Best Cat Sitter in London!

Yep, I know her and would be happy to recommend her to anyone in need of a kind, thoughtful, smart cat sitter who charges reasonable rates.

I'm a bit of a crank when it comes to people staying in my flat and don't like the idea of just anyone looking after my kitties. My wife's even more of a zealot when it comes to keeping a tidy home and with respect to the well being of our pets, she expects the utmost care. We both hold our cat sitter in the highest regard.

She even texts photos of our cats to us and sends us regular updates about how everything's going.


Contact me if you'd like to get in touch with London's most awesome-est cat sitter.

London, I’m Coming Home (Qype does London)

London, I’m Coming Home
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 11th 2009

I’m sitting here at Hartsfield International Airport (ick) in Atlanta waiting for my flight back to Heathrow (double ick). Despite the prospect of an especially sinister case of jetlag and an ever increasing pile of work waiting to gang up on me across The Pond, I’m more than ready to return. Three weeks is a long time to be away. I miss my wife, my kitties, my daily routine and the city I call home.

Read the complete London, I’m Coming Home post at Qype does London.

Pub Quiz Winner! (Qype does London)

Pub Quiz Winner!
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 7th 2009



To be honest, this was my first pub quiz, something I’ve always associated with London. Maybe they used to have them back when I lived here, but I don’t remember ever hearing about pub quizzes then or on any past visits. Anyway, our team won ...

Read the complete Pub Quiz Winner! post at Qype does London.

I Like Bodean's But ... (Qype does London)

I Like Bodean’s But …
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 3rd 2009



Don’t get me wrong; I like BoDean’s (especially their wings). But they could learn a thing or twelve from world famous master of the pit, Big Bob Gibson. As I said in my last post ...

Read the complete I Like Bodean’s But … at Qype does London.

“London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee (Qype does London)

“London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chris Osburn
Qype does London
January 2nd 2009



Driving around Chattanooga, Tennessee the other day I happened upon the above pictured van advertising Tugboat “London Style” Fish & Chips. I thought all you folks back in the UK would get a kick out of it.

Read the complete “London Style” Fish & Chips in Chattanooga, Tennessee post at Qype does London.

Book UK Airport Hotels with Airport-Hotels.co.uk

Every so often, I find myself with an upcoming flight taking off at the crack of dawn. When I’ve been able to spend the night before the flight at accommodations near the airport, it’s made those trips so much more relaxing than if I would have had to drag myself to the airport in the wee early morn feeling like a zombie.

Have you got a similar travel situation coming up? Consider booking a room at an airport hotel and cut down on any early morning stresses trying to make your airport.

A useful resource for booking your room near the airport is Airport-Hotels.co.uk, which lists every hotel available near every major airport in the UK. Whether situated within the airport perimeter (on-airport) and just a short walk to the airport terminal or off-airport and requiring a short transfer to the terminals, you’ll find the right hotel on Airport-Hotels.co.uk.

Airport-Hotels.co.uk compares relevant hotel prices from five leading hotel providers, including Holiday Extras, Superbreak, APH and FHR, helping to ensure you pay the lowest price for you room. With Airport-Hotels.co.uk, you can also choose to include dinner or breakfast, additional car parking or – of course – simply book a room. In addition to those features, Airport-hotels can be used to reserve hotel parking for up to fifteen days.

You also might want to keep Airport-Hotels.co.uk in mind to bypass any potential late night hassles associated with an upcoming flight arriving just in time for you to want to hit the sack. I’ve been in this situation a few times before too. And, when I’ve been able to simply make it to a room quick and move on the next morning after a decent night’s sleep, I’ve gotten more out of my trip. Of course, should you have an upcoming business meeting near a UK airport, Airport-Hotels.co.uk is an obvious choice for booking as well.

Return to Whitstable (Qype does London)

Return to Whitstable

Chris Osburn
Qype does London
September 15th 2008










Although it’s only some 60 miles from London, Whitstable seems like it’s a world away. The train trip’s scenic too. Whitstable’s train station is within walking distance of the town centre and beach - with the Pearl Fisher B&B essential equidistant between the station and the beach. I’m sure I’ll find myself back in Whitstable yet again. The delicious seafood and fresh salt air (all just a short jaunt away) are just too good.

Read the complete Whitstable post at Qype does London.

Ro0ollerco0oastering at Thorpe Park (Qype does London)

Ro0ollerco0oastering at Thorpe Park

Chris Osburn

Qype does London
August 18th 2008










So yesterday, a couple of my crazier friends and I ran all over Thorpe Park - home of Samurai, Colossus, Nemesis Inferno, Logger’s Leap, Slammer, Rush, Vortex, and various other pleasure machines with names inspired by professional wrestlers – for a fun-filled day of rides, splashes, bad food, gratuitous screeching and tons more laughs than are usually summoned on an average Sunday afternoon (in my postcode anyway).

