Flower Power

Edward Burtynsky's highly detailed and razor sharp photography has garnered him an international reputation. His works generally focus on places where human activity interrupts the existence of nature: quarries, industrial refineries and shipyards, for example. This exhibition at Flowers East consists of images of mines in Western Australia: the balance

The Duchess of Pork and Al Dente, the 'naked stuntmen' behind Sugarlow, take over at the Royal Vauxhall for a night of well chosen music including '60s girl groups, '70s disco, '80s NY no wave, '90s indie and up-to-date electro. DJ duo Readers Wifes are resident guests and being as it's in the tavern, you can expect all manner of surprise cabaret, guest

Thank XXXX for Funny Business brings you four of the London circuit's best comedians on one billing. These people will have you laughing so hard, you''ll think that you've been subjected to the same gas the Joker uses in Batman.

Now in its 23rd year, the Chuckle Club is the second oldest comedy club in London, next to the Comedy Store. Held in the LSE student bar, it consequently has the cheapest drinks you will find at a comedy club and it attracts some of the biggest comedians on the circuit too. Eddie Izzard and Al Murray have appeared in the past and recent billings in

After a couple of years throwing parties around London, Man Make Music settles down for the winter at The Last Days of Decadence.  The night has a reputation for forward-thinking, bass-heavy music and an open-minded attitude to programming, two things carried over to the new residency. Over coming months you'll be able to see a variety of top-class DJs

Charles Darwin's voyage aboard HMS Beagle was one of the most significant journeys undertaken in recent times. It was via the Beaagle that Darwin was able to visit the Galapagos Islands and from there begin to form the basis of what became his theory of evolution. 2009 represents 200 years since Darwin's birth, and that - combined with the Richard Dawkins

Gosh, they're a greedy bunch over at Transition Gallery. Apparently 'Too Much Is Not Enough' - I mean, will they never be satisfied? Probably not. Anyway, 'Too Much Is Not Enough' is the title of their first exhibition of 2009 and features work by five contemporary artists, including Sarah Doyle and Cathy Lomax. It's all about exploring fame, fans and

A unique piece of musical theatre written for actors and orchestra by a creative dream team of Tom Stoppard and André Previn.

The piece follows two inmates in an asylum: one, a political dissident who must admit that his old ideas were wrong and he is now cured, before he can be released. Another, a genuine loony who is surrounded at all times by an orchestra.

A groundbreaking piece combining a clever exploration of truth, liberty and sanity with a thrilling aural soundscape.

Guess what? According to some, experimental pop is going to be the sound of 2009. So to break you in gently, New York's incredible Animal Collective are playing a couple of dates around London.

A collaboration of Avet Tare and Panda Bear, these guys hack around in the regions of folk, noise rock and ambient drone to create sounds that invariably wig out and go off in crazy random directions.

If anything is worth the £20 entrance fare it's this gig.  Top comedians like Sean Lock, Dave Gorman, Robin Ince, Milton Jones, Lucy Porter and Tony Law will be performing and it's all in aid of the Free Fringe.

Set up by Peter Buckley-Hill in 1996 and initially funded out of his own pocket, the Free Fringe puts on comedy shows over the Edinburgh Festival (115 last year) and in London for the rest of the year. There is no charge to the public, to the performers or to the venue owners so it truly is a free comedy experience. They survive with discretionary donations and one-off benefits like this one.  Do your bit for comedy and the greater good and buy a ticket.

Rowan Atkinson, perhaps the best loved comedy star in Britain, returns to the London stage in this gala production of the classic Lionel Bart musical Oliver! directed by man-of-the-moment Oliver Goold. The show is bound to draw huge crowds.

Based on a Charles Dickens novel which was unusual for the time in that it focused throughout on the life of a child and contained an unromanticised portrait of squalor, poverty and crime in London, the musical is rather more upbeat, although it does still focus on some pretty sordid characters.

