LeftLion December 2022 Issue 154

Alan Gilby Kris Kring-Al alan.gilby@leftlion.co.uk

George White Editor george.white@leftlion.co.uk

Curtis Powell

Head of Video and Photography curtis.powell@leftlion.co.uk

Jared Wilson Editor-in-Chief jared.wilson@leftlion.co.uk

Lizzy O’Riordan Assistant Editor lizzy.oriordan@leftlion.co.uk

Natalie Owen Head Designer natalie.owen@leftlion.co.uk

These people #SupportLeftLion

Addie Kenogbon Fashion Editor addie.kenogbon@leftlion.co.uk

Adam Pickering Partnerships Manager adam.pickering@leftlion.co.uk

Dom Henry Stage Co-Editor dom.henry@leftlion.co.uk

Tom Errington Web Developer tom.errington@leftlion.co.uk

Ian C. Douglas Stage Co-Editor ian@leftlion.co.uk

Al Draper, Alison Gove-Humphries, Alison Harrison, Alison Hedley, Anamenti, Anne Jennings, Ant Haywood, Barbara Morgan, Ben Lester, Caroline Le Sueur, Catriona, Chloe Langley, Chris Mead, Chris Underwood, Claire Foss, Claire Henson, Claire Warren, Clare Foyle, Colin, D Lawson, Dan Lyons, Dan Hemmings, Daniel Watts, Darren Harvey, David Knight, Dean Collier, Dick Watson, Donna Rowe-Merriman, Eddie, Eden PR, Ellen O’Hara, Emma Hibbert, Emma Lipinski, Erika Diaz Petersen, Felicity Whittle, Fred Glenister, Freddy Angell, Graye Wilde, Hayley Howard, Heather Hodkinson, Heather Oliver, Helena Tyce, Ian Storey, Ian Yanson, In memory of Anna Novak (Bradford and Scoraig), In memory of Jenny Smith, James Medd, James Place, James Wright, Janine Lees, Jayne Paul William & Pirate Jack, Jed Southgate, Jem Woolley, Jenni Harding, Jess Gibson, Joanna Furniss, John Haslam, John Hess, John Holmes, Jon Blyth, Jonathan Axworthy, Jonathan Fenn, Jos Potts, Joshua Heathcote, Judy Gray, Julian Bower, Justyn Roberts, Kathryn Hewitt, Kathleen Dunham, Kay Gilby, Kiki Dee the Cat, Koprowskit, Lawrence Poole, Leanne Moden, Les Hayes, Livi & Jacob Nieri, Liz Knott, Lizzy and Margot, Lizzy Colyer, Louise Duffield, Marc Weaver, Mark Barratt, Mark Gasson, Matt Cliffe, Matt Turpin, Matthew Riches, Mighty Lightweights, MinorOak Coworking, Miri Debah, Moira Scothern, Monica White, Nick Donovan, Nick Waine, Nigel Cooke, Nigel Hudson, Nigel King, NottingJam Orchestra, Paul Boast, Paul Woodall, Pete Barker, Philip Miller, Rachel Ayrton, Rachel Hancorn, Rachel Morton, Raphael Achache, Rhys Hawkins, Rich Fisher, Richard Barclay, Richard Goodwin, Rob Arthur, Roger Hughes, Ron Mure, Ross Balzaretti, Roy Manterfield, Russell Brown, Sam Hudson, Sam Nahirny, Sam Rose, Sarah Manton, Sarah Moore, Sarah Scriver, Simon Evans, Siobhan, Spicer, Steve Lyon, Steve Riordan, Steve Stickley Storyteller, Steve Wallace, Stewart Berry, Stuart, Stuart Wilson, Sue Barsby, Sue Reader, Tim Foster Hair, Tom Justice, Tom Patterson, Tracey Newton, Vicky Sorsby, Will

Jamie Morris Screen Co-Editor jamie.morris@leftlion.co.uk

Oliver Parker Screen Co-Editor oliver.parker@leftlion.co.uk

Gemma Cockrell Music Editor gemma.cockrell@leftlion.co.uk

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Daniela Loffreda Food Editor daniela.loffreda@leftlion.co.uk

Fabrice Gagos

Photography Co-Editor fabrice.gagos@leftlion.co.uk

Marta Tavares Art Co-Editor marta.tavares@leftlion.co.uk

Nathan Langman Photography Co-Editor nathan.langman@leftlion.co.uk

George Dunbar Art Co-Editor george.dunbar@leftlion.co.uk

Featured Contributor

Evie Warren

Evie is an illustrator and designer who studied Illustration in London before moving back to her hometown of Nottingham. She works as a freelancer taking on all sorts of illustration and design briefs, as well as running a small online shop selling greetings cards, prints and other stationery goods. You can see her work on her website, eviewarren.co.uk, or on her Instagram, @eviewarrenillustration. She loves to create colourful, playful designs to spread a little joy!

Check out Evie’s illustration on page 17

Sticking Together

Tindersticks have been leaders of the rock scene for decades. But did you know about their close collaboration with filmmaker Claire Denis?

Not Just for Christmas

Off Their Eds

Part-time comedian and full-time anaesthetist, Nottingham’s Ed Patrick has taken to writing about the wacky world of medicine in his new book

Every December people empty their pockets for charity in what’s often dubbed the ‘Christmas effect’. But what happens the rest of the year?

Come On and Slam

Nottingham’s City of Literature status is easily one of our proudest featsand it means we get to host Slamovision, the Eurovision of the poetry world

A Dame Good Time

Oh no we didn’t… Oh yes we did. That’s right, we turned our attention to the panto, sitting down with dame extraordinaire David Robbins

Rockin’ Around

Now in its twentieth year, the annual Christmas Covers Party is more popular than ever - and is still raising vital funds for local charities

Freedom! ‘22

Review of 2022

If you can believe it, it’s December once again! And that can only mean one thing - LeftLion’s famed review of the year is back

The National Justice Museum has a small art gallery with a brand new exhibition - a public open call photography collection simply entitled Freedom

Father Time

Take a trip over to Aspley and you’ll find Dads Garden, the community project providing men with a safe space to talk about their mental health

A New Leaf

We wander down to Bromley House Library to hear all about their Adopt a Book scheme, which helps to restore centuries-old titles

Out of Time: Margery Lister

We dive into the intriguing story of Margery Lister, a medieval city-dweller who regularly found herself in Nottingham’s civil court

Editorial Leftlion in the wild

Hello there, and merry Christmas to all!

It might be dark outside, we might be getting screwed over by soaring costs and an absence of Government support, and temperatures might have stayed alarmingly high for too long - but, for these 48 pages, you can forget all about that, and revel in the wonders of our great city.

You see, despite all the challenges both local and national, it has been a pretty good year for Nottingham. One of our own went and won the Euros, putting in a monumental performance in front of 90,000 people in the final at Wembley. The biggest films and TV shows were stacked with local talent, from Bella Ramsey in Catherine Called Birdy to Nathan Foad in Our Flag Means Death And this iconic magazine was finally taken over by an Editor who isn’t a Derby County fan (sorry, Ash).

More importantly, though, in the context of the aforementioned 48 pages, Nottingham’s Stuart Staples (of Tindersticks fame) continued to create stunning scores for legendary filmmaker Claire Denis - knocking out tunes for

Both Sides of the Blade and Stars at Noon within the past twelve months. We hear all about it on page 18. And our city’s anaesthetist-turned-funny guy Ed Patrick wrote a brilliant book, and is bringing it to Five Leaves (page 20).

Alongside this, 200 Degrees celebrated their tenth anniversary (page 26), Metronome bagged itself a date with Slamovision (page 31), Carlton gained its own video games expo (page 33) and the National Justice Museum launched an inspirational new exhibition (page 37). That’s right, amidst all the Elon Musk and climate change-induced dystopia floating around at the moment, we’re making an effort to spotlight why this festive season can still be a happy one. You’re welcome.

So, this month, try to relax, unwind and, you know what, just have a bloody great time.

Big ups

LeftLion Magazine is fully recyclable and compostable. Our paper is recycled or made with FSC® certified (C015932) sources, and printed using renewable energy.

Going Underground

On Yer Bike

At this rate, I may as well change my job title on ‘Linked In’ from Award-Winning Journalist to Head of Hedgehog PR, because we’re spotlighting the spiny swines once again. Hog fanatics out in Keyworth have taken home a Tour of Britain prize for their giant artwork depicting a hedgehog riding a bike. I’m still waiting for their tribute to moles, and for an apology to my kind for ignoring us. They have my number.

That’s the Spirit

On second thoughts, maybe writing about hedgehogs isn’t so bad, because you humans are something else. Would you believe more than 250 of you have reported seeing ghosts in our fair county? That’s according to the clearly reliable PsychicWorld.com. I don’t know about you, but if I’d passed into the afterlife, there’s no chance I’d continue to walk the plains of England. I’d be straight off to Benidorm, me, relaxing in the sun with an ethereal piña colada in my hand. Lovely.

Wood U Believe It

Of course, it wouldn’t be enough for us Notts lot to have had dealings with the supernatural - we have to have come face-to-face with the extraterrestrial, too. That’s exactly what happened to Clifton resident Gerry Woodcock, who claims he spotted a UFO in the sky one summer’s eve a few years back. It’s no surprise it hasn’t returned since - wherever it came from has to be better than this luckless lump of rock.

Pick Six

Book

Five-year-oldladfillingin McDonald'spuzzle:"Leave mealone,I'matwork."

Lecturer: “I'd like to start by asking each of you to introduce yourselves and your preferred name. I'll start, I'm a Professor here and you can call me Matt.” Student: “I'm Fergus and you can call me Fergalicious.”

“How can I watch me back?”

"There are bigger problems in the world than dogging, mum."

Man on the phone: “Yeah, I said okie doke… It means okay… Yeah, it’s just a really old saying.”

Holiday Destination

I’ll always have a soft spot for Letters From Father Christmas. That Tolkien chap played a PR blinder for me there, and I didn’t even have to pay him for it. Sure, I was initially a bit miffed that he used my image without permission, but people seem to love that book, so I’ll take the free promotion.

Song

Running a sweatshop -- woops, cut that -- workshop can be a challenge. Keeping the elves motivated is tough. So when I heard that Everything Is Awesome!!! song from The Lego Movie, I knew I was onto a winner. Keep ‘em smiling, keep ‘em crafting, and keep ol’ Nicky in a job - that’s my mantra.

Do you have any idea how draining it is living in the bloody North Pole? Let’s just say Frank Sinatra can shove his snow where the sun don’t shine. That’s why, whenever I get the chance, I rev up the old sleigh and jet off to Maga. Beaches and babes, mate, that’s the life for me.

Meal

If I have to munch down one more Maryland cookie or sip on one more warm glass of milk, I’ll order Rudolph to plunge us into the Arctic Ocean, I swear. You do know there are countless snacks and drinks out there, right? How about a nice bag of crisps and a can of Diet Coke every once in a while?

Film

Bad Santa. Proper comedic gold. It never fails to have me in absolute tears, honestly. Every December I’m tempted to go all Billy Bob Thornton and play some pesky pranks of my own. Who knows, maybe this is the year?

Notts Spot

As soon as Boxing Day rolls around, I head straight to Spoons. I don’t care which, just get me sat in a dark corner, put a crisp £2 pint on the table, and slap some greasy food on a plate that looks like it was around when I first started doing my thing. Perfect way to unwind after the Christmas Day rush.

Our mole on the ground isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty to bring you the Notts stories you might have missed...

illustrations: Kate Sharp

As it’s the most wonderful time of the year, we’ve tasked our old pal Santa Claus with choosing a few of his favourite things…

“Everything's a dildo if you're brave enough.”

“Natalie Imbruglia? Isn’t she Padme in Star Wars?”

“Dishwashersreallyare suchwonderfulthings.”

Screen Podcast

A Christmas Rest

We’re looking forward to having a nice rest. Maybe a little bit of champagne? We might also take the opportunity to do a bit of gardening. It might seem unusual to do the gardening in winter, but it’s not often we’re off for four or five days in a row so we don’t always get a chance to do it. Our shrubs and bushes are somewhat overgrown.

The King’s Speech

It will certainly be a bit different this year, huh? I’m sure Charles will be brilliant at it. He comes across as a nice chap and his speech about his mother when she’d just passed away was lovely. I guess we can assume it will be along similar lines to that and we look forward to it on Christmas Day.

New Year’s Resolutions

We might go back to that yoga class in the new year. But we don’t do new year’s resolutions as they always fail. Dry January is a terrible idea. People who do that just binge drink as soon as it gets to February. Everything in moderation, we say – the odd glass of wine or pint of beer won’t do you any harm.

Spotted Ilkeston

That dog gets out more than I do.

Spotted: Long Eaton

To the total boz wollox in the grey transit van who deliberately drove through a puddle on whilsthorpe road and soaked me on the way to work at about 8 am, I hope your phone cable only charges your phone in a certain position

Arnold Community Group UK Used to spit on cars off that bridge as a child

Gedling Village Community

my issue is with the sense of entitlement of the people complaining about it. "oh it makes my pet poop on my rug". Grow up Margret

Spotted: Long Eaton

I say this everyday...... Long eaton spotted, the gift just keeps on giving

Spotted Ilkeston No-one is ill on a Sunday

Carlton Hill Community TOADS are ugly, not scary

Arnold Community Group UK

I've decided I'm going to start a GoFundMe in aid of buying McDonald's Arnold a new Mcflurry machine. Please let me know if you'd like to donate.

Spotted Ilkeston

Vaping bush is exactly what’s wrong with young ens we had “bong bush”

Carlton Hill Community

You can only hope they’ll blow their hand off.

Spotted:Newark

THE FB POLICE ARE TOO BUSY PICKING THEIR NOSES TO SEE THE SCAMS AND PORNOGRAPHY ON HERE

Arnold Community Group UK

I definitely wouldn’t fit in there. Love my Greggs too much!

Gedling Village Community

Who do u think u R????? Free country

Arnold Community Group UK

Turns out my shower was leaking into the toaster. Of course it was.

Spotted Ilkeston

I like fireworks, just not the ones that make you feel like you need to get your head down in a bomb shelter wwII stylie

Spotted Eastwood

I know the poster had good intentions but…you have no idea what you’ve just done

STAPLEFORD COMMUNITY GROUP

Maybe I should stop mountain biking and turn to committing crime instead???

Spotted: Long Eaton

It's a race to get to the only functional toilet in the building.

