Issue 6 of The Camberwell Clarion

Harriet Harman’s 40 years in politics

Welcome to issue 6 of The Camberwell Clarion

Our cover stars for this edition are Camberwell-based band the Champion Hillbillies, who formed more than a decade ago when a group of dads taking their kids to Ruskin Park got chatting and decided to start a band.

We caught up with the group –who describe themselves as the “greatest Americana covers band in the whole of the South Camberwell ward” – to discuss their musical influences, why south-east London is such a big part of their DNA and what the future holds on page 18.

Also featured on our front cover is longstanding local MP Harriet Harman, who is marking 40 years since she was first elected as a member of parliament in 1982. As she prepares to step down at the next general election, we take a look at her political career and legacy on page 17.

The independent cafes of Camberwell come in all shapes and sizes, and every single one offers something unique. Every reader will no doubt have their preferred place to grab a quick coffee or a leisurely cup of tea. We celebrate some of these much-loved local spots with a photo essay on page 12.

Also appearing on our front cover is Camberwell-born actress Marianne Jean-Baptiste, who is the first

British-born black performer to be nominated for an Oscar. We take a look at her career on page eight.

As 2022 draws to a close, we’d like to thank all our readers and advertisers for your continued support during our first year in print. We hope you’ve enjoyed reading the paper as much as we’ve loved putting it together.

We’ll soon be starting work on the February/March edition, which will hit the streets in February 2023. If you run a business or organisation or have an event you’d like to share with local people in the new year, please get in touch via camberwellclarion@ gmail.com to find out how we can promote what you do across Camberwell, Peckham, south-east London and beyond, both in print and online.

And if you have a story idea with a Camberwell connection – or if there is someone you would like to see featured on our pages – please get in touch at the same address. We are always looking for editorial ideas and would love to hear from you.

Last but not least, on behalf of the whole team here at the Clarion, we’d like to wish all our readers a very merry Christmas and a happy new year. See you in 2023!

Mark McGinlay and Kate White

change to constituency boundaries that would see Camberwell split between three separate parliamentary constituencies, none of which would feature “Camberwell” in their name, writes Luke G Williams

The Boundary Commission review, which is currently at consultation stage and is due to announce its final decision in 2023, is proposing that the ward of Camberwell Green forms part of a rejigged constituency of Vauxhall, while Champion Hill is integrated into Dulwich and West Norwood and St Giles should be part of a new Peckham constituency (replacing the current constituency of Camberwell and Peckham).

The SE5 Forum, the Camberwell Society, Camberwell Life, Camberwell Arts and the Camberwell Identity Group are among the many local groups opposing the plans.

Jordana Leighton, SE5 Forum’s Camberwell business marketeer, who helped lead its high street recovery fund grant programme this year, said: “We have major concerns about the proposals. Camberwell has always been disadvantaged compared to other areas locally because the SE5 postcode sits in two different boroughs – Southwark and Lambeth – which means we are never the focus of one single local authority. If Camberwell is cut into three that means potentially talking to three MPs about matters relating to our community.

“Additionally, the DNA of Camberwell is very different to Vauxhall, particularly compared to how similar we are to Peckham. Perhaps most importantly of all though the name of ‘Camberwell’ itself will be lost in all

have been working voluntarily to try and promote the brand name of Camberwell. We’re encouraging locals to get behind the campaign to challenge the decision.”

Jonathan Hunt of the Camberwell Society, who serves as consultant editor of the Camberwell Quarterly, told the Camberwell Clarion: “In the original proposals, the Vauxhall constituency was going to be called ‘Vauxhall and Camberwell’ but the name of Camberwell has now been lost.

“Camberwell is a historic area which featured in the Domesday book but these proposals – which split Camberwell into three – suggest that Camberwell itself has disappeared. We’re really not very happy about it at all. We think Camberwell is an entity which deserves representation from the same MP, not three different ones.”

Miatta Fahnbulleh, Labour’s chosen successor to local MP Harriet Harman, also expressed her opposition to the plans. “I find it really concerning,” she said. “If Camberwell can just be chopped up like this, it suggests that there isn’t a Camberwell community. But anyone who has spent any time in Camberwell knows that simply isn’t the case. People see Camberwell as a distinct place. There’s a level of insensitivity at work here.”

The Boundary Commission operates independently of government and is responsible for reviewing all parliamentary constituency boundaries across England. The public have until 5 December to comment on the proposed changes, with a final decision expected to be announced around July 2023.

The proposed new Vauxhall constituency, incorporating Camberwell Green ward

Dowling’s dystopian thriller

A Camberwell resident has written a gripping new novel that is set to be published in the new year.

A taut thriller set in a dystopian Britain in a near and terrifying future, Mandate: Thirteen by Joseph J Dowling is shaping up to be one of the must-reads of 2023.

The unsettling story takes place in a world where plummeting birth rates mean that all young women must submit to compulsory fertility checks at the age of 13. If they are able to conceive they are sent to birthing schools and become the target for ruthless “baby farmers”. When the baby farmers come for a teenager named Hope, she and her father Michael attempt to escape and a classic chase-style thriller ensues.

Due to be published on 10 January by American indie Manta Press, Mandate: Thirteen is Joseph’s debut novel.

“Like a lot of people I’ve always wanted to write,” he explained. “Then Covid happened and I thought I’d get writing during the first lockdown, but to be honest I found it impossible to get into any sort of creative flow because there was so much worry and uncertainty.

“But when it all kicked off again in the winter of 2020 I was determined not to waste the opportunity to write, so I knuckled

down and learned more about the art of writing. I had about 10 pages written already and sat down to continue that.

“The first draft wasn’t very good because I didn’t really know what I was doing. But I then worked on some other projects – short stories, another novel and so on – learning all the time, before going back to Mandate: Thirteen last summer and completely rewriting it.”

Joseph also outlined some of his literary inspirations. “I’m a great fan of dystopian literature, so it’s in that bleak tradition of fine stories like 1984, The Handmaid’s Tale and The Running Man,” he said. “I’ve imagined a near future here in Britain based on the way politics has been becoming more divisive and so on.

“Aside from that, it’s also a good oldfashioned chase-to-the-border story with the main dynamic based on a father-daughter relationship as they try to evade Miko, the notorious head of the baby farmers.”

