The London Buzz – 3rd February 2025

Today’s London news round-up:

Former pub that became a radical theatre celebrates 30th Camden New Journal

Rachel Reeves not ‘petty’ enough to punish TfL because I’ve spoken out over Heathrow, hopes Sadiq Khan Standard

Upgrading the UK’s oldest district heating system, which powers more than 3,000 homes, will be ‘simply unaffordable’, according to a leaseholder impacted by the costs. South London Press

Boxpark has confirmed its original site in London’s Shoreditch will continue to trade until the end of September this year after securing an extension to its lease. Restaurant Online

More than 30 endangered froglets have been born at London Zoo after a dramatic 7,000-mile rescue mission saw their parents extracted from their fungus-threatened native habitat. ITV News

Ye Olde Swiss Cottage Pub closes after 200 years Londonist

Emergency services rush to Burnt Oak Station after reports of person ‘trapped under train’ Harrow Online

A disabled woman was blocked from using her kitchen for almost a year due to council delays. South London Press

A rapper who is behind bars for an east London murder has boasted about how he is still “getting richer” in jail, as he was able to record a track and post it online. Hackney Gazette

B&Q has extended its Deliveroo partnership, adding five larger London stores to its on-demand delivery service. 365 Retail

Camden Council’s chief executive Jenny Rowlands has told staff that she will leave the position after eight years at the Town Hall – six of them in the top role. Camden New Journal

Tradespeople have descended on Parliament Square – with one group even bringing a tank to protest against tool thefts. GB News

London’s battle against HIV will need to be stepped up to meet the goal of ending new transmission by the end of the decade, the mayor’s health adviser has warned. BBC News

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And from ianVisits:

Tickets Alert: Tours of Parliament’s Speaker’s House

Crossrail 2 is already shaping London’s skyline

Government bypasses local planning oversight for London military headquarters

Tickets Alert: After-hours audio tours of Hampton Court Palace

London’s Alleys: Bell Hill, CR0

Some things to do in London tomorrow:

School Food Matters soup sale –  Cost of buying the soup

Ssecondary school students will be selling hand-made soups in Borough Market this lunchtime for charity.

Derek Jarman From Phoenix House to Prospect Cottage – Free

This talk explores his life and work on Charing Cross Road, his unknown ‘city garden’ and the series of life-changing events that led to his relocation to Prospect Cottage, Dungeness.

The Conversation: Maggie Aderin-Pocock – £18.95

Webb’s Universe: The Space Telescope Images That Reveal Our Cosmic History The Conversation is a series of weekly events talking about conflict and empathy, inequality and power, climate crisis and wonder through storytelling and action.


This news roundup is delivered at 5pm daily via Substack – sign up for free here.