Brixton Bugle November 2017

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BRIXTON BUGLE YOUR FREE

No 58 | NOVEMBER 2017

Published monthly in and for Brixton

ISSN 2397-852X

BRIXTON BOOM IS THREAT TO SHOPS

By Eleanor Sharples

Tony Benest: Serving customers for 35 years

The shocking rent rises in central Brixton have put yet another local institution in jeopardy.

Brixton Wholefoods, a fixture on Atlantic Road for nearly 40 years, has had its rent increased by £17,000 to £37,000 a year.

It is the latest in a long line of businesses threatened by landlords demanding ever higher rents.

Landlords Threshold Land & Estates Limited are based in leafy Hampton Wick near the Thames in Surrey.

Hilary Waterfield started the shop 38 years ago when it was located across the road in what is now the Lounge. Tony Benest, who co-owns the shop with Hilary, has been serving customers there for 35 years.

“We had a massive rent rise and considered closing down,” says Hilary.

“But we decided to rise to the challenge.

Our shop has always been one of the hubs of the Brixton community and this was the main reason we were determined to keep it going.

“I tend to feel we have been carried into this tide of change and we have very little influence.

“It was very different in the days that our property was owned by Lambeth council and we felt we had some support from our landlords. But when

FREE BEER FOR CHRISTMAS

Wholefood store to fight on after rent nearly doubled

they sold up to the present owners that all changed.

“We have no support at all. All financial responsibility is passed on to us. It is, all about money now, not about our lovely Brixton community.”

Tony added “We are just about coping. I just wonder what I’d do if I gave it up.

“Brixton has a reputation as a boom town. Landlords reckon if the older shops and traders are priced out, there’ll be plenty queuing up to get it.”

“A lot of our old customers have decanted to Croydon and Thornton Heath and so don’t come in every day.

The gentrifiers don’t spend on food, as they eat out a lot. We do still have a lot of students coming in though and our herbs and spices are our big draw.”

On top of the rent rise, rates are expected to increase from next April to £7,000.

Another much loved favourite on Atlantic Road, Kaff Bar closed in 2015

☛☛ continued page 2

property agne for any sales or lettings mp cha t quo Clic ve Veu of tle ry beer or a bot com to have Receive a case of Brixton Brewe or email info@keatingestates.

13 21 20 77 0 02 on ay tod Call us valuation with Keating Estates. as! a drink on us. Happy Christm

COMMUNITY PAPER

WHO AM I?

Find out in Brixton

CAN YOU HEAR IT? Find out at Omnibus

COVER STORIES

Black History Month songs

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WHAT DOES IT ALL MEAN? Find out in the Market

Keating Estates Clapham 23 Clapham Common South Side Keating Estates Brixton 427 Coldharbour Lane Keating Estates Herne Hill 17 Norwood Road Keating Estates Dulwich 15 Grove Vale

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2017 NOVEMBER

Lambeth launches bid to be London borough of culture Brixton will feature strongly in a bid for Lambeth to become the first London Borough of Culture.

Council leader Lib Peck launched the bid last month at a packed meeting in Brixton’s new Department Store building.

The competition is run by the Mayor of London and the winning borough stands to win £1 million.

The competition defines culture as including visual and performing arts, museums, libraries and literature. It also includes popular and informal culture and everyday creativity. All bids must involve local people in shaping the cultural programme.

Lambeth’s consultation is already under way. A series of workshops involving community groups and young people have helped develop ideas to include in the bid. The deadline for the final application is 1 December. The bid team is asking local people to let it know their views at ourlambeth.london.

Launching the competition earlier in the year London Mayor Sadiq Khan said: “London is the cultural capital of the world.

“Our communities and neighbourhoods are a rich tapestry of creativity and originality that illustrates the diversity of expression that makes London such a vibrant city.”

Peck told the launch meeting that the Lambeth bid would put the community at the centre of the design and delivery of the bid, and would spotlight existing treasures.

“Lambeth is literally teaming with cultural groups and organisations,” she said. “I think it is a real manifestation of the diversity and nationalities of the people that live here. And it makes Lambeth a great place to live, to work and to live in.”

More than 170 organisations who have already contributed to the bid.

Stella Kanu, executive producer of Ovalhouse theatre, which is to move to Brixton in 2019, told the audience that two weeks ago the theatre ran a youth work shop led by Hip Hop artist Ty, for ages from three to 30.

“All of them saw culture and art as central to their dreams for the future. And we spent a bit of time sharing what those dreams were,” she said.

Dr Mahamed Hashi, a member of Lambeth’s Equality Commission and a director of Brixton Soup Kitchen, highlighted the disadvantage in the borough.

“He was backing the bid, he said, because culture has a place in tackling disadvantage, helping others, allowing people to develop their creativity, and bringing people together.

AA See more at #OurLambeth and #MyLocalCulture.

Pea-ing in the bath – Steve Kielty PICTURE CHELONE WOLF

Peas be with you at Market House MasterChef runner up Steve Kielty is bring his Spinning Plates food to Market House on Coldharbour Lane.

A man of many talents, the south Londoner is a DJ, sound engineer and musician. His two main passions in life are food and music. He’s definitely a meat and two veg man, but pulled off a pea-based vegetarian dish in the quarter finals described by MasterChef’s John Torode as “very, very clever”.

Kielty says: “There is definitely a similarity between what I do for a living and my cooking. As a sound engineer I am always dealing with both the scientific and creative sides of music and music production “ I think this is also reflected in the

food I like to cook. I love thinking up new dishes, or thinking of ways to play with flavour combinations and textures of classics.

“I enjoy the science and precision involved in the more modernist style of cooking, but still love the simplicity of good ingredients and classic cookery.

“I think ultimately joining my two passions would be amazing – being involved in a restaurant where the music and food are as important as each other would be great.”

And that’s exactly what’s happened.

Steve is serving dinner at Market House every Sunday from 1pm. It’s advisable to book, when it’s gone its gone.

AA www.market-house.co.uk.

BRIXTON MARKET IS UP FOR SALE

London & Associated Properties, which is advertising Brixton Village and Market Row for sale for £30 million is believed to have received at least one offer. The company had to abandon plans to turn the market into housing after a campaign won listed status for it in 2010.

The listing was based on the market’s cultural rather than architectural importance. There has been speculation recently that, should the market’s character undergo a major change or traders not be able to afford its rents, listed status could be challenged – renewing the threat of a gentrified housing development.

Property boom is threatening shops we have known for years ☛☛ from page 1 after its rent tripled. The premises are now occupied by a burger chain.

Kaff owner Steven Ross told the Brixton Blog at the time: “I’ve been fighting this

for a year and it’s impossible. They weren’t willing to negotiate and we cannot afford tripled rents.”

“All I can say is we have to start to fight so that this doesn’t happen to others: small businesses are being priced

out of the area, just like in the housing market.”

The list of business forced to close or relocate continues to grow, either because of rents or redevelopment. Even some of the newer chain restaurants and other retailers have

found the market tough and have been shortlived or are considering their presence in Brixton.

The Virgin Media shop on Brixton Road was recently advertised for rent at £160,000 by surveyors Williams,

Gunter, Hardwick and appears to have been successfully let.

Kashmir Butchers on Electric Avenue, recently restored, is on the market at just shy of £60,000 a year. The neighbouring, unrestored shop is offered for £39,000.

NOVEMBER 2017

NEWS 3

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Mayor presents heroes awards

IN BRIEF …

CINEMA MUSEUM APPEALS FOR HELP

The Cinema Museum in Kennington, housed in the old Lambeth Workhouse, where Charlie Chaplin was sent as a child, is under threat. The museum’s lease expires in March next year. The site is owned by the South London and Maudesley NHS Trust, which is planning to sell at speed to the highest bidder. A petition has been launched calling on the trust to keep its promise to sell to the museum at a fair price and to work with it to find a solution. You can sign at http://bit.ly/SaveCineM.

CAMPAIGN TO GET OLDIES ON BIKES

Lambeth Mayor Marcia Cameron presented the Brixton Local Heroes awards at a packed Brixton library last month.

She said the event was “moving, emotional, educational and inspirational” as she presented friends and relatives of those nominated with the Lambeth Medal.

They included Pastor Lorraine Jones who accepted the award on behalf of her son, Dwayne Simpson.

Liam Bullen accepted on behalf of his mother, the celebrated artist and campaigner Teri Bullen.

New nominations for a future “Roll of Honour” include the Domino and Sports Club in Coldharbour Lane. Workshops are already planned with local schools.

BRIXTON POUND AT LONDON MUSEUM The London Museum, better known for its model of the Great

Fire of London and displays about ancient Romans, also hosts a new coins exhibition. And, what do you know. The Brixton Pound is a prominent feature.

The Pound’s commemorative £5 note, designed by Turner Prize winning artist Jeremy Deller is displayed with its a quote from Karl Marx on the reverse which mocks the magical notion of “value” that capitalism is based on: “Capital is money, capital is commodities … By virtue of its being value, it has acquired the occult ability to add value to itself. It brings forth living offspring, or, at the least, lays golden eggs.”

Photographs David Wilcock

Noise campaigners meet MP and council Cycle Training UK, Lambeth council and SW9 Community Housing, will launch the Silver Cycling project on 8 November. It is designed to get older people to exercise on side-by side bikes with the help of trained community volunteers. To find out more contact Deborah Willemen, Silver Cycling project manager on 020 7232 4397 or email deborah@cycletraining.co.uk.

DIGITAL SKILLS TRAINING IN BRIXTON

Nominet Digital Neighbourhood has partnered with Brixton youth agency Livity to train young people in digital skills.

Sessions at Livity’s offices last three days and train young people aged 18 to 24 how to use social media, search engine optimisation and Google AdWords. They are then partnered with a local small business that can use their skills as part of a paid placement.

DIVERSITY SCHOLARSHIPS

Black Cultural Archives patron Miranda Brawn told the annual Diversity Leadership lecture at the University of Law (ULaw) in London last month that “each and every one of us needs to work together to close the gap across all diversity strands in the UK. She was announcing the nine winners of this year’s Miranda Brawn Diversity Leadership Foundation scholarships which target black and minority ethnic 14-21-yearolds. Other speakers included Baroness Shami Chakrabarti, Matthew Ryder, deputy mayor of London for social integration, Dame Fiona Woolf patron of the Foundation, Baroness Warsi, Chi-chi Nwanoku OBE professor at the Royal Academy of Music, and Jacqueline Cheltenham from ULaw.

A first meeting between Sleepless Brixton campaigners against noise and nuisance in the town centre, Lambeth council, Transport for London and the police took place last month.

“It feels like we’ve got them to accept that there is a problem. Now we want to see some action,” said a Sleepless Brixton spokesperson.

Local MP Helen Hayes, who set up the meeting, said: “Residents of central Brixton have written to me with concerns about increased night-time noise and anti-social behaviour, which has grown in recent months linked to the increased popularity of Brixton as a late night destination and the emergence of new venues in the area, aided by the Night Tube.”

She welcomed the “vibrancy and health” of the Brixton night time economy, saying central Brixton had always been a residential area and that it was important that the growth of the night-time economy

MP Helen Hayes at a Brixton Neighbourhood Forum meeting where the noise issue featured was not at the expense of the health and amenity of local residents.

“Many of the longstanding night time economy businesses are also a part of our community, are responsible neighbours and contribute to making Brixton special and distinctive;” she said.

“Many of these businesses are also now at risk from increasing rents and business rates.

“The meeting I convened on this issue brought together a

Windrush Square memorial ceremony Remembrance Sunday on 12 November will see a parade from the Stockwell War Memorial to the African Caribbean Memorial on Windrush Square, where there will be a ceremony at 1pm.

The parade at Stockwell starts at 10.45.

Council leader Lib Peck and mayor Marcia Cameron will be there along with veterans and serving forces personnel.

Wreaths will be laid in Windrush Square at the African and Caribbean solders war memorial with a choir and a bugle call to begin the two minute silence.

The ceremony will be followed by the launch in Brixton library of Remembered: In Memoriam – an anthology of African and Caribbean experiences in both world wars.

range of key local stakeholders, including residents, the police, Lambeth Council, Transport for London, Brixton BID and longstanding businesses.

“There is a shared view that the current situation has become untenable, and a strong commitment to work together to keep Brixton town centre special, and to create an environment in which residents can live free from unacceptable levels of noise and anti-social behaviour, and where independent businesses can thrive.”

Cllr Mo Seedat, the Lambeth council cabinet member for healthier and stronger communities, said that, while Brixton town centre attracted people from across London and was thriving as a place to eat, work and socialise, “we won’t tolerate anti-social or illegal activity in Brixton, and work with the police and businesses to get the balance right between people

enjoying themselves, ensuring safety and tackling illegal traders.”

He said the council was also seeking to work with City Hall and Transport for London to tackle anti-social behaviour in central Brixton.

The Sleepless Brixton campaigners stressed again that they want the responsibly run bars and clubs that its members visit and work in to thrive.

“But that does not mean that we have to accept people trashing our streets and keeping us awake before they go back to their nice quiet homes and sleep it off,” they said. They repeated appeals for central Brixton residents to let them know both what is going wrong in the neighbourhood and what is going right.

AA Brixton residents can email the campaign at sleeplessbrixton@ gmail.com or sign up via its Facebook page.

Opinion: page 9

First Exchange Travel Money @ Morleys Brixton 2nd Floor Great Rates No Commission firstexchangeuk.com 020 7326 3919

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2017 NOVEMBER PHILIP KING

MORRIS IN THE MARKET

Brixton was the venue for a meeting of morris dancing “sides”, writes Philip King.

Hosted by Hammersmith’s Morris Men, dancing Cotswold style, the guests were two sides all the way from Bishop’s Castle in Shropshire: The Bedlams, in masks and ragged costumes; and Martha Rhoden’s Tuppenny Dish, in green and gold, dancing the Border morris style. Morris dancing needs masses of energy, so before showing their moves at the Trinity Arms and Craft Beer pub, they made sure to visit Brixton Village for lunch, in full costume of course.

FOODBANK

Council sets out its plans to tackle inequality in borough

By Anna McKie Lambeth council has set out how it will start to implement proposals from s report on tackling inequality in the borough.

It is the 44th most deprived out of 326 in England; the ninth most deprived borough in London; 31% of its population live in areas of high deprivation; and one third of Lambeth families with children are on benefits.

Much of the deprivation is concentrated in the Brixton area. Some 80% of the population of Coldharbour ward live in areas ranked among the 20% most deprived in England.

The Lambeth Equality Commission, set up by the council, published a report in July that made a series of wide-ranging recommendations – from education to policing – to tackle these problems.

It laid out how the council and its partners – including the Mayor of London, national

Council leader Lib Peck attended the Miranda Brawn lecture where the Lambeth scholarship to help increase diversity was awarded. Winner Thalia Papanicolau receives funding, work experience at the council and mentoring from Patrick Vernon OBE and an elected member of the council. government and the whole community – could take action to break down the barriers that hold people back.

