Essential Information - Telephone

British Telecom's (BT's) famous red phone boxes survive in conservation areas only (notably Westminster ), while some private phone companies have painted theirs black and installed them around Piccadilly and Charing Cross . More common these days are the glass cubicles with phones that accept coins, phonecards and/or credit cards.

BT offers £3, £5, £10 and £20 phonecards that are widely available from retailers including most post offices and newsagents. A digital display on the telephone indicates how much credit is left on the card.

The following are some important telephone numbers and codes:

International dialling code 00
Local and national directory enquiries 118 500
International directory enquiries 153
Local and national operator 100
International operator 155
Reverse-charge/collect calls 155
Time 123
Weathercall (Greater London) 0906 654 3268

Be advised that some of the numbers above are charged calls. Some special phone codes worth knowing include:

Toll-free 0500/0800
Local call rate applies 0845
National call rate applies 0870
Premium rate applies (from 60p per minute) 09

Calling London

London 's area code is 020 followed by an eight-digit number beginning with 7 or 8. You only need to dial the 020 when you are calling London from elsewhere in the UK . To call London from abroad, dial your country's international access code, then 44 (the UK 's country code), then 20 (dropping the initial 0) followed by the eight-digit phone number.

Local & National Call Rates

Local calls are charged by time alone; regional and national calls are charged by both time and distance. Daytime rates apply from 0800 to 1800 Monday to Friday; the cheap rate applies from 1800 to 0800 Monday to Friday; and the cheap weekend rate applies from midnight Friday to midnight Sunday. The last two rates offer substantial savings.

Calls to local and national directory enquiries cost 11p per minute from public phones (minimum deposit of 20p) and 40p from private phones.

International Calls and Rates

International direct dialling (IDD) calls to almost anywhere can be made from nearly all public telephones. To call someone outside the UK dial 00, then the country code, then the area code (you usually drop the initial zero if there is one) and then the number. For example, to ring Melbourne , where the area code is 03 and the code for Australia is 61, you would dial 00-61-3-1234 5678. To reach Boston , where the area code is 617 and the code for the USA is 1, dial 00-1-617-123 4567.

Direct dialling is cheaper than making a reverse-charge (collect) call through the international operator (Tel: 155). International directory enquiries (Tel: 153) cost a whopping £1.50 per minute from private phones.

Some private firms such as Callshop offer cheaper international calls than BT. Try the Earl's Court branch of Callshop (Tel: +44 (020) 7390 4549; 181a Earl's Court Rd SW5; tube Earl's Court; h 9am-11pm); in such shops you phone from a metered booth and then pay the bill. Some cybercafés and Internet access shops, such as Internet Lounge in Earl's Court, also offer cheap rates for international calls.

It's also possible to undercut BT international call rates by buying a special card (usually denominated £5, £10 or £20) with a PIN that you use from any phone, even a home phone, by dialling a special access number. There are dozens of cards available - with bizarre names such as Alpha, Omega, Banana Call, First National and Swiftlink - available from newsagents and grocers. To decide which is best you really have to compare the rate each offers for the particular country you want - posters with the rates of the various companies are often displayed in shop doors or windows.

International codes

Australia 61; Austria 43; Belgium 32; Brazil 55; Canada 1; Czech Republic 420; Denmark 45; France 33; Germany 49; Greece 30; Hong Kong 852; India 91; Iceland 354; Ireland 353; Israel 972; Italy 390; Japan 81; Netherlands 31; New Zealand 64; Norway 47; Portugal 3512; South Africa 27; Spain 34; Sweden 46; Switzerland 41; USA 1.

Mobile Phones

The UK uses the GSM 900 network, which covers the rest of Europe , Australia and New Zealand , but is not compatible with the North American GSM 1900 or the totally different system in Japan (though many North Americans have GSM 1900/900 phones that do work here).

If you have a GSM phone, check with your service provider about using it in the UK , and beware of calls being routed internationally (very expensive for a local call). You can also rent one from various companies, including Mobell (Tel: 0800 243 524) and Cellhire (Tel: 0870 5610610) from around £20 per week, depending on the hire period. In this case, however, you can't use your existing number.

Talking Pages

This 24-hour free service lists the numbers of thousands of businesses in the UK . Dial 0800 600900 and say what type of business you require, and in what area of London .

Telegrams

There is no longer a domestic telegram service, but you can still send telegrams abroad: call 0800 190190. This is also the number to call if to send an international telemessage: phone in your message and it will be delivered by post the next day (£8.99 for up to 50 words, an extra £1 for a card).

Telephone Directories

There are three phone directories for London : two for private numbers and one for companies. These are available at post offices and libraries. Hotels have them too and they are issued free to all residents, as is the Yellow Pages directory, which lists businesses and services.