For some of us, being without our smartphones for a few hours prompts panic: think of all the messages we would miss. For others, however, going off-grid sounds like bliss. Now, those looking to escape the doomscrolling can go cold turkey – for a few hours, at least.
The Offline Club, which has made a name for itself by hosting phone-free hangouts in the Netherlands, has brought its concept to London. On Wednesday, the Guardian visited one of the company’s no-phone zones, hosted in a church in West Hampstead.
Attenders were greeted with a grand, Instagrammable display of dangling fairy lights and statues of saints backlit by neon signs. Those hoping to capture the scene on their phone cameras had to be quick, however, as devices were locked away shortly after arrival.
Some of those who came wanted to unwind alone and meditate or read without peeking at their phones. For others, the event meant something deeper: a chance to make meaningful connections in a world where opportunities to do so are increasingly fleeting.
“When I walked in I was nervous,” said Jayren Malijan, 20. The fledgling perfumer, who recommends scents on “fragrancetok”, came to the event alone. “I came to make new friends. People complain that they’re lonely but they’re not willing to go out and make an effort to not feel lonely.”
He said a reliance on phones was creating “a lot of introverts”, especially among the younger generation. “Phones are physiologically impactful. It’s detrimental to your mental health. People can’t hold a conversation,” he said.
“On the street, everyone looks so serious and unapproachable looking down at their screens. An event like this is what most of us need, especially if you’re young.”
Malijan said he yearned for years past when being offline was the norm. “Technology wasn’t advanced [back then]. People would play out with neighbours, now everyone is playing PlayStation. There’s no physical interaction any more. It’s broken the light of people.”
Most of those in attendance were young people who have witnessed mobile phones transform from bricks to slick devices that can waste the day away, though the technology’s allure has reeled in those of all ages.
“I spend about 10 hours a day looking at screens,” said Elizabeth, 50, who works in finance. “I wake up and look at screens. I work at home and have two monitors. Throughout the day I’m constantly on the screens.”
She said she remembered when simple tasks that can now be carried out with a few swipes had to be done in person. “You used to walk to the bank or the doctors to speak to someone. Now it’s all online. They basically tell you: ‘Bugger off, just go online and fill out the form. It’s so convenient, so nice and easy’. They really push it on you.
“I see the benefit of it, it’s supposed to save you time. You won’t be queueing in the bank for hours to see your statement, but now you end up spending more time on gadgets.”
Elizabeth said she worried about the impact modern technology was having on younger people. “Individual loneliness has gotten a lot worse. We used to socialise much more, we used to have parties. When I was a kid, we would knock on our neighbour’s door and say: ‘Is such and such coming out to play?’ Kids are not doing that, my son is not doing that.”
While children today might prefer their PlayStation over the playground, there were roars of excitement among the adult attenders when the event’s host, Ben, announced at the halfway point that a soft-play area would open. They got up on their feet to mingle.
Taz Alam, 31, a YouTuber, was among those up and about. “Everyone here is so lovely,” she said. “You can just go up to someone who you don’t know and start a conversation. If you did that anywhere else in London, out of this bubble, people would be like: ‘You’re weird’.
“It just feels so easy and natural. They create such a safe space in what can be a lonely place.”
As a YouTuber, Alam inevitably has to look at screens and stay online to keep up with the latest trends. “The irony is that I found out about this event on TikTok.”
She said she thought social media could be a positive thing if used consciously. “I’m never going to say social media is bad because I owe it everything. It’s how I met so many cool people. It’s how I have my job and pay my bills.
“I think social media is great. It’s just your relationship with it. If you’re using it to numb your brain because you don’t like your reality, that’s not healthy.”
Alam said she clocked up about 10 hours of screen time a day. “If I’m having a good day, like this, where my dopamine is happening and it’s coming from genuine engagement, I probably won’t need to get that hit from my phone.”
As the end of the session approached, she spoke for many in the room when asked if she was itching to get her phone back: “Not at all.”
