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The BFI IMAX. The cinema screen is more than 20 metres high (that's nearly the height of five double-decker buses!)
Sitting on the south bank of the River Thames under Waterloo Bridge, the British Film Institute (BFI) is a vast entertainment complex containing cinemas, a major film and TV library containing 46,000 books and an IMAX cinema screen – the largest in the UK.
It is also the place to visit if you want to watch a free film via their Mediatheque service. The Mediatheque allows you to watch films contained in the BFI’s vast film and TV archive. Using the Mediatheque is easy, you can simply turn up on the day, or book a viewing session in advance, and log-on at a viewing station.
To help you with your selection, films are clustered into themes such as London Calling which contains over 100 titles, enabling you to explore the city’s past and present through rarely seen film footage. The Mediatheque also contains classic British films such as The 39 Steps, Brief Encounter and Saturday Night and Sunday Morning.
It’s a perfect place to visit for inspiration.
Kevin – www.studylondon.ac.uk
Browse more than a million books (Source: The London Library)
The London Library dates back to 1841 and its early members are a roll call of the Victorian great and good: politician William Gladstone; poet Alfred Tennyson; and novelists William Thackeray, Charles Dickens and George Eliot. Walking around this warren of a building, you can enjoy walls covered with portraits of famous members, past and present.
Another unique feature of the Library is its cataloguing system. Its one million books are shelved in subject order with some books dating back to the 16th century – all of which are free for members to browse and take home.
I’m not recommending this library for students on a budget. Annual membership starts at £200 if you are aged 16 to 24 (or £16,800 for a life membership). But at 11am on the last Saturday of each month, you can sign up for a fee tour of this fascinating building. And after an hour of walking around the cast iron book stacks, you are given a complementary bookmark decorated with a quote from one of the library’s illustrious former members.
Kevin – www.studylondon.ac.uk
It’s official, London is a cheaper city to live in than New York and many European cities.
There has never been a better time to study in London. For example, it is now 25 percent cheaper for American students to study in London than it was last year.
Weakening exchange rates helped London fall 19 places to number 27 in this year’s Economist Intelligence Unit survey. This represents great value for students who want to study in a global city and gain a world-class education. It is no wonder London is home to more international students than any other city in the world.
The Worldwide Cost of Living survey is an unbiased and independent guide to prices and products in 140 cities around the world. The survey considers costs such as accommodation, entertainment and also everyday costs such as buying a loaf of bread.
Simon – www.studylondon.ac.uk
Rivington Place: an arts space with a difference (source: www.rivingtonplace.org)
Rivington Place is an amazing building. Built by architect David Adjaye, an alumni of the Royal College of Art, its jagged roof was influenced by a Sowei mask from Sierra Leone.
The building is home to the first permanent public space dedicated to culturally diverse visual arts and photography in the UK and it regularly hosts a series of free exhibitions. Currently you can enjoy a photography exhibition by South African artist Santu Mofokeng, who has catalogued the lives of rural tenant farmers with a series of intriguing images.
In addition to the gallery spaces, the building contains the Stuart Library, a specialist reference resource for art students and researchers. It contains a unique collection of monographs, exhibition catalogues, slides and over 80 international art periodicals.
Unlocking your creativity has never been so easy.
Kevin – www.studylondon.ac.uk
The Affordable Art Fair: 12-15 March
The Affordable Art Fair returns to the tranquillity of Battersea Park with a host of hot buys for art-loving Londoners.
From the 12-15 March, art fans can enjoy a colourful world of paintings, sculpture, photography and original prints, all priced between £50 and £3,000.
The Fair is a great opportunity to pick up an investment on a budget – be it artwork by a big name or an up-and-coming artist.
Art students can enjoy the Fair from an academic point of view, studying the diversity of techniques and ideas of original artists collected in one place from hundreds of UK and international art galleries.
The adventurous and curious can also sign-up for the Fair’s education programme with dozens of free artist-led talks and workshops. Why not join a hands-on printmaking session that allows you to create and take home your own prints?
Simon – www.studylondon.ac.uk
Charles Darwin (source www.nhm.ac.uk)
Most of London’s major museums are free, including the British Museum, the Victoria & Albert Museum and the Science Museum. But recently the Natural History Museum has been getting a lot of press attention because of the 200th anniversary of Charles Darwin’s birth. The Museum is celebrating the anniversary with a special exhibition.
The Darwin exhibition celebrates his ideas and their impact on how we view the world today. It was Darwin’s revolutionary theory that changed our understanding of the world and the exhibition contains rare exhibits and chronicles his life’s work.
And from September 2009 Museum visitors and scientists can share the excitement of exploring, studying and preserving the natural world in the new Darwin Centre. This 8-storey, £78 million landmark building completes the Darwin Centre’s development, which is the most significant expansion at the Museum since it moved to South Kensington in 1881.
Remember, you can discover more London budget tips here.
Kevin – www.studylondon.ac.uk
There has never been a better time to find value in this ever-changing city. Right now, you can take advantage of great currency exchange rates to get rewarding returns from your dollars, euros and rupees.
Read on for Study London’s budget advice for living and studying in the world’s knowledge capital.
Listen for free
The Barbican
Save your pennies and pounds with a Saturday night out at the Barbican. Keep your wallet in your pocket, sit back and relax in the comfortable foyer and enjoy the harmonies of the orchestra performing next door in the concert hall.
Stimulate your visual senses with the live plasma-screen broadcast and marvel at the composer’s energy while you and your friends sit back with your favourite drinks.
The Barbican is a magnet for classical music lovers. Not only is it home to the London Symphony Orchestra, the BBC Symphony Orchestra it also has regular guest slots. The Orchestre des Champs Elysées recently performed, giving visitors a free rendition from the likes of Mendelssohn and Schumann.
Europe’s largest multi-arts venue, the Barbican provides you with a feast of entertainment in the heart of the City. Why not spend a day exploring the venue’s cinemas, concert halls, art galleries, cafés and restaurants before unwinding with a free classical concert in the evening?
Kevin – www.studylondon.ac.uk
“London is a city where different cultures and thoughts meet. Living in this city, I never feel bored.