Atkinson (Blackadder, Mr Bean etc) plays the role of Fagin, the terrifying but charismatic leader of a criminal gang with whom the young Oliver falls in. The story follows the young hero from orphanhood, through the poorhouse, a life of reluctant crime and capture, to eventual salvation through the kindness of strangers. The show features a number of brilliant tunes including 'Food, Glorious Food' and 'Consider Yourself at Home'.

London is fairly dry when it comes to the world of gay comedy, so trust the ever reliable institution the Royal Vauxhall Tavern to come up with a fantastic night showcasing the best in national and international comedy.

Normally hosted by Zoe Lyons or Cathy P, the RVT Comedy Club is a friendly affair set in a purpose-built theatre pub with a stage at one end.  Everyone sits on tables facing the action and there are sometimes audience joke competitions to get involved with during the break.

Kicking off the London International Mime Festival in explosive style, the Akhe Engineering Theatre out of Russia take up residency at the Shunt Vaults for two nights of explosive, messy experimentation.

From mad, bad and dangerous cooking to quasi-scientific experiments that always end in disaster, this is physical theatre at its most madcap and inventive.

Ooh, an exhibition with a strange (and slightly rude) title at Limoncello this month. Lordy, isn't Hoxton just the darnedest?

Contemporary artist Josephine Flynn presents a series of works that involve a knitted character and a Mexican chap in hospital. God knows what it's all about, but it sounds like fun.

(By the way, Spoonfed's Managing Editor suggested that we make more of the darn pun in the first paragraph - you know knitting, darning, darn it, that sort of thing - but we thought it best to ignore him on that one...) We're intrigued to know your thoughts.

Essentially the project of Salt Lake City native Ben Shepard, Uzi and Ari combines typewriter beats, childlike melodies and office worker samples into hopelessly charming and heart-rending musings on battered relationships and modern living.

Playing at Bardens tonight in the company of Tom Denney's avant-pop darlings Lonely Ghosts, this is the ideal chance to see the darker side of pop at its most bittersweet. Not the cheeriest thing for a cold January we know, but then what do you expect from a bunch of terminally addicted Belle and Sebastian listeners?

Warren Fischer and Casey Spooner equals Fischerspooner - the Brooklyn based art, performance and electro project.

They are renowned for their live shows which explode with creative energy and stunning visual effects. Their music cuts a line between punked-up digital party pop and deep, intuitive fantasia.

Tonight the pair play a DJ set alongside Jerry Bouthier and Andrea Gorgerino (aka JBag), The Lovely Jonjo (Durrr) and Warboy.

Three new works by Alastair Mackie ensure 2009 gets off to a good start at the David Roberts Art Foundation.

There's a piece incorporating a '30s taxidermy display case, a wooden loom that weaves mouse hair, and a dolls' house made out of the wood pulp from 262 abandoned wasp nests. Sounds intriguing.

The place to be right now is France! Musically it is spawning the very best of the new up-and-coming punk, rock, indie, dance and new wave bands and DJs. Combined, these artists are rapidly engendering an exciting and innovative music scene.

Tonight's headliners are Poni Hoax, five French music nerds who party like only French music nerds can: avec gusto!

The eclectic Udio night returns with an extra special January edition. Tonight the one and only Greg Wilson - encyclopedia discoteca - headlines.

The Udio policy is to book names on their musical merit rather than household ubiquity - a method that has proved a storming success so far.

Expect a cosmic mix of disco, funk, techno, hip-hop and more, all accompanied by live Djembe and headed up by resident Earform Jim.

Since it first began in 1981, the annual Hackney Empire New Act of the Year competition has been widely recognised as one of the best out there for discovering new comedy.  Some of the nation's finest and wittiest have been in the finals of this competition including Russell Brand, Joe Wilkinson, David Baddiel, Matt Lucas, Alan Davies, Ardal O'Hanlon and Ronnie Ancona to name but a few.

After five weeks of auditions at some of London's favourite comedy clubs, over 100 of the newest acts getting attention on the circuit have been whittled down to the final 16, comprising of stand ups, sketch groups and speciality acts.