Retford Information Page

Pull in at a dodgy angle, soak car in petrol, ignite and call the police whilst passing through Stevenage

Spotted:Newark

That was a painful read

Spotted: Long Eaton

Don’t no what worse the pink chicken or that dirty steering wheel

Nottingham’s most opinionated grocers on...

words: Dani Bacon

Santa probably regrets giving coal to all the naughty kids now that global warming is threatening where he lives.

LeftLion’s Christmas Classics

It’s a cold December’s eve. You’re slumped on the sofa, warming yourself in front of the fire. You’ve had one can of Black Iris too many. You’re struggling to keep the small talk going with extended family you hardly know. Fear not, stick on one of these festive favourites and all will be okay…

It’s a Wonderful Life

Some people might say blackand-white films are boring. Those people would be wrong. Screening at any good cinema worth their salt this Christmas, It’s a Wonderful Life is long-standing for a reason.

Available on Amazon Prime

Die Hard

Too much of a hard nut to admit you like a bit of Christmas fluff? Indulge in some festive fisticuffs instead with the greatest action (and, yes, Christmas) movie of all time.

Available on Disney+

OVERHEARD:

The Polar Express Fancy a film that sits somewhere between delightful and deeply unsettling? Look no further than the uncanny animation of The Polar Express, which is sure to make you feel a little odd.

Available on Sky Cinema

Sleepless in Seattle Meg Ryan is delightful in every film she appears in, and there’s no more fitting classic than Nora Ephron’s Sleepless in Seattle. Described by some as the best rom-com of all time, we recommend.

Available on Amazon Prime

ILLUSTRATED

Santa Who?

A real deep-cut for the Santa stans out there, this madefor-TV movie is perfect for fans of Leslie Nielsen, Mark from Friends and insanely irritating child actors.

Available on Amazon Prime

Last Train to Christmas We couldn’t finish this list without a Notts connectionenter Last Train to Christmas Directed by the Television Workshop’s Julian Kemp, this Michael Sheen-starring comedy-drama is a real gem.

Available on Sky Cinema

To celebrate all of the weird and wonderful things you lot come out with, artist Pete Gray took it upon himself to turn some of the best-ever Overheard in Notts quotes into illustrations...

illustration: Pete Gray

Notts Shots

Red sky at night Frazer Varney - @imjustfrazer

Stubbed out Cal McNab - @calmanalogue

This city never sleeps Dani Bacon - @danijuliette_

A

poppy

Nadia on... Hope

words: Nadia Whittome photo: Fabrice Gagos

In these troubling times, hope may seem in short supply. We’ve experienced a pandemic of historic proportions, and now a devastating cost-of-living crisis. The brutal war in Ukraine has gone on for over nine months now, every day causing more death and destruction. The climate emergency continues to escalate, with its effects being felt around the world, and scientists issuing more and more alarming warnings. And now we’re bracing ourselves for a recession and yet another wave of austerity.

The climate movement has also continued to make waves this year, from COP27 to the streets of our cities and towns. In February, following sustained protests, London’s National Portrait Gallery ended its thirty-year sponsorship deal with BP. Under pressure from campaigners, 100 universities in Britain have already decided to divest from fossil fuels. Recently in Spain, in response to a week-long occupation, the University of Barcelona introduced a module on the climate emergency for all students. This news will energise young activists from Teach the Future, who I’m working with to improve climate education across the UK.

While these victories might seem small relative to the scale of the challenge, they point to something bigger: public opinion is shifting decisively in favour of climate action - and institutions are starting to notice. If we manage to stop the tide of global heating and preserve the planet for future generations, it won’t be thanks to those in power, but to the millions of people around the world holding them to account.

It’s only appropriate that the Collins Dictionary chose “permacrisis” as its word of the year. A state of permanent crisis - or rather many overlapping crises - seems to define our era.

But the deeper the darkness, the more crucial it is to stay defiant and search for light. That’s why in my column this month, I wanted to focus on the people and movements that give me hope.

Firstly, I’m inspired by all workers, in Nottingham and beyond, who stood up for their rights this year. In 2022, we’ve seen the biggest wave of strikes in over a decade, with many more yet to come. From rail workers to nurses to civil servants, hundreds of thousands of workers around the country are saying “enough” to poverty wages and realterms pay cuts.

On one hand, these walkouts can be seen as an expression of despair, as eye-watering inflation erodes workers’ incomes and squeezes already tight budgets. But joining a union and organising with others to strike also takes courage, resilience and, yes, hope. It’s not an easy task to beat strict anti-union laws, cut through pessimism and apathy, stand up to attacks from the rightwing media and defend your right to a decent wage. But these efforts are paying off: from criminal barristers to Liverpool dockers, striking workers are winning pay rises and inspiring others to follow their example.

Meanwhile, as the war in Ukraine rages on, it’s been heartening to see the outpouring of solidarity across our city. From protests to fundraisers to people welcoming refugees into their own homes - I’ve been proud to see Nottingham step up. The fantastic Ukrainian Cultural Centre has been providing not just practical assistance for displaced people, but also community and joy.

But it’s not just Ukrainian refugees who have made Nottingham their home. As the Government ramps up its attacks on asylum seekers, our city refuses to be divided. Charities like Nottingham Refugee Forum and Refugee Roots have been helping newcomers settle in and rebuild their lives. Arimathea Trust, Host Nottingham and others provide housing for people seeking asylum. Meanwhile, our local Student Action for Refugees group has been working to raise awareness and support refugees on campus and beyond.

The list goes on: there’s not enough pages in this magazine to list every project, group or individual who makes our city great. Reading the news, it can be hard to feel optimistic. But then I meet people who remind me that a better future is possible. With every picket line, every campaign for justice, every local initiative to support those the Government has failed - you are building it. Thank you.

With every picket line, every campaign for justice, every local initiative to support those the Government has failed - you are building it. Thank you

Not Just for Christmas

Every December people empty their pockets for their charity of choice in what’s often dubbed the ‘Christmas effect’. But what happens the rest of the year when the goodwill has worn off? And what are the downsides of giving around the festive season? We catch up with the team from Emmanuel House to ask just this, alongside learning more about how the cost-of-living crisis has affected donations…

It’s the same every year. The Christmas period rolls around, we head off to see It’s a Wonderful Life, Band Aid’s Do They Know It's Christmas? starts blaring through the radio and we’re filled with that warm fuzzy feeling of charity. We aren’t like mean old Mr Potter who only thinks of himself, we want to be more like George Bailey, always giving to others, beloved by all. So, we hand over a few extra pennies to a homeless person on the street or we send in a donation to our favourite cause and we glow with our own sense of altruism, pleased to have embodied the Christmas spirit.

But what about the rest of the year? Because surely we can collectively do more good if we extend our empathy past a single season. Yet, for the majority of charities, most of the public’s goodwill stacks up in the winter months and reduces dramatically in the spring and summer. Coined the ‘Christmas effect’ or ‘December effect’, it’s estimated that November and December are the peak donation months across the board. Which, of course, isn’t inherently a bad thing, but could cause some issues when it comes to cash-flow and smaller charities missing out - unable to compete with the marketing campaigns of other, larger organisations.

Following the same trend, Emmanuel House CEO Denis Tully shares that “most of our income from giving comes in between November and January every year, and that has been consistently so for the past ten years,” which makes sense to him since “homlessness is one of the issues that is always on people's minds at Christmas, principally because it’s the total opposite of what many people want Christmas to be about - which is for people to gather together in a home.”

of reducing their giving financially, one of the places that could be counteracted is to volunteer in our charity shop (currently on reduced hours), because that could bring in £100 for a few hours - which is a fantastic alternative.”

An interesting case study, Emmanuel House definitely don't want to diminish the donations and support they receive at Christmas. However, it’s also their aim to tempt the ad-hoc donors into becoming long-term supporters, Marketing and Fundraising Officer Rosie Needham-Smith explains - something that will lead to an increased sense of stability for the charity. This is a concept that especially applies to volunteering, which Denis explains can result in the building of consistent relationships between volunteers and service users.

So, back to the wider question at hand. Is giving at Christmas a bad thing? Obviously not. But we should keep charities in mind all year round, because the work never stops, and for many charities, they may have an increased need for support at times of the year that are totally unrelated to the festive season. Take, for example, emergency committees that are responding to crisis situations like natural disasters or sudden war - cases the public needs to respond to with immediacy. Therefore, this Christmas, it might be in the festive spirit to sign yourself up to charity newsletters, to stay updated throughout the entirety of the year.

Of course, for those of you who do want to donate at Christmas, don’t feel bad about it! Charities like Emmanuel House launch their winter campaigns for this exact reason, because giving around the festive months can be much easier, whether this is because you’re collecting money or donations themed around the time of year, or simply because you work charity into your personal budgeting system. And if you can’t afford to make a financial donation this year (thanks, cost-of-living crisis), then remember that charities do appreciate the gift of time, regardless of whether this is working at a local charity shop to boost their income or spending hands-on time at your local food bank.

Does this cause any issues for them? Not necessarily financially, because as an established charity Denis explains that they understand the fiscal profile of a year. However, when it comes to donating goods and volunteering it’s really important to keep the stamina up year-round, particularly because financial giving has dropped thanks to the cost-of-living crisis, and volunteering numbers have also reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic, with Denis reporting the volunteer numbers to be around 1,000 pre-pandemic and just over 300 post. “In this time when people are thinking

Most of all, in the lead up to Christmas this year, just remember to be good to all the people you can. And even more importantly, to keep up this energy even after all the narratives around goodwill disappear. Particularly in Nottingham: we’re people that like to take care of each other. So, let’s do just that.

You can learn more about Emmanuel House and how to support them on their website emmanuelhouse.org.uk

Financial giving has dropped thanks to the cost-of-living crisis, and volunteering numbers have also reduced due to the COVID-19 pandemic

words: Lizzy O’Riordan illustration: Evie Warren

Sticking Together

So, your first film with Claire Denis was 1996’s Nénette and Boni. How did you guys first meet and work together on this film?

Claire simply came into our dressing room during the writing process of Nénette and Boni She was listening to our second album a lot and wanted to ask if she could use one of our songs in the film. We said we should just do the whole thing, so that was basically how it started. We just got on at that moment. We were young, I suppose scoring films was sort of like a dream, and we just carried on from there.

What is the process you guys have when scoring a film? Do you go from the script, a full edit or just a simple conversation?

I think that every film has its own story, we don’t really have a set way of working. For Nénette and Boni, we waited for a finished edit and as a band we were able to react to it, using these reactions to decorate it in some way. We wanted our music to bring out the sense of fun and freedom we felt from the film. Although, being very young, it was quite a hard process doing that, it was in the days of VHS so we had to constantly keep rewinding this old tape which wasn’t easy. It does vary, though. For example, with Stars at Noon, Claire needed certain scenes to shoot to. That is a film that had been on Claire’s mind for a long time, so we have had many conversations about it, and I was able to get that song in shape for the shooting in Panama. I think doing that gave the film’s dance scene a real kind of completeness, they are actually dancing to the emotion and rhythm of the song.

Every film has asked us as a group of people to go somewhere which we aren’t used to going musically, and I think that has fed back into our own music

With your collaborations, there is a large variety of genres. Trouble Every Day has a beautiful orchestral score whereas Bastards has a very harsh synth one. How do you decide what genres to explore per film? Mostly it is down to what the film sparks within

you. For Stars at Noon I just started by saying to myself that the score had to be really rhythmic, which led to us adding lots of solo drums into it. It’s a very urgent film so we really wanted to reflect that through the music, and see how these ideas would transform when the sound met the images. With Bastards, the storyline is very tough, so I had to position myself in this unsure space the characters were in, which ultimately formed some incredibly unrelenting music. Every film has asked us as a group of people to go somewhere which we aren’t used to going musically, and I think that has fed back into our own music. That has ultimately been a big part of why we are still together after about thirty years, because we are always pushing ourselves to do new things.

Trouble Every Day is one of my all time favourite film scores. Could you speak a bit about the process of crafting that incredibly haunting music?

That film was really a gift for any film composer. When Claire spoke to us she talked about how she was interested in kissing and why lovers want to bite each other. I remember she used such romantic language to describe it. That sparked this very passionate song, with a very lamenting score. When it came together with the images, which are very brutal at times, it created this collision which was more than the sum of its parts. Shortly after we did that score, our first lineup of the band came to an end and I was speaking to Claire about The Intruder. I had some ideas but I told Claire I didn’t really know how to score films. She just replied, “I don’t really know how to make films,” so from that moment on there was a freedom between us.

Do you find writing film scores that are mostly instrumental more difficult than music that is mostly sung, or spoken over?

When exploring an idea that’s come from primarily the inside of you, you are really starting from just a grain of sand. When you are presented with something that moves you, by somebody you believe in, you are using what you have inside you and connecting it with somebody else's vision. If you take the singing out of a Tindersticks album, there is just as much attention to the detail of the instrumentation as you would find in our film scores. There is a point where they become the same. Lots of people find it easy to understand I’m a singer, but I’m really

just a guy who sits in studios - my voice is just a part of that.

Outside of working with Claire, have films played a big role in your life?

When I first met the band in the eighties, we all had a shared love of music but we also had our own things. One member was heavily into soundtracks and he opened that door for me, as it was such a big part of his thinking. Although I think when you come across something - be it film, literature or art - that speaks to you, it is impossible to not be changed by it. So films have definitely had an effect on me. I don’t have a whole lot of time to watch new things, but when I do it can really stop me in my tracks. Recently I have been thinking about the films I watched in the early nineties, such as Bad Lieutenant, which floored me even more than when it was first released. I can say the same about Crash, too, it has gained even more of a power over me now.

Have any film scores stayed with you and had a lasting influence?

There are so many, but one example is the score to Midnight Cowboy, which I’ve never been able to shake off. Another recent one is Uncut Gems, which was a really great piece of work. I think when there is trust between a composer and a director, some great things can happen. It’s the things that go sideways and feel unrestrained that really connect with me.

I’ve been listening to the Tangerine Dream scores a lot recently, mostly the Thief one.

That’s a great one, an amazing film too. So is the score to Friedkin’s Sorcerer. I think they work so well because they aren’t made based on the film’s locations, they feel otherworldly when they meet the images. Honestly, music and films really shine when the creators refuse to play by the rules, the Tangerine Dream soundtracks are a perfect example of that.

