If you like to be entertained, but in a quieter fashion than usual, then why not head down to London in January for the 2012 International Mime Festival. Or even plan your trip for next year’s January 2013 event? The festival is the longest running of its kind in the world having first been established in 1977 and it was founded by esteemed international theatrists Joseph Seelig and Helen Lannaghan. Most people who arrive for the festival really enjoy their stay in London, so why not get down yourself and see what all the fuss is about?

The festival has got rave reviews from critics and is an excellent example of contemporary visual theatre. There are shows to suit all types of audiences; from high-end conceptual drama, to family friendly kids show and everything in between, there is plenty at the Mime Festival to entertain every body. The festival takes places over 6 venues across the city; Barbican Centre, Jacksons Lane, Royal Opera House, Roundhouse, Soho Theatre and the Southbank Centre. These are all located across the centre of London, but with the city’s excellent transport system, including the highly extensive tube network, then you are only a short ride away from any of the locations.

For anyone looking to travel down and get some accommodation in London, then you may be overwhelmed by the number of hotel options to choose from. However a type of accommodation a lot of people may not consider is booking a serviced apartment in London. With serviced apartments you can rent a whole apartment rather than just a hotel room, so you get more space, and also the use of your own kitchen and separate bedrooms. This means you aren’t limited to having to spend lots of money eating out in restaurants or sub-standard hotel food and you can sort yourself out! Whether you want to go all out and cook a full roast dinner, or you patience/skills are limited to whacking a frozen pizza in the oven, a serviced apartment would be great for anyone.

London is one of the most famous and visited cities on the globe; it is the city most visited by international tourists in the whole world so obviously this means there is a huge amount of choice when it comes to looking at accommodation in London. Despite the large number of accommodation types, from budget hostels, cheap hotels, serviced apartments and luxury hotels, during the peak months of the summer the accommodation sector gets to saturation point and sometimes it is extremely difficult to find availability. So if you are ever looking to stay in London, make sure you give as much time as possible to book in advance!

London is a great destination for family holidays whether travelling from abroad or domestically. There are hundreds of child friendly attractions and sites to see such as the Natural History Museum, the British Museum, Science Museum, Wembley Stadium, Museum of Childhood, Battersea Park Zoo, London Aquarium, Kew Gardens etc. If you’re anywhere near London’s West End you can be sure that there will always be an child-friendly show playing at one of the area’s many theatres. Numbers such as the Lion King, Cirque du Soleil, Cinderella, Nutcracker, Shrek the Musical are just some of the great shows playing in the near future, all sure to be big hits with children!

If you’re planning a trip and looking for some good London family accommodation then why not try booking a London holiday apartment for your stay? With a serviced apartment you get a whole apartment with separate bedrooms and lounge area and also a fully fitted kitchen. So you don’t have to worry about everyone being squeezed in one hotel room and everyone can enjoy a little more privacy. As well as having a kitchen to cater for any of the kids’ special needs. Try getting in touch with Serviced City Pads if you’re looking for some London holiday apartments for 2012.

The dust has settled on another year and another season of The X Factor. However, though the show is now over, the annual X Factor Live tour is set to start soon. The main contestants from X Factor 2011 will be touring the UK giving fans a chance to see them live. The X Factor Live tour will be in London at Wembley Arena for 2 nights on the 3rd and 4th March 2012. If you will be travelling to see the show, London serviced apartments are still available for these dates.

The X Factor is always entertaining and last year was no exception! There was the excitement of the new judges Gary Barlow, Tulisa, and Kelly Rowland (with Louis Walsh the only familiar face). The contest was not without controversy – the Misha B bullying allegations aired on the show by Tulisa and Louis, Frankie Cocozza and his “rock and roll” behaviour – but it ultimately came down to a final between Amelia Lily, Marcus Collins, and Little Mix. The victory of girl group Little Mix was an X Factor landmark as this was the first time that a girl group had won the competition. Now, if you want to see Little Mix and the other contestants such as Janet Devlin, Craig Colton, or Misha B live, you can come to the X Factor Live shows at Wembley Arena.

Serviced apartments in London are available for anyone travelling to see the show and who might require accommodation. Apartments in London can be viewed on the London city page of the Serviced City Pads website. If you would like to find out more about a London serviced apartment or what options are available to you for your London visit, then why not call our reservations team on 0844 335 8866, or send us your enquiry through our website?

Getting a London serviced apartment is not as easy as you might think, if you are doing all the work yourself anyway. That’s why enlightened individuals will use Serviced City Pads to find the London accommodation, and what more a defining feature of London than the River Thames?

