The sticky red carpet and broken lampshades perfectly suit the quirky dress-up parties, cabaret line-ups and prop-themed nights at this cradle of the retro boom. Read more.
Opened by British saxophonist Ronnie Scott in 1959, Ronnie’s has since amassed as much history as the British Museum. Read more.
Given its reputation, you wouldn’t think the Jazz Café was such a newbie on London’s music map, but the venue was only converted from a branch of Barclays in 1990. Read more.
This is London’s oldest live music venue and jazz club. It opened during the war in 1942. Many of its earliest performers and patrons were American soldiers, including Glen Miller.
Experimental Cocktail Club is perhaps the closest we have to a genuine hidden drinking den, and the fact it's on the tourist strip of Gerrard Street makes it even more interesting. Read more.
