It’s a London thing…
and so much more!

At long last, we turned the spotlight on our home city of London – and about time too. The British capital had always been our muse, yet never our cover star, perhaps because it felt too familiar or too close to surprise us. Our It’s a London Thing issue proves exactly why it still does.

Our latest issue, It’s a London Thing, is both a love letter and a call to action. It’s a celebration of a city that champions the values OutThere holds dear: inclusion, creativity and the audacity to live and travel authentically. In a world that feels increasingly divided, London continues to thrive as a gloriously imperfect celebration of diversity and collision.

Despite very real challenges including gentrification, eye-watering rents and political noise, the British capital continues to function as a shared playground where difference sparks connection rather than division. London’s communities have doubled down on what makes them distinctive, resulting in a capital that’s more plural, more intersectional and more alive than ever. In recent years, that energy has only expanded, with newly connected neighbourhoods and culture-rich villages from Peckham to King’s Cross injecting fresh momentum, while central districts from Soho to Marylebone rediscover their edge through inventive dining, shopping and hospitality. ‘Melting pot’ may be a tired cliché, but in London it still rings true: a city where diversity isn’t just present, it’s lived, shared and constantly remixed. Elegant yet eccentric, storied yet endlessly new, it remains the city we believe in.

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Mix and mast

London is a living, breathing kaleidoscope – ceaselessly multicultural, endlessly inventive, and utterly absorbing. From Gurdeep Loyal’s foodie revelations about diasporic flavours becoming citywide staples to Adam Nathaniel Furman’s riotous, candy-coloured public art that fuses high and low culture, the capital thrives on cross-pollination and fearless creativity. Its sprawling, diverse neighbourhoods, from Brixton and Dalston to Camberwell and King’s Cross, offer spaces for experimentation, collaboration, and bold self-expression, while the city’s sheer scale allows for cultural collision without suffocation. Even amid gentrification and soaring rents, London remains resilient, porous and surprising, a city where history, heritage, and avant-garde imagination coexist, and where boundary-pushing creators find a canvas as vast and varied as the world itself.

Address codes

London’s built environment is in constant flux, where bold new landmarks sit alongside historic icons to create a cityscape that is as dynamic as it is storied. Regeneration projects such as King’s Cross Central and Stratford’s Olympic Park have transformed post-industrial and underused spaces into thriving cultural and lifestyle hubs, infused with art, innovation and youthful energy from institutions like Central Saint Martins and Google. This sense of reinvention extends into the luxury hotel scene, where properties from Mayfair to Fitzrovia embrace experiential, playful design, maximalist eccentricity, and authentic, diverse service that reflects the city’s multifaceted character. Across the capital, inclusive recruitment, niche guided tours, and socially conscious hospitality practices are creating spaces that celebrate individuality, cultural wealth and connection, making London a leader in imaginative, immersive urban experiences while remaining a city that thrives on evolution, creativity and human scale.

Flux and motion

London demands versatility. It’s a city that asks you to move effortlessly from grit to polish, from all-day momentum to well-earned ease – and it delivers the sartorial expertise to match.

Palate splendours

The capital’s dining and drinking scene is a celebration of inclusion, innovation and global flavours, where every cuisine – from authentic diasporic kitchens to inventive fusions – finds a platform and audience. Chefs like Syrian-born Imad Alarnab and Malaysian-born Mandy Yin turn personal journeys into culinary triumphs while rising stars such as Basque chef Nieves Barragán Mohacho elevate Spanish gastronomy to Michelin-star heights. Beyond food, the city’s cocktail culture has exploded over the past 15 years, blending luxury hotel pedigree with independent, experimental bars such as Shoreditch’s Tayēr + Elementary, Leyton Calling and Bethnal Green’s Coupette. Across kitchens, bars and markets, London thrives on diversity and entrepreneurial spirit, making it a destination where taste, culture and community collide in endlessly exciting ways.

