The Royal Academy’s Treasures from Budapest: European Masterpieces from Leonardo to Schiele opens on Saturday and I went along for a sneak preview.

The stunning exhibition is composed of work from one of the finest art collections in Central Europe, The Museum of Fine Arts in Budapest, along with loans from the Hungarian National Gallery. Many of the pieces were collected by the Esterházy family, who’s various generations developed the collected works.

The tremendous breath of work includes religious painting, mythological work, landscapes and contemporary masterpieces. Among the 200 works are paintings by Leonardo da Vinci, Raphael, Claude Monet, Egon Schiele, Rembrandt and Pablo Picasso, covering treasures from the sixteenth to the twentieth centuries.

Standing in front of a wall which sees Pierre-Auguste Renoir’s Bridge at Argenteuil, and Monet’s Three Fishing Boats next to Hungarian artist Mihály Munkácsy’s Dusty Road II, curator Professor David Ekserdijan said:

“The relationships between artists most of us are very familiar with, such as Monet, Renoir, [Eduoard] Manet and [Camille] Pissarro, and the Hungarian artists will prove very fascinating for everybody.”

This statement sums the exhibition up to a tee. It’s a captivating mix of work by the Old Masters, latter-day European greats, and Hungarian artists who have incorporated the styles of these artists into their own work. For example, you only need to glance at Munkácsy’s Dusty Road II to see the J.M.W. Turner influences.

Highlights of the exhibition include the striking Peter Paul Rubens’ Mucius Scaevola before Lars Porsena, Schiele’s erotic Two Women Embracing, and detailed chalk sketches by Leonardo da Vinci. Arguably the greatest work, however, is Raphael’s Esterházy Madonna, a stunning example of Renaissance painting at its finest.

Treasures from Budapest: European Masterpieces from Leonardo to Schiele opens on Saturday until 12 Dec.

At Visit London, we always thought Luxembourg might be among the more difficult World in London countries to cover. Luckily, London’s incredibly eclectic art collections came to the rescue.

As well as work by Luxembourgers Pierre-Joseph Redouté and Edward Steichen among the collection at the V&A, we found award-winning photographer Marianne Majerus – whose work is in the online collection at the National Portrait Gallery – also comes from Luxembourg.

Majerus is a portrait and garden photographer who regularly contributes to a number of UK national newspapers and magazines. Her portfolio of work includes more than 180,000 images, and she was awarded this year’s International Garden Photographer of the Year for her stunning image Layered Landscape: A Moment Captured (above).

I caught up with Marianne – who has lived in London for 25 years – and asked her about her life in the capital.

Majerus lives in Islington and has an obvious love for the area: “Islington is a vibrant area with cafes, restaurants, theatres and cinemas,” she said. “And it is close to some great museums.”

The 54 year-old moved to London “for the professional opportunities,” but she admits she does miss the beautiful countryside of her homeland.

While Luxembourgish home comforts are limited in London, (Majerus cites the Luxembourg Embassy as the part of London that most resembles her country), she has taken the city to her heart.

As well as recommending Sir John Soane’s Museum, she notes the view from Island Gardens across the River Thames to Greenwich as a “breathtaking but rarely seen” hidden gem.

Majerus’ work can be found in the online collection of the National Portrait Gallery. Most of London’s major museums and galleries have an online collection on their websites so why not have a look; you may uncover some seldom seen masterpieces yourself!

For more information on Marianne Majerus’ work, visit her website www.mariannemajerus.com

Do you know of any Luxembourgish events, places or famous Luxembourgers in London?

I witnessed the impressive new sculpture by Bruce Denny being lifted into place at St Paul’s today – and what a fantastic addition it makes to London’s iconic cathedral.

Bruce Denny only took up sculpture four years ago, but his stock has risen dramatically having already exhibited at illustrious spaces such as the Mayfair Gallery and the Albemarle Gallery soon after putting his first collection together.

I caught up with Denny at the unveiling of his new sculpture, The Conversion of St Paul, which is part of the Images of St Paul’s in the 21st Century exhibition, celebrating the 300th anniversary of Christopher Wren’s building.

The Suffolk-born artist said:  ”I had some pieces in the HSBC private bank in Mayfair, which was the launching pad for this. The people who were running the exhibition at the cathedral saw the pieces and invited me to participate in this, so the reaction to my work has been incredible.”

Denny is among more than 60 artists featured in the three-month exhibition, and he’s thrilled to showcase his work at the cathedral.

“I’m the only sculptor to be selected in this exhibition, all the rest are painters”, he said. “Firstly it’s exciting to be the only sculptor, and secondly it’s exciting to have the opportunity to create such an amazing piece in such a fantastic position in the cathedral.”

The sculpture shows the moment Paul was blinded by the light from Jesus – an important moment in the bible – which has been documented in various paintings, but often with Paul already on the ground.

