LeftLion Magazine - October 2022 - Issue 152

Alan Gilby Catt-Al Market

alan.gilby@leftlion.co.uk

Jared Wilson Editor-in-Chief

jared.wilson@leftlion.co.uk

Supporters

These people #SupportLeftLion

Ashley Carter Old Editor

ashley.carter@leftlion.co.uk

Natalie Owen Head Designer

natalie.owen@leftlion.co.uk

George White New Editor

george.white@leftlion.co.uk

Curtis Powell Head of Video and Photography

curtis.powell@leftlion.co.uk

Lizzy O’Riordan Assistant Editor

lizzy.oriordan@leftlion.co.uk

Adam Pickering Partnerships Manager

adam.pickering@leftlion.co.uk

Tom Errington Web Developer

tom.errington@leftlion.co.uk

Addie Kenogbon Fashion Editor

addie.kenogbon@leftlion.co.uk

Jamie Morris Screen Editor

jamie.morris@leftlion.co.uk

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

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

Al Draper, Alan Phelan, Alison Gove-Humphries, Alison Harviek, Alison Hedley, Alison Knox, Alison Wale, Anamenti, Andrew Cooper, Anne Jennings, Ankunda, Annie Rodgers, Ant Haywood, Anthony Blane, Ashley Cooper, Bad Squiddo Games, Barbara Morgan, Barrie the Lurcher, Ben & Jack, Ben Lester, Ben Lucas, Betty Rose Bakes, Bridgette Shilton, Caroline Le Sueur, Chloe Langley, Chris Rogers, Claire Henson, Claire Warren, Clare Foyle, D Lawson, Dan Lyons, David Dowling, David Knight, Dean Collier, Diane Lane, Dick Watson, Donna Rowe-Merriman, Eddie, Eden PR, Ellen O'Hara, Emma Hibbert, Emily Poxon, Erika Diaz Petersen, Felicity Whittle, Frances & Garry Bryan, Friday Club Presents, Gursehaj Singh Bhattal, 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, Ivy House Environmental, James Medd, James Place, James Wright, Jane Dodge, Jayne Holmes, Jayne Paul William & Pirate Jack, Jed Southgate, Jenni Harding, Jess Gibson, John Haslam, John Hess, John Holmes, Jon Blyth, Joshua Heathcote, Julian Bower, Justyn Roberts, Kate Newton, Kath Pyer, Kathleen Dunham, Kay Gilby, Kaye Brennan, Kiki Dee the Cat, Livi & Jacob Nieri, Liz Knott, Lizzy and Margot, Louise Duffield, Luke and Flo, Marc Weaver, Maria Brambles, Mark, Mark Barratt, Mark Gasson, Martin, Matthew Riches, Matt Turpin, Matthew Riches, Max Sherwin, Mighty Lightweights, MinorOak Coworking, Miri Debah, Monica White, Nick G (real living wage rocks), Nicola Baumber, Nigel Cooke, Nigel King, Nikki Williams, NottingJam Orchestra, Oliver Ward, Paul Boast, Paul Woodall, Rachel Ayrton, Rachel Hancorn, Rachel Hanemann, Rachel Morton, Raphael Achache, Richard Barclay, Richard Goodwin, roastinghouse.co.uk, Rob Arthur, Ron Mure, Ros Evans, Roy Manterfield, Russell Brown, Ruth Parry, Sam Hudson, Sam Nahirny, Sarah Manton, Simon Evans, Siobhán CannonBrownlie, Spicer, Stephanie Larman, Steve Lyon, Steve Riordan, Steve Stickley Storyteller, Steve Wallace, Stuart Jones, Sue Barsby, Sue Reader, Tim Foster, Tom Markkanen, Tracey Newton, Tracey Underwood , Tracy Lowe, Wolfgang Buttress

Fancy seeing your name (or the name of your band, small business, loved one, pet etc) in this mag every month? It only costs a fiver and the money supports this magazine. Plus you get all kinds of other treats too.

George Dunbar Art Co-Editor

george.dunbar@leftlion.co.uk

Marta Tavares Art Co-Editor

marta.tavares@leftlion.co.uk

Daniela Loffreda Food Editor

daniela.loffreda@leftlion.co.uk

Fabrice Gagos Photography Editor

fabrice.gagos@leftlion.co.uk

Katie Lyle Music Co-Editor

katie.lyle@leftlion.co.uk

patreon.com/leftlion

Featured Contributor

Iulia Matei

Iulia is an animator and illustrator (occasionally also a graphic designer, copywriter and basically an indecisive creative mess). She studied Animation at DMU in Leicester before moving to Nottingham, and somehow landed her job by creating an animated music video for the heavy-metal band Evil Scarecrow - turns out those guys also run Rusty Monkey, and that’s where she’s been ever since. You can also find some of her spooky illustrations in The Nottingham Horror Collective zines, or on Instagram @iulia.jpg. When she’s not with a pen in her hand, you can find her at a gig or reading at home while snuggling with her grumpy cat, Ivy.

Check out Iulia’s illustrations for The Bath Inn on page 25

Cafe Society

Putting a positive spin on the term ‘beansing it’, the team behind the Nottingham Coffee Festival are aiming to celebrate our bustling cafe scene

Nadia on… the New Government

On the Market

The iconic Nottingham Cattle Market offers moo than you think (sorry) - acting as a vital meeting spot for you Notts lot for generations

Shelf Care

Regular LeftLion columnist and MP for Nottingham East, Nadia Whittome, isn’t too impressed with Liz Truss’s front bench so far…

Counting the Cost

Deemed “insignificant” compared to other news, rising costs are affecting real people right now - not least Nott’s independents

Tord de Force

Ahead of their return to Nottingham this month, we sit down with The Wombats to discuss everything from rock to Rock City

Yello There

Specialising in ‘no compromise’ patties, Yello Yard are filling a gap in Nottingham’s food scene that has been around for far too long

After a tough start to the season, Panthers captain Matthew Myers has a big job on his hands - but if anyone can lead the team to glory, it’s him

Fives Leaves is more than just a bookshop, you know - through its monthly reading club, it’s also a social hub for lit lovers across the city

Top of the Flops

Enjoy soaking in terrible cinema? If so, you’ll love Notts Bad Movie Club, the city’s regular film night showcasing the best of the worst…

Stealth Mission

After receiving a fancy makeover this summer, one of Nottingham’s favourite nightclubs is ready for better raves than ever

Out of Time: Tom Blower

From growing up in Hyson Green to making history swimming the North Channel, the unit ‘Torpedo’ Tom Blower had one hell of a life

Outgoing Incoming

Change is afoot at LeftLion towers. After forty-odd issues on the throne, I’ve decided that now is as good a time as any to step down as editor, and hand over to George White, the man that has been smashing it as my assistant editor for the last year. The queen is dead. Long live the king.

It’s hard to put into words exactly what it’s meant to be the editor of LeftLion for the last few years and forty-odd issues but, as I’m technically still employed here, I don’t really have a choice in the matter. I expected my career to continue down the path of semi-serious documentary filmmaking when the offer to take over from the unfollowable Bridie Squires came out of the blue. Cut to the next four years of chasing ghosts around the National Justice Museum, desperately trying to get Kevin Costner on the phone, fishing safes full of cash out of the Trent and countless other goofy adventures. I don’t think there are many other jobs like this, and doubt I’ll ever have another that’ll make me laugh as much.

But I know I’m leaving the magazine in excellent hands, and am fully confident that George will continue to take this Nottingham institution from strength to strength.

There are way too many to thank, and I know you needy lot will only be looking for your own names anyway, so suffice to say I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to all of the incredible contributors, illustrators, photographers, writers, as well as the amazing LeftLion team I’ve been lucky enough to share an office with. And thanks to you for reading this every month, too. Your feedback, good and bad, is always appreciated. Unless it’s bad, then I tend to ignore it.

With much love

Ashley Carter, Old Editor ashley.carter@leftlion.co.uk

I’d hate to get too The X Factor in my first editorial column, but when I think back to the autumn of 2019, awkwardly approaching Ash to ask if I could write for this cool-sounding magazine called LeftLion, I definitely didn’t imagine I’d be lucky enough to take over the reins of one of the city’s genuine treasures three years later. Yet here we are. Sorry about that.

