‘It’s good to check in with people’: Londoners on Blue Monday

We ask Londoners what they do on Blue Monday to cheer themselves up.

Transcript

00:00Blue Monday is here and it's known for being the most gloomy day of the year, with post-holiday

00:06blues in full swing and when the weather is like it is today in London, it can be easy

00:12to see why. But Londoners know how to fight back against the winter slump, whether it's

00:18indulging in comfort food at a local cafe, exploring an art gallery or getting outside

00:23for a brisk walk, there are plenty of ways to lift your spirits, to find out how locals

00:29are tackling the January blues, I spoke to a few Londoners about their top feel-good

00:34activities in the capital.

00:38I love going to the cinema. I think I quite often go to Peckham Plex in Peckham and just

00:46take myself and go and watch a film.

00:49That's great. And London's actually, it's got so many good cinemas, doesn't it actually?

00:54Do you think it's a good cinema city?

00:56Great cinema city. I mean, you've got a few sort of more independent ones, which I love,

01:02like Peckham Plex is one of the cheapest cinemas in London and my favourite, but then you've

01:07got like the everyman ones and the picture house sort of chains, but they're also quite

01:13good.

01:14Yeah, I think luckily there's so much to do in London. So for me personally, like, because

01:18I don't work Mondays, which is great. So I go into London, I will kind of go to any museum

01:22or exhibition that's on. I kind of like think that there's lots of art that you can see

01:26in London, which is pretty cool. So I feel like being part of the cultural side of London

01:30is like a really great thing to be a part of.

01:33I mean, London's got a lot of activities around. You can go shopping. That's what I'm doing

01:38today. Go into a cafe, get a haircut.

01:40I've just been out for lunch with a friend. That was fun. Or go for a walk in the park,

01:46anything like that.

01:47Do you think London's a good city? Do you think it's filled with kind of different activities

01:49that you could do?

01:50Yeah, yeah. I mean, this is where I was born and bred. So you can do anything. You can

01:55go get out into the country life and go out for dinner, go for a walk across London. It's

02:03lovely. Lots of history and things like that.

02:06Have you kind of thought about Blue Monday, like checking in with people? Is that something

02:09that you've thought about?

02:10Yeah, yeah. I've got a few friends that I'd check in on. They could check in on me. So

02:15especially this time of year, it's just good to ask how people are doing.

02:19Blue Monday is an annual day that is regarded the most difficult day of the year. Although

02:23most of us are aware, it can be a difficult day for anyone, not just on a Monday. However,

02:30this is a great time to remind ourselves and the people in our lives to acknowledge and

02:35address feelings of depression and low mood. So reach out, connect with family, friends,

02:41not just yourself, but to check that they are not struggling silently.

02:45The Samaritans celebrate Blue Monday on January the 15th. This is to encourage people to invite

02:51their friends round for a cup of tea to check in on each other in a non-judgmental mood.