The art of inclusion

London’s art scene pulses with diversity, experimentation and accessibility, offering both established institutions and grassroots initiatives as stages for creative expression. Events like Queeriosities champion queer, diasporic and emerging artists, while independent spaces such as HOME in Islington and Flock Together pop-ups bring community, interaction and inclusivity to the forefront. Artists from around the world – from Sri Lanka to Guatemala – find a home here, exploring identity, heritage and queerness in ways impossible elsewhere, supported by residencies, galleries and mentorship. Even major museums are evolving, curating more diverse programming that reflects the city’s kaleidoscopic population. For creatives, London is a living laboratory: stimulating, welcoming, and relentlessly reinventing itself as a space where artistic ambition, cultural hybridity and social conscience intersect.

Storming stages

The city’s music, dance, and theatre scenes are alive with experimentation, and community impact. From Tomorrow’s Warriors nurturing generations of globally celebrated jazz musicians, to Sadler’s Wells East redefining contemporary dance with immersive, socially engaged performances, the city provides platforms for innovation and inclusion. Independent venues, grassroots queer initiatives, and progressive theatre companies like The Yard and London Performance Studios amplify underrepresented voices while artists, choreographers, and performers push boundaries in identity, form, and collaboration. Across genres, London thrives as a space where creativity, social conscience, and cultural hybridity collide, offering opportunities, mentorship, and joy to generations of artists and audiences alike.

Come together

London’s queer scene is thriving in new, inventive ways, from intimate community hubs and pop-ups to inclusive clubs and intersectional nightlife. Spaces like Matchstick Piehouse, The Common Press, Rat Park, and Queer Edge offer art, performance, activism, and social connection, while DJs and collectives such as Sensorial Collective bring diasporic and global sounds to dancefloors. Across the city, these initiatives reflect London’s diversity, creativity, and solidarity, proving that queer culture here is as resilient, experimental, and joyously community-driven as ever.

The insiders’ guide to London

‘When a man is tired of London…’, he’s not paying attention, frankly. With all these delicious distractions across dining, tippling, the arts, shopping and more, who has time to even think about a nap? Unlock the city like never before with OutThere’s insiders’ guide to London – your passport to the capital’s hidden gems, buzziest hotspots and under-the-radar experiences, curated and championed by our favourite local tastemakers. This guide isn’t about what everyone else sees. It’s about what London’s trendsetters are discovering right now. Here are three suggestions to whet your appetites.

Beyond London

From our hometown, we venture outward to places and people who share that same restless spirit: revisiting Mykonos through the lens of inspired hospitality, heading into Bali’s jungle with a new generation of hoteliers, and travelling to the extremes of Chile’s Atacama Desert and Australia’s Red Centre, where landscape, culture and identity are inseparable. We end in Japan’s southern isles, where harmony speaks softly but endures. Across it all runs a shared thread of progress, courage and connection, reminding us that curiosity and kindness are not just ideals, but privileges worth protecting.

Natural hai
Okinawa, Japan

Japan’s southernmost archipelago may be low on Blade Runner-esque megalopolises and blossom-framed temples, but Rupert Mellor finds that its virgin subtropical islescapes and culture spun from serene harmony with nature exert a slow-burn seduction all of their own.

The wandering spirit
Bali, Indonesia

With zero experience in hospitality, Bayu Sarwono faced down personal, logistical and cultural challenges to create the exquisite Samsara Ubud, a tranquil, 17-villa retreat wrapped in untamed jungle north of Bali’s eponymous spiritual centre. Steffen Michels pays him a visit.

Since time
The Red Centre, Central Australia

Returning to Australia’s Red Centre three decades after its otherworldly landscapes and enigmatic energy first stopped her in her tracks, Lauren Jarvis discovers cutting-edge technology and empowered First Nations women telling its timeless stories in compelling new ways.

Higher love
Mykonos, Greece

Craving a taste of Mykonos’ high-octane hedonism and five-star glamour, yet with a chic, civilized spot to retreat to when the bass drops? That’s exactly how Uwern Jong’s love affair with the Greek island has evolved. Enter Cali Mykonos, the stunning creation of Eric Mourkakos, which nails the brief (and yes, he sweetly named it after his mum).

Dry spell
Atacama Desert, Chile

In Chile’s Atacama Desert, bar polar regions the most arid place on Earth, Steffen Michels finds vivid colours, curious creatures, convivial companions and a reinvigorated awe for nature’s endless variety and beauty. Not to mention desert digs, courtesy of Tierra Atacama, that are so achingly stylish it hurts.