From the government department for investigating blatantly obvious things - a public consultation into whether learning English helps immigrants feel more at home. Spend the money on the courses, you twonks. BBC names rising music stars for 2008. Don't get too excited. Watch out for our Listen Up! posts instead. Market "intelligence" firms gathering data on public health predict that residents of deprived boroughs, Tower Hamlets, Southwark and City & Hackney are likely to......

So this week, we spent all our money on cold remedies and extra balmy tissues for our beleaguered noses. The plan is to be back and fighting fit by Monday so here are some of the things we could all get up to this week for very little wonga. Monday: Call the BBC Ticket Line on 0870 901 1227 and get free tickets for the recording of Clare in the Community - the radio......

This was not a very happy week for the -ist network as one of our own, Phillyist co-editor Star C. Foster, passed away early in the week. Her wit, intelligence, and good nature shone through the site, making Phillyist an immensely fun read. She was loved by many and will be missed by all. Phillyist paid tribute to her this week with a heartfelt letter to her and an obituary. And now, the awkward......

Hard to believe it in our era of global warming, but the Thames used to freeze in winter and the early Victorian folks used to gather on South Bank for a jolly day out, skating, socialising and generally enjoying the chilly air. Frost Fairs along the river were the big winter event up until the widening of the Thames in 1815 which ended the annual big freeze. We're glad to announce that the Frost......

Shiver our timbers. London’s had lots of cold weather so far this winter, but precious little snow. (Perhaps not entirely a bad thing, given the toxic fume cloud currently presiding over us.) Whatever the weather, there’ll be plenty of the white, wet stuff on offer at Bankside this Friday through Sunday, as the third annual Frost Fair gets underway. Frost Fairs are one of London’s oldest traditions. Back in Tudor and Stuart times, the......

Who really enjoys Christmas shopping in London? Seriously - who? Though it is always the thought that counts, it is sadly true that you are obliged to put the thought into physical form in order for it to count, which means putting on your coat and hitting the shops to pick up that unique and original Christmas gift - which usually turns out to be the same unique and original gift that 50 million......

Forget ice skating at Somerset House, if you're looking for some real fun this Christmas then you don't have to go any further that Bankside, where Southwark council are installing a massive snow slide. The slide is part of the Frost Fair, an idea which originated in 1564 when "the people of London took to the ice for a carnival on the water" (see picture above). The last Frost Fair was held in 1814,......