Tag Archives: london

May 15, 2018

Filed under Geek Girls Guide To

Having Afternoon Tea in London is on many people’s bucket list. Traditionally, it was always “Tea at the Ritz.” Although, judging by Instagram posts, Sketch seems to currently be the place to go. With its millennial pink decor and space-aged toilets, you can see why it has become so popular. In London, there is no shortage of places to have afternoon tea, and a lot of them have an interesting twist.

Ordinarily, I might be a coffee drinker. However, that doesn’t stop me from enjoying a good afternoon tea. Whilst traditional afternoon teas are fun, As a fangirl, I love quirky versions. Especially those linked to a fandom, designed around a book or film. With this in mind, here is a list of six afternoon teas I want to try.

Places for Fangirls to have Afternoon Tea in London

Sherlock Holmes Afternoon Tea at Taj — Sherlock Holmes Afternoon Tea
Photo Credit Taj 51

Sherlock Holmes Afternoon Tea at the Taj
(Not available in May)
The Taj offers several interesting tea experiences, but the one that interests me the most is the Sherlock Holmes themed one. Designed around Arthur Conan Doyle’s books the menu features sandwiches named after Holmes stories. Namely, Hound of Baskerville (Roast beef filling) or The Five Orange Pips ( Smoked salmon and orange flavoured horseradish).
Cutter and Squidge’s The Potion Room
Available from the 3rd May to 30th October
This summer, Cutter and Squidge have transformed into “The Potion Room” offering a wizard-based afternoon tea. Even though, the experience isn’t linked to the Harry Potter books or movies. It clearly takes inspiration from the wizarding world and famous witch school. One of the highlights from the menu is the Hubble Bubble drink served in a cauldron.
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory tea at One Aldwych
When Charlie and the Chocolate Factory returned to the West End stage a few years ago. The nearby hotel One Aldwych designed an afternoon tea based on the classic Roald Dahl novel. Food from the book provides the inspiration for the menu. By creating such delights as bubblegum pannacotta to blueberry cake pops and of course a lot of chocolate!
Mad Hatter’s Afternoon Tea at The Sanderson
Available from the 2nd May to 26th September
Arguably, one of the most famous tea parties in literature has to be the Mad Hatter’s party in Alice in Wonderland. This summer you too can venture down the rabbit hole at The Sanderson Hotel. Their Alice themed afternoon tea features desserts includes Queen of Hearts cookies or a chessboard gateau.
Theatre Not Afternoon Tea at the OXO Tower
The iconic Oxo Tower on the banks of the River Thames, offers an afternoon tea, with a definite twist. The emphasis is on pairing cocktails and cakes (but they do offer a non-alcoholic version for children). The Theatre Not Afternoon Tea takes its inspiration from not one but several West End stage shows. For example, cakes are inspired by iconic shows including Hamlet, Wicked and the Lion King.
Tale as Old as Time at The Townhouse
Sold Out
Finally, the Tale as Old as Time afternoon tea at The Townhouse. Originally created to coincide with the release of the live-action version of Beauty and the Beast. This tea has been incredibly popular, that they are continuing to still offer the experience. Unfortunately, it is currently sold out, although you can sign up for updates via their website.

Places for Fangirls to have Afternoon Tea in London

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February 16, 2018

Filed under 100 Cups of Coffee

100 Cups of Coffee

I guess the subheading for this post could be “Red Cup Season Coffees.” As all the coffees were from the end of last year and are all festive coffees from different coffee shops around West London.

Red Cup Season 2017

Once Pumpkin Spice Latte season is over, it’s time to move on to the Gingerbread Lattes! As always, in the first day of Starbucks Red Cup season, I head to my local store for my gingerbread latte fix! Then I know Christmas is around the corner. Soon after that, I try their new Christmas drink, this year’s Festive Cold Brew was nice. But I tended to stick to the hot drinks in the colder months.

Next up it is time to check out the seasonal variations from other coffee shops and their seasonal cups. Hands down the prettiest cups this year were from Caffè Nero. Inspired by artwork from the V&A museum.