I’d also hate to get too The One Show, but it’d be a downright sin to not give a big thanks to Ash before he heads off on pastures better - and I’m sure he’ll treasure the limelight. Guiding the magazine through a pandemic, introducing a ton of great new features into every issue, and - arguably most importantly - knowing top class editorial talent when he sees it (I’m mainly talking about Lizzy, of course), Ash has made LeftLion a great magazine to read, and a great place to work. On a personal note, he’s also taught me a lot - sure, mainly obscure history facts that leave my bonce the second I head home for the day - and has helped to make me a better writer, editor and person (okay, that last one probably is probably a bit far, but still). Going forward, the pressure’s on to maintain the high standards that have been set under Big AC’s watch, but with the help of Lizzy, Nat and the LeftLion team, I think (hope) we can live up to them. Wish us luck, and we’ll see you on the next one.

Peace and love,

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

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

The Rink Panther

Spotted in Netherfield

There was always funny smells in netherfield .x

Spotted Eastwood

The swing isn't the only thing with a screw loose

Burton Joyce Village

Just been listening to the sound of bagpipes in the cemetery

Spotted in Netherfield I remember getting the egg things from there

Spotted Ilkeston Town

Fatty has returned! Thanks everyone.

New Spotted: Sandiacre Life’s full of things that I don’t know

Spotted: Stapleford

May I suggest a journal or something to rant into?

Spotted Ilkeston Town

Thank you to the people that scraped me up off the floor after I face planted the floor. shout out to Gary windass look alike

Spotted in Netherfield

If all the investment goes to Arnold then why is it still such a shit hole?

Spotted Eastwood

Surely telling the council would be more effective than spotted?

Spotted Eastwood

Theres much worse things happening around us to worry about a bin man

Sherwood in Nottingham Community Group

"Generic angry comment by car driving white person"

Spotted Kimberley & Eastwood

Is You've been framed still running? Can someone set up CCTV ?

Spotted: Long Eaton

Missing wallet outside papa. Now inside papa johns.

Spotted Ilkeston Town You're 'fuming' yet put two laughing faces at the end of your rant?

Spotted: Long Eaton So its sucking rather than blowing? . . . . . Is it stil 20p? . . . .

Spotted: Long Eaton went in for a massage ended up in qmc with a 12 inch strap on stuck up my arse was worth the 40quid and 8 stiches

Sherwood in Nottingham Community Group

Hello beautiful people I'm on the hunt for some slabs

Spotted Ilkeston Town

Check that the drivers toe nails aren't in there

Spotted: Long Eaton Has anybody lost any fish out of a pond on College street area?

Spotted Langley Mill They would never make good crackheads

OVERHEARD: ILLUSTRATED

To celebrate all of the weird and wonderful things you lot come out with, artist Pete Gray took it upon himself to turn some

Overheard

Notts

illustration: Pete Gray

If we actually listened to our parents when they told us not to talk to strangers, none of us would have any friends

words: Dani Bacon

City sTYLIN’

at the Cattle Market

interview and photo: Georgianna Scurfield

I’m Terrence George Scholey, the infamous. I’m a meteorologist by trade, and I work part-time at Arthur Johnson & Sons.

I’ve worked here six or seven years now, mainly on Fridays when it’s a viewing day. I do love this place, I’ve told the management but it hasn’t got me a promotion.

I’ve got my own style, it’s called the mop. I come prepared: I’ve got a small jumper and a coat, because when you’re working outside it’s all weather. But I prefer it out here, you can have a bit of fun and be serious at the same time.

I got into meteorology when I was a child, just looking at the sky all the time - you know, at the clouds and things like that. But my father was in the Air Force based in Malta, and he bought me a barometer which I’ve still got, so that’s where it all started. I never worked for the Met Office because I was told I didn’t have the ‘necessary qualifications’. I just picked it up as I went along. I read books and I’ve kept records for over sixty years.

We’ve had a drought and a heatwave recently, which is unusual for our time, but not uncommon if you look back at history - there’s a hundred year cycle. The 1920s were very dry as well. It’s the ninth harmonic of the eleven year sunspot cycle. There's all sorts of cycles and all sorts of stuff going on.

Terrence George Scholey

“Whyareyourfeetso bloodydirty?Youlook likeyoudrovehere with Fred Flinstone.”

Man One:“Andyou’refromManchester?”Man Two:“No,I’mfromMansfield”Man One: Oh. Is that likeManchester?”

“Ican’twaittoget home,sitdownandeat some beans.”

Young girl: “I just had averruca moment.”Woman: “You meaneureka?”

Builder 1:“Itwasvery bigeh?” Builder 2: “It was completelythewrong shapeformyliking.”

“I want to kill myself,but only for a little bit.”“What you’re looking foris a nap.”

“I really miss windowsills.”

“I can watch serious adult dramas with lesbians and that.”

“It’s always a shame when your alpacas come before your mother.”

“Stirfry…Idon’tthinkIcanbe arsed to stir.” -WomaninCo-oplookingatreadymeals

“You cannot makefun of Snodland whenyoupeople have Sneinton!”

Nadia on... the New Government

words: Nadia Whittome photo: Fabrice Gagos

A week can be a long time in politics. On Monday 5 September, MPs returned to Parliament after summer recess. By Friday, we had a new Prime Minister, a whole new cabinet and a new monarch.

But let’s leave King Charles aside for a moment. In this month’s column, I wanted to focus on what we can expect from the recently-appointed Government.

There are various things Liz Truss is known for: be it her viral speech about cheese, or having been an ardent Remainer only to back a hard Brexit soon afterwards. But more than anything else in recent months, she has made headlines and raised eyebrows with her hardline economic policies.

During her leadership election, Truss presented herself as an heir to Thatcher, stating it’s “fair” to cut taxes for the rich while promising “no handouts” for everyone else. She pledged a clampdown on trade union rights - already among the most restricted in Europe - and a “bonfire” of “red tape” (read: workers’ rights and environmental protections). Having previously blamed Britain’s economic woes on workers lacking “graft”, she reportedly flaunted plans to scrap limits on working time.

We’ve had enough of the rich getting richer at the expense of the majority and future generations. This is the case I will be making in Parliament in the coming weeks and months: that there is an alternative

If Truss’s first weeks as Prime Minister have shown anything, it’s that these were not just empty slogans, designed to appeal to the Tory base. The Government wasted no time in putting forward a programme of rewarding the wealthy few while punishing the many.

In his so-called “mini budget”, Chancellor Kwasi Kwarteng announced the biggest tax cuts in 50 years, worth a not-so-mini total of £45 billion. The vast majority of those will go straight to high earners, including in the form of a lower tax rate for the top 1%. Turns out, the Government is not opposed to handouts - as long as they’re for the rich.

Bankers also had reasons to celebrate, as the Tories scrapped the cap on bonuses, introduced after 2008 to prevent another financial crash. Meanwhile many part-

time workers, already squeezed by rising prices, will see their benefits cut. Fresh attacks on trade unions threaten to keep wages down to protect profits. And while average energy bills have been capped at £2,500 (more than double what they were last year), the remaining cost will be covered by future taxpayers - rather than energy companies, which are currently boasting record-breaking profits.

This kind of economics simply doesn’t work. Instead of boosting growth, it only fuels inequality. Money given to the super-rich doesn’t trickle down: it’s stored in savings accounts, or disappears in tax havens. At the same time, those who would put it back into the economy, see their incomes squeezed more and more.

Meanwhile many part-time workers, already squeezed by rising prices, will see their benefits cut. Fresh attacks on trade unions threaten to keep wages down to protect profits

Equally concerning is the new Government’s attitude towards the climate emergency. We have an Energy Secretary who wants “every last drop” of oil and gas to be extracted from the North Sea. We have a COP26 President who is happy to accept donations from oil drillers. One of Truss’s first announcements in office was lifting the ban on fracking - a move so dangerous that even Kwasi Kwarteng warned against it just months ago.

We don’t have to choose between bringing down the cost of living or tackling the climate emergency. On the contrary: they are two sides of the same coin, and with popular, pragmatic solutions we could address both. Instead of lining the pockets of bankers and fossil fuel tycoons, we could focus on a transition to renewables, and reduce energy use by insulating every home. Nationalising utilities would enable them to be run in the interest of people and the planet, not shareholder profits.

