Welcome

Happy bank holiday Monday! And if you're working today - thank you.

Today we've got Finchley's famous film locations - and the cheapest flat in Hampstead. Plus Finch-ley ley lines. Who knew?

🎬5 Times Finchley Went Hollywood

With Ludwig Season Two freshly launched - and Finchley doubling for one of its key locations - we’re checking out films and TV shows with surprising local connections.

1. Finchley lands a starring role in series two of BBC comedy-drama Ludwig (2026). The Pentland Group site off Squires Lane doubles as the gloomy offices of the fictional East Anglia Advertiser, where Mark Bonnar’s character works. The wedding in this season’s episode 2 filmed at North Mymms Park in Hertfordshire.

2. The Long Walk to Finchley (2008) is a satirical drama exploring Margaret Thatcher’s early political career. Set in post-war Britain, it follows her journey from a grocer’s daughter to Conservative candidate for Finchley.

​Not filmed in Finchley, but deeply about it, the film charts Thatcher’s ambition, resilience and political rise with sharp humour, historical insight and a focus on personal sacrifice.

3. Remember Shaun of the Dead (2003)? A downtrodden London salesman(Simon Pegg) caught alongside his loved ones in a zombie apocolypse?

All filmed around Finchley and the surrounding areas. Shaun’s house is at 83 Weston Park, Crouch End, and he works at Foree Electrics, which is actually Garland Electronics on 763-765 High Road, North Finchley (still in business?). Shaun’s mum Barbara and step-dad Philip (played by Penelope Wilton and Bill Nighy) live at 37 Abbots Gardens, on a quiet little slice of suburban paradise in East Finchley. Cameos from Coal Drops Yard, Kings Cross.

4. ​Hot Fuzz (2007) fans may recognise a little slice of Finchley. The 2007 action comedy, starring and co-written by Simon Pegg, filmed its flower shop scene at Finchley Nurseries in Mill Hill, bringing the cult British movie unexpectedly close to home.

5. Monty Python brought its surreal humour to Finchley for And Now for Something Completely Different (1971). Scenes were filmed along North Finchley’s High Road, including Terry Jones testing a dubious Hungarian phrasebook at number 928, while Eric Idle famously disappeared down a manhole outside number 811.Perhaps Spike influenced?

From zombies to Python, Finchley has played a bigger screen role than you might think. 🎬

Events

COMMUNITY

Friday 11th September

Heritage Open Days 2026 | Fri, Sep. 11 | 10:00 am to 4:00 pm | St Mary-at-Finchley, 26 Hendon Lane N3 1TR | Free-of-charge | A fantastic programme of events across the week including Heritage Tours, an Organ Recital & Coffee, Patronal Festival Lunch, Healthy Heritage Walk followed by drinks & nibbles, Community Gardening and a rare opportunity to see the famous sundial featured on BBC Antiques Roadshow and in a 1793/4 painting by JMW Turner. | info​

MUSIC

Thursday 3rd September

Musical Afternoon with Blue Sky duo Becky & Triona | Thu, Sep. 03 | 3:00 pm | Avery at Barnet Grange, 59 Wood Street, Barnet EN5 4BS | £5 | Enjoy an afternoon of live music with Blue Sky duo Becky and Triona who’ll be singing classics from Cole Porter to Snow Patrol, James Taylor, Bruce Springsteen and many others. | tickets​

SPORTS & WELLBEING

Thursday 3rd September

Protecting Your Hearing: What You Need To Know | Thu, Sep. 03 | 10:30 am | Middlesex University, The Burroughs, NW4 4BT | Free | Protecting Your Hearing: What You Need to Know – Thursday 3 September 2026 (10.30am-12.30pm) Free information event about looking after your hearing. Speaker, Mark Williams, brings over 20 years’ experience in hearing rehabilitation, tinnitus management and audiology education. Plus more talks, information stands and refreshments. | info​

Monday 7th September

Better Balance Taster Programme at Finchley Church End | Mon, Sep. 07 | 3:00 pm to 4:00 pm | Finchley Church End Library 318 Regents Park Road N3 2LN | Free | The Better Balance Programme is a weekly chair based class led by an OTAGO qualified instructor from Better, the local leisure provider, offering a combination of strength and balance exercises that aims to reduce the fear and risk of falling. | ticket​

THEATRE & FILM

Monday 7th September

By a Thread - One Fell Swoop | Mon, Sep. 7 | 7:00 pm | Jacksons Lane, 269a Archway Road, N6 5AA | See website | Australian company One Fell Swoop open Jacksons Lane's new contemporary circus season, the first programmed by new Creative Director Angus MacKechnie. CHECK PUBLIC RUN DATES: 7 Sep is the press night and season launch. | tickets​

Saturday 12th September

Flo & Joan: With Feeling | Sat, Sep. 12 | 7:45 pm to 9:00 pm | artsdepot | Tickets from £19 | An exclusive Work-in-Progress preview of Flo & Joan's brand-new show ahead of their sold-out autumn tour. | tickets​

OLDER PEOPLE

Thursday 3rd September

OneStonegrove Community Trust - Older People's Social Club | Thu, Sep. 03 | 11:30 am to 2:00 pm | OneStonegrove 5 Hayling Way Edgware HA8 8BN | Free | Tea and hot drinks, a light lunch/healthy snacks, friendly conversation, various activities, some light exercise, games and fun. Different activities each week. Take part in as much or as little as you like. | info​

