Japan Matsuri 2016 London

Celebrating 125 years of Friendship!

Date: Sunday 25th September

Time: 10:00 – 20:00

Venue: Trafalgar Square

Admission: Free (no tickets)

http://www.japanmatsuri.com

Event: Sumie Black And Wash Painting Workshop

Learn from a master the art of expressing yourself through the use of brush and ink!

Date: 13th May 2016

Time: 18.30 – 22.00

Venue: Hammersmith, London (Private home – contact for details)

Price: £30.00 – Includes equipment (ink, rice paper and brush) and Japanese dinner.

Sumo: The Traditional National Sport Of Japan

An introduction into the world of Japan’s oldest martial art!

The Founding of Sumo

Nomi no Sukune was a potter from Izumo and ancestor of Sugawara no Michizane. His famous fight with Taima no Kehaya under the patronage of Emperor Suinin resulted in the death of Taima no Kehaya and the founding of Sumo, the traditional national sport of Japan. An influential figure Nomi no Sukune also proposed to Emperor

DVD Review: Ben-To Complete Series Collection

It’s not just dinner, it’s a matter of victory!

Ben-to is originally a Japanese light novel series written by Asaura, with illustrations by Kaito Shibano. Shueisha published 15 novels from February 2008 to February 2014. Shibano also illustrates three manga adaptations, and a fourth manga is drawn by Sankaku Head. The name literally is to mirror the word Bento box but adding that ‘-‘ makes it a lot more easier to Google against all those tasty packed lunch photos online.

After the success from the light novel it was adapted into a 12-episode anime TV series  You follow protagonist Sato Yo who is a

Event: Hyper Japan 2015 In Pictures

The UK’s biggest celebration of Japanese culture!

Hyper Japan, the UK’s biggest and best-loved annual J-Culture convention, returned on 11th – 13th July for another weekend extravaganza of all things Japanese from the authentic and traditional to the contemporary. Thousands of Japanophiles descended upon London’s O2 in Greenwich over the three days for an exciting time of live music, fashion shows, videogames, manga/anime activities, martial arts demonstrations and

Film Review: Uzumasa Limelight (Uzumasa Raimuraito)

A homage to Charlie Chaplin’s LIMELIGHT!

Winner of the Cheval Noir Award and Best Actor Award at the 2014 Fantasia International Film Festival, the Audience Award at the 2014 New York Asian Film Festival and the 2014 Camera Japan Festival, and the official selection at both the 2014 Hawaii International Film Festival and the 2014 Shanghai International Film Festival. 

FestivalAsia 2015 – Three Days Of Exotic Fun & Excitement

London’s largest indoor festival on all things Asia!

Date: 15 – 17 May 2015

Venue: Tobacco Dock, 50 Porters Walk, London E1W 2SF

Tickets: Adult £12.50 adv – £15 door

Children (up to 10 years old, accompanied by one adult with an Adult Ticket) £8 adv – £10 door

Indulge your senses and experience the exotic cultures of Asia under one roof.

Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist Competition Now Closed And The Winner Is…

A winner has been chosen!

Thanks to everyone who entered the competition to win a copy of Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist on DVD & Blu-Ray plus 2 randomly selected Manga UK DVD and/or Blu-Ray titles!.

Sadly there can only be one winner.

And the winner is…

Press Release: Hyper Japan Christmas Market 2014

Get ready for a pop culture explosion at the UK’s largest J-culture event!

Date: 14-16 November 
Venue; National Hall, Olympia, London

Music, street fashion and cosplay – 3 pillars of Japanese pop culture which have captivated audiences and amassed devoted fans across the globe. At our HYPER JAPAN Christmas Market, we bring together the best of this trendy crowd and offer visitors the rare chance to experience a range of Japanese musical acts (both real and virtual), and to enjoy our HYPER J-style fashion show and

WIN Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist On DVD & Blu-Ray Plus 2 Randomly Selected Manga UK DVD And/Or Blu-Ray Titles!

Hooray! It’s competition time again!

To celebrate the release of Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist on DVD & Blu-Ray on Monday 27th October we have a Blu-Ray copy to give away, plus 2 randomly selected Manga UK DVD and/or Blu-Ray titles!

