New Year’s Eve 2009

Hed Kandi Presents The Glitter Ball 2010

Where: Indigo O2, Peninsula Square, Greenwich, SE10 0AX
When: 31st December, 9pm-4am
Cost: £55
Link/Info: www.hedkandi.com/Club/Tickets.aspx

Details: New Year – fresh starts. Which means all things shiny and new are in order, starting with a bloody huge disco ball, 6 metres in diameter and made of projection screens housing a DJ booth. Inside you’ll find DJs Phil Faversham, Andy Daniels and Dean Rigg who’ll be playing the best of Hed Kandi’s house tunes, whilst there’ll also be a live performance by Julie McKnight and you’ll be treated to the visual delights of the Kandi Dancers who presumably, look much like the anime vixens on their CD covers. Plus if you’re going VIP, you’ll get Jodie Harsh playing hostess. Ba-da-bling.

Last Tuesday Society New Years Eve Eve Masked Ball

Where: The Bridge
When: 30th December, 10pm-4am
Cost:  £12-£15
Link/Info: www.thelasttuesdaysociety.org/ball_2.html

Details: Having declared 2009 a ‘hop’ year and therefore deigning December to only have 30 days, it’s an early starter from the kooky crew at The Last Tuesday Society. But, as they reason – celebrate a day early, and don’t get charged double on cab fares and house bottles of champers. So, gear up for a masked ball (perhaps even take in Viktor Wynd’s Mask Making Class the night before) with a Pavillion of Love for singletons, hot tubs in The Bathouse, a Midnight Feast of cake and naked boys and girls, and music from The Texas Chainsaw Orchestra and DJs Matthew Stone and Count Sizzle. If you’re still in the mood tomorrow, check out the weird and wonderful ‘Orphanage’ party.

Ministry of Sound Live NYE

Where: The O2, Peninsula Square, SE10 0DX
When: 31st December, 9pm-6am
Cost: £50-£75
Link/Info: www.theo2.co.uk/event/ministry-of-sound-nye-live-at-the-o2-20091231.html

Details: Those looking for the NYE party to end all parties need look no further – the stellar line-up at Ministry of Sound (who’ve upped sticks from their Elephant & Castle base to make room for 15,000 revellers), includes DJ sets from Eric Prydz (him of the aerobic-erotic Call On Meeeeeee video), foul-mouthed Fulham MC Example, Deadmau5 (who seems to have taken over planet music in the tail-end of this year with his giant, flashing mouse head), and the lanky Scot himself, Calvin Harris.

The Golden Age of Babylon

Where: Beach Blanket Babylon Shoreditch, 19-23 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA
When: 31st December, 6pm-4am
Cost: £15
Link/Info: www.beachblanket.co.uk/shoreditch/events_nye.html

Details: Ritualistic hedonism, Gods and Goddesses of Olympus and snake charmers – sounds like the perfect excuse to get up to no good and blame it on the “but everybody else was doing it” phenomenon. Expect venomous cocktails, belly dancers, Fortune Tellers and plenty of temptations at this Babylonian fiesta, climaxing (woah there reader, we never said it was a Roman style-soiree) with burlesque queen Valeria Dragova invoking the divine spirit of Cleopatra come Midnight.

Space Presents The Vegas Hotel

Where: Gibson Hall, 13 Bishopsgate, EC2N 3BA
When: 31st December, 8pm-5am
Cost:  £35
Link/Info: www.secure.viewlondon.co.uk/ticket-booking.aspx?id=20354

Details: Bright lights, big city – and all without boarding a plane. Space, one of London’s top club nights, have gone all Vegas on us with this themed ball set, as it were, in the heart of Nevada’s famous strip – so expect casinos, showgirls, porn stars and pimps set throughout two rooms and a heated outdoor space for you to light up that ‘big win’ cigar in amongst Elvis’, cowboys, gangsters, pin-ups, playboy bunnies and the odd Reverend on his night off from quick-fix marriages.