Without a doubt, my favourite Festive coffee drink this year was from Notes Coffee. Oddly, I don’t like traditional Christmas Cake, but their Christmas Cake Latte was amazing! The seasonal spices from the cake without the dried fruit.

After, the success of the Christmas Cake Latte, I thought I would try the Mince Pie Latte from Pret a Manger. Whilst the drink was nice. I was put off by the addition of pieces of mince pie in the drink. Similar to the gingerbread crumbles in the Starbucks drink. These toppings taste like crumbles biscuits in the bottom of the drink and ruin the experience.

Finally, on Social Media, everyone seemed to be ranting about the Honeycomb Latte from Costa Coffee. Normally, I avoid Costa, as I don’t like the taste of their coffee. But I was pleasantly surprised by this seasonal drink. Unfortunately, I didn’t discover it until just before Christmas.

What is #100cupsofcoffee? You can read about the project here.
You can see all the photos from the #100cupsofcoffee project on Instagram.

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January 19, 2018

Filed under 100 Cups of Coffee

100 Cups of Coffee

As my attempt at the 100 Cups of Coffee Challenge is coming to an end. I am looking out for new and interesting coffee shops to visit. The London Coffee Guide has been my go book for hunting out new places to visit. At the end the summer, whilst enjoying a Cold Brew in the sun, I flicked through Chief Coffee’s copy of the guide looking for inspiration.

The first place I wanted to check out was Caravan. Home of the “Well-travelled food and mighty fine coffee in an old grain store.” The coffee here lived up to the hype. At the King’s Cross branch you have the option to visit the roastery for a quick cup of coffee or visiting the restaurant for a meal.

It is fair to say, that I am stuck in a brunch rut! I am possibly also a brunch cliché. No matter where I end up I seem to always order the same thing, Avocado Toast with a poached egg accompanied by a latte! Of course being a total cliché I also Instagram my brunch!

Does anyone else love chalk art outside coffee shops? I am a sucker for a fun sign. especially, if it has a funny coffee pun or geeky theme. Like this Rick and Morty one outside Taylor Street Baristas.

At home, I love using my Nespresso machine to make coffee. I have also become a huge fan of the Nespresso Cafe in St Pauls. In the café, they serve an array of creative coffees all of which a beautifully crafted. Like these twist on cortado, with a hint of lemon or honey and basil.

What is #100cupsofcoffee? You can read about the project here.
You can see all the photos from the #100cupsofcoffee project on Instagram.

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October 19, 2017

Filed under Geek Girls Guide To

There are loads of fun events taking place in London for Halloween 2017. But I have found a few fun things to do with an interesting twist for Halloween this year. These five events are all based on TV shows or movies, making them ideal for geeks.

Geek Girls Guide to Halloween 2017 in London.

WB Studio Tour
What is more Halloween than Harry Potter? The WB Studio Tour just outside London will be celebrating the Dark Arts all throughout October. With the Great Hall decorated with floating pumpkins, recreating the Halloween scene from Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone. On top of that over the Halloween weekend, they are hosting Hogwarts after Dark, a Halloween feast in the great hall.
Halloween Edible Cinema
The Edible Cinema offers a different movie adventure, rather than just experiencing the movie via your visual and audio senses, they add the elements of taste and smell. For Halloween, they are staging a showing of Beetlejuice at several the Everyman Cinemas around London. The tasting menu features numbered boxes to be opened throughout the movie to heighten your experience.
Supper Club UK presents The Red Wedding
The Supper Club UK is hosting an interactive dining experience based on the Red Wedding from Game of Thrones. On the 31st October, they will create an immersive dining experience based on the eventful wedding feast. The evening will include a five-course meal, music, and actors recreating the iconic feast.
The Walking Dead Maze at Thrope Park
As part of their Fright Nights at Thorpe Park for 2017, they have added an attraction based on The Walking Dead. Featuring two mazes (one indoor and one outside) fans of the zombie apocalypse programme can experience several scenes from the show facing off against the un-dead and Negan. The park also has a feature based on the SAW movies.
Hitchcock Themed Afternoon Tea
If you are looking for something a little less scary, but still with a Halloween twist. The Royal Lancaster Hotel has a Hitchcock Themed Afternoon Tea. Alongside the traditional finger sandwiches and scones, they are serving sweet treats based on classic Hitchcock movies like Cursed Blackbird Macaroon and Psycho Marbled Lollipops.