Readers may also recognise Joseph as the proprietor of popular Peckham hangout Four Quarters, the Rye Lane bar he opened in 2014 that offers craft beer, cocktails and classic retro arcade games. There is a further branch of Four Quarters at Elephant and Castle.

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Jazu seeks new space

A popular bar in Camberwell has been forced to close its doors due to an eye-watering increase in rent.

To many local people, Jazu – which combined cocktails, snacks and great music – was one of the most refreshing additions to Camberwell’s nightlife in years. Its closure therefore after just six months has left a bevy of heartbroken patrons.

Faced with a 50% rent hike from the landlords, co-owners Jim Hammer and Scott Addison have pulled the plug for now, although Jazu is living on in a series of pop-up events, one-offs and residencies.

Jim and Scott are also hopeful that they might one day be able to find a new permanent home for the bar, preferably located in SE5.

“It was shocking and disheartening,” Jim told the Camberwell Clarion of the rent hike that forced them out of the former Town Hall on Peckham Road.

“We were in residence at Corner Store, and so it wasn’t only our business that had to close, but the cafe too, which meant two businesses were shuttered and two sets of employees lost work. The rent hike was so extreme that even with two businesses sharing the property it was still not viable.

“When times are tough, it seems independent businesses feel it first, which is sad because they create a sense of community and care in an area.

“We were welcomed with open arms [in Camberwell]. It felt like we were really building a community – of locals, but also of DJs and music lovers – which was exactly what we had wanted to create.

“Camberwell is special for many reasons –its focus on independent businesses and its quality food and drink offering, but its people are really at the heart of the matter. We were really touched by the support and kindness of the locals.”

Jim said Jazu, which was initially inspired by Japanese “listening bars” – small spaces focused on great music and a high-quality audio experience – had evolved in ways that he and Scott had not envisaged.

“Originally we imagined Jazu as a small, dark, speakeasy – which Corner Store is not – but as it turns out, the extra space and the large communal tables worked in our favour: there was room to dance and people could come in large groups and hang out with us or meet the other people on their table. Instead of the ‘listening bar’, Jazu evolved into something more informal and more fun.

“Despite coming to an end, ultimately we are really grateful to have had the opportunity to run Jazu for six months in a beautiful building in our favourite area – and for that we have to thank Karl Lyons from Corner Store for taking a punt and saying yes to us. Ideally, we’d like to set up again with Karl and Corner Store in Camberwell.”

What the Dickens?

Scroogelicious, a modern-day take on Charles Dickens’ immortal classic A Christmas Carol, is coming to Theatre Peckham this December.

The festive family show, written by playwright and actor Geoffrey Aymer and directed by Theatre Peckham’s Suzann McLean, blends storytelling, dance and song with an original music score by Jordan Xavier featuring rap, R&B, hip-hop and funk.

The annual Christmas show will be performed by an inspiring mix of professional actors and young people from the theatre’s academy.

KM Drew Boateng, fresh from the national tour of The Color Purple, will play the lead role of Ebony Scrooge, while Tomi EgbowonOgunjobi, whose screen credits include hit Netflix show Sex Education and ITV’s hotly anticipated drama Riches, will play Scrooge’s business partner Marlene Jacobs.

The iconic role of Tiny Tim is reinvented as Tyrese Crichlow and will be shared by

eight-year-old Ezekiel Ashitey and Jadon Henry, aged 11, from Theatre Peckham’s Young Company.

In Geoffrey’s modern-day adaptation, Scrooge has transformed from an elderly miser and money-lender to a go-getting young property developer and landlord. Themes of gentrification and the growing inequalities in society foreshadow the current cost of living crisis.

Geoffrey said: “It feels very much as though we are living back in Dickensian times, with very clear parallels to challenges that many will be facing in this country not only this coming winter but in the months or even possibly years ahead.

“This contemporary version, inspired by Charles Dickens’ original, carries a powerful and pertinent message but I also hope audiences will enjoy the music, mischief and merriment, and leave the auditorium uplifted and hopeful of a brighter future.”

Angela’s appy ending

Camberwell-based tech founder and CEO of L+B+ (Love Positive, Body Positive) Angela Hudson has secured a grant from Innovate UK to develop an inclusive sex education app for young people and their families.

Angela has lived in Camberwell for 16 years and has raised her two children in the area, as well as working locally as a teacher for 15 years. “Through parenting and teaching I became super aware that kids need support as they go through issues of body change and puberty and deal with mental health challenges,” she said.

Local campaigning saves key bus routes from cuts

The mayor of London has announced that many local bus services that were facing the chop – including the 12, 45 and 78 routes –will be saved.

Earlier this year, Transport for London said that many of Southwark’s most important bus routes could be taken out of service due to lack of funding from the government.

Councillor Kieron Williams, leader of Southwark Council, and councillor Catherine Rose, the council’s cabinet member for leisure, parks, streets and clean air, met with Sadiq Khan and asked him to step in and save Southwark’s bus services, which are a vital mode of transport for thousands of people in the borough.

Cllr Williams said: “For many people living in Southwark, buses are the only safe and affordable way to get to work, to access important services and to visit family and friends. Since the summer, when these cuts were first proposed, our campaign made

clear just how vital these services are. I am delighted that the mayor of London has listened and saved Southwark’s buses.”

Cllr Rose added: “It’s fantastic news that Southwark’s buses will be saved from cuts. They are essential to life in Southwark because we have no underground service to most parts of our borough, meaning that people need the buses.

“Buses are a lifeline for those with accessibility needs, and for those who simply have no other means of affordable transport, particularly in this current cost of living crisis. That’s why it is so important that the mayor has listened to our campaign and has saved our bus services.”

She added: “I’d like to thank everybody who supported our campaign, signed the petition and the 20,000-plus people who completed TfL’s consultation. Together we saved key buses for those who need them most.”

“There is a woeful lack of accessible and relatable resources to help young people navigate sex, sexuality and all the emotions it carries with it. I believe they need a trusted, well-researched but fun online resource. That’s where the idea for the app came from.

“L+B+ is a digital resource for young people and their families, so that pre-teens, adolescents and students of all genders, all sexualities, all abilities and all cultures can enjoy access to the education and information they deserve and have a right to.

“The app will be very visual and very  beautiful, with lots of graphic stories and the ethos behind it is inclusivity –gender inclusivity, sexual inclusivity and neurodiversity.