KIDS

Friday 4th September

Planet Play | Fri, Sep. 04 | 10:00 am | Rayne Theatre, Chickenshed Chase Side Southgate N14 4PE | £10 | A magical world of sensory learning perfect for babies and toddlers 0-3yrs | tickets​

Friday 4th September

Squirrels launch at 224 North London Air Scouts | From September | East Finchley and Highgate | Free to enquire | The 224 North London Air Scouts are launching Squirrels, the Scouts' section for 4 and 5 year olds, this September, and also have space in Beavers and Cubs. DATE TO CONFIRM: exact start date not given, placeholder set to the first week of term. | More info.

Monday 7th September

Bring your Baby Pilates | Mondays from Sep. 8 | 10:30 am to 11:20 am | Drama Space, artsdepot, 5 Nether Street, N12 0GA | See website | Fun post-natal Pilates for new mums, taught by Julia Scodie of Exercise in the City (14 years' experience). Your baby can play beside you or sleep in the buggy, and you can feed or change them at any point. Helps strengthen the pelvic floor, heal diastasis recti and correct post-pregnancy muscle imbalances. Everyone heads to the artsdepot cafe for coffee afterwards. | tickets​

Events - Book Ahead

Wednesday 14th October

Haunted Hampstead guided walking tour | Wed, Oct. 14 | 7:30 pm to | Burgh House, New End Square, NW3 1LT, UK | £21 | Take a stroll through the dark passages and streets of Hampstead, before exploring haunted pathways across the Heath. Hear tales of historic murder, disease and the restless spirits who haunt this iconic London neighbourhood. | tickets​

Thursday 5th November

Krapp’s Last Tape by Samuel Beckett | Thu, Nov. 05 | 7:45 pm to | 5 Nether Street, Tally Ho Corner, North Finchley, N12 0GA | £19 | Krapp’s Last Tape is a journey through an old man’s life, filled with hilarious memories and hopes for the future, coupled with the mourning of lost love and unfulfilled ambition. | tickets​

Saturday 28th November

Makers & Indies Christmas Market | Sat, Nov. 28 | 11:30 am to 3:00 pm | Ye Olde Mitre Inn High Street Barnet EN5 5SJ | Free entry | Shop for Handmade & Hand selected Goods and products. applications to sell end September 6th | info​

Local Lowdown

Moving

• House-hunters seeking a foothold in pricey NW3 can find homes from £205,000, including compact studios in Belsize Park and Haverstock Hill. Among the quirkiest is a percentage share of a £280,000 flat in Hampstead’s Grade I-listed Isokon Building, once home to Agatha Christie.

Flowing

• Despite months of drought and repeated heatwaves, High Barnet’s historic Physic Well is still flowing steadily. Its spring-fed tanks have barely changed level, even as nearby ponds dry up. The restored wellhouse, once visited by Samuel Pepys, opens monthly through November for curious local visitors.

Celebrating

• A new exhibition celebrates 100 years of Hampstead Heath’s Kenwood Ladies’ Pond. Twelve artist-swimmers have created prints, ceramics, textiles, poetry and performances inspired by the pond’s history and community. The free show, 100 Years Bold in All Weathers, runs at Lauderdale House until September 21.

Arriving

• Cricklewood is getting a new 18,000 sq ft Waitrose on the Broadway, and locals are already looking forward to it. Opening this autumn at the Eden NW2 development, the full-line supermarket will bring fresh food counters and the retailer’s complete range closer to local shoppers.

Exploring

• Four sculptural Waylamps are lighting up Barnet, launching a heritage trail from Colindale to North Finchley. Linked by the 125 bus route, the solar-powered artworks use light, shadow and local stories to reveal hidden histories, with a free Field Guide available online and in libraries.

Showcasing

• Local makers, this one is for you. artsdepot has opened submissions for its Winter Arts and Crafts Showcase, open to Barnet designers, makers and craftspeople in jewellery, textiles, ceramics and visual art. Selected work goes on sale from 26 November. Deadline 12 October.

The Finchleyite: Finchley Ley Line

Finchley has its own intriguing ley-line mythology, linking churches, gardens and landmarks through an imagined network of hidden energy. Finch Ley in old English, means “songbird clearing.”

​Watch Zachary Denman trace this route from St Mary-at-Finchley and Stephens House to Victoria Park, Ballards Lane and Tally Ho Corner, mixing local history with ideas about sacred geometry, geomagnetic pathways and ancient sound frequencies.

Along the way come tales of Knights Templar connections, communicating trees, haunted sites and even birdsong said to ward off darker forces.

Whether you see ley lines as ancient wisdom, urban folklore or pure curiosity, it offers a wonderfully alternative way to look at familiar Finchley streets.

Editors' Note - From Sasha

Had a short break in Sopwell House - mostly taken by their fabulous hydrangeas. Pretty sure they're hydrangea arborescens 'Lime Rickey'.

Also, let us know about local events or local news. We curate our content to keep it a 5-minute read, so can't include everything we're sent.

​And email us with any projects or ideas you'd like us to write about.

Tessa Davis Sasha Frieze