local art.photography.writing.events
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hello welcome to LZ#7 at a time of the year when the world stops to remember those that went before, we thought it a good time to take a look at the history of the area, including some examples of past zines. if any of them pique your interest, make sure to follow up on the links at the back to find out more. alongside that, we start our monthly look at the town’s range of ethical and sustainable projects, with news of the Warwick Uni Food Co -op, as well as the usual collection of local art, poetry and photography and events news. as always, a huge thank you goes out to our contributors and supporters. we welcome any/all feedback, contact details and credits are at the back.
we hope you enjoy. LZ
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THE ECHOES the echoes of the dancing bring back all the pain I once felt before I turned away and started my life anew I know you as well as you me eyes glued to the horizon far enough to let our spirits roam free I should probably want to claw your heart out to see the scream play out in the sclera in the grimace of your nightmare but all of this this is all a memory a void word I remember only when I drink myself to sleep to ghost over the sticky dancefloor among other people who are just as lost as me what use is to memorise each detail to know the shade of your smile
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the dimples of your frown if you never stayed you would have never stayed even if I had kissed you goodnight then even if I had answered the way you wanted even if I had known myself well enough to let somebody close in close enough to feel their thoughts the same as mine breathe the same air for just a moment touch the body with the same kind of warmth in the abdomen to see to feel for a moment as alive as I had always wished I had been kiss your lips move the tongue to the rhythm of your hand trailing up my waist the uncertainty of your smile once I had thought things were good enough to have started something actually true in its wake I know I know I know it was once again all but a wishful dream
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TEXT WAITING IN A CAR UNDER STREETLIGHTS We lie sunful. Overhead, a magpie winks glittereyed at a pair of pink grubs; happy swollen morganites. A synthetic buzz errs the pastoral scene. Digital projection; she vibrates along bytes, shadows the hum of drunk bees. I swipe my thumb, sight: x x x x Her words are not for me, they lean at a strange angle. I burst from a few, skew, black-prickle crosses. The wax moon is diminished, drowned in a thousand models, swallowed over and over, in swollen globules screen-bound. Yellow dusk caught in a mystic’s glass. The impression of these unfurling sounds, Heaven or Las Vegas; figure on a washed cyanotype develops bright; my own heart flowers, in an infinity of hours, I blush, bloom, wet, wilt. She strikes at the window I flinch, shatter. She lurks around in the details of my mouth and eyes. If I glance away she returns, but look back, she smartly hides. She stalks my waking moments, talks in foreign voices on the radio, walks wildly in my dreams; I die living in our history,11 but I cannot let her leave. 6
GHOSTS OF ZINES PAST PT.1 Like a great many small towns, Leamington has a rich history of alternative publications, ranging from the comic to the serious, often in the same issue. As befits this month's theme, we thought it high time to take a look at those that went before, and we’re lucky enough to have access to a couple that have stood the test of time, buried deep within the Modern Records Centre Archives.
The South Leamington Leopard (clearly a much cooler name than ours) was one of those rediscovered relics, although sadly only the December 1980 issue has survived. Including a vast range of content, from photo-stories about with family planning, articles on gender issues, housing and nuclear disarmament to a collection of fiction, poems and cartoons it’s a dazzlingly creative piece, and we’ve included a couple of pages below to give you a taste. If anyone knows anymore about this publication then please do get in touch, we’d love to know more.
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A strident community led and independent voice rings throughout the issue, typified by the editorial policy: ‘The Leopard can reflect all the fun, conflict, dreams and indignation of south town but has no common editorial policy to indicate what direction it may take. The result is all in your hands. No edit.’
