The Palace Theatre in Cambridge Square is a sort of half-way house on the ambitious tour which Sir John Gielgud is undertaking at the head of the Shakespeare Memorial Theatre Company now presenting "Much Ado About Nothing" and "King Lear." Already the players have appeared in Vienna, Zurich, Amsterdam, Rotterdam and the Hague, and when their season at the Palace finishes on September 17th, they will go back to the Continent to give performances in Berlin, Hamburg, Oslo and Copenhagen before returning to visit six major cities in the United Kingdom. Finally there is to be a short season at Stratford-upon-Avon.

For many reasons, the “Job quest” is the most difficult task to achieve in London, and the most important, too, for many reasons. First of all, working in London is an incredibly good experience. You will discover lots of new people, and new working methods. The second thing is about money. Staying in London is expensive, and working is the only solution if you want to enjoy the life there. And then, this is useful to validate your “Stage FH”.

Getting a job will probably not be an easy thing. In fact,

• You are French, and French people aren’t English’s best friends,
• In general, you speak basic English,
• You’re coming from nowhere (yes, for an English, France is nowhere), and you have no job references,
• You’re staying in London during only three months,
• You can’t work one day per week, due to lessons at UCL,
• And, worst of all, you have no experience or qualification.

For an employer, you are all but the ideal applicant. If another guy applies to the same offer, he will probably get the job.

Obviously, your only strength is French speaking. There are about 600.000 French people in London, so speaking French is a good quality. So, if you want a cool office work, look for jobs which require to speak French. But this is certain that this kind of work will not help to improve your English. If you want to do so (and this is by far the best solution), you will probably get one of these jobs :

• Waiter
• Cook
• Cleaner
• Barman
• Cashier
• Or just… Slave !

Or, if you’re lucky, maybe you will be sales assistant in computer shops or boutiques.

Geography

The United Kingdom is an island located north of France, and inhabited by strange people : the British... oh, you already know that ? OK, so let's be a little more specific, we will focus on London.

London has 7,172,000 inhabitants, who live in some 1579 km². This is one of the biggest European cities in terms of population, with Paris, Moscow and Istanbul. But in fact it isn't really a city but a metropolitan area called Greater London (like the "Région Parisienne" in France). The Greater London administrative area comprises the City of London and 32 London boroughs (equivalent to French "cantons").

The London that most tourists see is Central London, which comprises the historic City of London, the West End, the City of Westminster, the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, which are the richest areas of London. In contrast, the East End has played host to successive waves of immigrants for centuries and contains some of the UK's most deprived areas.

Weather

That's the hard point. London's weather is nearly the same as Brittany or Normandy. Very cloudy, there is often rain and always wind. September is usually sunny, with temperatures about 15-20°C. But the remaining months are colder, with temperatures from 12-15° in October to 0-5° in December. In fact, the main problem is the wind, which cools you down a lot. Don't forget your warm clothes !

The other issue is about rain : sometimes it's raining permanently during one week. You'll probably need a good umbrella (and a strong one, British wind is definitely an umbrella killer) and waterproof shoes.

Time

London and the whole UK are under GMT time, and British have summer time like us. In fact, when it's 12:00 in Paris, it's always 11:00 in London, no matter of the summer time. That's easy, isn't it ?

Nonetheless, you will be hit by a small detail. Due to the timeshift and the latitude, the sunset comes very early : in December, the night falls by about 4:00 PM !

Now that you know in what you will put your toes into, let's have a look at formalities and things to prepare before you leave.

The London Survival Guide

Tip #1: Be good on the Tube.

It's quite simple, really. Keep those suitcases reined in, rehash last night's romantic endeavors in the privacy of your hotel, and stand on the right of the escalators when you move through a station. And keep an eye on construction projects: That pesky Victoria Line has been causing travel problems all summer.

Tip #2: Embrace traditional foods.
You might want to treat your taste buds to Lancaster hotpot, bangers and mash or…toad-in-the-hole? Welcome to Pub Menu 101. The aforementioned hotpot is a meat and vegetable casserole topped with sliced potatoes, and bangers (however saucily named) are sausages that go with mash(ed potatoes). As for the toad concoction, prepare your taste buds for battered and roasted sausages. If none of that sounds good, head to Brick Lane for a great curry.

Hot bath is good. Hot bath is just chife! My legs forget three days of uninterrupted running across Great Britain, while I recall Edinburgh, London and Durham cathedral where I was standing in a robe, like Harry Potter.

MBA Procession

London can be an intimidating city, but it's also one of the world's most fascinating places. Here's some advice for first-time visitors.

London DJs are famous the world over, earning huge sums just for playing records, and the club scene here is second to none. Clubs come and go, some going before they've come - so it's worth checking on the day if you can. The usual free and not-so-free listings magazines give a good view of the week ahead, though some have plugs to get in.

In summer the main focus is the Mediterranean Isle of Ibiza, where clubbers regard the beach as somewhere to chill after all-night sessions. Many famous DJs appear in London to promote their overseas ventures.

Again it's the choice and range that's so impressive - through the staple 2-black-guys-and-a-drumbox, through to 'cheese' and clubs where playing board games is the raison d'etre. The current trend is UK Underground Garage which the Ministry of Sound has recently gone big on. The Ministry may seem like an old established multinational, but it's really up-to-date, it's continuing success is based at being at the cutting edge, and then refining the experience. Bagley's was first, but the MOS muscled in and outdid them.

There's also, and this is very British too, a healthy cross-over between dance music and traditional ethnic music, with 'banghra' music adding in Indian Sub-Continental sounds, as well as the ubiquitous reggae, afro, latin hybrids.

The excellent NME Music Paper online has an extensive search engine for gigs and clubs - you can also buy tickets there

We think London is at its best in the last two weeks of September. But there's actually plenty to do and see the year round. Weather is likely to be a major factor and it often surprises visitors to find that August is quite a wet month.
For a list of military ceremonial events (there are a surprising number, not just changing of the guard) see the Army's Website. Actually it can be more fun to attend a rehearsal of an event such as 'Trooping of the Colour' consult the list before you come.  

 London Calendar:

January: Often a pleasant month - not too cold, and not too wet. The very end of the month sees Atlantic gales blowing in. The Sales are on and everyone is shopping crazy. The theatres & concert halls are getting back to normal after the Christmas rush: good ticket availability. On the 1st a (crap) New-York style parade through the centre of town. Positive: sales, xmas theatre season still on, but easier to get tickets. Negative: people have the post-xmas blues, can be overcast.