The London Eye
It was the job of two visionary architects, David Marks and Julia Barfield, to come up with an astonishingly simple, yet amazingly creative structure to commemorate the Millennium in the UK, their idea was to be turned into the London Eye.
They wanted to give London something that was physically beautiful, technologically innovative and would allow people the chance to see one of the world’s greatest cities from a new and exciting perspective.
Standing on the River Thames, at 443 feet (135 metres) high, The EDF London Eye, which has been said looks like a giant Ferris wheel, has now become a world famous landmark in England’s capital.
There are 33 capsules in total, one for each of the London boroughs. For superstitious reasons capsule 13 has been left out for good luck. Each rotation takes approximately 30 minutes, meaning that a capsule travels at 0.6 miles (0.9 km) per hour – this slow rate of rotation allows guests to step on and off without the wheel having to stop.
I was booked into the 8.30pm slot, which is perfect in the summer if you want to experience London after sunset and the magic of the light changing over the beautiful city. I had a huge sense of anticipation as I stepped into the futuristic looking glass capsule and drew a deep breath as it slowly started to rise into the evening sky.
The first thing you notice is how the city starts to open up in front of you and how at every level you start to see London in a whole new light. I was amazed at how stunning everything looked from a great height, from the historic Houses of Parliament and St Pauls Cathedral, to the newest addition to London’s skyline, The Shard, which is now the tallest building in Europe.
The 360 degree view is really breath-taking and the 30 minute ride doesn’t feel long enough to really take in everything that the capital has to offer, near and far away. I cannot recommend the experience of taking a ride, on what has now been named ‘The Wheel’ highly enough and if you ever find yourself visiting London or like me already, you already live here, you must give it a go.
With an average of 3.75 million visitors a year, riding The London Eye is the closest feeling you’ll ever have to flying and with a view like that, you may never want to come down.
Rating ****
They wanted to give London something that was physically beautiful, technologically innovative and would allow people the chance to see one of the world’s greatest cities from a new and exciting perspective.
Standing on the River Thames, at 443 feet (135 metres) high, The EDF London Eye, which has been said looks like a giant Ferris wheel, has now become a world famous landmark in England’s capital.
There are 33 capsules in total, one for each of the London boroughs. For superstitious reasons capsule 13 has been left out for good luck. Each rotation takes approximately 30 minutes, meaning that a capsule travels at 0.6 miles (0.9 km) per hour – this slow rate of rotation allows guests to step on and off without the wheel having to stop.
I was booked into the 8.30pm slot, which is perfect in the summer if you want to experience London after sunset and the magic of the light changing over the beautiful city. I had a huge sense of anticipation as I stepped into the futuristic looking glass capsule and drew a deep breath as it slowly started to rise into the evening sky.
The first thing you notice is how the city starts to open up in front of you and how at every level you start to see London in a whole new light. I was amazed at how stunning everything looked from a great height, from the historic Houses of Parliament and St Pauls Cathedral, to the newest addition to London’s skyline, The Shard, which is now the tallest building in Europe.
The 360 degree view is really breath-taking and the 30 minute ride doesn’t feel long enough to really take in everything that the capital has to offer, near and far away. I cannot recommend the experience of taking a ride, on what has now been named ‘The Wheel’ highly enough and if you ever find yourself visiting London or like me already, you already live here, you must give it a go.
With an average of 3.75 million visitors a year, riding The London Eye is the closest feeling you’ll ever have to flying and with a view like that, you may never want to come down.
Rating ****
War Horse at The New London Theatre
Based on the novel by Michael Morpurgo, War Horse at The New London Theatre is the second staging of the play to be held in London.
Originally opening at The National Theatre in 2007, it moved to it's new and perfectly intimate designed home in Drury Lane in 2009 and has continued it's huge success. Adapted for the stage by Nick Stafford and using the genius of the Handspring Puppet Company, War Horse tells the story of a relationship between a boy called Albert and a horse called Joey. Separated at the beginning of the 1st World War, it focuses on the struggle for them to be reunited against all the odds. Although there is a strong cast, the stars of the show are the Handspring's astonishing life-size puppets. Formed of wire and material the magic of the horses come alive with the talent of the puppeteers, who really bring these amazing creatures to life. I didn't expect to be emotional drawn in by the experience but found Tom Morris and Marianne Elliott's production of War Horse really brought home the sacrifice that both humans and animals made for their country during The Great War. The story has also recently been made into a Steven Spielberg film which was received high acclaim and with this production running at The New London Theatre till February 2013, War Horse is a story that will continue to touch peoples lives for some time to come. Rating ***** Royal Manuscripts : Genius of Illumination
Royal Manuscripts : The Genius of Illumination at The British Library is unique collection of Medieval and Renaissance illuminated manuscripts.