For over twenty years, Nottingham-born musician Stuart Staples has worked with French director Claire Denis, creating a wide range of provocative and romantic film scores to arthouse staples such as Trouble Every Day and Bastards. We catch up with Stuart about his work on her new release, their collaborative process and the influence of film on his creative output…

interview: Oliver Parker photo: Julien Bourgeois

Music and films really shine when the creators refuse to play by the rules

Off Their Eds

Part-time comedian and full-time NHS anaesthetist, Ed Patrick has taken to writing about the wacky world of medicine in his new book Catch Your Breath: The Secret Life of a Sleepless Anaesthetist. Ahead of Patrick’s visit to Five Leaves this December, our writer Lewis Keech catches up with the new author to chat his medical memoir, podcast and humour that can be found in the darkest moments…

You recently published the book Catch Your Breath: The Secret Life of a Sleepless Anaesthetist. How did this come about?

In terms of medical memoirs, Being Mortal by Atul Gawande was a book that I’ve read, and there’s obviously Adam Kay. The reason why the book came about, though, wasn’t because I really wanted to write a book. It was that, when I started in anaesthetics, it was different from what I’d been doing as a doctor. You’re giving people a reserve of oxygen and altering their physiology, you’re changing their blood pressure, you’re doing extreme things. You’re also using some crazy drugs, which are either otherwise illicit (like ketamine, fentanyl, morphine), or just bonkers (like curare, a muscle relaxant). So, every day I wrote down things I had done. Then during COVID I took those notes and focused everything onto writing for something to do!

ask you questions from all different angles that you wouldn't expect, too. I’m used to doing stand-up, which is great, but with these events it’s always great seeing people posing you questions. There’ll be a Q&A at the end as well - and an opportunity to buy the book!

I listened to a couple of episodes of your podcast, Ed Patrick: Comedians’ Surgery. How did this come about?

It came about by accident, when I was doing stand-up. Quite a few people will talk about personal issues and sometimes that’s health issues - many of which were really interesting. I thought, ‘Wouldn’t it be great if we could make this into a chat show?’ So I did a couple of trials that went really well. People loved coming on the show because it’s quite nice as a comedian being interviewed, and it gave people a sort of freedom. What I realised was that the audiences loved it too; they were laughing at what the comedian was saying and were really interested.

Will the Five Leaves event be like an episode of Comedians’ Surgery at all?

cognitive conditioning when you first start out, because there’s so many moments like that. It’s a unique world to be in, especially in certain specialities. Obviously, I work in anaesthetics, and I have to work in intensive care as part of my job, so with that you can have a lot of down time, but also things can hit the fan pretty quickly and you have to react very quickly as well when you’re needed.

It’s a fascinating subject. What attracted you most to working in anaesthetics? One of the beautiful things about it is you get to spend a lot of time with people, which is a rare commodity in the NHS at the moment. If I’m giving an anaesthetic to someone, I have to meet them beforehand, to deal with them throughout that procedure and be with them afterwards as well, to make sure they’re alright. That’s a real privilege to be able to do that and spend time with people.

You’re going to be talking at the Five Leaves Bookshop in Nottingham on Thursday 8 December. What can people expect?

It’s going to be an ‘in-conversation’. The way that these events work is that someone will be interviewing me, and I basically spin off and chat about the book, then tell stories, and possibly a few readings as well. I like to bring the stories to life rather than just read them, so it’s really good fun. People

The book is sort of me talking about my own experience, so in a way it will be, but it will also be distinct. Comedians’ Surgery was trying to make something really entertaining out of medical stories and conditions that was kind of enlightening as well. Whereas, with the book, I really wanted to tell people about anaesthetics, so it’s great talking about that, but obviously it pulled in everything else from the last couple of years. So there will be some elements of me talking about things, but it’s almost more of a collective thing too, because we all went through different things over the last few years.

What struck me when I was reading the book was that it was so dark in some places, and so light and funny in others. Was this a deliberate choice?

That’s actually quite a good description of medicine in itself, because you do have those dark moments, but you always have to try and balance them. Also, it’s quite realistic to say that you’re going to have dark and light moments in quite quick succession when you’re working in that kind of environment. It takes some

You’ve made a career of comedy and medicine. More generally, how do they work together?

They totally balance each other out. If I had a bad gig on stage, medicine could balance that out, but if it happened in hospital, going on stage could balance that out too, because it’s a completely different environment. I didn’t realise how well they balanced each other out mentally for me, but you have to have something outside of medicine to stay level.

Do you have any plans to do any more stand-up or writing? Will you bring your stand-up to Nottingham?

Yeah, so I just did a month at the Edinburgh Festival with Work in Progress, I was working on a show that I’m planning on taking up next year. Then I’ve got a whole bunch of shows, both club and solo - so I’m definitely back into it, going to shows then back into hospital the next day. With my solo show, I’d like to either do a preview in Nottingham before I take it up next year, or I’ll do a show there if I do a tour. I’d love to come back though because I’m from Nottingham, my family still live there, I’m a big Forest supporter, so Nottingham’s totally in my blood.

Ed Patrick will be speaking at Five Leaves Bookshop on Thursday 8 December

interview: Lewis Keech photo: Chris Cox

Working in medicine, you do have those dark moments, but you always have to try and balance them out

One of the beautiful things about what I do is that I get to spend a lot of time with people, which is a rare commodity in the NHS at the moment

words: Jared Wilson illustration: Raphael Achache

A sad start to the year as Notts County commentator and icon Colin Slater passes away. He was 88 at the time, but still actively contributing to the club in various ways and it had only been a few years since he finally hung up his commentary mic. Cue lots of stories from former Notts County players and managers about ‘Uncle Colin’, many of them about his love for fish and chips.

A new Nottingham-based publication called The Dilettante launches, available to buy online and in bookshops. Edited by Sophie Gargett, if it sounds slightly familiar then not only did Sophie write a column for us in that name (2015-2016), but she also used to publish infrequent free-sheets and stick them in some city centre venues alongside us. We highly recommend you check this new mag (now onto Issue 2) out.

As always in January it’s a bit slow events-wise, part of the post-Christmas lull, but it picks up towards the end with Detonate at the Arena and the multi-venue fundraiser Beat The Streets

The Festival of Science and Curiosity returns to the city, after a predominately online offering the previous year. Events include workshops on extracting the DNA of strawberries and an exhibition about space race toys. We at LeftLion devote an entire issue to science to celebrate.

Visual artist and former NTU student Hetain Patel unveils Trinity, his biggest solo showcase of work yet, at New Art Exchange. Light Night also returns following a COVIDenforced break, although it’s now a two-day event which includes fire in the Castle gardens and a very fancy light show on the Council House.

Castle Rock Brewery team up with Notts Wildlife Trust to launch a beer called Into the Wild. Although this could just be seen as clever marketing, it’s actually the culmination of a charming twenty-year friendship between two major local organisations.

Jared Bush, the director of Disney hit Encanto, invites Chilwell school girl Lowri Moore to join him at the BAFTAs, three years after she first wrote to Disney requesting a princess with glasses.

Anjli Mohindra, who grew up in West Bridgford and trained at Nottingham’s Television Workshop, has a high profile month starring in Netflix movie Munich: The Edge of War and BBC TV drama series Vigil

Nick Turner, the former owner and founder of Nottingham music venue The Chameleon, passes away at the age of 73. Many stories are shared by people about his life and later in the year an exhibition and auction of his mainly vaginainspired artwork will take place.

Dreaming In Yellow, a book by Harry Harrison about the halcyon days of nineties Notts-based free party movement DiY, is published. A series of events take place around the UK and in Nottingham and lots of now fifty-something former ravers get together to reminisce.

Talented young local actor Phoebe Frances Brown, formerly part of the Major Labia group, passes away at the age of 29 due to an incurable brain tumour. Her final performance was in The Glad Game, a one-woman show at Nottingham Playhouse that she wrote and starred in to demonstrate that “even after receiving the most devastating news, there’s still hilarity and joy to be had.”

Notts-based artist Wolfgang Buttress puts on his Murmuration exhibition at Beam Gallery, which is part of Primary studios. Mansfield’s Ferocious Dog play another headline homecoming gig at Rock City. Notts musician and filmmaker Dave Lankester steps into the ring at a local White Collar Boxing event in Arnold, raising about £12k for cancer charities, and draws the fight on points against a younger and more experienced rival.

The biggest news for the city, probably of the whole year, is Nottingham Forest returning to the Premier League, beating

Huddersfield Town 1-0 in the Championship play-off final at Wembley. This ends a painful 23-year stint outside the top flight for the club and is made even more miraculous by the fact that new boss Steve Cooper had only taken over eight months earlier, with the club at the bottom of the table. A packed celebration takes place in the Market Square and suddenly even people who ‘hate football’ are now giving it the ‘You Reds’ on the socials.

Remember that game of football in 1986 where Diego Maradona handballed it into the goal against England and it was henceforth known as the ‘hand of god’ game? Well, former Forest player, and current BBC Nottingham commentator, Steve Hodge was playing too and managed to get Diego’s shirt afterwards. On 3 May 2022 he finally decided to cash that chip in, with the shirt reaching a whopping £7.1million at auction with Sotheby’s.

Nottingham Poetry Festival returns once again, with this year’s big guests including Joelle Taylor and Michael Rosen. Nottingham-based MMA fighter Paul ‘Semtex’ Daley has his last ever MMA fight, beating Wendell Giácomo at the Bellator 281 event in London. About 3,500 people take to the streets of Notts to celebrate the Sikh festival of Vaisakhi for the first time in three years, post-pandemic.

A television show called Sherwood premieres on BBC iPlayer about a village in Nottinghamshire where people argue about the eighties miners’ strikes and shoot each other with crossbows. While it seems quite a long way off the north Notts district we know by that name, the show is entertaining all the same and features a strong local acting contingent alongside BBC favourites like David Morrissey, Lesley Manville and Stephen Tompkinson.

MBEs are awarded in the Queen’s Jubilee Honours List to a couple of amazing local women. They are Sandy Mahal, the founding director of Nottingham City of Literature and Stephanie Sirr, the Chief Executive of Nottingham Playhouse.

After fourteen years, One Thoresby Street closes its doors as an exhibition space and studios for artists. It’s always sad to see a local studio go, but the founders can leave with their heads held high having put on a number of innovative events over those years. What is worrying in times of vast development in the city - often the development of student flats - is to see the lack of development of new affordable spaces for artists to utilise after they graduate.

Nottingham Craft Beer Week and Festival take place in June, delighting the more hipster of the city's beer drinkers. The inaugural Meadowlands Festival takes place at Victoria Embankment, headlined by Gerry Cinnamon and The Kooks.

England Lionesses beat Germany 2-1 in the Euro 2022 Cup Final, the first time our country has won anything in senior football since 1966. Between the sticks is Nottingham’s own Mary Earps who brings home a Euro 2022 winner’s medal and inspires the whole country. Several murals are painted around the city in her honour.

Nottinghamshire’s Police and Crime Commissioner Caroline Henry is banned from driving after being caught breaking the limit five times (!) in twelve weeks. Elected after pledging to crack down on road safety, there are heavy calls for her to resign, but she brushes them off like Boris batting off a lockdown knees-up.

After a two-year hiatus Splendour Festival spreads itself out over two days with headliners including Richard Ashcroft, Anne-Marie, Supergrass and The Human League. Also returning is Nottinghamshire Pride, making its city centre comeback with a Saturday full of activities, rainbows and drinking.

The Commonwealth Games takes place less than an hour's drive away in Birmingham and Notts is suitably well-represented. Nottingham University alone had eight current students and five alumni competing. However, the most notable local figure on display is Bulwell-born weightlifter Emily Campbell, who follows up her silver medal from the Tokyo Olympics with a gold, setting a new Commonwealth record in the process. Confetti and Antenna

also hold qualifying rounds of the Commonwealth Esports Championships

The inaugural No Man’s Land music festival takes place at The Bodega, with a line-up completely made up of female and non-binary artists. We release the 150th Issue of LeftLion magazine

The Hundred, a 100-ball UK-based cricket tournament featuring live music, enters its second season at Trent Bridge. Many traditional cricket fans remain confused as to why you’d ever want to mix drum and bass with cricket, but their cries are drowned out when our local team Trent Rockets go and bleddy win it, beating Manchester Originals in the final by two wickets!

Goose Fair returns after its COVID-enforced break, but instead of the traditional three to four day stint it’s now on for ten days! Despite the initial shock, it actually makes sense for many, offering two different weekends to take your kids on the waltzers or dodgems. Local education providers Confetti announce plans to open up a new campus in Whitechapel, London.

Ashley Carter steps down as the Editor of LeftLion magazine after 39 issues and three-and-a-half glorious years in charge. We thank him for his excellent work and take him to the pub for a few swifties. He is ably replaced by his assistant George White.

The Hockley Hustle Festival returns for the first time since 2019, with dozens of stages of music and performances to liven up a Sunday. Local charities notice the increase of extra funds in their coffers and local employers notice the amount of hungover staff the next day.

The co-founders of LeftLion magazine, Al Gilby and Jared Wilson (yes, that’s me - weird writing about oneself in the third person), win The Nottingham Award in a ceremony at Nottingham Council House. The award acknowledges two decades of publishing both in print and online, and my mum and wife are well impressed.

Robert 'Roxy Rob' Michailovs passes away at the age of 69. Rob was a fashion designer who founded clothes shops such as Roxy Threads and Helter Skelter in the seventies and eighties. He later went on to become as well known for his eccentric drinking and dancing in local pubs and venues. Several big buildings on Bridlesmith Gate are beautifully painted by Laura Decorum and Emily Catherine, thanks to a project initiated by Nottingham BID and the Nottingham Project.

Doc’n Roll Film Festival returns to Nottingham with a run of screenings and events at both Broadway Cinema and The Old Bus Depot. Sleaford Mods release Dirty Rat, a new single collaboration with Orbital, and a van playing the tune to anyone who will listen drives around the city for a day.

Jake Bugg celebrates the ten-year anniversary of his selftitled debut album with his biggest headline show yet at Nottingham Arena. The show actually takes place after this magazine goes to press, so if he invites the entire Notts County team to get naked on stage with him and it’s not covered here you know why.

Nottingham Castle Trust goes into liquidation just a year after their grand £30million re-opening. At the time of going to press the building and site remains closed to the public and there’s quite a lot of mess left across the city to be sorted out.

Winter Wonderland takes over the Market Square for the month, this year including an ice rink in the sky. Panto season overtakes our local theatres, with Joe Pasquale and Faye from Steps being the best-known ‘stars’ visiting the city this year.

