Don’t Panic

Newspapers have dubbed the Saturday before Christmas “Panic Saturday“.  They expect shoppers to crowd on to London’s shopping streets today, looking for last-minute Christmas presents.   Distant Drumlin’s mission is to make you smile instead of panic. Last week I walked from Marylebone to the neighbouring district of Saint John’s Wood.  I had expected the wood…

Christmas Inspiration

Would you like some inspiration for your Christmas tree decorations from London’s trend-setters? Try this unusual combination of colours from the Liberty department store. Or add a Chinese element.  This next tree is standing in the welcome lobby of the Shangri-La Hotel at the Shard.  The tree is seven metres tall, but that’s nothing; the…

BBC Snow

Have you ever watched a BBC television programme called “The One Show”?  On weekday evenings at 7pm this show is broadcast live from a BBC studio in London. Since 7th December, snow has been falling on the white trees behind the sofa where presenters  Alex Jones and Matt Baker sit.  What is causing this wintry weather?…

Oxford Street

Yesterday we did Regent Street.  So today we’re turning left at Oxford Circus to explore the western half of  Oxford Street. Oxford Street is home to some of London’s largest shops (Selfridges, Primark, Debenhams etc), but I have a love/hate relationship with it.  On some days, especially in Christmas shopping season, crossing the street to…

Regent Street

It’s time to blog from the big shopping streets of the West End.  Today I’m on Regent Street; tomorrow will be Oxford Street. Regent Street has a long tradition of Christmas lights, dating from 1954.  My vantage point for 2015 was the top deck of a bus. To be honest, I was puzzled by these…

Christmas Trees in Miniature

Today’s Christmas trees are beautiful miniatures. These green paper trees are part of a snowy landscape in the window of Bonpoint, a French shop in Marylebone selling children’s clothes. If that paper is too plain for you, how about these trees in Il Papiro, an Italian stationery shop in Saint Christopher’s Place? There are mini…

Royal Academy of Music

This tall Christmas tree stands in the hallway of the Royal Academy of Music on Marylebone Road.  What kind of decorations would you expect to see in a conservatoire?  Musical notes?  Miniature oboes and cellos?  Or this, a spanner?!? And why is the star (a perfectly traditional topping for a tree) dangling from a crane?…

Carnaby Street

In yesterday’s post I was singing the praises of natural-looking Christmas decorations.  But today I’m all in favour of the bright and playful pinks of Carnaby Street. This is the view from the north end of the street, near Liberty and Great Marlborough Street. It gets dark so early in London in December – official…