Last Updated on April 16, 2026

Little Chef Sally finds her home in Hackney, a charming little British Bistro

There’s nothing that makes me happier than seeing someone like Sally Abé come into her own in a setting like Teal that seems ‘just so’. We’ve known her work since she took over as head chef at The Harwood Arms. At the time, it was my local, a pub that had evolved from a rather dodgy not-quite-gastropub into London’s first Michelin-starred pub. It did so brilliantly, without losing the essence of a London pub, and when Sally took over as head chef, it only seemed to get better. Then there was The Pem – a fabulous concept that was perhaps a little lost in the corporate hotelness of the Conran London St James’. And now, Teal. Designed by Sally’s sister, Alice Alvarez-Webster, it’s the perfect setting for the much-loved Little Chef Sally to star!

For a start, the setting is charming, comfortable, just a little quirky and instantly lovable. The panelled walls are painted in a soft bluey-green. There’s a picture of the Harewood Arms just outside the loo. There are subtle teal references with birds embossed on the leather placemats, and looking on admiringly at the menus. There’s a dark wood floor, a marble-topped bar with a semi-open kitchen behind, and floral plates and botanical prints on the walls. Even the barstools work for someone as vertically challenged as me, thanks to a lot of padded leather and a solid frame. Tableware is simple but pretty. Glassware of excellent quality – the sort that rings if you tap it gently. Staff are all dressed in comfy yet smart vanilla-ice-cream-coloured shirts and brown trousers. There are bag hooks for those sitting at the counter, and plenty of space for coats. It’s all in the detail.

 We managed to get a spot on a busy Saturday lunchtime service. At 12.15, when I arrived, Teal had just opened and was already busy. With just 25 covers, it’s rightfully busy – so much so that anyone arriving early gets sent across the road to the local Deli/Coffee Shop for a Negroni! Not a bad idea…

Teal does have a real family feel to it – not least because everyone seems to be called ‘Abbie’ or ‘Abe’. Of course, there’s Sally Abé herself, but her business partner and front-of-house, in charge of the nicely selected wine list, is Abe Drewry and the head chef, none other than the charming Abbie Hendren, who you may have seen on The Great British Menu. It could all get very confusing!

The menu is all playful British stuff – who said we have no culinary heritage? In the ‘savouries’ section, there are both Devils and Angels on horseback, a brawn scotch egg and Locket’s savoury, a curious concoction that was made famous by that doyenne of English Culinary Heritage, Jane Grigson. who wrote

“Why it is called Locket’s Savoury I have no idea.”

It’s actually a posh-up cheese on toast – melted Stilton, watercress and thin slices of fresh pear on a morsel of crisp toast. Shared by my companions, I didn’t get a look-in, but it was pronounced beautifully balanced.

I did get the entire angel on horseback to myself, though…and then craved a second. A plump oyster in a light, crisp batter, beautifully served in an oyster shell, with a touch of lemon mayo and a dusting of what I think was dried seaweed. Full of flavour, it was a great way to start.

Bread and butter came as five thick slices of soft, malty better-than-hovis brown bread with the crispiest crust and a generous dollop of softened butter.

If you thought we were a bit mean with the savouries, fear not. We went on to order starters too, with absolutely no regret. Dorset crab royale with English peas and lovage was a standout dish that we all loved. A comforting bowl of warm brown crab custard topped by almost fluffy, cloud-like, flaky white meat with a lovage dressing and a scattering of early English peas.

The new season’s asparagus tartlet with Old Winchester cheese crisps and a hung cream base was served on the crispest pastry shell, making a perfect spring dish. You know the food is good when you just want more!

As the only meat eater in the group, I had the hard task of picking between beef sirloin and short rib with wild garlic or haunch of deer with pickled walnut and cavolo nero. I have no regrets about picking the venison, which came with a faggot and celeriac all beautifully glazed with a sticky jus, a generous portion of cavolo nero and the best use I’ve ever come across of pickled walnuts – made into a rich sauce to complement the gamey notes of the venison. Perfectly tender and cooked to a beautiful pink, the meat was well rested and full of flavour.

With it, I enjoyed a rounded, fruity red, Vecchie Terre di Montefili, Chianti Classico 2021. My friends, meanwhile, were enjoying a glass each of the minerally and fresh Casa Da Passarella, Somontes, Colheita Branco, Dão, Portugal, 2024. Like the food menu, the wine list at Teal is concise, with ten reds and ten whites. Although if you happen to be feeling flush, there’s a special bottles section with a top price of £295.

My companions, both pescatarians, shared the vegetarian and fish options from the menu at Teal. Cornish mussels, Jersey Royals, cauliflower and sea herbs was a dish of soft plump mussels served out of the shell on a bed of Romanesco cauliflower and and white cauliflower with tender Jersey Royals. They particularly loved the creamy sauce, which we learnt was based on mussel stock with cauliflower cream. Shockingly healthy!

The artichoke and hazelnut vol-au-vent was a spectacular dish with a pastry shell that had puffed up so well it might just have flown away, with beautifully seasoned artichoke hearts and a good helping of toasted hazelnuts.

We shared sides of curly kale and crisp roast pink fir potatoes, both served in little cast-iron dishes, rounding off the mains nicely.

It’s worth noting that the menu at Teal is concise. Bread and butter, four savouries, four starters, four mains and four desserts. Perfectly balanced, we found enough options to keep us all happy, and as the omnivore of the trio, I’d happily return for the same list of dishes. But we anticipate this being a seasonal selection with regular changes.

For dessert, we opted for the pretty rhubarb jubilee, a trifle-like concoction of poached rhubarb with eggy custard capped with a crisp brandy snap. Another elevated British classic perfectly executed.

Raspberry marshmallow teacake was a homemade version of those chocolate teacakes your mum might have served visitors or brought out for a birthday tea. A fine dark chocolate shell revealed the softest marshmallow on a crisp biscuity base. With a garnish of fresh raspberries and a dressing of a light and subtle Earl Grey custard, it was one of those dishes that just brought so much joy I missed taking a picture with the custard poured over…

Of course, we had to try the penny licks at a pound each. We understand that all proceeds from these little treats are donated by Teal to the Hackney Food Bank. The penny lick dates back to Victorian times, when most homes lacked fridges and street vendors would serve a small scoop of ice cream in a glass for a penny. The glass had to be returned to the vendor, but it was rarely washed properly between customers. This led to the spread of disease and, following public health campaigns, to the development of the wafer cone.

With the kind of smugness that comes from knowing I’ve made a great choice, I can confidently confirm that Teal is the perfect Restaurant of the Month for April. It’s on the site where the much-loved Pidgin used to operate, followed by Sesta (set up by some of the Pidgin team). Here’s hoping this little bird has come home to roost. We highly recommend Teal British Bistro – it’s more than a neighbourhood restaurant and the sort of place it’s worth trekking across town for if you are not an East London hipster.

Teal
52 Wilton Way
Hackney
E8 1BG

Other new restaurant openings and specials

Hell’s Kitchen, Marylebone

Hell’s Kitchen lands in London at The Cumberland, bringing Gordon Ramsay’s Las Vegas-born concept to the UK for the first time. Inspired by the TV show, we are expecting a high-energy space with an open kitchen and a menu of signature dishes, including beef Wellington. We are off to review at the end of the month, so watch this spot.

Address: The Cumberland Hotel, Great Cumberland Place, London W1H 7DL
Website: https://www.gordonramsayrestaurants.com/en/uk/hells-kitchen
Opened 2 April 2026

Mitsu, Shoreditch

Mitsu takes over the former Nobu Shoreditch site, bringing a more relaxed East London feel. Expect robata cooking over Japanese charcoal, sharing plates and a sociable, late-night atmosphere.

Address: 10–50 Willow Street, London EC2A 4BH
Website: https://mitsurestaurant.com/
Opened 6 April 2026

MIKO at MiMi Mei Fair, Mayfair

MIKO Mei Fair from Samyukta Nair is a new restaurant using the former Koyn Thai space within MiMi Mei Fair. The focus is on refined Thai cooking in an elegant Mayfair setting.