Vicky McClure’s new TV drama Without Sin debuts on 28 December on ITVX, the new free streaming hub replacement for ITV Hub. Not only does Vicky star in this, but she’s also producing it and roped in her This Is England co-star Johnny Harris, so it ought to be pretty good.

2022: Unless you are a vampire this will be the only year of your life where three of the four digits feature a two. Aside from this numerical trivia it was a notable twelve months for the city you inhabit too…

Cal McNab

200 Degrees co-founders Rob and Tom (Vincent) “met at university here and never left”, and they soon fell in love with our city. “I've now lived in Nottingham an awful lot longer than I've lived anywhere else. So I feel like Nottingham’s been my home really forever.”

It’s a tale of humble beginnings, with each running cafes and bars and struggling to find decent coffee. “From having a roaster and a bag of beans in the corner of a room and not knowing how to work it to where we are today, it feels like we've achieved a lot,” and the coffee roasters now boast eighteen of their own shops across various cities, plus six barista schools, and hundreds of wholesale customers. Rob attests that “Nottingham’s one of the best cities for supporting independent business”.

Anyway, I’m not just here to chat, I want to get to the coffee. I’m toured around their roastery and introduced to what’s surely the biggest and fanciest roaster I’ve seen. Brand Ambassador Alex Spampinato puts it to work, and as we talk through the process of roasting the coffee, at (you guessed it) around 200 degrees, I watch the hard, green pellets slowly turn to that dark chocolatey brown we all know and love. “Each bean is unique, so it all requires tweaking,” Alex explains. “The old school way is throw them in, wait until it’s charcoal.” But this beast carefully calibrates to the needs of each 58 kilo load of beans.

We finally grab a coffee, and I’m introduced to Charlotte Coore, Head of People and Culture, who says that working at 200 is all about creating a “home environment” and that they’re “constantly on the lookout for different ways to make the company as inclusive as possible”. Has it always been so protopian? Yes, she says, “At the end of day, it's the people that make 200. The coffee is, of course, the other aspect of it, and we literally do have the best coffee I’ve ever tried.”

On the adoption of coffee culture, especially by younger people, Rob says “in many ways it replaces the pub, and that’s not always a bad thing”. Addiction, and the

trouble it can lead to, is a cause close to Rob and Tom’s heart, and they support local charities such as Double Impact (who run Cafe Sobar), rehabilitation centre The Priory, and Framework, who are often dealing with people facing addiction issues. More recently, they’ve decided to take on youth crime-tackling community centre and boxing club Switch Up, with a new line of coffee to raise funds for them coming soon.

At the end of day, it's the people that make 200. The coffee is, of course, the other aspect of it, and we literally do have the best coffee I’ve ever tried

Rob feels that “there's a story behind everyone who ends up in any kind of cycle of addiction, and there are reasons why a child would need to engage with Switch Up’s services”, and enthuses that if there’s “anything we can do to support that individual to escape, whatever the reason they’re finding times a bit tougher, we will. I feel it's our duty as a local business to do our best to help”.

They’ve also just launched a brand new line of fully recyclable packaging, including the new Switch Up coffee pods made from aluminium. But what about the future? “We'll keep growing, we'll keep innovating. We will try and stay fresh. We won't try to grow too fast. You know, we're not in a hurry.” They also recently reached the milestone of employing - yep - 200 people, but they’ve no plans to stop there. “We'll keep trying to hire great people, and hopefully give Nottingham a business to be proud of.”

To Visit

The Melt & Grill

It wouldn’t be Christmas without a trip to Winter Wonderland, and it wouldn’t be Winter Wonderland without great food - and The Melt & Grill offers the tastiest, cheesiest food around. nottinghamwinterwonderland.co.uk

The

Yeah, we know, we talk about Luisa’s a lot. But how could we not spotlight this fancy Advent calendar, which is packed with bean-to-bar chocolate behind each door? It’s a little pricey, but well worth it. luisasveganchocolates.co.uk

It doesn’t matter how old you are, a good hot choccy is still the perfect festive treat in these winter months. And Kigali do a cracking blend if you ask nicely enough. So go on, ask for a hot choccy!

To Nosh

Artisan Advent Calendar

To Sup Hot Chocolate

Fresh from celebrating their tenth birthday, 200 Degrees have quickly grown to be the biggest name in Nottingham coffee, spurring on a thriving scene that even birthed its own festival this October. We went down to their Meadow Lane roastery and HQ to speak to co-founder Rob Darby, and meet some of the team…

words: Adam Pickering photo: Marcus Holdsworth

Let’s start this review by saying that I’m a fan of Wes Anderson films. The sense of wonder, the whimsical colour palette, the little oddities. These are all things that I value pretty highly in his work. Naturally, therefore, I was delighted to step into Dispatch Coffee for the first time. Bright pink walls, green panelling, velvet chairs. Set aside the need for everything to be perfectly aligned and you’d believe you were walking into a set from one of Anderson’s movies.

FOOD Rev Iew: pel Ic AN club

Let me start off by expressing my apologies for never having dined at The Pelican Club until now. I wholeheartedly take accountability for this huge oversight and regret my actions. Okay, now that's out the way, let's talk food, vibes, and info.

This is a relaxed Italian restaurant located in the heart of the Lace Market offering traditional Italian cuisine and, in my opinion, the city's best cocktails with a largely extensive cocktail menu (seriously, it’s very long!). The food portions are generous, and we got away with not having to order a starter and just ordering some sides – the Patate dei Tre Nonni (thinlysliced olive oil-roasted potatoes with golden onions) are a must, by the way.

buON NAtAle

A proper picky bloke, Saint Nick doesn’t just want any old rubbish on Christmas Eve. Nah, if you want to really impress the big man, you’ve got to go Mediterranean. That’s why we recommend leaving out one of these tasty treats from The Little Italian Biscuit Company on 24 December…

Almond Orange Biscotti

Aesthetics aside, it’s also fantastic coffee. Open until 7pm each night and stationed in trendy Hockley, it’s quickly become my favourite postwork drink stop, serving pretty much every kind of coffee from espresso to latte - the latter of which is my usual order, though all the options are tempting, with beans supplied by Nottingham-based Outpost Coffee Roasters.

Stocked with a counter of ever-changing pastries and sweet treats, there’s no shortage of tasty sides to have with your chosen drink. And with the catchphrase ‘Pas de Souci’ translating to ‘No Worries’, it truly is a relaxing spot to let the time go by, whether that's by sitting in the upstairs window peoplewatching, or curling up on the yellow sofa to read your book.

As for savoury food, however - ever a sweet tooth - I’m yet to have tried any. But from what I see the grilled sandwiches look perfect, particularly the (well-named) ‘Dispatch’, which is stuffed with pastrami, sauerkraut, mustard mayo and swiss cheese.

A really adorable addition to Goose Gate, you’ll find Dispatch by looking for the bright yellow door opposite White Rose WR2. Great hot drinks, the best interior design and plenty of snack options, I heartily recommend.

Lizzy O’Riordan

@dispatchcoffees

2 Goosegate, Hockley, NG1

For pasta (because obviously we ordered pasta), we had Fregnacce al Ragu di Manzo, imported ribbons of pasta served in a traditional Umbrian slow-cooked beef ragu. Simply a 10/10, order it, you won't be sorry. Also Ravioli ai Porcini, a homemade pasta filled with porcini mushrooms, tossed with crumbled Umbrian sausage in a creamy saffron sauce. This was a very good portion for ravioli and was covered in a rich, unctuous sauce. Very salty!

Almond. Orange. Biscotti. Need we say more? One of the fancier treats on the menu, these crunchy corkers were originally created by monks in Tuscany, and they are undoubtedly a gift from the heavens. Soak them in tea, coffee or wine (that’s right) to enhance the flavour even further.

FOOD AND DRINK

Paste alle Mandorle

Another almondy delight are these “pasticcini”, festive Sicilian bakes that you're bound to go nuts for. As if the rich, full-bodied biscuit isn’t enough, there’s a whole almond plonked right on top, bringing the flavour home with panache. Baci di Dama

To Follow Shop Zero

Wanting to treat your pals without harming the Earth this Christmas?

Shop Zero have loads of gift sets on offer, from chocolate boxes to tea collections. Drop them a follow to check out the full range. @shopzeronottm

For dessert we opted for a ‘Rupert Pumkin’ cocktail from the Dessert Cocktails menu, which consists of Kahlua, milk and cream, and ginger liqueur/biscuit/syrup. There is a menu dedicated to dessert martinis and a special section just for cheesecake cocktails - yes, you read that correctly!

The vibes are jazzy, and just very cool all round. Our server, Harry, was fabulous and very on it, especially since I was panicked about getting our dishes quickly so that I could get pictures while we still had good light outside (food blogger problems). Add The Pelican Club to the top of your list to visit. They have live music on Fridays and Saturdays, and make for a great night out! The Nottingham Food Guide

thepelicanclub.co.uk

55 St Mary's Pl, Nottingham, NG1 1PH

Not an almond fan? Try Baci di Dama on for size. These dark chocolate-infused hazelnut biscuits were apparently invented for Italian royalty back in the nineteenth century, and they’re definitely a treat fit for a king. They take 24 hours to bake, and the attention-to-detail is evident in every single bite.

Petrali al Cioccolato

Hailing from Calabria, this sumptuously sweet treat is made specifically for Christmastime, so you’d be mad not to get your hands on a pack while they’re available. Topped with colourful sprinkles and packing hazelnut and chocolate spread inside, it’s a gift that keeps on giving.

Want your Nottingham foodie business featured in the mag? Fancy writing for us? Email us at editorial@leftlion.co.uk

Shortbread Star

The Paolo Nutini of biscuits, this shortbread star combines Italian style with Scottish tradition, creating an irresistibly light and crumbly, yet buttery and filling, snack. Perfect for dunking into a glass of fresh cocoa, Santa will thank you for this one.

illustrations: Iulia Matei

With the cold, dark days well and truly here, it’s official - knitwear season has arrived. However, as you dust off your trusty favourite jumper or head to the shops to stock up on more cosy knits, many may be surprised to see how damaging to the environment something as innocent-looking as your fave bright cheery sweater or scarf could be.

According to the European Environment Agency, synthetic fabrics such as acrylic knits are responsible for between 200,000 and 500,000 tonnes of microplastics entering the global marine environment each year, with a 2019 study from Plymouth University stating that acrylic garments release approximately 730,000 microfibres per wash.

We catch up with Samantha Brooke, founder, award-winning designer and owner of Nottinghamshire knitwear brand Waring Brooke, to find out more about how she strives to revolutionise the knitwear industry through her iconic, luxury sustainable knitwear pieces, which are all made to order using clean energy from her studio on a green waste recycling site in Widmerpool…

Sustainability in the fashion world is such a hot topic right now. Can you tell me more about what Waring Brooke is doing to help make a change? Our studio is located on a green waste recycling site. All your wood waste that you put in recycling that goes to the tip, that basically comes to us to use. We take in wood waste from throughout the whole of the Midlands, turn it into wood chips and then put it into the biomass power plant that we have on site. Then, that generates sustainable electricity for us to use at the studio, as well as for the whole of the Midlands.

Secondly, I use biodegradable fabrics, which is very important to me. I buy the yarn from a Leicester company and care has been given to where it’s sourced from and which dyes are used. I’m also looking into using recycled plastic yarn which has been made out of bottles, so that’s something that’s hopefully coming next season.

Was it a conscious decision to be more sustainable?

Sustainability has always been really important to me. In fact, our family has had the wood waste business for twenty years, so it’s just something that I’ve grown up with.

I used to work in China, and I used to see the disruption and waste that came out of the fashion industry there. It horrified me to see how much waste there was. It’s not just the waste from the factories either, it’s the dyes that they use for the yarns and the fabrics, which are often cheaper in these countries because they don’t have the laws that we do. So, the water for the dyes was just going straight into their running water system, which was horrific.

think I’m taking a little bit of her with me wherever I go. Every single piece I do means a lot.

Are there any launches coming up we should know about?

I don’t follow seasons. I have monthly drops but what I create next just depends on how I’m feeling, if I’m honest. When I have an idea and I get excited about it, the thought of then waiting for a year before releasing it just doesn’t feel right. I make everything using a knitting machine, so it means I can make a sample, and then have it photographed and out on the market within two days. In fact, I’ve actually done that with my Union Jack flag blanket. I think it’s important for me to only have it made in-house. I do all the personalised stuff too, which only has a week turnaround.

For people who don’t know Waring Brooke, how would you describe it?

It’s ethical – everything is made to order so it’s made thoughtfully and by happy people in-house. It’s slow fashion, it’s luxurious, it’s country, it’s wearable, it’s functional. Whenever anyone buys our clothing, they’re getting a well-made piece each time. I like to put the ‘W’ on my pieces so people can see you’re undeniably wearing Waring Brooke.

How do you get inspiration for your designs?

It’s just from what I love. Lately I’ve done a collection inspired by Baroque architecture. But a particularly special range for me is the Sunset collection. It’s inspired by when my partner proposed to me last year in Norfolk’s ‘Sunset Beach’ (Heacham beach) - ironically there was no sun, so there was no sunset whatsoever. However, my mum passed away a couple of years ago and her favourite bench in Norfolk was at that beach and the spot where my partner proposed. When he did, all of a sudden the clouds lifted by maybe an inch or so, and there were just these strips of light, and it felt like mum was just saying, ‘They want a sunset, they’re going to have a sunset.’ We got the dreamy experience for my proposal. She was 100% there with us.

My other pieces have also been inspired by my mum. Before she passed away, she was an artist and she used to paint. I took some of her paintings and turned them into the animal pieces in my collections. The stallion, the dog and the boxing hare - they’re all paintings of my mum’s. So I like to

In terms of new launches, though, I have a new chequered collection called Waring Brooke Squared coming soon. It will feature a scarf, headband and snood, and each piece will be beautiful and personalisable, so you can have your own initials on it. This makes it more unique as you become part of the brand rather than just buying something off the shelf. Instead, you’re buying something special.

What would you say have been the highlights of Waring Brooke so far?

I was in YOU Magazine, which was quite a surreal moment as in the past I used to work for Max Studio and Alberta Ferretti and would see my designs on the catwalk, but obviously it wasn’t my name. So it was quite nice to see my pieces in print with my name on it this time. Also, I’ve been nominated as the Great British Entrepreneur of the Year which I’m honoured to have been shortlisted as a finalist for. It’s out of about 6,000 companies, so I’m really happy about that.