I know I’m not just speaking for myself here. According to recent polling, twothirds of people agree that ordinary workers don’t get their fair share of the nation’s wealth. Eight in ten see climate change as a global emergency, and two in three believe that energy belongs in the public hands.

They are right. We’ve had enough of the rich getting richer at the expense of the majority and future generations. This is the case I will be making in Parliament in the coming weeks and months: that there is an alternative. If we can afford tax cuts for millionaires, we can definitely afford a Green New Deal that would benefit everyone.

Notts Shots

Want to have your work featured? Send your high-res photos from around the city, including your full name and best web link, to photography@leftlion.co.uk

Blazing a trail Nathan Langman - @_meadowman2

A dog’s life

Nathan Langman - @_meadowman2

View to a kill Frazer Varney - @imjustfrazer

Flippin’ heck Nigel King - @nigelbig

Happy hour Tom Hetherington - @shotbytomh

Counting the Cost

It’s been deemed “insignificant” compared to other national news. It’s been ignored by a Government whose sole focus seems to be on those at the top. Yet the rising cost of living is affecting real people in the real world, right now - not least the hard-working, talented minds behind our city’s vital and varied independent businesses. With a challenging winter on the horizon, how are these firms feeling, and are those in charge of the country doing enough to help? We find out…

The Angel Microbrewery

Ben Rose

The past few months have been going really well. It's nice to be doing gigs again, and supporting the local independent music scene. Energy costs are definitely a worry, though. The brewery itself uses a lot of energy, and then obviously being a music venue, you have to power technology that relies on a lot of juice. Then it comes down to whether we pass that cost on to the promoters that want to hire our venue, or put prices up for customers - but everybody has less disposable income, so they’re less likely to come here if they can’t afford it. Ultimately, you’re stuck between a rock and a hard place.

We haven’t had enough support from the Government - we never do. Even during the lockdowns, we eventually got some help, but it wasn't until after they fed all their friends first, and we were left with the scraps. The main thing people can do to help is kick off with their local government and tell them to pull their finger out and do more. We should be taxing the hell out of all the powerhouses in the energy industry, which is just not happening. If we don’t act, we could lose the independent businesses that bring character to the city. Without them, you’re just left with big corporations and big chains, and there’s a homogenisation of where you can go and what you can do, which would be a real shame.

theangelmicrobrewery.co.uk

Luisa’s Vegan Chocolates

Luisa Vicinanza-Bedi

We’re increasingly relying on internet sales, because we’ve seen a decline in footfall around Sneinton since the pandemic. We’ve had requests to start selling our chocolate in Europe, but because of Brexit it’s difficult to do that. In fact, we’ve found it easier to sell in the United States, and have just set up an agent for us to do so there.

We’re Nottingham’s only bean-to-bar chocolate shop, which has meant we’ve been faced with rising energy bills - as we use a lot of machinery to process and produce our bars. And that’s on top of rising costs for supplies, largely caused by us leaving the EU. Shipping costs for the cocoa beans are up by 400%, electricity in our mini factory is up by 250%, postage has risen by 15% and other raw materials are up by 5%, so we’re definitely being affected right now. Another challenge has come from opening a second unit to store our machines and increase supply, so we’re navigating that at the moment.

We’re trying to maintain our affordable prices though, because we know everyone will be struggling financially this winter. We’re also making sure we continue to pay a premium price to our farmers, as this is a key focus of the business. We’re hoping that people will still feel that they’re able to have a small treat every now and then, and that they’ll come to us for that. Outside of visiting the store, we always encourage people to spread the word on social media and leave reviews. That always means the world.

luisasveganchocolates.co.uk

Wild Clothing

Shaun Hoolan

From a spending point of view, we’re doing okay. Our prices will be affected by our suppliers, so they may be influenced by increased shipping costs, but our electricity bills are reasonably low - we’re lucky to have secured a fixed deal so we've been safe from any ridiculous rises. Probably around 70% of our customers are students, and hopefully they’ll keep spendingespecially because bills are often included in their rent, so should remain steady. As prices rise more generally, more people will likely turn to second-hand and vintage clothing, too, as our prices won’t be affected by the growing costs of creating brand new products. So, hopefully we’ll be okay. You've got to keep positive about it.

People in Nottingham can help by not just supporting independents with their money, but by posting positive things online. It might not sound like a lot, but it's always nice when you see somebody tag you on Instagram, getting the word out about the shop. Everything counts.

wildclothing.co.uk

photo: Fabrice Gagos

photo: Natalie Owen

Sea & Earth Fish & Chips

Andrew Constantinou

The business is doing very well in terms of sales, mainly because people connect with our commitment to our ethics and quality, but continually rising costs are putting immense pressure on our finances. Fish costs have doubled, as has the price of oil and many other products we use, but the biggest challenge is utilities, which are costing us £5,000 a monthup from £2,000. We are told that utilities, fish and oil prices are being affected by the war in Ukraine, yet utilities were on the increase even before the conflict.

My dad has been in business for 35 years and has never seen anything like this. We need VAT to be reduced immediately, or we could see so many firms close in the next few months. We also need to keep getting the message out there and let those in charge know that small firms can’t be bullied into immediate, sky-high payments - payments that will cause many to close. I think, where they can, customers should try to support independents and show compassion and empathy. Please spend your money locally where possible!

seaearth.co.uk

Castle Rock Brewery

Jessica Collins

From the perspective of the brewery, we've been slowly recovering after the pandemic. Things probably look a little bit different than before in the fact that we brew less beer and we’ve decreased our radius for delivery. On the pubs side of things, it's a lot more optimistic. It's been really nice to welcome people back after lockdown and we’ve definitely felt the support of people in Nottingham, which has been brilliant to see.

Looking forward, every part of the brewing process relies on electricity, so we’re definitely feeling the impact of a massive increase in energy bills, and in terms of our supplies, the cost of CO2 has already doubled as the price cap has just been lifted. And from a sales perspective, it feels like the calm before the storm, because we haven't necessarily felt that pinch yet - but I fear that we will when people have to put the heating on and it gets a bit colder, household bills start to rise and customers have less disposable income. We're waiting to see what happens there. When people are feeling the hit, the last penny that many will spend is on leisure.

Yet we want to emphasise that our pubs will be open, the heating will be on and people are always welcome. For the price of a coffee or a beer, they can come and warm themselves up and be part of a community over the winter. That’s a key message for us. We’re also asking people to use #LoveYourLocal on social media to spread the message that local pubs should be cherished and looked after, because they're special and play such a crucial role within communities. Our pubs are about more than just a drink, they’re about bringing people together.

castlerockbrewery.co.uk

Prickly Pear

Marc Paling

We recently moved into the Golden Fleece, which has gone really well. It’s a nice environment and sets us up with a commercial kitchen, so we’ve been able to increase the speed and quality of our service. There are loads of reasons why we made the move. Our tenancy was coming to an end, and we were mulling over whether to extend - but the rising costs made the decision easier. We’re also good friends with the team at the Golden Fleece, so it became a case of two mates helping each other through a tough time. And we felt we’d outgrown our previous space over the years, so we’re able to expand now.

In terms of rising costs, the price of ingredients like rapeseed oil has doubled since we first opened, and our electricity bill has skyrocketed in recent months. We’ve had no real support from the Government to help us out with this. We received a lot during COVID, which we appreciated, but strangely that was the easiest period of the last few years - it’s been very difficult since we reopened. We’re hoping people can find the money to avoid big chains when they can, and focus on supporting independents where possible - even if it’s just one trip a month for a cup of coffee or a beer, it makes a big difference to us.

pricklypearcafe.co.uk

photo: Perm Ghattaura

photo: Tom Hetherington

Cafe Society

From 200 Degrees and Blend to Stewarts and Yolk, just walk a few metres in Nottingham and you’re sure to find yourself at another coffee shop thanks to the city’s vibrant and ever-growing community.