Recommendations include Lambeth employers all paying the London Living Wage, having private firms establish a “corporate apprenticeship scheme” to help groups who have been excluded from the jobs market and to increase black and minority ethnic and

IN BRIEF …

disabled leadership roles.

The report also said that the “implementation of the recommendations should be a key priority for the organisation for the next 12-18 months”.

At a council meeting on 2 October, the recommendations were endorsed and a plan to make sure they are implemented was agreed.

Specific areas have been identified for immediate

reaction and a full prioritisation plan is being put together, Isabelle Clement, a member of the commission and director of Wheels for Wellbeing told the Bugle.

The priority items, which include tackling low pay and poor working conditions, have been assigned to everyone on the commission to help action the points.

“I am particularly impressed with the commitment to addressing the huge gap we identified in the council’s understanding of the issues faced by disabled people in this borough,” Clement said.

“I will be taking a very close interest and will work with others to shape this review, to ensure that disabled people themselves are involved and heard and to ensure that it leads to real, concrete change for disabled citizens in Lambeth.”

Another commissioner, barrister and business woman Dr Miranda Brawn, said she would be working

with the council leadership teams to help improve workplace diversity.

“We have already started this process by awarding a young ethnic minority person from Lambeth with a Miranda Brawn diversity leadership scholarship. The award includes £500 funding, work experience at Lambeth Council and one year mentoring with a top leader,” she said.

Council leader Lib Peck, who chaired the commission, said she wanted get a report that could actually be implemented. “The recommendations are many and varied; they also look at recommendations that we’d want to present to government, the Mayor of London, public sector partners and the community and that we as a council would want to get our own house in order.”

Cllr Sonia Winifred, who will oversee the implementation of the recommendations, said monitoring what happens “must be robust” and ensure people are held to account.

MEMORIAL GETS PROTECTION Temporary railings have been placed around the Windrush Square memorial to the Black heroes who fought for Britain in two world wars while its plinth is repaired. It is believed to have been damaged by skateboarders sliding along it, leaving scuffs and chips.

Jon Daniel • FAMILY • DIVORCE • NOTARY PUBLIC • PROPERTY • WILLS & PROBATE • CIVIL LITIGATION • MEDIATION 57-61 Atlantic Road, Brixton SW9 8PU Telephone 020 7095 5700 • HOUSING • IMMIGRATION & ASYLUM • EMPLOYMENT • PRISON LAW • CRIME 6A Acre Lane, Brixton SW2 5SG Telephone 020 7737 9330 info@wainwrightcummins.co.uk

Award-winning local designer Jon Daniel has died. His work includes the Brixton Advice Centre windows on Railton Road and Afro Supa Heroes.

He was a core member of the team who designed the logo and concept of the magazine for national Black History Month. He was also a member of the Windrush Day Steering Committee. The logo he designed for the 70th anniversary of the Windrush

will be in use next year – 2018.

Born in London in 1966, he was long-term resident of Milkwood Road in Herne Hill. He was passionate about Brixton and Lambeth and a supporter of local community groups, including the Brixton Advice Centre.

In a career of more than 25 years, he worked as an art director for several of London’s leading advertising agencies.

Norwood and Brixton Foodbank is looking for a part-time administrator.

The role would suit someone who wants to work from home, but who can get to the venues when needed. Job description at norwoodbrixton.foodbank. org.uk. Volunteers are also needed for supermarket collections. The foodbank says: “If you have corporate volunteering time to use, or are available from Thursday, 30 November until Saturday, 2 December please sign up.” Roles include handing out shopping lists, sorting and stacking food, and helping transport food to the foodbank warehouse.

POST BOXES

The Brixton Society has had talks with Royal Mail and Lambeth planning about the lack of post boxes in central Brixton. The society newsletter says: “When the old Post Office closed, we lost its posting boxes, accessible from the pavement, which were not replaced in the new Post Office. Even worse, Royal Mail did not know this was happening until it did!”

Square boxes in Electric Avenue that were removed during resurfacing will reappear on the Effra Road side of Windrush Square.

REFUGEES

Faiths Together in Lambeth is collecting food and clothing for a planned visit to Calais to coincide with Mitzvah Day, 19 November.

Cathy Ashley has been working closely with care4calais in support of refugees who are destitute in Paris and Calais. Many are unaccompanied children.

You can help by donating items, volunteering for the trip or sorting donations in advance. Items needed include sleeping bags, blankets, winter coats, hoodies and jeans and jogging bottoms, toiletries, trainers, boots and shoes, socks and gloves.

Donations are being picked up at All Saints Church, Lovelace Road, London SE21 8JY. Email cathyashley99@gmail.com and ella@jewishlabour.uk or text 079731570149 for details.

MARKET WALKS

Brixton Society guided walks in the markets area are on the second Saturday of every month, at £3 including the illustrated booklet of the route. Tickets in advance via marketwalks@ brixtonsociety.org.uk. Walks start from Brixton Station Road, corner of Beehive Place, at 2.30 pm and take about 80 minutes.

NOVEMBER 2017

BRIXTON LEGAL Pam Douglas is a solicitor with local firm Wainwright & Cummins. Each month, she takes a common enquiry and asks colleagues to answer it for readers

Domestic abuse This month, we’re tackling the question of what to do if you are experiencing domestic abuse and my colleague, Louise Ankarcrona, who is part of our family law team, answers it below: Two women are killed every week in England and Wales by a current or former partner and one in four women will experience domestic violence in their lifetimes according to Refuge, the country’s largest single provider of specialist domestic violence services since 1971.

What is domestic abuse and what can you do to protect yourself and your children if any if you are being abused?

The government definition of domestic violence and abuse is: “Any incident or pattern of incidents of controlling, coercive, threatening behaviour, violence or abuse between those aged 16 or over who are or have been, intimate partners or family members regardless of gender or sexuality. The abuse can encompass, but is not limited to physical, emotional, psychological, sexual or financial abuse.”

Domestic abuse can also include forced marriage, female genital mutilation and honour-based violence. Anyone can be a victim regardless of their gender, sexuality, age, social background, religion or ethnicity. By the same token, anyone can be a perpetrator of abuse.

A new offence of “controlling or coercive behaviour” came into force in December 2015. It addresses situations where there is no serious physical violence but the behaviour is emotionally and psychologically abusive, usually over a long period of time.

This has been welcomed by rights campaigners as a remedy for those whose abusers might have previously escaped justice due to lack of tangible and immediate physical evidence.

The most important thing to remember is that there are no excuses for abuse, regardless of what your current/former partner or family member is saying.

If you are in immediate danger you need to call the police. If you have a friend who you can trust you may be able to stay in their home whilst you are deciding what to do next.

It is your choice whether you want to report your abuser to the police, but remember that your wellbeing is a priority and you will need evidence to support your claim if you are looking to take legal steps to keep yourself safe.

Legal options include a “non-molestation order” which prevents your abuser from using or threatening violence against you and your children, if you have them. It also prohibits other abusive behaviours such as harassment, intimidation and pestering. Beaching a non-molestation order is a criminal offence. If your abuser breaches any of the conditions in the order you need to call the police and he/she will be arrested.

If you can no longer stay in your home because you are experiencing abuse, you could call the free 24-hour National Domestic Helpline on 0808 2000 247 who can help you move safely to a refuge space.

If you want to stay in your home and for the abuser to leave, you can also make an application for an “occupation order”.

An occupation order can stipulate that your partner must leave the property within a certain time and not return either to the property or the immediate area, or both. You can apply for and obtain these types of orders without the abuser’s knowledge.

Once they are served with the order there will be a follow-up hearing giving them an opportunity to challenge it.

You might be eligible for legal aid if you are experiencing domestic violence or abuse and you will need to be assessed to check. You will need to show evidence of your allegations and this could include a letter from your GP confirming that you are a victim, or a crime reference number, confirming a recent police report.

If you would like help with this issue or any other, please contact our team at Wainwright & Cummins on info@wainwrightcummins.co.uk.

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Threatened Papa’s Park urges vote for funding campaign Papa’s Park playground and sports pitch in Pulross Road, one of the closest open spaces to Brixton town centre, is under threat of closure.

Playground equipment is becoming obsolete and unsafe and campaigners need to raise at least £25,000 in the next six months to keep the park open.

Papa’s opened in 1995 following a campaign by residents for the derelict land to be given for community use rather than sold to developers.

Since then, the well-used park has been run by volunteers with a playground, café, community centre and basketball court. It was funded by Lambeth council until six months ago.

Plans have been drawn up by campaigners to make the site economically viable, by transforming the basketball court and community centre and using revenues from renting out the space

to local groups to make it self-sufficient.

Following community consultation, the park committee has created a new playground design and is ready to begin fundraising.

A key element of the design is a multi-play climbing unit costing £25,000.

The committee is seeking support from the Aviva Community Fund which supports community projects up to £25,000. Which projects get funding depends on a public vote which is open until 21 November.

Jacquie Dyer, co-chair of the committee says: “As well as urging the council to help us, we are calling on all those who love Papa’s to vote for us in the Aviva Community Fund.

“We have the chance to win £25,000 which would enable us to keep Papa’s Park open while we fundraise for the remainder of the work that will secure

the park’s long-term future.”

Supporters can go to http://bit.ly/Save-PP to cast their vote.

Rachael Neville, a local mother of two boys, aged two and four, says: “Papa’s Park has been a lifeline for me and my family, especially when my boys were babies and I needed to get out of the house to deal with the isolation of early parenthood. It really saved my mental health.”

Papa’s committee of volunteers has written to Lambeth council urging it to release funds collected from architectural firm Squire and Partners as a result of its Ferndale Road Department Store development.

Jane Pickard, council cabinet member for families and young people, said: “I’ve visited Papa’s Park and I agree with the campaigners that it’s a really great playground and café providing much-needed

space for local children. I certainly don’t want to see it close.

“The council is committed to working with Papa’s to support their ideas to make the park sustainable in the long term at what we recognise is a very difficult time for all voluntary sector organisations.

“The site is one of several independently run playgrounds which are on council land and benefited from council funding in the past.

“Due to huge cuts in our funding from government, we are encouraging our voluntary and community sector tenants to develop sustainability plans.”

Local residents fear the playground could be sold off to property developers. The lease on the land, currently controlled by Papa’s Park committee runs out in eight years.

■■ www.papaspark.co.uk.

Thank you Lincoln!

Lincoln (right) plays table volleyball with Loveth

SUNDAY VEGAN MARKET Brixton Markets’ first vegan market is on Sunday 29 October in Brixton Station Road.

The farmers’ market will also be there as usual.

The Market Traders Federation is keen to promote its Sunday markets and to support businesses that are still trading, despite the closure of Network Rail’s arches.

There are volunteers, and then there is Brixton Cycles’ Lincoln Roman.

His dedication to helping Disability Lambeth’s Inclusive Sports And Physical Activities club (iSPA) in Slade Gardens every week has won high praise from project officer Abs Tripp.

“He has tirelessly cycled with people on a side-by-side bike, shown shy people how to use the gym bars, played

cricket, table volleyball (a game he helped to invent, using a small beach ball on a picnic table). Nothing is too much for Lincoln, he has even learned fingerspelling!”

Club members play games, cycle, walk and uses the gym bar from April to October.

This month they move indoors.

AA To find out more contact Abs on 07512 566 875 or abs.tripp@disabilitylambeth. org.uk.

Fashion Jewellery Winter Pop-up Shop Come and shop Arlette Gold’s “curated and created” pop-up store.

Unusual and affordable jewellery from independent designers that you’d never find on the high street.

The perfect place to browse for thoughtful and original presents.

16th November – 3rd December 431 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LN For more information, opening hours and events programme visit: www.arlettegold.com

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2017 NOVEMBER

Black Sound show inspires classic covers BCA chair honoured

Dawn Hill, chair of the trustees of Brixton’s Black Cultural Archives (above), has been recognised by the prime minister for her leadership and the importance of the BCA in highlighting the role Black people have played in British history.

She received a Points of Light from the PM at a Downing Street Black History Month reception. The awards are for outstanding people who are making a change in their community and inspiring others.

Hill said: “I am immensely proud of 30 years working with BCA together with other committed volunteers who have seen the iconic heritage centre open in Windrush Square in Brixton.”

A Brixton charity has helped local young people to record a series of stunning covers of classic songs for Black History Month, School Ground Sounds (SGS), based at Impact Hub in Pop Brixton, says they celebrate the achievements of Black musicians from Britain and overseas.

A trip to the Black Sound exhibition at the BCA kicked off the project where SGS made a video.

“It isn’t just Black music history, it’s all of our histories,” pointed out one student. The visit was also the start of a Twitter campaign for Black History Month.

SGS founder Tom Scott said: “We’re doing this with a series of covers of iconic artists (including Otis Redding, Etta James and Michael Jackson), performed by some of our young musicians.”

You can view the performances on Twitter at SGSxBHM.

Shammanie (right), who covers Etta James’ I’d Rather Go Blind, says: “She’s very inspirational to me and many others. Growing up, she went through hardship and was able to express her pain and emotions through her songs.”

SGS works with schools and young people in lower income areas to provide additional music opportunities.

These include recording studio experience (age 11 – 24); a one-to-onementoring programme (age 16 – 24); The Grit School, a six-week industry crash course (age 16 – 24); and a songwriting competition (age 11 – 18).

The charity has already worked with more than 250 young people.

“We’re currently running projects with local youth centres, offering them recording sessions at Raw Material Studios. And we’re about to launch The Grit School 2017,” says Scott.

SGS is supported by Orbitsound and has received grants from BBC

Children in Need, London Community Foundation and Youth Music.

■■ To find out more visit www.schoolgroundsounds.org.

Walk the history, sounds, food and art of Brixton with new audio tour A new 40-minute audioguided walking tour of Brixton using GPS triggers tells the story of the area from the arrival of the HMS Windrush to today.

Created by Brixton-based radio producer Olivia Humphreys (right), it is narrated by Christopher Icha, whose parents arrived

from Jamaica in the 60s and who took part in the uprisings of the 1980s.

Humphreys says: “It is his personal story interwoven with the wider story of the AfricanCaribbean community in Brixton.”

The tour is a journey through the markets

where families would buy ingredients for ackee and salt fish, jerk chicken and curry goat. It takes in music, food, art, and history including the 80s uprising and favourite record stores, including Pure Vinyl, are visited.

Documentary maker Olivia Humphreys is a

member of Impact Hub in Pop Brixton.

Her films have been screened in over 50 festivals worldwide.

She has also produced a podcast – New Normal, hearing stories from Syrian refugees in London.

■■ detour.com/london/ brixton-cultural-uprising

NOVEMBER 2017

COMMUNITY ENTERPRISE 7

brixtonblog.com

How Telixia followed her dream Emma Lange speaks to Telixia Inico about her agency that supports young creatives in south London The Truth Sessions (TTS) is a creative agency in south London that supports young artists and entrepreneurs from undervalued communities to build their brands through affordable tools, consultations, workshops and events.