Read the complete Thorpe Park post at Qype does London.

Le Eurostar weekend (Qype does London)

Le Eurostar weekend
by Chris Osburn
Qype does London
August 3rd 2008










I’m sure the Eurostar has its share of imperfections (one time about a year ago, my Paris-London train was delayed for what seemed an excruciatingly long couple of hours), but for the most part I’ve had pleasant experiences zipping through the Chunnel. Taking the Eurostar to/from any of its destinations is certainly more civilized and a lot more logistically sensible than getting to/from any airports these days!

Read the complete Eurostar weekend post.

Whitstable Weekend (Qype does London)

Whitstable Weekend
by Chris Osburn

Qype does London
July 14th 2008










While there, I was really blown away by the seafood. Whitstable is famous for its oysters and early into my stay I found out why: there’re delicious!

Click here for complete post.

London Daily Photo: Royal Ascot

London Daily Photo: Royal Ascot
Photography by Chris Osburn © 2008
Interested in contributing a photograph of London to this blog? Click here for details.

Chris Osburn Graffiti Photography Exhibition at West Yorkshire Playhouse in Leeds

Still feeling the love from Leeds! The West Yorkshire Playhouse will be exhibiting some of my London street art photographs from May 26 to June 8. I'd really like to thank Alex Croft of the WY Playhouse (for the opportunity) and to Terry Jones of Leeds College of Art and Design (for the hook up with Alex). My photos will be on display as an accompaniment to Tag ... just writing my name, an "original piece of Hip Hop theatre using break dance, bodypopping, rap-poetry, larger-than-life graffiti sculptures and videoanimation, TAG tells the story of a young obsessive graffiti writer in search of acceptance."

I'd also like to thank the artists whose artwork is highlighted in my photos for this exhibition:

Banksy, Cyclops, Dan Witz, Sickboy and Sweet Toof.

If you happen to be in Leeds while my pics are up and the performance is on, check 'em out!

How was the Chris Osburn Graffiti/Photography Talk at Leeds College of Art & Design

Last week's talk at Leeds College of Art & Design went well. I even got a few chuckles. There was small audience in attendance (thankfully!) but they seemed really into graf - and my photos! My talk served as a bit of a prelude for the upcoming Burning Candy exhibition at the college (as a ton of my photos are BC-related) and I'm super honoured to have played a small part. The folks up at Leeds are in for a treat and recommend anybody who can pop into the college to see the Burning Candy installation to do so!

Burning Candy
Sweet Toof, Cyclops, Tek 33
Leeds College of Art & Design
presented by Sartorial Contemporary Art
May 19 – June 27

For more about the upcoming Burning Candy exhibition at Leeds College of Art & Design visit:

http://www.leeds-art.ac.uk/home/news-events/exhibitions/
http://sartorialart.com/burning_candy_pr.html

Chris Osburn Graffiti/Photography Talk at Leeds College of Art & Design

If anybody's in Leeds on Thursday (May 8), I'll be at the College of Art and Design giving a free talk with lots of pretty pictures of mostly London graffiti.

Chris Osburn Talk
1pm, Thursday 8th May
Studio Theatre, Blenheim Walk
Leeds College of Art and Design


Chris Osburn is an American freelance photojournalist and filmmaker living and working in London. As a foreign correspondent for publications such as Juxtapoz and Whitehot Magazine of Contemporary Art, Chris covers England's burgeoning graffiti scene from the frontline, often accompanying notorious street artists on their outings.

A list of the renowned artists which Chris has photographed in action includes Sweet Toof, Cyclops, Sickboy and Dan Witz. He has interviewed significant contemporary urban artists such as Paul Insect, David Choe and Invader and has extensively photographed the works of numerous legendary artists, including Jef Aerosol, Adam Neate, and Banksy.

Click here for more information.

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Chris Osburn at Leeds College
by Katie Zuppann

Juxtapoz
Friday, 02 May 2008

Our buddy Chris Osburn will be chatting about graffiti and the London street art scene at the Leeds College of Art & Design on May 8th ... If you’re in the UK, make sure to stop by Leeds and have a bit of Osburn knowledge whispered into your ear.

Click here for complete post.

Freshly Packed Suitcase Full of Misery at T5

Fresh baggage woes at Terminal 5
Hopes of Heathrow's Terminal 5 operating its first full schedule of flights have been scuppered by a new glitch with the baggage system.
BBC News
Page last updated at 13:19 GMT, Saturday, 5 April 2008 14:19 UK

Airport operator BAA's computer system which sorts bags before they are loaded onto flights malfunctioned and manual sorting had to be carried out.

Click here for complete article.

