Alexandra Sheppard is, in her own words, “a wannabe hack, Twitter addict and lover of all things London, bookish and baked.” Here, she tells Qype about her favourite London hideaways, her karaoke  obsession and the sixty things in London she’s aiming to do this year:

Qype: Tell us about your blog?

Alexandra: I started my blog simply because I needed a way to practice my writing – I want to be a journalist when I grow up (I think). I toyed with the idea of starting one with a specific theme, like a food blog for example. But I have lots of varied and fleeting interests (currently macaroons, old pubs and giraffes) so sticking to one subject would be tough indeed. So for now my blog is a place to record interesting things I’m doing, like the most exciting day of my career to date and visiting Paris for the first time.

Qype: What subjects are important to you when blogging?

Alexandra: Fun and interesting things that I think other people might want to hear about. I don’t believe in blogging for the sake of blogging – if I’m doing something fun, I’ll write about it. If I’ve spent most of the week watching DVDs with a bad case of sniffles, then you won’t hear from me.

In an effort to see more of London, I’m aiming to do (and blog about) 60 fun things in a year that I’ve never done before. They range from trying an absinthe cocktail and eating at Franco Manca (best pizza in London apparently), to riding the London Eye at night and seeing ballet at the Royal Opera House. I’m slowly working my way through the list and I blog updates at the end of each month

Qype: Where else on the internet can Qypers can find you?

Alexandra: I blog about pretty dresses and nice wallpaper for Domestic Sluttery, the home and lifestyle blog for women who have better things to do. Most of the cocktail and cake exploits on my blog are in some way related to Domestic Sluttery. Writing for them is every bit as fun as it looks. I can also be found embarrassing myself in 140 characters or less on Twitter.

Qype: How long have you been Qyping, and why did you join?

Alexandra: I joined Qype in July last year for a number of reasons. I liked the idea of spreading the word about my favourite places. And I liked the idea of letting other people know what places should be best avoided. But the biggest draw for me were the London events. I’ve been to so many places that I’d never have visited, or even known about, otherwise – posh undies shop Bordello and awesome Mexican restaurant Wahaca to name a couple.

Qype: What’s your favourite Qype find?

Alexandra: After a fab Qype event I think it has to be Betty Blythe, an adorable retro cafe in West Kensington. It’s rare for me to drag myself to West London, but any cafe with a secret garden in the basement and vintage dresses hanging on the wall has to be worth the trip.

Qype: What’s your top five favourite places on Qype, and why?

Alexandra: I wasn’t sure if I should mention the Wellcome Collection Cafe in this list. Not because it isn’t one of my favourite places on Qype (quite the opposite, actually) but because it’s truly deserving of the title ‘hidden gem’ – and I’d like to keep it that way. Anyway, the Wellcome Collection Cafe is the single best place for tea, lovely cake, a reliable wifi connection and comfy seating. It’s my own fault if I can never get a seat again.

Another hidden gem, Le Mercury can be found on Upper St in Islington and is my favourite restaurant in London. It hasn’t got a particularly varied menu but everything is done so well. It’s also incredibly good value – two people eating three courses with wine could easily do it for under £40. And you can’t leave without trying the dark chocolate truffly dessert thing.

I’m unashamedly in love with the British Museum. The building alone is heart-stoppingly stunning – you could just walk in, gasp at the marble courtyard then go back out again. But that would be silly, because it’s unrivalled in it’s exhibition of ancient artefacts. And it’s FREE. Honestly, this place is a national treasure. There’s also a lovely cafe atop the Great Court, where you can have afternoon tea. Much nicer than the one downstairs which is often full of screaming kids and highchairs.

Wilton’s Music Hall is London’s oldest surviving Music Hall, one of the 100 most endangered buildings in the world and generally fabulous. It’s also a right pain to find – it’s on an old side street near Tower Bridge which local taxi drivers don’t seem to have heard of. But if you go, you’ll be rewarded with an evening spent in a spooky and atmospheric building. It’s so beautiful. And they usually have a programme of shows on that does the building justice – from magicians to burlesque and zombie rockabilly bands. It’s in real danger of being closed down if they don’t raise enough cash to make vital repairs – it actually is as rickety as it looks – so go and support it if you can.

And finally, I have to mention karaoke bar Lucky Voice in Islington. There’s no better place for karaoke in London and no other place puts me in such a good mood. And Qype held their second birthday party there, so it must be good!

You can read Alexandra’s blog here, or Domestic Sluttery, which she also writes for here. Let us know which other bloggers you think we should interview in the comments, or email us with your ideas!