The venture was born from challenges that founder Telixia experienced first hand.

“As a struggling artist, I didn’t have access to the resources I needed to build my brand and turn my passion into a pay cheque,” she says.

“Growing up in Brixton and coming from an undervalued community, I was also familiar with the shortage of opportunities that enable young artists to follow their dreams.”

“I created The Truth Sessions to provide the branding tools, support and community that allows creatives to take their art

to the next level.

“We strive to break down social and economic barriers through the arts, paving the way for the next generation.”

Needing business skills to support her idea, Telixia turned to Hatch Enterprise, an organisation that supports and empowers young people in Lambeth through entrepreneurship. “Hatch’s mission in Lambeth resonated with my personal goals. It was a great fit,” she says.

Telixia took part in Hatch’s early stage launchpad and then the more advanced incubator programme.

“The courses helped me to clarify my vision and motivation for TTS, which granted me Telixia: The confidence when applying courses for funding and helped me approaching potential to clarify partners.

“They also my vision provided valuable insight into social enterprises, which helped me pivot my business to make it stable and scalable.”

In addition to the valuable business skills acquired, building and maintaining partnerships has been integral to the success TTS.

“Since launching, we have been fortunate to work with some amazing organisations in and around Brixton such as Raw Material, Code7, Brixton Soup Kitchen, and Black Youth Achievement (BYA) Awards.

“We have also received funding from Lambeth Youth Council to deliver our poetry/creative writing workshop in schools across Lambeth.”

“Joining forces with other organisations has helped our brand both online and offline,” Telixia says. “But it can also be

challenging to find others that believe in your vision as much as you do.

“We’ve found the best approach to building healthy partnerships is to be honest about what you want to achieve, while staying open to the opportunities that can emerge from collaboration.”

AA Find out more about TTS at www.thetruthsessions.org or contact info@thetruthsessions.org.

AA Have a business idea you’re ready to take to the next level? info@hatchenterprise.org or visit www.hatchenterprise.org.

Rising to the challenge We Rise, a new community business, will launch with a party at Brixton Cycles this month.

Previously known as Raw Talent, it helps students to find “meaningful, interesting and purposeful” work experience on real projects.

The name change was decided after consultation with students.

We Rise coaches young people to work in teams to deliver projects that businesses and organisations commission. One group prepared stories about this year’s Brixton Design Trail for the Bugle and Brixton Blog.

We Rise will launch its new website and a crowdfunding campaign at Brixton Cycles with music and a DJ from 7pm on Friday 17 November.

The crowdfunding campaign is to help fund a youth outreach worker, develop more business relationships and take the concept into more schools.

We Rise students on a video project

EMPOWERING BRIXTON'S YOUTH You are invited to join us for our launch party on

November 17th 7pm Hear about our awesome work experience projects, help us shape future ones, meet the team, then stick around for the after party!

296-298 Brixton Road London SW9 6AG

THE BRIXTON POUND What’s On

The Pound has been on tour!

Mondays: Life drawing, 6:30pm Tuesdays: South London Knits, 10:00 am Wednesdays: M osaics with Kes, 6:00 Parent & child yoga 4pm

Thursdays: Y oga 7:00 pm 3 November: Day of the Dead Supper club, 7:00 pm

4 November: Let’s Laugh Comedy, 7:30 pm 6 November: Yoga: vinyasa flow, 7:00 pm 18 November: Let’s Laugh Comedy 7:30 pm 19 November: Clothes Swap Shop, 12:00 pm 25 November: Still on the Fence?

Refugee Crisis Talk Series Speaker: Lesbians and Gays Support the Migrants, 2:00 pm

Tailoring clothes with messages of empathy and love with Body Politic and the Brixton Pound in Dalston

More in Common …

26 November: Sunday Storytelling, 6:00 pm 28 November: Vinyasa flow with Miana, 7:00 pm

DROP-IN LIFE DRAWING MONDAYS: 6.30-8PM

Get your sketch pads out! Responding to demand from customers for more sociable evening events, we’re starting a 10-week life drawing class with different local artists leading each session. Classes are £7.50 for unwaged/low wage and £10 for those who can afford a bit more. Pencils and other artistic accoutrements provided, and you can also buy an A3 sketchpad from us to use and store in the space.

VOLUNTEERS AND ITEMS WANTED! The B£ is powered by community, goodwill and lots of coffee. Could you help us out by joining our community of dedicated volunteers and sharing your skills? Perhaps you’re an electrician and could help sort out the electrics in our cafe? Or a plumber? Maybe you have cafe/kitchen experience and can offer a shift a week in our cafe, or maybe you’re just interested in what we do and want to help support at our events – we want to hear from you! Email lucy@brixtonpound.org, or pop in to see us at the cafe.

We’re also always on the lookout for cooking equipment so if you’re a business upgrading your kitchen and you’re throwing something out, please think of us!

SPACE FOR HIRE Looking for a space to hire in Brixton? Look no further: between our cafe and studio downstairs we host workshops, meetings, consultations, yoga classes, rehearsals, regular groups and supper clubs. Drop us a line on spacehire@brixtonpound.org or pop into our cafe to make an enquiry. We want to keep our space affordable so we offer discounted rates for local community groups.

LAPTOP CLINIC Cafe regular Nick will repair laptops in need of speed-up help, virus removal, decluttering, improving security. Drop into the cafe at 77 Atlantic Rd, SW9 8PU to enquire.

It’s been a busy few weeks for the Brixton Pound. We’ve been spreading the word, and exporting our values of tolerance, openness and equality with our experimental nation state-of-mind, Brixtopia.

A riotous evening at Tate Modern, where B£s were accepted all night was followed by a weekend happening in Dalston – at the Acqua7 Gallery and the Dalston Curve Garden.

We were ably abetted by the wonderful Chocolate Poetry Club, artist T. BICK, the Remakery, comedian Susie Steed and protest tailors #BodyPolitic.

Brixtopia’s message of living in empathy, beyond borders and with a radical heart went down a storm in both places. We’re already planning more events.

The Independent Money Alliance The local currency movement got a welcome shot in the arm in July with the creation of the Independent Money Alliance. We’ve just been in Glasgow, at the inaugural IMA conference – and it’s amazing how much innovation and passion there is in the alternative economics world. Find out more at www.independentmoney.org. The occasion was marked with the release of a beautiful souvenir note (above) from our designers, This Ain’t Rock ‘n Roll

Yes, we do, occasionally, venture beyond Brixton!

Earlier this month, our intrepid Projects Manager Lucy Çava travelled to Boston, Lincolnshire, to meet with Boston More in Common.

Boston had the highest percentage of Leave votes; Brixton one of the lowest.

Brixton has been home to immigrants for a number of years; Boston only more recently.

Boston More in Common seek to foster relationships between places

seemingly different from Boston, connecting people with their local counterparts, and promoting connection in diverse communities.

Along with Lambeth More in Common, Lucy spent the day touring Boston, hearing youth speakers from Boston and Brixton discuss the referendum result, and building exciting new friendships with all kinds of Bostonians!

It was a day filled with education and connection, and there are certain to be many more exciting things to come!

Brixtonians extend a message of goodwill to Boston as part of Brixton Fund project Lambeth More In Common

Work experience and training at Pop Brixton Looking to break into the hospitality industry? Or know someone who’d like to take part in a week of work experience with a successful startup, with the potential for a job at the end of it?

Pop Brixton is offering work taster weeks and apprenticeships with some of its dynamic business members – as well as being

embedded in a small business for a week, with the chance to learn directly from experienced managers and founders, you’ll be able to attend free programme of workshops run on site throughout the week, on themes including how to write a great CV; running a social media marketing campaign; how to put on an event – and more.

There’s also an opportunity for anyone looking to start their own business to benefit from a more in depth one to one relationship with one of our business founders via our business mentoring scheme.

■■Get in touch with Lucy via lucy@brixtonpound.org to find out more about work experience or business mentoring.

7 7 At l a n t i c Ro a d | b r i x t o n p o u n d .o r g | @ b r i x t o n p o u n d | i n fo @ b r i x t o n p o u n d .o r g

NOVEMBER 2017

OPINION 9

brixtonblog.com

BRIXTON BUGLE

COMMENT

Don’t throw the culture out with the council

There has been some hostility to Lambeth’s bid to become the London Borough of Culture on Facebook and Twitter. Some commentators seem to think that Lambeth’s application is a bit rich, given its approach to the library service.

The rules of the competition clearly state that any London bid has to be bottom up and have the support of the local community.

One million quid is up for grabs for cultural activities for the winning bid.

The process means the council has to make the application – but this does not mean that the council dictates the bid content.

Some commentators see the library closures as an act of cultural vandalism and that makes the council an unfit applicant.

The two should not be conflated.

Whatever your view of Lambeth council’s approach to cuts, it should not colour your judgement on what winning London Borough of Culture would mean to one of the most deprived boroughs in London.

The Southbank may have the edge on highbrow – but Brixton is the beating heart of the borough. So far young people and community groups have had their say on what they would like to see in the bid. You can still have your say at ourlambeth.london.

170 organisations have already.

Vote early, vote often

With funding now extra-scarce, community groups are grabbing it where they can. Eight Brixton projects are vying for funding from the Aviva Community Fund. They need your vote to be successful. The competition is UK wide.

Go online and vote for your favourites. Papa’s Park, We Rise, Hatch, Baytree Centre, Black Cultural Archives, Brixton’s Vintage Voices Jesus Christ the Saviour and Brixton Community Base all need your vote.

Regulated by IMPRESS: The independent monitor for the press 16–18 New Bridge Street EC4V 6AG 020 3325 4288 complaints@impress.press www.impress.press

Bea and her mother Lacey

My flat in Electric Avenue is a place where even the smallest nook and cranny has happy memories. But now I can’t bear to be there Bea, who has lived in Electric Avenue in central Brixton for 50 years, spoke to The Bugle about her life there and how change has affected her formerly indomitable 83-year-old mother Lacey

M

y family arrived in Electric Avenue in 1966, when I was nine-years-old. My mum was born in Brixton. Housing had been very hard to get hold of and this was her first flat ever and the first time she had a flat large enough for us both to live in.

It was stunning. The Electric Avenue mansion flats then were great. There was a bedroom for each of us and a lovely balcony that I used to play on. I had a friend who lived next door and we used to play together through the bars on the balcony.

We also used to play out on the street – the days where children played out on the street. We spent a lot time up on the roof tops too, which perhaps wasn’t the best of ideas, but we were like cats.

I grew up in Electric Avenue, with Jack and James my half-brothers who were born and grew up there. My older brother Richard joined us, so mum lived there with her four kids together. It was a bit rough and ready, but all the family were at last in one place as a family.

Obviously, the market was noisy in the day.

Regular street market shouts about the apples and pears started in the morning and lasted the rest of the day. This went on from Monday to Saturday, with a half day on a Wednesday and a day of rest on a Sunday. The market was busy with barrow boys and even the well-known prostitutes.

Everybody knew each other and looked out for each other. But, without fail, the market was packed away and squeaky clean by 6 pm The brushes and sprayer would come through

and it was done – ready for us kids to play in the street. The other peaceful days were bank holidays and public holidays like Christmas.

Our lives were intertwined with the stall-holders and shops. The street was full of families, and of course we shopped in the market.

I vividly remember the night before Christmas Eve, which was always really special. The fruit and veg stalls changed to Christmas decoration stalls, selling the biggest and the best giant multi-coloured balloons and paper chains, which gave our living rooms the most sumptuous colour and festive spirit.

C

hristmas Eve itself was a huge day for the shops and stalls. The stallholders and shop owners had a big bonfire in the street on night of the 23rd, and the traders slept in the street close by their stalls. I remember the stallholders speaking in hushed voices as they were aware of the people in the flats either side of the street. The smell of the bonfire and roasted chestnuts was magical for

deprivation from the continuous noise was a key factor in pushing my mum into a delirious psychotic episode.

She was seeing and hearing horrible things. The shouting and the chopping from the butcher’s shop and the constant smell of rotting meat gave her terrifying visions of people being hacked to death in the street. She is a tormented soul.

It was a while ago that mum started telling me about what she called posh boys and girls turning up and shouting their way down the street.

A

t first we joked about them. She also complained about the constant banging from the butcher’s shop below her. I didn’t realise how bad it was until it was too late.

I didn’t realise how ill Electric Avenue was making her.

A refurbishment of the street left her with the brightest of lights shining in her bedroom window.

I can’t understand why a residential avenue needed so much night-time illumination and why it was placed on the wall by the room that she slept in.

Who thought that was a good idea?

For a long time I didn’t realise how ill she was. It turned out she had been going to the doctors for months, telling them she was anxious, but she was getting under the radar.

I had tried to get her to move many times before, but she loves Brixton.

She doesn’t want to leave, doesn’t want to go anywhere else.

She always joked she wanted to be carried out feet first, but now she is terrified and doesn’t want to go home. My brothers and I are really shocked by her terror of a place that holds so many great memories for her.

My mum says: “My flat in Electric Avenue is a place where even the smallest nook and cranny has happy memories. But now I can’t bear to be there“.

Electric Avenue is a place my mother loves so much, and has been her home for so very long. But this incessant noise has made it unsafe for her to come back here. It is devastating for all of us.

There is no peace, and the noise never stops. My supremely resourceful mum, who would take no nonsense from anyone, has had enough and is avoiding returning to her beloved home in Electric Avenue us kids. All that meant the stall-holders could open up really early and work flat out the next day, then close up early and go home to celebrate Christmas.

B

ut now there is no peace, and the noise never stops. My supremely resourceful mum, who would take no nonsense from anyone, has had enough and is avoiding returning to her beloved home in Electric Avenue.

The noise never stops: 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. I am absolutely clear the sleep

10 INCREDIBLE EDIBLE

brixtonblog.com

2017 NOVEMBER

Blooming Lambeth!

Incredible Edible Lambeth’s annual general meeting took place in the lambeth palace at the Garden Museum last month and featured the Blooming Lambeth awards, sponsored

by Lambeth council and the energy supplier Engie. Sue Sheehan reports

Photographs of the winning gardens from this year’s Blooming Lambeth awards are to go on show at the Garden Museum on Lambeth Palace.

Winners in the six categories each won £100.

Incredible Edible photographer Elaine Kramer captured the images that will goon display from next month.

We are developing a mobile version of the display that can come to your garden or event.

Mayor of Lambeth Marcia Cameron presented the award with the community food growing award presented in honour of the late Ivor Picardo by his brother Jonathan and his former manager at Lambeth council, Mark Howarth.

It was a great opportunity for many people who knew Ivor to remember him and share stories with Jonathan.

Pictures of all of the gardens are on the Incredible Edible Lambeth Facebook site.

