Drum shops in London ?

[QuattroFormaggi]

Strange request!
I've a friend coming from the US for a gig in London at the weekend. He's a drummer in a covers band (Rush, Genesis, etc) and would like to go somewhere to play some drums (and impress me I think!) He also feels a bit lost if he doesn't play for a few days. There used to be music shops with that kind of facility - do they still exist? If so, where? Tried Google but nothing. It would have to be on Saturday 1st Oct and not too far from Marylebone.
Thanks for any help

In central london near Marylebone you're looking at Rose Morris on Denmark Street in Soho or Footes in Fitzrovia.
Denmark Street is a very famous music street known as Tin Pan Alley and lots of musicians go there for a "pilgrimage" as well as checking out the 100 Club on nearby Oxford Street.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denmark_Street
However, the shops on Denmark Street have a small footprint so they only have a couple of kits set on the floor that can be played and the majority of the kits will be displayed on the walls and only brought down & set up for a serious customer.
I think Footes have a practise room you can book if you want to play for a while.
For a big "American style" drum showroom with loads of kits set up you need to go to the outskirts of London to somewhere like the Wembley Drum Centre where there's more floorspace available.
If you end up in South London I can also recommend Drumshack in Clapham but again it's a small shop so only a few kits set up at a time.

Thank you so much!! Hadn't even occurred to me to take him to Denmark St (although I know it reasonably well) so we shall do that. If the drum thing happens, all the better.

Be aware that its a building site around Denmark Street at the moment and several of the shops are affected.

We have a similar issue with my autistic keyboard playing son. He gets angsty if he goes too long without access to a piano. Yamaha is his go to place where he can play a while without the assistants getting narky. They usually have a couple of kits set up in the basement.

Hello, I realise this thread is a little old but at Prelude Education we always recommend Pirate Studios - https://pirate.com/en/. They've got some great venues across London and all well stocked.

Hope that helps.

https://www.preludeeducation.com/private-music-lessons