ListingsUpdated Sat 5 Sep
Soho: what's on and things to do
Soho is the densest square mile of evening in the country. Theatres, comedy rooms above pubs, jazz clubs, kitchens that serve past midnight and more bars than anyone could visit in a year, all packed into the grid between Oxford Street, Regent Street, Charing Cross Road and Shaftesbury Avenue.
It is also the part of London that has changed most and complains about it most loudly. Some of that is fair. Enough of the old Soho survives that an evening here is still unlike an evening anywhere else in the city.
Daytime
Soho in daylight is for eating and for records. Berwick Street still has record shops and the fruit and veg market; Bar Italia has been open since 1949 and effectively never closes. The bookshops on Charing Cross Road are fewer than they were but the survivors are good. Chinatown, technically its own place on the southern edge, is busiest at lunch and cheapest before six.
Evening and night
The theatres go up between half past seven and eight, which is why the restaurants have two clear sittings and why a table at nine is easier than a table at seven. Ronnie Scott's runs a late show after the main sitting, usually from about a quarter past eleven, and it is cheaper and better than the early one. The comedy rooms above pubs are where most of the country's stand-ups are actually working on a Tuesday.
The pubs on Dean Street and Frith Street spill onto the pavement from six. Last orders in most of them is eleven, which is when Soho's second half starts: the members' bars, the late licences and the places that only make sense after midnight.
Getting home
Oxford Circus, Tottenham Court Road, Piccadilly Circus and Leicester Square all serve Soho and all are unpleasant at closing. The Victoria, Central, Northern and Piccadilly lines all run overnight on Friday and Saturday, so weekends are easy. Midweek, the last trains go around half past midnight and the night buses from Trafalgar Square go everywhere.
Saturday
5 September-
Comedy From £15
Comedy at the Soho Theatre
Until 20 Sep
Three rooms, most shows an hour, tickets from fifteen pounds. The downstairs bar runs late. Book the 21:30 slot if you want the room that has already had a drink.
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Free
Carnaby Street and the courts
Until 4 Sep
The street itself takes five minutes; Kingly Court behind it takes an afternoon. Three floors of a courtyard with the roof open in summer and closed in winter.
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Exhibitions Free
Outernet London
Until 4 Sep
Four storeys of screen wrapped around a public hall by Tottenham Court Road station, free to walk into. What is on changes constantly; five minutes is usually enough.
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Exhibitions From £45
The Crystal Maze LIVE Experience
Until 4 Sep
The television set rebuilt under Shaftesbury Avenue, played in teams of up to eight with a maze master shouting at you. Ninety minutes, and you do need to book.
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Gigs From £12
Ronnie Scott’s: the Late Late Show
The late show at Frith Street starts about a quarter past eleven and runs to three on Friday and Saturday. Cheaper than the main sitting: twelve pounds in advance, more on the door, half price for students.
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Food and drink From £35
Bottomless brunch in Soho
Until 4 Sep
More bottomless brunch per square yard than anywhere in London, and the offers change often enough that the street is the reliable part rather than any one room. Book: Saturdays go.
Friday
11 September-
Comedy Selling fast
Jimmy Carr: Laughs Funny
Until 13 Sep
Three nights at the Palladium on the current tour. Not the room for anyone who dislikes being spoken to from the stage.
-
Gigs From £12
Ronnie Scott’s: the Late Late Show
The late show at Frith Street starts about a quarter past eleven and runs to three on Friday and Saturday. Cheaper than the main sitting: twelve pounds in advance, more on the door, half price for students.
Saturday
12 September-
Comedy Selling fast
Jimmy Carr: Laughs Funny
Until 13 Sep
Three nights at the Palladium on the current tour. Not the room for anyone who dislikes being spoken to from the stage.
-
Gigs From £12
Ronnie Scott’s: the Late Late Show
The late show at Frith Street starts about a quarter past eleven and runs to three on Friday and Saturday. Cheaper than the main sitting: twelve pounds in advance, more on the door, half price for students.
Sunday
13 September-
Comedy Selling fast
Jimmy Carr: Laughs Funny
Three nights at the Palladium on the current tour. Not the room for anyone who dislikes being spoken to from the stage.
Thursday
17 September-
Exhibitions Free
London Fashion Week: the City Wide Celebration
Until 21 Sep
The runway shows are invite only but the City Wide Celebration is not: talks, workshops, late openings and in store events across London, most of them free.
Friday
18 September-
Exhibitions Free
London Fashion Week: the City Wide Celebration
Until 21 Sep
The runway shows are invite only but the City Wide Celebration is not: talks, workshops, late openings and in store events across London, most of them free.
-
Gigs From £12
Ronnie Scott’s: the Late Late Show
The late show at Frith Street starts about a quarter past eleven and runs to three on Friday and Saturday. Cheaper than the main sitting: twelve pounds in advance, more on the door, half price for students.
Saturday
19 September-
Exhibitions Free
London Fashion Week: the City Wide Celebration
Until 21 Sep
The runway shows are invite only but the City Wide Celebration is not: talks, workshops, late openings and in store events across London, most of them free.
-
Gigs From £12
Ronnie Scott’s: the Late Late Show
The late show at Frith Street starts about a quarter past eleven and runs to three on Friday and Saturday. Cheaper than the main sitting: twelve pounds in advance, more on the door, half price for students.
Sunday
20 September-
Exhibitions Free
London Fashion Week: the City Wide Celebration
Until 21 Sep
The runway shows are invite only but the City Wide Celebration is not: talks, workshops, late openings and in store events across London, most of them free.
Monday
21 September-
Exhibitions Free
London Fashion Week: the City Wide Celebration
The runway shows are invite only but the City Wide Celebration is not: talks, workshops, late openings and in store events across London, most of them free.