Address: 55 Curzon Street, London W1J 8PG
Website: https://www.mimimeifair.com
Opening 23 April 2026

Tavern, Shoreditch

Tavern replaces Nest with a more relaxed British bistro approach (we are spotting a trend here – check our Best of British for more great restaurants serving British cuisine). Seasonal dishes and a flexible format make it a more accessible follow-up from the same team.

Address: 374–378 Old Street, London EC1V 9LT

Opening 28 April 2026

Check our feature for more in our tried and tested new restaurant series

And, for more British restaurants in London

The post Teal Restaurant, Hackney appeared first on London Unattached.

Last Updated on April 15, 2026

Brighton Celebrates the Arts with a Wide-Ranging Festival

A sprawling jamboree of arts and entertainment, the Brighton Festival returns to the city and surrounding areas in May for its 60th edition, bigger and better than ever before.  Music, both classical and popular, circus, dance, literature, visual arts, you name it, all will be there vying for the attention of locals and visitors, not forgetting – of course! – children and families.

You can click on the link for the full Brighton Festival programme (all 100+ events of it) at the end of this article.  Here, though, are some of the entries that captured my attention.

The Festival boasts a number of premieres and exclusives, among them Kohlhaas, the first original work to be produced by Brighton Festival. A contemporary theatre adaptation of Heinrich von Kleist’s novella Michael Kohlhaas, the play delves into the psychology of protest and resistance.  It’s directed by Omar Elerian (Bengal Tiger at the Baghdad Zoo, Rhinoceros, Misty) and stars Arinzé Kene (Misty, Girl From The North Country, Get Up Stand Up).
Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, 1 – 5 May.

My admiration for Emma Rice is second to none. Some of my most thrilling and memorable theatre experiences came from the work she did with Kneehigh and, more recently, with her Emma Rice Company. So, I’m excited to see Emma Rice Company at the Brighton Festival as part of a UK tour of Rice’s adaptation of Enid Blyton’s Malory Towers, a production that boasts her characteristic blend of fun, live music, high drama and plenty of food for thought. The show follows Darrell Rivers as she navigates friendships, feuds and fearless adventures.
Theatre Royal Brighton, 19 -23 May

A world premiere, which is seriously tickling my fancy, is carnation: the revolution is coming and I have nothing to wear.

This is a large-scale production from the UK circus company NoFit State and award-winning director Firenza Guidi – an immersive show combining circus, live music and cinematic imagery, to create a thrilling vision of collective defiance.
Black Rock, 2 – 25 May

When it comes to music, one show I have seen and would heartily recommend is The Black Saint and the Sinner Lady.  Presented by the Clod Ensemble and the Nu Civilisation Orchestra, it’s an exciting rendition of Charles Mingus’s landmark jazz masterpiece.  It’s billed as a dance event in the sense that the audience is coaxed by members of Clod Ensemble to dance along.  Me, I was just happy to listen to the Mingus’ extraordinary music, so brilliantly performed by the Nu Civilisation Orchestra.
Brighton Dome Corn Exchange, 16 & 17 May

There are a few unmissable classical music events, among them a performance by the London Symphony Orchestra conducted by Sir Antonio Pappano with pianist Denis Kozhukhin, who will play Beethoven’s ‘Piano Concerto No. 3’, and Tchaikovsky’s Symphony No.6
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, 8 May

The internationally acclaimed countertenor Iestyn Davies joins forces with the harpist Oliver Waas for a programme spanning 400 years of music and song.
Royal Pavilion Music Room, 20 May

There’s plenty of contemporary music, too, and one event that sounds particularly exciting is Asian Dub Foundation: La Haine Live.  The famous band performs the soundtrack for the 1995 French cult film La Haine, blending music and cinema in a politically charged experience that draws contemporary parallels from its story of rebellious immigrant youth.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, 7 May

The wonderful Angélique Kidjo, a five-time Grammy award winner, brings her Hope Tour to Brighton for one unmissable night only.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, 16 May

Events specifically for children range from the outdoors Children’s Parade, now in its 40th year,  to more reflective workshops and talks with well-known children’s authors, including Michael Rosen, former Children’s Poet Laureate and Brighton Festival Guest Director. 

Two dance shows are well worth pointing out: Akram Khan’s Thikra: Night of Remembering and Breakin’ Convention.

Breakin’ Convention has been featuring all things Hip Hop at Sadler’s Wells for almost three decades, but as its success grew, it ventured further afield with tours across the UK.  Steered by the indefatigable Jonzi D, it returns to Brighton this year with an exuberant line-up that includes Femme Fatale, ILL-Abilities and Ivan Michael Blackstock’s remarkable TRAPLORD.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, 27 May

Thikra: Night of Remembering is Akram Khan’s final touring production, after which the choreographer will wind up his company, freeing himself to undertake ad hoc projects.  It’s a collaboration with the Saudi visual artist Manal AIDowayan, creating a work set in the desert of Saudi Arabia, on the site of the ancient oasis of AIUla, where it premiered in January 2025.

Thikra is danced by an all-female cast and focuses on one night when a tribe performs a ritual to honour ancestors through ceremony, memory and movement.
Brighton Dome Concert Hall, 26 & 27 May

I merely scratched the surface of this packed month-long festival, which includes also comedy, literature and any number of outdoor events (should the weather co-operate). It’s well worth a day trip or even a couple of days’ break from London.

Brighton Festival runs 1 – 25 May in various venues

Full programme and tickets here

The post Brighton Festival appeared first on London Unattached.

Last Updated on April 15, 2026

What to see and where to go

Copenhagen boasts a multitude of museums and galleries that will thrill art lovers visiting the city. From large state museums to smaller private collections, bijoux contemporary exhibitions to a knockout subterranean gallery, the city is packed with exciting art. Make time too for a day trip to one of the out-of-town, must-visit art museums accessible by train. Is Copenhagen for art lovers? It certainly is.

Copenhagen is a very walkable city, which means that a museum in the morning can be followed by a local lunch before strolling on to the next visual feast. Plan your route with this idea in mind for the perfect day out. Note that most museums in the city are closed on Mondays. Having spent three days over a long weekend bingeing on art, I found that being in Copenhagen on a Monday provided an opportunity to walk the city, admiring the striking contemporary architecture that coexists alongside the 17th- and 18th-century heritage buildings.

Statens Museum for Kunst (SMK) – National Gallery of Denmark

This vast museum is located on the edge of Østre Sølvgade park near Rosenborg Castle in the neighbourhood of Rosenborg. Housed in an imposing Italian Renaissance Revival-style building, the museum was extended in 1998 with an astonishing glass extension that houses its modern art collection. The SMK boasts the largest art collection in Denmark, with over 200 000 works, originally belonging to the Danish royal family, but with the introduction of democracy in the 1800s, it became state property.

The main entrance is off a piazza where you enter the older building. Here, visitors are treated to an extensive overview of Danish and Nordic art from 1750 to 1900, including the work of Hammershøi, Eckersberg and Krøyer. One of the joys for art lovers when travelling abroad is learning about the art of distinct cultures, and at SMK there is an opportunity to experience the Golden Age of Danish art.  

Also on display in this building is a large collection of European art from 1300 -1800, including works by Rembrandt, Rubens and Cranach that previously belonged to the Danish kings. I nearly missed the chance to browse the rooms of French Art 1900 – 1930, thinking I had seen so much of this in France. Don’t make this mistake –  I was impressed by the sheer number of Matisse canvases and discovered that SMK holds one of the largest collections of Matisse outside of France.

Over in the extension, I found a stunning space over several floors with huge artworks displayed with room to breathe in large rooms, many overlooking the park through glass walls. Here, the works displayed are Danish and international art post-1900. Highlights included a room devoted to Emil Nolde.

I would advise two separate visits to this fabulous museum, but if your time is limited, then perhaps select areas of interest rather than exhausting yourself trying to see the whole museum. You need at least a full day to do it justice.

Afterwards, have a well-deserved rest and a wonderful smørrebrød at Aamanns, which is only a few minutes’ walk from the museum and renowned for its Danish open sandwiches.