Congratulations on the nomination! So what does the future hold for you over the coming year?

I’m focusing on getting into more shops and retailers and just increasing brand awareness throughout the UK. I’m not sure about having my own shop just yet because I’m a bit scared - but watch this space!

waringbrooke.com @waringbrooke

I used to see the disruption that would come out of the fast fashion industry. It horrified me

Our Addie Kenogbon takes a (Zoom-based) trip out to Widmerpool, home of Waring Brooke, the knitwear brand putting sustainability at the heart of style…

interview: Addie Kenogbon photos: Jade Emily Photography

A tOugh ch A pteR

At its best, Christmas is a time of love, family, and celebration. A time in which we eat too much, feel extra cosy and open gifts, all bundled together around a Christmas tree. But, for many, Christmas can sadly be a time of grief. Whether that’s because it’s the first holiday season after losing someone, or because gathering together acts as a reminder of who isn’t present.

That’s why, this month, I’m so grateful to be celebrating Jane Harris and Jimmy Edmonds’ new book, When Words are not Enough (recommended in the short stories below), the piece of non-fiction musing on experiences of grief - normalising a topic that is often taboo to talk about.

Awarded the UNESCO City of Literature title in 2015, Nottingham has a thriving and ever-expanding poetry scene. That’s why it’s no surprise that Cara Thompson won the international Slamovision poetry competition last year with her poem Island Screams. Hosted at Metronome this December in honour of the city’s success, we catch up with the poet all about the upcoming event…

It’s been compared to the spoken word version of Eurovision, but what actually is Slamovision?

Slamovision is something that was set up by the UNESCO Cities of Literature. So, for those who don’t know, UNESCO has declared 43 Cities of Literature worldwide, and they are places that have a really strong literary heritage. One of which is Nottingham. So, the cities all came together to create their own Eurovision-style competition but based around the local poetry scene. Each year, every city that wants to be involved will nominate a poet and they will perform at this international poetry slam.

This year it’s actually being hosted at Nottingham’s Metronome…

I won last year on behalf of Nottingham with my poem, which was really exciting because it meant that we got to host this year. Whichever city wins almost becomes the centre of poetry for a while, so it’s a really amazing opportunity to be able to showcase Nottingham’s Creative Quarter and our poetry scene, which is so lively!

Like you said, an amazing opportunity for the city and for you personally.

In terms of my own personal journey, it’s massively boosted my confidence and really put me in a comfortable position when it comes to performing. And, like you say, for the city too. Lots of people aren’t even aware that Nottingham has this City of Literature title, and these kinds of events bring attention to something that Nottingham should be really proud of.

We have already had some entries from other cities come through and they cover a variety of languages, themes and topics, but they all really touch you.

Equally, that’s why I’d like to recommend reading one of the many amazing memoirs that are available on this topic. Notably Joan Didion’s famous 2005 book The Year of Magical Thinking, which centres around the first year after her husband's death; Michael Pedersen’s Boy Friends in which he discusses the experience of losing his best friend immediately after a road trip together; or, most recently, Jennette McCurdy’s I’m Glad My Mom Died, the striking story of grief after abuse.

Such an important topic to talk about, grief is an area that often feels too difficult to share with others. But it’s through open conversation (whether in real life or through the literary form) that we can find commonality and comfort. Here we feel less alone, and more united with all the others who have experienced the same pain as we have. Of whom there are many.

What was your piece of poetry about last year?

My poem was a piece called Island Screams and it was inspired by the prompt of ‘where are you from’. So I explored my dream response to someone asking me that and really delved into my Caribbean heritage. Honestly, I was really stunned that the poem won because I didn’t think poets from across the world would understand what I was talking about as a black Caribbean British woman, but it did translate and that was a real lesson about what poetry is and what it can do. It is almost like a form of translation.

Who is going to be representing Nottingham in this year’s Slamovision?

We have an incredible representative, Abbey, who did a wicked poem all about tea. It’s about how tea has become the national identity drink in the UK, but she touches on all the routes of where tea really comes from and all its colonial connections with the Asian continent. That connection to other nations through history really works in this competition, which is all about international connections.

That sounds amazing. So, finally, what can people expect on the night?

We’re going kind of big with it. You’ll first be greeted by a creative marketplace of different Nottingham stalls, including Dizzy Ink, Nottingham Black Archives and Nonsuch Studios. All of these exemplify these different areas of Nottingham that are doing incredible work. Then the second section will be the slam in that Eurovision format, where you’ll hear the performances and each of the different cities will announce their scores to decide the winner. Finally, we’ll have a celebration with a poetry party open mic. So, it will be a very wholesome and really fun night!

Slamovision will take place at Metronome on Tuesday 6 December

To Do Christmas Writing Retreat

Promoted by Writing East Midlands, join Alex Davis for an online writing retreat, during which you’ll learn more about writing description, characters and dialogue. Plus you’ll learn about publishing!

Monday 5 - Friday 9 December

To Read

When Word are not Enough Christmas is all about joy, but it can also be a time of loss for many. Launched for National Grief Awareness Week, you can read When Words are not Enough, the book charting responses to grief.

To Follow Adrian Tchaikovsky

Visiting Nottingham’s Waterstones this December to promote his new fantasy book City of Last Chances, you can also find the Sunday Times Bestseller on Twitter.

@aptshadow

interview: Lizzy O'Riordan photo: Fabrice Gagos

words: Lizzy O’Riordan

Every city that wants to be involved will nominate a poet and they will perform at this international poetry slam

Such an important topic to talk about, grief is an area that often feels too difficult to share with others

First of all, thank you for chatting with the LeftLion readers. You’re starring alongside Joe Pasquale in Snow White at the Theatre Royal. Why does panto appeal to audiences so much?

Panto appeals to the whole family - it’s for everyone, young and old. Most of the time it’s a child’s first experience of the theatre, which makes it magical not only for the child but for the family members that take them, as they can see the joy and glee on their faces.

and having the input into what my character looks like and is about. We’re a dying breed. I think if I just turned up at the theatre as an actor with costumes provided for me that didn’t fit my character, I’d give it all up!

How did you end up designing your own costumes?

I’d always been taken to panto as a kid and seen lots of the ‘greats’ and always admired the dames that designed their own wardrobes, so when I started to play the ugly sister myself, I just knew I had to follow in their footsteps.

Is there any special knack to building rapport with the audience?

You need to get the audience on your side from the start. I try to make sure my character is warm and funny - kind of mumsy. That’s very different from when I used to play an ugly sister, although getting booed was always a highlight. I always remember I’m a man in a costume playing a character, that way there’s no confusion.

Is there anything outstanding about this year’s production that we can expect?

I’m afraid you’ll have to come see for yourself! Of course, Joe Pasquale is a master of comedy and will have you laughing from the moment he steps on the stage. There are times I can’t keep it together either, as he always has a cheeky glint in his eye so you know something’s coming.

You originally trained in stage management. What was your journey from backstage to centre stage?

I had done a lot of amateur dramatics as a kid and wanted to be a puppeteer, so that’s where the stage management training came in. Specialising in wardrobe and props started by making costumes, wigs and hats for a friend of my mum’s who was a professional panto dame. Then he called me to say the panto company he worked for wanted him to play an ugly sister and asked whether he had a sister he could work with. Because I’d been making a lot of his costumes, he asked me if I wanted to make some frocks for myself and play an ugly sister with him, and the rest is history. 26 years later I’m still playing the dame in venues across the country.

What is it about playing the dame that appeals to you?

For me, being a dame is the whole package, designing my own frocks and wigs

While I was making my costumes for my first pantomime appearance I had the good fortune to work on the Rocky Horror Show with the wonderful Barry Howard (of Hi-de-Hi! fame). I’d seen him play the dame many times and he made his own costumes, too. While we were on tour I’d be in my dressing room sewing and he’d be doing the same in his, we then used to compare notes and show each other what we were working on. Let’s just say I learnt a great deal from him and I’ll always be grateful for that.

So, taking this year’s panto for example, how do you go about making costumes? I have a stock of around thirty costumes that fit in with different scenes. I usually add one or two new costumes each year to keep them fresh. This year is the first time I’ve done a Snow White, so I have a couple of general new costumes being made and an opener ‘nursemaid’ frock which is specific to the character.

Once I know what the title is, I go about designing the new frocks. I’ve usually got a lot of unused sketches from over the years which I go back on and see if they can be updated or would lend themselves to a particular scene. I then have a couple of costume-makers I pass them onto. I used to be able to make a lot of stuff myself but I seem to have less and less time with my own wig-making business now, so I outsource more of the costumes. I’m not sure I have a favourite costume for this year yet, as I’ve got so many, but there’s a particular skimpy number with a large beehive that I’m quite partial to.

Can you share any pantomime trade secrets or special memories? I wouldn’t say I have a particular trade secret but everyone usually comments on my eyelashes. They are quite large and cartoon-like and are actually just made out of cardboard, which people don’t expect but they look great. As for a panto moment I will treasure, I was extremely proud a few years ago to be

as

nominated

Best Dame at The Great British Pantomime Awards. That really was an honour.

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs plays at the Theatre Royal from Saturday 3 December 2022 to Sunday 8 January 2023

I think if I just turned up at the theatre as an actor with costumes provided for me that didn’t fit my character, I’d give it all up

David Robbins dons his frocks again to play the dame in this year’s Theatre Royal pantomime, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs. But what’s a dame’s life like? David shares the highs and lows, alongside the secrets of his costume-making and wig-crafting skills, with us...

interview: Ian C Douglas photo: Shawn Ryan

checKINg It tw Ice

Winter is coming, and so are the end-of-year lists. Whether it’s via Letterboxd screenshots shared on Twitter or a multi-page listicle in your favourite film mag, prepare to once again be overwhelmed by the sheer amount of stuff you’ve not watched

I, for one, am already preparing poor excuses as to why I’ve not seen some of this year’s biggest hits. Top Gun: Maverick? I ‘missed’ its theatrical run, despite it being shown several times a day at my local Showcase for over a month. Elvis and RRR, on the other hand, lend themselves to the easy cop-out of being ‘too long’ – but I’ll happily spend hours binge-watching Aussies build little houses on LEGO Masters Australia

With so much being released in cinemas and on streaming platforms every week, there’s a definite element of decision fatigue

The real reason is more a case of being spoiled for choice. With so much being released in cinemas and on streaming platforms every week, there’s an element of decision fatigue in which we’ll find ourselves watching the things we feel naturally drawn to, rather than committing to crossing off entries in an ever-growing watchlist.

This year, all-time classics will be entering the battle for our attention, as the once-a-decade Sight & Sound poll rears its head. I’ve watched a modest five out of the 2012 list’s top ten, but the latest edition will likely fold a handful of newer releases into the rankings. At the very least, it’ll serve as another reminder that I really ought to give 2001: A Space Odyssey a watch.

So, this December, what will I be watching? Perhaps I’ll finally sink my teeth into Licorice Pizza, which made its UK debut way back in January, or maybe I’ll acquaint myself with Federico Fellini’s 8½ If I’m being entirely honest, it’ll probably be neither – the films I’m most likely to close the year with are those of the festive variety. Polar Express, anyone?

Taking over Carlton’s Richard Herrod Centre a week before Christmas, the brand new Nottingham Video Games Expo gives gamers the chance to enjoy some talks, grab some merch and share some stories this December. We chat to organiser James Jarvis all about it…

For those who don’t know, what is the Nottingham Video Games Expo?

Simply put, the Expo is two days of action-packed gaming. Co-creator Alex Hunt and I have been to lots of conventions and expos in our time, and we wanted to wrap them all together into one event, so there are loads of activities to do. There are games to play, market stalls to check out, guests on stage talking about the history of the gaming industrysomething for everyone to enjoy.

Communal spaces that are video game-related have gone from Nottingham, so our aim was to bring them back

What are some highlights of the weekend?

Well, if you like games like GoldenEye, Perfect Dark, Donkey Kong, all those classics from back in the day, we've actually got the composers live on stage. Growing up, those games had my favourite soundtracks, so hearing what it was like to make the music for titles on the Super Nintendo and Nintendo 64 will be really exciting. I'm also looking forward to picking up a bargain from some of our amazing vendors just before Christmas!

What inspired you to set up the event?

The main purpose was to bring Nottingham gamers together in one place, because there isn't really anything video gamerelated left in the city. All the gaming lounges have closed and

other communal spaces have gone, so our aim was to bring them back. We also wanted to put developers on stage to talk about their experience with creating games in the East Midlands and dive into what the scene is like, and combine that with excellent traders and sellers that are based within Nottingham and the surrounding areas, and that's how the event was created.

Why is it important for gamers to have communal spaces like this?

Since video gaming is virtual, you can meet people online and be in contact for years, but never see them in person. This event is the perfect opportunity to meet your friends properly and share stories and memories. With video gaming, you’re often stuck in your house playing online, as we all were during COVID, so we wanted to create something that could really bring everyone together.

And do you have to be a diehard gaming fan to enjoy the Expo?

No, it's for everyone. Of course, it’s mainly about video games, but there will also be all sorts of different crafts and groups. So if you just wanted to pick up some keyrings for your collection, or bag some Pokemon cards, or even chill out in the pub and watch the World Cup, you can do that. There are loads of different areas at the venue covering loads of different stuff, so it’s definitely not just for the diehards.

The Nottingham Video Games Expo is taking place at the Richard Herrod Centre in Carlton on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 December

nottsvge.com

To

Do Lethal Weapon

Too cool for a Christmas film this December? The Loft Movie Theatre have got you covered, bringing iconic lines like “I'm too old for this [incredibly rude word]!” to the big screen.

Mon 12 Dec, Savoy Cinema

@kieranburton_

interview: George White

To Remember Get Santa Fancy a Christmas film this December? Catch legendary Shane Meadows collaborator Stephen Graham in one of his few comedic roles, as he plays a prison barber in this genuinely funny festive flick.

To Follow Kieran Burton

Having joined Paul Mescal in the critically-acclaimed Aftersun and worked on ITV X drama Without Sin, Burton is having quite a moment right now. Drop him a follow to keep up with his exciting career.

words: Jamie Morris

Firstly, for those who are unfamiliar, what is the Christmas Covers Party?

Joey: The Christmas Covers Party usually involves bands who play the covers better than the originals; ramshackle, loving “best shot” attempts; faithful interpretations; and mind-blowing re-imaginings. It’s a wonderful night which proves that music is the (Christmas) gift that keeps on giving.

