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What's New in London
London is a vibrant place where there's so many new things going on it can be hard to keep track. Luckily we're here to help with the latest restaurant openings, shop launches and hip new bars as well as anything else we think sounds interesting. Want to know what's new in London? It's all here...
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Medieval and Renaissance Galleries, Victoria & Albert Museum

Opens 2nd December 2009

Museum

The V & A has been on a makeover mission of late spending millions on new galleries to house their Theatre and Performance and Ceramics collections. But the latest launch, the £30-million Medieval and Renaissance Galleries which open on 2nd December, unveils the biggest project undertaken since the museum's British Galleries opened in 2001. The regenerated space dedicates ten galleries to the museum's unique collection of masterpieces of medieval craftsmanship and an impressive collection of Italian Renaissance sculpture. An entire gallery is devoted to a group of pieces by Donatello, his 15th-century contemporaries and followers. Exquisite and important medieval items include the Becket Casket - an enamel casket dedicated to St Thomas Becket dating to around 1180 - and the Gloucester Candlestick (1104-15). Hunting tapestries hang alongside Gothic altarpieces while significant pieces like the Symmachi Panel show the influence of the later Roman Empire on medieval art. MUMA (McInnes Usher McKnight Architects) - the architectural practice already responsible for the V & A Cafe which opened in November 2006 - have been tasked with the redesign.

Address: Cromwell Road, SW7 2RL
Phone: 020 7942 2000
Category: Sights and Attractions - Museum
Timing: Daily 10am-5.45pm | Closed 24-26 Dec
Pricing: FREE


Medieval and Renaissance Galleries - Information
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Marmite Pop Up Shop

3rd November 2009 - 3rd January 2010

Food & Gift Shop

Love it or hate it, the Marmite Pop Up Shop on Regent Street, open just in time for Christmas, is a very British establishment - why, there's even a tea and toast bar upstairs. With over 100 different Marmite-inspired products stocked, many of which are exclusive to the shop, you'll find plenty of inspiration from oven gloves to mugs and marmite flavoured foods. There are even special Christmas boxes to put under the tree for the ones you love (or hate) come December 25th. So, if you've got a yearning for yeast extract you know where to go.

Address: 82 Regent Street, W1B 5HG
Category: Shopping - Food & Gift Shop
Timing: Mon to Wed 10am-8pm, Thu to Sat 10am-9pm, Sun 12noon-6pm
Nearest Station: Piccadilly Circus Tube


Marmite Pop Up Shop - Information
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Anthropologie

Opened 23rd October 2009

Lifestyle Store

The first Anthropologie store in Europe opened on Regent Street on 23rd October 2009. Described by The Telegraph as "America's dream shop", the opening of the store has certainly been hotly anticipated. The excitement stems from that fact that it's more than just a store. Selling an impressive total of 200 women's fashion brands, Anthropologie is effectively many boutique stores in one. Alongside women's clothes and jewellery are home goods from furniture to bed linen and chandeliers, all of which is overseen by a living wall which contains 14 different types of plant and uses rainwater for irrigation. Owned by Urban Outfitters, this is a grown-up version of the hip lifestyle store which primarily appeals to teenagers and twentysomethings. Anthrolopogie's arrival on Regent Street is a blessing for shoppers who've long been importing their stylish items from the States.

Address: 158 Regent Street, W1B 5SW
Category: Shopping - Ladies Fashion & Lifestyle Store
Timing: Mon to Wed, Fri & Sat 10am-7pm, Thu 10am-8pm, Sun 12noon-6pm
Nearest Station: Oxford Circus Tube


Anthropologie - Information
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aqua London

Aqua Nueva - 28th September | Aqua Kyoto - 5th October 2009

Spanish & Japanese Cuisine

This two-restaurant project on the top floor of the former Dickins & Jones department store on Soho's Argyll Street is Hong Kong's aqua restaurant group's first enterprise outside northern China. Set on the rooftop of one of the West End's most iconic buildings, aqua London comprises of two glamorous restaurants (Japanese and Spanish) and a pre- and post-dining bar. Aqua Kyoto specialises in modern Japanese cuisine (think sushi and sumibiyaki charcoal grill) while Aqua Nueva serves up contemporary Spanish cuisine inspired by the San Sebastian area (quite a statement, considering the Basque city has the biggest concentration of Michelin stars per inhabitant than any other in the world). On top of innovative dishes, expect some ultra stylish interiors and, from the roof terrace of the aqua spirit bar, unrivalled views over The West End and beyond.