Statens Museum for Kunst (SMK) – Sølvgade 48-50, 1307 Copenhagen. Open Tuesday – Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00 (20.00 on Thursdays).

Hirschsprungske Samling – Hirschsprung Collection

Located across the park from the SMK, this is a private collection that focuses on works from the Danish Golden Age, to the Skagen painters and the Symbolists. Unlike that of its vast neighbour, this is a smaller collection housed in a beautiful, purpose-built neo-classical pavilion, which opened in 1911, when the works were bequeathed by collectors, Heinrich and Pauline Hirschsprung.

If you are short of time, then this is a perfect way to get an introductory overview of the Danish Golden Age, with works distributed across small, interleading rooms decorated with furniture from the family. It has an intimate feel. The works of Anna and Michael Ancher and P.S Kroyer are prominently displayed. I was fortunate to visit during a special exhibition of the work of Hanna Hirsch Pauli, one of the most notable Nordic artists from the turn of the 20^th century. Check the website to see what temporary exhibitions may be on while you visit.

Hirschsprungske Samling, Stockholmsgade 20, 2100 Copenhagen. Open Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 to 17.00

Kunsthal Charlottenburg

Located on a canal that forms part of vibrant Nyhavn – a colourful street lined with 17^th and 18^th century buildings now repurposed as restaurants and bars – Kunsthal Charlottenburg is housed in a slightly ramshackle, graceful building from 1883. It is part of the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts’ Schools of Visual Arts. Akin to a cultural centre, this is a fun and relaxed venue where visitors can take in one of the temporary exhibitions – I saw a memorable show of Roma artist, Malgorata Mirgas-Tas –  attend a film screening, browse the impressive bookshop or chill out in some lovely seating spaces if you need a break.

The gallery closes at 8 pm on Fridays, which enabled me to visit at the end of a long day of museum visits, and I still had time to explore what was on offer. Recover afterwards with a sunset drink at one of the bars on Nyhavn, which is on the doorstep.

Kunsthal Charlottenburg – 2 Nyhavn, 1051 Copenhagen

Tuesday-Friday 11.00 – 19.00, Saturday-Sunday 11.00 – 17.00

Danish Design Museum

As the name suggests, this museum houses a collection of Danish design from artefacts to furniture. It is a somewhat esoteric place with an old-fashioned feel, and some of the collections are more or less interesting depending on your personal tastes. The museum displays an exquisite and comprehensive collection of tsuba – sword guards from the Samurai period in Japan.

Being curious about all things Japanese, I could have spent hours in this room, but I did not understand at first its link to Denmark. What I learned is that in the early 1900s, Danish artists and designers became fascinated by the Japanese aesthetic (there is a shared love of minimalism and outstanding craftsmanship), which became an important inspiration for the development of Danish modernism. I was fortunate to visit during a temporary exhibition of Hokusai block prints, part of the museum’s collection.

Where Danish design really shone was in the rooms showcasing Danish furniture – an outstanding selection of chairs that were beautifully displayed in a purpose-built room of display cases. The rooms on Pop Art were fun, and you could spend hours examining the Georg Jensen tableware and other beautiful artefacts. Don’t miss the gorgeous gift shop at the end of your visit.

From the museum, it is a 10-minute walk to Restaurant Palӕgade, where I enjoyed a top-notch smørrebrød lunch. In the evenings, the restaurant serves Danish-French cuisine. It is owned by restaurateurs who have a two-Michelin-star restaurant in Copenhagen, hence the lunch was not a casual sandwich, but rather Danish open sandwiches with bells on plus exquisite cakes for dessert. Booking is recommended.

Danish Design Museum – Bredgade 68, 1260 Copenhagen. Open Tuesday – Sunday, 10.00 to 18.00 (20.00 on Thursdays).

Cisternerne

Visiting this subterranean art space is an experience I will remember forever. It is without doubt the most unusual gallery I have ever visited and is located down a steep set of stairs that leads underground in the middle of  Søndermarken Park in the leafy suburb of Frederiksberg. Look out for a pair of small glass pyramids where you will find the entrance. Google Maps helps once you enter the park to point you in the right direction.

The gallery is housed in a vast, underground chamber that was once a reservoir where Copenhagen’s water supply was stored. It is still wet underground – my feet were soaked, so be advised to wear waterproof shoes – and water drips from the roof. It is dimly lit and deeply atmospheric. Thick coats are available to keep warm while underground.  

The gallery runs a series of temporary exhibitions, which you can find on the website. Each year, an internationally renowned artist or architect is invited to create a site-specific installation. I was thrilled to be visiting during a show by Marina Abramovic. Titled Seven Deaths, it was a series of seven films about death, set to arias and starring Abrmovic and William Dafoe. No matter what is on when you visit, this is a place not to be missed.

As the gallery and park are located in the eastern suburb of Frederiksberg, you can wander around this lovely neighbourhood afterwards and enjoy restaurants from Michelin-starred to small local eateries. My personal recommendation is to take a longer walk – or a cab – to the trendy, former meatpacking area, called Kødbyens. Here you will find the hugely popular Kødbyens Fiskebar, where we ate such good fish that we returned the next day for lunch. Booking recommended.

Cisternerne, Søndermarken opposite Zoo, 2000 Frederiksberg

Open Tuesday 11.00 – 18.00, Wednesday – Thursday 11.00 – 20.00, Friday – Sunday 11.00 – 18.00. Closed on Mondays except during June, July and August.

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art

A visit to Louisiana is another unforgettable experience for those who enjoy modern art. It involves a trip out of Copenhagen, which is very easy to do. I caught a direct train (several every hour) from Copenhagen Central Station to Humlabӕk which is 25 km north of Copenhagen. There is also a bus, or you could hire a car (there is a free car park). From the small station, I had a 10 -15 minute walk to Louisiana itself. It was well signposted, and there were many visitors all walking the same route.

You enter this astounding museum through the original country house (the owner had three wives all named Louise, hence the name of the museum), which has a large extension to house the collection. Part of the extension is subterranean while the rest of it is on ground level, where glass walls and corridors overlook the sculpture garden and the Øresund Sea on one side, and a lake on the other. There is also a large café restaurant where we had an excellent lunch.

You can also bring a picnic and enjoy sitting on the purpose-built stepped benches overlooking the sea. This is a place to visit for the day – not only is there a great deal to see, but the ambience is enchanting, and you might want to walk along the beach or rest in the beautiful gardens.  The gift and book shop is large and packed with gorgeous arts and crafts, books, clothing, chocolates and more – a real treasure trove.

Within the museum’s collection of modern and contemporary art (1945 to the present, with an emphasis on painting and sculpture), there is Danish modern art as well as international representation of the CoBrA group, Constructivists, Pop Art and American post-war art. There is an installation by Yayoi Kusama and a major collection of Giacometti, which is one of the highlights of this museum, stunningly housed and displayed in the glass extension. There are temporary exhibitions of internationally renowned artists – currently Jean-Michel Basquiat and Sophie Calle – along with numerous rooms displaying new acquisitions of the Louisiana collection.  Don’t miss the David Hockney in the Concert Hall – one of his large works from the Nevada series is on display.

Outdoors, the sheer joy of this outstanding museum continues as art, architecture and landscape are integrated into a sculpture garden containing some 45 pieces. These range from Henry Moore to Alexander Calder, Richard Serra to Roy Lichtenstein. I was particularly captivated by the large stone spheres representing planets by Alicja Kwade. I followed a very handy map that the museum provides, ensuring that I found every piece – some are embedded in the landscape. The views are utterly beguiling, and you can walk down from the park to a jetty designed by architect Jean Nouvel.

Louisiana is a popular day trip from Copenhagen and with good reason. If you enjoy modern and contemporary art, set aside at least half a day, preferably more, if you want to have time to see everything on offer. I arrived mid-morning, spent several hours inside, had a coffee break overlooking the beach, explored the sculpture garden and then treated myself to a delicious, good-value lunch in the café restaurant, gazing out over the terrace of Calder sculptures and to the sea beyond.

If you would like to see Kronborg Castle, on which Shakespeare based Hamlet’s Elsinore, hop back on the train at Humlabӕk for a further 15 minutes and alight at Helsingør. Walk around the ramparts, see the ferries crossing the water to Sweden. Watch the sun set before getting the train back to Copenhagen.

