We want you to tell us why you love this city.

London has been having a tough time of it recently. The pandemic and lockdowns have hollowed out the centre of people; numbers are creeping back up, but are still way down on 2019. Foreign visitors are drifting back, but not in any great volumes. The 'levelling up' agenda of central Government often appears to be a way of cutting the capital down; that ever-popular game of disparaging our city.

It's time for Londoners - and other lovers of London - to change the dynamic; to celebrate just why the 600 or so square miles of 'London' make up the most exciting, wonderful, interesting, entertaining, and joyous city in the world.

We're asking you to write a Love Letter to London - 500 words (or a poem) on why you love this place. What is it about this city that makes your heart beat that little bit faster, that makes you want to come back after you've been away? What's the place, the event, the memory, the time that you celebrate?

We've got £4,000 in prize money* for the best Love Letters, and we'll be posting some examples on the blog over the next few weeks.

You can find more details, and information on how to enter on our Love Letters pages.

So get writing! And lets make this a celebration of the city we all love.

#LoveLettersToLondon

(*our thanks for their generous sponsorship got to Almacantar, ftwork, and Stiff & Trevillion)