My Hacks

If you are looking for a Halloween party or club night, check out Design My Night, they have tons of listing for the Halloween weekend in London, from Silent Discos to a prison-themed pop-up called Alcotraz.
For ideas of Halloween actives with children, LondonTown.com has a list of family fun over half term. Including, pumpkin carving and sleepover in a museum.
If you are not in London for Halloween but want to add a scary element to your stay, Visit London has a list of 13 Spooky things to do in the capital from Jack the Ripper walking tours to Haunted pubs.

Geek Girls Guide to Halloween 2017 in London

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October 4, 2017

Filed under 100 Cups of Coffee

100 Cups of Coffee

One of the best things about living in London is the green spaces. London has so many amazing parks and most of the time I never get the chance to enjoy them. When I know I am going to be visiting a new area, I search online for interesting coffee shops. As I knew I would be near Regent’s Park for an appointment. I searched for a local coffee shop, grabbed my kindle and sat in the park to relax after my appointment.

Over the summer, I had a lot of meeting in St Paul’s. The first place, I discovered in the area was Nespresso Cafe. As well as serving all their own coffees, they have an amazing menu of alternative coffee drinks. So I finally, got to try a Mojito Iced Coffee!

Still in the St Paul’s area, I started to explore and found the amazing rooftop area on the One New Change shopping mall. As well as this amazing view of St Paul’s Cathedral, you can see the famous building in the city and along the river. At the time I was reading the book, The City’s Son. Which featured the Cathedral, so it was nice to spend my free time, reading this in the shadow on the dome.

The reason had not been blogging over the summer was due to me being called up for Jury Service in July. One of the worse thing about Jury Service was the lack of decent coffee. The coffee in the court was un-drinkable and they nearest coffee stand burnt the coffee. So after a fortnight of bad coffee on my first day off, I “earned” a decent coffee from one of my favourite coffee shops!

In August, it was back to St Paul’s for more meetings. Although the weather had started to change. The roof garden at One New Change still provided the idea place to relax and drink my coffee. And I discovered yet another new place to try!

What is #100cupsofcoffee? You can read about the project here.
You can see all the photos from the #100cupsofcoffee project on Instagram.

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August 24, 2017

Filed under Geek Girls Guide To

Star Wars Identities at The O2 London is more than just a show of props from the movies. Instead, it is an interactive experience exploring what elements make an identity, against the back drop of the Star Wars universe. Saying that if you are looking for an exhibition showcasing props, costumes and artwork from the movies, there are over 200 on display.

Star Wars Identities Experience

The Star Wars Identities Experience has toured around the world for the last few years. It started in Canada in 2012 before heading to Europe, first in Paris and now London. Because the experience is over five years ago, there is no mention of the newer movies. In fact, the only reference to The Force Awakens is a model of BB-8. Instead, the focus is more on the original trilogy and prequels. There is even a large section devoted to Jar Jar Binks!

Upon entering the experience we received an interactive wristband and audio tour headset. We watched a brief video, in which they quickly outlined how a personality is formed. Giving the examples of how both Luke and Anakin are from the same planet. Yet ended up having very different identities.

There are ten stations in the exhibit. Each one designed to shape your character in the Star Wars universe. Some stations are as simple as picking which species you will be, or which planet you will live on. Others related more to your personality, for example, do you have an altruistic or egoistic drive. Each station features scenes from the movies. Or has artwork or props from the Star Wars mythology to accompany it.