Brockwell Park Community Greenhouses’ Hot Bed

Picture: Elain Kramer

A year of blossoming gardens and booming food activism Incredible Edible Lambeth is all about promoting the great activity in community gardens and kitchens. We want to ensure our efforts have an impact in making the borough a better place to live, work and play. This year’s AGM was held at the Garden Museum, a fitting place to announce the winners of Blooming Lambeth.

Here are some of the key projects Incredible Edible has been involved in over the year.

We were commissioned to curate a series of activities for the Chelsea (Flower Show) Fringe by Nine Elms London. This took us outside of Lambeth into Wandsworth,

although Nine Elms does straddle both boroughs.

1. We ran the CREATE – Start Your Own Food Business programme in Loughborough Junction and Gipsy Hill 2. We have worked with LEAP (Lambeth Early Years Partnership) – a 10-year £30m lottery-funded programme in four of Lambeth’s most deprived wards that aims to improve outcomes for children born into poverty. We advised community organisations and individuals on projects to encourage healthy eating and physical activity. We expect this work to continue and expand, and

Myatts Fields Greenhouse grew vegetable seedlings for many local community gardens

Picture: Elaine Kramer

to be able to share learning.

3. We were commissioned to run the Blooming Lambeth awards and that’s been a great way to bring people together and share what is going in our gardens.

4. We are also contributing to the Lambeth Food Partnership’s work on mapping food projects in Lambeth and how it compares to other boroughs and areas of the country.

We are the experts in understanding the food system locally and, increasingly, we are getting better at identifying actions that improve access to good food in the borough.

A major focus of our volunteer work has been networking with the health sector to increase the visibility of community gardens and kitchens. NHS structures are constantly being reorganised and, like much of the statutory sector, “health” organisations are looking at how they can work better with communities.

Progress is slow, but it is good for the food activist community to be a part of the networking. If you would like to get involved then please let me know.

Lambeth has been split into three local care network (LCN) areas, and has a community forum, so it would be good if we could sit on all of those. I would also urge every community garden to get involved with their local GP patient participation group (PPG) and tell them about your garden.

This year we want to focus on our map – to support networking and signposting to community food projects. As well as maintaining our Facebook and Twitter community networks, we are launching a more formal membership scheme.

Its aim is to enable better cooperation between organisations and to allow us to represent community gardens at meetings, for example with the health sector.

There are two kinds of membership – for groups and for individuals. Membership is free. If you sign up as a group you also get free membership of the Garden Museum.

AAYou can sign up your gardening group, or yourself as a supporting individual, via the Incredible Edible Lambeth website www.incredibleediblelambeth.gov.uk. Only groups who become members will be added to the map.

COMMUNITY FOOD GROWING In memory of Ivor Picardo

Paradise Garden in Coade Court Brockwell Park GP Surgery Agnes Riley Gardens

COMMUNITY IN BLOOM

Brockwell Park Community Greenhouses Richbourne Terrace Tritton Vale Pocket Garden

HOMES IN BLOOM

Edwin Monteverde (Monty) Mrs Rockhill Mr & Mrs Morris

INNOVATION

Flora Parked – a much better use of a parking space than a car Oasis in Stockwell – Children’s forest garden – encouraging people to pick things St Gabriels College – mobile garden that moves around while building work takes place on site

FOOD GROWING

Bandstand Beds Caldwell Gardens Myatts Fields Park Community Greenhouse grew vegetable seedlings for many local community gardens

WINDOW BOX OR BALCONY

Annie Gallop’s balcony is designed to attract wildlife Picture: Elaine Kramer Annie Gallop Diane Skidmore The Fairy Garden

FOOD FOOD FOOD As usual the food was amazing. Prepared with as much produce as possible from community gardens, particularly those around the Myatts Fields Park and Loughborough Farm area, it was mostly vegan, and certainly all vegetarian. I am having less and less difficulty in persuading people to stick with vegan/vegetarian food for events like this – we all love it!

NOVEMBER 2017

brixtonblog.com

FROM DICTIONARY TO DESIGN

BRIXTON, BOSTON AND BREXIT

Word on the street

Brixton and Boston have a lot in common – despite our London district having one of the highest remain votes and the Lincolnshire town having the highest leave vote in last year’s referendum

If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his language, that goes to his heart Nelson Mandela Sam Furness tells the story of how he and Toni Hollis created one of the highlights of this year’s Brixton Design Trail The streets of Brixton are laced with language. One of the great joys of passing through its streets and market places is the passing conversations you may pick up along the way: rich in endless different vocabularies, dialects and points of view. It’s a vivid reminder of the tapestry-like quality Brixton has at its heart.

It was this experience of Brixton that inspired graphic designer Toni Hollis and I to create a piece for this year’s Brixton Design Trail – the highlight of Brixton’s creative calendar.

Our piece is called Untranslation and it is inspired by the concept of “untranslatable words” – meaning, unique words which do not have a

direct equivalent in other languages.

All languages have them and they serve as a fascinating window into a nation’s culture. The power in these untranslatable words lies in the fact that they describe specific emotions and situations we all feel but do not have a specific identity for – like the way we do for happiness, sadness, anger, pride, trust … etc.

If you’ve ever been at a loss for words in describing the way you’ve felt in any way – it’s a really empowering experience to discover a word in a different language that perfectly sums up that feeling neatly in one word. It makes you realise that

no matter the places we were born, the languages we speak – we all share a common experience through simply being alive.

In a time where it feels like the doors to other cultures and borders to neighbours are being forced shut – in some cases all too literally – it’s important to understand each other’s world views and learn from our differences more than ever.

We were lucky enough to secure Brixton Village and Market Row as our venue to bring this concept to life. The idea being that we would take over the iconic flag filled rafters of each space and replace the nation flags with new flags that displayed an untranslatable word and its meaning against a design that represented that word and the country it was born from. Each word was chosen from a language relevant to a certain trader or business in the markets.

Our process took us on a four-month journey of language and design discovery through Brixton Village and Market Row, getting to know the wonderful community of traders that together make these markets one of the most treasured places in our capital city.

Each word we discovered and design we created for our flags is directly inspired by real conversations and stories we’ve shared with the market traders and the installation would not have turned out the way is has without their amazing support.

On completion of the design trail we were really proud to hear that the flags will become a permanent feature of the markets for people to continue enjoying.

So next time you are walking through Brixton Village or Market Row – LOOK UP! There is a design dictionary of some of the most beautiful words you’ve never heard of waiting to be discovered.

Our journey trying to translate the untranslatable lead us to a pretty solid conclusion – love is understanding and understanding is power.

Big thanks to Brixton Brewery and multiple market traders for your belief in this project and for sponsoring us to bring it to life.

DESIGN 11

Sam and Toni in Brixton Village

Thirty three people last month made the trip from Brixton to Boston to find out if the two communities have more in common than being at opposite ends of the Brexit spectrum.

The visit was organised by Lambeth More in Common/ Hope not Hate group and funded, after a community vote, by the Brixton Pound’s Brixton Fund.

On the journey were young people from the Lambethbased Advocacy Academy, inter-faith groups, community sewers and painters, Polish and Eritrean groups, food growers, The Brixton Business Improvement District, the Brixton Pound and social entrepreneurs.

They were welcomed by the Boston More in Common group who took them on a tour of the town where they explored issues of culture, community and identity.

Charmian Kenner from Lambeth More in Common said: “Brixton has a long history of immigration, while it’s a new experience for Boston. But we share a vision with Boston More in Common – we both want our multicultural communities to integrate and thrive.

“We learned so much from each other today and made plans for future projects together.”

Julian Thompson, founder of Boston More in Common, said: “We wanted to connect as many different groups as we could with counterparts – be they different faiths, young people or businesses – and what a great, busy, creative and happy day it has been!

“The people from Brixton have shown a tremendous amount of warmth and friendliness, and we are now looking forward to organising a return trip with a diverse crowd of people from Boston to Brixton” Flora Nicholson from Faiths Together in Lambeth said: “What was really inspiring was seeing two groups from very diverse backgrounds coming together with a mutual desire to connect.”

Betty Mayo from Advocacy Academy said: “It was so nice to meet and further understand the youth of Boston. I hope to keep the relationship going.”

AA Find out more by contacting heatherjalcock@gmail.com.

Brixton BID is a not-for-profit organisation dedicated to strengthening Brixton’s diverse business culture. We represent over 650 levy‑paying businesses in the local area and work to develop new and exciting opportunities for Brixton.

With the new Lambeth town hall scheduled to open in December this year, Brixton will surely play a key role in the success of the application to be London Borough of Culture

KEY ROLE FOR BRIXTON IN BOROUGH OF CU Business Improvement District Director Michael Smith Now is the time to support Lambeth’s application to be London Borough of Culture 2019/20. In fact, Lambeth must register its application by the 1 December and it needs our support.

What will it mean to be the London Borough of Culture and what difference will it make to businesses and residents in Lambeth?

Culture is said to be everything and everyone is said to have it. Harnessing the attributes of almost 300,000 residents speaking 132 languages and steeped in a variety of cultures will never be easy.

Lambeth is a co-operative borough, but is not especially known as one that always speaks as a collective organisation with one voice to its residents and key stakeholders.

Among London boroughs, Lambeth have the highest population of people aged between 25-29 years. Our application to the London Borough of Culture must harness this demography with game-changing cultural programmes.

We are also among the 10 most deprived boroughs in the UK. Will our application to be the London Borough of Culture address our deprived town centres and wards? Lambeth’s

At a workshop on the bid to be London Borough of Culture

unemployment rate of 8.6% is higher than the 7.5% average of inner London boroughs.

The Borough of Culture application should be bold enough to address this imbalance. The prize money of £1.1m could be a very helpful incentive for Lambeth’s young population.

It must also reach out to the 12% of our population that is already over 60. It should certainly help as an investment in boroughwide programmes for everyone in Lambeth, old and young.

Let us not forget that we have a lot on offer in Lambeth to make us that standout borough, ranking highly our chances as candidates for the Borough of Culture. With the new town hall scheduled to open in December this year, Brixton would surely

play a key role in a successful application. But Brixton is not Lambeth and there is certainly more to Lambeth than Brixton.

Brixton’s live music venues, including the O2 Academy, the Effra Hall Tavern, Club 414, Hootananny and the Windmill, are matched by world-class music venues on the South Bank. The South Bank/Waterloo theatre scene is complemented by planned theatre developments in Brixton (Ovalhouse) and Streatham – the Streatham Space Project.

There is something in the borough for everyone. Our world-famous outdoor markets on Electric Avenue and Brixton Station Road have been swimming against the tide of declining outdoor markets across London.

Lambeth becoming the London Borough of Culture could prove a winner for us all – residents and businesses alike

JOINT STATEMENT FROM BRIXTON BID AND SLEEPLESS BRIXTON

There’s a lot to do, but we have made a good start After a meeting set up with the help of local MP Helen Hayes, Brixton BID and Sleepless Brixton issued this joint statement on behalf of businesses and residents living and working in central Brixton

ULTURE BID West Norwood and Streatham are growing interesting versions of regular outdoor markets along with Herne Hill and Waterloo.

All emerging economies are no doubt looking to the impact of a successful application on their local areas. Eating out in Lambeth, for those who can afford it, is a feast. The level of choice and quality of cuisine is outstanding, whichever part of the borough you choose to dine in.

Lambeth boasts the largest cinema screen in the UK with the IMAX Cinema at Waterloo and its 458 seating capacity. Outstanding multiscreen Picturehouses in Clapham and Brixton and, soon, West Norwood along with the BFI on the South Bank and the odd Odeon cinemas provide us with a proliferation of cinema seats across our various town centres, including Streatham and Vauxhall.

We also cannot forget the London Eye – the world’s largest observation wheel – and Lambeth Palace, home of the Archbishop of Canterbury since the 13th century. And not many London boroughs can boast a historic international cricket ground like the Oval.

What is in this application for business?

We know we can use culture to tackle inequalities. Culture can also be used to drive footfall and stimulate growth in businesses, bringing more consumers into more businesses in Brixton and elsewhere in Lambeth. Lambeth becoming the London Borough of Culture could prove a winner for us all – residents and businesses alike.

■■ To get involved in the London Borough of Culture Application, go to www.ourlambeth.london.

Brixton needs a thriving economy.

The people who live and work here, and owners of local businesses, all need so many of the same things.

Brixton has always been a mixed residential, shopping area with restaurants, bars and venues and we all want it to continue that way. don’t know that people do actually businesses, councillors and A noisy, ugly, urine-soaked live in Brixton, because no one is officials, Transport for London and central Brixton would be a horrible telling them. the police to find solutions. place to live and work in and, in Residents and businesses We all agreed that central the long term, it will not be a place in the town centre are facing Brixton has always been a lively, where businesses can prosper. unprecedented challenges and, mixed-use area of shops, markets A Brixton where people feel sometimes, threats to their safety. and residents. We also agreed that safe and comfortable, both in their Businesses are facing rent and bars, restaurants, clubs and music homes and on the streets, will be a rate increases that even the most venues are a vital part of the mix. destination to which businesses will successful find challenging.

Everyone in the meeting find it easier to attract customers.

We are all concerned about welcomed the way that Helen Hayes Brixton is known worldwide as unregulated noise throughout the has brought us together to find a distinctive destination. It is easier night, rubbish strewn across the solutions to these problems. to get here than it ever has been. streets, public urination and worse.

Some of the things we have The Victoria Line now to deal with will need Everyone in the meeting agreed that all long-term solutions. runs a record-breaking 36 trains per hour and, Other things can be done of us in central Brixton need to work at weekends, continues right away. together to make this a great place to do all night, bringing There need to be thousands of visitors to enough toilets available business, visit, work and live enjoy Brixton. for visitors to use, both This is a great opportunity for Late-night buskers using amplifiers day and night. restaurants, bars and clubs to are keeping residents awake, The council and the Met Police prosper – if we get it right. But at being aggressive and sometimes need to work together to properly present, there are still things we drowning out the music being enforce restrictions on amplified can do better. played in venues. busking and other noise nuisance.

Many visitors come here and Many local night venues are All town centre businesses need have a great time without adversely already good at reminding their to take some responsibility for how affecting anybody. But some are patrons to respect local residents, their customers behave, with door different. They urinate and drink keep the noise down, and take quiet staff encouraging customers to in the streets, shout and scream routes home. But others are not, leave quietly using routes that avoid outside people’s homes into the and their customers spill out onto residential areas. early morning, and sometimes residential streets, shouting and Everyone in the meeting agreed threaten people. screaming and urinating. that all of us in central Brixton This minority shows no regard Local MP Helen Hayes with the need to work together to make this for central Brixton’s residents and help of Sleepless Brixton and the a great place to do business, visit, the people who work here. A lot Brixton BID (Business Improvement work and live. There’s a lot of work of the time this is because they District) set up a meeting with to do, but we’ve made a good start.

14 CREATIVE BRIXTON

brixtonblog.com

2017 NOVEMBER

Photos you can hear Award-winning south London photographer Jim Grover’s new exhibition, The Jazz Gig, features a set of 35 black and white images celebrating young jazz talents including Rob Luft, Brixton’s Misha Mullov-Abbado (below), their bands and other musicians.