What was the purpose for Christmas Covers originally?

Simon: It came out of the Why Can’t We Just All Get Along nights that myself and James put on monthly in 2002. The simple idea was to extend this for a Christmas edition. A chance to cut loose, to have some fun and not take ourselves too seriously. We thought covers would be the most fun to do.

James: What struck us immediately was that, back then, we did all take ourselves seriously. The music that we were making was earnest and we were trying to make something special, so with Christmas Covers we could just have a lot of fun. That slight pretentiousness fell away and everyone could just be silly. You realised that everyone who was involved loved music and wanted to enjoy themselves, and that was so much easier when you were working with other people’s songs.

What are your earliest memories of the Covers Party?

Simon: My overriding memory from the first Covers Party was that this was really going to work. The original venue for the Covers Party was Junktion 7, it was packed and there was such a brilliant range of covers.

James: At the second one, Junktion 7 was rammed, and the crowd were going nuts! The Chemistry Experiment were performing and it was the most noise I’ve ever heard a crowd make at a local band. I remember standing at the side of the stage thinking, ‘We did this.’

What is your favourite memory of the event?

Simon: Savoy Grand doing I Want to Know What Love Is at Britannia Rowing Club encapsulates my favourite approach to Covers: when a band takes a song that you might not expect and completely owns it, making a brilliant version of it in their own image.

Joey: I loved that too. And for my fiftieth birthday, some friends covered Joey Chickenskin songs. It was a huge indulgence but made me eternally happy.

There have been some pretty amazing costumes over the years. What is your favourite?

Simon: We wore hazmat suits and face masks as Don’t Panic in 2019, with our nuclear apocalypse-themed set. This was just before COVID and it feels weirdly prescient, in hindsight! It was certainly a lot easier to get hold of PPE than during the pandemic…

Joey: Still fresh in my mind from the 2021 party that we had to postpone until

Easter this year was Alex Hale suddenly appearing in a full Shrek costume for his band, The Shrek Pistols.

Which charities has the event supported over the years?

Joey: In 2006, Damn You! - who were running Christmas Covers by then - made the excellent decision to start using it as an opportunity to raise money for charity. First it was for Cancer Research, then Macmillan and Shelter, and for the last few years we’ve concentrated on local charities – Nottinghamshire Hospice, Framework, Zephyr’s, Notts Refugee Forum. Christmas Covers has raised over £24k for charity over the years. Everyone takes part for free, and The Bodega doesn't charge anything – so everything raised from ticket sales and the raffle is donated to charity. For this year’s event we will be supporting Nottinghamshire Hospice and Framework again. We are also raising money for The Brain Tumour Charity in memory of a good friend of the Christmas Covers Party, Duncan Vaughan.

This event is a chance to cut loose, to have some fun and not take ourselves too seriously

If you could pick anyone to perform at the event, who would it be, and what song would they cover?

Simon: My all-time favourite band for covers would be The Afghan Whigs, who definitely inspired the Covers Party idea, and I’d love to see them do their version of When Doves Cry

James: From the dead, it would have to be Prince, covering whatever he wants to!

Joey: I would like Pearl Jam to cover Hippychick by Soho just to watch them realise that they accidentally ripped it off for Even Flow

How did you select the line-up for the 20th Annual Christmas Covers Party?

Joey: As this year marks two decades, James asked if he could contact members of the bands who played the first couple of parties. The line-up is made up of members of those bands, and members of bands who have played the later parties over the years, including Simmo from Damn You! who organised them for many years. The bands performing are Seachange + Friends, The Grave Architects, Clambake, Burning Man, Sofftness, Dead Mint, Poxy Music, Vanity Project, and myself!

The 20th Nottingham Christmas Covers Party will be held on Saturday 17 December at The Bodega

Gambino Akuboy

I create music to inspire and to make people happy. That energy comes from a place of love and self-reflection. @gambino_akuboy

Otala Notts dark wave wannabes. We make cool and hip music to keep you on your toes (we hope). @otalaband

KAP

If you love UK Garage, House and DnB with some RnB-pop fusion, then a KAP show is for you. Treat yourself! @itskapkap

Nottingham’s annual festive charity bash, the Christmas Covers Party, celebrates its twentieth anniversary this year, taking place at The Bodega on Saturday 17 December. We chat to organisers Simon Aldcroft, James Vyner and Joey Chickenskin about the history of the event…

interview: Michael Prince photo: Gavin Morrow

Krzyzowski - Vintage Fire Walks With Us (Single)

This Polish artistic collective, based right here in Nottingham, offer electro jazz with a twist - with their new track, Fire Walks With Us, sounding unlike anything you’ll have heard before. Boasting atmospheric vocals interspersed with husky narration, this is a unique journey from start to finish. The backing tunes are elegant. The lyricism is engaging. This is well worth checking out. George White

Coralie Barney's Maze (EP)

The label’s description of this EP is pretty comprehensive so I’ll keep this review simple. It’s chugging electronica to put you on edge – yet is impossible to turn off. An antidote to dance floor overexertion and a lesson in spacious production that tugs on your heartstrings. Lead single Barney’s Maze whirs, bleeps and creeps its way into your consciousness, no doubt. My favourite, though, is Schlimmbesserung and its sirenlike screams. If you’re into Cristobal Tapia de Veer’s Utopia score, you’ll love this stuff. Eileen Pegg

Jem Woolley

Bat Recliner World (Album)

I nicknamed Nottingham artist Jem Woolley a 'proper musician' a while ago and his third album Bat Recliner World shouts out that belief loud and clear. A collection of ten tracks that are dedicated to experimental ambient sounds, perfect for relaxing moments over the Christmas holidays. After you've partied out at this festive time of the year, these electronic compositions will have a calming influence and give space to think on a winter's evening. Bassey

Midnight Rodeo

The Big Melt (Single)

Psych-pop outfit Midnight Rodeo’s latest single The Big Melt continues to borrow influences from the lo-fi garage rock era of the sixties, fusing these with some unexpected Latin undertones, something which the band claim was inspired by a Brazilian drum parade that they accidentally joined. This gives the track an uplifting and energetic tone, while frontwoman Maddy Chamberlain’s vocals continue to bring the band’s signature alluring and atmospheric aura to the track. Gemma Cockrell

Vertical Noise

Wet Christmas (Single)

In a bold bid to shoulder-barge LadBaby off the number one spot this December, Vertical Noise have delivered a New Wave-esque spin on festivities with Wet Christmas - a fun and playful Yuletide release. Sure, it’s a little messy in places, but it’s also catchy and uplifting - and with revenue generated from each stream going directly to Framework Housing Association, it’s a gift that keeps on giving. George White

ART I S T

Super talented street artist Kid30 tells us all about his wonderful Christmas cover…

What was the inspiration behind the cover?

Given the brief of Christmas, I decided to draw the big man himself. He has made the mistake of taking his boots off and got a bit too comfy, had too much sherry, and has fallen asleep. The mice have come out and are about to take over the show and have their Christmas party.

As a mural painter, my work is usually on a larger scale, so it's been nice to draw something that is shrunk-down in size

How does it compare with some other projects you’ve worked on?

As a mural painter, my work is usually on a larger scale, so it's been nice to draw something that is shrunk-down in size, rather than blown-up.

What was the biggest challenge that you faced in creating the piece? Taking it from a hand-drawn piece of work and working it up into a digital one.

What have you got planned for the future?

Short-term, I have some interesting commercial art projects lined up for the new year. I will try and get some of my own graffiti painted, maybe a bit of travelling if I get time. Long-term… Who knows?

Is there anything else you’d like to tell LeftLion readers?

I hope 2023 is a good year for you. Have a great Christmas and a Happy New Year!

@kid30billynomates smallkid.co.uk

The National Justice Museum has a small, hidden-away art gallery with a brand new exhibition - a public open call photography collection entitled Freedom. The exciting, impactful results are now on display…

As a former court and prison, the National Justice Museum is the perfect place to philosophise on the history of such places and the wider questions of freedom and justice. The art in the museum always plays on these deeper questions in creative, impactful ways to try to get visitors engaged and thinking. Indeed, the exhibition Freedom is an open question to the public to ask them what freedom means to them.

The exhibition has a personal touch to it. Many of the photographers presented photos of their families or pets

The museum decided to try a totally novel approach for this exhibition and launched a public call-out for blackand-white photographs on the subject of freedom, with the promise that every photo submitted would be included in the collection. In response over 200 photographers from around the UK, from professionals to amateurs, submitted their images, with the photographs displayed varying substantially, each showing the depths of the question of freedom. The pictures and the strong theme give the whole exhibition a real coherence, considering hundreds of artists have produced it. There are pictures of flies, dogs, shots of natural wonders, abstract forms, barbed wire, prison stairs and social justice statements.

It was this that was the biggest take away for me as a viewer; the realisation of the different ways that people interpret ideas and the importance of seeing different

perspectives. In this way, the exhibition has a personal touch to it. Many of the photographers presented photos of their families or their pets, or places very close and personal to them, that symbolise freedom.

The exhibition feels very contemporary because it has a variety of ways of displaying the art, through multimedia such as video and audio. There are also interactive aspects of the exhibition, such as the ability to make your own gallery guide book or to vote on which photograph you like the most, which will lead to a People’s Choice Award for the winner. One photographer will be awarded a creative residency at the National Justice Museum in 2023 with a £1,000 budget, decided by a panel of expert photographers. The exhibition features sound art as well. This is very immersive and was designed for the exhibition by the artist musician Juga-Naut. He has created a 'soundscape' that features a mix of noises, voices, and fragments of music to accompany visitors through the exhibition.

The Artistic Programme Manager at NJM, Andrea HadleyJohnson, organised this first ‘open call’ exhibition in order to get multiple perspectives into the museum and really engage with the public. The artistic team here always places its emphasis on including local people, and giving a platform to the voices of the oppressed. This is a very important part of any just, fair system and, in my view, was a very successful and engaging move by the museum that will hopefully bring more people in and make them more aware of this fantastic little art space.

Freedom is on display at the National Justice Museum until February 2023

To Visit

XR Nottingham Arts and Makers Extinction

Nottingham run a regular Arts and Makers group, encouraging like-minded people to come together, create great stuff and tackle the big issues facing our planet.

Mon 5 Dec, Tiger Community Hub

To See The Heart of the Gallery

The artist collective that runs Surface Gallery will bring The Heart of the Gallery to the public with an exhibition of their own art, running from Friday 2 to Saturday 17 December. Don't miss it!

From Fri 2 Dec, Surface Gallery

To Follow The Carousel

Our friends at The Carousel always have so much going on that it’s hard to keep track - so we’re kindly asking you to do it yourselves by dropping them a follow.

@the___carousel

Rebellion

words: George Dunbar photo: V21 Artspace

Make a dead (good) Christmas tree

It's amazing what you can do with some twigs, a pot of old paint, and a bit of PVA. Save buying a tree and make your own little living room dazzler. Or, if you're cash rich and time poor, fork out £50 for someone on Etsy to glue some together for you and remove all the fun. No? Well, whack some fairy lights on your cheese plant and, hey presto, you’re ready for Santa.

Foraged Christmas decorations Holly, fallen wood, cinnamon sticks, dried out orange or grapefruit slices, elbow grease and some twine or red and white string can make all sorts of weird and wonderful hanging decorations. Hang them on your new twiggy Christmas tree or wall, and make a nice hygge evening activity out of it.

Bake it ‘til you make it Onto presents then… Why not bake cookies or gingerbread? You can dry out some orange slices while you're at the oven. Can't bake? Cheat, make truffles instead. For about £20 of ingredients you can sort all of your family and friends out a portion, and learn a new recipe at the same time.

Get creative with your presentation Wrapping could be made from old bits of fabric, newspaper, or this very magazine, if dressed up with love and creativity. Hand-drawn cards, even if basic, are always welcome. Show them you care by setting aside some time and putting your stamp on it. It’s the thought that counts, and many people aren’t actually keen for more stuff.

Time is a gift

If you're skint, or just don't buy in to buying in, why not offer a friend or relative or friend a handmade voucher for an hour or two of your time doing something you wouldn't normally do for them? Is there a skill they're interested in learning that you could teach them? Would they really appreciate a bit of help around the house or garden, but wouldn't want to ask a favour? Well, go on, make yourself useful.

Tucked away behind the gardens of a triangular block of suburban houses on the border of Aspley and Bilborough, Dads Garden is a unique space for positive masculinity. Men come together to talk about family, mental health and whatever else is on their minds, all while getting active, making connections and growing food for their family’s plates.

The seeds of Shifting Your Mindset, the host organisation of the project, founder Mutsa Makaka explains, were sown “in Zimbabwe, when I was young. I’ve always liked to help people, that’s just my nature”. Living in Nottingham, Mutsa set up a talk radio show about “real life experiences”, and she found “a lot of men coming through, even outside the show people would call me and message me to say, ‘Hey, I just need to talk.’”

Mutsa grew concerned about the impact of COVID-19. “There were a lot of dynamics in the homes, like arguments, wellbeing and everything, and I thought people are going to find it really hard to reintegrate, especially introverts.” But why the focus on men? “I'm a single mother of two boys, I’m raising men, so my allegiance is with men more than anything.”

says the garden’s “a safe space where you can be vulnerable and talk about your issues. You can be honest, and you can be heard.”

Next I catch Andre, both a helper and beneficiary of SYM, who’s busy working his growing bed. He got involved due to “problems with family issues and stuff like that. I was down.”

On hearing about the group meetings between men dealing with similar issues, he felt he’d be able to give back and share his own experiences. “I found a real calling in that. When other men come here, they're around people who are in the same predicament, and it relieves the stress.” He feels the garden helps men focus their energy, have a laugh, and bring their families together.

It’s Amos from Leicester’s first time at the garden. He’s considering a move to the area, and thought this seemed like a good way to make new friends locally. Having run his own gardening business in the past, he advocates that “gardening is good exercise, and good for mental health”. He adds that "men don't get together in spaces like these where we get to do activities outside of the normal stuff, like watching football, or going down to the pub. Here you don't really have to say anything but, if you're willing to share your story or experiences, sometimes help is closer than you think.” For him it’s also about sharing practical skills too. “The biggest thing would be to share ideas more than anything else, and, as dads, to show our kids there’s more to do besides social media.”

