Despite prior indifference, that gold-laden swag bag from Beijing has got Londoners enthused about 2012. Commuting into London is time-consuming. In other news, Pope is Catholic, and dog bites man Mayor Boris to meet with government in bid to tackle air pollution. There be fines in the offing if we don't clean up East London choir caterwauls to final of TV show Council workers cowed by crime are ferried from office to Tube station......

Pollution pulverised—well, not exactly, but Ken announces hefty £25 C-Charge for heaviest polluting vehicles. Fresh criticism of the “angular mass”—no, not the razor-sharp hip bones on London Fashion Week models. Rather, English Heritage have some sharp words for Doon Street Tower plan. We’re absurdly wealthy. Well, we’re not. But some people in this city apparently are. “Someone else” blamed for the £90,000 worth of Fortnum and Mason merchandise gone missing during a saleswoman’s work......

Londonist likes to breathe. This Londonist is pneumatically challenged, and so she is especially fond of a good puff of the invisible stuff. So when the invisible stuff becomes visible, and London is shrouded in an ominous sulphurous blanket, we either stay indoors, or wander around looking like Darth Vader, with one of those terribly fetching mouth and nose masks that cyclists wear. Various bods are meant to monitor air quality, but it seems to......

Ear of the Year? It's not a typo, nor is it an attempt to fetishise one of the body's less aesthetically appealing organs through association with their derriere-concerned namesake (though we'd applaud any such effort). The capital's already got plenty of sex if that's your thing. Ear of the Year is in fact part of a campaign by the Royal National Institute for the Deaf. They're trying to find the country's best ear, or......

Londonist was privileged enough to be able to sneak a quick interview with Gavin Pretor-Pinney in between his cloud-gazing activities and his idling. Actually, that was a very weak attempt at a clever introduction. Let’s try again with a drum roll this time. Meet Gavin Pretor-Pinhey, the iconic founder of the Cloud Appreciation Society, and the co-founder of The Idler. Oh, and proud London resident. Gavin, Londonist can easily understand idling (what is blogging except......

(Actually, they’re not. We’re feeling all pretentious this morning and wish to demonstrate our superior education in the Classics.) Turns out the 2012 Olympic venue for canoe slalom, Spitalbrook in Hertfordshire, is tainted with muck. Heavy pollution has forced the Olympic Delivery Authority to seek a new location six miles further south. The proposed move has yet to be approved by the International Olympic Committee. We think shifting the event to cleaner waters is......

The Health Protection Agency is calling for better monitoring of Thames water quality, particularly in areas where the river is used for watersports and fishing, following the publication of its Thames Recreational Users Study today. The report focuses on "potential risks to public health posed by faecal pollution of human or animal origin" in the river. That's poo to you and me. Although the Thames is known as one of the cleanest rivers in Europe,......

Harrow motorist in jail after 172 mph motorway run. DNA to the rescue in decades-old murder case. London has nine spots that breech EU pollution limits. Once the Big Smoke always the Big Smoke. The Telegraph has a guide to London. They recommend you visit the New Piccadilly Café. We recommend you do not, unless you're a fan of 'Closed' signs. Image courtesy of tezzer57 via the Londonist flickr group.......

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......

From BBC News: London must become car-free if it is to substantially cut carbon dioxide emissions, according to a new report. Crikey. In response to the findings London Green Party member Jenny Jones said: "I have asked the London mayor to do a feasibility study into creating a car free pedestrian zone in central London linking all the main squares and parks. "We need to show that the car no longer rules in London......

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......

Apparently London’s motorists are in a state of ‘panic’ as they are having trouble finding petrol stations near them…. A new report out today by petrol industry boffins Catalist reveals that a third of London’s forecourts have shut down since 2002, and that England as a whole has 617 cars per petrol station, which sounds quite a lot really. But hang on a minute. This is London. If there is no longer a garage in......

Halifax Bank harasses woman who doesn't even have a current account with them . High C-charge for gas-guzzlers a step closer. Why do we call them 'gas guzzlers'? We are not Yanks goddamn it. How about 'fuel farters' or 'petrol pumping pollution promoters'? OK, I think we just answered our own question. Pete Doherty goes to jail for a very long time. No, of course not. The BBC are looking for little green corners.......

This Week In London’s History Monday – 6th August 1937: Barbara Windsor is born in Shoreditch in central London. She would achieve fame as an actress, notably as a ‘saucy strumpet’ in the Carry On films of the 60s and 70s and later as a major character in Eastenders. Tuesday – 7th August 2001: The Department of Health pays £27 million for a private Harley Street heart hospital, re-nationalising it and bringing it into......

While SFist cringed at the fatal dose of crime littering the Bay Area, it found solace in Hillary Clinton's San Francisco campaign headquarters opening, which featured loads of exposed mammary glands. In other news, SF Taxi Commission ruled that Satan's cab must keep its (in)famous medallion number, 666; and in an un-fashion-forward frenzy, San Francisco Fashion Week (chortle) bars bloggers from covering and getting smashed at their shows and parties, respectively. Also, they found a......

