London Daily Photo: Twilight

LDP 2010.09.13 - Twilight

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World’s First Graffiti-Funded Movie, DOTS: Interview with Filmmaker, The Baron (Juxtapoz)

World’s First Graffiti-Funded Movie, DOTS: Interview with Filmmaker, The Baron
Juxtapoz, Thursday, 09 September 2010 12:12

What do you get when you take nine of London’s most prolific graffiti artists to far flung destinations across the globe to connect with their inspirations and collaborate with the locals? A damn good reason for a movie … or at least that’s the hope of the mysterious filmmaker known as The Baron.

READ MY COMPLETE INTERVIEW:
World’s First Graffiti-Funded Movie, DOTS: Interview with Filmmaker, The Baron

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London Daily Photo: Important People

LDP 2010.09.12 - Important People

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London Daily Photo: Click Click Click

LDP 2010.09.11 - Click Click Click

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London Daily Photo: Attack!

LDP 2010.09.10 - Attack!

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New Restaurant Review: Pho Soho (Londonist)

New Restaurant Review: Pho Soho
Londonist, September 9, 2010 4:59 PM

Pho, Wardour Street, Soho

We’ve been fans of the original St John Street location of “Vietnamese street food restaurant” Pho since it opened, have been impressed to see the eatery grow to now have multiple locations (four in London and a fairly recent addition in Brighton) and have heard the grumblings from a few sources about service and such at their Great Titchfield Street spot. So, we were more than curious to see how the fifth and latest addition to the Pho portfolio was doing.

READ MY COMPLETE REVIEW:
New Restaurant Review: Pho Soho

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Armagnac and Curry: Hey, Why Not? (Qype does London)

Armagnac and Curry: Hey, Why Not?
Qype does London, September 9th 2010

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Of course, pairing food with liquor is a bit bizarre – and for the most part doesn’t seem to work – but there were a few highlights to the coupling of this Frenchy booze (not to be confused with Cognac!) with up market Indian nosh. Besides, setting a bottle of something potent in the middle of the table during any mingle session is often a grand idea. Dubbed “When Armagnac met Moghul … Artisan & Traditional”, the tasting was a hoot. By the end of the meal, my table of six had been given muskateer names by one particularly jolly table mate who insisted on lots and lots of “all for one, one for all” sword (… er butter knife) rattling.

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Armagnac and Curry: Hey, Why Not?

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London Daily Photo: Memorial

LDP 2010.09.09 - Memorial

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New Restaurant Review: Barrio Central (Londonist)

New Restaurant Review: Barrio Central
Londonist, September 8, 2010 3:00 PM

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Soho’s got a new “Latin cantina and cocktail lounge” that Londonist recently visited and found to be way better than we had anticipated. Sister bar to Barrio North on Essex Road, Barrio Central serves massive portions of rather yummy dishes as well as top notch cocktails. We were actually quite impressed with a few dishes and sincerely wished we’d been able to sample more than just a couple of cocktails (alas, our Monday night visit found us too fearful of a groggy Tuesday morning to dabble much in the drinky poohs).

READ MY COMPLETE REVIEW:
New Restaurant Review: Barrio Central

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London Daily Photo: Market Stability

LDP 2010.09.08 - Market Stability

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New Restaurant Review: Tom’s Kitchen at Somerset House (Londonist)

New Restaurant Review: Tom’s Kitchen at Somerset House
Londonist, September 7, 2010 3:56 PM

Grilled Sirloin at Tom's Kitchen, Somerset House

A dining space that sets a high standard for understated elegance and a more than decent menu with a few particularly yummy items make this well appointed eatery with the big name chef behind it (see our interview with Tom Aikens here) an easy one to recommend. A visit here probably won’t amount to the greatest meal of your life but we believe most savvy London diners would leave Tom’s Kitchen more than satisfied with their experience.

READ MY COMPLETE REVIEW:
New Restaurant Review: Tom’s Kitchen at Somerset House

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Sponsored Post: Sud de France Festival, Make Your Summer Last a Little Longer! (Londonist)

Sponsored Post: Sud de France Festival, Make Your Summer Last a Little Longer!
Londonist, September 7, 2010 11:18 AM

Produits du Languedoc

From the 17th to the 30th of September, the Sud de France Festival will bring the French Mediterranean lifestyle to Britain, with many shops and restaurants around town and throughout the country displaying special Sud de France food and wine features. Fun events will be organised not only to tease your taste buds with wonderful flavours but also to try out the Sud de France lifestyle where outdoor living in a casual yet elegant atmosphere is the way.

