Right now, many of us are caught firmly in the grip of footie fever. But we do feel for those of you who don’t want to watch the World Cup in London.

With this in mind, our good friends at BFI Southbank are hosting an Alternative To The World Cup film season.

What better way to escape the World Cup madness than by settling down in a darkened cinema to watch one of the classics such as:

• All of Grace Kelly’s films including Hitchcock’s Rear Window
• A Fistful of Dollars starring Clint Eastwood
• Kubrick classic A Clockwork Orange
• Eco thriller Soylent Green with Charlton Heston
• Tilda Swinton’s latest I Am Love
• Manga movie Ghost In the Shell 2: Innocence

Lucky for you, BFI is offering 10 pairs of tickets to any film during their June and July seasons to celebrate their alternative to the world cup campaign. And we want to know, what’s your World Cup alternative?

Leave a comment below and email filmcompetitions@bfi.org.uk with Visit London World Cup in the subject by Friday 25 June to win.

Read competition terms and conditions

Last night, all the excitement of Christmas came to London with the big Christmas light switch-on at Oxford Circus, on Regent Street and in the City of London.

We watched the performances at the slightly quieter St Paul’s stage. Little Boots performed her sparkly pop with professionalism, before the newly reformed Spandau Ballet took to the stage to sing crowd-pleaser Gold, followed by one of their new hits.

In a co-ordinated switch-on which slightly reminded us of the Eurovision song contest (a few pauses while the brave DJs from Heart FM chatted through video link-ups with different areas of the city), the lights on Regent Street and at Oxford Circus were turned on by Colin Firth and a very beardy Jim Carrey, while a beautiful, more serene light display was started by Bob Hoskins at St Paul’s Cathedral.

The St Paul’s Cathedral Choir then led the crowd in a warm-up singalong of O Come, All Ye Faithful, before the wonderful Andrea Bocelli (this time live from Leicester Square) took the lead in a rousing singalong of Silent Night. It was a lovely moment; it felt like the whole city had stopped for a moment to sing along with Andrea’s fantastic voice.

And did we break the world record?! Early reports suggest that we did!

(If you were at Regent Street or Oxford Circus, tell us about your evening in the comments below!)

Then there was just time to run over to Leicester Square for the world premiere of the film itself: Disney’s A Christmas Carol.

We passed through a gorgeous winter wonderland in Leicester Square (snow, more carollers and celebrities adding to the festive atmosphere!), along the red carpet, and into the Empire cinema.

After a quick intro from Colin Firth, Bob Hoskins and Jim Carrey, the big moment had arrived.

And our verdict on the film? The 3D animation is really spectacular, and there are some great moments flying above Dickens’ London in the snow. It’s quite scary at times, although maybe more so for adults than for kids! Jim Carrey plays all three ghosts with typical enthusiasm. And if you’re excited about seeing the gorgeous Colin Firth, you might be disappointed: his motion-capture character isn’t nearly as good looking as he is in the flesh!

If you were there, let us know what you thought!