That’s why, inspired by our very own cafe society, friends Josh Eaton and Matt Vassey decided to set up the Nottingham Coffee Festival, which will be coming to High Pavement this October. We catch up with co-creator Josh to hear about his hopes for the event…

Coffee. It wakes us up in the morning, it gets us through long afternoon meetings and it makes us feel very sophisticated when drunk in espresso form. In short, we love it. And though known for being a tea nation, Britain has a long history with coffee too, with the first coffee shop opening in Oxford in 1650, run by a Lebanese Jewish entrepreneur called Jacob. Nowadays there are over 25,000 coffee shops in the UK, and a fair few brilliant ones in Nottingham alone. Think 200 Degrees, Blend, Cartwheel, Yolk and Stewarts to name a few. But why is coffee culture so popular? And why does our city have such a strong artisan scene?

That’s the question on my lips as I talk to Josh Eaton from the Nottingham Coffee Festival, the event that will be debuting for the first time this October, and which he and his friend Matt Vassey are pioneering together. “I think that we have such an amazing coffee community in Nottingham that’s grown astoundingly over the past few years,” Josh says, “and people want to support independent coffee shops and business ownersespecially off the back of the pandemic, so many people have embraced shopping locally.”

a bit overwhelming in terms of its reliance on coffee knowledge, and that you could easily become disorientated, hence why it’s vital to him to make the NCF as open as possible. “We've said to our vendors that we want them to be inventive with their stands, rather than just serving coffee. That way the everyday person can come down and learn a bit more about coffeelike the difference between an espresso and an aeropress, for example. So far the vendors are all really excited about this idea, with the likes of Stewarts looking at doing a pourover session, and another proposing a latte art tutorial and competition.”

Also aiming to make the festival as approachable as possible for independent coffee shops, Josh and Matt will be setting up a ‘community bar’ at the festival which consists of a coffee machine and grinder that smaller businesses can jump onto for an hour - meaning those that wouldn’t be able to spare staff for the whole day can still come along. Josh assures me that they want as many locals there as possible, serving up a whole variety of coffees, food and experiences.

Spotting this growing niche, Josh and Matt decided to set up the festival, which will be taking place at St Mary’s Church. “I went down to the London Coffee Festival a couple of years ago as a customer,” Josh reveals. “It was a great event and from there Matt and I started chatting about how there isn’t much in the Midlands when it comes to a big event for the coffee scene - which is weird because it’s a growing community. So that’s how the festival was born. It’s exciting because it’s long overdue, a lot of the vendors said the same when we asked them to be involved - that they hadn’t been a part of a major event to celebrate Nottingham’s coffee culture.

“It will be really exciting to see all these vendors under one roof,” Josh continues, explaining that the ethos of the Nottingham Coffee Festival is to be accessible to both coffee experts and the average layman who simply enjoys a good cup of joe. He explains that the London Coffee Festival was

It is, of course, impossible to talk about the burgeoning coffee scene in Nottingham without mentioning 200 Degrees, who first appeared in the city centre in 2012 and have since expanded to eleven other citiesbecoming known as the gold standard for a top brew around here and beyond. Among all of the Nottingham coffee independents, it would be fair to say that 200 Degrees have led the way in terms of success, and that’s why it’s so exciting for Josh and Matt that they’ve banked them as one of the partners on this event, with Josh describing them as great to work with. “I can’t thank them enough for their support and some of the ideas they’ve thrown together with us,” he says. “It was after speaking with 200 Degrees that we felt we were doing the right thing and it was really their support that pushed us to make this happen.

“The main thing that we want is for locals to celebrate what they have and what they’re about. And we’re super excited to get this going. We don’t just want it to be a one-year event, but rather it’s something that we want to grow. I’m sure there’s stuff that we’re going to learn from the first year that can be put into the next. But in the meantime, there’s going to be coffee, there’s going to be music, there’s going to be food - so come along!”

Nottingham Coffee Festival is taking place on Saturday 22 October at St Mary’s Church @nottscoffeefestival

words: Lizzy O’Riordan illustration: Evie Warren

We don’t just want it to be a one-year event, but rather it’s something that we want to grow

interview: Ashley Carter photos: Mallory Mercer and Chloe Allen

For 136 years, Nottingham Cattle Market has been a bedrock of the community. As a livestock market and, much later, a home for market stalls and Arthur Johnson & Sons auctioneers, it’s an eclectic ecosystem of stories, experience and big personalities tucked behind Meadow Lane near Trent Bridge. With a view to cataloguing the past and present of the market’s history for future generations, filmmaker Georgianna Scurfield launched The Cattle Market Project, a Heritage Lottery-funded documentary, photography, animation, oral history and historical archive project aimed at celebrating a Nottingham institution…

For those who have never been, can you explain what the Cattle Market is?

The Cattle Market takes place every Saturday morning. It’s a huge mix of loads of different vendors, from flower stalls to astro turf to eggs. It starts early, I’m talking old school early, like 6am and is normally over by about twelve. Whilst the market takes place outside, Arthur Johnson & Sons Auctioneers runs five separate live auctions from nine thirty every week.

It was established in 1888 and was originally an area designated for selling livestock. People were doing it in the city centre, but the smell and noise was too much, so they pushed it all out and decided to build a designated cattle market that was near main roads and the canal. It was thirty or forty years in the planning, which we've discovered during our archive work. It stayed as a livestock market until the early-nineties.

So what is the Cattle Market Project?

In a nutshell, The Cattle Market Project is a celebration of the past and present of the market and Arthur Johnson & Sons Auctioneers, through a ‘now and then’ style photography project, a series of photography workshops, animations, twenty oral history interviews and a documentary film. We've got an archivist named Chris Weir working on the project who has been digging to find all sorts of interesting things about the history of the market, too. Once it's finished, all of those photos, interviews and the film are going to be put together and left in the Nottinghamshire Archive and the Local Studies library so people can see it and know what the cattle market was and is in two hundred years’ time.

Where did the idea initially come from?

Early in 2020 I read an article in the Nottingham Post that said the Cattle Market was closing down. People had been telling me that I'd love the cattle market for years, and I'd never been. I felt like I really needed to make the most of it while it was still there. So I went a couple of times, and realised that it would make a really cool film, especially if it's going to be ending soon. I set up a meeting with Keith Butler, who does all the marketing, he basically told me that it's not closing down, and the Post runs that sort of story every year, and every year people turn up to the market thinking it's going to be closing down. He set the tone for the whole project right there in that meeting when he said, “We can make a film, but I don't want it to be an obituary. The Cattle Market isn't leaving us.” So I said, “Great, let's make a film celebrating it then!”

The project is funded by a Heritage Lottery grant – how did you find that process?

The Heritage Lottery was an obvious choice because it's looking at the history of the market as a celebration. When I started looking at their requirements, the whole project started coming together. They support projects that help people hone their digital skills, they support young people, they inspire creativity - all really cool things that helped shape it all. I was planning it during the pandemic, so my aim was to include as many creative people in Nottingham as possible, because we were all at a point where all of our work had gone. It was an amalgamation of all of those things.

Did you have any preconceptions about the Cattle Market going in?

Not really to be honest. The Market is what it is - you go there and you can immediately get a grasp of the community that exists there. It has an identity - a very specific sense of humour, and doesn't pretend to be anything that it isn't.

Some of the things people sell there is stuff that's been salvaged from the tip. People will go and buy a load of things that others have deemed to be rubbish, and then sell it on. It made me think of the sustainable, upcycling trends, but without the gentrified, hipster-ness, if that makes sense. It's just the same thing, but branded differently.

What new things have you learnt about the Market that people might not know?

One of the most interesting things about the Market is actually what's underneath it, because that area of Nottingham was just marshland before it was builtthere was nothing there at all. They filled it with loads of Victorian waste to build up the marshland, so there is

this huge array of wonderfully interesting archaeological artefacts just below the surface of the market. We can't exactly go digging, but people walking around have found bottles and clay pipes and things like that, so we've got a few examples to be displayed.

How has the Cattle Market community reacted to you being there and filming?

This is really hard because whilst the Cattle Market is a wonderful community of people, everyone is so different and individual. I chose to spend as much time as I could there because I really want to feel a part of the community I‘ve been responsible for documenting, also because it’s a right laugh. There are some people there that I'd consider friends now, some that are indifferent and others that absolutely still ignore me completely! As soon as I stood there with a camera though, people came up to me and just started sharing their opinions about the market, which was really lovely.