Denny said: “I thought it would be really good to be able to capture the point he was actually struck by the light – in sculpture it’s great to have something that’s really dynamic and exciting.”

Denny’s style is contemporary but with a classical twist, and he believes London also has that mix, so it is therefore the perfect place to exhibit his work.

“I personally really love the combination of classical and contemporary, and you see it everywhere in London – especially in the City”, he said. “You’ve got all these incredible new buildings going up in glass, and St Paul’s just sits so well amongst that.”

Images of St Paul’s in the 21st Century takes place in the crypt at St Paul’s from 21 September until 15 October. Bruce Denny’s sculpture is positioned in the South Churchyard of St Paul’s Cathedral until 7 Jan 2011.

London 2012 organisers have opened volunteer recruitment to the public today, so don’t miss out on the opportunity to become involved in the world’s biggest sporting event.

Applications for volunteers, who will be known as Games Makers, opened at 8am today and continue until midnight on 27 October – so there’s only six weeks to apply.

Sebastian Coe, Chair of LOCOG, said: “Volunteering with us will be challenging but the rewards are life-long as our London 2012 Games Makers will literally make history happen.

“We want the best team players in the UK to apply, people who show the same qualities as our athletes including dedication, focus and grace under pressure.

“Whatever your role, you will help welcome the world and show what the UK has to offer. If you have what it takes to be a London Games Maker, apply now!”

There are 70,000 volunteer roles to fill for the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games, with two thirds of the roles generalist volunteer positions. These include welcome desk staff, ticket checkers, costume assistants, drivers and event stewards.

The remaining roles are specialist roles comprising volunteers skilled in medical, press operations and anti-doping sectors -applications are also still open for these roles.

For more information and to apply visit www.london2012.com/volunteering.

Find out why Eddie Izzard thinks becoming a Games Maker is an opportunity not to be missed below:

A remarkable array of work from the Aesthetic Movement will be exhibited at the Victoria and Albert Museum in London this spring, including work from some of the most celebrated artists of the late 19th-century.

I was lucky enough to attend the press launch today at the magnificent Leighton House Museum, a fitting venue filled with aesthetic artefacts in the house of one of the period’s greatest artists, Frederic Lord Leighton.

The aesthetic movement centres on “art as art’s sake”, in other words: creating art for its beauty, not for symbolism or anecdotes.

Stephen Calloway, the V&A curator explained:

“The Aesthetic Movement was born out of a cacophony of conflicting ideas, theories and experiments in art. Perhaps the one clear message was that people hoped to escape from what was seen to be the ugliness and increasing commerciality of the 1860s to 1870s.”

He added: “The artists and designers that we feature in the exhibition all tried in their various ways to completely revolutionise the fields in which they work – whether it’s painting, sculpture or the creation of furniture and the decoration of houses.”

The Cult of Beauty: The Aesthetic Movement 1860-1900 will include work by famous artists and designers such as William Morris, James McNeill Whistler, Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, as well as Oscar Wilde – a great conveyor of the Aesthetic Movement.

Among the 250 pieces on display will be a peacock frieze on display for the first time and the only known examples of E W Godwin’s ceramics.

The Cult of Beauty: The Aesthetic Movement 1860-1900 at the V&A from 2 April until 17 July 2011

Muse confirmed their tag as one of the world’s best live bands last weekend with two sell-out gigs at London’s Wembley Stadium – and I was lucky enough to be among the 90,000 crowd.

The boys from Devon rocked the foundations of the iconic stadium in two breathtaking shows on Friday and Saturday, which included a floating UFO, a spaceship set and cannons firing streamers.

For British rock bands, it can’t get much better than playing at Wembley Stadium, where the likes of Queen and U2 have played defining gigs. But while some flounder, Muse have shown once more that they are worthy of being named in the same breath as arguably two of the greatest bands the British Isles have ever produced.

The first time I saw Muse was also at Wembley in 2007, but while that performance was incredible, this went one step further showing more maturity and a better use of their repertoire – strengthened further by their chart-topping album The Resistance.

Along with their ability to produce awe-inspiring shows, one of Muse’s greatest assets is the trio’s ability to mix styles and switch effortlessly between ballads such as Soldier’s Poem and the manic Stockholm Syndrome and Hysteria.

The former led to lighters and mobile phones lighting-up the crowd like a colony of glow worms, while the latter two produced frenzied waves of arms and heads bobbing up and down in the mosh pit.

After rousing performances of Starlight, Plug in Baby and Guiding Light; Matt Bellamy and his band ended with a lengthened version of their hit Knights of Cydonia.

Muse show no signs of slowing down just yet, with rumours of another album surfacing – and Wembley Stadium surely beckons once more?

