What a busy week! What with the Bank holiday, Cans Festival, Pangea Day, May ’68 celebrations and more, free cultural activities abound across London. So get out of bed, you lazy hungover git, and go sample what’s on in our summery city. Monday: In case you missed it over the weekend, catch the last day of the Cans Festival, a graffiti art exhibition headlined by none other than London’s lovable guerilla stencil artist Banksy.......

You’ve probably noticed that stuff keeps going up in price. Our friend the shop-keeper got a letter from the milkman today – there’ll be at least an extra 4p on the price of a pint of milk from next week, mark our words. When the milkman and the baker start sending out letters, you know things are getting serious. But there is a far more pressing threat to the global economy than the mutterings of......

Having barely emerged from January’s wreckage of failed New Year’s resolutions, it was with a groan that we greeted the news that Lent arrives early this year. Questions of belief aside, Lent always seems likes such a promising self-improvement programme: give up chocolate, drink less, quit smoking. But didn’t we just make – and break – those same resolutions last month? We’re not such optimists to think we should try again so soon. Perhaps......

Londonist went on a sojourn to Manchester recently, and loved the place. Home of iconic bands, incessant rain, pretty canals, and some of Britain's most interesting modern architecture outside London, Manchester has a lot to offer. If only there were a way to get there that didn't involve spending half your life savings on an overpriced, inflexible rail ticket. Never let it be said that Virgin Trains can't spot an opening in the market.......

Paul McCartney's ex was in London yesterday for a photo shoot for the charity Viva!. Along with Heather Mills, Viva! would like us all to please eat less meat, dairy and other animal products in order to reduce global warming. We fully applaud Viva!'s commitment to the environment, and thoroughly enjoy names that feature punctuation, but we wonder how effective this campaign really is going to be. While we can't personally see switching to......

Despite the odd recent mishap, London's lidos take their rightful alongside our parks as great places to go around the capital. 70 years ago lidos were people's cathedrals, masterful municipal palaces to promote community health and wellbeing. Over the years since then they have been left derelict or sold off. But now, they are having their renaissance. Blame global warming for warmer temperatures or the Olympics for increased interest in health - but outdoor pools......

Gothamist learned about the craziest urban nightmare come true: A huge python found in the bathroom pipes. It was also a nightmare for some Yankees fans, as manger Joe Torre declined to come back and manage the Bronx Bombers. At least the city's attempt to give some direction to subway riders was interesting, pranksters went shirtless at the Fifth Avenue Abercrombie & Fitch and the I Heart Brooklyn Girls calendars came out. And just......

The sixth in our series of interviews with potential candidates for next year's Mayoral election. Previously: Victoria Borwick (Tory), Andrew Boff (Tory) and Warwick Lightfoot (Tory), Sian Berry (Green), Fiyaz Mughal (Lib Dem). Chris Prior is an independent mayoral candidate standing on a very firm 'Stop Congestion Charging' ticket. We asked him why, and, as with all the other candidates, we also enquired whether he'd ever been sick on the Tube. Chris is the......

The fifth in our series of interviews with potential candidates for next year's Mayoral election. Previously: Victoria Borwick (Tory), Andrew Boff (Tory) and Warwick Lightfoot (Tory), Sian Berry (Green). Today: Liberal Democrat candidate Fiyaz Mughal. He's competing with fellow LDs Brian Paddick and Chamali Fernando to represent his party in next year's elections. Would you vote for him? Read his ideas below. Where do you live in London and what do you like best......

Last week we reported on Walk Score, a tool for people who want to take positive steps towards greener living. This week, something for our more pessimistic readers: Flood Maps. Another twist on Google Maps, look up where you live or where you’re thinking of moving to, type in the amount you predict sea levels will rise, and find out whether you’re going to end up underwater. Projecting sea level rise is problematic. A......

Once you've conquered the Thames by swimming its entire length in 21 days, what's next? A nice luxurious holiday? Perhaps some time to just relax with a takeaway and something good on the telly? Not if you're Londonist's favourite swimmer Lewis Pugh. Then it's time for a nice brisk swim in the Arctic Ocean. On Sunday 15th July, Pugh is going to attempt the first long distance swim at the North Pole. And why......

The world can be a pretty scary place these days. There are a million things to worry about, from global warming to gang members with guns. We thought that going down to the local supermarket would be pretty safe, though. It's just buying food – how dangerous can it be? If you were in the South Norwood Somerfield last week, you'd have found that shopping isn't as safe as it seems. The danger didn't......

Governor of California and Austrian über-man Arnold Schwarzenegger will be travelling to London on Sunday to meet Blair, reciprocating a visit Blair made to America's most populous state last year where the pair announced a trans-Atlantic alliance to tackle greenhouse gas emissions. Obviously, Arnie has experience of dealing with such global problems before, namely the T-1000, a super terminator that could morph into anything that it had had physical contact with. The T-1000 wanted......

Why, those crazy scamps over at This is Local London, messing with our Monday morning minds: The first planes have landed at Heathrow's Terminal 5… Really? So soon? - plane trees that is. Masterful wordplay. We laughed until we stopped. Forty London plane trees were planted at T5’s Interchange Plaza, which has been designed to provide passengers with an outdoor haven. Plane trees are renowned for their ability to tolerate pollution, a vital attribute......