Louisiana Museum of Modern Art, Gl. Strandvej 13, 3050 Humlebӕk.

Open Tuesday – Friday 11.00 – 22.00, Saturday and Sunday 11.00 – 18.00

Other art museums to visit

ARKEN Museum of Contemporary Art is another trip out of the city, this time to Ishøj, located south of Copenhagen. Like Louisiana, the museum is located above a beach and housed in a beautiful building that resembles a ship. It has an outdoor sculpture park, while indoors, there is a series of temporary exhibitions alongside the permanent collection (post-1945), which includes internationally renowned artists such as Olafur Eliasson, Per Kirkeby, Ager Jorn, Damien Hirst and Ai Weiwei.

ARKEN Museum of Contemporary Art, Skovvej 100, 2635 Ishøj. Open Tuesday – Sunday 11.00 – 17.00 (21.00 on Thursdays).

Ny Carlsberg Glyptoteket is located in Copenhagen and is the leading antiquities museum in the Nordic countries. It also houses one of the top European collections of French art (1800-1930). This private collection, which opened in 1897, was bequeathed to the public by Carl Jacobsen, who collected art and antiquities with the profits from his brewery, Ny Carlsberg. It is filled with marble statues, mummies, and artworks and also boasts a beautiful Winter Garden.

Ny Carlsberg Glyptoteket, Dantes Plads 7, 1556 Copenhagen. Open Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 – 17.00 (21.00 on Thursdays).

The David Collection is renowned for its collection of Islamic Art, the largest in Scandinavia and considered one of the most comprehensive in the Western world, ranging from the 8^th–19^th centuries. It includes manuscripts, ceramics, jewellery, textiles and metalwork. It also contains a collection of 18th-century European art, Danish Golden Age art, and modern Danish art.

David Collection, Kronprinsessegade 30, 1306 Copenhagen. Free admission. Open Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 – 17.00 (21.00 on Wednesdays).

Thorvaldsens Museum showcases the work of the late 18^th and early 19th-century Danish sculptor Bertel Thorvaldsen. Opened in 1848, it is the oldest public museum in Denmark.

Thorvaldsens Museum, 2 Bertel Thorvaldsens Plads, 1213 Copenhagen. Open Tuesday – Sunday 10.00 – 17.00, free admission on Wednesdays

Restaurants I enjoyed while in Copenhagen

Kødbyens Fiskebar – a fabulous seafood restaurant with British chef Jamie Lee at the helm.

Restaurant Palӕgade – a charming restaurant serving smorrebrod at lunch and Danish/French dining in the evenings.

Olise – a modern bistro belonging to the COFOCO group of restaurants and hotels in Copenhagen, focusing on sustainable cooking, organic products and fine food.

Where to Stay in Copenhagen

I was hosted by Visit Denmark and invited to review two hotels, which you can read about here and here.

Hotel Kong Arthur is a luxury hotel located in the centre of Copenhagen and has the excellent Ni’mat Spa available for guests to enjoy.

Hotel Coco is a charming boutique hotel in the neighbourhood of Vesterbro, a trendy area filled with restaurants, bars, nightlife, and boutiques. It is also conveniently close to the central train station.

For more travel, check out Sicily’s Beating Heart, Palermo.

The post Copenhagen for Art Lovers appeared first on London Unattached.

Danish chic with a taste of hygge

An early spring city break to Copenhagen brought us four gloriously sunny days perfect for exploring. The short flight to this fascinating city makes it a great option for a long weekend with time to explore museums, eat plenty of pastries and fill up on smørrebrod, the Danish open sandwich. Having a central location from which to enjoy all that this beautiful city has to offer was one of the highlights of the trip. Hosted by Visit Denmark and invited to review Hotel Kong Arthur, I was delighted to discover this beautiful hotel on a small cobblestoned street leading to the historic lakes that run through central Copenhagen.

The Danish capital is renowned for its mix of architectural styles from its elegant 17th-century city mansions to the contemporary opera house, theatre and national library, all three imposing buildings set along the waterfront. Copenhagen is also a haven for visitors seeking New Nordic cuisine, which became world-famous with the success of NOMA and has since spread across the city as chefs trained there have branched out to establish their own restaurants. Whether it was Michelin-starred dining or a simple sandwich lunch, Copenhagen never failed to impress me.

A 4-star hotel with 281 rooms, Hotel Kong Arthur occupies a traditional building that dates back to 1882, which was originally used to house carpenters’ apprentices. The wooden bannister in the oldest part of Hotel Kong Arthur still has raised buttons along its length to discourage the boys from sliding down. The building was later transformed into an elegant hotel, to which further buildings on the same block were added over time. This arrangement creates several attractive courtyards filled with lovely seating areas. Hotel Kong Arthur retains its fine façade and many of its original features, while the interior is contemporary Nordic chic.

The ground floor has a bar and lounge, where guests are encouraged to mingle over a complimentary drink during a cosy welcome hour between 5-6 pm. The L-shaped lounge was an inviting space throughout the day, having plenty of comfy sofas and Danish designer armchairs, throws and rugs, ceramics, books and artefacts.  In the evenings, it was full of guests enjoying pre-dinner drinks and then used by families and couples playing games and reading after dinner. In the mornings, sunlight streamed in through its floor-to-ceiling glass walls, a fire burned in the grate, and it was tempting to spend the morning relaxing there rather than venturing out into the cold.

There is a range of rooms from standard singles and doubles to larger superior doubles, junior suites, and the largest of all, LOFT duplexes that can sleep up to five guests. Our fifth-floor room had a small face of a Buddha alongside the door, which indicated that it was a Spa Executive room. These spacious rooms include a one-hour entry per night to the water temple in the Ni’mat Spa. On the first night in residence, this spa session was scheduled for 5 pm, but since we arrived close to midnight, our Spa experience took place after breakfast on our first morning.

The Spa Executive room felt like a small apartment with an entrance hall, a bathroom to one side and a bedroom to the other. A storage corridor extended towards a desk where one could do some work or make a hot drink. The room was a good size with the same lovely parquet flooring that runs throughout Hotel Kong Arthur, rose taupe walls with white wooden panels. The large bed had a range of pillows that made reading in bed very comfortable. As in most Scandinavian hotels, there were two single duvets which prevent any potential arguments over who hogged the bedding during the night. Stylish lamps, an armchair with a woollen throw and a selection of monochrome prints above the bed completed the hygge vibe.

The bathroom was gorgeous, with a double bath and a walk-in rain shower. Bath products were so good, the Woods_Copenhagen range would make fabulous gifts for friends back home. They are available to purchase in the lobby if you love them as much as we did.

Breakfast is served in a large, light-filled conservatory that overlooks courtyards on two sides. There was an excellent Nordic buffet selection, including an array of herrings, award-winning local cheese and charcuterie, wonderful breads and rolls made from traditional Nordic grains, and Danish pastries, along with warm oatmeal, cereals, yoghurt, and every sort of milk you could think of. Eggs were either soft-boiled or served scrambled, with bacon or tomato, in small, lidded glass jars. A salad bar had an impressive selection of fresh vegetables, along with jars of pickles. Fresh seasonal juices included a very healthy spinach juice. Hotel Kong Arthur has an ethos of providing local, organic food wherever possible, which is part of its commitment to four of the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals.  

After a capacious breakfast, we went to explore the Ni’Mat Spa. Entering the Spa felt like being transported to Thailand, paired with a hygge ambience. There were large Buddha sculptures and a multitude of Thai artefacts, woollen throws, butterfly-print wallpaper, mirrors, and offerings of Cava, juice, or an invigorating, relaxing ginger tea. In a subterranean area was a double-vaulted Water Temple, a gorgeous space boasting a jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, and ice-cold water shower. Turquoise-hued benches were available for resting, surrounded by Buddhas, candles and plants.  A mezzanine overlooked the water temple, where one could relax on sofas and order drinks and food. While my husband spent a leisurely hour in the water temple, I was treated to a 50-minute Buddha massage, which included a back, neck and shoulder treatment along with a mini facial. Princess was a wonderful masseuse, and I only wished I had a whole morning to spend in this welcoming, soothing environment. The Spa is open to hotel guests and non-guests, and I highly recommend booking in when you visit the city. There is a range of massages and packages on the website.