READ MY COMPLETE POST:
Sponsored Post: Sud de France Festival, Make Your Summer Last a Little Longer!

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London Daily Photo: Morning Smile

LDP 2010.09.07 - Morning Smile

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Paris Please

Paris Weekend 2008

I’ve got this theory that if I write about something I desire, there’ll be a much greater chance of it happening. I make all sorts of lists (upon lists upon lists) all the time about stuff I want or need to do. Sometimes it’s an effective strategy. Other times, it just reminds me of all the things mounting up that I yet or may never get around to doing.

Well, I wanna go back to Paris, stay in one of the hotels in Paris city centre where I’ve stayed before (I particularly like Grand Hôtel Leveque on Rue Cler – and I suppose I owe my ex-wife thanks for discovering that one), see all the pretty Parisian sights, catch up with some friends etc. In fact, I already know how I’d spend a ideal weekend in Paris (I wrote about it here several months back). But in general, I find Paris to be as killer a place as any simply to roam around, gawk at folks and – of course – devour delicious food!

As content as I’d be bumbling about or retracing the steps of past visits, there’s still a lot I’ve yet to see and do. Anybody else keen to discover some new Paris bits? I’ve written it down now – it just might happen!

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Social Media Advertising 2010 – Cavendish Centre, Monday 20th September

£

Social Media Advertising 2010 will bring together leading brands, agencies and marketeers to discuss the latest tools and techniques for running effective, integrated social media advertising campaigns.

Social Media Advertising
Monday 20th September
9:00am – 5:30pm
at the Cavendish Centre

Topics covered:

  • Paid, Owned and Earned Media
  • How to Run Effective Social Media Ad Campaigns
  • B2B Advertising: Business Networks
  • Twitter and Promoted Tweets
  • Advertising through Apps
  • Blog Advertising and Sponsored Posts
  • Case Studies and Best Practise Examples

I’ll be there! Howzabout you?

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The Blogger Interviews: Tikichris Osburn (LondonBloggers.net)

Okay. More about me. Here’s an interview the super networky Andy Bargery did with me as part of his series highlighting “fantastic members of the London Bloggers Meetup community“. I’ve worked on a handful of projects with Mr Bargery over the past couple of years and have (as mentioned in my last post) tried to attend his London Bloggers Meetups as regularly as my schedule has allowed. He’s a killer dude and an asset to this town’s online community.  Cheers!

The Blogger Interviews: Tikichris Osburn
LondonBloggers.net, 06. Sep, 2010

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It’s Monday morning and that can only mean one thing – I need a strong cup of tea to kick start the week. Ok Ok, apart from that, it also means it’s time to post up an interview with another fantastic member of the London Bloggers Meetup community. This time I’ve picked someone who, as far as I can remember, has been coming to the London Bloggers Meetups pretty much since day one and that’s Chris Osburn …

READ THE COMPLETE INTERVIEW:
The Blogger Interviews: Tikichris Osburn

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London Bloggers Meetup: The PR Edition – This Wednesday!

Londonist Drinks at Leather Market

This Wednesday, The City Tavern (29 Lawrence Lane, EC2V 8DP) will host this month’s London Bloggers Meetup. The theme of this latest networking session that puts faces to blogs will be all thing PR and “how, as a blogger, you should be working with PR agencies”.

Over the past couple of years I’ve been to a number of LBMs and have always found them to be a worthwhile way to spend a few hours of a weekday evening. This time round, I’ll be speaking along with bloggers Cate Sevilla (bitchbuzz.com), Pete Stean (The Londoneer) and PR folk Matt Churchill of Edelman, Stephen Waddington of Speed and Laurence Borel of Mindshare. Neato!

There’s already a guest list of 150 or so people. But if you can make it, I recommend coming along. As I understand it, Edelman’s paying the bar tab. Very neato!

