Wednesday 7th January  8:04 am Good Morning

on today on tomorrow other dates...

Nelson's Column July Out of the Galleries into the Streets 7th July 2006 Rediscovering London's oft ignored al fresco art Having claimed a level of expertise far beyond my actual knowledge, I’ve been asked to write a piece about London’s outdoor art for a guidebook. The article is clearly going to be a disaster, unless one of the artsy friends I’ve e-mailed comes up trumps and does my work for me, but I’ve noticed all sorts of fascinating things in the meantime. Statues, sculptures, memorials and graffiti are so ubiquitous in London that one completely ceases to notice them, but writing this piece has suddenly given me a tourist’s eye. Hitting the sales on Friday, I actually noticed Piccadilly Circus’ Eros for the first time in years – he’s quite a sexy little thing, if you’re not bothered by the wings. Not only that, but I also spotted that the rather bland Tower Records has four full-size horses leaping out of a fountain! I’d never noticed before, in spite of the fact I’d probably walked past them 1000 times. And once your eyes are open, it’s amazing what jumps out of this great city. Pop into the courtyard of Burlington House just off Piccadilly and you’ll see a towering Damien Hirst masterpiece. And, ever wondered about those strange ruined statues on the second floor of that big embassy on the Strand? No, me neither, until the other day, when I actually noticed them for the first time. They’re by Jakob Epstein, the father of modernist sculpture, and would make this building a particular treasure if a morally outraged Evening Standard hadn’t clamoured for the censors’ chisels to cut their manhoods down to size. For something a bit more de la mode, jump on the tube to Gloucester Road. On the eastbound platform you’ll find a contemporary art gallery ready for your perusal as you await your train. Or head out east to Old Street – the walls are like the cover of your old school books – written on over and over again. Here art meshes with defiant slogans, stencils, flyers and tags. On some streets in the East End it seems like every second building is being used by artists, and the open spaces are full of fascinating debris and attention-seeking performance artists. In a place like London with so much sensory stimulation – noise, smells, sights, sounds and seas of people all around you – it’s only natural to block a lot of it out. But if you sit back and take stock, maybe try walking to the Tube at a normal pace, rather than rushing along whilst simultaneously talking on your mobile and eating a sandwich, you might just see something extraordinary. Hawky the Pigeon Slayer A hawk has been hired to “scare” pigeons away from Trafalgar Square. Under the careful watch of a pest-control firm, the predator’s job is to fly and frighten the feathered rodents. The bird of prey, however, has been doing his job a little too well – 14 pigeons have been killed in his clutches since the beginning of the year. Super Cabbie Bros London is set to get its own computer game. ‘London Taxi Rush Hour’ will require the player to ferry passengers around London, dropping them off at certain attractions, within a defined time limit. Traffic jams, road works, difficult customers (students, OAPS, drunkards) will be peppered throughout the route. Court Takes Its Final Bow The case has been dismissed for the historic Bow Street Magistrates’ Court, which closed for good this month following plans to convert it into a hotel. Over the course of its 270 years of service the court’s dock has accommodated defendants Oscar Wilde, Dr Crippen, suffragettes Christabel and Emmeline Pankhurst, and Lord Jeffrey Archer. December 2008 23rd December January is on the Horizon 20th December Merry Christmas November 2008 26th November All The World's A Stage 20th November Surviving the Crunch October 2008 24th October Boris v Jingjing 17th October Soaps in Pole Position September 2008 23rd September Chips too Chavvy for Chelsea 16th September The London Restaurant Awards August 2008 26th August No Smoking, No Ducks, No Barbecues 20th August The Olympics July 2008 24th July Sandwiched Out 17th July The Show Ain't Over 'Til the Fat Lady's on Page 3 June 2008 26th June Love All at Wimbledon 16th June Miller Puts the Heat on Tennant May 2008 27th May Booze Banned on Buses 20th May Same Again? April 2008 23rd April By George 11th April Back to the 80s March 2008 28th March How do You Solve A Problem Like Medea? 20th March Flight Fantastic February 2008 20th February Dark, Satanic Turnmills 6th February A Diamond in the Drink January 2008 21st January People Wanted for Plinth 14th January Boo! Hiss! December 2007 28th December Tate That - A Hirst for Art 20th December Christmas Shopping November 2007 27th November Mind the Gap 26th November London On A Tray October 2007 26th October Leaving the Station 14th October The Sky's the Limit September 2007 26th September The Play Within A Play 19th September Fashion, Frocks and Celeb Shocks 12th September Saying Tanks for the Mammaries August 2007 24th August Heathrow under Siege 17th August Gormless 10th August Losing Face July 2007 24th July Are We Reaching Boiling Point Yet This Summer? 13th July Red Ken versus Blonde Boris June 2007 22nd June Last Orders at the Fag Machine 11th June London the Musical May 2007 21st May What Lurks Beneath 10th May The Stuff Dreams Are Made Of April 2007 27th April London’s Walk on the Wild Side 20th April Stand Behind the Yellow Line 13th April Like Water for Chocolate March 2007 23rd March So, Another Magazine 16th March Avoiding iContact February 2007 23rd February Sex and Art... 16th February C-Charge Protest Fails to Bring Down Government 9th February Live Earth London January 2007 26th January A Vote for Shilpa is a Vote for Britain 18th January Carriage on up the West End December 2006 29th December Food for Thought 22nd December A Poisonous Marketing Campaign 15th December In for a Penny, In for Five Pounds November 2006 17th November Big Department Stores Leave Santa Out in the Cold 10th November Failing to Save the World October 2006 27th October Frozen Prawns and Melting Icecaps 20th October Predatory Pelicans and Happy Woodland Folk 13th October Hope at last for east end of Oxford Street September 2006 16th September Lite the Blue Paper and Stand Well Back 9th September Of Poles and Twiglets August 2006 25th August Free Fares For the Fat and the Fashionable 11th August London Friendly 4th August Archway To Organic Heaven July 2006 21st July London - Celebrity Frat House 7th July Out of the Galleries into the Streets June 2006 23rd June Mayors, Nightmares and Marias 16th June Downright Rude in Paris and London 9th June Enter the Inferno May 2006 26th May Curvaceous Border 12th May Vegging Out April 2006 21st April The Camden Crawl 17th April Down the Pan 13th April I Want to Break Free 9th April Big Brother seems to have been left in a bar somewhere 7th April Don't Box Me In March 2006 24th March Political Correctness Reaches New Heights February 2006 24th February A Stadium's Tale: Cup Final Goes West 17th February Modern Musicals are Rubbish 10th February The City-Side Alliance January 2006 20th January February Sales 20th January Moby Sick 13th January Glass Half Full 3rd January Three Cheers for the Tube Station Workers December 2005 22nd December January Bites 16th December A Remarkable Year November 2005 25th November And a Partridge in a JCB 11th November Driving Miss Sadie 4th November Spam, Spam, Spammity-Spam, Shakespeare, Zorro, Chico and Rasputin October 2005 28th October Trick or Treat? 21st October We Don't Mind a Little Delay... 14th October Final Resting Place for Young British Artists September 2005 16th September Just a small urn for me, please barman 9th September DRINK! DRINK! DRINK!