At the final station just like Luke and Anakin, you are asked by the Emperor, if you wish to join the dark side. Then you can meet your character. One final tap of your wrist band reveals your Star Wars Identity on a giant screen. It would have been nice if you could have an actual print-out copy of your Star Wars Identity, photo and personality breakdown, however, that was not the case.

As a Star Wars fan, I loved the experience! I had been to Star Wars exhibitions, so I had seen a lot of the props and costumes before. This was an interesting twist on a traditional exhibition. I also loved thinking about what my role would be in the Star Wars Universe! I opted to be an X-Wing pilot and member of the Rebellion.

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August 4, 2017

Filed under Geek Girls Guide To

I love reading travel blogs, dreaming about all the places I would love to visit. What I love even more is reading tips from locals about their area. My favourites are tips for Disneyworld by Floridians (one day I will go back). I am a Londoner, I was born here and still stay in the same area. For all the wrong reasons London has been in the news a lot lately. I want to start writing about all the great things in this city.

Geek Girl Guide

London is an amazing place to be a geek girl! I thought I would put together some tips and tricks from a local for other geek girls visiting the city. Everyone knows about the historic buildings, Buckingham Palace, Big Ben and more modern attractions like the London Eye or Shard. I love to explore the geekier attractions!

Dozens of television shows and movies are filmed in London, from Jason Bourne to James Bond, even the recent Wonder Woman film featured a few scenes in the city. It is easy to find these locations on your own. However, you can take an organised tour (both bus and walking) around some of these locations. A quick search online can show you all the options from specialist tours for fans of Harry Potter to places include in British Rom Coms.

London isn’t just about film locations, the city has many museums and exhibits with a geeky twist. Currently, there are also several temporary exhibitions perfect for a fangirl. The Star Wars Identities at the O2, a journey into Sci-Fi at the Barbican. and at the end of the summer, the British Library will showcase their Harry Potter collection of manuscripts and props.

London also hosts several conventions. In May over the same weekend, two of the convention centres in London held cons. MCM London in the east and Heroes and Villains in the west of the city. Last summer, Star Wars Celebration was held in the city. Still, to come this year are London Film Convention and the Vampire Ball.

Escape Games (or Escape the Room scenarios) are all the rage at the moment, with locations popping up all over the world. Whilst these, in general, are fun for a geek girl, there are several in London that have added to the geekiness by adding a pop culture theme. Including one set in a wizarding school or another based around the disappearance of Sherlock Holmes.

Even going to the cinema in London can be an adventure. Secret Cinema has taken to film going to a new level. They recreating the fantasy world from the movie, resulting in an interactive experience rather than just watching a film. Or how about a movie marathon? The Prince Charles Cinema regularly has all-nighters including Marvel Phase One and Harry Potter marathons.

What is your favourite fangirl thing to do in London? Do you have a London themed Bucket List? What would you like me to write about in the Fangirl Guide series? Let me know in the comments below.

Recommended Reading

Geek Guide to London (Reddit Guide)
Upcoming Cons in the UK (League of the Non- Aligned)
Shaan Haider’s Top 10 London Attractions for Geeks

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June 15, 2017

Filed under Geek Girls Guide To

In attempt to share more of the photos I have taken and edited recently. I thought I would share my photos from W.B. Studio Tour – The Making of Harry Potter. We went on the tour last November, before the opening of the Forbidden Forest section. As it was during the winter months, it was during the Hogwarts in Snow celebrations. Many of the sets were decorated for Christmas and the model of Hogwarts Castle covered in a layer of snow.

Harry Potter Studio Tour — Hogwarts in Snow

On the day I took over 400 photographs! I have slowly been editing them over the last few months, and these are some of my favourites. As you can imagine this is a very post is very photo heavy. But as it’s Harry Potter I’m sure no one will mind.

As you can image from the moment you arrive at the Warner Bros Studio Tour, you are entering a magical place. As we drove up to the car park, you can see the giant chess pieces from The Philosopher’s Stone. Even the queuing area featured “the cupboard under the stairs.”