The exhibition runs from 1 November to 3 December at the Omnibus Theatre in Clapham.

Grover says: “I wanted to bring to life the beautiful sounds, emotions, and intensity of a jazz gig through a series of still images. Not an easy thing to do!

“Only if you hear music when you see some of the images, will I have succeeded.

In Duke Ellington’s words: “It don’t mean a thing if it ain’t got that swing”.

The photographs were

taken at Omnibus Theatre during four jazz concerts this summer. To coincide with the exhibition, Rob Luft and Misha Mullov-Abbado will also play at the venue, which is part of the EFG London Jazz Festival’s official line-up.

AA The Jazz Gig is Jim Grover’s fourth solo exhibition. More information at jimgroverphotography. com.

Living for the city As developers hijack Brixton’s musical heritage to attract housing profiteers, Dave Randall recommends the real thing – get it while you can

Musical journey remembers Lloyd Newton

By Beatriz Ramão Lloyd Newton, the founder of Brixton’s Pegasus Opera company was remembered at a concert in Brixton Library last month.

The company showcases the works of Black composers, some of whose music will be heard in the UK for the first time as part of this year’s Black History Month.

Alison Buchanan, a friend of Newton, became the director of Pegasus after the founder died in January this year.

She said that the role was a challenge, but now she is learning and working on the best way to promote Pegasus.

The show took an audience of more than 60 on a musical journey with performances including Queen Nanny of the Maroons, We Wear The Mask by Paul Laurence Dunbar and Highway One, USA by William

Grant Still. Singers Alison Buchanan, Keel Watson and Ronald Samm (below), were supported on the keyboard by Allyson Devenish.

“We need to expose classical music to our community and to our younger generation, because they need to see people that look like them doing things they are not used to seeing,” says Buchanan.

“When you go to see opera and shows, often you don’t get to see a lot of diversity on the stage or in the audience.”

If you want to be a member of Pegasus contact admin@pegopera.org. Classes are in Brixton Library on term-time Mondays from 6.30 to 8.30 pm.

AA Pegasus Opera’s next show is on 28 February and 1, 2 and 4 of March next year at the actors’ church – St Paul’s, Covent Garden. Details at http://pegopera.org.

My proud tenure as music editor of the Brixton Bugle begins with some thoughts on The Edge. Not, I should clarify, Bono’s woolly-hatted mate, but a luxury housing development on Valentia Place with the same oxymoronically positioned name.

For upwards of half a million quid. it seems that you too can live on “The Edge”.

Taylor Wimpey’s marketing imitates gig posters and the blurb notes: “Brixton is famous for its live music … and is a desirable place to live for the younger, professional generation due to its strong social culture. The apartments are perfect for investors, due to the high demand for rental accommodation in the area.”

So there it is.

Brixton’s rich musical history evoked, alongside artist impressions of the place with almost exclusively white residents – to entice buyers whose priority is turning a fast buck.

If they bite, rents elsewhere are likely to rise, making life more precarious for local artists and independent music venues, among others.

Not for the first time, profiteers look set to squeeze the life out of the very thing they purport to celebrate.

Politicians should think again about the relative costs and benefits of such luxury developments. But, in the meantime, we can at least support those artists and venues …

New wave newcomers Public Access TV rock up to the WINDMILL on the 16th of this month, gig-fit after recent US support slots with The Pixies.

They remind us that Brixton is not the only music mecca to wrestle with the challenges of gentrification.

A decade before the Trump Tower sullied the skyline of their native Manhattan, rents were cheap and

)

creativity thrived.

Jean-Michelle Basquiat tagged his first walls, DJ Kool Herc’s new hip hop sounds echoed in from the Bronx and the Ramones clambered onstage at CBGBs for the first time.

It is this artistic golden age that inspires PATV’s guitar driven tales of romantic misadventure in the big city.

In their song Metropolis, frontman John Eatherly declares: “Metropolis is played out these days, But I don’t wanna live in California / I’ll take New York any day.” Stirring words for any Brixtonians who were considering throwing in the towel and moving to Southend-on-Sea. If 1970s New York City isn’t your scene, perhaps Brixton Road’s CABLE CAFÉ can seduce you with a slice of 1930s Paris.

The excellently curated Tuesday sessions have drawn a loyal audience to the bijoux bar for several years now. Why not warm your autumn cockles with a swift absinthe and some of the finest Hot Club swing, jazz and global folk music that south London has to offer.

Be sure to get there early if you think you might need to sit down after that absinthe – it’s standing room only by the time the drummer counts in the first tune.

Finally, with the nights drawing in, November is an excellent time for the classic Thursday Brixton double … Get cosy, and by the second set sweaty, with Jamaica Jazz at the EFFRA HALL TAVERN before deciding whether it’s more jazz or reggae you crave.

For the former head to the PRINCE OF WALES late night hang where some of London’s sharpest young jazzers jam till the early hours. For the latter it’s the HOOTANANNY, where Cecil Reuben and guests serve up righteous roots reggae for all.

Plentiful options, One Love.

Dave Randall is a musician and author of Sound System: The Political Power of Music

NOVEMBER 2017

CREATIVE BRIXTON 15

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Growing up in Brixton The Brixton Pound Café will host the premiere of a new web series, The Be In Me, by On a Reel Films on 6 November.

Filmed in Brixton and Paris, The Be In Me is the story of a young woman trying on grown-up life for the first time.

Sophia and her boyfriend (ping pong fanatic Alan) are about to move in together. But there is more to Sophia than meets the eye.

Sophia is played by Zoié Dash, who starred in a sell-out performance of Asylum at The Courtyard in Hoxton earlier this year. Alan is played by south Londoner Jaz Hutchins, who performed in Beyond the Canon at the National Theatre last year.

The Be In Me grew out of an idea of wanting to put under the microscope a person who has no idea how to be themselves, so is constantly searching for that. But, at the same time, she is also trying to manage a business, a move, a boyfriend and other relationships.

The series is written by Zoié Dash and directed by Londoner HKB FiNN – a writer, photographer and film director.

FiNN began his career in the eighties as a frontman for the South London DJ collective Skyliner. He graduated to hip hop in the early nineties and became the frontman for Katch 22.

FiNN says: “I love this project cause I have never seen characters so well developed yet deeply secretive about their real intent. This creates a lovely sense of tension and the release is incredible.”

Lido set to star in film and novel Brockwell Lido is set to feature in a major film based on a novel by former Brixton resident Libby Page.

The novel, The Lido, her first, is due to be published in spring next year. It was sold to leading UK and US publishers within a day of submission by its publishers Caskie Mushens.

Its plot is based on the friendship between two women – a 26-year-old looking for roots and an 86-year-old pensioner who already has strong ones – and the classic Brixton theme of a much-loved institution threatened by redevelopment. The two join forces to save the Lido, which faces closure.

Libby Page, 24, previously worked in marketing, but has been writing from a young age.

She graduated from The London College of Fashion with a degree in fashion journalism and has worked as a writer for The Guardian and campaigned for rights for interns.

The film is due to be produced by London-based Catalyst Global Media CEO Charlotte Walls.

Zoié Dash and Jaz Hutchins in The Be In Me

Family, fear and fitting in – can you help a local writer get his novel into print?

South Londoner Joshua Winning is crowdfunding on unbound.com to get his novel Killing Rumer published. With a week to go, he had raised 93% of his target.

The book features “a complicated, badass heroine who never takes the easy road”. Winning wanted to write something dark and unconventional,

but also hopeful. “It’s a story about family, fear and attempting to fit in – all things I’ve lived!”

He’s on his third draft and the book is ready to roll: “All the money raised through crowdfunding goes straight into the book. It covers editing, cover design, proofing and publicity.

“By pledging, you’re helping to make this book happen. So thank you.

“It goes without saying that this book is hugely important to me.

It’s about the ultimate outsider.

Somebody who believes something fundamentally tragic about themselves. But who is scraping

through anyway, surviving despite the odds.

“It means a great deal that so many people are giving Rumer their time and helping get her story out there.”

You can read a synopsis of Killing Rumer at unbound.com. Here’s a taster: “Rumer Cross is cursed.

Scraping by working for a dingy London detective agency, she lives in the shadow of her mother, a violent criminal dubbed the ‘Witch Assassin’ whose bloodthirsty rampage terrorised London for over a decade.”

AA STOP PRESS: 100% of crowdfunding target reached.

AFTER SCHOOL

School may be done for the day, but the fun doesn't need to stop there!

Bring the kids down for our free after school classes.

Book online at www.popbrixton.org

Mondays

Tuesdays

Treehouse Reading Club 16.30 - 17.30 Age 5-10 Greenhouse Table 20 Spaces

Wednesdays

Community Karate

Grooveschool DJ Workshops

16.30 - 17.00 5 - 8yr olds 17.00 - 17.30 9 - 15yr olds

16.30 - 17.30 Age 5-12 Grooveschool Unit S02 8 Spaces

Dress Code Sportswear, trainers essential Pop Box 12 Spaces per session

Thursdays Cooking Classes 16.30 - 17.30 Age 5+ Greenhouse Table 15 Spaces

Places must be booked 24 hours beforehand online via our website www.popbrixton.org Pop Brixton, 49 Brixton Station Road, Brixton, London SW9 8PQ

56 Brixton Hill

(entrance on Horsford Road)

Brixton SW2 1QS Open Evenings – Thursday 2 November 5-7pm, Wednesday 6 December 5-7pm. Booking via Eventbrite.

Open mornings – Thursdays, 9.30-10.30 am – 9/11, 16/11, 23/11, 30/11

A school that prepares students for the future

Students speak for themselves about what our UTC means to them …

Our UTC has a clear vision of the potential of young people to become brilliant engineers and of introducing them to professionalism.

We also believe that opportunity plus practice equals success. The UTC gives students opportunity by its partnerships with huge sponsors such as Skanska, King’s College Hospital, and London South Bank University Our new building includes major investment in industry-standard technology including advanced computing, virtual reality, robotics and 3D printing alongside the outstanding design and engineering workshops.

We have a long working day, but teachers do not set homework because we believe that it is not a useful/productive way for us to spend our time at home.

We are a school that prepares students for the future. We wear business dress and use technology to prepare us for that future.

It is only a few weeks since the beginning of the school year, but already many students have been congratulated on their work.

In particular, our school has been chosen to submit a design for the new branding on the railway bridge over Brixton Road. We are proud that the community wants us students to help the borough in their art and design projects. Here’s hoping we win.

Our country needs 182,000 people with engineering skills each year – but there are not that many engineers around at the moment.

This is why South Bank UTC was created. We need to fill the skills gap by meeting the demand for new engineering jobs that will generate an additional £27bn for the UK economy each year from 2022.

The average starting salary for engineering and technology graduates is £27,079 – which compares well with the average starting salary for all graduates which is £22,205.

FREEDOM AND LEARNING We asked two female students from Year 11 to tell us about how their time in the UTC has been and how it is going What made you come to the UTC? The facilities of the school help us to do a lot of research and makes learning much easier.

Does the longer school day benefit you?

We learn more with the extra hour and it prepares us for actual working hours in the future.

How do you find engineering?

Practical work is really fun, especially when we were doing the bamboo bikes.

How do you feel about wearing business clothing?

It makes you feel professional and it is much better than a uniform as you have more freedom and choice of what to wear.

How is the building?

The new building has more space and more freedom and the new equipment helps us learn and discover new things How is the environment at the UTC? The UTC has a much friendlier and calmer environment which helps us learn more easily than other schools.

How does a focussed curriculum benefit you?

Engineering teaches you how the future will be and gives you a good knowledge of the sector.

Business gives you an idea of the business world and gets you thinking about a career.

How do the sponsors benefit you?

The references give you a head start in applying for jobs and our sponsors also offer apprenticeships.

We back drive for more women in science and technology A British woman, Ada Lovelace, was the first ever computer programmer – she wrote the algorithm that enabled Charles Babbage’s proposed “analytical engine” to become a reality.

That was 200 years ago. But today only one in five people working in science, technology and engineering and maths (STEM) in the UK are female.

South Bank Engineering University Technical College was one of the many UTCs that last month celebrated Ada Lovelace Day – 10 October.

Its aim is to increase the profile of women in STEM to create new role models who will encourage more girls into STEM careers.

LETTER FROM THE PRINCIPAL

What is engineering for?

For many people, engineering is about excitement. The new Ferrari, for instance, with its superb grip, aerodynamics and power, with lightning-fast gear changes and braking systems, all made possible by engineers at the very top of their game.

My take is slightly different: engineering is the application of knowledge to make the world a better place.

For me, great engineering is about designing and building a hospital which helps sick children to get better quickly; it is about designing a workplace which actively keeps people healthy and promotes their wellbeing; it is about building wearable medical devices to make the best use of NHS budgets. If you want a hashtag, it would be #engineerabetterworld.

It is a national shame that, given the power of engineering to make the world better, so few women enter the sector. Engineering firms are desperate to increase the diversity of their workforce in order to meet the demand for skills as well as to to make better decisions and to drive their success. Only 9% of the UK engineering workforce is female. Why? I suspect there are a range of forces at play here, including a misconception that engineering is “only for geeks”, is solitary, merely technical, outdoors or unfriendly to women. Sadly it is part of a wider issue with an under-representation of women in STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths) fields generally.

The impact of this is serious: there are hospitals, primary schools, transport systems and more being designed without significant input from women, who may be disproportionately likely to be the end-users.

One obvious example is the queues for ladies’ toilets at London theatres.

Some great work is being done through the companies and universities we work with at South Bank Engineering UTC. For example, London South Bank University, our main university sponsor, has worked with us to run two Girls4STEM days with local schools to raise awareness and generate a buzz around STEM. We are working with the Skanska Women’s Network and the HS2 consortium to give specialist support and provision to our female students.

The Baker Dearing Trust promoted an excellent day to celebrate Ada Lovelace Day on 10 October, with South Bank UTC girls taking part. More widely, organisations like the STEMettes and the Institute of Engineering’s #9percentisnotenough campaigns are making a significant impact. Let us hope that together they work to change perceptions and increase participation!

We are keen to hear from young people aged 14 to 19 who are, in turn, keen to help us engineer a better world.

We are particularly keen to explain the benefits of South Bank UTC to female students. We have open events coming up – check our website for more information!

Dan Cundy, Principal

South Bank Engineering University Technical College is a 14-19 school, sponsored by leading employers in the field of engineering, as well as London South Bank University. Alongside core GCSEs and A Levels in subjects such as English, maths and science, students can study Level 2 and Level 3 technical qualifications in engineering for the building and health sectors.

