facttime

Although London is in lockdown for the foreseeable, we are at least still allowed to go out for exercise once per day and despite the cold, grey weather, I've been going for a walk, run or cycle ride every day. Well, as I'm still a fair-weather cyclist, I've mainly been walking and running, which does limit the places within a reasonable distance. Much as I love running west along the river from Tower Bridge, close to where I live, I have done the same loop about 150 times in the past year and so I've been looking for some other options. Connected by Light , a collection of outdoor light installations dotted around Canary Wharf, provided the variety I was looking for. There was a similar event last January , where I got to test out my new camera (ahead of all the travelling I was expecting to do last year). Even in those beforetimes, it felt really crowded during my visit, and thankfully, this year the organisers have made sure that all of the installations can be enjoy...

While the UK remains in lockdown, I have still been able to seize small moments of joy by getting a takeaway coffee while on my allotted daily exercise. Last week, my walk-of-the-day took me to Nine Elms where I was able to visit the closest of District 's three Aussie-inspired cafes; the other two locations are in Parsons Green and Mayfair. Unsurprisingly, I've missed travelling a great deal over the past year, so it was nice to take the opportunity to visit a small piece of Australia rather closer to home. Although my regular running route is a loop around the central part of the Thames, I don't usually go down as far as Vauxhall Bridge, and the neighbourhood between Vauxhall and Battersea that forms Nine Elms isn't one I'm very familiar with. District is tucked away off Nine Elms Lane on New Union Square, just opposite the huge, shiny US Embassy. It's a residential area, with many new high-rise apartment buildings, but there are some shops and eateries too, i...

The  original Frequency Coffee  has long been a favourite of mine, and its King's Cross location was convenient for my office. Of course, working from home last year — and for the foreseeable — has meant I haven't been able to visit owner Justo and his team as often as usual. But when I stopped by on a staycation day in November, I found out that Justo was soon going to be opening a second branch, on Camden Passage in Islington. I called by the new coffee shop while on a long bike ride at the weekend. It's located in a small shop on Camden Passage, one of Islington's loveliest streets. The space used to be occupied by a stationery / lifestyle shop, which always felt a little poky, but the new fit-out has made very good use of the space. Like the original, elements of the design highlight Justo's love of music: the counter here also uses sound-proofing as a design feature, for example. The distinctive tables ( which you can buy ) feature here too, although there ar...

Before Christmas and when restaurants were still open in London, I was able to get a table at the London location of  Six by Nico . Nico Simeone's small family of restaurants are currently located in six UK cities (the original was in Glasgow) and specialise in themed, six-course tasting menus priced at an extremely reasonable £35. The restaurants are currently closed but will hopefully be back again soon when restrictions ease with another exciting theme. I'd wanted to experience  Six by Nico's New York-themed menu , but couldn't get a reservation. The most recent incarnation was the Christmas-centric Miracle on Charlotte Street  and although my Scroogey nature means I'm not a huge fan of Christmas food, I figured that Six by Nico's characteristically playful takes on classic dishes and menu items would be right up my street. My booking was for a Friday lunchtime, a few days before the newly instated tier-3 restrictions in London shut restaurants down again. Th...