IRON me N t

She highlights “the high rates of suicide for men, and higher rates of unemployment. The health outcomes for men in general are poor across the UK, and the guys are usually like, ‘Oh, nobody cares for us.’ I was like, nah, I cannot let my boys grow up in an environment like that.” That’s when Mutsa decided to do more practical engagement, like the bi-weekly socials SYM host - one for dads, and one for any men - as well as various skills and confidence-building workshops and doing community outreach at the weekend. Then came the garden.

I speak to Emmanuel, who wryly introduces himself as “the daddy of Dads Garden”. Emmanuel says it was frustrating at first trying to get the garden started during the pandemic, when council-owned public spaces such as this were locked down. “For a year it just stood here and got overgrown with weeds. That really set us back. Last year, it started to get off the ground a little bit, we started to have some parents and children come in from local schools, but we were short on volunteers.” That was when Emmanuel and Mutsa joined forces, and Dads Garden was born.

“There's a lot of issues that are common to men and fathers that are overlooked,” Emmanuel explains, “and even when we’re really open, in touch with our feelings, and willing to communicate, we're not always heard. We're in a weird place where if you're sensitive, then it's wrong, you should ‘man up’. But then if you're not sensitive you’re overly masculine, and you're keeping it all in, so the balance is difficult to strike.” He

The last person I chat to is father of two Mohammed (Mo), from Guinea, who describes Mutsa as a “sister, a friend, and a mentor to me, and a lot of people”. You can feel it in his voice as he continues, “We’re so grateful for this initiative that helps men to speak out, a space like the garden is vital. Seeing the strength of others in coping with their problems is comforting, and helps you see that suicide, drugs and alcohol aren’t the solution. Guidance, communication and humbleness might get you closer to your objective.” Mo says to men and dads suffering hardship, “Speak out, be humble, and listen to people offering help. You don’t need to be Mr Know Everything.”

Back to the queen (she only ever refers to me as king, I suspect not uniquely) Mutsa summarises, looking to the future, that “we're moving to a place where we need communities to be sustainable. We need to think, and be proactive. The garden isn’t just going to be sustainable for the dads, but for everybody. You can see how big it is - we’re growing our own crops, teaching each other about climate change, using the resources and skills that we have. It's going to be more than just a garden, it’s going to be a sustainable hub for the community.”

It’s 7pm now, and the unlit garden is drenched in darkness. Gesturing at the men huddled together on makeshift benches eating fish and chips, Mutsa says, “Look at them, in the dark, but they don't leave, they’re just okay, you know what I mean? We don't have light, but we're eating.”

When other men come here, they're around people who are in the same predicament, and it relieves the stress

words: Adam Pickering

We’ve put together five pocket and planetfriendly festive ideas for you to try out this December…

A tale sure to warm your cockles as we shiver our way towards Christmas is that of Dads Garden, a young men and dads-focused project from the community-led Shifting Your Mindset. We speak with founder Mutsa Makaka and hear from a few of the dads getting their hands dirty…

words: Adam Pickering photos: Nathan Langman

It’s the most wonderful time of the year.

But (and let’s be real) not for everyone. So let's get into the best thing you can do to help you cope with any situation: the art of meditation.

Put simply, meditation is for the mind what physical exercise is for the body. It is a mental exercise that involves relaxation, focus and awareness.

It can be practised in three modes: concentration, focusing on a single object, internal or external; observation, paying attention to whatever is happening in the present moment; awareness, allowing awareness to remain present, undistracted.

It can be done sitting still or moving around, with your eyes open or closed, alone or in a group.

Ten minutes of meditation - done correctly - is much more useful than sitting, distracted, Buddhalike for an hour. It takes years of practice to really ‘turn off the thoughts’ and consistency is the key.

If you are new to the practice, guided meditation is a great way to start. There are thousands of videos and tracks on the major streaming sites and it’s important to find what works for you. Guided meditations will literally talk you through and can help give you a focus to begin with.

Next issue, I’ll give you a brief meditation to try - but, for now, our Affirmation:

I AM IN CONTROL OF MY THOUGHTS.

This festive season, I just want to remind you how important it is to support the local creatives and independents out there.

Nottingham is filled with some of the best small businesses you’ll find and, while everyone will be extra cautious with the moolah this year, please consider those of us who do little happy dances when you buy our products.

Until next year…

Be safe, no fear and stay blessed.

Holding over 47,000 books, Bromley House Library, formerly known as the Nottingham Subscription Library, is one of the city's most precious historical institutions. This Christmas, we find out how we can help restore their older titles, some of which are over 200 years old, by taking part in the Adopt a Book scheme…

The smell of old books, the sound of turning pages, a deep armchair where you can get lost for hours. There are few better places than a library. And there are few more beautiful libraries than Bromley House - Nottingham’s only subscription library. Founded in 1816 and nestled into Angel Row, it’s well regarded as a book lover's dream, boasting titles that date back over two centuries, alongside new releases.

Well kept by a team of dedicated staff and volunteers, it’s part of the DNA of the institution to try and preserve the quality of the older texts - a goal that is achieved by stabilising the physical atmosphere of the library, Collections Manager Dr Anja Thompson-Rohde explains, “whether that’s buying humidifiers for the bits of the building that are dry, or dehumidifiers for the bits of the building that are damp.” However, as a product of age and many readers, it’s inevitable that some texts have become damaged, with grievances ranging from a few missing pages all the way to fully destroyed spines.

tailband and ribbon marker. So this book, which was previously difficult to use, is now perfectly legible,” Anja tells me, adding that the point isn’t for the book to look new, but rather to make it accessible for reading. In fact, it’s important to keep some ‘imperfections’, because it represents the history and life that these particular books have lived.

A time capsule of Nottingham’s reading history, Bromley House have always purchased books based on members' requests, making these texts all the more important to preserve. Not only because of the stories and concepts found inside them, but also because “keeping books tells us such interesting information about the things people were interested in and which ideas were being discussed. We have a snapshot of people in the nineteenth century, with books ranging from the latest discoveries all the way to their equivalent of Mills & Boon,” Anja says. “It’s fascinating, and being able to preserve it, and being able to make them readable, that’s a real privilege.”

And, of course, by adopting one of these texts and aiding in their restoration, you (or whomever you adopted it for) becomes part of that posterity thanks to the individualised book plates. In a very literal sense, it “allows people to write themselves into the history of the Bromley House Library”, which has existed, with its beautiful spiral staircase and grand collection of books, since a time of horse-drawn travel.

That’s why the library began their Adopt a Book scheme, in which members of the public can help pay towards getting the books professionally rebound in exchange for their name written on a plate inside. Or, alternatively, they can gift the restoration to a friend for a special occasion like a birthday, wedding or, most timely, for Christmas, in which case the buyer will be presented with a certificate to give as a present, plus an experience day where the library “will invite the person who paid and the person who received the gift into the library for a tour and to see their book in situ.”

Pulling out an example of a gifted book, Anja places an already restored nineteenth-century encyclopaedia of plants on the table, which inside shows a message from a grandmother to her granddaughter on her twelfth birthday. “On this one the spine had completely gone so Andy (from Sycamore Bookbinding) gave us a completely new spine and recreated the exact lettering from the original. He’s given it a new cover which he’s stained to look older, then he’s also added a new headband,

Showcasing a set of books yet to be restored, Anja explains that she has chosen a few titles that relate directly to the festive season, though potential adopters are able to choose from a much wider selection or come in for a one-to-one consultation to decide. These are simply a few that the library has asked for a quote on from the bookbinder: “The first one is Early English Poetry, Ballads which has a selection of early english Christmas carols, the second is a Christmas short story collection from our children’s library, the third is a collection of Christmas editions from Charles Dickens’ periodical All the Year Round which is full of Christmas ghost stories, and the last one is a science book collating the Royal Institution Christmas lectures from 1921.”

A really meaningful gift for yourself or others around you, Adopt a Book seems the ideal scheme in a world that’s already so full of things. Anti-consumerist just by its nature, it’s both deeply radical and kind, making it, we think, perfect for the holidays.

You can find full information about the Adopt a Book scheme on the Bromley House Library website bromleyhouse.org

meRRy meDItAt ION

It’s inevitable that some texts have become damaged, with grievances ranging from a few missing pages all the way to fully destroyed spines

words: Lizzy O’Riordan photo: Nathan Langman

Chances are you’ve never heard of Margery Lister. Like most ordinary medieval folk, there are few traces of the life she lived over 700 years ago. It’s not known where or exactly when she was born, whether she ever married or had any children, who she lived with, who her parents were or how they made their living. But between 1303 and 1325 she appeared before the Nottingham Borough Court in relation to eleven separate cases.

Borough courts like the one in Nottingham were civil courts, where disgruntled individuals could pay a small fee to bring cases against others. These might be disputes about debt, theft, physical or verbal attacks or property matters. The mayor oversaw proceedings and clerks recorded details of the cases on parchment rolls in Latin script. Although many of these records for towns and cities across England have been lost or destroyed, some, including many covering the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries in Nottingham, have miraculously survived.

Nottinghamshire Archives holds the original Nottingham Borough Court rolls which exist in sufficient numbers to allow for research, and academics have used them to study various aspects of medieval Nottingham.

NOw AND theN

In case you haven’t noticed, the thirteenth century was quite a while ago, but thanks to the work of the team at the Nottinghamshire Archives, we can still dive into the intriguing stories of everyday people like Margery Lister, a medieval city-dweller who regularly found herself in Nottingham’s civil court…

Although deciphering medieval Latin is no easy task, thanks to the amazing work of Dr Trevor Foulds and Dr J. B. Hughes, there is a transcribed calendar of the rolls translated into English, accessible online through the University of Nottingham’s website. Interesting reading if you like that sort of thing.

Lister Gate, so Margery may have lived and worked in that area. What is certain is that on 21 December 1303 she accused Alice, wife of William Wynne, of calling her a thief and a whore and hitting her with a knife in the public arena of the Saturday market. Despite their denials, William and Alice were found guilty and the couple were ordered to pay damages to Margery. You might wonder what William had to do with this, as the dispute was between Margery and Alice, but as the latter was a married woman, her husband was obliged to be present in court and share responsibility for her actions. Women were often identified in the court records in relation to men, as either ‘wife of’, ‘daughter of’, ‘widow of’ or ‘servant of’ a named man. Interestingly, Margery is always identified by her name alone, which suggests she was probably single.

So, back to Margery Lister. There is no actual record of what she did for a living but her name might be a clue. Lister usually meant ‘dyer’ and dyeing was one of Nottingham’s medieval trades, probably based around

In 1315, Margery was back in court, this time complaining about John Boothby and his wife Dulcia. This couple both seem to have been jointly involved in a fracas which took place ‘opposite the house of Henry of Wollaton’ where Dulcia called Margery ‘a false woman and a whore’, then hit her before John knocked Margery over. An inquiry was called for but unfortunately no record of the outcome exists.

words: Jayne Muir illustration: Ciaran Burrows

Site of John Player & Sons warehouse, 1930

photo: Cal McNab

Site of former John Player & Sons warehouse, 2022

Thanks to the preservation of the court rolls, Margery Lister and the many others whose names and actions are recorded will forever be part of Nottingham’s fascinating history

There is no further mention of Margery at the court until December 1323, when her name appears in two separate cases. First she was accused of trespass by Emma Sterling. Trespass covered many types of action, so this could have been a verbal or physical altercation or other matter, but no details are recorded. Margery and Emma were back in court in early January of 1324 in the same case and, at their request, a ‘love day’ was granted. This was a type of arbitration whereby both parties could reach an out-ofcourt agreement and hopefully settle their differences, which these two seem to have done. In the second case, Margery was accused of trespass by John le Taverner and a couple of weeks later admitted her guilt and was fined.

Margery and the le Taverner family did not get on. As well as being accused by John, Margery was brought to the court during January and February of 1325 by Mabel le Taverner and William le Taverner, and by John again in cases of trespass and debt. Le Taverner is one of the many names that relate to the occupation or trade of a person, so it’s likely that this family were involved in running a tavern or ale house of some sort. Perhaps Margery had a bit too much to drink one night, couldn’t pay her bar

bill and got into a brawl - it’s possible, but there is no evidence for this. What is clear from the records, though, is that time and time again, despite being summoned, Margery failed to appear at court, the clerk noting on the court rolls ‘does not come’. However, one way or another, these cases were eventually resolved and Margery was again found guilty.

Margery and the le Taverner family did not get on. As well as being accused by John, Margery was brought to the court during January and February of 1325 by Mabel le Taverner and William le Taverner

In 1325 she was back in court once more, accusing Robert Lifthand of trespass and bloodshed, although full details of the incident are not given. In mid-July it was Robert’s turn to accuse Margery and her accomplices Robert le Cancur and William le Cancur. The three were said to have beaten and wounded Robert and made him bloody. They denied the charge and an inquiry was called for. The case dragged on until the end of August due to jurors failing to show up, which was quite a common problem. Although the fate of William is not clear, Robert and Margery failed to attend the court and the instruction was given to arrest Robert. Margery was found guilty and it was declared that she ‘should be taken and held safely and securely in gaol until she has fined for the trespass to the king and has satisfied the party concerning the damages’.

What happened next remains a mystery, but thanks to the preservation of the court rolls, Margery Lister and the many others whose names and actions are recorded will forever be part of Nottingham’s fascinating history.

Object wAlK

We’ve teamed up with the National Justice Museum to put objects from the past into the hands of people in the present. This month, we took a Christmas card made by a condemned inmate to Charlie of Handmade Nottingham

Dated 25 December 1909 and gifted to an officer at Wakefield Prison, this detailed card was eventually donated to the Prison Service Museum collection by the granddaughter of the guard…

Is it a Christmas card, perhaps one that an inmate made for a friend or family member?

[After learning what the object is] It’s quite interesting that he’s been condemned but would think to make a card for a prison guard.

I guess the thing is, just because someone works in a prison doesn’t mean they sent the inmate there. They could have been nice and got on well.

