24 Hours in London
By Nicola Campbell
With 24 hours in the capital, there was only one sensible thing to do: return to my old shopping stomping ground. Three of my favourite neighbourhoods, one very good lunch and one revamped autumn-into-winter wardrobe later, here’s my London edit.
I love the train from Edinburgh to London. Get on at Waverley in the morning and on some of the fastest services you’ll be at King’s Cross just over four hours later, city centre to city centre. If work is busy, I open the laptop and those hours become pleasingly productive. If I’m properly off duty, it’s a book, a magazine or several hours of podcasts instead.
It’s interesting that friends elsewhere in Scotland, including one in Inverness, make a good case for a flying visit to London for a dedicated shopping trip. One flight to London can feel as straightforward as making your way. by car, bus or train to Scotland’s bigger cities. London is closer than we Scots sometimes think.
Lucky me found myself there for a 24 hour work visit recently, what to do? I made my way to my old shopping stomping ground, obviously.
I lived in London for over 15 years, straight after university until my mid-thirties, and I still love the fact that shopping here isn’t concentrated in one big homogenous shopping centre. Walk a relatively small pocket of the West End and you can move from high street to designer, polished flagships to impressive department stores, with each area offering something slightly different.
Oxford Street
Oxford Circus is always a good starting point for a day of shopping in London.
This is where I go when I mean serious shopping business. Selfridges and John Lewis can take care of almost anything, while Zara, & Other Stories, Uniqlo and the rest make it easy to do a proper wardrobe sweep without spending the entire day travelling between shops.
Oxford Street went through a period when it felt a little tired, but there is serious change under way. Much of London’s most famous shopping street is soon to become pedestrianised. That will be a serious change from the traffic-filled street I remember but the main appeal of heading straight here for a day of proper London shopping is that there is a huge amount of the best high street names concentrated into one street. Some of which that are still to make it to Scotland - yes, OYSHO that’s you.
Regent Street
The brand mix is what makes Regent Street worth a stroll on a London shopping spree.
Turn down onto Regent Street and everything feels a little polished more like the London of the movies.
The sweep of the architecture helps, of course, but so does the mix of shops. I come here for brands including COS, Arket and & Other Stories, then inevitably detour just off Regent Street to the wonderful Liberty department store. It’s always been a little indulgence of mine. There are shops you visit because you need something and shops you visit because you want to see what they have found. Liberty has always fallen firmly into the latter camp for me. The perfumes and the beauty hall never fail to delight.
Bond Street
And finally, Bond Street, for when I fancy a little fantasy. This remains London’s serious luxury-shopping territory, home to the big fashion and jewellery houses and some of the best windows in the city. Am I heading into every boutique with a credit card poised? No. Am I looking at everything? Absolutely.
High-end window shopping has its place. Fashion is supposed to give you ideas, and half the fun is seeing the colours, proportions, accessories and styling at the top end before working out what you might actually want to bring into your own wardrobe. Investment pieces? Yes, you’ll find them here.
Lunch At Berners Tavern
Enjoy a champagne and refuel at Berners Tavern at The London EDITION.
Shopping in stores and window shopping too require stamina, so I escaped to my pre-booked table at Berners Tavern at The London EDITION.
It is one of those rooms that still makes an impression however many photographs you have seen: soaring ceilings, chandeliers and walls covered in artwork. More importantly after several hours on Oxford Street, it gives you permission to sit, rest and indulge in a menu that’s tricky to choose from beacuse it all sounds, well, just so good.
We started with Champagne accompanied by a few little amuse bouche treats including mouth watering arancini and a pair of mini Marmite tarts - one of Berners signatures. I followed it with a giant and crispy Caesar salad. I couldn’t not have the recommended side of mac and cheese, which was just the right consistency of saucy and cheesy for one who is a little fussy in such matters. Yes, I’m hard to please when it comes to macaroni cheese so it’s worth the trip to taste this dish alone.
FYI, there is another reason for Scottish diners to keep Berners on their radar for any trips to London. As part of its Great British Pie Residency, the restaurant is inviting three chefs to reinterpret the pork pie over autumn and winter, with Scotland’s own Tom Kitchin taking his turn from 25th January to 15th February 2027. His signature pie will cost £25, with £5 from each one sold donated to Magic Breakfast.
I was advised to leave room for dessert, advice I am very glad I took. The crème brûlée with madeleines was worth it.
The London Edit
By the end of the afternoon, I felt a little like Julia Roberts on Rodeo Drive in Pretty Woman. So many bags. So many.
But, now that I am in my fifties, this was far removed from my Topshop hauls of the noughties. My buys are not the sort destined to have a three-week lifespan in my wardrobe. I’d hit London looking for autumn pieces that would work hard right through winter: the sort of buys that make everything I already have in my existing closet fresh and relevant for this season and beyond.
So, what did I buy? Well, it’s a cohesive edit of knits, jackets and separates in neutral tones of tobacco tones and soft browns that will layer up perfectly for autumn into winter and, of course, a Scottish spring too.
“I like to move into autumn with a soft tonal palette of browns and neautrals. It means everything in my closet can work together whichever way I layer it up.”
Dinner At Aqua Kyoto
Enjoy rooftop dining at Aqua Kyoto in London’s Soho
After dropping the bags, it was time to swap shopping for dinner. I met Hood’s lovely London Ambassador, Anna Low, at Aqua Kyoto, moments from Oxford Circus on Argyll Street.
We started with a cigar roll and spinach salad, followed by crystal sushi and a sashimi and sushi platter to share. Then came miso black cod and yuzu and shiso lamb, before dessert, matcha tiramisu and black sesame chocolate pudding, also shared. Two cocktails each completed proceedings.
Aqua Kyoto’s current menu still includes its signature crystal sushi, sashimi and sushi platters, Saikyo miso black cod and yuzu and shiso marinated lamb, so this is very much a restaurant to arrive at hungry.
Where I Stayed
The Radisson Blu Hotel is handily placed on Oxford Street just by Bond Street Station.
The Radisson Blu Hotel, London Bond Street is brilliantly placed for a shopping trip, with Selfridges practically on the doorstep and Bond Street station opposite.
The refurbished suites feel suitably luxurious, with wonderfully comfortable Vispring beds and, in mine, a terrace looking over towards Oxford Street. What’s not to love? After a day of shopping and eating, climbing into bed to watch season three of Colin from Accounts felt about right.
Upgrade works made the reception experience a little disruptive, but the genuinely friendly staff more than made up for it.
By the end of 24 hours, I had covered my old shopping circuit, eaten extremely well, caught up with Anna and acquired enough autumn additions to see me well into winter.
London shopping still has that effect on me. I may arrive with a carefully considered list, but I rarely leave with only what was on it.