“I’m collaborating with two very exciting local artists – Eric Parker and Emm Nicholson-Butcher – who are producing digital art for the app and limited-edition art for the crowdfunding campaign. Hopefully I will be working with a Camberwell graphic design agency as well. Most of my meetings seem to take place in the Grove Lane Deli!”

Angela’s idea, passion and entrepreneurial energy have seen her win impressive backing and support from several major players in the tech industry. In addition to the grant from Innovate UK she also won a place on a tech accelerator programme run by FemTechLab, and is planning to launch a crowdfunding campaign next spring.

“There’s not much already available in the market in this area and I’ve been able to show through my research that there is a proven need for it,” she said.

“I’m going to roll out a pilot app around April 2023 in the App Store – a starter version if you like. Hopefully through that I can build an audience and hopefully by winter 2023 I will be rolling out a bigger version.”

A true trailblazer

Camberwell’s Marianne Jean-Baptiste was the first British-born black performer to be nominated for an Oscar

Camberwell-born Marianne JeanBaptiste was the first ever British-born black performer to be nominated for an Oscar.

Based in America for the majority of the past two decades, she is undoubtedly one of the most accomplished and versatile actresses to ever hail from south-east London, having excelled on stage, screen and television in a career that has now spanned more than 30 meritorious years.

Marianne was born on 26 April 1967 to an Antiguan mother, who worked in an old people’s home, and a St Lucian father, who was a foreman for an events company. Both parents had moved from the Caribbean to the UK in the 1950s and Marianne was raised in Peckham, attending St Saviour’s and St Olave’s school near Elephant and Castle.

Marianne’s fascination with acting and showbusiness was partly fuelled by a childhood love of cop show Starsky & Hutch. Dance and music were also among her passions, and she took classes at the Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance in Greenwich from the age of eight.

After leaving school Marianne attended the prestigious Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, where she excelled; on graduation she wrote her own acclaimed one-woman show Ave Africa, which she later performed under the aegis of the Double Edge Theatre company.

Other notable stage appearances after leaving RADA included a national tour in the short plays Streetwise and Mamma Decemba, an appearance at the West Yorkshire Playhouse in A Working Woman and a leading role in Running Dream at the Theatre Royal Stratford East, which won acclaim from the Stage newspaper who labelled her performance “quite irrepressible”.

The watershed year for Marianne was 1992, when her path first crossed with that of the legendary theatre and film director Mike Leigh – who himself has a Camberwell connection having studied at the Camberwell School of Art in the 1960s.

Marianne’s professional relationship with Leigh would transform her career. Although she was unsuccessful auditioning for a role in his film Naked, the director wrote her a letter promising to work with her in the future. “I thought, ‘Yeah, right,’” Marianne later recalled.

However, Leigh was as good as his word, hiring her a year later, in 1993, to appear in his ambitious stage production It’s a Great Big Shame, the first play mounted at Stratford East after a £250,000 restoration.

Further stage successes followed for Marianne in 1994 and 95, as she first appeared in Cheek by Jowl’s

acclaimed production of Shakespeare’s Measure for Measure, earning a commendation at the Ian Charleson theatre awards for her roles as Mistress Overdone and Mariana, and then featured in the National Theatre’s production of The Way of the World.

The same year, Leigh cast Marianne for the second time, in the film Secrets & Lies in the key role of Hortense Cumberbatch, an optometrist searching for her birth mother, who unexpectedly turns out to be white factory worker Cynthia Purley (played by Brenda Blethyn).

Leigh’s improvisatory and collaborative approach, incorporating intense rehearsal, is unusual within the cinema industry, but struck an immediate chord with Marianne. “It’s extremely liberating because you create a character from scratch,” she later explained. “You get to spend an incredible amount of time doing research that most people would look at and say, ‘My God. These people don’t have to do that much work.’

“But when you look at Mike’s films, you can see that there’s something different about them. The characters are just a bit deeper than normal. And it also sets you up for your next job, because you go wanting to be fed and you have to learn to feed yourself in the end.”

Secrets & Lies was a runaway success, with Marianne’s brilliant and wonderfully natural and human performance winning worldwide acclaim. The film snaffled the prestigious Palme d’Or award at the Cannes Film Festival in May 1996, and also secured seven Bafta and five Oscar nominations – with Marianne nominated by both organisations in the best supporting actress category, as well as for a Golden Globe award.

No British-born black actor or actress had ever been nominated for an Oscar before (Jaye Davidson was nominated in the best supporting actor category for The Crying Game in 1992, but although he was raised in Hertfordshire, he was actually born in America).

Marianne learned of her Oscar nomination in disorientating circumstances after being woken up by her agent telephoning to tell her. On the night, she lost out to Juliette Binoche’s performance in The English Patient and later admitted the whole Oscars experience was somewhat surreal.

“I don’t remember a lot of what happened that night,” she told the Guardian in 2015. “You’re sat there, four rows from the front, Celine Dion is belting out a song louder than a f**king trumpet, Goldie Hawn comes

L’ECUYER

up to you and tells you she loves your work. You’re like, ‘What work?’ D’you know what I mean? And there’s Anjelica Huston and you’re just going, ‘Oh my God, oh my God, oh my God!’”

Despite the success of Secrets & Lies, Marianne’s career over the next few years was somewhat sporadic. In 1997, she was – shamefully – excluded from a group of young British actors who were invited to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Cannes Film Festival by the arts organisation British Screen.

Marianne did not take the snub lying down. “The old men running the industry just have not got a clue. They’ve got to come to terms with the fact that Britain is no longer a totally white place where people ride horses, wear long frocks and drink tea… It is a shame on Britain. I see myself as British and I want to be celebrated by Britain.”

Marianne reunited with Mike Leigh in 1997, co-writing the musical score for his film Career Girls and in the process proving her versatility and creativity. She also appeared in a play for the legendary Peter Brook in Paris in 1999, the same year she played Doreen Lawrence opposite Hugh Quarshie in Paul Greengrass’s ITV drama The Murder of Stephen Lawrence.

However, further high-profile opportunities for a black actress such as Marianne in the UK were sadly limited. Thus, after a few years working on both sides of the Atlantic, Marianne based herself almost exclusively in the United States after the turn of the millennium.

“My parents came here from the Caribbean for work in the Fifties and to expand their lives. I don’t see that I have done anything different [by working in America],” she later reflected.

