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.
Despite what you’ve heard about South London, this part of the capital truly gives you a different and exciting experience in comparison to other parts of London. If you manage to look past the countless Morley’s chicken shops around you will come to find some stunning sights and attractions spread across the ‘South Side.’ We’ve listed 56 of South London’s Best Landmarks and Attractions (including sculptures, churches and cinema’s) that set South London apart.
New York, Florence, Dubai…Tooting? Yes, you heard us right. Lonely Planet has voted Tooting as one of the world’s coolest neighbourhoods. For the people who live there, this is a fact they’ve known for a long time that has only just been recognised on the world stage. For the rest of us, it may have us scratching our heads.
Beer shops are actually quite an old thing, though it might not feel that way. Having gone through something of a lull, plenty of beer shops have been opening up all over London in recent years off the back of the surging craft beer scene. As we all know, and we as showed in our A-Z, South London is home to the best craft breweries in all of London - and the presence of these breweries has led to the opening of some fantastic beer shops. Beer shop operate in a very similar manner to wine sellers, and they are wonderful places to just browse - you know, just stand around looking at stuff you might buy. If you haven't got into the craze that is figuratively sweeping South London, we think it's about time that you did, so to help you get going here is our list of the 14 best beer shops in South London.
For those of you who somehow do not know, a lido is a public open-air swimming pool or bathing beach. Considering that none of the potential beaches along the Thames are commonly used for any sort of sunbathing anymore, with regards to the urban context of London, a lido commonly denotes a public open-air swimming pool. An essential aspect of the lido is that they are for pubic use, they are not private members clubs, anyone can rock up on the day and have a swim. Over the course of the 20th century, South London has had 21 lidos, now there are only four. We will discuss those former lidos in a future article, and what potential futures those lidos have, but today we are going to discuss the four stunning lidos of South London that are still going. and are still open to the public.
A group of three areas that straddle two separate boroughs of London, and yet only five blue plaques between the whole lot of them. Now, this is not to say that Streatham, Tooting & Tulse Hill have been historically devoid of people of note – far from it. As we have already covered in this series, South London is unfairly underrepresented in the blue plaque scheme. We at South London Club are not going to argue the proverbial with those north of the river as to why this is the case, it’s obviously prejudice and we are just fine with that. If English Heritage and all the other custodians of the blue plaque scheme want to continue adding to the 165 blue plaques already in Kensington and Chelsea, go for it. We should probably be happy about the lack of blue plaques, all the cool cats South London has produced are still alive. Anyway, here's our list of the blue plaques of Streatham, Tooting & Tulse Hill.
At South London Club we've decided it's about time it was decided what is South London's best train station. When deciding what made a train station good, we worked out two key elements - usefulness and beauty. An example of this is Lewisham, which is incredibly useful, but very few would argue it to be beautiful. North Dulwich on the other hand is a very pretty building, but certainly not one of most useful stations in South London. Using this system we whittled down a shortlist of 40 trains stations within Zones 1, 2, 3 and 4, from which you can vote fro what you think is South London's best train station. Check out the list below, and choose your favourite. We've included relevant images of the stations included in case you need a bit of assistance in picking a choice. The results will be announced on Friday 30th June. Keep you eyes peeled for another list of the worst stations in South London for you to vote on.
Going to the pictures in South London has, traditionally, been a rainy-day activity, however, slowly but surely, this perception is being chiselled away. How? Well, after much consultation with scientists it has been discovered that projecting a moving image upon a large screen outside can also be done in the UK. Due to the fickle weather of this country however, this activity is only really doable during the summer months and, thankfully, the kind, handsome, and talented residents of South London are spoilt for choice with regards to venues. We love you guys, and we love films, so to show you our love we’ve compiled what we think is a pretty exhaustive alphabetical guide to 18 outdoor cinema venues in South London. Enjoy.
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.