What sort of characters have you encountered there? It’s saturated with big characters. The very first time I went there I was feeling all nervous and unsure of myself, and people kept telling me that I needed to speak to Alan. I was trying to ask people about their experiences, and they just kept telling me to talk to Alan because he'd been there for ages. I heard “Just talk to Alan with the orange van” over and over again. I saw an orange van with an elderly looking chap sitting next to it, and I asked if he was Alan. He said yes, and spent the next half an hour talking about all sorts of different things, not answering a single question I'd asked. Everything from how he nearly set his kitchen on fire, how he was part of the IRA, how his daughter was a pilot that flew upside down. Then at the end of the conversation I said, “Thanks Alan, it's been really nice to talk to you,” at which point he said, “Oh, I'm not Alan - I'm Ignacius.” I just thought, 'What the hell am I doing here? What is this place?' I see Ignacius a lot now, and I still don't know when he's lying. I'm not even convinced Ignacius is his name. Who's called Ignacius?

It sounds like a really interesting network of people… It's been really wonderful to see the network of farmers that used to be a community in the area. While doing the oral histories, one person would lead me to another, like ‘Oh, you need to talk to this person next,’ or ‘You have to speak to Robin Tuxford, the butcher from Netherfield.’ It's taken me on this trail of finding people who used to spend every week at the Cattle Market. It's also given me the chance to show them photos they've never seen before. There was one gent who was a farmer who lives near Lambley. During the interview I showed him some photos to see if he recognised any of the people or locations, and he immediately said “That's my dad!” He thinks it may have been the last photo that was ever taken of his father shortly before he died, and he'd never seen it before. After that interview I realised that's exactly what this project is all about.

After having spent so much time there, do you get the sense that the Cattle Market is thriving or coming to the end of its life?

There's a sense from the market stall traders that things aren't as good as they used to be, but I think that's also a post-COVID thing. Less people are out and about, so it's difficult to judge. The auction house has really adapted during COVID and has moved its sales online, it feels like it's going from strength to strength. When you talk to people, there are a lot of 'I’ve been coming here since I was young, and back in my day this place was heaving' type of comments. There's definitely a sense that we’re in a transition, but only time will tell where that transition will lead.

It’s wonderful, because it’s an area that hasn’t been gentrified yet and it still serves the community that is within walking distance. It feels refreshing that in a world of overpriced second hand clothes, artisan chocolates, and grilled sandwiches that cost twenty quid, there’s still a place someone will try and flog you a pallet of apples for a pound. Honestly, it’s mad to me that it’s not heaving every Saturday, you can get some proper bargains.

It is an odd thing to see an area used for something so grim repurposed as something positive… It's really wonderful, and I think it's quite important. When you see people talk about veganism, and the 'but what will the farmers do?' argument comes up, the Cattle Market gives you a really good example of how people adapt. The whole auction house has adapted beautifully from killing animals and selling meat to being one of the biggest furniture auctioneers in the UK. It gives me hope for the future!

Then there's Tony the egg man. He lost a lot during the fire [in November 2018, a fire caused by a stray firework caused over £1million of damage to the Market]. It really affected the market traders - it just wiped out so much stock. It's still really raw, and you get the impression that people are still trying to recover from it. Tony was hit pretty badly. He explained that he doesn't make any money from the market, he only goes - during rain, shine or snow - because there are elderly people that have been buying their eggs and other groceries from him every Saturday for years. He just goes there to serve the community. He really embodies the social aspect of the Market.

And you can't talk about the Cattle Market without talking about Neil the flower man. He sets his stall up in prime position next to the entrance and just performs. He gets there at 5am, so from then until 11am it's just the Neil show. He really embodies the sense of humour and attitude of the stall holders, and the market in general. He's a proper geezer.

4am is a rough time to start working – were you ever there filming that early?

I went down once at 4.30am, and if you thought there were some characters at 9am, the people there at 4.30am put them to shame. One guy was just walking around with a speaker blasting out Mariah Carey, using a loudspeaker to order his burger from the food van. I was asking who the hell he was, and everyone was just like, ‘Oh don't worry, that's just Mad Mick.’

On the other hand though, animals are still being slaughtered, probably more of them nowadays. It’s just being done even further from where we can see it happening. So instead of walking away from the Cattle Market with a turkey slung over your shoulder to pluck and butcher when you get home, you leave Tesco with a couple of perfectly sliced turkey breasts in a plastic container. What’s better?

How can people get involved?

We're having a celebration afternoon on Saturday 29 October. That's going to be at the auction house. It will be an exhibition of all the photos, some of the archive material we've found, the premiere of the documentary and three wonderful short animations from Sophie Johnson of Sojo Animation that she did while working with children from Sneinton St Stephen's CofE Primary School. The kids listened to audio stories of people's time at the market, then drew what they heard and Sophie animated their drawings to the audio. The results are so cute, and I can't wait to share them.

If you would like to get involved with The Cattle Market Project and share your experiences, whether it’s as a regular visitor or a one-off, you can get in touch with Georgianna through the Cattle Market Nottingham website or social media pages

The Celebration of Nottingham Cattle Market takes place on Saturday 29 October at 3.30pm

facebook.com/TheCattleMarketProject cattlemarketheritage@gmail.com

The Market is what it is - you go there and you can immediately get a grasp of the community that exists there. It has an identity - a very specific sense of humour, and doesn’t pretend to be anything that it isn’t

The Rink Panther

Born in Cardiff, Matthew Myers first joined the Nottingham Panthers while studying Real Estate Management at Nottingham Trent University. Now captain of the team for the 202223 season, the forward is aiming to push his side back to greatness. After a difficult start to the current campaign, we talk to the 37-year-old about his new responsibilities, playing in an arena and wanting to let go of the past…

First off, congratulations on being named the captain for the 2022-23 season. How are you feeling about that?

It’s great. It was a vote by the players who are essentially my peers, so it feels especially good to get the support from those guys.

Last season I was stand-in captain but I’ve never been a full captain before, and that goes for anywhere I’ve played. I do think that I’ve always naturally been a leader even without the title though, so in this way I’ll be much the same. But in practical terms I’ll be liaising more with the coach and on the ice I’ll liaise more with the officials.

Speaking of change, you also have a new head coach this year in Gary Graham… Yeah, a new coach - and actually everything is pretty much new within the organisation. Gary Morgan, the general manager, very sadly passed away last year and a lot of others have left the organisation recently, so there’s been big change starting right at the top. In terms of players, there were only five guys that have re-signed, so that also speaks to the massive upheaval. There are a lot of new faces.

activity, which was good fun. But nothing builds the team like practising and then having a few beers together when you win. That always brings the team closer together.

There’s such a strong ice hockey culture in Nottingham as a whole. Do you feel that affects your games?

We have great support in Nottingham and the club is fairly well known throughout the city. Even people who don’t come to games tend to know about the Panthers and they may know some players, so we all know it’s very well-supported and that’s great. But I don’t really feel any pressure from that because as a sportsperson you’re always playing to win, whether there’s thousands of fans in the building or no fans at all, like during COVID. Maybe the management or coaching staff feel more of that pressure, but as players we don’t really feel thatespecially because when we’re down on the ice, nobody can really pass their views onto us.

Do you have much interaction with fans generally?

the players haven’t witnessed the loss that this organisation had last year, so we can’t take on what’s happened for past teams. We just have to come in this year and try to be successful. But as I say, we would never take on the burden of a past team, just as we would never take on their successes.

With all these changes, what’s the atmosphere like within the team?

The atmosphere is fairly good, though obviously we’re losing at the moment and not playing great, so that doesn’t help. We aren’t pushing the panic button yet, but it would be nice to put together some better performances. We can deal with losing if we play well, which might sound odd but sport is sport and you can’t always win, but if you play well then at least you’re doing the right thing. Yet if you’re playing poorly then you have to address it, and I do think we have some things to address. So, the morale is fairly good but it would be better if we were winning.

It seems like the team is quite close and spend time together off the ice… Yeah, I think the first week we were here we went axe throwing as a team-building

We do have some fan events. I think last year we did a quiz night which was quite good, and a sponsors barbeque at the start of this season. But with this being an arena it can be a bit more difficult. In the Cardiff building, for example, the fans are much closer to the playing stand, and they can go into the rink bar with the players. Here, we don’t really have a bar area where fans can mingle after games and where players can go on good nights. I think that’s the same for all arena teams like Belfast, Sheffield, and probably Glasgow.