In the United States, Marianne’s career has thrived. She played the role of FBI agent Vivian Johnson in the long-running and hugely popular CBS television police procedural Without a Trace from 2002-09, and has assembled a host of other film and TV credits, as well as appearing in Shakespeare in the Park in New York.  She has even returned to the UK periodically – appearing on stage at the National Theatre in James Baldwin’s The Amen Corner in 2013 and in series two of Broadchurch in 2015, as well as in the play Hang at the Royal Court.

Throughout her career, Marianne has retained her class, but also an admirably down-to-earth nature. “I still take my own lunches to work,” she told the Radio Times with a chuckle a few years ago, while admitting that she does miss aspects of British life, namely “Caribbean culture. The sense of humour. And theatre.”

Working with Mike Leigh was extremely liberating because you create a character from scratch

Above: Marianne Jean-Baptiste

PHOTO BY MARIE FRANCE

Enjoy the festive season to the fullest in south-east London this Christmas.

The new cocktail bar and pizza kitchen, Skylarking, has just opened beneath the railway arches of Peckham Rye on Blenheim Grove by the team behind Shepherds Bush’s The Hawk’s Nest.

The large covered and heated garden leads into a cosy railway arch where the cocktail bar and turntable take centre stage. The whole venue is adorned from top to bottom with living plants, draped in fairy and festoon lighting and decorated with candles and rugs for when the cold draws in.

This is the ultimate neighbourhood hangout for pizza and cocktails early in the evening, with DJs and dancing late into the night, every Friday and Saturday night until midnight. Everyday guest can enjoy a Margarita

cocktail and a Margherita pizza for £12.50 before 7pm, and on Tuesdays, a £150 bar tab is up for grabs for the winners of the quiz. Hosted by comedian Paddy Young, £3 entry, 7-9pm.

And as if that was enough to ease us all into the winter months, Skylarking is screening every match of the FIFA World Cup.

Alongside the fresh Margaritas and Mezcalitas, the Neapolitan style sourdough pizzas are not to be missed and the homemade mushroom and truffle arancini are always a highlight.

Do not leave without trying the Skylarking Margarita - a zesty mix of Tequila, Orange Liqueur, Fresh Lime Juice, Homemade Oleo Mix, Raspberry Liqueur, with a coarse pink salted rim.

The festive season has officially begun at Skylarking!

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The Camberwell chronicler

Meet writer, historian and lifelong local Stephen Bourne, whose books celebrate black heritage and gay culture

With 25 books published in the last 31 years, how could a mere 1,300word profile possibly do justice to the dynamo that is writer and historian Stephen Bourne?

Stephen – who has lived in Camberwell his entire life – has won high praise throughout his career; Booker Prize winner Bernardine Evaristo hailed him as a “hero” for his contribution to chronicling black British history, while top TV writer Russell T Davies has described him as “one of the soldiers, gatekeepers and champions” of the LGBT+ community.

Despite such lofty compliments, however, Stephen remains resolutely grounded and certainly doesn’t possess any airs and graces. It’s typical of his modesty that when he mentions to the Camberwell Clarion a compliment he’s received recently it’s through the prism of a localised story that perfectly illustrates who he is and why he writes.

“During Black History Month I gave a talk about my book Black Poppies [which examines the contribution of Britain’s black community during World War One] for Lambeth Police at an event for children they were running at a youth centre,” he explains. “The following week I was recognised by a child in the street who pointed at me and said to his dad, ‘Oh, look! It’s the Black Poppies man!’”

Stephen pauses and chuckles with childlike delight. “I thought it was so wonderful that the event and book had stuck in this child’s mind. That incident happened on my birthday and made me feel really special. It’s so exciting when you reach out to young people and they get what you’re talking about and why it’s important.”

The event Stephen refers to was held to mark the recent publication of a new illustrated and revised edition of his iconic and groundbreaking 2014 book Black Poppies aimed at younger readers.

“It’s taken off like a rocket,” he enthuses of this new edition. “It’s not really had any publicity as such, apart from a few local things, but it doesn’t matter because teachers and so on are spreading the word. It’s been fantastic.”

Stephen’s career provides an object lesson in how far determination and passion can take you.

Born in St Giles’ Hospital, Camberwell, he was raised in a loving and resolutely working-class family. “I grew up on the border of Camberwell and Peckham,” he recalls. “Although our address was an SE5 address, it was on Peckham Road in a council flat on a housing estate called Sceaux Gardens. I went to the Oliver Goldsmith primary school on the junction of Southampton Way and Peckham Road. I loved that school and

was very happy there. It was like an extended family.”

Stephen’s recollections of his early Camberwell childhood are idyllic –whether it’s discussing the playground obsession he and his peers had for the Daleks in Doctor Who, or talking about the many happy times he shared with his older sister exploring the local area.

“It was a very happy childhood, I’ve no sad stories to tell,” he admits. “Back then children could go off on their own for adventures and there was always something to do. My sister was two years older than me and we did everything together. We’d go to the park in Lucas Gardens, swimming at Camberwell swimming baths and reading in Camberwell Church Street library, which was a wonderful place. Like my sister I was an avid reader.

“We also went to the cinema a lot, either in Peckham or the big cinema on Denmark Hill – both now long gone. We were part of that lucky generation who got to see The Sound of Music on the big screen the first time it appeared. We had never seen anything like it. There we were sitting in the Peckham Odeon and suddenly we were transported to the Austrian Alps with Julie Andrews!

“Because we lived in a working-class home, we also watched an enormous amount of television. One minute we might be watching Valerie Singleton on Blue Peter making something out of sticky-back plastic and then the news at six would come on and show us horrific scenes from the Vietnam War.

“The range of television programmes I was exposed to as a child was phenomenal and really helped fuel my imagination and awareness of the world at large. I also vividly remember coverage of the assassination of Martin Luther King in 1968 and the Aberfan disaster in 1966. So, it wasn’t all fun and games with Julie Andrews, there was a dark side to the 1960s as well.”

Although Stephen loved primary school, his experience at secondary school was wholly negative. “I went to a secondary modern and absolutely hated it. It was the opposite of primary school – tough and with a bullying culture. There was no proper education I could relate to. I’d get my name in the register and then bunk off! I’d go and watch a film in the West End if I could afford it, go to the bookshops in Charing Cross Road or spend endless afternoons in the local library. Thank goodness for public libraries! They saved me because I never learned anything at secondary school.”