The Leopard also served as a community noticeboard for events and venues, something we are very passionate about ourselves. We’ll be featuring more examples of our zine heritage in future, but in the meantime you can view scans of publications at Warwick Library MRC, and be sure to check out InZine Fest in Coventry on the 6th December, for all things zine and small press. 6/12/14 12-5pm @ The Pod, Coventry, CV1 4AE 8
WARWICK UNI FOOD CO-OP The Food Coop is a student run, non-profit cooperative based at University of Warwick, Coventry, selling organic, fair-trade, and sustainably sourced food at prices affordable for all. Products include fresh fruit, vegetable boxes, bread, dried foods such as nuts, cereals, rice and pulses, tinned and packaged foodstuffs like pasta, tea, mixed beans or peanut butter and some non-food stuff as well (washing powder, shampoos etc). Our bread is from Haddie & Trilby bakery in Leamington Spa, veg boxes from Down to Earth in Earlsdon, Coventry, local honey from HoneyFields based in Bulkington and everything else from food cooperative Infinity. Everything we sell is for a wholesale price for our members (membership for life costs 5 pounds) and wholesale price + 10% to cover spillages for non-members. By offering an alternative space to buy food, we want to raise awareness and promote discussions about modes of production and consumption that are more environmentally friendly and that respond to social issues. For more information, visit the stall in the Atrium on campus every Tuesday fro 125pm, or check out: warwickfoodcoop.wordpress.com
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LEAMINGTON HISTORY For a small Midlands town Leamington has played a big part in a number of national and international developments, not least the Spa water boom of the 1800s. Below is a small selection of the most interesting facts we’ve come across, and there’s loads more info available via the links below. (Or via the walls of the Jug and Jester, if you prefer..)
Formerly known as Leamington Priors, the town was first mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 as Lamintone.
In the space of 40 years, from 1801 to 1841, the town’s population exploded from 315 to 12802 – an increase of almost 4000%
Cricket stats legend John Wisden ran a sports good shop in Leamington from 1850 to 1855. The cricket trivia bible that still bears his name was first published in 1864
The world’s first tennis club was founded by Major Harry Gem and Augurio Perera just behind the former Manor House Hotel in 1872, with the modern rules of lawn tennis drawn up two years later.
Frank Whittle, the inventor of the first ever turbojet engine learnt most of his engineering at his father's workshop, on Clinton St. 12
Henry Tandey, the most highly decorated British private of the First World War, who would later gain notoriety as the man who (allegedly) didn’t shoot Hitler in 1914 was born in Leamington Spa.
Bernard Spilsbury, one of the forefathers of modern pathology and the doctor at the centre of the infamous Crippen murder, was born in Bath Street in 1877.
1951 World Middleweight Boxing Champion Randolph Turpin was born in Willes Road. He was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2001.
The top secret WW2 Civilian Camouflage Directorate, whose mission was to camouflage and disguise ships, factories and other targets using stage and film trickery, was based in Leamington, including premises now occupied by the LOFT Theatre.
Number 6, Clarendon Square was once home to Prince Louis Napoleon who would later become Napoleon III.
If you would like to find out more check out: Leamington Spa Art Gallery + Museum, CV32 4AA Leamington History Group - leamingtonhistory.co.uk Leamington Spa Old Town - facebook.com/leamingtonspaoldtown 13
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QUIZ CALENDAR Following on from last month’s Open Mic calendar, we’ve compiled a list of local quizzes that offer you the chance to make the most of all that obscure trivia you’ve been storing for years. This is by no means exhaustive, so let us know if we’ve missed anything and we’ll put up an updated list online. Rules and times may vary, check out the venues for more.
Mondays – The White Horse 8pm, £150 cash prize
Wednesdays – The Clarendon 8pm, £150 cash prize
Thursdays – Dirty Duck (Warwick SU) 10pm, various prizes
Sundays – The Duke 8pm, £150 cash prize
Mondays (fortnightly) - The Cricketers 8pm, £100 cash prize
Mondays (monthly) – Somerville Arms 8.30pm, various prizes
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LISTINGS
Only a small selection - full list available online. Check websites and venues for further details.
