#koko-camden

#koko-camden

The annual National Pub & Bar Awards nominees have just been announced, and eight London pubs have made the list of 252 pubs and bars across England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland vying for pub supremacy.

Camden's legendary gay pub, The Black Cap, has confirmed its reopening date, a smidge over a decade since it was forced to close. The pub, which has been a gay haunt since the winter of 1965/66 was forced to close in 2015 when the owners decided they wanted to redevelop the site. The owners themselves closed in 2020, and the company's administrators sold the building to a new owner who has been working to reopen the venue once again as a gay cabaret pub.

The Victorian building is set to become a 2,300-capacity venue, which the company says will showcase 'a wide range of artists'. The building dates back to 1896, when it was used as a theatre and opera house, before closing its doors in 1933. After that, it became a cinema - though this, too, closed in 1969.

We've been excited about the potential of this project for some time. Built on a foundation of unique programming, ambitious production, and obsessive attention to detail, Open-Air sits on the bank of the River Thames at Greenwich Peninsula, bringing people closer to London's iconic skyline than ever before.

At Troubadour, we are driven by a belief in creating extraordinary spaces that inspire artists, audiences, and the stories they come together to share. The 3,000 seat venue is to be built in Greenwich Securing planning permission for the new Troubadour Greenwich Peninsula Theatre marks a major milestone for us, and an exciting new chapter in our commitment to bold, large-scale live performance.

When modern UK rap great Dave first announced plans for a UK arena tour last October, the demand for tickets in London was so high that he quickly doubled his number of shows in the capital. The Boy Who Played the Harp Tour is at the O2 Arena for a whopping four dates - and they kick off this weekend.

New rules making it much harder to close noisy pubs and clubs could be introduced under a radical plan to protect London's night-time economy. It wants councils to only investigate noise complaints if a minimum of 10 unrelated households complain, to prevent only a handful of vexatious neighbours being able to effectively force pubs and clubs to close early. The taskforce's report said London needs a more modern approach to managing sound in the city and changes to noise enforcement rules.

London is a city that rewards curiosity. Beyond the iconic landmarks, Big Ben, Buckingham Palace, and the London Eye, lies a quieter, more intimate version of the capital. This is the London locals know: tucked-away streets, overlooked parks, independent cafés, and historic corners that rarely make it into guidebooks. For travellers willing to stray from the obvious routes, the city offers countless hidden gems that reveal its true character.

But at the end of this month, there's a brand new festival arriving to inject some colour into the financial district. 'Vibrance' will light up Roman ruins, medieval churches and secret gardens across the Square Mile on Thursday January 29 and Friday January 30 from 5.30pm until 8.30pm. Created by Guildhall Production Studio, it brings together more than a dozen artworks and live performances by emerging artists from Guildhall School of Music & Drama.

Four events - Field Day, Cross the Tracks, City Splash and Mighty Hoopla - will take place from May 23-31. Summer Events Ltd, which runs the Brockwell Live series, submitted its first full planning application in 2025. This was the first time that planning permission had to be granted for the festivals to run in the park - until the legal battle which was won by anti-festival campaign group Protect Brockwell Park (PBP) in 2025.

The first floor of the iconic pub on Lower Richmond Road will be extended to create the new terrace, which will have a retractable roof and spiral staircase. The venue will also get new equipment to allow it to sell a better range of food, while it will undergo some internal reorganisation and redecoration. An artist's impression of the refurbished pub The Half Moon on Lower Richmond Road

Now we finally know when the venue will open and its opening lineup. Jazz-heads, mark your calendars for Friday February 6, which is when Upstairs At Ronnie's will open with two events. The first slot (5pm-8.45pm) will be occupied by soul and jazz singer Dana Masters, with the 'late late show' (11.15pm onward) set to be from Cuban band Viva Cuba.

We've been exploring what nightlife looks like in London outside of the traditional nightclubs, and here comes the Barbican with a brand-new late-night party series. The 'anyone can dance' events will be a celebration of diaspora, community and joy, with the Level -1 foyer space turning into a dancefloor open until 3am. The series is kicking off on Fri 20th February with a night curated by Eastern Margins, a collective that celebrates alternative East and South East Asian creativity and culture.

At the end of last year, XOYO (along with other London venue The Camden Assembly) was acquired by the newly formed Propaganda Independent Venues group, run by Propaganda founder Dan Ickowitz-Seidler and TEG founder Richard Buck. By acquiring the Shoreditch club, the group wanted to help it "thrive under independent ownership and become a cultural hub for the area, offering opportunities and support to local artists and businesses".

A new listening bar has opened in Walthamstow, bringing Japanese-inspired interiors, a carefully curated sound system and a seriously strong drinks list to the neighbourhood. The Olfa Club offers 27 wines by the glass, with prices starting from a fiver, alongside a mineralised water menu, plus a record player for guests who want to bring their own vinyl or dip into the in-house selection.

The UK summer may not always play ball, as anyone who's woken up inside a damp tent in a muddy Glastonbury field can attest to, but our festival programme always delivers.