A phantom menace plaguing the London cloudosphere has been discovered: The airline BMI is to scrap a phantom service after it emerged that the company is flying an empty passenger jet between Cardiff and Heathrow in order to retain valuable slots at the London airport. The 124-seat plane shuttles between the airports six times a week but carries no passengers and no tickets are sold. BMI operates the empty services because if it did......

As the squads for next month's cricket world cup in the Caribbean are announced news reaches us of an intriguing public gathering of some of the game's cognoscenti in London on the eve of the tournament. From Thursday 1st to Saturday 3rd March the Institute of Commonwealth Studies plays host to the international conference "Cricket: Dawn of a new world – growth, development and commerce" on the premises of Goodenough College at Mecklenburgh Square......

Last week, we asked for something a bit more cheerful than the doom & gloom images you've been sending of late. So when we received an email from reader Richard Jones with the title Touch Up London - Global Warming Prediction, we feared the worst. However, it seems that all our worries about climate change are unfounded. London's fate is not to be drowned in huge swells of water, but a giant tide of......

Well, the elements gave us a bit of a battering last week, with plenty of damage and several people killed. But lest we get all worked up about global warming and freaky weather, it's worth remembering that the capital is no stranger to the Force 10 fart of Mother Nature. Here's a roundup of, erm, past wind. 1091: Strong winds make their debut on the recorded history of London. On October 23rd that year,......

What's more boring than talking about the weather? Betting on it: Totesport, which has come up with a series of "global warming wagers", is also offering odds of 50-1 that the Thames Barrier will be breached over the next decade.The company, which thought up the bets with the help of former BBC weatherman John Kettley, is offering odds of 4-1 that 2007 will be the hottest year on record. Totesport spokesman Damian Walker said:......

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......

We just stumbled across this post on Cool Hunting Dot Com and almost dropped our collective wine glass when we saw what looked like two people paddling a table up the Thames. The things people do for art: their new work, entitled "Climatised Objects," are inspired by global warming's dramatic effect on our weather systems that provoke life-threatening situations like earthquakes, hurricanes and tsunamis. Objects like a vase that doubles as a flashlight when......

This week's entry comes from the twisted mind of Caroline Clifford. Never in the field of human endeavour has such a preposterous scenario been envisaged. Presumably to save themselves from global warming, the animals from London Zoo have comandeered City Hall and fashioned their very own G.L.Ark (that's Caroline's wordplay, not ours). All well and good, till you consider that there are no polar bears at London Zoo, so the scenes depicted here could......

This week - CGI cars populate the earth (Cars), stylist sci-fi thriller set in Paris 2054 (Renaissance) and a computer game becomes deadly (Stay Alive) First up, Cars from Pixar, makers of Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, Toy Story etc. etc. However, where Pixar's previous efforts have been recieved well by the critics, Cars dissapoints. Bradshaw in the Guardian awards it three stars writing that Cars "just doesn't have much in the tank." As expected,......

Quick update on Lewis Pugh, who you may remember is the crazy lawyer attempting to swim the entire length of the Thames. Well, he’s been stymied right from the start - by a lack of water. Upon reaching the source of the Thames in Kemble, Gloucestershire, Pugh discovered that the drought is indeed real, and that the water level was too low to allow swimming. (Though isn’t that usually the case at the source......

It’s not often we feel the need to applaud a lawyer, but Lewis Pugh will deserve a pat on his sodden, algae-plastered back if he successfully swims the entire length of the Thames over the next few weeks. Mr Pugh, a veteran long-distance swimmer, is attempting the insane journey to raise awareness of environmental issues. Speaking of global warming, he commented: I'm hoping my swim down the River Thames will bring the message home......

A walk from Stratford to the South Bank doesn’t sound particularly alluring. What, after all, is the Jubilee Line for? But, as you’ve probably guessed from the hilarious title of this post, we’re talking about Stratford-Upon-Avon, not Stratford-Upon-Olympics. Yup, some chap’s come up with the idea of creating a special walking route from the Bard’s home town all the way to the Globe. Measure for Measure, that’s about 146 miles, passing through many charming......

We don't usually kick things off with news, but this is too cool to hide after the jump. One of our favourite labels, Anchor Bay, are releasing The Adventures of Blake and Mortimer on DVD next month. If you like Tintin then this is a must have collection. Pretty good timing too as there's a movie in the works with Rufus Sewell and Hugh Bonneville in the adventuring leads while Gong Li will play......

London 2026: We remember a time of chaos. Ruined dreams. This wasted land. But most of all, we remember The Road Warrior. The man we called "Jeremy". To understand who he was, you have to go back to another time. When the world was powered by the black fuel. That world crumbled. The cities exploded. A whirlwind of looting, a firestorm of fear. Men began to feed on men. On the roads it was......

These listings appear every Wednesday. If you want to let us know about any upcoming science or technology events, you can contact us on LondonistSciTech@Gmail.com Event of the Week Breaking the spell at the RSA on Monday Science and religion. The two have been at loggerheads since the garden of Eden. ‘Eve,’ says Adam, ‘Did you know that we were created by the Lord, in His image?’. After a long pause, Eve says, ‘Really?......

These listings appear every Wednesday. If you want to let us know about any upcoming science or technology events, you can contact us on LondonistSciTech@Gmail.com Event of the Week NODE.London, various events throughout March For one week only, allow us to stray away from our scientific comfort zone towards the techy hinterlands of our remit. NODE.London (a somewhat contrived acronym for Networked, Open, Distributed, Events. London) comprises a string of events around the city......