Address: 240 Regent Street (entrance 30 Argyll Street), W1B 2EL
Phone: 020 7478 0540
Category: Restaurant - Spanish & Japanese Cuisine
Timing: Mon to Sat 12noon-3pm, 6.30pm-11pm | Sun Closed


aqua London - Information
LondonTown.com | Article image
GIVe

Opened 30th September 2009

Ladies Fashion

George Davis - founder of Next, famous for his George at Asda range and the man who brought Per Una to M&S - turns his hand to 'affordable luxury' with GIVe, a new chain of women's clothing shops with its flagship store on Regent Street. Aimed at women aged 30 and over, GIVe competes with shops like Karen Millen and Whistles with clothes at similar prices and little luxuries such as in-store style advisers and tailors. The name is not just a strange mix of three capital letters with a non capped 'e' on the end, it's a play on 'George the fourth' in Roman numerals, as it is Mr Davies's fourth large venture. GIVe also refers to the promise the shop makes to donate 5 to 10 per cent of its profits to charity. While this Regent Street store is the chain's flagship shop you'll also find a further 23 stores and concessions around the country.

Address: 171 Regent Street, W1B 4JG
Phone: 0844 334 9755
Category: Shopping - Ladies Fashion
Timing: Mon to Wed, Fri & Sat 10am-7pm, Thu & Sun 10am-8pm
Nearest Station: Oxford Circus Tube


GIVe - Information
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Pull and Bear, Oxford Street

Opened 16th September 2009

Mens & Womenswear

Pull and Bear, a Spanish chain of fashion stores, was first set up in 1991 by Inditex, the group behind high street chains Zara, Massimo Dutti and Bershka. But it has only recently arrived in the UK, launching two London stores within quick succession. In comparison to its sister brands which already have an established and loyal customer base, Pull and Bear is a newcomer to the UK and caters for a young, largely teenager, audience. Denim features heavily in designs which create a cutting-edge look. Streetwear styles include slogan printed T-shirts, hooded tops and casual jackets. Mens and womenswear are available at both the Regent Street and Westfield stores with new products arriving in store twice a week chosen by the store managers. In style and appeal Pull and Bear is a rival to the likes of Hollister or Abercrombie & Fitch but at around half the price it won't burn a hole in your wallet.

Address: 315 Oxford Street, W1C 2HS
Phone: 020 7529 7670
Category: Shopping - Mens & Womenswear
Nearest Station: Bond Street Tube


Pull and Bear Oxford Street - Information
Pull and Bear Westfield - Information
LondonTown.com | Article image
The Darwin Centre, Natural History Museum

Opened 15th September 2009

Museum

The unveiling of the cocoon at the heart of The Darwin Centre at the Natural History Museum on 15th September was a significant milestone for the well-known scientific centre. This latest development brings the vast building project, begun in 2002, to its final phase - the same year as the 200th anniversary of the great evolutionary theorist. From 15th September you can visit the stunning new £78 million building project, home to an incredible 22 million specimens including 17 million insect and three million plant specimens. The cocoon-like eight-storey building is home to working laboratories and state-of-the-art science facilities, which will be used by researchers as well as being open to the public. You can explore a working scientific environment, find out the latest discoveries and learn all about the specimens through special viewing decks and video link-ups. Daily talks and demonstrations by the museum's expert scientists provide an engaging insight into the natural world. The Darwin Centre is undoubtedly the most exciting development at the Natural History Museum since it first opened in 1881, and one not to be missed.