Hotel Kong Arthur is perfectly located for visiting the city sights. A short walk from a metro stop that links to the airport and central train station, it is equally good for setting off on foot. Copenhagen is very walkable, and we hardly used public transport at all. The hotel is surrounded by restaurants, bars and bakeries that sell outstanding pastries. A few minutes’ walk away is Torvehallerne, a covered food market that is an essential stop for anyone interested in eating well or drinking what is reportedly the best coffee in the city at Coffee Collective. Sat alongside the glass windows with a coffee and a pastry – despite having recently eaten breakfast – and watching people walking and cycling by was one of those perfect holiday moments. Just a few minutes further brought us to the shopping mecca of Støgert, where you will find every high-end brand you can think of, including the magnificent Georg Jensen shop filled with iconic Danish jewellery and homeware.

Copenhagen boasts a host of excellent museums, from art to history. Although we packed in a number of museum visits into our four days, we only managed to touch the surface. Most of the museums we visited were within a half-hour walk of the Hotel Kong Arthur.

 Returning to Hotel Kong Arthur at night after a day of sightseeing, we were met with a warm welcome. The hotel welcomes visitors as guests and hopes that they will leave as family. It is certainly a hotel I would happily recommend to my own friends and family.

Hotel Kong Arthur, Nørre Søfade 11, 1370 Copenhagen

Visit Denmark and Wonderful Copenhagen– visit these websites for all the information you will need for a visit to Copenhagen.

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Last Updated on April 12, 2026

There’s no beefing about this classic Sunday lunch

How can we have gone so long without reviewing the Hawksmoor Sunday roast? It feels less like an oversight and more like something that needed the right occasion. The special occasion turned out to be my birthday, or at least the first Sunday after it. A very suitable date for somewhere that I’ve known and loved since the first branch opened. Hawksmoor was founded by childhood friends Will Beckett and Huw Gott, with the first restaurant opening in Spitalfields, London, back in 2006. At the time, it felt genuinely groundbreaking: British steak cooked over charcoal, with a confidence and style so far removed from an Angus Steakhouse that you wondered whether it needed a new name altogether. Already a fan of Gaucho, I remember being genuinely excited by Hawksmoor’s offer of excellent British beef in a more relaxed setting.

We chose the Air Street branch of Hawksmoor for a couple of reasons. We could not get a table at the relatively new King’s Cross restaurant, but we were keen on somewhere with a light dining space, and many of the Hawksmoor branches tend to the ‘cosy’ end of the spectrum. Air Street sits on the first floor of a building on the corner of Regent Street. It is a beautiful Art Deco dining room, with a bar at the front, and yet it still manages to feel intimate thanks to the thoughtful layout of tables and service areas, along with the dark green leather banquettes and chairs set around polished wood tables. Soft light filters through the stained glass windows. You could walk in wearing jeans and trainers and feel just as at ease as someone dressed up for a celebration.

The restaurant was buzzing on this damp Sunday afternoon, yet everyone seemed to be served at the perfect time. We spent a little time checking the menu before deciding to skip starters, mostly because that offered the perfect excuse for dessert. And, the Hawksmoor puds are almost as famous as their steaks. If you do want a starter, there are plenty of options, from potted beef or roasted bone marrow to oysters, Devon crab on toast, salads, and smoked salmon.

I had high hopes for the wine list. Will’s mum is the well-known food and wine writer Fiona Beckett, and I’ve always loved her down-to-earth wine writing. I’m also particularly keen on Portuguese red wines, and I was delighted to find that Hawksmoor carries their own label Douro red wine, Vinho Tinto, ‘Hawksmoor La Rosa’, Quinta de la Rosa, 2023, Douro, Portugal, a beautifully soft, well-aged red wine that comes in at £52 for a bottle. It was the obvious choice and one that didn’t disappoint.

On Sundays, you can order from the à la carte menu if you want to. Or you can pick from three main Sunday roast options for between £28 and £35. Or you can mix and match meat from the sharing cuts (they recommend Prime Rib and Chateaubriand) with Sunday roast trimmings for the price of the meat (sold by weight) plus £9.50 per person for the trimming. At its heart, a steakhouse, the Sunday Roast options are aged rump, aged sirloin or a vegetarian wellington. We both opted for the sirloin, a classic Sunday Roast cut that works well because it is usually nicely marbled and suited to roasting. Two generous slices of perfectly cooked meat (you can have it pink or well done) nestled on the buttered greens. There was a half bulb of roasted garlic, roasted carrots, a perfectly sized Yorkshire pudding and plenty of properly crispy beef dripping roast potatoes with fluffy centres. And, unlimited bone marrow and onion gravy.

This is classic Sunday lunch nosh. It’s the kind of plateful that brings to mind my own childhood, growing up in rural Norfolk, where the vegetables came from our own garden, and the meat from a family butcher who knew the farmers who supplied him by first name. The kind of depth of flavour that rarely survives the supermarket chiller.

We loved the cauliflower cheese with a well-balanced, tangy cheese bechamel, a crispy, breadcrumbed topping, and cauliflower that had just the right amount of bite. And the Hawksmoor stuffing, a beefy concoction with a rich Madeira wine glaze. This lunch isn’t for the faint-hearted.

Skipping starters proved an excellent strategy. There was still too much food for me, but not to the point of excess and certainly not to the point that I felt the need to skip dessert, too. That said, I couldn’t quite bring myself to order the Hawksmoor Sticky Toffee Pudding, which, from experience, I know to be superlative. Instead, I ordered a pear bakewell tart because I love the flavour combination of pear and almonds. Served with a light brandy cream and custard, it was a delicious dish that hit the spot, especially paired with the recommended Vin Santo. If a girl can’t indulge herself on her birthday, when can she?

My companion feasted on the chocolate mille-feuille with salted caramel and rum ice cream. Desserts are all around the £10 mark – but, if you don’t have space, there’s a decadent little treat in the form of salted caramel Rolos to share (or not) in the restaurant or to take home.

Perfect for ‘les rosbifs’, the Hawksmoor Sunday Lunch earns a top rating from us. It’s a classic at Air Street, immaculately managed by manager Angelo Lupinetti and Head Waiter Faye. Just be warned, it’s really focused on excellent traditional British beef served with no frills and a focus on the food. A great place to meet up with friends or family and relax, knowing everything will be just so.

Hawksmoor
5A Air St,
London
W1J 0AD

020 7406 3980

Looking for more London Sunday Roast options? Check out our feature.

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Luxury Ubud Resort with Villas, Spa and Rice Terraces

Set among stunning gardens and endless paddy fields, my stay at Tanah Gajah, a Resort by Hadiprana, felt truly magical. Just outside Ubud in the lush central highlands of Bali, this former estate of renowned Indonesian art collector Hendra Hafiprana effortlessly blends culture, design, and nature.

My trip to Bali had taken me all around this lovely Indonesian island, but my stay at Tanah Gajah seemed like a real shift in pace. After the coastal stretches of sandy beaches, bustling resorts and roads choc-a-block with cars and scooters, I found myself in peaceful surroundings, with rolling hills, tropical jungle and vibrant green rice terraces.

Arrival & First Impressions

The first thing you see when arriving at Tanah Gajah is its dramatic stone entrance gate, leading directly into the beautiful grounds – a serene private estate spanning 6 hectares. Paddy fields, for as far as the eye can see, manicured gardens, swimming pools, stone sculptures, a lotus pond complete with a family of white Dutch and black Australian swans.

The name Tanah Gajah means Land of Elephant, inspired by the nearby Goa Gajah Temple. This luxurious 5-star resort sits approximately 35-40 km from Bali’s Ngurah Rai International Airport (DPS), a 60 – 90-minute drive, though it can take longer due to Bali traffic. Tanah Gajah arranges comfortable transfers, or you can pick up a taxi or use the GRAB App. A complimentary private car shuttle service into Ubud centre, takes just 10–15-minute drive.