Muse were supported by a pregnant Lily Allen, who played her last gig before retiring, which also featured a duet with Professor Green. Biffy Clyro supported Muse on Saturday.

Did you see Muse at Wembley this weekend?

The iconic Lord’s Cricket Ground will host the archery event at the London 2012 Olympic Games after plans were approved by Westminster Council.

The athletes are set to compete on “the square” in the centre of the cricket pitch, with spectators assured of close seating, all against the imposing backdrop of the Lord’s Pavilion.

Preparations for the week-long Olympic archery event include temporary seating for up to 5,000 spectators, a warm-up range and an area for competitors and officials.

Seb Coe, Chair of London Organising Committee (LOCOG) said: “I am delighted that we have obtained permission to stage the Olympic Archery at Lord’s in 2012. It will be a spectacular venue for hosting the games and the Olympic Archery will be an exciting competition for both spectators and athletes”

Lord’s now joins other Westminster venues Horse Guards Parade and Hyde Park in hosting Olympic events.

Councillor Alastair Moss, Westminster City Council’s planning committee chairman, said: “Lord’s is a word-class sporting venue and will be ideal for hosting the archery event in 2012.”

The Olympic archery event will be held from 27 July to 3 August 2012.

Fryderyk Chopin arrived in London on Friday – not the composer but a ship named after him – which has moored on St Katharine’s Pier next to Tower Bridge.

The world’s second largest brig has arrived for the Mayor’s Thames Festival, which takes place from Saturday and I was lucky enough to be invited aboard.

At 40m in height, with a bust of the famous composer, an incredible 23 different sails and more than 130 guide ropes attached, it’s an impressive sight.

The young and enthusiastic crew – all students from Poland – will entertain Londoners and visitors with traditional dances, songs and acrobatics as well as guiding visitors around the ship during their stay in London.

Mr Rafał Szmytke, President of the Polish Tourist Organisation said:

“They’re the best of the best, hand-picked finalists of a national competition. They are young, creative, and passionate about telling the world about their cities, regions and the country.”

I spoke to crew member Michael Szynkarzynshi who told me:

“The whole course took about three months and there were almost 70 students from all around Poland from at least 75 universities and we were specially picked.”

He added “We had to send a special one-minute video presenting ourselves and the most interesting people were chosen.”

The students will be teaching visitors the Polonaise, a traditional Polish dance, leading up to a Guinness World Record attempt for the most people dancing the Polonaise at one time on Sunday 12 September.

Fryderyk Chopin will now  be at Canary Wharf until 12 September. The Mayor’s Thames Festival takes place this weekend.

Click on the video below to see the Fryderyk Chopin crew members in action.

Boris Johnson, the Mayor of London, today opened the new Wandsworth Museum in South London, which houses a fascinating array of exhibits and artefacts from the local area.

The new museum replaces the previous one which was closed in 2007, and it provides a detailed insight into life in Wandsworth from the Stone Age to the modern day.

Along with an impressive collection of objects, there is also a timeline of events telling the story of the cultural and natural landscape of the borough.

Among the exhibits on show is a woolly rhinoceros skull dated to 25,000BC, a telephone exchange, and a diagram of the local Young’s brewery site.

There is also a collection of art depicting John Burns, the former local Member of Parliament and one of the leaders of the London Dock Strike in 1889.

Mr. Johnson told Visit London:

“I think it’s fantastically important to have museums such as this because we live in an age where people are both forgetful of their history but also incredibly excited when they discover about it.

“It’s frightfully important that local kids are able to come here and open a window into the lives of previous generations and inhabitants of Wandsworth.

“This was a very important place in the life of London and the life of the nation as a whole and we’ve now got great exhibits here to tell that story.”

The new Wandsworth Museum opens to the public on 3 Sep (website coming soon).

What’s your favourite local museum in London?

The chance to volunteer at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games is too good to miss for many, including it seems TV star Ralf Little.

Speaking to The Bolton News, the star of The Royle Family and Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps said:

“At the Paralympics they will need hundreds and hundreds of volunteers to help with all kinds of competitions.

“I will sign up. I will definitely look into trying to do something with the volunteering. There is not another way to get better experience of the Paralympics.”

Little added: “This is the catch-22 because once you see it first-hand and get involved you are hooked.”

The 30 year-old first became interested in volunteering when a friend asked him to help out as a marshal at the British Short Course Swimming Championships in Sheffield last year.

He said: “I did not know much about disability sport, but being there got rid of a lot of preconceptions and opened my eyes.

“It was not people being patronised or playing around. It was people doing sport at the top level.

“It very quickly became clear to me that I was not there to sign autographs or as someone from the telly to swan around, but to help marshal the athletes and get on with it.”

Ralf Little will be appearing in The Aliens at Bush Theatre from 15 Sep.

Will you become a volunteer at the London 2012 Olympic and Paralympic Games?