The River Thames is England’s longest river and the second longest in the United Kingdom. For those river enthusiasts out there, you will already know that the Severn is the UK’s longest river, but that flows through Wales so we’re aren’t counting it on this occasion. For non-river enthusiasts, just read the last sentence. On its perilous journey from Thames Head (about a mile north of the village of Kemble) to the Thames estuary it goes through many places such as Newbridge, Swinford, Oxford, Abingdon, Wallingford, Goring, Pangbourne, Reading, Marlow, Maidenhead, Windsor, Staines, Kingston, London, Greenwich before coming out next to Southend. Oh it must see many a sight.

Probably the most famous part of the river is the bit that runs through London. There are lots of good bridges that cross the river, which have proved very useful as people wish to travel from one side to the other. Some good bridges that cross the Thames include Westminster Bridge, Waterloo Bridge, London Bridge, Tower Bridge, Windsor Bridge, Putney Bridge and many more. There also some tunnels including the world’s first underwater tunnel, Marc Brunel’s Thames Tunnel built in 1843.

If you are looking for accommodation in London and you’re thinking of looking at or going on the Thames, then why not try booking a serviced apartment for your stay. Compared to an equivalent London hotel, apartments provide an added bonus due to their self-catering style, so you can cook and eat in the apartment without having to rely on expensive of sub-par hotel or restaurant food. You also get to enjoy more space than an in a hotel as you have use of a whole apartment. With plenty of serviced apartment options across London, Serviced City Pads can provide your London accommodation whilst you stay.

George Michael’s ‘Syphonica’ tour is coming to London soon. By soon, his first date is tonight (25^th October 2012) and he will perform for 4 nights before moving elsewhere round the UK and Europe. If you’re in London to see big George and you don’t have anywhere to stay, why no book a serviced apartment and enjoy the London stay in style. There are plenty of London serviced apartment options to choose from so book the London accommodation quick to avoid disappointment and other bad things!

After years of self-imposed performing exile, Mr. Michael returns playing a series of mega show across the UK in his tour ‘Symphonica.’ He claims the tour is to atone for his ‘sins’ and to say sorry to his many fans for his reckless behaviour in the latter days of his career. For those of you of a more cynical nature, it may strike you that the prices for tickets for these shows are set very high considering that this is for the fans. With cheapest tickets from £69.99 and the most expensive at £2,000, you can be assured that George Michael has no other reason to do a comeback tour than for his fans. If you try to book these online by making up card details, then it won’t work unless  you’re really lucky.

For this tour the goateed popstar will bring along with him a throbbing orchestra delivering a fully erect set of re-imaginings of his own spurtingly vast number of hits, plus a few flaccid covers. It’s with great sadness that we found out the GM split with his partner Kenny Goss after 15 years of being together. They had endured some rough times as well as some difficult times in the media with Michaels activities in public toilets. Also Micheal’s activities with different naughty drugs that he wasn’t supposed to be doing with got him into a spot of bother with the feds. On the other hand, he does do a lot of good stuff for charity which you can read about.

If you’re looking for London accommodation in October in London for to be nearer George Michael, then you should absolutely book a serviced apartment. If you’re already paying so much for the tickets, then just spend more, more, more and book a London serviced apartment. The concerts take place at The Royal Albert Hall so there are some good serviced apartment options nearby.

This December you need to book a serviced apartment in London if you are heading down to see Professor Green perform. With lots of London accommodation options it can be hard to choose where to stay, however serviced apartments are a great choice for individuals or groups going to London.

Professor Green (real name Stephen Paul Manderson) is a British rapper who hails from Hackney in East London.  He has achieved chart success after he was signed to ‘the Beats’ a record label run by Mike Skinner of The Streets game and Ted Mayhem of other fame. His first taste of a popular hit was ‘I need you tonight’ which samples INXS’s ‘Need you Tonight’ so immediately made people like it. It also had a good video. He has collaborated a few times with Lily Allen on both her 2009 concert tour and on the song ‘Just be good to green’ which is based on another song of the similar name by the SOS Band.

Why the name ‘Professor Green’ I hear you exclaiming? Well the ‘professor’ bit because he is apparently clever, I assume this is relative to his musical peers, and the ‘Green’ bit because apparently from one the internet tells us he used to deal marijuana which in some circles is known as ‘green’ due to the green nature of its colour. PG (which are the initials for Professor Green) are also the initials for ‘Popular Guy’, ‘Pretty Great.’ ‘Pound Gatherer,’ and ‘Pop Guru’ all things that I’m sure he would claim to be or aspire to be. Also as a English chap I’m sure he enjoys a cup of tea, and what better brand of tea to drink than PG Tips, i.e. Professor Green Tips. Maybe he is cleverer than you thought?