It’s pretty well done, isn’t it? I guess, since we sell cards, I should have more of a detailed opinion on it… It is really nice though!

handmadenottingham.com nationaljusticemuseum.org.uk

THURSDAY

Cosy Craft Club- Natural Tree Decorations and Minestrone Soup

The Carousel £10, 6pm

Killer Queen Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £35, 8pm

Pots and Pints Festive Edition Rough Trade £29.50, 6.30pm

A Christmas Carol: A Ghost Story Savoy Cinema £11, 7.30pm

Christmas at Waterstones Waterstones Free, 6pm

FRIDAY 2 DEC

The Sensational 60s Experience

Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £30.50, 7.30pm

Craft Fair Contemporary The Space, Nottingham Contemporary Free, 5pm

Film Screening: St Ann’s Lakeside Arts £3, 7pm

Badflower Rescue Rooms £18, 6.30pm

Kahn & Neek Hidden Warehouse £5, 10pm

SATURDAY 3 DEC

Museum Explorers Lakeside Arts Free, 11am

NTU Music’s Christmas Spectacular Newton and Arkwright £5, 7.30pm

Christmas Wreath Workshop Sneinton Market Avenues £55, 2pm

This is Nottingham Metronome

Transforming Abundance | Potluck Picnic Primary Free, 2pm

SUNDAY 4 DEC

Candle Making & Glass Painting

@ Nottingham Lace Market Debbie Bryan £45, 1pm

The Woolly Tellers – Christmas Tales Malt Cross £7, 6.15pm

Albert Hall Christmas Concert Albert Hall £6.50, 3pm

The Guilded Merkin: Burlesque and Cabaret The Glee Club £18, 6pm

Holly Humberstone Rock City £19.50, 7pm

MONDAY 5 DEC

Christmas with Aled Jones & Russell Watson Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall

£35, 7.30pm

Cezzanne: Portraits Of A Life Broadway Cinema £12

The Vacant Lots The Chameleon £7, 8pm

Alter Bridge Pawns & Kings Tour Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £44.88, 6.30pm

Hugh Cornwell and Band Rescue Rooms £25, 7.30pm

TUESDAY 6 DEC

WRAP Live! Slamovision Metronome £2 - £5, 6pm

Traditional Irish Music Session Nottingham Irish Centre Free, 7pm

Paul Heaton & Jacqui Abbott Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £35.50, 6.30pm

Workhouse Lives III: Taskmasters with Susannah Ottaway Nottingham Trent University 5pm

WEDNESDAY 7 DEC

The Screen: Into the ShadowsPersona The Space, Nottingham Contemporary £5, 6.30pm

DUSTY 4 TRACK

The Chameleon £5.50, 8pm

An Evening with Monty Don Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £28.50, 7.30pm

Adrian Tchaikovsky Waterstones £5, 6.30pm

THURSDAY 8 DEC

Cult Film Club presents... In Bruges Works Social £10, 6.30pm

Ed Patrick - Catch Your Breath

Five Leaves Bookshop £5, 7pm

Scouting For Girls Rock City £27.50, 6.30pm

The Nutcracker Savoy Cinema £13.50, 7.15pm

Writer Highway Anthology Launch Five Leaves Bookshop 2pm

FRIDAY 9 DEC

Westlife - The Wild Dreams Tour Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £52.60, 6.30pm

Bama Lama Sing Song Rescue Rooms £9, 7.30pm

New Model Army Rock City £27.50, 6.30pm

Rattle + R.Dyer + Daphnellc + The Mysterious Monopole JT Soar £8, 7.45pm

Christmas with Il Divo Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £37.50, 7.30pm

SATURDAY 10 DEC

Mollie Ralph, Chloe Rodgers, The Moss Farm, Bele, Cara Flynn The Old Cold Store £10, 7pm

The Vamps Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall 7.30pm

Biscits Stealth £5, 10am

I’ll Be Home for Christmas –Gabriel Latchin Trio [Jazz] Peggy’s Skylight

SUNDAY 11 DEC

The Snowman - The Animated Film with Live Orchestra Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £12, 5pm

The Hours Broadway Cinema £18, 12pm

The Wilderness Yet The Poppy and Pint £12, 7pm

I Like Trains Rescue Rooms £12, 7.30pm

MONDAY 12 DEC

Cuba ’62, an illustrated talk by JS Tennant Five Leaves Bookshop £3, 7pm

Oscar Jerome (Acoustic+Signing) Rough Trade £13.50, 6pm

Love Actually - In Concert Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £32, 7.30pm

Lethal Weapon Savoy Cinema £6.95, 8.30pm

The Native The Bodega £8.50, 7pm

Dick Whittington – Watch Party Nottingham Playhouse £20, 7.30pm

TUESDAY

Traditional Irish Music Session Nottingham Irish Centre Free, 7pm

Flashpoints Conference: Law, Human Rights and Religion Nottingham Trent University 9.45am

Spear of Destiny Rescue Rooms £20, 6.30pm

The Muppet Christmas Carol Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £30, 7pm

WEDNESDAY 14 DEC

The Hallé Christmas Concert Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £11.50, 7.30pm

Collage and Cocktails The Carousel £3, 7pm

Steve Steinman’s Anything For Love Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £39.04, 8pm

Panto in a Day (for adults) Nottingham Playhouse £25, 10am

Sticky Morales [funk/soul] Peggy’s Skylight

THURSDAY 15 DEC

Fidelio Trio Lakeside Arts £20, 7.30pm

WRAP Café Nottingham Contemporary Free, 6pm

PET NEEDS

The Bodega £10, 7pm

A West End Christmas Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £20, 7.30pm

Five Leaves Open Book Group discusses Small Things Like These by Claire Keegan Five Leaves Bookshop Free, 7pm

FRIDAY 16 DEC

B-MOVIE + Courtesan + Radio

Romantic

The Angel Microbrewery & The Chapel £12, 7pm

Antarctic Monkeys Rescue Rooms £13, 6.30pm

The Bootleg Beatles Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £32, 7.30pm

Stan Buckroyd The Bodega £7, 7pm

Blue - Heart & Soul Tour Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £44.69, 7.30pm

Deep Down Brass Malt Cross 5.30pm - 11pm

SATURDAY 17 DEC

Sackfest

Rescue Rooms £20, 5.30pm

Bingo Loco Rock City £7, 5.30pm

Limelight Backstage Tour Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall 7.30pm

20th Annual Christmas Covers Party The Bodega £8, 7.30pm

SUNDAY 18 DEC

Vinyl Night

The Bread And Bitter Free, 7pm

Sweet Live Rock City £27.50, 7pm

Sunday Piano Series - Sarah Beth Briggs Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £12, 11am

Xmas Jazz Jam Peggy’s Skylight

MONDAY 19 DEC

The Mary Wallopers Rescue Rooms £10, 7.30pm

Home Alone In Concert - The Film with Live orchestra Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £32, 7pm

Kanye Kent The Bodega £8.80, 7pm

The Big Quiz Malt Cross £5, 7.30pm

Volbeat - Servant of The Road Tour World Tour 2022 Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £36.40, 6pm

TUESDAY 20 DEC

Traditional Irish Music Session Nottingham Irish Centre Free, 7pm

Shantay You Sleigh Rock City £25, 7.30pm

WEDNESDAY 21 DEC

Messy Drink and Draw

The Carousel £3, 7pm - 11pm

Kate Rusby Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £32.50, 7.30pm

The Clause The Bodega £11, 7pm

Major Ruse Curates – Jafro [jazz / hip-hop] Peggy’s Skylight

THURSDAY 22 DEC

Bad Manners Rock City £22.50, 6.30pm

Frozen Sing-A-Long Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £17.50 , 1pm

Quartet Con Alma [Latin jazz]

Peggy’s Skylight

FRIDAY 23 DEC

Christmas Wreath Workshop Sneinton Market Avenues £55

Panto in a Day (for kids) Nottingham Playhouse £20, 10am

East 17 Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £35, 7.30pm

Sambossa [Bossa / Samba / Latin]

Peggy’s Skylight

SATURDAY 24 DEC

Dick Whittington – Christmas Eve Special Online Nottingham Playhouse £23.50

Christmas Wreath Workshop Sneinton Market Avenues £55, 2pm - 4pm

SUNDAY 25 DEC

The Big Birthday Bash Nazareth Free

TUESDAY 27 DEC

Traditional Irish Music Session Nottingham Irish Centre Free, 7pm

WEDNESDAY 28 DEC

Acoustickle at Peggy’s Skylight: Emerging RnB, Jazz & Soul Peggy’s Skylight £8, 7pm

Collage and Cocktails The Carousel £3, 7pm

#SKINT O’Neill’s Nottingham Free, 7pm

THURSDAY 29 DEC

Basement Craics Barley Twist

Elf: A Christmas Arena Spectacular Motorpoint Arena Nottingham £25

FRIDAY 30 DEC

Christmas Wreath Workshop Sneinton Market Avenues £55

The Glenn Miller Orchestra

Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £17.50, 3pm

Sleep In Motion

The Bodega £8, 7pm

Me & Mr Jones [jazz / blues / soul] Peggy’s Skylight

SATURDAY 31 DEC

Cocktails and Crime

The National Justice Museum £27.99, 7pm

New Year’s Eve Horse and Plough 9pm

Just The Tonic New Years Eve Special Metronome £15, 6.45pm

New Year’s Eve Gala Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £20.50, 6pm

NYE - R&B Soirée The Wine Room City £5 , 10pm

Peaky Blinders NYE Bash

East Midlands Conference Centre £89, 7.30pm

James Morton’s ‘Groove Den’ –NEW YEAR’S EVE dinner set Peggy’s Skylight

ONGOING

Dance and Movement Workshops with Cool Company

The Space, Nottingham Contemporary 10am - 12pm Wed 9 Nov - Tue 20 Dec

Winter Wonderland Old Market Square Free Tues 15 Nov - Sat 31 Dec

We Wish You A Merry Murder

The National Justice Museum £47.99

Fri 25 Nov - Sat 17 Dec

ONGOING

Christmas Comedy Special

The Glee Club

£12.50 - £22

Thurs 1 Dec - Fri 23 Dec

December | Nottingham Lace Embroidery Crafternoon (Lace Market)

Debbie Bryan

£30 - £48 , 11am - 4pm

Thu 1 Dec - Sat 31 Dec

Christmas at Belton Belton House

£15 - £21.50

Thu 1 Dec - Sun 1 Jan

Communities in Motion

New Art Exchange

Free , 10am - 4pm Thu 1 Dec - Sat 7 Jan

Museum Tour

The Haunted Museum & Oddities Collection

£8 - £8 , 11am - 6pm

Thu 1 Dec - Thu 17 Jul

Barbara Laws: Nottingham Portraits

Lakeside Arts

Free

Thu 1 Dec - Sun 19 Feb

Storybook Christmas: Alice in Wonderland

Newstead Abbey

Thu 1 Dec - Mon 2 Jan

Christmas Skating at the National Ice Centre

The National Ice Centre Free - £9.50

Thu 1 Dec - Sun 8 Jan

Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs

Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £16.50 - £42

Sat 3 Dec - Sun 8 Jan

Goldilocks and the Three Bears Nottingham Playhouse £13.50

Thu 8 Dec - Sat 31 Dec

Santa’s Grotto at the National Ice Centre

The National Ice Centre £15 - £15 Sat 17 Dec - Sat 24 Dec

John Pooler Exhibition Nottingham Society of Artists Free Mon 19 Dec - Sat 24 Dec

BEST OF DECEMBER

Winter Wonderland

When: Tuesday 15 NovemberSaturday 31 December

Where: Market Square

How much: Free

Get ready for a trip to the Market Square to visit Nottingham’s very own Winter Wonderland, which has returned again this year. Packed with local and international traders selling everything from handmade gifts to mulled wine and Christmas snacks, and featuring a chalet bar and elevated ice rink, you could easily get lost for hours in this festive market. Often packed throughout the month of December.

Film Screening: St Ann’s

When: Friday 2 December, 7pm

Where: Lakeside Arts

How much: £3

A chance to brim with local pride, why not watch Steven Frears’ 1969 documentary film St Ann’s at Lakeside this month? Set before the so-called ‘slum clearance’, it’s a film that explores the everyday life of the community, with research coming from Ken Coates, Bill Silburn and The University of Nottingham. Made possible thanks to the BFI National TV Archive, the historic piece will be followed by a panel discussion.

Christmas Craft Fair

When: Friday 2 DecemberSunday 5 December

Where: Nottingham Contemporary

How much: Free

Returning once again this year, the Christmas Craft Fair is back at the Nottingham Contemporary. Showcasing over forty different designers and makers, it’s an ideal spot to do a bit of Christmas shopping while supporting local artists. Ceramics, textiles, jewellery, Christmas decor, homeware, candles, prints, cards - you name it, they have it. Taking place over three days in early December, it’s well worth checking out.

This is Nottingham (Ft Bru-C and Vicky McClure)

When: Saturday 3 December

Where: Metronome

How much: £10 Raffle

Fundraising for the Teenage Cancer Trust, Bru-C will play an intimate hometown gig this December, presented by none other than Line of Duty and This Is England star Vicky Mcclure. Happening at Metronome, tickets will be raffled at £10 with all proceeds going to support young people between 13-24 living with cancer. A rare opportunity to see these two Nottingham icons in one room and support a good causeget on it!

Bama Lama Sing Song

When: Friday 9 December, 7pm

Where: Rescue Rooms

How much: £9.90

Is it a gig? Kind of. Will there be professional singers? Absolutely not. This month you can join the crew at Rescue Rooms for their Bama Lama Sing Song event in which the crowd become the performers. Accompanied by a live band, it’s a chance to take part in a room-wide karaoke session, singing along to all your favourite tunes (with varying levels of skill). Expect bad dancing, big hugs and an altogether great vibe.

Lace Market Carol Service

When: Wednesday 21 December, 1pm

Where: St Mary’s Church

How much: Free

Call us old-fashioned but a carol service really is a Christmas staple, and this one at St Mary’s church is always a good’un. Enjoy the beautiful sounds of the choir alongside the peaceful ambience of the church, all while getting in a little singing practise yourself. Kicking off at 1pm, it’s a bit of an early event, but the civic building is still sure to be packed out with people excited to celebrate the festive season.

Triangle of Sadness

When: Thursday 29 December, 6.45pm

Where: Bonington Theatre How much: £6.50

Head over to Bonington Theatre in Arnold as they stream satirical black comedy Triangle of Sadness, starring Woody Harrelson and directed by Ruben Östlund. Following a set of wealthy guests all aboard a luxury yacht with a Marxist captain (Harrelson), it’s a ‘savagely funny’ tale full of surprises. Plus, Bonington will be serving cake and half-price prosecco as you soak in the humiliation of the mega-rich.

Cocktails and Crime: Ballroom Blitz

When: Saturday 31 December, 7pm Where: National Justice Museum How much: £27.99

New Year’s Eve is always about celebrating the future year to come. But what if you could be transported back in time for an evening? Well that’s exactly what’s on offer at the National Justice Museum with their Ballroom Blitz event, marking the start of 2023 with 1940s style. Classic cocktails, a big house band and a dead body - New Year’s Eve party meets whodunit in this themed murder mystery event.