Today, in London, you can see Feltz pulled by Clarkson. Stop! I hear you shriek, especially if you’re feeling a bit delicate after a big weekend. Well, don’t worry. It’s not some hideous perversion of celebrity Blind Date for the Beeb. Clarkson is a horse. An ironically named horse, as it happens, as he: loves pedestrians, cyclists, public transport and supporting environmental causes, but can’t stand motor cars and the pollution they cause In......

Earlier this week we told you about Galaxy Zoo, where ordinary web users help astronomers by classifying the galaxies they capture in their telescopes. But Londoners are an exploratory bunch, and after sorting a few dozen of the Milky Way’s neighbours you might ask what you could see if you went outside and looked up at the sky yourself. We’ve got good news and bad news for you on that front. The bad news......

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......

There's no question in my mind that My Space is a wonderful thing but I find it alternately inspiring and overwhelming when you get a glimpse of the sheer number of bands and promoters are out there trying to do their thing. It doesn't help that at the majority of gigs I've played on the so-called "toilet circuit" I haven't been that keen on the other bands, I'm not someone who will randomly pop......

Ken, you have a contender. John Bird, successful businessman and founder of The Big Issue, announced his candidacy for Mayor of London and unveiled the accompanying manifesto. Mr Bird, running independently but courting interest from the Conservatives, said his platform would be one of ‘social inclusion,’ targeting youth crime, irresponsible businesses and housing problems in the capital. "The first thing I would do as mayor would be to look at the great oxygenators of......

Let's get straight into this one: Moving from Inverness to the more polluted streets of Central London could have worse consequences for your health than choosing to live in the contaminated exclusion zone around Chernobyl, the site of the world’s worst nuclear disaster. What the fuck? We notice that this only applies to people moving from Inverness - either they breed 'em weak up there or we've already mutated into some pollution resistant breed......

The congestion zone, bloated and gorged on the wallets of London motorists, finally loosened its belt this morning. A doubling of girth was observed in the ensuing westerly bloat, which takes in some of London's richest inhabitants. Fans of JG Ballard will be intrigued to learn that the area approximating to Chelsea Marina is included on the extreme western fringe, as though on purpose. But what's the reaction? Mixed, of course. And the overall......

Blakey and the rest of the RMT aren't going to like the sound of this: Like something plucked right out of a 1960’s sci-fi flick, the model of a Driverless bus wowed visitors at the Science Museum in London - where it is currently on exhibit - with its claims of reducing air pollution and traffic congestion, wrapped up in a slick, futuristic package. Driverless buses? But who will tell you that they can't......

Electric lorries are coming to London. Like milk floats on steroids, the fleet of 50mph 'Newton' vehicles will glide around the capital in the employ of delivery firm TNT. The company hopes to reduce pollution in the capital and get a C-charge discount to boot. And it's not just about emissions. The Newton's bodywork is built entirely from recycled materials, boosting its green credentials still further. Kevin Harkin of the vehicle's developers, Smith, said:......

Westminster Council has unveiled what are thought to be the first two recharging points for cars in the UK. The borough suffers from the UK's highest levels of air pollution caused by the amount of traffic flowing in and out of central London. Electric cars produce no pollutants and are exempt from the congestion charge, which will come as welcome news to US embassy staff. The recharging points may also come in handy for......

We were only marvelling a couple of days ago - during a night flight back from t'other side of Pond - at the hazy orange glow permeating the whole of the south east of England. But the light pollution looks even more remarkable from higher up, as this 2003 image from the International Space Station attests. It's interesting to note that some of the most obvious features of night time London are also its......

It's been revealed today that living in the capital prematurely ages your skin by three-and-a-half years. A study has reportedly shown that the effects of pollution, smoking, stress and poor sun-care cause Londoners to go all wrinkly before the rest of the country. And, weirdly, north-east London gets the worst of it. If you live there then could end up looking four years older than you should. And it gets worse. Londoners also have......

The London Assembly has a new report showing that there's a lot more helicopters hovering over the city than there used to be: The study highlights Londoners' growing concern about helicopters adding to the "misery" of airplane noise. It wants to introduce a charge for using the capital's airspace and calls on the government to take action to tackle helicopter noise pollution. A congestion charge for air traffic - interesting. They also want quieter aircraft,......

Heathrow update: A man has been arrested under the Terrorism Act and passengers have been let back in to Terminal 2. A new initiative launched by London Underground and the RNIB means that soon blind and partially sighted people will be able to navigate Tube stations using books of tactile maps. Ultra cool. More from the file marked 'ultra cool': an £85m aquarium containing a massive coral reef in the East End. Sensors are......

As mentioned before on Londonist, we like holy festivals in this town. It will soon be time to observe the Hindu festival Durga Puja, the biggest festival celebrated annually in West Bengal and now coming to the Thames in Putney. Durga Puja is for the goddess Durga who ended the reign of the demon Mahishasur and to celebrate her victory, idols of the goddess are specially made and immersed in a river at the......