More details here:
http://www.meetup.com/blog-395/calendar/14537348/

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London Daily Photo: Flare

LDP 2010.09.06 - Flare

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London Daily Photo: Session

LDP 2010.09.05 - Session

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Like Breakfast for Pudding at Lennie’s Snack Bar in Shoreditch (Qype does London)

Like Breakfast for Pudding at Lennie’s Snack Bar in Shoreditch
Qype does London, September 4th 2010

"Breakfast for pudding" at Lennie's Snack Bar in Shoreditch

As the steamroller of gentrification and hipster insistence burns its way through Shoreditch, the presence of Lennie’s Snack Bar becomes ever more relevant and imperative. Come here for a real home cooked meal at an affordable price served up with a healthy dose of kindness (and feist) and more than a dash of quirk.

READ MY COMPLETE REVIEW:
Like Breakfast for Pudding at Lennie’s Snack Bar in Shoreditch

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Blog Slam, The Rag Factory, Wednesday September 22nd

Wednesday September 22nd from 7pm at The Rag Factory in Shoreditch, Circus Bookazine will host what they suppose will be the world’s first ever blog slam, an opportunity for bloggers to read selected posts to a live audience and an independent panel of judges with the hopes of winning some prizes. I’ve been asked to be one of the judges and so will be there criticizing the hell out of anybody daft enough to actually get up in front of people and read. Nah … I’ll be nice, and I’m really looking forward to the event!

blog

If you’d like to read at the blog slam, email blogslam@circus-bookazine.com to RSVP.

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London Daily Photo: The Bungalow

LDP 2010.09.04 - The Bungalow

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Chefspective: Flori Johnson, Executive Chef at Melrose and Morgan (Londonist)

Chefspective: Flori Johnson, Executive Chef at Melrose and Morgan
Londonist, September 3, 2010 3:16 PM

Flori Johnson, Executive Chef, Melrose and Morgan

As a child, Flori Johnson learned firsthand about “old fashioned” cooking on her family’s farm in Zimbabwe. Add to her upbringing Flori’s first professional gig – working under Heston Blumenthal at his famed Fat Duck restaurant – and you’ve got a nice blend of tradition and innovation. These days Flori is executive chef at upscale grocery shop and kitchen, Melrose and Morgan. With its “range of seasonal foods, hand-prepared with premium ingredients”, Flori reckons she’s found a job where the “enjoyment of cooking” is high. Here’s more about Flori’s love of professional kitchen life …

READ MY COMPLETE INTERVIEW:
Chefspective: Flori Johnson, Executive Chef at Melrose and Morgan

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London Daily Photo: Cobnuts

LDP 2010.09.03 - Cobnuts

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London Daily Photo: Warm Fur

LDP 2010.09.02 - Warm Fur

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Bushmills Inn and Distillery in Northern Ireland (Qype Community)

Bushmills Inn and Distillery in Northern Ireland
Qype Community, September 1st 2010

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The friendly folks at Bushmills Irish Whiskey invited yours truly around last week to visit their inn, tour their distillery and (most enticingly) have a sample of their range of triple distilled whiskies. I had a wonderful time (while it was pissing rain back in London, we had nothing but clear, sunny skies over Northern Ireland) and Ild be keen to return or to recommend a Bushmills visit to anyone looking for a quiet weekend away on a lovely emerald stretch of stunning Irish coastline. And if you like your whiskey smooth, well then all the better!

READ MY COMPLETE POST:
Bushmills Inn and Distillery in Northern Ireland

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Fish Tacos Tuesdays at Tortilla (Londonist)

Fish Tacos Tuesdays at Tortilla
Londonist, September 1, 2010 11:28 AM

Fish Tacos, Tortilla, Market Place, London

Right tasty fish tacos may now be had at the Market Place location of London-based “Californian-Mexican” restaurant chain, Tortilla. At the moment, these pescatarian friendly comidas are only available Tuesdays from noon to 9pm. But if the tacos prove popular, there’s a possibility they may gain full time status and could be added to the menus at all Tortilla restaurants.

READ MY COMPLETE REVIEW:
Fish Tacos Tuesdays at Tortilla

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London Daily Photo: Figs

LDP 2010.09.01 - Figs

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“From Streets to Tweets with Chris Osburn” at Leeds College of Art, September 30th

JR's "28 Millimetres: WOMEN" in London

Thursday 30th September 2010

6-7pm:  Hot food and Registration
7-7:30pm:  Welcome and Opening Pitches
7:30-8:30pm:  From Streets to Tweets with Chris Osburn
8:30pm till late:  Networking in the Mosaic Bar

Leeds College of Art
Blenheim Walk, Leeds LS2 9AQ

Hey y’all. I’ll be back in Leeds at the end of September to facilitate a discussion that’s been dubbed “From Streets to Tweets with Chris Osburn”. The event is part of Leeds College of Art’s Creative Networks series and “will bring to the fore two very exciting aspects of modern life that are often the subject of controversy and debate”. The folks at the college reckon I can offer “an informed and stimulating point of view”. I’ll do me best! When organising the talk, I suggested that I would be comfortable chatting about street art or social media. I didn’t imagine I would have to tie them in together. Even I’m curious about what I’ll have to say.