Stephen left school at 16 but managed to make his way to sixth form in Lambeth thanks to the encouragement of a kindly careers adviser and the support of his parents. However, after three years he lacked the necessary qualifications for university and went to work in the dole office in Peckham.

All the while, he was nursing ambitions of a writing career. “I’d dreamed about becoming a writer as a child but didn’t know how. I

had a vivid imagination and always wondered what it would be like to write a book.”

Before Stephen left school, he found a subject that ignited his interest though – the often-overlooked history of black citizens in Britain. It was an interest that stemmed from the many conversations he enjoyed growing up with his adopted Aunt Esther, who was of mixed Guyanese and British descent. Later, Esther’s story would form the basis of his first book.

“She was the trigger,” he admits. “In the early 80s I started writing articles for black newspapers and journals, having been introduced by a friend to an editor of a black magazine. Eventually, in 1984, I started writing for the Voice and that started me on the road to becoming a professional writer.”

As a mature student, Stephen earned a BA degree in film and television from the London College of Printing, which in turn was the springboard for a job at the British Film Institute. His first book, Aunt Esther’s Story, was published in 1991 and he has “never looked back since”.

Thirty-one remarkable years later, Stephen is still fighting the good fight, ensuring that often overlooked histories of minorities are granted the loving historical attention they deserve. His work is characterised by meticulous research but also – above all – by a wonderfully human touch.

“I’m largely self-taught and that experience has taught me you don’t have to study history to become a historian. The way I learned was through first-hand testimony and that’s become an important feature of all my history books, as opposed to academic theory and jargon. I’ve never considered myself an academic and never wanted to go into academia.

I very much consider myself a community historian.”

Defiantly community-minded in a century increasingly defined by egotism and individualism, Stephen retains – at all times – an integrity that is as refreshing as it is welcome. And he’s a Camberwell lifer to boot.

“When I was a child all my family lived in Camberwell and Peckham –aunts, uncles, cousins, grandparents,” he reflects. “I’m the only one that’s stayed. Even my parents left in 1997 and went to live in Devon and were happy there until they passed away.

“Maybe I’ve stayed because of that sense of identity, that sense of self, that sense of feeling a part of the Camberwell community. I’m very much aware now, more than ever, of how strong the sense of community and identity in Camberwell is, what with the new Camberwell Library, SE5 Forum and the Camberwell Society and so on. I can’t imagine ever living anywhere else.”

The range of television programmes I was exposed to as a child was phenomenal and helped fuel my imagination and awareness of the world at large

Above: author and historian Stephen Bourne

PHOTO BY TRISTAN BEJAWN

The cafes of Camberwell

BY JULIA HAWKINS

One of the joys of living in this little corner of south-east London is its wonderful range of cafes. I visited some of my favourites recently to photograph and chat to the proprietors and clientele.

First up was Lumberjack on Camberwell Church Street – a cafe, deli and gift shop all rolled into one. It is part of London Reclaimed, a charity that provides paid traineeships for young people in the area.

Lumberjack’s manifesto is to “proudly serve Camberwell with amazing coffee and a range of tasty food without pretension or exclusivity, while focusing on seasonality, quality and provenance of the goods we sell.” Who can argue with that?

The snug space that is Grove Lane Deli, with its beautiful Victorian windows, is the newest kid on the block in this photo essay, having opened its doors in 2021.

As well as serving excellent Assembly coffee, regulars rave about its delicious bread, pastries, sandwiches and cake.

Where Valmar Road meets Coldharbour Lane you’ll find Brunchies – a roomy, family-run cafe that is a fantastic place to refuel. One of the cafe’s customers, who had just come off a night shift at King’s, says: “The staff really look after you at Brunchies – if you come here on a bad day you’ll be guaranteed to feel better when you leave. And the vegetarian breakfasts are ace!” With cocktails also available, the South American specials menu runs throughout the week.

Catering for the community is the newly refurbished Platform Cafe, located on Ridgway Road just off Loughborough Junction. Offering healthy vegetarian and vegan meals in a bright, airy space, it uses surplus produce from neighbouring Loughborough Farm where possible and runs regular events to support people in the community.

Customer Ray Mahabir says: “I always enjoy my morning visit and coffee before starting my day. The staff all make you feel so welcome.”

Over on Denmark Hill, Kamal at Caffe Pronto serves a mean panini with a warm smile to hospital workers and locals.

He says: “I’ve worked here for 10 years and I’ve got to know our customers really well. We cater for everyone here. We do cooked breakfasts as well as sandwiches, and all our food is halal.”

Just up the road from Pronto is Love Walk Cafe, a Camberwell classic that offers everything from full English blow-outs to super-healthy smoothies.

One of the cafe’s partners, Hasan, says: “We don’t really have a typical customer. We get older people, young people, people from all backgrounds and cultures. That’s why I love working here.”

A woman’s work

BY LUKE G WILLIAMS

At some point between now and January 2025 – the latest date the next general election can take place – an era will come to an end, when Harriet Harman steps down as the MP for Camberwell and Peckham after more than 40 years of unbroken and dedicated service.

Dubbed the “Mother of the House” by then prime minister Theresa May in 2017, Harman is the longest continuously serving female MP in British parliamentary history.

She was first elected in 1982 as the representative of the constituency of Peckham after winning a by-election held in the wake of the death of previous incumbent Harry Lamborn. Harman held the seat in three subsequent general elections, before changes in constituency boundaries resulted in the creation of the Camberwell and Peckham constituency in 1997 – a seat which

she has contested – and won – seven times in a row.

Harman’s longevity in the dog-eatdog world of British politics has been remarkable: since entering the Palace of Westminster, she has not only fought in 10 general elections but has served under nine prime ministers –from Margaret Thatcher to Rishi Sunak – and eight Labour leaders, from Michael Foot to Sir Keir Starmer.

Of more direct significance, however, to this unabashed and proud feminist is another remarkable statistic; namely, that when she was first elected Harman was one of only 17 female MPs in parliament as a whole, whereas at the time of writing there are now 224 female MPs, including more female Labour MPs than male ones. This long overdue and hard-earned rise in female parliamentary representation is, in many ways, Harman’s greatest legacy.