Would you prefer to have more access to fans?

I don’t really have a preference. On a good night someone tapping you on the back to say ‘good win’ is great, but on a bad night where you’ve played poorly you just want to get out of the doors and forget about hockey. And in arena teams if you’ve had a terrible night you can change, jump in the car and get out of there, you don’t have to see anybody. So, like with everything, there are pros and cons.

I know you said that you’re really focusing on a win. Do you think there’s any extra pressure on the team because of the past few years?

I think as we’re a largely new group, we aren’t feeling that burden, because a lot of

Looking back, what was it that first drew you to ice hockey? Was it part of your family culture?

Kind of. I’m close to my uncle in age and we grew up like brothers. We’re six years apart so we could play together a little bit and we used to play roller hockey out on the street. Then when the rink was built in Cardiff, my parents got really into it and took me and my siblings there. I’m lucky that my whole family got involved, because it takes such a lot of commitment and practice can be late at night - so if you’re a parent with a few children it’s easier to bring everybody along. And you still see that now - there are often players with their younger siblings also on the ice with them.

And finally, what are your hopes for the future?

Immediately, we really do need to start winning more hockey games. Essentially that’s all it comes down to, because this is an entertainment and results-based business, so if you’re not winning then you’re not entertaining. The more you win, the easier it becomes to win again and the more fun it gets. I know that sounds really simple but it’s true. And then personally, of course, I want to be good at my job and to contribute to the team's success. Realistically you can only change your own play, and I know this might sound like a typical answer but I need to focus on what I can do well, and if everyone else on the team does the same thing, it works. We are a jigsaw of the things we can individually do well.

panthers.co.uk

We would never take on the burden of a past team, just as we would never take on their successes

Sport is sport and you can’t always win, but if you play well then at least you’re doing the right thing

interview: Lizzy O’Riordan photo: Natalie Owen

Tord de force

The Wombats have been a real force in the indie music scene for almost twenty years, and are still at the top of their game - recently releasing their first number one album, Fix Yourself, Not the World. Ahead of their trip to Rock City in October, we catch up with bassist Tord Øverland-Knudsen to discuss the band’s evolution over the years…

2003 feels like a lifetime ago, doesn’t it? We didn’t have a king, for a start. We also didn’t have a Tory Government. We didn’t even have a crippling costof-living crisis. It was a different time, and one that saw a trio of students at the University of Liverpool decide to set up a band that would become The Wombats - a fresh new entrant to the indie music scene, and an addition that would remain at the forefront of that scene ever since.

If you’re thinking, “Blimey, they’ve actually been around for ages,” well, you’re not the only one - Tord Øverland-Knudsen, the band’s bassist from day one, can’t quite believe it’s been almost two decades, either. “I’ll never get used to that,” the Norwegian admits when reminded that their twentieth anniversary is just around the corner. “That’s a long time.”

A long time it may be, but that doesn’t mean The Wombats are slowing down any time soon. In fact, they’re arguably flying higher than ever, with the three-piece - which also includes lead singer Matthew Murphy and drummer Dan Haggisrecently bagging their first UK number one album, Fix Yourself, Not the World

A release that “meant so much to so many” was largely crafted during the COVID lockdowns, with several songs reflecting on the challenges that torrid old time brought about. Like every album from the trio, it’s a fascinating listen that plays like a carefully-crafted package, underpinned by a unique vision that feels meticulously planned from the offset. That’s not always the case, though, the fortyyear-old admits.

“We never really overthink it,” Tord muses when asked about how each record comes together. “We never set off to say ‘let’s make an electronic album’ or anything like that. We rarely lay down rules, because we see them more as boundaries. Instead, we approach the process by trying things out to see what’s exciting, regardless of how wrong it can go in the beginning.

“We always try to have fun first and foremost, which is probably why it takes us a bit of time to release

albums… We have to go through that process of writing five or six songs to discover where we’re heading sonically. There’s never any set template for how we do things.” So the magic formula for staying at the top of the indie game for so long, it turns out, is to have no real formula at all. Instead, it appears to primarily rely on getting three mates together in a studio and giving them time to enjoy the musicmaking process.

Yet it is the time the guys spend away from each other, working on side hustles and personal projects, that helps to keep things fresh too. Tord has several avenues of creativity on the go at all times, including Sunship Balloon with Wombats bandmate Dan, and Matthew continues to work on solo records with Love Fame Tragedy.

packed with energetic, experimental postpunk beats.

Exploring fresh sounds and blending new genres is crucial to remaining innovative in an increasingly adventurous area of music. “Back when we started, I think more people were slightly purist when it came to indie rock, saying it has to be done a certain way to be respected,” Tord muses. “But over time that has changed, and more people are open to trying new things - you can drop hip-hop or electronic vibes on top of guitar tracks and it's fine, nobody's going to find that weird any more. I think that’s really nice, it gives you more tools to play with.”

The Wombats’ increasingly scopious soundscape won’t be stopping any time soon. The band have already announced that a new EP, Is This What It Feels Like to Feel Like This?, is on the way in November, which, while “definitely in the same ballpark as the latest album”, will also pack some tunes that people might not expect. “There’s a track with drum and bass beats, which we've never done before. There are some more grungy numbers too. It should be a very exciting EP.”

“Everybody should do that, try different things,” Tord asserts. “I think a lot of bands can go a bit stale if they don’t have separate homes for all their different ideas. We’ve always done our own projects because we have such a wide range of interests. The style of The Wombats has always been one kind of music that I like making, but I’m always wanting to branch off into other areas too. I enjoy electronic music, for example, so I’m making that on the side - and that has then fed back into my work with the band, on tracks like Method to the Madness.”

This open-minded approach has helped The Wombats to remain a key player in an industry that is constantly evolving, with each new release sounding different to the last. Debut album A Guide to Love, Loss & Desperation is a raw, relentless, guitar-heavy ride; 2018’s Beautiful People Will Ruin Your Life is an atmospheric, Arcade Fire-esque poprock piece; this year’s Fix Yourself, Not the World is

Before then, though, the trio have the small matter of a national tour to navigate - which will take them from Newcastle to Norwich and, most importantly, Nottingham. Fourteen years after headlining Rock City for the first time, the band are back at what Tord describes as “one of the legends” of the country’s indie scene. “It’s probably the place we’ve played the most outside of Liverpool,” he adds with a grin. “It's perfect for a band like us; not too big, but it's big enough. I always enjoy going there. The atmosphere is great. Everyone working there is great. It almost has a family vibe - you don't get that in many other places.”

With inspiring side projects, a constantly-evolving sound and a fun-first approach to making music, you can expect them to continue headlining the legendary venue for many more years to come.

The Wombats are coming to Rock City on Saturday 22 October

words: George White photo: Tom Oxley

We always try to have fun first and foremost, which is probably why it takes us a bit of time to release albums…

FOOD AND DRINK

Tell us a bit about Yello Yard…

Our priority is patties, which are a very popular Caribbean pastry. They’re essentially derived from the Cornish pasty, but they’ve evolved through the influence of the Caribbean diaspora. In terms of scale, in Jamaica they’re the equivalent of a burger in America - so they’re quite popular!

instead of trying to offer everything at once - pastries, bread, cakes - we honed in on one product and became known for doing that really well. What people have said is that when they’re in the mood for a patty, they’ll think of us straight away.

We do ‘no compromise’ patties. Sure, you can find one in Victoria Centre for £1.60 and it will fill you up, but for that price there will definitely be a compromise on the taste. It’s a bit like burgers; you can have a budget burger or a gourmet burger, and both fulfil different needs. When you’re in the mood for proper, top-notch patties, the type that are reminiscent of what you’ll find in Jamaica, we’re here - and lots of people have been very receptive to that.

out with regards to Caribbean food. When you go to traditional Jamaican places, there typically aren’t any vegan options, so we thought we’d flip that on its head. We also recognised that Nottingham is one of the most pro-vegan cities in the UK, so it just made sense to us.

Despite their popularity, though, it’s not always easy to find good options around here. We’re both from Nottingham, but we spent ten years down in London and found that there were more Caribbean bakeries and Jamaican patties on offer there. It’s not that you couldn’t get them here, but they’re definitely harder to come by. So we thought we’d try to fill that gap by providing highquality patties ourselves.

