The writer Samuel Johnson once famously said ‘When a man is tired of London, he's tired of Life’, and there’s certainly plenty to keep you amused during your stay in the capital. From clubs and restaurants to shops and cultural hotspots, London has some of the best entertainment on offer in Europe. Time Out magazine is a good weekly investment at £2.50, providing detailed listings on everything including film, art, music, nightlife, food and drink, and TV.

Things To Do And See

Aside from London’s plentiful historic attractions such as the Tower of London, you might also like to take a ride on the London Eye (www.londoneye.com) to get a different view of the city. You can book online for about £13. There’s also a whole host of cool museums to inspire you, amongst our favourites the Tate Modern’s collection of international modern art (www.tate.org.uk) and the Design Museum, with its exhibitions of quirky innovations (www.designmuseum.org). Admittance to museums is often free, with special exhibitions costing £5-10. 

Shopping

There’s something for everyone if you look hard enough. Areas such as Oxford Street and Regent Street have a wide array of commercial chain shops, culminating in the huge Selfridges department store. Go to up-market Knightsbridge and you’ll find the other kings of the department store, Harrods and Harvey Nicholls, while Covent Garden is home to the cooler labels. Closer to the School, Upper Street has a great range of individual boutiques as well as the N1 Centre, which is home to a large Borders bookstore, HMV and a Vue cinema.
There’s also plenty of markets to keep those looking for alternative and vintage clothing happy. Amongst the best is the world-famous Camden Market (Northern line), open seven days a week between 10am and 6pm. Go to www.camdenlock.net for more details. Info on other London markets can be found at www.londonmarkets.co.uk. 

Record Stores

Record stores can be found to meet every musical taste. Here’s a quick guide on the best places to pick up vinyl and CDs:

Berwick Street: Moments from Oxford Street, Berwick Street is crammed with second-hand record shops including Reckless, Sister Ray, Music and Video Exchange and Rough Trade.

Reckless, which has two separate branches – one for Soul and Dance and another for Rock and Indie.

Sister Ray stocks rarities and new titles from diverse genres.

Music and Video Exchange is great for promos.

Rough Trade: one of the oldest and most established independent record shops, selling everything from Rock to Hip Hop and World music.

BM Soho (formerly Black Market Records): Best known for drum’n’bass, Black Market also stocks an extensive array of urban and house titles.

FOP: A great chain offering new CDs at discounted prices, with a flagship store on Tottenham Court Road.

HMV: Oxford Street has the largest music store in Europe in the form of HMV, with a limitless choice of CDs and a decent selection of vinyl, too.