Birmingham

United Kingdom

Things to do in Birmingham:

View the Gallery View of the City at Night

Birmingham Restaurants

Cheap (23)

Maharaja

Wonderfully spicy curries and�tender tandoori dishes will help you keep warm on a cold March day. read more
Affordable (23)

Shogun

For a quick lunch, choose your sushi from the conveyor belt as it passes by. If you've got more time, try a teppanyaki dish, which is cooked right in front of your eyes. read more
Good quality (18)

Lasan

After it was crowned Britain's best local restaurant on Gordon Ramsay's F Word in January 2010, it is harder than ever to get a table at Lasan. Those lucky enough to succeed are rewarded with the... read more

Birmingham Nightlife

Chilled (20)

The Wellington

If you are serious about your beer, then this traditional pub dedicated to real ales is for you. Client�le are encouraged to bring their own food in a bid to spice up a boring TV dinner with a... read more
Live Music (15)

Scruffy Murphy's

The place to go for live rock, punk and metal, particularly on Thursday and Friday nights. Not for pop fans. read more
Clubbing (21)

Reflex

Take a trip back to the 1980s and boogie on down to classic Madonna, Duran Duran, Bon Jovi and the like. read more

This Month in Birmingham (March):

By Jenny McKelvie

Shopping: Styling itself as a designer store for younger shoppers, Rock Couture is the place to buy big-brand denim like Diesel and Lipsy (The Mailbox, 61-63 Wharfside Street).

Sightseeing: Must-have tickets this month are for the Welsh National Opera's riveting performances of Tosca, Carmen and The Abduction from Seraglio, performed on 16-18 March (birminghamhippodrome.com).

Key areas: Home to the University of Birmingham, Selly Oak boasts lots of lively student bars, cheap drinks promotions and ethnic restaurants. The suburb also provides easy access to the Birmingham-Worcester canal.

Day trips: If it's stunning architecture or ancient history that you're after, the famous university town of Oxford has it in bucket loads. Take the one-hour train journey and then cruise on the river, hop on a bicycle, ride an open-top tour bus or freak out on a ghost tour (visitoxford.org).

Birmingham News & Gossip

British Dance Edition Birmingham

3-6 FEB
BIRMINGHAM

For a breathtaking blend of some of the best work by UK dancers, dance companies and choreographers, the BDE is putting on a stonking show at numerous locations throughout Birmingham. Arthur Pita's God's Garden opens the four-day jam-packed programme at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre with a cast ranging in age from 26 to 82.

A highlight of the second day will be Jasmin Vardimon Company (pictured) performing the retrospective piece Yesterday. And Russell Maliphant Company performs the swan song at the Hippodrome with AfterLight Part 1, an homage to the late Sergei Diaghilev of Ballets Russes fame. www.bde2010.co.uk

Birmingham Trivia

March: When you walk across Centenary Square, spare a thought for the workers who laid the bricks under your feet by hand - there are more than half a million of them!
February: A product of the 1950s, Anchor Exchange is located 30m beneath Newhall Street. The secret underground bunker was designed to keep telephone lines operational in the event of a nuclear attack.
January: Birmingham has more trees than inhabitants, as well as more acres of park and open space than any other European city.