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.
This week the Oval in Kennington, South London's premier cricket ground, is celebrating hosting its 100th test match when England play South Africa. It is now one of only four cricket grounds across the world to have done this. Though one would prefer for England to win the test, it will be a joyous occasion regardless of the result. To coincide with this milestone, we thought it would be suitable to provide our own brief history of cricket in South London - we should stress, it is brief.
You showed us guys. You showed us right up. Here we were thinking we had you lot sussed, thinking we knew what you were like - thinking you liked a moan. The quantity of votes we received for this poll has been quite staggering, almost moving in all honesty, the amount of love people clearly feel for the parks of South London is a really great thing. Before we get started in revealing the results of the poll, we've got a few things to settle first, namely explaining as to why your favourite park wasn't included. Parks are rather personal places, and we couldn't include every park in South London - there are loads, trust us. We tried to make the spread as fair as possible, to increase the likelihood that individuals from all parts South London had visited at least a couple of these parks. We're not questioning the greatness of your local park, not for one moment, we just tried to include the parks we thought were both the most attractive and most likely to have been visited by most people from the most areas of South London. Anyway, enough of that, we've got a Top 10 to countdown, and we'll be beginning, as before, at number 10. So here it is, the Top 10 South London parks, as voted for by you.
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.
We thought it was high time we did a list of the blue plaques of one of South London's most well-known areas - Peckham. There is no doubt that Peckham is up there with Wimbledon and Greenwich as one of the place names most synonymous with South London, and this maybe down somewhat to the success of the sitcom Only Fools and Horses, which, as most of you probably know, was set in Peckham. A lot like much of South London, Peckham has a relatively low number of blue plaques, and there are actually only 3 'official' blue plaques in the whole area. Alongside these 'official' plaques, which are part of the scheme run by English Heritage and the London County Council before them, there are also plaques voted for by the people of Southwark. Though these are also blue, they don't have quite the same status as the others, but we thought we'd include them anyway because the people and things they commemorate are still significant. We have made it clear, however, whichplaques are Southwark plaques. So, without much further ado, here is our list of the blue plaques of Peckham.
Accidentally wearing the same clothes as someone else is terrifying. No, not just a similar outfits, we're talking about actually wearing the same garment as someone else, and then both of you recognising this. You don't actually have to be wearing the said clothes for this to happen - have you ever seen someone else wearing an item of clothing that you own? We have, and it's a chastening experience. There is a very simple reason as to why this happens, oh so simple, and it's that we're all buying our clothes from the same sodding shops! The best way to avoid this is to avoid the major big brands, avoid them like the plague, and instead head to local independent clothes shops. Not only do these shops stock a wide variety of great clothes, they tend to stock much smaller brands, and sometimes their in-house labels as well. Not only does this make it more likely that no one else is wearing the same threads as you, it also means you're contributing more directly to the local economy. Anyway, to get you started we thought we'd give a rundown of what we think are the 7 best independent clothes shops in Brixton.
We read a statistic last year that said, in 2016, 14% of English footballers in the Premier League were from South London. That got us thinking, who are the best players from South London? Then we thought, what if we were to assemble a team of the greatest players to come from the wondrous land of South London? South London being defined as any London Borough south of the River Thames. Now, for fairness, to define a player from South London, we thought we would include both players born in South London and players brought up in South London. So this means if a player was both in South London, they are from South London and if they were born away from South London, but brought up in South London, then they are also from South London. So there are players in this list who were born in South London, but brought up elsewhere, and also players born outside South London, but brought up here. We should stress that this is our XI, and you have every right to disagree with it. If you do, as is very likely, we would welcome your suggestions to players who should be included. Anyway, here it is, our all-time South London XI
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.
Bicycling as a method of transport for getting round London has grown and grown - something which is only positive. While some cyclists are not as responsible as they should be, it's likely that those individuals would be just as careless behind the wheel of a car, so we should be thankful that they are only in control of a bike. South London Club are firmly behind this clean method of transport which also provides a convenient opportunity to exercise. We understand it can be aggravating as a driver if a cyclist skips a red light, but just bear in mind that if you are involved in a collision - they'll be coming off a lot worse, so maybe be a little more forgiving when in control of a machine that was directly involved in the death of 1,732 people in 2015, and in incidents which caused serious injuries to 22,137 individuals. Anyway, less about that, and more about how useful bike shops are, and how the gradual growth in the number of independent bike shops across South London reflects how many people are now using their bike to get around. We know that a good bike shop is something that many people rely on for repairs and whatnot, so we think it's a good idea to give you our list of the the 13 best bike shops in South London.
Parks are vitally important, particularly in urban environments like London. To be able to escape the concrete and steel cage of the city, for just an hour possibly, has to be a good thing. Not that the countryside is for everyone, there are plenty of people who can't stand the slowness, the absence of activity, but to have that sort of space is very good. Below we've provided you with a shortlist of what we think are the best park in South London, and we've tried to make the spread as fair as possible. Obviously all of this is subjective, and we may have missed your favourite park out, for that we can only apologise - we did out best. We tried to make the definition as fair as possible, so if it was defined by the council that runs it as a park, we included it - which explains the presence of Blackheath in the shortlist. We've been asking you guys to vote a bit recently, and you guys have responded really well. We had a vote for South London's Best Train Station, and then we asked you to vote for South London's Worst Train Station - almost twice as many of you voted in the latter poll, than in the former, giving an indicator as to how much us South Londoners like a good moan. We won't be asking you to vote for South London's worst park though, we don't think that's anything worth celebrating at all - parks as an idea are inherently positive, and should be treated so, regardless of their current state. Anyway, we've included images of the parks below the voting form, have a look at some of those if you need to be reminded what they look like. The voting closes on Thursday 27th July, and the results will be released on Friday 28th July.
We all have a particular meal that we enjoy more than others, it's natural, so don't feel bad about it. Some days you feel like trying something new, some days you don't, and today we're gonna be focusing on those days that you don't - though you could still use this list as a guide of places where you can try new foods, there's absolutely nothing stopping you. There are even more added layers to all this, you could use this list as a guide for new places for you try your favourite foods at, did you think of that? Yes? Well done then. If you are using this list of 17 places for your favourite foods in South London for any of these reasons, that's fine, we just hope you're using it safely, in a responsible environment, with people you trust. Anyway, here it is.
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.
