The @LONDON social media channels have generated over 5 Billion views in the past decade, always committed to telling London's story, beautifully. And now we're building our own lifestyle publishing site to expand our stories and conversations; with great reads, guides, and to capture the beating heart of this great city. 

 

In 2011 we started a hashtag - #ThisIsLondon - to anchor every London moment; every sunset, every sunrise, every season - from your favourite flat white, that bao bun, to the festivals, and the vibes - championing the city creatively, with every vignette we posted. Londoners ran with it, in fact the world ran with it - and now there's over 4.4m posts on the hashtag.

 

I still remember sitting in Canary Wharf in 2011 as a blue collar city worker having secured the @LONDON username on the newly launched Instagram social media app, after pitching the Instagram founders for the iconic handle. I was desperate for change and I nearly fell off my seat having just received the 'yes' from Instagram co-founder Kevin Systrom. And as I sat with what felt like electricity rippling through my veins, the gravity of the moment and all the potential that lay before me fizzing in my mind, the moment was somewhat taken away from me as the noisy city folk sat next to me started to complain that the newly arrived Aussie-style flat whites were a joke - at best lukewarm, and nothing like a decent black americano. 

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I smiled to myself and thought... this is London. :)

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Dave Burt // Founder // @MrLondon