On December 15^th the Green Prof is playing at Electric Brixton which, believe it or not, is in the heart of Brixton so it is sure to be a sell-out gig. There are lots of London accommodation options that you could get, serviced apartments though are a great idea. Compared to an equivalent London hotel, with a serviced apartment you get so much more space whilst keeping the same amount of comfort and service. With a London serviced apartment you’ll be sure to have lots of fun and happy times.

From December to January this winter 2011/12 Tim Key brings his new show to London’s West End, specifically Soho Theatre. With plenty of accommodation options in London, you might be struggling to choose where to stay, however there is no need to worry, just book a serviced apartment in London and all your dreams will (may) come true. An increasingly popular option when compared to hotels, serviced apartments are a solid option when looking for London accommodation.

For those of you that haven’t heard of Tim Key, shame on you. He was the winner of the 2009 Edinburgh Comedy Award for his show ‘Slutcracker’ and back this Winter with another slut-themed titled show ‘Masterslut.’ However when searching for Google for more information on these shows, especially the latter, please be sure to include the phrase ‘Tim Key’ or ‘Comedy Show’ as some unwanted results may appear on the screen. Although if you are a very open-minded person then you may be happy to entertain some of the ideas and imagery that you may encounter. Key’s shows are a mixture of off-beat poetry, weird and wonderful film clips with a distinctively whimsical delivery (as some other website bloggers have described it.) You may have seen him as resident poet on Charlie Brooker’s ‘Newsipe’ or as a joint host of BBC4’s ‘We Need Answers’ along with Mark Watson and Alex Horne. Eagled eyed viewers may also recognise him as Sidekick Simon from Alan Partridge’s new work ‘Mid-Morning Matters.’ The bottom line is, Tim Key is a funny bloke. And he is a different sort of funny so as to make him worth seeing, but not too different that it’s too weird and it would make your mates/girlfriend questions your comedic tastes by inviting them along. Also due to the cynical, popularist celebrity culture we live in, Key is not mainstream yet so it would still be cool to see him. So get in there early before he’s a guest panellist Britain’s got Talent and appears on the Jonathon Ross show and you to have to pay £55 to watch him from 200 yards away at the back of a packed stadium whilst the show is performed live for his DVD released just in time for Christmas. Youtube ‘No More Women’ and watch all the episodes and then they play the game with your mates. Tim Key and Mark Watson will be proud of you and what better place to practice your game than in a London serviced apartment.

For any shows in the West End, getting a serviced apartment is a great option to compliment your night at the theatre. Booking a serviced apartment gives you use of a whole apartment compared to a hotel room which means there’s a separate living room and bedrooms as well as your own kitchen area. Serviced City Pads have a wide selection of serviced apartments in London, and with the excellent tube network, no matter where you are in central London you will never be far away from where you need to be. If Tim Key would like to book his own serviced apartment as his London accommodation option, please get in touch and Serviced City Pads will be glad to help.

This Winter book yourself a serviced apartment in London to make sure you’re primed and ready for the arrival of international superstar Rihanna. She’s already played a few dates in October at the O2 Arena and the fans absolutely lapped it up, so no doubt when she’s back again in November and December the crowds will be flocking to see her and London accommodation options may be stretched. If after the show she fancies spending some time with her fans, then you’re a lot more likely to tempt her back if you’re staying in a serviced apartment rather than a cheap hotel or hostel.

Rihanna’s latest world tour the ‘Loud Tour’ has been running since June 4^th and has seen the singer travel all over the world including North America, Scandanavia, UK, Brazil, and back to Europe in mid-October. She will be playing at London’s O2 Arena on December 1^st and then again for 3 dates 20^th, 21^st and 22^nd. The tour takes in all parts of the Western World where fans have plenty of disposable income to use on seeing their idle. For fans of Rihanna in other areas of the world such as the majority of South & Central America, Far and Middle East and Africa, unfortunately they will have to stick to watching her on the tele or radio. Rihanna was unavailable to comment on whether she would be undertaking a second tour of these places in 2012, although no-one has actually tried to ask her this, she was simply unavailable by the means that I have at my disposal which also includes time restraints.

If you’re travelling down to London to see this once in a lifetime event (if you have a very short lifespan or are unwilling to travel often and do not live in a major urban area in the Western world) then you will no doubt be looking for some London accommodation for your stay. Most people would immediately think of getting a hotel, however more and more enlightened individuals are choosing serviced apartments as their London accommodation option of choice. Serviced City Pads have wide range of London serviced apartments located across the city and with the extensive tube and bus network that the city boasts, you are never far away from where you need to be. The Rihanna concert takes place at the O2 Arena which has good transport links to the rest of London so as long as you book a central serviced apartment you should have no problem getting to the venue. Book a London serviced apartment fool!

London serviced apartments are a great option for anyone going to see a show at the West End. With getting the use of a whole apartment instead of just the 4 walls of a hotel room, staying in a serviced apartment can be a much more pleasant experience and can increase one’s enjoyment for going to see a West End play.

This Winter/Spring sees the story of the birth of The Beatles coming to the West End. Backbeat will be playing at the Duke of York theatre in central London close to Leicester Square until the end of March 2012. The show is a stage adaption of the 1994 film of the same name by Iain Softley which focuses on the relationship between Stuart Sutcliffe and John Lennon and also with Sutcliffe’s girlfriend Astrid Kirchherr. It is based in the early years of the band mostly in Hamburg when they were searching for success and overall shows how the became ‘The Beatles’ that we know and love today showing the story from they embarked on their journey from the famous docks of Liverpool to the seedy red light district of Hamburg.

The play itself is not just an anthology of Beatles songs that fans might by expecting. If you’re turning up hoping for a few hours of non-stop Beatles hits then you are best off staying at home (or your very own serviced apartment) and sticking on a greatest hits album for the evening. The show includes no songs written by members of the Beatles but does include some songs they performed such as Twist and Shout, Rock’n'Roll Music, Long Tall Sally, Please Mr Postman and Money which are all rock’n’roll classics. The play is co-written by Iain Softley and Stephen Jeffreys, with musical direction by Paul Stacey, and directed by the award-winning David Leveaux.

The show will run until March next year so there is no excuses not to head down to London to see it. There are plenty of London accommodation options however one option that many are unaware of that is becoming increasingly popular is to book serviced apartments. These are apartments that can be booked for short to medium stays like hotels, except you get the use of the whole apartment which is much larger than a equivalent London hotel. The theatre where the show is taking place is located close to Leicester Square and Charing Cross so you are within close proximity to the rail and tube links which means you can be staying anywhere across central London and only be 10 minutes away.

Serviced City Pads have a wide selection of London serviced apartments available to book ranging from each end of the serviced apartment spectrum. Why not get in touch on 0844 335 8866 or email at info@servicedcitypads.com and see what serviced apartment options are available for your stay in London.

In November you need to be heading down to London to see Dave Gorman return with a new show. The unique and hilarious comedian is touring the UK through October and November and he arrives into London on the 24^th November. With plenty of London accommodation options to be had, why not try staying in a serviced apartment?

If the name ‘Dave Gorman’ doesn’t ring any bells with you, then be prepared to get those bells rung. Dave Gorman is a British comedian best known for his style of telling stories of his crazy adventures and quests. One the early examples of this, and one that brought him to mainstream fame, was ‘Are you Dave Gorman?’ which was show based around the idea of him trying to find and meet other people called ‘Dave Gorman.’ This started as a drunken bet between Dave and his housemate, bit quickly turned into a serious quest and became a TV series and later a stand up show.

His next famous adventure was his ‘Googlewhack Adventure’ which was based around the idea of finding new Googlewhacks (a Googlewhack is when you make a search on Google and come up with only 1 single result after typing in only 2 words that can be found in the dictionary.) After finding he had one of these on his website, he became obsessed with finding more and his travels took him across the world and again spawned a new show which was very popular.

Other popular things that Dave has done include ‘American Unchained’ where he attempts to travel the width of the USA on a roadtrip, without using and corporate or chain-style businesses. He did this after he made a previous trip to the country where he only stayed in these types of hotels and used these types of services, and decided to see if it was possible to not do that.

Gorman’s new show is based around Powerpoint, the presentation tool that everyone loves to hate, and this is the latest show from one of the UK’s most inventive comedians. As well as his usual eccentric and original observations, this new show delves into the confusing world of social media, great literary Jews and the truth behind online comment forums. And don’t worry, there’ll be loads of bullet points involved.

For those travelling down to London to see the show, why not try staying in a serviced apartment for your stay and enjoy the city in style. Serviced City Pads have a wide selection of London serviced apartments to offer all across the city. London is a huge place, but has a very extensive tube and bus network so no matter where you are staying  you will be always be close to where you need to go. The Gorman gig takes places at Hammersmith Apollo which is a few minutes from Hammersmith Tube which is on Circle, Hammersmith & City, District and Piccadilly lines so one of the most accessible places by Tube in London.