27th November Robin Ince – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 7.45pm Lee Scratch Perry – reggae DJ - Warwick SU – 8.30pm Focus – prog/rock - Zephyr – 7pm Tom Wrigglesworth – stand-up – Spa Centre – 7.45pm Nana’s Cats – disco/funk/soul clubnight – Assembly – 10pm 28th November Paul Foot – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 7.45pm Sham 69 – punk/rock - Assembly – 7pm Sixtyfours + The Kontours - rock/pop – TJs – 7pm 29th November Revolt: The Tuts – DIY/PUNK – The Tin, Coventry – 7pm Christmas with Russell Watson – WAC – 7.30pm Treehouse Sessions - Treehouse Bookshop (Kenilworth) – 7.30pm 30th November Mark Kermode & Simon Mayo – comedy/film - WAC – 7.30pm 1st December Gangsta’s Paradise – hiphop clubnight – Zephyr – 10pm 3rd December Dawn French – stand up – WAC – 7.30pm Kelly’s ft. The Rushmore – indie/rock – Zephyr – 8pm The Curse of Coddlesham – immersive theatre – The Band Factory – 6pm 5th December Capercailie – folk/acoustic - Warwick Arts Centre – 8pm 6th December Paul Hollywood Bake Off – workshop - WAC – 2.30/8pm Thai Warriors: Muay Thai Fight Night – Assembly – 3pm InZine Fest – zine/small press – The Pod (Cov) – 12pm 16
Go Primitive + more – rock/metal – Zephyr – 7pm LUC: Call of Cthulhu with Live Soundtrack – film/music – Hybrid Arts (Spencer Yard) – 7pm 7th December Marillion – prog/rock - Assembly – 7pm Christmas Brocante and Fair - Court St. Car Park - 11am 11th December Richie Ramone + more – punk/rock - Zephyr – 7pm
14th December (to the 18th) Imogen Frost ‘Optical’ – live music/art – Althorpe Studios – 6.30pm 16th December John Cleese – stand-up - WAC – 7.30pm 18th December Lifesigns – prog/rock - Zephyr – 7pm
19th December Bad Manners – ska - Assembly – 7pm 19th December (to the 21st) Dale Hipkiss – art – Althorpe Studios – 6.30pm 20th December Jethro Tulls Martin Barre – rock/pop - Assembly – 7pm Hayseed Dixie – rock/bluegrass - Warwick SU – 7.30pm
31st December Revinyl – house clubnight – Assembly/Zephyr – 9pm NYC Meets NYE – 1970s clubnight – The Clarendon – 9pm 20th January Hayseed Dixie – rock/bluegrass – WAC – 7.30pm 28th January John Shuttleworth – comedy/music – WAC – 7.30pm 17
29th January King Creosote – WAC – 8pm 30th January Amon Amarth – metal – Assembly – 7pm 31st January Omid Djalili – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 8pm Bonnie Dobson & Her Boys – folk/acoustic - WAC – 7.45pm Larry Miller – blues/rock – Zephyr – 7pm 2nd February The Waterboys – folk/rock - Warwick Arts Centre – 8pm 5th February Banff Mountain Film Festival – short films – Spa Centre – 7.30pm 7th February Stewart Lee – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 8pm Paul Carrack – singer/songwriter – Spa Centre – 7.30pm The Bonnevilles – blues/rock – Zephyr – 7pm 12th February Al Murray – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 7.30pm 21st February (and 26th June) Jimmy Carr – stand-up - Warwick Arts Centre – 8pm 22nd February Stephen K Amos – stand-up - WAC – 7.30pm 26th February King King + more – blues/rock - Assembly – 7pm 27th February Lloyd Langford – stand-up - WAC – 7.30pm Mark Thomas – stand up – Warwick Arts Centre – 7.30pm
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contributors: jessica hayne (1) ‘flickr.com/photos/jessica -h’
olivia mcneilis (3/6) ‘oliviamcneilis.tumblr.com’
joanna jakubowska (4/5) nuala clarke (7/8) ‘warwickmrc.wordpress.com’
warwick uni food co -op (9) ‘warwickfoodcoop.wordpress.com’
matias señorán (10/11) barry franklin (12/13) ‘leamingtonhistory.co.uk’
LUC (14) ‘leamingtonundergroundcinema.wordpress.com’
digital copies at facebook.com/leamingtonzine issuu.com/leamingtonzine
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open call for all: artists poets photographers writers etc. issue #8 ‘back to the future’ 17.01.15 submissions by 12.01.15 contact-question-contribute facebook/leamingtonzine twitter: @LeamingtonZine leamingtonzine@gmail.com
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