How has the response been since you set up to fill that gap?

It’s been really positive, and I think that’s largely because we focused on depth over breadth. So,

Why do you think there is a lack of Caribbean options in Nottingham right now?

I’m not sure there’s necessarily a lack of Caribbean options, it’s more that there’s a lack of diversity within those options. As you go around Nottingham, you’ll see a lot of Jamaican takeaways and jerk-specialised venues, but you won’t see as many fully-fledged restaurants, and you definitely won’t find a bakery. We want to try and dispel the myth that all Caribbean food is the same, and show that there are more options available.

Within Yello Yard’s options are plenty of vegan patties - why is that a focus of yours? It was mainly to defy the blueprint that’s been set

You recently celebrated your first anniversary, and have spent that time largely focusing on deliveries - but will we be able to find you in a permanent spot in the future?

We initially started with solely home deliveries but we’ve been working events and markets more recently, mainly Sneinton Market. Yet our aim is to set up a bricks-and-mortar Caribbean bakery in Nottingham, which as I’ve mentioned is something we don’t have right now. Funnily enough, we used to have one when we were younger, but it’s long since shut down - and there’s been a bit of a void ever since. We’re hoping to finally fill that void!

yelloyard.com

To Visit Dispatch

Nottingham is blessed with an abundance of Insta-friendly cafes, but Dispatch may well be the Insta-friendliest - offering fresh food and coffee in gorgeous, colourful surroundings.

@dispatchcoffees

You may think Pizzamisu is all about pizza (you know, because of the name) but they’ve got so much more to offer - including mouthwatering bruschetta made with phenomenal homemade bread.

@pizzamisunottingham

Rage against the dying of the summer light with a Steel Bottom Beer - Turtle Bay’s glorious new creation that combines rum and Red Stripe. (Steel) bottoms up!

turtlebay.co.uk

We want to dispel the myth that all Caribbean food is the same, and show that there are loads of options available

Our aim is to set up a Caribbean bakery in Nottingham, which is something we don’t have right now

Specialising in ‘no compromise’ patties, Yello Yard are filling a gap in Nottingham’s food scene that has been around for far too long. Co-owner Jowayne Marks tells us how he and his partner, Mahalia Chambers, made it happen…

To Nosh Bruschetta - Pizzamisu

To Sup Steel Bottom Beer - Turtle Bay

interview: George White photo: Perm Ghattaura

FOOD Rev Iew: BOc A l Im A

At some point we all need to grow up. Get a little bit more sophisticated, subtle and relaxed. And that’s exactly what Boca Lima have done, as they’ve transitioned out of their extravagant Boilermaker era and into their more laid-back Boca Lima outfit.

Still nestled into Hockley, I tried Boca Lima on a sunny summer afternoon, enjoying a pit stop from a day of shopping, after being charmed by the al fresco seating and promise of shade. And, to be totally honest, the cocktails, which were looking very inviting; the menu offering a selection of options, including mojitos, Negronis and Martinis, alongside the more inventive Femme Fatale and Viva la Boca.

FOOD Rev Iew: The ReFINeRY

There’s probably only one thing better than good food, and that’s good food that doesn’t break the bank. In the heart of West Bridgford, just a short drive from the city centre, lies The Refinery, a relaxed and sophisticated cafe and bar, which seamlessly transitions its menu from day to night.

We popped down one evening to try out their new set lunch menu - available until 7pm Monday to Friday, and until 3pm on Saturdays, you can pick up two courses for just £10 or three for £15.

The menu changes every couple of weeks, taking inspiration from local produce. Some of the dishes you can currently pick up include watercress and grapefruit salad, radishes, balsamic vinaigrette to start, and bavette steak, rosemary fries, peppercorn sauce with a rocket salad for main.

Watching over Sneinton Market from the corner of Handel Street is The Bath Inn, which is becoming notorious for more than just great drinks and a great atmosphere - packing a whole bunch of weird and wonderful decorations inside its tiled walls. We pick out five of our favourite items…

Phar Enough Been fancying a trip to Cairo but can’t afford it right now? With this shiny sarcophagus watching over the bar, you’ll feel like you’re sinking a pint right by the pyramids.

AND DRINK

Dive In It’s a good job nobody finds mannequins incredibly creepy, otherwise this lifesized dummy might be slightly off-putting…

After some deliberation I went for the more sensible choice of a Nojito, which combined cloudy apple, muddled lime, mint and soda, making the perfect refreshing drink. Then I opted to share a selection of small plate dishes, including lemon artichokes, mixed olives, a butterbean salad and bread with oil - all of which were simply prepared and ideal for a light, snacky lunch.

Moving away from the novelty that was Boilermaker, Boca Lima’s vibe could more easily be compared to a Mediterranean cafe, both in food and culture. In this way, it joins other Hockley institutions like Sexy Mamma and Bar Iberico in embracing the casual outdoor eating trend that’s only grown over the summer.

Well-seasoned, my food was oil-heavy in the best way, while still remaining fresh and light. And I look forward to going back to try more of their drinks in the future, with my eye especially hovering on the Sakura, which promises to be floral, zesty and fragrant. Yet another jewel for Hockley’s vibrant scene, at least in my opinion, Boca Lima is a win. Lizzy O’Riordan

36B Carlton

To Follow Bohns Best Burgers

Warning: follow these at your own risk. Why? Because if a burger pic crops up on your timeline while you’re at work, you’ll be left salivating at your desk. Trust us, they’re insanely good.

We arrived in the early evening and were greeted with a warm welcome by the staff. After being seated and ordering a round of drinks, and deciding to make this a truly thorough review, we ordered one of everything off the menu.

This meant six dishes, two starters, mains and desserts, would come to £30 - just £5 per plate. To start, I enjoyed a prosciutto, melon and rocket salad with a balsamic glaze and oil. The sweetness of the melon perfectly completed the sourness of the glaze, and the bitter rocket added a fresh twist. The tempura prawns were also tasty and fresh. Next up I tucked into the dill and salmon fishcake with mushy peas, poached eggs and tartare sauce. The dish was incredibly hearty and filling. I also sampled the honey mustard glazed bacon chop, which was flavoursome and tender.

We rounded the evening off with a lemon posset and a sticky toffee pudding. I’d go as far as to say the latter was one of the best I’ve ever had, and despite being incredibly full, I still found the room to wolf it down.

Daniela Loffreda

refinerywb.co.uk

100 Melton Rd, West Bridgford, NG2 6EP

Freestyle Flashlight

Chilling in the window like an obnoxiously attention-seeking freestyle footballer mid-juggle, one look at this lamp is likely to give you a neckache.

Something Fishy Why would you have a diving mannequin in your pub, you ask? Well, so they can leap into a wall of tropical fish, of course.

Grand Design

It’s not all weird at The Bath Inn. In fact, some bits are just plain classy - including this gorgeous old piano. A chorus of Great Balls of Fire, anyone?

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

words: George White illustrations: Iulia Matei

Ase, N ANA BuluKu AND mA’AT

Happy October!

It’s Black History Month and, as a proud Afro Caribbean Brit, I wanted to share some information about spirituality from Africa before the introduction of the monotheistic religions of Christianity and Islam.

Asé - pronounced “ah-shay” - is a West African concept in which the Yorubas of Nigeria manifest change or make things happen through balancing the spiritual life force that flows through everything. You could use the word Asé to confirm a prayer or wish instead of ‘so mote it be.’

Nana Buluku comes in many forms, across many African Nations. She is still actively worshipped as the Mother Goddess, appearing as an old woman and is believed to be the creator of the world. Nana Buluku is known to be the wisest deity and is said to have travelled with her people on the ships across the Atlantic.

The Zulu call themselves the ‘People of the Heavens’ - they believe humans have an umzimba (body) and an idlozi (spirit). The Zulu recognise ‘inhliziyo’ as the heart or emotion, the ingqondo, the brain or mind and isithunzi (personality).

Ma’at personified the principles which were the foundation of Egyptian society. She was depicted as a female goddess and some of the principles she embodies are truth, balance, order, harmony, righteousness, morality and justice.