Harriet Ruth Harman was born on 30 July 1950, the second of four

daughters born to John Harman, a Harley Street doctor who later became vice-president of the Royal College of Physicians, and barrister Anna Spicer, who stood as a Liberal party candidate for parliament in the 1964 general election.

There were a variety of figures from across the political spectrum on both sides of Harman’s family and after being educated privately at St Paul’s Girls’ School, she attended the University of York where – somewhat inevitably – she studied politics.

Psychoanalysts might theorise that one of the experiences that helped form her firm feminist beliefs was when one of her tutors offered to guarantee her a 2:1 if she slept with him. She refused, but later recounted the traumatic experience in her brilliant and inspiring 2017 memoir A Woman’s Work.

After graduating, Harman – who joined the Labour party in 1976 –trained as a solicitor and secured

As Harriet Harman marks 40 years as a local MP, we look at her remarkable political achievements, from championing women’s rights to tackling disadvantage and discrimination

a role at the Brent Community Law Centre, a charity that offered legal assistance and advice to many residents of the north-west London borough, particularly in the field of social welfare. She would later describe the centre as her “spiritual home”, and her work there brought her to national attention.

It was also through her legal work in Brent that Harman met her future husband Jack Dromey, on a picket line outside the Grunwick film processing laboratory during a major industrial dispute that ran from 1976 to 78. “What we had were shared interests, a shared view,” Harman said of Dromey. “We’d always been ‘in the struggle’.” The couple married in 1982 and went on to have three children, Harry, Joseph and Amy.

In 1978 Harman was appointed legal officer for the National Council for Civil Liberties. While in this role she was the subject of controversy when she was prosecuted by the former attorney general Sir Michael Havers for contempt of court after showing documents to a journalist that had been read out in court.

Later however she was vindicated in her stance after – with typical forthrightness – taking her case to the European Court of Human Rights, which found her right to the freedom of expression had been breached.

By then, Harman was an MP, having defeated Conservative John Redwood – among other candidates – in a 1982 by-election in Peckham. While campaigning for the seat Harman had been pregnant with her first child, and later revealed that during the campaign she received misogynistic hate mail claiming that she was an unfit mother due to her political ambitions.

Undaunted, once in parliament she made it her mission not only to increase female representation in the House of Commons, but also to make parliament more female and motherfriendly and a more flexible and welcoming working environment.

“Telling more women to come into parliament,” she said, “without changing the way the system operates is like offering them the chance to fly to the moon… as long as they’re back to grill the fish fingers at 5pm.”

Harman would later reflect on the approach she had to take in her early years in parliament, when she had so few female colleagues. “I was always trying to persuade, in a rather deferential way, not necessarily believing people were going to be paying any attention. [Sometimes] I feel like telling my younger self to get a grip and speak a bit more authoritatively.”

Harman would also later admit that what often kept her going was the support and encouragement of the ordinary women she met on a daily basis who would “come up to me in the street and say, ‘That happened to me too. Keep at it!’”

It took Harman a decade before she entered the shadow cabinet in 1992, serving as shadow secretary to the treasury, followed by further shadow briefs in employment, health and social security. When Labour returned to power under Tony Blair in 1997 she was appointed secretary of state for social security and the first ever minister for women.

Among the achievements she helped bring about were the minimum income guarantee and winter fuel payments for the elderly.

Blair sacked her as secretary of state for social security after a series of long-running battles between her and her deputy Frank Field, but she bounced back, throwing herself into a successful campaign to extend maternity leave. In 2001 she returned to government as solicitor general and then, from 2005, as minister of state for constitutional affairs.

In 2007, Harman narrowly defeated Alan Johnson to become deputy leader of the Labour party and during Gordon Brown’s premiership she served as leader of the House of

However, Harman’s crowning glory was undoubtedly the 2010 Equality Act, which was drafted under her guidance and became one of the most momentous acts of legislation of recent times. Commentator Polly Toynbee described it as “Labour’s biggest idea for 11 years”, arguing that it would “tackle the class divide in a way that no other policy has”.

After Labour’s loss in the 2010 general election, Harman became acting leader of the Labour party before the selection of Ed Miliband as leader – a role she would fill again in 2015 prior to Jeremy Corbyn’s rise.

While many still wonder why Harman never stood for the Labour leadership herself, she remains one of the most influential politicians of the past 40 years.

Nevertheless, after announcing last year that she would step down as an MP, she emphasised that the feminist struggle is not yet over, and the battle not yet won. “A lot of issues still remain to be dealt with,” she admitted before adding with satisfaction, “but women are now a critical mass in politics.”

that have happened without the contribution of Harriet Harman? Somehow I doubt it.

Commons, Lord Privy Seal, minister for women and equality and chairman of the Labour party.

Would

Telling more women to come into parliament without changing the way the system operates is like offering them the chance to fly to the moon... as long as they’re back to grill the fish fingers at 5pm

Above: Harriet Harman

PHOTO BY ORLANDO GILI Opposite: in parliament and at Salford university

Kings of the hill

Hanging out with the Champion Hillbillies

BY LAWRENCE DIAMOND

Some 12 years ago, Camberwell resident Brett Harmony had the idea to form a band with friends and fathers he’d met while taking his kids to Ruskin Park playground. He approached his partner and asked if he could spend the next few Thursday evenings meeting up with his potential new bandmates and rehearsing a set for his upcoming birthday party.

She acquiesced, and the gig was such a roaring success that more than 10 years later, the Champion Hillbillies, whose sound takes in elements of country, bluegrass and jug band, have now played over 100 shows, including three sets in one weekend at Wilderness Festival, and have formed a series of musical relationships whose roots spread deep and wide across south-east London.

“I was approaching my 40th birthday and there was another guy I knew who lived in Ruskin Park House who was an accomplished drummer,” says singer and guitarist Brett. “Our birthdays were a week apart so we thought, ‘Why don’t we see if we can form a band.’ There were a lot of other dads standing around in Ruskin Park playground and we were going, ‘Oh so you play an instrument, you play an instrument.’ We thought, ‘We’ll organise it, get them all involved and then play at our joint 40th party.’” Which they did.

But how does a band who dub themselves “the greatest Americana covers band in the whole of the South Camberwell ward” come to be playing the folk and roots music of a continent more than 4,000 miles away?