The architecture has a distinctive Balinese-modern design and features a fantastic collection of artworks, hand-carved furnishings, and artefacts from Hendra Hadiprana’s personal collection.
From the moment we arrived, the exceptional service began: a ritual drum banging, cool towels, and fresh juice. Our bags disappeared without a trace (rematerializing in our room), and we were taken on a buggy tour of the estate, finishing at our stand-alone private villa.

Villas at Tanah Gajah

With just the 24 club suites and villas, this 5-star resort feels exclusive. Our fabulous Club Pool Villa proved both highly functional and wonderfully luxurious. The view was different from any I’ve experienced before, a well-sized infinity pool with a gate at the end of it opening directly onto a paddy field teeming with wildlife.

This elegant villa mixes Balinese features with modern architectural design – timber pillars, a gabled roof, palm leaf wall and ceiling panels, together with rich hardwood and stone finishes. At its centre sits an ornately carved super king-size bed, dressed in luxurious linen and wonderfully comfortable pillows.

Wooden Venetian blinds, soft brown curtains, and a daybed scattered with batik cushions. Special touches include a desk, a Bose speaker, generous storage, excellent lighting, air conditioning, and a table laid with fresh fruit and nibbles.

Full-length glass doors open onto the veranda, while the spacious bathroom features twin sinks, a separate shower, and a stunning freestanding outdoor bath, perfect for soaking under the stars.

On the terrace, an outdoor bar stocked with elegant glass carafes of spirits, a coffee machine, a tea selection, a fridge filled with soft drinks and beers. And a basket of delicious, freshly made banana fritters!

Our villa at Tanah Gajah included Club Benefits – these include a discreet Butler service, a la carte breakfast, evening turndown, daily seasonal fruits, afternoon tea, sunset cocktails, a complimentary mini bar restocked daily, and up to six items of laundry service per day.

Facilities & Experiences at Tanah Gajah

The facilities and experiences at Tanah Gajah are truly superb. The grounds alone are extraordinarily beautiful, so much so that it’s worth taking time simply to wander, pause, and take it all in. Stretch out beside the magnificent pool and enjoy some pure relaxation, soaking up the tranquillity and the gorgeous view.

One morning, we had a sweet, scented treatment at The SPA. The ritual began with a soothing foot wash, followed by a deeply restorative Balinese massage.

The setting is wonderfully serene, but what has stayed with me most is the quiet time afterwards: wrapped in a gown, sitting on the balcony, gazing out over the paddy fields. It’s a memory I don’t think I’ll ever forget. I’m a yogi, so I appreciated the early morning yoga classes on the pavilion deck, and for those who like a game of tennis, they have a superb court.

The resort curates a host of experiences, ranging from romantic feasts, guided rice paddy trekking through the fields and a neighbouring village, or treks in search of the Hindu goddess, to private access to its museum art collection with a well-known local expert, to painting your very own Balinese masterpiece.

And for something truly spectacular, you can even take a ride in a hot air balloon, an experience I had long wanted to tick off. I was genuinely excited to get the opportunity to do it in such an amazing location.

We were lifted gently into the sky for a short, thrilling journey, rewarded with an incredible bird’s-eye view of the estate and the surrounding landscape. A photographer was on hand to capture the moment…it was quite magical.

On Tuesday and Friday nights, Tanah Gajah resort hosts a Kecak Dance & The Art of Royal Balinese Dinner. Kecak and Fire dances are an important part of Balinese culture, developed in the 1930s and inspired by the sacred Sanghyang ritual.

On Friday night, after sunset cocktails on the terrace, we made our way to the candlelit amphitheatre for what turned out to be an enthralling, high-drama, almost trance-like chant-driven retelling of the Ramayana, complete with atmospheric fire and cheeky monkeys. All performed by a dance troupe made up of over fifty men and boys from the local community.

After the dance, we enjoyed a Royal Balinese dinner at The Tempayan restaurant, served by young women dressed in traditional attire. A wonderful experience which felt both theatrical and genuinely connected to the local culture.

Dining at Tanah Gajah

The Tempayan restaurant overlooks wide expanses of paddy fields. It’s open-air but covered by a pitched roof, with a large terrace that makes it a stunning spot for breakfast, lunch, or dinner.

Breakfast is served à la carte, with a great choice of freshly baked pastries, colourful fruit, fresh juices, and a mix of international and Asian dishes, all prepared to a high standard.

Dinner is equally fabulous. Under the guidance of Executive Chef Dean Nor, the menu offers a fusion of authentic Balinese cuisine and Western classics. Every meal we ate was exceptionally good.

Afternoon Tea (which was included as part of our Club Benefit) was served by the main pool, a delicious selection of savoury and sweet bites accompanied by a choice of tea, coffee or fresh juices.

For those who love coffee or matcha, the Kurasu Panen Padi Lounge is the place to be. Here, you can enjoy Kyoto’s finest speciality coffee and ceremonial matcha, all while taking in views of the surrounding rice paddies, something I doubt you would tire of.

Visiting Ubud

You’ll want to keep some time to explore Ubud, and the resort’s shuttle service makes it effortless. Just a 15-minute drive, and we were dropped right in the heart of town. I really fell for this buzzing town, with galleries, cool shops, and bustling markets brimming with handicrafts, jewellery, and clothing.

Cafes, bars, and healthy eateries are everywhere, often filled with digital nomads (and it’s easy to see why; it’s such a lovely place to settle in).

Known for its strong wellness scene, Ubud is home to yoga retreats, spa experiences, and regular Gamelan performances featuring traditional percussion. One afternoon, I had a go at jewellery making and came home proudly with a silver ring I’d made myself

Highlights include the Sacred Monkey Forest Sanctuary, home to more than 1,200 cheeky monkeys that occasionally spill out into the streets, and the Ubud Palace, a former royal residence where traditional dance performances are still held. For something more scenic, it’s well worth walking through the Tegalalang Rice Terraces.

Returning to Tanah Gajah is just as effortless, with a quick pick-up from the centre bringing us back to this blissful resort.

Finally

What made the experience unforgettable, however, was the staff, who knew us by name, delivered seamless service, and took the time to engage with us in the most genuine way. By the end of our stay at Tanah Gajan, we were truly sad to say farewell.

Tanah Gajah, Tengkulak Kaja, Jl. Raya Goa Gajah, Kemenuh, Ubud, Gianyar Regency, Bali 80571, Indonesia
Phone: +62 361 975685

Looking for something different? Check my guide to Uluwatu, Bali

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Last Updated on April 10, 2026

Perhaps the best Lobster Roll in London

I have a thing for lobster rolls. It started on regular trips to Boston a few years ago. I got into the rhythm of landing, clearing customs, checking in to my hotel and then, as usual after a long-haul flight, going for a walk. It’s hard not to stumble upon good lobster in Boston, so I’d try out a couple of places as my evening meal with a few oysters and then have an early night.

I miss those lobster rolls, and here back in the UK, I try to hunt down the good ones. But it’s been hard. The British seaside does do a grand job, but in London, our choices have been limited.

Until now!

Faber, the sustainable seafood restaurant, has launched Lobster Lunch Club, bringing us Londoners freshly caught lobster from the Llŷn Peninsula in Wales. 

The restaurant started with humble beginnings during lockdown in East London. Co-founders Matt and Anthony had been working in the hospitality sector for decades, honing their skills and learning from mistakes. As demand for their food grew, they borrowed pub kitchens, ran pop-ups and residencies at venues such as Somerset House, The Rosewood Hotel and Taste of London. Today, they have a beautiful, light-filled restaurant on the Hammersmith roundabout itself. (Don’t let that put you off. It’s very easy to find just next to Sacred Heart School – and if you are driving like I was, there are lots of parking spots on Bute Gardens).

Aside from the Lobster Lunch Club, the menu at Faber looked fantastic. It’s full of fish dishes with the odd meat option, and the accompanying wine list has a fantastic selection of British wines too.