Dating back over 800 years, the collection is an amazing insight in the lives of the Kings and Queens of England and France. Contained in over 154 volumes, mostly already housed at The British Library, it holds an insight into the history from the 9th to the 16th century. Some highlights include the 'Book of Hours' made for Margaret Beauchamp, the grandmother of Henry VIII and the 'Shrewsbury Book', presented to Margaret of Anjou on the eve of her marriage to Henry VI in 1445. What really struck me was the amazing use of colours and gold leaf that even after 100's of years locked away from the public eye, still have a ability to jump out of the page at you. The Royal Manuscripts is a truly informative and beautiful look at a true art form that has stood the test of time and for the first time, has given us an intimate look at the private life of the royal, privileged few. Rating **** The Artist
Being tipped for the Oscars and having won three Golden Globes and BAFTA nominations, The Artist is already the hit of the year.
Set in 1920's Hollywood, it is the era of the silent movie and its biggest star is George Valentin (played brilliantly by Jean Dujardin). He's handsome and his swashbuckling romantic roles have the women swooning in the aisles. But all that is about to change with the introduction of Talkies (movies with sound) and a chance encounter with the charming Pepper Miller (Berenice Bejo). When George is offered a chance to star in the new film format, he rejects it out of pride in favour of financing his own movie epic that turns out to be a flop. As Georges life spirals out of control, Peppers fledgling career goes from strength to strength. I really enjoyed The Artist. Even though it is a film that is mostly shot on silence, the music speaks volumes and the quality of acting harks back to the original silent films of the age. If you only go and see one film in 2012, make it The Artist. You won't be disappointed! Rating ***** |
The London 2012 Paralympic Games
Burger and Lobster
Burger and Lobster in Mayfair is truly a unique and tasty experience.
Opened in the latter half of 2011 by Goodman, this restaurant has already had a big impact in the capital. As the name suggests, there is no menu but the choice of Burger or Lobster. To be more precise you can chose between a whole grilled or steamed Canadian Lobster (I recommend having it grilled), a Lobster Roll or a Burger with all the trimmings, each priced at £20. There are some great sides included, some lovely extra crispy french fries and yummy garlic and herb butter to dip your crustacean in. The side salad was ok, though a little drowned in dressing which made it a little soggy. There are also some impressive cocktails to keep you occupied while you wait for your food to arrive, they are quite pricey at £9 but they are of top quality and go down very well. If you are hoping to have dinner at The Burger and Lobster, I recommend you head down there before 6pm if you can, to guarantee a table. They do not except reservations and I have known of people waiting for over two hours for a table. Having said this, the staff are charming and if you only go once to this unusual place, you will find the food and atmosphere something you may never experience anywhere else in London and all for only £20! Rating *** 1/2 Leonardo Da Vinci : Court of Milan
The fragility of Leonardo’s paintings and drawings have made it nearly impossible to pull off a Leonardo show of any size.
Leonardo Da Vinci: Painter at The Court of Milan at The National Gallery is the largest collection of work ever gathered in one place. Leonardo spent nearly 20 years in Milan and the gallery has seven paintings that have survived from that period. These include the recently discovered and restored, once thought lost masterpiece of Christ as Salvator Mundi (pictured left). There is also the stunning early copy by his pupil Giampietrino of the famous Last Supper Leonardo painted for the refectory of Santa Maria delle Grazie. The tickets for this sold out in a matter of weeks and I feel very lucky that I managed to purchase two for this once in a lifetime exhibition. I found myself extremely moved by Da Vincis paintings, especially the two versions of the Virgin of the Rocks, one housed by the Louvre in Paris, the other by the National Gallery itself. These two paintings have never been in the same room together, even during Leonardos lifetime. There is something of the spiritual about Leonardo Da Vinci's work that can't help but make you feel moved and in awe of his unique talent. The experience and privilege of visiting Painter at The Court of Milan at The National Gallery will stay with my for the rest of my life. Rating **** 1/2 You Gotta Eat Here
Duke's Brew and Que Rating **** 1/2 |
It's No Small Thing is written and designed by Rebecca who lives in London.