Guilty Pleasures

Where: Vinopolis, 1 Bank End, SE1 9BU
When: 31st December, 9pm-3am
Cost:  £35
Link/Info: www.guiltypleasures.co.uk

Details: Dig out this Summer’s gladiator sandals girls, and rip off the bed sheets boys – it’s toga time. With ‘The Rise and Fall of The Roman Empire’ as its theme, Guilty Pleasures are throwing their first ever NYE bash. DJs Sean Rowley, Anna Greenwood, Prince Nelly and glittering camp cherubs SbandXXX will provide the tunes, fury friends the Dreambears will be in situ, and a SingStar Snug will let you release your guiltiest karaoke secrets. Party like it’s 1999 – BC - and surround yourself with swathes of silk and velvet, centurion style, grapes and goblets of wine; by which point we’re pretty sure there’ll be more falling than rising.

White Mischief Presents NYE 1910

Where: Proud Cabaret, 1 Mark Lane, EC3R 7AH
When: 31st December, 7:30pm-3:30am
Cost: £40/ £65 dinner option.
Link/Info: www.proudcabaret.com/newyear

Details: Edwardian England comes to town for one night only, courtesy of events gurus White Mischief, and brand new venue Proud Cabaret. Ballgowns, dinner jackets and vintage are a must for this magical evening compered by Desmon O’Connor, which includes performances by The Correspondants (who recently appeared at UJ’s Vitaminwater do) and Frisky & Mannish, Sefi the Snakedancer, and walkabouts of close-up magic, fire jugglers and glow poi – whatever that is – culminating in a Midnight Ceremony to see in er, 1911. Hoorah!

Paradise by way of Kensal Green Masked Ball

Where: Paradise, 19 Kilburn Lane, W10 4AE
When: 31st December, 8:30pm-4am
Cost: £25
Link/Info: www.heparadise.co.uk/latest-news

Details: Following the unparalleled success of last years New Years Eve party at Paradise, once again this year the entire venue will be opened up to host an elaborate masked ball. Guests will be invited to dress in their most elegant finery, masked so that their faces and loyalties are hidden whilst they dance toward the midnight hour.

Speeddater Lock & Key Party

Where: Abbey Bar, 30-33 Minories, EC3N 1DD
When: 31st December, 7pm-3am
Cost: £39.95, 2 for 1.
Link/Info: www.speeddater.co.uk

Details: There is nothing more shameful than circulating a NYE bash at 11:59 looking for anything to lock lips with – so embrace the embarrassment and make a whole evening out of it. Girls will be given locks, boys get keys, and you get to see who you click with. Should that not work out, there’s also mini-speed dating, a flirt wall with digital images where you can pick up/leave messages, and of course plenty of booze to make the whole thing less excruciating.

Green & Red’s Mexican New Year’s Eve

Where: Green & Red, 51 Bethnal Green Road, E1 6LA
When: 31st December, 8pm-4am
Cost: £7
Link/Info: www.greenred.co.uk/chamucos-whatson.php

Details: When the theme has been reduced down to ‘Mas Tequila, Por Favor’ you can’t really complain. No gimmicky dressing up, just real tequila (over 100 agave varieties and cocktails to boot), and a proper Mexican knees up with Andre Caxaria and Ramon Santana shaking it to Latin Soul, NuYorican rhythms and some classic party tunes. Bring your amigos and line up the shots.

New Year’s Eve at Merah

Where: Merah, 78 Wells Street, W1T 3QL
When: 31st December, 9pm-4am
Cost:  Check website for reservations.
Link/Info: www.merahclub.com

Details: If you weren’t luck enough to win UJ’s Christmas Party competition at Merah’s snow-covered winter wonderland, fear not. The not-so-cleverly disguised namesake is going back to it’s Arabian roots with a Harem-inspired part for New Year, transporting party-goers to a mystical far away land of sexy belly dancers, music and magic.

by MaM

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Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved.