February 2008

London is striking a pose this month as size zeros, fashionistas and most of Chelsea crowd around the catwalks during London Fashion Week to ogle at what's hot off the designers' sewing machines. As if that's not enough snapping of very beautiful people, Vanity Fair Portraits is on at the National Portrait Gallery but the serious side of photography is also shown off at the Deutsche Borse Photography Prize. Chinese New Year and the Pancake Race also provide lively family fun for February.

Speed-the-Plow

Old Vic Theatre, London, SE1 8NB
1st February 2008 - 26th April 2008

David Mamet's savage and very funny Hollywood tale makes a perfect companion piece to Glengarry Glen Ross (currently playing at the Apollo Theatre). That play uses its aggressive, quickfire dialogue to examine the moral bankruptcy of capitalism, while this one takes us into the equally cynical and masculine world of the top studio executives. Kevin Spacey plays Bobby Gould, the producer whose attempts to seduce his secretary (Laura Michelle Kelly) lead him in an unexpected direction, as he finds himself championing a spiritual, ecological movie. His friend Charlie (Jeff Goldblum) is aghast, since he's found a really nasty prison blockbuster that will make them both a fortune. The crude manipulations of male friendship and the pressures of success are played out in a witty, fast-paced three-hander.

More info: Speed-the-Plow Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Mikado

London Coliseum, WC2N 4ES
2nd February 2008 - 4th March 2008

Gilbert and Sullivan's deliriously silly light operetta returns to the Coliseum for the umpteenth time. It tells the tale of a society in which flirting is outlawed on pain of death and reveals the consequences of indiscretions on its ridiculously frivolous inhabitants. It also happens to contain several of the finest comic songs ever written. This production has yet to be bettered. Over twenty years after it was first performed, Jonathan Miller's wonderful version - relocating the story from Japan to 1920s Britain - is still uproarious, toe-tapping, subversive fun. One day, somebody is going to complain about the English National Opera spending public money on regular revivals of this superb piece, which is far closer in spirit to a Broadway musical than an opera. Catch it now, before the cultural snobs get rid of it.

More info: The Mikado Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Great Spitalfields Pancake Race

Old Truman Brewery, London, E1 6QL
5th February 2008

In celebration of Shrove Tuesday, pancake enthusiasts will be legging it down Dray Walk, with a frying pan and slab of batter. All participants need is a team of four spirited souls happy to run around and toss the odd pancake. It's very like a relay race. Athletes have to run from one point to the next, flipping the pancake successfully a few times on the way. The heats kick off at 12:30, followed by the finals and then the ceremonial prize giving. There's an award for the best dressed team too. It's best to go all out. Pick a theme and don the appropriate garb - however ridiculous. It's a really eccentric occasion made only better by the wandering clowns and the string band playing in the background. The event is organised by Alternative Arts and it's all in aid of the 'Children in Cities' charity. If you do want to enter a team, contact Alternative Arts at www.alternativearts.co.uk. Try and get sponsorship or at least bring a donation. Apart from that, all you need is a frying pan - pancakes are provided.

More info: The Great Spitalfields Pancake Race Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

China in London 2008

Various locations across London
6th February 2008 - 6th April 2008

One year closer towards London hosting the 2012 Olympics, 2008 sees the capital preparing for the handover subsequent to China's staging of the event in August. Two months of events celebrating Chinese arts, heritage and culture take place throughout the city from February to the ceremonial arrival of Olympic Flame on April 6th. Venues range from galleries and museums to arts centres and major attractions, with visiting artists, exhibitions and films from Beijing playing a central role in events.

More info: China in London 2008 Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Deutsche Borse Photography Prize

Photographers' Gallery, WC2H 7HY
8th February 2008 - 6th April 2008

The £30,000 Deutsche Borse Photography Prize rewards the living photographer, of any nationality, who has made the most significant contribution to the medium of photography during the past year. John Davies, Jacob Holdt, Esko Mannikko and Fazal Sheikh, the four finalists in this year's competition, are all featured in this exhibition at the West End's delightful Photographers' Gallery. The limitless possibilities of the medium are illustrated through dozens of arresting images. These include Davies' panoramic black and white images documenting the changing post-industrial British landscape taken between 1979 and 2005 and Holdt's five year hitchhike across the US and images of the people he met along the way.

The winner of the Deutsche Borse Photography Prize 2008 will be announced in London on 5th March 2008.

Photo: Untitled from the series United States 1970 - 1975 (detail)
© Jacob Holdt

More info: The Deutsche Borse Photography Prize Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Chinese New Year Celebrations

Gerrard Street and the West End, WC2H 7BP
10th February 2008

Chinese New Year in London is one of the most spectacular in the West, with huge dancing puppets, martial arts displays and an abundance of incredible food. Each and every year the celebrations get more extravagant attracting an ever-expanding crowd and for the start of the Year of the Rat it should be no different - central London is set to be totally transformed. The colourful parade sets off along the Strand at 11am, heading up Charing Cross Road and along Shaftesbury Avenue, to the heart of Chinatown. Head for Trafalgar Square to witness traditional dragon and lion dances, plus contemporary music and performance, or join the throng in a stall-covered Leicester Square for fun and firecrackers. Over 150 artists from China regularly take part in this annual celebration, performing dances, music and martial arts, however, the best of the festivities will be the impromptu parties and food stalls that will be taking over Gerrard Street, Soho and Chinatown. There's a whole afternoon's entertainment available just exploring and enjoying this unique celebration of London-Chinese culture - the streets will be absolutely packed.

More info: Chinese New Year Celebrations Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

London Fashion Week

Natural History Museum, London, SW7 5BD
10th February 2008 - 16th February 2008

Want to know what you'll be wearing next season? London Fashion Week (provisional dates 10th to 16th February) is where the top designers reveal the hottest trends. The great Natural History Museum buildings on Exhibition Road make a suitably glamorous background for the posh frocks to be flaunted to full effect. It's all wildly exclusive, of course, and the general public have no chance of acquiring tickets to the main event. However there's always The Exhibition at London Fashion Week where more than 210 designers flog their collections at reduced prices. It's a great way to get a head start on next year's trends so you'll know exactly what to buy in six months' time when rip-offs of this stuff begin to appear in Top Shop and Primark for a fraction of the price. If you can't get tickets, London Fashion Weekend offers another chance to visit the stalls and combine fashion with beauty consultations, hair demonstrations and fashion shows.

More info: London Fashion Week Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Ute Lemper

Shaw Theatre, London, NW1 2AJ
14th February 2008 - 15th February 2008

Ute Lemper was named Billboard Magazine's Crossover Artist of the Year in 2004, though when you listen to her, the idea of crossover melts away. She is not an artist to whom normal music genres can ever apply. It is simply her sensibility: penetrating, adventurous, sophisticated and deeply sexy. She is certainly the only singer in the world who can get away with saying things in her programme notes like 'I am searching in the backstreets of those cities where ancient ghosts with new faces write poetry and songs between yesterday and tomorrow.' Imagine it in that sleazy German drawl, and suddenly it makes perfect sense, rather than sounding like pretentious drivel. here she sings songs from her classic German cabaret repertoire, and the chansons of Piaf, Brel and Ferre.

More info: Ute Lemper Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Vanity Fair Portraits: Photographs 1913 - 2008

National Portrait Gallery, Wolfson Gallery, WC2H 0HE
14th February 2008 - 26th May 2008

Vanity Fair is a classy publication. Their photographic spreads are works of art and the annual Vanity Fair Oscar party is the most glamorous of them all. From the Bruce and Demi cover to Angelina and Brad playing happy families, their images, photographed by the likes of Annie Leibowitz, are iconic. Who could forget Leibowitz's cover of Tom Ford and a naked Keira Knightley and Scarlett Johansson? At this exhibition 150 of the magazine's most memorable images since 1913 to the present day are exhibited. Celebrities from Albert Einstein to Madonna via Charlie Chaplin are shown in portraits by photographers as legendary as their sitters. Works by Cecil Beaton, Man Ray and George Hurrell are featured alongside images by Leibovitz, Helmut Newton, Bruce Weber and Mario Testino.

More info: Vanity Fair Portraits: Photographs 1913 - 2008 Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The Vortex

Apollo, W1D 6NA
20th February 2008 - 7th June 2008

The scandalous 1924 play that catapulted Noel Coward to fame and fortune showed the world of the bright young things as a hedonistic whirlwind of cocaine abuse and sexual license. Dan Stevens plays troubled - and possibly homosexual - musician Nicky Lancaster, with Felicity Kendal playing his mother, whose appetite for brainless younger men fuels her son's demons. Stevens' languid performance in 'The Line of Beauty' suggests he's more than up for the part that was taken by Noel Coward, and then by his understudy John Gielgud in the 1924 production, while the opportunity to see Felicity Kendal playing a promiscuous yummy mummy will certainly help to get bums on seats. Peter Hall directs.