Lobster sourced from British shores

The Faber team take sustainability very seriously, and a big part of that is, of course, sourcing. “We believe that sustainability and provenance are more than just buzzwords – they’re a way of life. We’re committed to using only the freshest, British shores sourced ingredients in our dishes, and we work closely with our suppliers to ensure that everything we serve is of the highest quality.”

You can take a look at their YouTube channel for interviews with some of their suppliers – including the ones who supply the lobster for these lobster rolls – and what I also love is the monthly seasonality chart showing you what’s landing on British shores, plucked from them and growing in the fields. These all inform the restaurant menu, which changes frequently.

Back to lobster rolls…

The lobster rolls are priced at a very reasonable £18. For this, you get a pillowy soft, lightly toasted sub stuffed to the brim with a very generous amount of lobster and topped with matchstick fries. The lobster is tossed in a very light dressing – a coleslaw of sorts. It’s not heavy or dense like some mayonnaise-laden fillings. It’s flavourful and so light that you can still taste every part of the lobster.

But you’ll have to be quick. Because the lobster is caught and delivered in limited batches, the team at Faber are serving just 40 subs each lunchtime.

Once they’re gone, they’re gone!

Lobster Lunch Club runs Monday to Friday, 12 pm til 3 pm via Click & Collect. Easy peasy.

Faber

206 Hammersmith Road, London W6 7DH

For bookings, email hammersmith@faberrestaurants.co.uk or call +44 208 161 9800

Other fish restaurants you may enjoy in London – The Mayfair Chippy in Knightsbridge, Wilton’s – London’s Finest Seafood and Game in Mayfair, The Oystermen in Covent Garden

The post Native Lobster Rolls at Faber, Hammersmith, London appeared first on London Unattached.

Last Updated on April 9, 2026

A Look-Ahead to a Sunny, Joyous Ballet

Undoubtedly one of the sunniest, most joyous and amusing ballets in Birmingham Royal Ballet’s repertoire, Don Quixote is weaving its magic across the UK in a tour that will end at Sadler’s Wells in late April.

BRB dance Carlos Acosta’s vibrant, boisterous production of the 19th century classic Don Quixote, full of cod-Spanish jollity, castanets, flounces, on-stage musicians and butch matadors, where virtuoso ballet dancing alternates with lyrical interludes.  It is a flowing, uplifting spectacle, one that invariably sends audiences home with a spring in their step.

Danced to a score by the ever-obliging Ludwig Minkus, the ballet is loosely, very loosely, in fact, inspired by a minor episode in Miguel de Cervantes’s eponymous 17th-century masterpiece. Cervantes’s Don Quixote debunks the then-popular chivalric romances by focusing on the hapless titular Don’s frustrated attempts to perform great deeds of chivalry, while searching for his ideal woman, Dulcinea, accompanied by his faithful servant, the long-suffering Sancho Panza.

In the ballet, Don Quixote rides into a village atop a makeshift version of his nag Rocinante and comes upon the lovers: Kitri, daughter of the village tavern owner, and the penniless barber Basilio. Kitri is feisty and resourceful and very determined to marry Basilio despite her father’s vehement opposition; the irrepressible Basilio is equally determined to win his girl.

To complicate matters, Kitri’s father wants her to marry the rich fop Gamache, one of the various figures of fun in the ballet, another being the forever hungry Sancho Panza, whose antics provide a counterpart to Don Quixote’s exaggeratedly dignified demeanour.

Don Quixote will eventually prove instrumental in bringing about Kitri and Basilio’s happy ending, but not before the lovers run away, stop at a gypsy camp and, later, at a tavern, where the ever dramatic Basilio feigns a spectacular death; and Don Quixote gets hit over the head by the sail of one of the windmills he’s chasing and falls into a dream, where Kitri becomes his Dulcinea in a realm populated by diaphanous maidens, the Dryads.

Eventually, love wins the day, and the final Act III celebrates Kitri and Basilio’s wedding – ‘celebrates’ being the operative word for an Act full of love, dancing and all-out fiesta.

Carlos Acosta created his production of  Don Quixote for The Royal Ballet in 2013, and starred in the ballet’s first run as an irresistible Basilio, alongside Marianela Núñez, the perfect Kitri.   He mostly followed Petipa’s original choreography, but added his own, namely for the gypsy scene in Act II. 

However, Tim Hatley’s original designs, though beautiful to look at, were far too busy, as indeed, for all its glorious dancing, was the production.

With Birmingham Royal Ballet relying to a large extent on touring, when Acosta became BRB Artistic Director and brought Don Quixote into its repertoire, the staging had to undergo significant streamlining, with Tim Hatley providing new ‘tourable’ designs.  The current version, stripped of its original excesses, is infinitely better.

The ballet offers both ensemble and soloists plenty of opportunities to shine.  All roles are challenging: Kitri’s boisterous choreography, with extensive pointe work, split jetés and the skilful use of castanets and a fan, lives side by side with the lyrical dancing of a young woman in love; Basilio’s demands bravura dancing as well as good partnering and considerable acting ability.

Among the soloist roles, Espada, the lead matador, and the street dancer Mercedes must bring convincing heat and desire to their pas de deux.

The head of the gypsy clan gets the chance to show off his virtuoso technique; Amor in the Dryads’ vision scene is an impish, fast-moving role that can be performed by either a female or a male dancer.

So, now that Spring appears finally to have sprung, why not add an extra ray of sunshine to your day with an outing to Birmingham Royal Ballet’s Don Quixote?

BRB Don Quixote tours to The Mayflower Theatre, Southampton, 15 – 18 April

and to Sadler’s Wells Angel 23 – 25 April

Sadler’s Wells Angel
Rosebery Avenue
London EC1R 4TN

Check out our London Dance Previews – January to July 2026

The post Birmingham Royal Ballet, Don Quixote appeared first on London Unattached.

Last Updated on April 8, 2026

Veteran Pina Bausch Dancers Reimagine a Landmark Work

The late great German choreographer Pina Bausch created Kontakthof for Tanztheater Wuppertal in 1978.  At about three hours’ length, it was, like so much of Bausch’s output, an expressionist piece of dance theatre – truth to tell, always more theatre than dance – focusing on human interactions and the ever-frustrated search for connection and elusive love – in short, the pathos and absurdity of life itself.

The dancers of her relatively new company (she had become director five years previously) were young;  even while creating Kontakthof, Bausch had the idea of remounting it with the original cast 30 years on, burnished by time and life itself.

Pina Bausch died in 2009 without having realised her wish, but 46 years on, Kontakthof was reborn through the efforts of the Australian former Bausch dancer, choreographer and film-maker Meryl Tankard, at the request of Bausch’s son, who is the custodian of her work.  It premiered in 2024 at Wuppertal Opera House and has now reached Sadler’s Wells, prime Pina Bausch territory in London.

Entitled Kontakthof – Echoes of ’78, this is not a replay of the original, but rather a reimagining at half the length, bringing together nine original cast members all now in their 70s and 80s, and combining their stage presence with film of the original performance featuring those who are no longer with us.

As the piece develops, the juxtaposition is, at times, almost unbearably poignant, a record of passing time and simultaneously a record of absence.  It starts with one dancer in Bausch’s trademark satin evening gown and stilettos standing downstage while an outsize black and white image of herself is projected onto a scrim.  With perfect coordination, the two execute a number of simple hand gestures, turn sideways, grin, face forward again, in a repetitive sequence in which they are gradually joined by other cast members, the men in sombre black suits and ties, and their identically attired filmed images.

Meryl Tankard used archival film, captured by Bausch’s partner Rolf Borzik, and edited the footage to one and a half hours.  In doing so, she created a new, intensely nostalgic narrative that incorporates a silent dialogue between live dancers and filmed images, without losing either the essence of the original work or Bausch’s intention.

Kontakthof – Echoes of ’78 uses the original Rolf Borzik set, a denuded hall starkly lit by Ryan Joseph Stafford, with a line of grey metal chairs set expectantly against a raised stage, and an upright piano in a corner.   

Here, to a sequence of German popular songs of the 1930s, such as you might hear in a provincial dance hall, the original cast members – Meryl Tankard (70), Josephine Ann Endicott (76), Lutz Förster (73), John Giffin (79), Ed Kortlandt (80), Beatrice Libonati (71), Anne Martin (72) and Arthur Rosenfeld (74)  (Elisabeth Clarke was indisposed on press night) – recreate some original sequences their bodies still remember so well, even though their movement is naturally slower.