020 7738 6115 | info@southbank-utc.co.uk | www.southbank-utc.co.uk

@SouthBankUTC

Southbankutc

Southbank_utc

NOVEMBER 2017

FOOD & DRINK 17

brixtonblog.com

REVIEW: COURTESAN

Eastern promise Nick Buglione gets his parcelforce on

Courtesan on Atlantic Road has been one of Brixton’s dim sum emporia for a while. But it’s had a bit of a makeover to become a revamped dim sum restaurant, tea room, cocktail bar and late night entertainment space with burlesque, cabaret, live jazz and DJs. It’s one of Brixton’s more elegant dining rooms. Not everywhere should be industrial fittings, distressed walls and beards.

I like the dark wood, louche, candlelit, elegantly classic opium den speakeasy 1920s style. Dare I say it … imagining kimono-clad porcelain beauties and colonial Shanghai cocktail bar indulgences – with a suitably luxe cocktail list.

I went classic Bombay Sapphire gin fizz, for my female companion (err, my wife), the signature Courtesan, a sultry concoction of morello cherry, cherry liqueur, Finlandia vodka and prosecco.

I’m an occasional disciple of Royal China’s dim sum and, as

Greg Wallace booms every 10 seconds on Masterchef: “there is nowhere to hide” with dim sum.

Buns must be effortlessly fluffy, batter infinitely crisp, dumplings that melt in the mouth – and that’s before we even get to the packed flavour within their walls.

You might not want to do this if you are on a budget – but we rakishly plundered.

Dim sum is one of the few cuisines which should come out of the kitchen in regular staggered delivery (and please, as many of Brixton’s homage to tapas and tasting plates don’t seem to get – not all at once). So we welcome a leisurely procession of frogs legs – deep fried and dusted with chilli, soft shell crab in light batter with Szechuan spice and Japanese mayo, and an array of dumplings and buns While nodding to the established cliché that frogs legs taste like chicken, the petite limbs worked fine in light crispy batter, the soft shell crab excellent (delicate crab should never be lost in the coating).

And then on to the basket cases.

King prawn and bean curd cheung fun (think Chinese ravioli, sort of) possibly won’t replace roast pork as my favourite rendition of one of

my favourite dishes, but I could eat the scallop and chive dumplings, and the scallop and shrimp dumplings till the rising sun.

Flavour packed seafood in delicate steaming bundles. Alongside little fluffy cloud like char sui buns filled with honey barbecued pork.

They even make a nod to Brixton with their jerk chicken parcels amidst a wide ranging menu of dim sum, noodles, baked puffs and bao buns that we have hardly dented.

I say this too often, but, for me, the thrill of street food has somewhat passed and I need an antidote to a constant diet of dirty burgers, buttermilk chicken and no reservation policies.

Proper food, carefully curated, elegantly presented has a definitive and lasting place in Brixton’s dining panorama.

I am not sure I will often find myself in Courtesan’s late-night basement and despite the reinvention trimmings, the excellent cocktails and the 1920s back story, in the end, Courtesan is, and mostly should be, all about the homage to a cuisine created over 1,500 years ago in the imperial court of China.

Because you’re worth it … I’m convinced I am.

69-73 Atlantic Road, SW9 8PU | thecourtesan.co.uk | 020 8127 8677

Come on down to Electric Avenue’s favourite Caribbean restaurant and takeaway. Here at Healthy Eaters we serve freshly cooked, great value, great tasting authentic Caribbean food over the counter with speedy and friendly efficiency.

So stop by for a take-away or sit a while and eat in.

We have a downstairs eating area and we are open early lunchtime right through the afternoon.

17 Electric Avenue

Brixton SW9 8JP www.healthyeaters.co.uk 020 7274 4521

Stafford and the team, working tirelessly for Brixton

18 FOOD & DRINK

brixtonblog.com

RECIPE: NASU DENGAKU SWEET MISO-GLAZED AUBERGINE

Crowd pleaser Tim Anderson’s classic Japanese dish – and it’s easy So many people I speak to name this absolute classic as one of their favourite Japanese dishes, which makes me very happy.

It’s not sexy like sushi, it’s not complicated like ramen and, in fact, it is even a little ugly.

So I love that people get so excited about it – it’s got none of the pretence or the showiness that Japanese food is often expected to have. It’s just pure, concentrated deliciousness: fudgy aubergine with a profoundly delicious caramelised miso sauce. It’s a crowd-pleaser, and it’s easy.

INGREDIENTS

¡¡ 2 aubergines ¡¡ Oil, for shallow-frying ¡¡ 120-150ml (4–5 fl oz) sweet miso sauce ¡¡ Toasted sesame seeds ¡¡ 100 g (3½ oz) miso ¡¡ 2 tablespoons mirin ¡¡ 2 tablespoons caster (superfine) or granulated (raw) sugar ¡¡ 1 tablespoon water or sake ¡¡ ½ tsp vinegar

METHOD

MM First make the miso sauce: Mix the miso, mirin, sugar, vinegar and water/sake together until the sugar has dissolved.

This will keep in the fridge more or less indefinitely.

MM Cut the aubergines in half lengthways and score the flesh in a diamond pattern, about 5 mm (¼ in) deep (this will help them cook evenly and absorb the glaze).

MM Pour the oil into a deep frying pan (skillet) to a depth of about 1 cm and heat over a medium heat. Add the aubergines and fry for about 5 minutes on each side, until the flesh has browned and softened and the skin has become glossy and brittle.

MM Carefully remove from the oil and drain well on kitchen paper.

MM Spoon the sweet miso sauce onto the scored side of each aubergine and place under a hot grill for 5–10 minutes – the glaze should bubble and brown and fuse with the aubergine.

MM Garnish with sesame seeds.

Japaneasy by Tim Anderson (Hardie Grant, £20) | Photography © Laura Edwards

2017 NOVEMBER

BOOK REVIEW: JAPANEASY

The Big Easy Nanban’s Tim Anderson says anyone can turn Japanese After winning Masterchef and popping up left right and centre all over London, Tim Anderson is now firmly bedded in Brixton at Nanban. An evangelist for Japanese cooking, Anderson is on a bit of a mission to prove anyone can cook Japanese food with his new cookbook Japaneasy (geddit). Nick Buglione met him for a chat.

Why do you think Japanese food has a reputation for being difficult?

People think they can’t get the ingredients, that it is all about ancient techniques and delicate, precise presentation. That can be quite intimidating. But the book is all about simple home cooked comfort food that any basic kitchen can handle. I’d be surprised if people found the recipes scary even if some might need a bit of practice.

You claim I will only need seven essential ingredients, What are they?

Soy sauce, mirin, rice vinegar, dashi, sake, miso and rice. All available these days in your local supermarket. For a first timer, learn to cook Japanese rice well. Most dishes are eaten with rice. Also, I think people think you have to make a beautiful Japanese meal, but really Japanese food is just as humble and unpretentious as any other home cooking. It really can be very simple.

You grew up in Wisconsin, which I assume is not a hotbed of Japanese cuisine?

No, there wasn’t much Japanese food around.

There was a cult TV show called Iron Chef that I got into and then I moved to LA to study Japanese food culture and I was hooked. I then signed up for a programme to teach English in Japan. You get three choices of places to live, I chose all of them based on ramen.

How did Masterchef change things for you?

It pretty much changed my life. Inevitably it gives you a presence which can open doors that were previously closed. It was an amazing opportunity and it makes things like bringing out a book easier. It wasn’t just that though, we got to work with some amazing chefs. On my series, we had Yotam Ottolenghi, Michel Roux Snr & Jnr and I got to work with Paco Roncero, who was one of Ferran Adria’s guys at elBulli. I still watch Masterchef.

Why did you choose Brixton for Nanban?

I didn’t really. Brixton chose me. I was originally looking at East London and then we did a pop up at Market House that went really well. Then the space came up on Coldharbour Lane. I don’t really have a big rollout agenda and am not interested in doing cookie cutter copies of Nanban. We did a lot of pop-ups through this summer which was great, but if I did another Nanban in another place, it would need to fit that place. For example, my ingredients are heavily influenced from what I can get in Brixton Market. And I still like manning the kitchen most nights.

426 Coldharbour Lane, SW9 8LF | nanban.co.uk | @NanbanLondon | @ChefTimAnderson

REVIEW: CANOVA HALL

Hip replacement Carina Murphy grabs a hot seat at Canova Hall Much as I love to eat and drink, these days, I’m definitely (two kids and a lively going out history later) a restaurant rather than a bar person.

So it’s testament to the lure of this new “bar” from Albion and East – the guys behind Martello Hall in Hackney – that I’ve already been back twice.

Situated in the old workers’ hall opposite Bon Marché (Britain’s first purpose built apartment store) on the increasingly hip stretch

of road down the side of TK Maxx, the cavernous space works well for its all-encompassing modern all-day concept.

Strongly influenced by the building’s history, it’s become a bit of a cliché but utilitarian chic has been harnessed to good effect here. The peeling walls, retro green floor tiles and faded art deco glamour work well from early doors (8am) to closing time (1am at the weekend, and no, I wasn’t there, honest).

Booths with hospital bed curtains provide intimacy when the lights go down, but for the endless brigade of weekday remote workers,

they’re great for offering some privacy.

Each has its own plug socket and lamp so the facilities are decidedly less Edwardian than the décor.

Hot-desking even has its own (great) value pricing structure – a tenner gets you bottomless free (and very good) coffee or fresh mint tea alongside your Wi-Fi for a day while £20 gives you all this for a week, £40 for a month.

The breakfast menu has generous, bordering on the greedy, portions of avocado, roast tomatoes, feta, chilli, lemons and pistachios on toast and silver dollar

NOVEMBER 2017

FOOD & DRINK 19

brixtonblog.com

OPENING/PROFILE: TREATS & TING

RECIPE: GUINNESS PUNCH

Café culture

A winter hug Emma Louise’s Guinness punch As the weather gets colder, nothing’s better than inviting friends over for a Guinness punch. With its cosy aroma of nutmeg, it always makes me feel warm and fuzzy inside. If you are feeling naughty, pimp it with double cream for indulgent creaminess. It’s also great for bonfire night. Makes 1.5 litres

The Bugle’s recipe queen Emma-Louise Stewart opens her tearoom cum café cum lifestyle space

So what’s Treats & Ting all about?

For me. it’s a lifestyle spot. With food made from scratch, a playroom for children as well as the hub for lifeenhancing events. Treats & Ting is a place for people to get together, read, do some work and hang out.

What’s on the menu?

Authentic Caribbean food and European food with a Caribbean twist. Coming from a part-Jamaican background but growing up in England, I was brought up on, like most of us, spag bol, fish and chips, sausage and mash. But at weekends our household always upheld the Caribbean traditions of soup (like red peas and lamb neck) on Saturdays, rice and peas on Sundays. I hope our fusion of delights reflects Brixton’s delicious variety.

INGREDIENTS

How did you get into cooking?

I’ve always loved to cook. A good bite of food, friends over and some good music is a night in heaven for me. I also never wanted my son to grow up on jarred or processed food so I began cooking and baking much more frequently.

Experimenting with all flavours to create fun, interesting treats and bites is always rewarding. At the age of 10 my son was diagnosed with coeliac disease which also inspired me to create alternative recipes for practically everything.

Will you be in the kitchen?

I will, of course, be around at the shop, as all foods are made with my recipes and I’m a bit of a control freak for quality. I’m currently doing an MA at SOAS, so

I’m having to juggle many balls!

What’s your food philosophy?

I believe in a balanced diet with fresh food made from scratch, eating regularly and never skipping meals.

A little something naughty also never hurt anyone.

What kind of events are you planning?

Treats & Ting will be host to a number of different events, including communityfocused meetings, creative sessions, kids clubs and lifestyle activities including crafts sessions and cult film nights.

January will also see us launch a language exchange two nights a week.

And of course, people who just want a friendly space to work, chat and grab a coffee.

25 Tulse Hill, SW2 2TH | treatsandting.com | @TreatsandTing

¡¡ 2x cans of Guinness ¡¡ 1 can condensed milk ¡¡ 2x tbsp vanilla essence ¡¡ 1 level tsp nutmeg ¡¡ 200ml double cream (optional)

METHOD

MM Pour the Guinness and condensed milk into a bowl and hand whisk thoroughly.

MM If you want to be naughty, now add the double cream.

MM Add the vanilla and nutmeg, whisking until fully blended.

MM Leave to rest in the fridge for 30 mins so it’s ice cold.

MM Pour and enjoy!

pa r t y t i m e !

Plenty of room

pancakes, maple syrup and crispy pancetta crumb.

The music is like Radio 6 on a good day (and I mean this as a compliment) while evenings and weekend are a bit hipper featuring DJs and live bands.

The all day/evening menu was equally spot on, if possibly a little knowingly on trend.

But there’s no arguing with the cooking. Particularly good, from the sharing section, were crispy fried aubergines, stracciatella, lemon and mint, spicy nduja sausage roll, pickled chilli and hot mustard and moreish

pecorino and mint croquettes.

48-hour fermented sour dough pizzas come out of the focal point wood-fired pizza oven along the back of the room and both the rock star margherita and almost worthy but not quite green goddess (pistachio pesto, broccoli, roast squash, beetroot, sunflower seeds and gorgonzola) are master classes in thin, blistered glory.

Pastas made in house are simple but tasty.

Saving the best for last, they’ve taken their alcohol seriously here so customers can have fun with it.

The in-house gin distillery supplies an inventive cocktail list, although you can also opt for a cocktail trolley with all the ingredients to mix your own or use the book a bartender service to do it for you. Beer and wine drinkers are equally spoilt with house options on tap.

Judging by the number of playground parents who’ve accosted me to tell me I must check out Canova Hall, I’m clearly not the only mum on the block to rediscover bar life for the way we live now.

And local millennials don’t even seem to mind sharing their new stomping ground.

250 Ferndale Road, SW9 8BQ | canovahall.com | 020 7733 8356 | @canovahall

Pietro & Stefania are taking lunch and dinner bookings for the party season. Celebrate the year with collegues and friends with some delicious Sicillian home cooking, and a bottle or more from Stefania’s carefully chosen list of gorgeous Sicilian wines.

Pietro hand makes all the pasta and bread fresh every morning.

TRATTORIA FRANZINA, POP BRIXTON, 49 BRIXTON STATION ROAD SW9 8PQ. PHONE 07802 473 444 @POP BRIXTON INFO@FRANZINATRATTORIA.CO.UK

LUNCH - DINNER - APERITIVO - TAKEAWAY - CATERING

20 WHAT’S ON

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What’s on at Whirled The Picturehouse chain, owner of Brixton’s Ritzy, is still refusing to pay its workers the London living wage and to reinstate sacked union reps – so here’s what’s on at Loughborough Junction’s Whirled Cinema …

Jamila Omar rounds up a November selection of what’s on in Brixton and nearby FRI 27 @ O2 BRIXTON ACADEMY

Having recently dropped the huge new single Nights With You to global acclaim, MØ will embark on her biggest headline tour to date.

Hailed as “Denmark’s biggest breakthrough artist of recent times”, she’s spent the last three years playing sold-out tours and winning over festival crowds worldwide. 7pm. £23.75.

