London Korean Links

Covering things Korean in London and beyond since 2006

A Review of London Korean cultural year 2017

It feels like it’s been an incredibly busy year, and as I come to write this review I realise that, much more so than in previous years, many of the things that have been memorable I haven’t had time to write about – and maybe won’t. I’ve written separately about the films it was possible … [Read More]

Event news: Nah Youn Sun at Ronnie Scotts

A live performance from Youn Sun Nah is always a very special event. For her past couple of performances in London she has been with virtuoso guitarist Ulf Wakenius, who used to play with the Oscar Peterson Quartet. This time, she has a four-piece band, performing tracks from her album that was released this month, … [Read More]

A review of the London Korean year 2016

As is traditional at this time of year, we look back at some of the highlights of the London Korean Year. Exhibitions Is it my imagination, or was there less going on this year? Certainly from the perspective of contemporary art, we have been through a lull this year. With HADA Contemporary gone, Mokspace reborn … [Read More]

LKL at 10 years: the best of the past decade

Well, if you can’t reminisce on your website’s 10th birthday, when can you? Here’s a collection of some of my favourite London memories of the past 10 years (and one or two from slightly further afield). Some of the moments lived up to expectation: a front row seat at a performance by K-pop ballad diva Lee … [Read More]

Looking back at 2014: Entertainment news

In the second of four retrospective articles, we recall some of the entertainment stories that caught our eye in 2014. Good year for: Popular TV drama My Love from the Star had an impact beyond its 21 episode span. The lead female character, played by Jeon Ji-hyun, managed to boost sales of trenchcoats in Korea, … [Read More]

A reason to watch the Sochi closing ceremony

A reason to watch the closing ceremony of the Sochi Winter Olympics as they hand over to Pyeongchang 2018: LKL’s favourite jazz singer Nah Youn Sun will perform Arirang with classical star Jo Sumi and former Boohwal lead singer Lee Seung-cheol. Sounds like a variation on President Park’s inauguration ceremony. Source: Chosun Ilbo You can … [Read More]

The London Korean Links Awards 2013

Now in its eighth year, here are the LKL Awards 2013. The year has been both good and bad from LKL’s perspective. Good because there seem to have been more events, more books, more films and more music than ever before as Korean culture gets more and more public attention. And bad because our day … [Read More]

CD review: Nah Youn Sun — Lento

Nah Youn Sun: Lento ACT Records, April 2013 Nah Youn Sun’s collaboration with Swedish guitarist Ulf Wakenius continues to bear fruit. This is her third album with Wakenius on the ACT label (and her 8th studio album overall), and like her previous ACT releases they are supported by Lars Danielsson on bass and Xavier Desandre-Navarre … [Read More]

Nah Youn Sun on reducing an audience to tears

LKL’s favourite jazz singer, Nah Youn Sun, fresh from singing at Park Geun-hye’s inauguration talks to the JoongAng Daily about her career, about her new album, Lento, which will be released in the UK in April, and about singing Arirang to foreign audiences: To my surprise, audiences, regardless of their nationality, shed tears while listening … [Read More]

The London Korean Links Awards 2011

The sixth of LKL’s annual unscientific and very personal recognition of the best things of last year. And in the field of film, books and CDs what is encouraging is that there is so much to choose from. There were also plenty of good Korean cultural events in London, Edinburgh and elsewhere, but there was … [Read More]