the installment we've looking forward to most because of some of the really curious names in the borough, like Denmark Hill or Elephant and Castle - frankly, we really cannot wait to explain it.
The earliest known dedicated Indian restaurant opened in the United Kingdom was the Hindostanee Coffee House on George Street in Westminster, owned and run by one Sake Dean Mahomed, and which began trading in 1810. Though Britain apparently already had a taste for curry by this point, as shown by the fact that curried dishes were included in cookbooks published during the eighteenth century, the Hindostanee Coffee House apparently closed only a year after opening due to a lack of business - though some accounts suggest it continued trading till 1833. To put this into context, the first outlet dedicated to selling the dish now most synonymous with the UK - fish and chips - opened during the 1860s. Curry has become a staple of the British diet, and is easily one of the most popular 'takeaway' foods commonly served in the UK. Almost everyone has a favourite curry dish, and a favourite curry restaurant. We're not going to try to change that, but maybe you're thinking about trying somewhere new, and if you are, we've got you covered. To help you get your search started, here is our list of the 11 best Indian restaurants in South London.
Florists are useful for quite a number of occasions - weddings and funeral particularly, but there remit is not limited to those sorts of events. In fact, most florists will cover all your flower needs. We admire good flowers at South London Club, we recognise the importance of a good florist, and the effect that flowers can have on the atmosphere of a room, and so and so forth. We're not just about recommending good places to have food, we're about supporting independent businesses of all kinds, and South London has plethora of fantastic florists to choose from. We've decided it's about time that we gave you a rundown of what we think are the 17 best florists in London, and hopefully our list will prove useful should you need the services of a florist in the near future.
So we've now established what the top 10 best train stations in South London are, and if you haven't seen that list, click this link and a have a look. The criteria for that list was stations that either more beautiful than others, more useful than others, or possibly even both. The logic would apply that if we reverse that, then we should be able to work out what the worst stations in South London are. So the stations selected on this shortlist are either particularly bleak or unattractive, particularly useless, or even both. Sometimes though they might be quite useful stations, but their bleakness may outweigh that, and vice versa. In terms as to what we are defining South London as, it's the same as before - the outer limit is Zone 4, and the station has to be south of the river. To help you decide, we've included photos of each station below the voting form. Enjoy!
Here it is, the votes are in, the list is here, the list that you've all be waiting for with bated breath - The Top 10 South London Train Stations, as voted for by you dear readers. There were questions over some of the stations included, and we'll repeat that the shortlist was dictated by beauty, naturally our own subjective view but we cast the net wide, and usefulness, as dictated by statistics taken from the Office of Rail and Road. Some stations are both useful and beautiful, and some stations are simply one or the other, and we feel that the voting has reflected this. Being the internet, some took issue with the use of the term 'train station', let's just get this straight before we get started - we didn't use 'railway stations' because it included 'tube stations', and vice versa, we needed a term that denoted both. Anyway, to bed with those issues, to bed! Get ready for the most thrilling ride you have ever taken as we countdown, starting at 10, the Top 10 South London Train Stations.
After our last article about non-league football, we received a flurry, a raging, dangerous, flurry of messages demanding an explanation as to why their team had not been included in our list of six teams. It was never a definitive list, but we realise that much of South London was badly under-represented so in this article we've gone out of our way to rectify this issue. Along the way we decided that we might as well include all the teams we could find playing between the sixth and tenth tiers of the English football league system who currently play in South London boroughs. This means that the likes of Kingstonian, though traditionally a London club, are currently playing outside London and thus aren't in the list. We found 28. Just to stress, the previous article (hyperlink) included Dulwich Hamlet, Greenwich Borough, Tooting & Mitcham United, Welling United, Fisher FC, and Cray Valley Paper Mills, so they will not be in this list.
Ah the silver screen! Romance, drama, comedy, horror, sci-fi - we've all got different tastes. Some of us like watching movies at home, curled up on the sofa with loved ones, or on our own, becoming absorbed in a world away from ourselves, that's cool, we understand. A lot of us though, we love going to the cinema, to see films in a special setting, and to make an evening of it. What do independent cinemas have over, say, your Odeons? Let's just tell it straight - character. These places are unique on the inside and out, and if you're going on a date, then surely it's better to go somewhere a little different, rather than the flat-pack, business park cinemas littered all over the country. Anyway, we thought it would be nice to compile a list of the 10 independent cinemas in South London. Before you moan at us for not including Picturehouse, they're owned by Cineworld and have been since 2012, so they're no longer independent in our eyes.
A local discount card to support South London's local businesses while saving you money!
We aim to help you discover and explore all that South London has to offer, from hidden gems to the best-kept secrets!
The South London Club Card will take you on a tour of South London that you've never experienced before, showcasing our fantastic local businesses that are the lifeblood of our communities.
With 850+ local businesses to choose from, including gift shops, bike shops, restaurants, and roofers, our pocket-sized card is full of value.
Join us and let's work together to make South London even better.