SAT 28 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON

Citizen Jane: Battle for the City Thursday 2 November, 8pm Running time: 92 minutes Director Matt Tyrnauer “Insane” is not, unfortunately, a new way to describe the activities of the developers and planners who are destroying our cities.

Jane Jacobs was using it in the 1960s and earlier to fight developers who were “reconfiguring” cities in the USA Her 1960 book The Death and Life of Great American Cities sent shockwaves through the architecture and planning worlds with its exploration of the

consequences of the way planners and architects were laying waste to communities.

This film retraces mid-20th century battles for New York and what we can learn from them today.

Many of the clues for solutions to the array of urban issues can be found in Jacobs’ prescient text.

This film – and its timely showing

by Whirled – examines the city of today through the lens of one of its greatest champions.

My Cousin Rachel Sunday 5 November 6pm Monday 6 - Wednesday 8 November 8pm Running Time 106 minutes Director: Roger Michell A suitable dark romance for the time of year, My Cousin Rachel – from the book by that supreme spinner of a disturbing

tale, Daphne du Maurier – tells the story of a young Englishman who plots revenge against his mysterious and beautiful cousin, believing that she murdered his guardian. But his feelings become complicated as he begins to fall under her beguiling spell …. Stars Rachel Weisz and Sam Claflin.

Song to Song Sunday 12 November 6pm Monday 13 – Wednesday 15 November 8pm Running time 129 minutes Director Terrence Malick In a modern love story set in the Austin, Texas music scene, two couples chase

fame and fortune through a rock ‘n’ roll landscape of seduction and betrayal.

The experimental drama is written and directed by Malick and has an ensemble cast including Ryan Gosling, Rooney Mara, Michael Fassbender and Natalie Portman. La La Land it ain’t.

Artwork invites you to ART’S HAUNTED HOUSE for a Halloween special. Following five unforgettable Art’s House day-into-night parties and a huge sold-out Christmas event, Art returns to his old haunt for one hell of a freaky party, with the whole place decked out to the rafters. 10pm-5am, £5-£10.

SUN 29 @ HOOTANANNY

King Nommo is a collective of Brighton-based musicians that maintain the raw energy and power of early, authentic instrumental AFROBEAT. “Powerful ten-piece, heavy Afro groove-based band playing unusual and enchanting, powerful and vibrant music, laced with mystic Senegalese vocals and a heavyweight horn section”. 9pmmidnight. Free.

“Into the Light of Things” is the theme of this year’s Dulwich Literary Festival.

It will bring together personalities including writer Alan Hollinghurst, ITV political editor Robert Peston, comedian Alexei Sayle, veteran sports broadcaster Henry Blofeld and “Atlas of beauty” photographer and social media sensation Mihaela Noroc.

It will be worth the bus or train trip from Brixton. Whatever your tastes in reading, there should be something for you …

As it’s that time of year, try frightening gothic tales with Andrew Michael Hurley and Laura Purcell, or join a guided walk through the remnants of the Great North Wood with Peter Fiennes, author of The Oak, Ash and Thorn.

There’s storytelling with Lucy Reynolds and Jenna Herman, authors of Brockwell Park inspired of Parrots Don’t Live in the City. Children’s author and illustrator Kate Pankhurst leads a session on women who changed the world. Kate, a descendent of suffragette Emmeline Pankhurst, is the author

of the picture book Fantastically Great Women Who Changed The World.

Alan Hollinghurst will discuss his latest novel, The Sparsholt Affair, and his career in books with BBC arts journalist Razia Iqbal.

Three of the contributors to Protest: Stories of Resistance tell their stories of subversion.

Comedian Alexei Sayle (on the anti-Vietnam war demonstration of the 60s), author of The Rice Paper Diaries Francesca Rhydderch (on Welsh language protests), and writer and playwright Courttia Newland (on the poll tax riots).

Ali Smith will be talking about Moomin creator Tove Jansson for whose The Summer Book and A Winter Book she has written the introductions. The talk takes place at the Dulwich Picture Gallery in support of its new Tove Jansson exhibition.

Entry includes a private view.

AA Check the full programme at dulwichliteraryfestival.co.uk. Main events run over the weekend of Saturday 11 and Sunday 12 November.

MON 6 @ EFFRA SOCIAL

Comedy improvisation show Duck Duck Goose host their IMPROV JAM plus guests in the Effra Social’s Churchill Lounge each and every Monday. You can watch or join in!

From 7.30pm. Free.

TUE 7 @ BRIXTON POUND CAFE

Come and stretch the day away with vinyasa flow YOGA, all levels welcome. They have a few spare mats but if you have one, please bring it along. 7-8pm. £5.

WED 8 @ EFFRA HALL TAVERN

Errol Linton and his band play their regular slot at this much-loved Brixton boozer. The HARMONICA WIZARD is also a singersongwriter, blending blues with a hint of reggae, reflecting his London and Jamaican roots. From 9pm. Free.

THUR 9 @ HOOTANANNY

A Roots Rock Reggae special with a RAS SEYMOUR TRIBUTE with veteran Jamaicanborn musician EARL 16. Support from African Simba, Empress Storm, Joy Mack and Jonah Dan. 9pm-2am. £3.

FRI 10 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON

HoopTone Fitness, a HULA HOOP WORKOUT taught by world record holder Obie Pearle, strengthens your core, improves your balance and coordination, and helps you release everyday stress while having lots of fun.

Hoops provided. 6-7pm. £10.

Princess Nokia is dubbed as New York’s most outspoken intersectional FEMALE RAPPER. Having self-released two albums and various mixtapes, her vocal support of queer, transgender, womanhood and fem sexuality has gained her critical acclaim and support in the music world from other QTPOC rappers such as Mykki Blanco and Le1f. 9pm-2am. £10-£20.

TUE 31 @ PRINCE REGENT

SAT 11 @ COURTESAN

MON 30 @ EFFRA SPACE

The Prince Regent PUB QUIZ is held every Tuesday. Big cash prizes, free drinks questions and a rollover jackpot question that grows each week. Come down early because it’s first come first served. 8pm.

WED 1 @ THE ILLUSIONEER

Head to Half Moon Lane for this intimate monthly show – an eclectic mix of CABARET stand-up and close-up magic! Bring your own drinks (glasses supplied) and settle in for an evening of magic and comedy. Doors 7:30, show at 8pm. £15.

THUR 2 @ POW

Time to see the light

2017 NOVEMBER

Thursday nights at the Prince of Wales are dedicated to LIVE JAZZ. The Late Night Hang has been running weekly for three years and is a stalwart favourite. Expect to see special guest musicians/vocalists dropping by for a jam with the house band. 11pm-3am. Free.

FRI 3 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON

Channel One, Iration Steppas and King Shiloh meet together for an extensive, all night long session with their full sound systems. Join them for the largest south London REGGAE MARATHON of the winter. 10pm-5am. £5-£15.

SAT 4 @ BROCKWELL PARK.

There’s a commercial Lambeth firework display in Brockwell Park with a moviethemed FIREWORK BLOCKBUSTER. “A Night at the Movies” will feature a funfair, bars, food stalls and entertainment from local performers. The 20-minute firework display itself will feature pyrotechnics set to the backdrop of movie soundtracks. 5pm. £10 adults, £5 kids.

SUN 5 @ CAFE CAIRO

Every Sunday evening you can catch a FREE MOVIE at the fantastic Cafe Cairo. Check their Facebook page for which films they have in store each week. 7.30 to 11pm. Free.

Glamour and feathers galore with a BURLESQUE SHOW from Eliza DeLite.

An enthusiast for all things golden era Hollywood, Eliza delights in creating acts which embody anything from 1920s art deco to the vibrancy of the 50s and 60s.

9-11.30pm. Free.

SUN 12 @ HOOTANANNY

Futuregroove a rare groove PSYCHEDELIC JAZZ funk force fronted by the international vocal talent Helen McDonald and featuring fresh and compelling drum grooves, tenor sax/flute with Lesley Booth (Freda Payne, Gloria Gaynor, Billy Eckstine and Rod Stewart) on bass and Yul Emirali on keys.

9pm–midnight. Free.

MON 13 @ BRIXTON £ CAFE

Come and try your hand at LIFE DRAWING with different local artists leading each session. 6.30pm. £10/£7.50 for unwaged/ low wage.

TUE 14 @ EFFRA SOCIAL

Tuesdays mean nothing other than PUB QUIZ. Tommy McArdle hosts one of the busiest quizzes in Brixton, with a cash prize for first place and booby prizes for second and second to last place. Starts at 8pm, £2 per person.

WED 15 @ POP BRIXTON

Every Wednesday during term time, GROOVESCHOOL teaches kids how to compile, record and perform a DJ set that include their own creations, be that sounds, loops or completed tracks. Ages 5-12 (under 8’s accompanied by an adult). 4.30pm-5.30pm.

Free.

THUR 16 @ PHOENIX CENTRE

This venue in Westow Street SE19 sees the second instalment of SOUTH LONDON ON FILM, hosted by the South London Local History Group. 8pm.

NOVEMBER 2017

WHAT’S ON 21

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Pop up panto for schools FRI 17 @ DOGSTAR

The Magic Robot is a destination for PARTY ANIMALS, with party-centric hip hop, funk, soul, disco, new hits, old favourites and all of your terrible requests. 10pm-4am. Free before 10pm, £5 after.

SAT 18 @ ADULIS

One of the biggest weekly KIZOMBA parties and dance classes in London, Club Vicio is where Africa meets the world. A wonderful mix of people from various cultures enjoy a classy PALOP (Angola, Sao Tome e Principe, Mozambique, Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde) experience. 8pm-3am. Classes £12. Party £10.

SUN 19 @ POW

SoLo CRAFT FAIR returns to the Prince of Wales with their festive event to serve all your Christmas shopping needs. They will transform the two floors of the venue into a crafty winter wonderland, with DJs and musicians performing, as well as a kid’s corner. All day. Free.

MON 20 @ OFF THE CUFF

Heads Up at this friendly Herne Hill venue is a weekly JAZZ JAM session. Bring along your instrument and join in. The house band (Heads Up) will play the first set from 8.30ish then open up for a jam session at 9:30ish. Free.

TUE 21 @ EUROLINK BUSINESS CENTRE

Join Louise and the Sincerely Louise team at a LEARN TO KNIT WORKSHOP. This snug studio is full of faux taxidermy, wool and friendly faces, with the experts on hand to teach you how to knit, help with any projects you’re working on or just have a natter about craft over a mug of tea or glass of wine.

Experienced knitters welcome too. 7-10pm. £10.

WED 22 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON

The Moonlandingz – a band born from a semi-fictional concept album by Sheffield ELECTRONIC ANALOGUE weirdos the Eccentronic Research Council, and fronted by Fat White Family’s legendary Lias Saoudi – have been riding high on a tsunami of public affection since releasing their critically acclaimed debut Interplanetary Class Classics earlier this year. 7-11pm. £15.

THUR 23 @ WINDMILL BRIXTON

Lisa Walker from Cincinnati, Ohio, aka The Magic Words, returns to the Windmill. Her band Wussy sold out the venue on two nights in May last year. As The Magic Words, she performs solo LO-FI DRONE-DREAM-POP. Plus support. 8pm. £8 adv/£10 door..

PARTY LIKE IT’S HALLOWEEN This Halloween – Saturday 28 October – Pop Brixton will be transformed into a spooky circus where you can party the night away with psychedelic sounds.

An eclectic line up of gypsy and electro swing includes Voodoo Love Orchestra, Opsa Balkan Band, Rum Buffalo, Rumpsteppers and Sasha Dieu.

DJs provide the spooky vibe alongside circus performers, aerial acrobats and mystical monsters.

Pop’s greenhouse will host fortune-tellers and a glitter and tattoo bar to provide the finishing touches to your Halloween get-up.

Tenner on the door.

FRI 24 @ HOOTANANNY Back by popular demand, the SPAGHETTI NIGHT CREW return, with Cienfuegos DJs, Miss Rottermayer and Assalti Frontal – a trio of MCs and DJs from Rome and Bergamo.

9pm-3am. Free before 9pm, £5 after.

SAT 25 @ POW Digital Love will be playing a very special live A/V DAFT PUNK TRIBUTE performance with a bespoke pyramid, visuals and lighting on the POW’s brand new video wall. In conjunction with Fade In Fade Out. Come see the robots up close, and pay homage to the French maestros. 10pm-5am. £10.

SUN 26 @ BAR 414 Grassroots Live Music. A weekly Sunday night that looks set to encourage and inspire LOCAL GRASSROOTS TALENT. UB40 trumpeter Patrick Anthony leads the experienced house band with resident DJs and Caribbean food available too. 10pm3am. Free.

MON 27 @ ELECTRIC BRIXTON Multi-million sellers BLAZIN’ SQUAD – with seven top 10 singles – announced a second London show at Electric Brixton after their gig at Koko (ex Camden Palace) sold out. 14+, under-16s must have an adult. 7pm-11pm. £25.87.

TUE 28 @ POP BRIXTON The best and brightest from London’s thriving jazz scene will play at BRIXTON HIDDEN JAZZ CLUB. Regular contributors include trumpeter Andy Davies from Ronnie Scotts, vocalist Vimala Rowe and awardwinning sax player Binker Golding. 10pmmidnight. £15.

WED 29 @ MARKET HOUSE House of Idiot is an ALTERNATIVE COMEDY show upstairs at Market House every Wednesday. Take a walk on the weird and wonderful side, with sketch, character, musical comedy, clown, cabaret and more.

8pm. Free.

THUR 30 @ TRINITY ARMS

Sixteenfeet Productions are taking bookings from primary schools and community groups for their fab and funky Aladdin panto.

It should be a fantastic opportunity for children to experience live performance in their school at a fraction of the cost of a theatre visit.

The panto is written by Brixton resident Andrew Walsh, (www.andrewwalsh.com) best known locally for his adaptations of The Jungle Book and Wind in the Willows for Sixteenfeet’s summer shows in Brockwell Park.

AA Contact Caroline or Nick at info@ sixteenfeet.co.uk or on 07958 448690.

Punk is, of course, not dead and should you venture to Off the Cuff next door to Herne Hill station on Railton Road on Saturday 4 November you will hear and see the evidence from a line-up of Link (Belgium), Burning Flag (Halifax), Harrowed (Kent), Wolfbeast Destroyer (Boston, UK) and Arboricidio (London), presented by South London Scum.

It’s a special DIY gig promising hardcore punk, dbeat, blackened scando crust and all of that!

If you want previews, go to Scum’s Facebook page and then the event page (how punk is that?): facebook.com/ southlondonscum.

It may be the only way some of us will get to see the inside of a fee-paying school, but Plosive Comedy shows at Alleyn’s in West Dulwich are packing them in with top names.

Next up is Live at The Apollo and Mock the Week star Sara Pascoe on Saturday 4 November, supported by three experienced comics. Reginald D Hunter appears with similar support on Saturday 2 December.