“We all had different types of music that we loved when we started,” says Brett. “But then our drummer, who has since left, really wanted it to be a country rocking band. At first I wasn’t really that into country music or bluegrass. But we started listening to it more and more and eventually it seemed like the right kind of sound for our band. And you know, over time I’ve really grown to love that kind of music and I actively seek it out. My end-ofyear playlist is filled with it!”

Playing classic songs that are relatively unknown to the audience has other benefits too, as Dave Owen, who’s on guitar and vocals, points out: “It’s nice to play covers, but no one knows they’re covers!”

From these beginnings, the band, made up of Brett, Dave, Joe Hornby (drummer, washboardist, spoon player and vocals), Dan Crimes (bass and backing vocals) and Bryan Salter (harmonica, mandolin, kazoo and backing vocals) continued to rehearse every Thursday, working on a set list that played to their strengths while keeping the bluegrass and jug band flame alive.

“We play whatever we want,” says Dave. “A lot of the older traditional things fit, but then we chuck in a couple of Prince covers to mix it up. And it’s not just the famous bluegrass numbers. We like finding the B-sides and picking songs that we can put our own spin on – adding a harmonica solo or a mandolin.”

It’s a formula that’s clearly working, as they’ve had audiences from all over south-east London kicking their stools aside and taking to the floor. But though their musical influence comes from the deep south of the USA, it’s the deep south of Camberwell, Denmark Hill and in particular Ruskin Park House that has been their biggest influence – and support.

“So much of what we’ve been able to do has come from the Dog Kennel Hill Adventure Playground,” Brett says. “We know Patrick Pierre-Powell who runs it and he’s given us a set of keys. We use the space every Thursday and then we lock it up. We try to keep it tidy. Then when there’s an event he’ll call on us to come and play.”

And, as we know, the people of London’s south are equally as hospitable as their more fabled cousins across the pond, which means that one gig will often lead to another. Then another, and then another. “People here are so enthusiastic and responsive. You play one thing and they want you to come back and do something else,” says Dave.

To prove the point the band do a quick bit of maths on their fingers and work out that of the 100 or so gigs they have played, only five of them have been outside of the SE5/SE24 area. That’s the definition of the sound of the south. “And you don’t have to carry the amps very far,” laughs Dave.

Lockdown obviously impacted the group, but for a band built on the community spirit of south London, they found a way to negotiate that strange time of isolation and no gigs.

“During lockdown we couldn’t rehearse at the adventure playground anymore,” Brett says. “But near where we live, behind the football stadium is Greendale – an area of Metropolitan Open Land that is open at night, so we went there and set up after dark. We would come all bundled up, with our instruments in tow, and we’d just play. Every Thursday. Then we started getting little groups of people who would come out on their walks and sit and watch us practising. Some of those practices turned into little busking gigs. It was pretty special.”

“It was incredible to be able to do that,” agrees Dave. “We literally had our guitar cases between us to mark out the two metres [of social distancing]. It was just so nice to be out and to play throughout lockdown.”

And was it cold? “Oh yeah. Bryan, who plays harmonica, had to have a

hot water bottle down his jumper just to stay warm.” Not an issue faced by the jug bands and folk artists of the Mississippi Delta one imagines. So what next for these intrepid troubadours? “We, like a lot of people, were inspired by the Beatles documentary [Get Back, 2021], seeing how they wrote those songs,” says Brett. “So we carved out a day to go to our drummer’s house and make toast with marmalade and drink tea, and we came out of it with about six songs. It was great. At the last few gigs we’ve been doing maybe half our own songs, half covers. And moving forward it will hopefully be even more of the original stuff.”

Factor in recording sessions with local bass-playing legend Sarah Corina, formerly of the Mekons, and it seems the Champion Hillbillies’ future is more than bright.

Beyond the music it’s no surprise for a band that plays songs telling tales of moonshine and whisky that when asked for their favourite local spots, they shout out the breweries who regularly host their busking sessions: Gipsy Hill, Brick and Clarkshaws. Meanwhile Brett’s top choice for breakfast after a late-night jam is Blue Brick Cafe just off Lordship Lane.

PHOTO BY JULIA HAWKINS

From a few Thursday evenings back in the early 2010s has grown this multitalented, hard-rocking band who have kept the people of south London entertained through good times and bad. As Brett confirms: “It’s so much fun. This hobby I started a few years ago has turned into one of the best things I’ve ever done. I look forward to Thursdays, I look forward to gigs, and I just look forward to getting together with my friends and talking.” I’ll drink a glass of moonshine to that.

We play a lot of the traditional stuff but then chuck in a couple of Prince covers to mix things up

Above: the Champion Hillbillies

It’s a wrap

A stroll down Camberwell Church Street at lunchtime will necessitate navigation around the queue stretching from the door of Falafel and Shawarma.

This hugely popular restaurant and takeaway selling meze, wraps and fresh juices was opened by Mahmoud Alkhatib in 2007, and it’s him you’ll find behind the counter or in the kitchen nearly every day.

Mahmoud came to London from Latakia in Syria in 2002 and initially lived in Ealing Common. One day a journey to Peckham led him through Camberwell and he saw the opportunity to start a business.

“I looked around and I thought, ‘There’s no food in this area’ – and that is my love. There was only coffee and kebabs. There was no carrot juice,” he says, referring to his excellent fresh carrot and ginger juice. “So I brought the carrot juice to the area. I brought the fresh lemonade and I brought the falafel too.”

His wraps are famously huge and are filled with either chicken or falafel, a swoop of creamy hummus, crunchy salad, onions and chilli and garlic sauce. They’re then rolled tightly and toasted to order. On some days the production line is just a constant stream of wraps lined up on the counter, ready to press in the sandwich toaster behind.

Mahmoud insists there’s nothing complicated about the recipes he makes. “It is very simple. The main thing is love – you have to give from your heart. Everyone has a recipe; there are 100 ways to make falafel, 100 ways to make chicken, but you have to keep the heart.”

He does admit that the chilli sauce adds something extra special though. “The chilli sauce is very successful, very popular. My mum taught me how to make it and I’ve kept it just how it is, no change.

“When the people say, ‘I love it, I love it’, that means there is really something there. People here have access to any restaurant, but they’ve said a million times, ‘Your chilli sauce is the best!’”

He also knows that part of his success story is a result of keeping his prices down, and his wraps continue to sell for just £5.50. “If I can do it I’ll do it – I don’t want to put the price up,” he says.