Inside you get to see all the sets from all eight movies, from the Great Hall to Dumbledore’s office. The costumes, covered everything from Hogwarts uniforms, Harry’s invisibility cloak and Heminione’s dress from the Yule Ball. The creature workshop contained Dobby, Buckbeak and Aragog. The props around the tour included a set of quidditch balls, wands and even Sirius prisoner number.

For me the highlight was definitely the Hogwarts Express. The train itself is impressive, with the carriage compartment each depicting a different journey to school. From Harry and Ron’s first meeting with a collection of chocolate frogs to the chilled windows when the dememtors attacked.

The entrance hall, also contained a magnificent Christmas treat and costumes from Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find them. I hope they eventually add more props and costumes from this movie. I’d love to see a niffler or “Pickett.”

Fangirls Guide to the Harry Potter Studio Tour

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May 17, 2017

Filed under 100 Cups of Coffee

100 Cups of Coffee

Confession time. I hate shopping in supermarkets. We do a big shop online and buy fresh ingredients locally. Several times a year I have to go to the supermarket, one of those is the pre-Christmas food shop. One of the few joys when shopping is the free coffee from Waitrose (this time in a seasonal cup).

I took a break from the #100 cups of coffee project, and had planned to start again in March. But seeing as coffee is one of my loves, it seemed ideal to start again on Valentine’s Day.

Jason and I were both busy over during Valentine’s week, so on the Friday had a belated Valentine’s meal. We started with pre-dinner cocktails at the The Ivy Market Grill. I plan on working my way though the best martini bars in London list this year. So I thought I would start with the Salted Caramel Espresso here.

At the start of this year, I was constantly busy and as a result, not doing anything fun. Normally, I like to plan a catch up brunch with friends at least once a month. For the first brunch of the year, at the end of February we headed to an old favourite The Outsider Tart for one of their Munch & Brunch specials.

This year, many great films had cinematic released around the same time. It’s hard to find the time to actually get to the cinema to see them all. Whereas some films I will wait until they released on Netflix or Sky Movies. Others its important to see in the cinema. I try to support female filmmakers and those films with from female casts. So even, though it was weeks after it’s initial released. I wanted to see Hidden Figures, in the cinema to support this film.

What is #100cupsofcoffee? You can read about the project here.
You can see all the photos from the #100cupsofcoffee project on Instagram.

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May 10, 2017

Filed under Photography

I’d like to say I’m a beginner photographer – but honestly I’m a trainee beginner photographer. I love taking photos, but do nothing with them. A few photos will get printed, some I will share on social media. But most of them just sit on my hard drive, or in the cloud. Since starting my photographer course, I have taken more photos, as the course also included some Photoshop units, I have even been editing the photos. However, they are still sitting on my hard drive taking up gigabytes. It struck me this blog is the ideal platform for me to show case some of the photos.

Last month, I got a telephoto lens. In all the photographer blogs or books, they suggest using a telephoto lens when capturing wildlife or landscapes. Living in London, I knew I wouldn’t see any interesting wildlife. But figured I could head the my duck pond in a nearby park and take some photos on the ducklings. Unfortunately, the ducklings were in hiding, but I did see a heron.

As for capturing landscapes, Jason suggested we had another visit to the Skygarden. The Skygarden is a public space with a café and restaurant on the top of the Walkie Talkie building in the London. Being the heart of the financial district in London, the building offers excellent views of the River Thames, Docklands to the east and Westminster to the west.

Tickets to the Skygarden are complimentary, but you have to book in advance. Being free, the tickets go quickly, especially for the weekend. The trick is to book your tickets three weeks before you want to go on Monday morning. Alternatively, you can have a meal in the restaurant, Darwin’s Brassiere.

View from the Skygarden — The Shard (Focal Point 70mm)

The day we booked coincided with the London Marathon, as a result some of the streets around the Walkie Talkie had been blocked off, so I couldn’t get many photos from street level. There was chance to get some fun photographs of the runners from London Bridge.

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