This is not your usual south London comedy night, nor the usual price. For £16 a ticket (plus booking fee), you get to sit in a regular 300-seat theatre and not on a broken chair at the back of an upstairs room in a pub.

AA Details and tickets from plosive.co.uk.

South London Samba at Mambista Nobody who caught South London Samba at the Lambeth Country Show will want to miss Mambista’s third birthday party on 3 November.

The SLS A Team will be fighting back winter with some Brazilian carnival at the Portico Gallery in West Norwood. DJ Gerry Lyseight, the man behind the legendary Mambo Inn nights at the Loughborough Hotel, provides the grooves.

Get set to dance with the 7pm salsa class (included in your ticket) with Luis until 8pm.

Advance tickets: £8 from www.porticogallery.org.uk £10 on the door.

And Mambista will have more to warm you up next

month. Live Congolese soukous and Cuban salsa from Grupo Lokito kicks off the party season on 1 December.

A5 Flyer Portrait

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T: 01702 460047

10pm – 3am

The PUB QUIZ at The Trinity is held every Thursday night. Simon is the regular host, with prizes to pass out to first and second placers plus free drinks to be won during the quiz too! 8pm-midnight. Free.

HERNE HILL PUNK FEST

Top comedy in comfort

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414 - 416 Coldharbour Lane - Brixton - London - SW9 8LF

22 COLUMNS

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2017 NOVEMBER

GEMMA PASHA

FRANKIE HOLAH

Winter is on its way

Why do you train?

Gardening at this time of year is not for the faint hearted. The more sensible of you are probably enjoying getting the fire on and snuggling up with a good box set or two.

But at the risk of sounding like a broken record: there is no rest for the wicked in the gardening calendar! There are always jobs to do. And these grey, dark, wet days are no exception.

Here are some tips to help protect your plants during the cold, frosty winter months.

One of the most important things to address now is protecting your plants from cold and frost. Luckily in London we experience warmer winters than a lot of other parts of the country but it is always good to be prepared.

So, here are some helpful tips …

FEEDING: Avoid applications of nitrogenrich fertilisers this late in the season. They stimulate new growth which will not survive a frost.

SOIL COVER: Soil exposure, particularly in the vegetable patch, can result in leaching of nutrients. Green manure, such as mustard, sown in September reduces this leaching. Juvenile plants will retain nutrients until dug back into the soil in spring Mulching can reduce compaction and soil erosion that can commonly follow heavy rain. You can buy mulch or you can use rotten leaves or bark chipping.

We all have different reasons for wanting to move our bodies more and live a healthier lifestyle …

So I asked the question ‘Why do you train?’

This non-exhaustive list is of the answers I received … there’s no right or wrong here. If it motivates you, use it!

I’ve started with my top three reasons...

WRAPPING YOUR PLANTS: Plants can

be protected from cold, wet weather by wrapping with horticultural fleece.

PLANT IN A SHELTERED SPOT: Your garden is a micro climate in itself. You will have warm spots, at the base of a south-facing wall, and cold or wet spots on the north side of the house. Choose plants carefully for each of these positions.

Site early flowering plants such as magnolias and camellias so that they are not exposed to the morning sun, as rapid thawing of frozen buds can result in blackening and bud drop.

POTS AND CONTAINERS:

Keep containers in dry, sheltered areas, grouped together for mutual protection.

Prevent roots freezing in containers by wrapping with bubble polythene or straw. Alternatively plunge (bury with the rim just showing) the pot into the ground 66If you would like some help with any of the above, call Gemma, The Gardening Girl, on 07826 551353 or find my Facebook page The Gardening Girl or email thegardeninggirlat82@gmail.com.

øø I like to feel strong and capable øø It makes me happy

øø For long term strength øø Because it’s fun øø It’s social

øø I want to be able to do pull ups into old age (ha)

øø Mental wellbeing

øø I need that physical challenge

øø To de-stress after work

øø It keeps me sane øø Training is my me time øø To keep my energy levels up

øø In order to maintain my cereal box game champion status (Flexbility goals …

Anyone played this?) øø Escapism

øø I want to be healthier

øø To be fitter all round and a role model to my children

øø To move better øø I want to grow old awesomely øø For anger management øø It helps my post natal depression øø To lose the weight I need to

øø For the food after training (Totally feel the same about this one) øø It makes me feel confident in myself øø It’s the best start to the day

øø To beat the boys (lol)

What is your why?

øø It gives me energy to chase after my kids øø Time to switch off from the everyday

■■ Frankie@frankieholah.com for training enquiries

A smartly designed living space with a magnificent glazed frontage.

400-402 Coldharbour Lane, London, SW9 8LF www.marshandparsons.co.uk

Brixton Bugle Press ads.indd 2

17/10/2017 09:44:04

NOVEMBER 2017

Hill Mead HERALD Portraits of heroes

Brixton inspires our poems about places like people

Yumna and Miguel Year 6 We went to the National Portrait Gallery to do a workshop about people who were heroes a long time ago, like Mary Seacole.

She was known for her assistance to

Jordan and Keightley , Year 6 We’ve been studying Cosmic Disco which is about space, a kind of party scene.

Keightley: My poem is about space. It is

about the dangers of the galaxy and is about a black hole: He is huge black and swirly like the whirlpool of coffee in your cup But beware!

Don’t be fooled by the beauty of this monster He sucks everything in his sight But not the bright orange light Please don’t go near this beast Or you shall disappear!

We went on a trip around Brixton to get inspiration to write personification poems about the landmarks. We made notes about the features and functions of each landmark and how these could be related to human traits.

We visited the barrier block, police station and Brixton 02 Academy.

At the barrier block we thought the windows looked like eyes. And the squiqqly lines looked like smiles.

At the police station one of our classmates got arrested, Not really. The police let him try on handcuffs and their hats. The outside looked like hundreds of eyes watching. The entrance looked like a mouth because it opens automatically.

At the underground, the entrance looked like a mouth that was swallowing people whole and the escalator looked like a tongue. And the trains are like the digestive system.

The O2 looked like a black woolly hat because the top of the dome is black. The Brixton Rec has five skinny legs, but a big body. The swimming pool acts as a stomach because it’s full of liquid.

Jordan’s poem: Barrier block As he stays in Brixton repelling any sound from entering the school building, you can even see the happiness on his face when he has completed his job.

Rec Centre He is as big and fat as 50 cars It is awfully surprising the he is only stabilised by five legs You can even hear water sploshing and splashing all over his stomach Brixton underground station Her giant eyeball Spectating for food As millions of people plunge into her mouth Like she is the Brixton bin Her tongue gradually leads people into her stomach.

Poet John Lyons from Trinidad and Tobago came to Hill Mead

Just keep writing

Can you solve it?

We were lucky because we’ve been learning about Black poets. We had been studying John Lyons’ poem Carnival Dance Lesson in class.

When he arrived he performed his poem. He told us, if you are on the tube and hear something interesting, just write it down.

We wrote our own poems.

And we had to describe an item.

Rachel: “I described a dress. It was as glittery as the lights and as shiny as a globe”.

Jahvon: “I wrote about a ball. I said as round as a muffin.”

We acted his poems out. We got instruments like rattles and tambourines and drums as well. We acted in our different groups.

Jahvon: “I asked what advice he would give us if I want to be a poet? He said keep reading, no matter what and keep writing. And there’s no right or wrong.”

The poem is about a carnival. I really like way he changes his voice. It’s about when you get to dance in a Trinidad way, and it gets you into a rhythm. It made me feel really happy.

During the workshop he taught us how to make a kite.

He said when he was a boy he always wanted to teach kids.

He sketches his work and he said he might come back to school to teach us to paint and cook.

I did this poem after the John Lyons came to the school.

Can you solve the riddle?

Rachel and Jahvon . Year 5

Chizaram , Year 5

Bigger than an Elephant Full of Stuff Solid Soft under your foot The smell of food Even when there’s no food there Hear the banging of the moody boy But when I get there I’m full of joy.

What am I? I picked this idea because I like sleeping and being at home. Thank you for reading this.

John Lyons said:

Poems about food Dania, Bryan, Ishmael , Year 2

We did some baking for John Lyons. We made Johnnie bake. It felt like Play-Doh. Like small balls of dough.

He came to the school because we were learning about him in class. We were learning about his poems Johnnie bake and Hungry Girl.

He read them to us. We did one poem as a class and we had to perform it to everyone in the class.

I liked that he said the poem in a funny way. When he was saying the poem we clapped our hands on our knees. He also did Carnival Dance Lesson. It is a poem that is like a song. It was fun.

One class did a poem about acorns and the other class did a poem about ice cream.

He wrote the poems with us.

Poetry is fun and interesting because when you make funny poems sometimes it doesn’t make sense He’s written a recipe book.

We made Johnnie bakes – like fried scones and ate them with hot chocolate.

John Lyons tried them at the end of the day We didn’t like them – they tasted like dough!

Thank you, the head, pupils and the teachers of years 2 and 5 for so friendly a welcome. You have wonderful children: welcoming, eager to learn and well-mannered. I loved working with them and look forward to working with them again.

sick and wounded soldiers during the Crimean War. We were told the story behind the portrait of Mary Seacole. There was a really old painting found at a jumble sale It was just a picture of flowers, but there was another picture behind it. It was taken to an antique shop whose owner took it to the National Gallery. They took the picture out of frame and there was a picture of Mary Seacole. Scientists at the National Gallery did checks to see if it was real. It was!

We had a workshop and learned about her history and her past.

Mary Seacole wanted to go to the war to help wounded soldiers, but could not. She had learned about medicine from her mother.

But she hid on a boat and opened a hostel to help sick and injured British soldiers. In the

portrait of her, she looks and has three medals.

She was old in the picture.

We learned about Black history and Queen Victoria and the African princess Aina who became her god-daughter. We really liked the painting of Queen Victoria because it was realistic.

Princess Aina’s family were killed and she was taken prisoner by Ghezo, an African King.

She was then given as “a gift by the King of Blacks the Queen of Whites”, Queen Victoria.

She became a god-daughter to Queen Victoria. We looked at a copy of her diary.

Back on track – Brixton’s BRIXTON revitalised BMX Club

Bugle

By Mike Woof

SPORT

Brixton BMX Club is in a better position now at the end of the 2017 racing season than it has been for many years.

The recent upgrade work to the Brockwell park BMX track has given the club a huge boost and has seen membership numbers significantly increase with both young and old now joining, says the club’s Mike Woof.

Its riders competed in the recently concluded London Series, as well as in regional and national events, with a wide array of riders of all ages aiming to compete again in 2018.

Senior coach Adrian Martin regularly needs assistance from the club’s other coaches due to the popularity of the 9–11am expert and the 11am–1pm novice sessions that take place at the track on

Saturday and Sunday mornings.

The summer evening sessions for expert riders have attracted people not only from Brixton but other nearby clubs.

Women-only sessions on Monday evenings have also added to the number of riders involved with the club during the summer months.

Race events at the Brockwell Park track, for the London Youth Games, London Series and club races have brought riders to compete from as far away as Milton Keynes and Hersden, Kent.

Brixton BMX Club, London’s oldest BMX Club, was founded in 1981 – the of the Brixton uprising/riots.

Ken Floyde, one of the original founders, saw local youths riding BMX bikes at Stockwell skatepark and, keen to encourage them in this fledgling sport, set up the club.

Ken remains involved as a club secretary. The first events were held in the Brixton Recreation Centre, before moving to a temporary track on Gresham Road and finally to Brockwell Park in 1990.

The popularity of BMX waned in the 1990s, but the club was revived early in the new millennium as one of Ken’s former riders, Adrian Martin, took on the role of coach.

The highly successful Peckham and Merton BMX clubs both evolved from the original Brixton club.

The hugely beneficial track upgrade cost £70,000, and was donated by the William Wates Memorial Trust to Access Sport.

This funding was passed on to Brixton BMX Club as part of the BMX Legacy Programme which is aimed at improving facilities for London.

AA www.facebook.com/Br1xton.

PICTURES: MIKE WOOF

Last gate of the day at one of the club’s evening sessions

The club has attracted many new riders

Club registration ‘big step forward’ for Brockwell Swimmers Brockwell Swimmers, the local swimming club, has taken “a big step forward” by becoming a registered community amateur sports club (CASC).

To achieve registration as a CASC with the UK tax authorities, the 430-member club had to satisfy them that, among other things, it is open to the whole community;

organised on an amateur basis; and has a suitable constitution.

“CASC may seem just a little word, but this has been a big step forward for the club,” said club secretary Tim Sutton.

Registration puts the club on a firmer footing than before when hiring facilities and seeking sponsorship.

As well as swimming at the lido, Brockwell Swimmers organises water polo and swim/walks for open air wild swimming.

Members meet at the Prince Regent opposite the lido on the third Wednesday of the month – next meeting 15 November at 7.30pm.

AA www.brockwellswimmers.com.

QUICK CROSSWORD ACROSS 1. Crane fly (5-4-4) 8. Determination (4) 9. e.g. Daunts, Hatchards (4,4) 10. The whole caboodle (10) 12. Veg vendor (6) 14. With no holds barred (6) 15. Smart denim (anag) (10) 19. Cut to fit (8) 20. Expensive (4) 21. Go through the roof (3,3,7)

DOWN 2. First animal in the dictionary (8) 3. Put off (5) 4. Prized sea-food (7) 5. Girl’s name (5) 6. Italian dish (7) 7. Pirates’ tipple (4) 11. Member of the banana family (8) 13. King Arthur’s court (7) 14. Belated (7) 16. Sudden increase (5)

Drive to revive Caribbean cricket A locally based organisation is working to reverse one of the great sporting mysteries of recent years – the abrupt decline in the popularity of cricket among people of Caribbean heritage in the UK. A recent report on Sky television noted that in 1996 there were 35 people of Caribbean heritage playing for English counties, 17 of them born in the UK. In 2017 there were just nine; four of them born here.

The African Caribbean Cricket Association was founded in 2013 with a mission “to inspire UK residents of African and Caribbean heritage to play and to excel at cricket and to obtain the necessary skills, knowledge and accreditation to enable them to promote succession and be involved in coaching and administration from grassroots to the highest level.”

The ACCA chairman is former Surrey and Guyana wicketkeeper Lonsdale Skinner who played his county home matches at the Oval – a bus ride from Brixton.

Concern about partici­

pation in cricket in the UK is not confined to the Black community.

All commentators point to the fact that the England team is now dominated by players who were privately educated – giving them access to facilities and resources that began to disappear for others when Margaret Thatcher decided to sell the playing fields of state schools.

One of the aims of the ACCA is to see people of the African and Caribbean community have equal access to affordable resources allow active participation in cricket.

But it also wants to revive support for the sport among non-playing members of the community, encouraging them to attend cricket matches from recreational to international level – and not just when the West Indies are playing.

The association is seeking the help of people interested in revitalising cricket in African Caribbean communities in general and among the young people in particular.

AA africancaribbeancricket.com.