Schtumm - Brighton's legendary warehouse party - have been spreading the love London's way every third Saturday down at the high church of electro mash-up-chaos that is 333. Tonight promoter Neal Lewis spins his italo-electro goodness, plus Pete Herbert (Reverso 68) gives you a Balearic bubble bath and Rekids' Toby Tobias shuffles his cosmic funk.

Resident Klose One (Urban Nerds) cuts a fast-paced line through bassline, dubstep, 2 step, breaks and electro down in the basement.

Bugged Out! is one of those parties that's maintained its stupendously good reputation over the 12 years its been running. Their formula is simple. Book the very best.

Always a couple of steps ahead of the game, they've got a knack for booking people just before they explode: Chemical Brothers and Daft Punk are just a two of the acts who played Bugged Out! and then shot to global stardom.

Erol Alkan and JoJo De Freq are the residents. Both of whom are, of course playing tonight. They're joined by the world's biggest dance act Justice who'll be playing a DJ set, plus bastard booty bass specialist Hannah Holland, Horse Meat don Severino and many more.

A large-scale video installation this month in the basement project space at V22.

Yael Schmidt presents multiple projections, each one displaying figures in a variety of - usually private - activities: sleeping, thinking, bathing.

A Taylor Wood or Emin-esque exploration of the often uneasy relationship between the public and the private, this is intimate and beguiling work.

A first London revival for nearly forty years of John Antrobus' therapy comedy. Originally staged at the Royal Court in 1969 (and starring Stephen Rea) this savagely funny but ultimately compassionate piece is surprisingly modern in its attitude. While therapy, patients and therapists are all satirised, the play supports the idea of healing through sharing.

Captain Oates' Left Sock is a potted history of a group of diverse patients seeking help on the NHS. Sex mad David, submissive Juliet, fidgety Carter, and Celia who just wants to help. These are real characters and we feel for them as the action progresses... but also enjoy a good laugh at their expense.

mulletover do the right thing with a recession special tonight - it's only eight quid if you book now.

They've recruited one of the leading female figures in the techno world - Anja Schneider - Queen of the Mobilee Empire. Her debut album 'Beyond The Valley' was released last year to global acclaim and her radio show remains one of Germany's most respected.

Ah look, zee Svedes are coming to London, wiz zer trëndy designer clözing and zer flowing blonde hairs. How åbsolutely super!

Since the mid '90s Sweden has emerged as something of a hotbed of contemporary fashion, with a swathe of young avant-garde designers displaying a relaxed calm elegance mixed with a more experimental edge.

Designers like Ann-Sofie Back are household names now, but London ought to pay more attention to people like Sandra Backlund, Helena Horstedt and Nakkna.

Two wise-cracking kids pick on a new arrival in New York City in a short, nasty and brutal period piece from the late-'60s that still rings true today.

Murph and Joe are anti-heroes, bastards in fact, but the abuse that they heap on the unfortunate Gupta exactly dissects the timeless prejudices of western society. In 1968, the play won writer Israel Horovitz an Obie for Best Play, and a young Al Pacino got Best Actor in his breakthrough role.

Scandal schmandal, Russell Brand is back and is as popular as ever if ticket sales for his 2009 tour are anything to go by.  This is a real treat for Brand lovers as the award-winning comic abandons film-making and Hollywood to return to the UK's stand-up circuit. 30,000 Daily Mail readers won't be desperately trying get tickets, the rest of us will.

Bored with the musical direction of The Buzzcocks even before punk had died, Howard Devoto's progressive streak was channelled into Magazine with a vengeance.

Although commercially a failure (and one that lead to Devoto rejoining the Buzzcocks for a series of lucrative tours and albums) Magazine's mix of jagged chords, broken voices and atmospheric sonic landscapes has made a massive impact on popular music, as any listen to a Maximo Park or Pretty Girls Make Graves record will tell you.