Their limitations are pointed up in a rare laugh-out-loud sequence, where Tankard tries to get Rosenfeld to wiggle his hips in a circular motion, which he can no longer do, though some of the others can.   

The loose context is, as always, a mating game that inevitably leads nowhere.  Even as they come briefly together, there’s no joy or hope in their faces.   Unexpectedly manic laughter erupts.  A woman plays a note or two on the piano and warbles tunelessly.   And then comes the immense relief, a Bausch signature parade, always such a pleasure to watch.

Just before the interval, they sit on a line of chairs facing the audience and talk briefly about themselves – their ages, their place of birth (Bausch’s company was always multinational), offering a few tantalising snippets of themselves, that intimate reveal is also very much part of Bausch’s signature.

The final extended sequence, where the dancers watch film of a woman being preyed on, crowded, pawed and finally laid on the ground by a gang of men, including their younger selves, is deeply disturbing, a reminder that misogyny was a constant preoccupation throughout Bausch’s oeuvre.

Kontakthof – Echoes of ’78 is a Sadler’s Wells co-production and is presented as part of the month-long Elixir Festival, which is billed as “rethinking perceptions around dance and age”. 

Kontakhof – Echoes of ’78 is at Sadler’s Wells until 11 April

Elixir Festival runs until 27 April at Sadler’s Wells and Sadler’s Wells East

Sadler’s Wells
Rosebery Avenue
London EC1R 4TN

Check out our London Dance Previews – January to July 2026

The post Kontakthof – Echoes of ’78 appeared first on London Unattached.

Last Updated on April 8, 2026

A lesson in quantum mechanics, ethics and human connection

With wars breaking out around the globe and the geopolitics unsteady, the reprisal of Michael Frayn’s Copenhagen at Hampstead Theatre feels uncomfortably prescient. As bombings of nuclear facilities are shown on our news programmes, a play reflecting on the 1930s race to understand nuclear fission and onwards towards the development of the atom bomb makes for an important historical drama.  Which countries have the ‘right’ to develop and use weapons of mass destruction remains as controversial today as it was in 1941 when Copenhagen is set. 

Two scientists, German physicist Werner Heisenberg and his Danish counterpart, Niels Bohr, have a secret meeting in Copenhagen in 1941. They are old friends and collaborators who began working on the mysteries of the atom in the 1920s. With World War Two raging, and Denmark under Nazi occupation, their 1941 meeting is shrouded in danger and mystery.  The reason Heisenberg went to meet Bohr in Copenhagen, the content of their discussion, and the influence it had on the atomic race remain unknown and have kept historians arguing for decades. Frayn’s play has itself been the subject of debate and critique by some historians. He has written an essay in the programme about the details that emerged since his play was first staged and how this would have influenced the play had he had access to this information. Written and produced in 1998, the Hampstead production is the first time the play has been reprised in London.

Directed by Michael Longhurst (previously artistic director at the Donmar Warehouse), Copenhagen is a three-hander – Niels Bohr (Richard Schiff), Margrethe Bohr (Alex Kingston), and German physicist Werner Heisenberg (Damien Molony). It is a lengthy play running to almost three hours with an interval, and the content is complex.

Copenhagen’s three characters reflect on the 1941 meeting and explore the uncertainty surrounding the discussion. In doing so, they draw a parallel with earlier discussions of the atom’s uncertainty. The characters are ghosts of their former selves – or one might say exist in a parallel universe – and they circle constantly around the meeting that took place at the Bohr home in Copenhagen in 1941 when Heisenberg asked to see Bohr. The meeting was shorter than anticipated and ended abruptly when Bohr was angered by what Heisenberg said, although this being a play partly about memory, each one recalls the conversation differently. This important conversation took place on a walk outside the house to prevent the Nazi occupiers from overhearing what Heisenberg wanted to say. Since Heisenberg had official permission to visit Bohr, it is unclear whether he came to Copenhagen to find out whether the Americans, with whom Bohr is in touch, are working on developing a bomb.

In the first half of Copenhagen, the characters circle each other, trying to make sense of the meeting while also revelling in the memories of the intense collaboration – and competition – between the two scientists in the years they worked together in Copenhagen in the 1920s. Bohr was considered the Pope of the scientific community there, and Heisenberg was a very young and brilliant man who seemed to have been adopted (emotionally) by Niels and his wife, Margrethe. Although they have fallen out during the war years, there is clearly much warmth left between them. While by the second half of the play, the audience’s appetite for physics might be sated, this is where the play is most satisfying emotionally and psychologically. Frayn cleverly draws parallels between the science of the atom and the intricacies of human relationships, perhaps equally unknowable and uncertain. The painful decisions both men have faced – predominantly ethical decisions about whether physicists had the moral right to work on the atomic bomb – are elucidated and, finally, pent-up opinions about the behaviour of each man are expressed. As a Jew, Bohr was smuggled out of Denmark and across to Sweden on the night that the Nazi freighters arrived to deport all Danish Jews to the concentration camps and to their deaths. There is no suggestion that Heisenberg supported the Nazi policies; in fact, it is hinted at that his connections at the Danish Embassy in Copenhagen might have facilitated Bohr’s escape, but he loves Germany deeply and expresses his desire to save its people. Which country, which cities would survive and which would be obliterated during the war? That depended on who got to develop the atomic bomb first. The irony, of course, is that most of the German physicists who could have developed the bomb for Germany were Jewish and had either fled or been murdered. Bohr had to live with the guilt of having been part of the development of the bomb when he moved to work with the scientists in Los Alamos, New Mexico.

The character of Margrethe is central to the audience’s understanding of the discussion between the two scientists. The play is rather esoteric in parts, but Frayn allows his two scientists to explain the scientific language, sometimes graphically by moving chairs and people around to Margrethe and, in so doing, creates a conduit through which the ideas he writes about can be transmitted to the audience. If anything, there is a bit too much of this, but the play is more engaging when it deals directly with the emotional connection between the three characters. Copenhagen works well as a study of attachment and loss between parents and children, whether those are born to them or come into their lives as adults, as Heisenberg did. The Bohrs lost two of their children, and the play circles back time and again to the loss of the oldest son, Christian, who died in a drowning accident while sailing with his father.

Margrethe is the beating heart of the play and was beautifully performed by Alex Kingston. Her resonant voice elevated her level-headed, witty and, ultimately, emotionally astute insights. She was a foil for Niels Bohr, her emotionally buttoned-up, occasionally angry husband, who engaged with the world in a far more clinical way. Richard Schiff was not always audible; at times, he mumbled and stumbled on his words. No doubt this will settle down as the play beds in. Damien Malony gave a spirited performance as Heisenberg, a man who seems better known to the emotionally intelligent Margrethe than he is to himself.

The set (Joanna Scotcher) and lighting (Neil Austen) were excellent. A double revolve, round stage sat above a brooding, reflective black moat. The stage was surrounded by a circular LED light that changed colour – always orange when the characters circled repeatedly around the contents of the 1941 meeting. At this point, the stage would rotate too, which was particularly effective. Orange lighting hung like a forest, also changed colour at points. The audience was blinded by the lighting design when the bomb dropping was discussed, which was a shocking moment. The costumes used muted colours, and the men, dressed almost in a mirror image of one another, added a visual layer to the complexity of their father-son connection.

Copenhagen is about many ideas, from theoretical physics to ethics. Along the way, it draws the audience into a human story of nations pitted against each other, personal attachments and betrayals, love and loss. It is a complex play, perhaps too heavy-handed on the physics, but it leaves the audience with much to think about in a world where scientific advances continue to be used to destroy. I checked my phone on leaving the theatre to see if Trump was going ahead with his threatened obliteration of a civilisation and Iran’s infrastructure. Copenhagen felt frighteningly relevant.

Copenhagen runs at Hampstead Theatre from 27 March to 2 May 2026.

Hampstead Theatre Eton Ave, Swiss Cottage, NW3 3EU

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