Address: Cromwell Road, SW7 5BD
Phone: 020 7942 5725
Category: Sights and Attractions - Museums
Timing: Daily 10am-5.45pm | Last admission 5.30pm
Pricing: FREE
Nearest Station: South Kensington Tube


The Darwin Centre - Information
LondonTown.com | Article image
Phaidon Store

Opened 29th August 2009

Bookshop

This pop-up Phaidon book store in Piccadilly, opposite the Royal Academy of Arts, opened on Saturday 29th August and is due to remain until Christmas - perfect timing for some present shopping. Phaidon Press specialises in books on the visual arts, its long history beginning in 1950 with the publication of Gombrich's famous 'Story of Art'. More recent titles include 'My Name Is Charles Saatchi And I Am An Artoholic' and 'Younger than Jesus' - a volume on more than 500 of the world's best artists under the age of 33. The books in this shop are beautifully laid out against clean white walls with a wide range of choice from children's stories to cookery bibles. They also do an appealing array of travel books including box sets of the minimalist Wallpaper city guides.

Address: 173 Piccadilly, W1J 9PD
Phone: 020 7843 1234
Category: Shopping - Books
Timing: Mon to Sat 10am-7pm & Sun 12noon-6pm
Nearest Station: Green Park Tube


Phaidon Store - Information
LondonTown.com | Article image
Bottle Apostle

Opened July 2009

Wine shop

The Bottle Apostle on the edge of Victoria Park and two doors from the Ginger Pig on Lauriston Road is an excellent wine shop where samples and tastings make the wine buying experience all the more pleasurable. Owner Andrew Eakin and general manager wine buff Tom Jarvis have taken what was the rather run-down Frocks restaurant and created a beautiful place for Londoners to buy, sample and muse over a huge selection of wine from around the world. Regular wine tasting events are aimed at all levels. For complete beginners, for example, introductory tastings focus on basic but important elements such as acidity, tannin, oak and age getting to know how wines taste different, rather than why. For those who know their way around a wine list more extensive modular courses run throughout the year. Anyone can sample luscious wine from the Enomatics and taste from the vast and beautifully presented portfolio on the shelves.

Address: 95 Lauriston Road, E9 7HJ
Phone: 020 8985 1549
Category: Shopping - Food and Drink
Timing: Weekdays 12pm-9pm, Sat 10am-8pm, Sun 10am-6pm


Bottle Apostle - Information
LondonTown.com | Article image
Whitechapel Gallery

Re-opened April 2009

Art Gallery

Designed in a distinctive Arts and Crafts architecture style by Charles Harrison Townsend, the Whitechapel, Britain's first purpose-built arts gallery, is renowned both for the beauty of its light, airy space and for embracing the local community in its work. Founded in 1901, extensive refurbishment saw the gallery, reopened in April 2009, double in size. The gallery does not have a permanent collection, preferring instead to host a constantly evolving programme of works and there is always something free to see. Community projects and retrospective exhibitions now rest alongside landmark examples of contemporary work. The Pop Art 'This is Tomorrow' exhibition of 1956 is often hailed as the gallery's most iconic event, although there are a number of other exhibitions worthy of note. Picasso's 'Guernica' was displayed here in 1938, Jackson Pollock had work exhibited at the gallery in the 1950s, David Hockney's first show was held here in 1970 and Lucian Freud had a major exhibition in 1993. With its pillared supports and high ceilings, The Lower Gallery, in particular, is a fantastic exhibition space.

Address: 80 Whitechapel High Street, E1 7QX
Phone: 020 7522 7878
Category: Sights and Attractions - Art Galleries
Timing: Tue & Wed 11am-6pm, Thu 11am-9pm, Fri to Sun 11am-6pm, | Mon Closed
Pricing: FREE
Nearest Station: Aldgate East


Whitechapel Gallery - Information
 
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