“I get all my stuff abroad –chickpeas, spice – if I would buy it from the market here I could not afford it. So that saves a lot of money.” He sources his chickpeas from Turkey or Argentina – “whichever market is better for me”.

“People don’t want to spend a lot of money on food,” he adds. “I look at the area and the students – they cannot afford to pay £7, £8 for a meal.

I make this food to help them, and they help me. So we have each other.”

The meze is just as popular, with hundreds of plates flying out of the kitchen each day.

“Meze is a selection of food – green beans, aubergines, rice, potatoes, falafel, vine leaves and hummus and chilli and garlic – almost all the menu,” Mahmoud explains.

“Meze is one of the best for vegan people too, and it’s very tasty. Everything we make here, except the vine leaves. The vine leaves are our recipe but they’re very difficult to make so someone else does it.”

He even makes the lemonade fresh each morning. “I use 200 lemons a day,” he says. The price remains £2.50 for a large cup.

This keen approach to costing has also made his second restaurant, a sourdough pizza place called Francesco’s just down the road at 53 Camberwell Church Street, a roaring success. “It’s going very well, I’m very happy,” he says.

Before settling on pizza he tried a few ventures on the site, which didn’t work out “because of the people and because I was not there”.

“Then somehow I found this person [Francesco] and within half an hour we were shaking hands. He’s a very respectful person and he’s rich like me, rich from his heart.”

The 12-inch pizzas range from the Rocket, made with San Marzano tomatoes, mozzarella, rocket, mushrooms and parmesan, to the Romana, which comprises tomatoes, anchovies, olives, capers and garlic.

Prices begin at £7 for a classic margherita, and at certain times of day the Marinara, made with garlic, tomatoes and oregano, is available for just £5 to NHS and emergency workers, teachers and students.

“We are thinking about the students and also I like a low price,” explains Mahmoud. “It’s not about the money. Sometimes you have to be fair, and if you can do it, why not? I’m happy to do it.”

Does he plan to open more sites and start a domination of Camberwell Church Street? “No. It’s very difficult. I am successful because I am here, most of the time. I do everything with my hands, I look after this business. It’s exactly this type of business where you have to be there. Everything here is freshly made, daily. When the food is finished, it is finished. I usually work from 11am till 7 or 8pm, depending on how much they need me.”

He’s also very supportive of other businesses in the area. “I wish the best for everyone in Camberwell. All the new businesses and all the old businesses,” he says. “If you open

100 shops [selling] falafel, I’m happy. It doesn’t matter who opens on this road, I wish them the best of luck.”

Having been based on the street for the past 15 years, he’s met a lot of local people. “Seriously, Camberwell surprised me – there are very nice people here. We’ve never had any problems with anyone here, for years and years and years. Even when they are drunk they are nice!”

He’s also amazed by how the area has developed since he moved in. “The change is going very fast. I couldn’t believe Camberwell could be like this. Many young people have come, and there are lots of new options for people where they can have food.

“I believe I have made some change to Camberwell. The people, they like the food, so I give other people the power to come, to open a business. When someone sees someone successful they say, ‘I would like to be like him!’ I’m happy that this has happened.”

It’s clear Mahmoud is thrilled to support his community, the students and other local businesses. It also transpires that he provides food free of charge for those particularly in need, such as local refugees.

“In Camberwell we feel like we are one team,” he beams. “I hope I can continue here, I have a 20-year lease. So, let’s see!”

My recipes are very simple. The main thing is love – you have to give from your heart

Above: Mahmoud

Alkhatib

PHOTO BY JOHN YABRIFA

Mahmoud Alkhatib owns buzzing business Falafel and Shawarma, which is famed for its meze and wraps

A Camberwell curiosity

The Hokusai wave mural in Coldharbour Place is one of Camberwell’s best-known works of public art.

A version of Japanese artist Katsushika Hokusai’s The Great Wave off Kanagawa (1831), which is said to be the world’s most reproduced image, it was created in 1998 for the Camberwell Arts Festival by Dominic Swords, on the outside of his home.

The SE5 version is reversed to make it look like the giant wave is about to crash down into the alleyway below, drenching passersby.

Super-quick sausage & cream pasta

This recipe has all the deliciousness of bolognese and it’ll only take you 20 minutes of cooking. Plus there’s the added benefit of hardly any chopping. The special trick here is frying the sausages like hamburgers; it means you get a lovely golden colour on the outside but the middle stays juicy. You then break them up into sexy little nuggets. Try and get sausages with a high meat content as anything too bready won’t be happy in this context.

Serves 4

INGREDIENTS

1 tbsp olive oil

400g Italian-style pork sausages, skins discarded

2 garlic cloves, sliced 350g dried rigatoni, penne or fusilli 1 heaped tsp fennel seeds

METHOD

Put a large pan of salted water on to boil for the pasta.

Warm a tablespoon of olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium heat. Shape the sausage meat into 4 hamburger shapes and once the oil is hot, add them to the pan. Cook for 3-4 minutes until dark and golden, then turn over to cook the other side for another 3 minutes, adding the garlic for the last couple of minutes or so, cooking until it colours.

Add the pasta to the boiling water and cook until al dente following the packet instructions.

Once both sides of the sausage burgers are looking delicious and the garlic is tender, add the fennel seeds and chilli and give them a sec to warm through.

Turn the heat down a little and add the tomatoes to the pan, breaking them up with your spoon. Simmer for 5-6 minutes until the tomatoes are slightly reduced,

A big pinch of chilli flakes

1 400g tin of plum tomatoes, drained and rinsed 75ml double cream Grated parmesan cheese, to serve Salt and pepper

then add 75ml of water and the cream to your pan and scrape up any sticky tomato bits. Keep simmering until the pasta is ready.

Once the pasta is a minute or so from being cooked, break up the sausage burgers with your spoon into small nuggets. Check the seasoning and adjust to taste.

Once al dente, drain the pasta, reserving a cupful of the cooking water. Add the pasta to the pan with a good splash of the reserved pasta water, turn up the heat and cook hard and fast for a minute or so to get the sauce into the pasta.

Transfer to warm plates and cover in grated parmesan before serving.

This recipe is an extract from Let’s Do Lunch: Quick and Easy Recipes to Brighten Up Your Week, written by local resident Georgia Levy and published by Pavilion Books

PHOTO BY SAM A HARRIS