Street Fighter: Assassin’s Fist tells the origin story of Street Fighter’s most famous duo, Ryu and Ken. Learning the way of the warrior at the secluded dojo of martial arts master Gouken, the pair are the last practitioners of an ancient fighting style known as Ansatsuken – ‘The Assassin’s Fist’. But the Ansatsuken style hides a dark and tragic secret; a legacy that is about to catch up with

The Art of the Japanese Sword Competition Now Closed And the Winner Is…

A winner has been chosen!

Thanks to everyone who entered the competition to win a copy of the book The Art of the Japanese Sword.

Sadly there can only be one winner.

And the winner is…

Event: Japan Matsuri 2014 London Trafalgar Square

The spectacular annual Japan festival returns for more fun and excitement!

Date: Saturday, 27th September 2014

Location: Trafalgar Square, London WC2N 5DN

Time: 11 am – 9 pm

Event: Seni 2014 Combat Sports Expo Weekend And The Re-Launch Of Eastern Heroes Magazine

Be prepared for the most exciting martial arts event of the year!

Date: 13th & 14th September

Venue: The London Soccerdome, E Parkside, Greenwich Peninsula, London SE10 OJF

Opening times: 10am (go to Seni 2014 website to check the times of each event)

Book Review: The Art Of The Japanese Sword: The Craft Of Swordmaking And Its Appreciation

Like people and snowflakes, no two Japanese swords are the same!

Written by Yoshindo Yoshihara (a third generation swordsmith) with Leon and Hiroko Kapp, The Art of the Japanese Sword is a beautiful large format book (effectively printed on glossy black paper with white text) that focuses on the production and understanding of the symbolic steel weapon once used by samurai and now admired by art collectors all round the world as an object of perfection, although many people use them to practice traditional Japanese martial arts like Iaido (the art of drawing the sword).

Hyper Japan 2014 In Pictures

The UK’s biggest celebration of Japanese culture!

Every year since it first began back in 2010, the annual London event Hyper Japan keeps getting better and better, not to mention bigger and bigger, and this year’s extravaganza held on 25 – 27 July at the Earls Court Exhibition Centre was no exception.

The fantastic line-up catered to all tastes in Japanese pop-culture from traditional dancers and musicians like the very popular Hyper Japan regulars Hibiki Ichikawa and Akari Mochizuki, who this time around were accompanied by guitarist Hide Takemoto, to contemporary

DVD Review: Hakuoki: Demon of the Floating Blossom OVA Collection

“A Memory of Snow Flowers”

With a series 1 and 2 collection, there is a prequel and now an OVA to enjoy for those who are fans of bishonen series where the men have handsome, sometimes beautiful facial features, long hair and flamboyant manner. This OVA starts in December 1866 before the 1868 – 69 Boshin War and focuses first on the enemy who wanted to infiltrate and take down the Shinsengumi headquarters, hoping to make a name for themselves.

The OVA is made up of six episodes that are about each of the Shinsengumi characters. Souji is his usual comical self, but this time

Anime Review: Hakuoki

Yukimura Chizuru’s father holds the key to Japan’s bloodshed. She must find him!

The Hakuoki series, which includes two seasons and a third season that acts as a prequel, is a romantic take on historical characters and events, with a bit of vampire/mysticism thrown in for good measure. The mystical nature of the show is not an unusual turn for anime to take, but this series manages to be both intriguing and action-packed while remaining

‘Terracotta Film Club’ Presents Samurai Masterpiece Lady Snowblood

Venue: Prince Charles Cinema London

Date: Wednesday 24 April

‘Terracotta Film Club’ will present a Japanese classic from legendary director Toshiya Fujita for its 4^th edition.

This blood-splattered Samurai masterpiece from the golden age of Japanese cult cinema is credited as the main inspiration for Quentin Tarantino’s KILL BILL series. LADY SNOWBLOOD is a 1973 Japanese film based on a manga and set in

HYPER JAPAN 2013 Tickets Now On Sale!

Date: Friday 26 – Sunday 28 July 2013
Venue: Earls Court Two, Earls Court, London

HYPER JAPAN, the UK’s biggest celebration of Japanese culture, cuisine and cool, is back for 2013. Diverse exhibitors, stores, performers and fans will once again come together to bring the very best of contemporary and traditional Japan to the heart of London. Since the first HYPER JAPAN in 2010, there have three subsequent events, each one more popular than the