British Airways to Cancel More T5 Flights

BA to cancel hundreds more flights from T5
By Kevin Done, Aerospace Correspondent
Financial Times
Published: March 30 2008 17:33 Last updated: March 30 2008 17:33

British Airways expects to cancel hundreds more flights at its global hub at London Heathrow airport this week, as it battles to overcome baggage handling and other operating problems at its showpiece £4.3bn Terminal 5.

Click here for complete article.

T5 Nightmare Continues

What did go wrong at Terminal 5?
Seventy flights have been cancelled in the last two days as teething problems at Heathrow Airport's new Terminal 5 caused chaos. But what actually went wrong?
BBC News
Page last updated at 18:43 GMT, Friday, 28 March 2008

The problems appear to be due to a combination of factors.

Click here for complete article.

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BA promising Terminal 5 fix soon
The Press Association - 1 hour ago
BA has moved to reassure air passengers contemplating a third day of travel chaos at Heathrow's Terminal Five (T5) by revealing that just 37 flights would ...

British Airways boss Willie Walsh refuses to quit after Heathrow chaos
Mirror.co.uk, UK - 1 hour ago
Arch-rivals Virgin Atlantic stuck the boot in, saying BA had been given a wonderful gift with T5 "but they couldn't unwrap it properly". ...

Disruption at T5 enters third day
BBC News, UK - 2 hours ago
Cancelled flights, a temporary suspension in luggage check-in and baggage delays blighted the opening day of T5 on Thursday, leaving many passengers ...

Day 2 At T5 .. And It's Business As Usual
Glasgow Daily Record, UK - 3 hours ago
Scheduled flights from Glasgow, Edinburgh and Aberdeen were axed as T5 saw a second day of long queues, cancellations and baggage delays. ...

SEEING RED IN STYLE
Mirror.co.uk, UK - 3 hours ago
In fact the staff at T5 were faultless - impossibly patient, relentlessly cheerful and endearingly helpful. All in all, it was a very British day out - 18 ...

COMPO TO COST DEAR
Mirror.co.uk, UK - 3 hours ago
The T5 debacle will cost BA millions - but it may try to get some of the cash back from the British Airports Authority, which technically runs the building. ...

ERRORS PILED UP ALL DAY
Mirror.co.uk, UK - 3 hours ago
When they finally got into T5, a programming error meant staff could not log into the baggage handling computer. Passengers arrived to find check-ins ...

T5: Big and British = Cock Up?

Baggage halted at new £4.3bn T5
Flights from Heathrow's new £4.3bn Terminal 5 are departing with hand baggage only after luggage check-in was suspended due to technical problems.
BBC News
Last Updated: Thursday, 27 March 2008, 19:43 GMT

British Airways, which has sole use of T5, announced check-in of all hold luggage was suspended until Friday. The airline has already cancelled 34 flights because of baggage system problems and passengers have had to wait up to four hours for luggage.

Click here for complete article.

T5 Opens - No Fingerprints

Heathrow's T5 open to passengers
Heathrow's new Terminal 5 has opened to the public as British Airways begins operating from the building.
BBC News
Last Updated: Thursday, 27 March 2008, 07:59 GMT

A BA flight from Hong Kong was the first to arrive at the £4.3bn facility. The first departure was at 0620 GMT, when a service left for Paris.

Click here for complete article.

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'Hassle Heathrow' new terminal opens
CNN International - 44 minutes ago
With 60 aircraft stands actually attached to two new buildings, "T5" can handle dozens of planes at the same time -- including the new Airbus A380 ...

Terminal 5 opens its doors
Guardian, UK - 7 minutes ago
Travellers on the first arrival at T5, flight BA026 from Hong Kong, reported no major problems with baggage or long queues at immigration - two of the ...

Heathrow's T5 Adds Passengers, Fails to Stop Delays (Update1)
Bloomberg - 1 minute ago``T5 was actually designed in the early 1990s and so is already out of date,'' Steve Ridgway, Virgin's chief executive officer, said in an e-mailed response ...

BAA axes T5 fingerprinting plan
Guardian, UK - 4 hours ago
Airport operator BAA will not be taking fingerprints of passengers using Heathrow's £4.3 billion Terminal 5 (T5) following doubts over the legality of such ...

Flash mob demo expected as T5 opens The Press Association
Heathrow T5 opens amid tight security Reuters UK
Protests planned as T5 opens for business ITN
TeleText - MSNBCall 321 news articles »

Cheap Flights to London (United and Travelocity)

From the Travelocity website:

Round-Trip Flights From $341+
As the days grow warmer and that famous fog begins to lift, London bursts into full bloom. Now is the perfect moment to visit this storied city with United's round-trip flights from $341+. Book today and take a jolly holiday before the summer crowds arrive.

- Tickets must be issued by March 26, 2008.
- Outbound travel must completed by May 15, 2008.
- Fares are valid for travel Monday - Wednesday.
- See Terms and Conditions for advance purchase requirements.

Click here for more info at Travelocity (and let me know if you're coming for a visit!).