This event is free to creative, digital, and cultural industry professionals and should be of interest to anyone working within or across the cultural and creative sectors in the Yorkshire region.

For more info about Creative Networks visit www.creativenetworkswestyorkshire.com or contact Bridget March (bridgetm@leeds-art.ac.uk, 01422 399444).

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Competition Reminder: Leon 2 and the Giant Drawer of Wishes (Londonist)

Competition Reminder: Leon 2 and the Giant Drawer of Wishes
Londonist, August 31, 2010 1:42 PM

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Don’t forget to make a wish in Leon’s Giant Drawer of Wishes competition! You’ve got until Tuesday the 31st of August. To celebrate the launch of its second cookbook, simply titled Naturally Fast Food, London’s fast but healthy restaurant chain – Leon – has teamed up with Octopus Publishing Group to make one lucky person’s wish come true!

READ MY COMPLETE POST:
Competition Reminder: Leon 2 and the Giant Drawer of Wishes

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Respect the Road … Please

LDP 2009.12.29 - Hummer

I’m a walker not a driver, and for the most part I’m quite content to have it that way. During the few experiences I’ve had behind the wheel in the UK (I used drive all the time back in the States) and the several times I’ve been a passenger in this country, it’s been evident to me that there’s more than a bit of edginess causing British drivers to be less than pleasant to deal with. And as a pedestrian, I’ve had my share of near misses and unfriendly encounters with cranky, disrespectful and sometimes frighteningly oblivious motorists.

To chill out angry British roadsters, AXA Car Insurance has created a campaign called “Respect On The Road to try and bring some courtesy and respect back to British roads. I’ve been ambling about London for about seven years. So, I really have no idea if there ever really was any real courtesy on these mean streets, but more respectful driving sounds like safer driving – and that certainly sounds like a fine idea to me!

For the campaign, AXA has created a Facebook fanpage as well as a several of thoughtfully produced videos. I got a kick out of watching their ‘Road Rage Kids’ video. Acted by five year kids imitating driving behaviour copied from their parents, the clip goes a long way in demonstrating just how childish drivers can be when insulated from the rest of the world in their cars.

There’s also a series of interviews shot from a London black cab called, aptly enough, Cab Cam.

The situation here isn’t nearly as bad as in a lot of other places I’ve visited – the British roads ain’t got nothing on the traffic nightmares of Lagos, Nigeria; Naples, Italy or any big city in China. Still, there’s much we can (and should do) to ensure our roads are friendly and safer.



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London Daily Photo: Tropical Sunset

LDP 2010.08.31 - Tropical Sunset

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London Daily Photo: CLOSED

LDP 2010.08.30 - CLOSED

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London Daily Photo: OUT

LDP 2010.08.29 - OUT

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Good Hotels in Dublin?

I’m just back from a few days at the Bushmills Inn and Distillery in Northern Ireland. I had a wonderful time (and don’t worry – there’ll be much more blogging about that trip to come). It was my second time visiting the Emerald Isle. The first was a few years back when I paid a visit to County Kerry in the south. Gorgeous.

The north’s stunning coast (especially the Giants Causeway), the whiskey, the music, the Irish gift of the gab: it all made me want to return (again and again and again). I suppose next time I should go to Dublin … see the Guinness Storehouse, hit the pubs, check out some shows.

Guinness 250 Pint Glass

There are, of course, plenty of cheap flights to Dublin from London, and many of them are super cheap. So, determining when to go won’t be a problem. And I’m sure there’ll be plenty enough to see and do. I guess I just need to figure out where I’m going to stay. I don’t have a clue about the Dublin hotels scene. I don’t really have a good sense of where in town to stay either. I’d want to be in an area with an edge .. but not too much of one! A bit of history would be cool. And within easy walking distance of decent restaurants, pubs, etc.

Any tips?

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