More info: The Vortex Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

20/21 International Art Fair

Royal College of Art, London, SW7 2EU
21st February 2008 - 24th February 2008

Following its successful launch last year, this major commercial art fair specialising in art from the 20th and 21st centuries returns to the Royal College of Art in Kensington Gore. The 20/21 International Art Fair - run by the same organisers as the 20/21 British Art Fair, held here in September - offers a similar focus on affordable art by big names but on an international scale. Modern and contemporary art comes from China, Japan, Russia, Australia, the Ukraine, Poland, France and Ireland as well as Britain. There are loads pieces on sale from artists including Modigliani, Matisse, Chagall, David Hockney, Bridget Riley, and Damien Hirst. The emphasis is on painting and sculpture rather than the wild fringes of conceptualism, and there should be some lovely work on display from some of the brightest talents of the last hundred years.

More info: 20/21 International Art Fair Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

The National Wedding Show

Olympia, London, W14 8UX
22nd February 2008 - 24th February 2008

Apparently, the average wedding in this country now costs £17,000 - not to mention the reputed £186,000 for raising a child until they're 21 - but perhaps we're getting ahead of ourselves. Starting with the wedding, there's the invitations, table settings, photographs, menus and cake to think of, not to mention the all-important dress. It all adds up - quickly. If you really want to write a large cheque for the big day then 'The National Wedding Show' at Olympia will help you find solutions to all those important - and expensive - details. You can check out around 300 exhibitors, see the catwalk shows, learn hot tips from a live makeover demonstration and get expert advice on everything from venues to vicars. There are plenty of honeymoon ideas at the Destinations area so your husband-to-be can do his bit too. Then, with the big day all planned, you can raise a glass at the champagne bar.

More info: The National Wedding Show Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Ceramic Art London 2008

Royal College of Art, London, SW7 2EU
25th February 2008 - 2nd March 2008

Ceramic Art London is sandwiched between two important design fairs in London around this time of year. We've already had Collect at the V & A (25 - 29 January) and FORM London at Olympia is just around the corner (28 February - 2 March). The unique selling point of Ceramic Art is the emphasis on contemporary studio ceramics and individually hand crafted pieces. Here you'll see the work of leading ceramics makers from the UK and overseas - France, Germany, South Africa, Israel and Japan - as well as works by Royal College of Art students. There's a certain intimacy about dealing directly with the artist, rather than a gallery. With eighty leading potters displaying their wares at prices ranging from £15 to £10,000, there's something for all tastes and budgets. Names to watch out for include RCA student Louisa Taylor, who has already been commissioned to create a range of casual tableware for Wedgwood. As well as sculptural works by established ceramicists like Peter Hayes, Peter Beard and Claire Loder.

More info: Ceramic Art London 2008 Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Major Barbara

National Theatre: Olivier Theatre, London, SE1 9PX
26th February 2008 - 5th April 2008

Bernard Shaw's exploration of poverty and power revolves around the intense relationship between millionaire arms dealer Undershaft, and his Salvation Army daughter. It's a play that, mostly successfully, mixes a witty Edwardian drawing room comedy reminiscent of Oscar Wilde with a tough philosophical exploration of philanthropy, the arms trade, and the limits of liberal morality. Simon Russell Beale takes the role of the plain-talking Undershaft in a production that just misses the 150th anniversary of Shaw's birth.

More info: Major Barbara Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube

Hot Chip

The Brixton Academy, London, SW9 9SL
29th February 2008

Hot Chip stepped out of their East London fashionista ghetto in 2006, and into the record collection of an amazingly diverse fanbase, from New Rave kids to ageing prog rockers, all hooked on an album that was both genre-defying and pure pop. By all accounts, their February release Made in the Dark is even better than The Warning and this Brixton Academy gig is one of the year's hottest tickets, with a 3am finish that suggests all sorts of unnatural shennanigans are planned. The February 29th date is strangely appropriate for a band who make the unconventional appear so easy.

More info: Hot Chip Map, Prices, Opening Times and Nearest Tube