Ma’at is depicted with a white ostrich feather of truth and justice in her headband. This feather is used by Anubis to weigh the heart during the transition to the afterlife

During this ceremony, the principles of Ma’at were given to the soul in the form of affirmations and we’ll use three of them for our monthly affirmations:

I speak positively of others.

I do the best I can.

I care for the Earth. Until next time…

Be Safe, No fear and Stay Blessed.

With large-scale queer scenes in cities like Mancheter and London, it might be easy to overlook the LGBT+ community in Nottingham. But, according to Sam Harvey, our city is still an important place for young queer people. He tells us more about his experience and the need for safe spaces…

Ever since the first modern gay bar opened in Regents Street London in 1912, members of the LGBT+ community have sought to create spaces where they can foster a sense of community, feel safe being open about their authentic selves and exist free from persecution, violence and ridicule. I myself am a gay man and find the LGBT+ community is a very important part of my life. It gave me a sense of belonging after moving away from home for the first time for university and through it I have come to know many lifelong friends and (somehow) a partner.

But you need only slightly scratch the surface to see the rich and vibrant LGBT+ culture present in Nottingham. In the past few months there have been several more LGBT+ venues open, expanding the nightlife scene and filling the gap left by the closure of other clubs in the wake of the pandemic. And long-standing pubs such as The New Foresters and The Lord Roberts have been providing the community with a safe space and a welcome atmosphere for years.

Many members of the LGBT+ community have a predisposition towards moving to larger cities in order to find more diverse and accepting communities, escape persecution and prejudice, or simply for more mundane reasons (such as moving for work, as I did). However, it’s also important to realise that smaller cities can be just as capable of fostering a vibrant LGBT+ culture.

That’s why, with the rights of the LGBT+ community being at a more precarious point than they have ever been in the last ten years, it’s so important for us to come together in support of one another.

After leaving university, I briefly moved to Manchester for a year with work before returning to Nottingham in the midst of the pandemic. It was an eye-opening experience for me and allowed me to contrast first-hand the differences between LGBT+ venues, communities and experiences in a larger metropolis such as Manchester compared to a smaller city like Nottingham.

It would be a fair assumption to say that the LGBT+ scene in Nottingham is very different from that of Manchester. We don’t have a ‘Gay Village’, a regular LGBT+ clubbing venue, and gay bars are very few and far between. Manchester, by comparison, has an entire city centre district dedicated to LGBT+ friendly bars, venues, businesses and more. It boasts one of the largest and most accepting queer communities in Britain, if not Europe as a whole.

In the wake of the pandemic, as studies are showing worsening mental health rates and we are seeing a stronger pushback against the LGBT+ community it is more important than ever that we find these safe spaces where we are free to be ourselves and meet like-minded people. It’s also important to remember that the queer community isn’t all about drinking culture and nights out - as I’ve found through my work with Notts-based charity LGBT+ Notts Network, there is a wealth of sports groups, religious organisations, coffee shops, social groups and support networks. One only needs to know where to look.

Having a visible presence in a city regardless of the size does wonders to increase acceptance and support of the LGBT+ communities; I’m sure we’ve all soaked in the flags on the pavement around Broad Street and the Lace Market. And the next step up from this is, on a social level at least, to ensure that the queer community feels that there are places throughout the city where they feel safe and open to be themselves. Nottingham is doing such a good job of that already, and I for one can’t wait to see how the city and the community will continue to grow.

You need only slightly scratch the surface to see the rich and vibrant LGBT+ culture present in Nottingham

words: Sam Harvey photo: Natalie Owen

@spamuel121

The trees are turning brown, the air is getting chilly, and for many readers the start of autumn represents the beginning of their cosy reading season, where all books will be consumed with a jumper on and a cup of tea in hand.

But what are the best books for this season? Well, aside from the obvious gothic and horror novels associated with Halloween, October is also the perfect month to open up a dark academia novel. A genre that centres around higher education, gothic architecture, classical studies and a dark and twisted plot, the most popular titles in the genre include Donna Tartt’s The Secret History, M. L. Rio’s We Were Villains and Mona Awad’s Bunny - the first of which is often credited as creating the whole classification.

A genre that centres around higher education, gothic architecture, classical studies and a dark and twisted plot

Having experienced a resurgence in popularity during the COVID-19 pandemic, most likely due to the closure of schools, the genre has been adopted by online Instagram and TikTok communities, dedicated to the idealised images of academia and nostalgic Ivy League fashion. However, with its increasing traction, the umbrella of dark academia has also come under some criticism, largely due its over-romanticisation of western academia and, with that, its inherent lack of diversity - the majority of characters being white and upper class.

For that reason, it’s best to take these novels with a grain of salt when reading, and remember that while horn-rimmed glasses, grand libraries and boarding schools might be fun to romanticise, not all of their messages are to be taken too uncritically. Yet, with that being said, they’re great reads for the autumn season and I’d highly recommend giving them a try.

words: Lizzy O’Riordan

With its radical reputation, Five Leaves is a bookshop beloved by you Notts lot. But did you know that, alongside stocking all the best and rarest titles, the store hosts a regular book club? With recent titles including The Book of Form and Emptiness and Elena Knows, this month you can look forward to diving into Selby Wynn Schwartz’s After Sappho - the novel which reimagines the stories of feminists, artists, writers and sapphics from the 19th and 20th century.

Before the event on Thursday 27 October, we catch up with Five Leaves’ Ross Bradshaw and Jane Anger to learn more…

Born from popular demand, the Five Leaves book club has been running since 2017. A place to discuss and share ideas, the group is a non-committal gathering for book lovers, with some participants coming semi-regularly and others “once in a lifetime”, according to the proprietor of Five Leaves, Ross Bradshaw. “We don’t ask for regular commitment, which makes it easier,” he says, with only a few things being asked of the attendees; to read the book of the month, and to allow for everyone to have their say.

“People can be very passionate about books they like and dislike, or even just a passage in a book,” hence why it’s so important to let others speak.

Each month’s pick is fairly random, Ross tells me. “We’ve had one or two people saying if we discuss a particular book they will come along for that event, and we tend to do that. Other times it's chosen by a member of the team here or one of the semi-regulars. The book has to be in print and in paperback, but we don't mind if people borrow it from a friend or a library, they don't have to buy it here.”

the moment,” Jane says, “but it’s a book about lesbians through time, with a sapphic-centred gaze! It’s a poetically-written, often hilarious riff on how lesbians have found ways to survive, pushed boundaries, reinvented themselves after escaping the abuses of patriarchal families and societies. There are (still) very few books published about the lesbian experience, fiction or non-fiction, so this book is important for that reason.”

Part of a growing movement of titles written from the female gaze, After Sappho is the ideal book for our current literary zeitgeist. “ There has indeed been a refocusing of gaze and politics, whatever the mainstream media says. Young women have become really interested in feminist issues and particularly in history,” Jane says. “We have lots of women coming into the shop wanting to read books from authors like Audre Lorde, bell hooks and many more. Thanks to movements like #MeToo and Black Lives Matter, publishers have realised, not before time, that more diversity is something readers want and retellings and re-imaginings of history, like After Sappho, are a part of that and are a powerful way of refocusing away from the patriarchal gaze.”

u

This month, the book club’s pick is After Sappho, chosen by members and due to be introduced by Jane Anger - founder of Feminist Book Fortnight, the national celebration of feminist books co-ordinated by Five Leaves. “I’m just a few chapters into After Sappho at

Happening on Thursday 27 October, Five Leaves welcomes any new attendees to come along. “A lot of readers like to turn private enjoyment and thought into public engagement,” Ross finishes by saying, “and bookshops and libraries are perfect places to do that. Plus, they’re a way of helping the less confident reader to get on with books. You don't have to be hugely well-read to discuss a book you have feelings about.”

Five Leaves Book Group on After Sappho is taking place on Thursday 27 October

fiveleavesbookshop.co.uk

To Do

Damon Galgut at Waterstones

Touring to discuss his Booker Prize-winning novel The Promise, Damon Galgut is coming to Nottingham’s Waterstones to be interviewed by fellow author Polis Loizou.

Thurs 13 October, Waterstones

To Read

The Haunting of Hill House

Being October, it’s the ideal time to read a spooky book of your choosing. But if you’re looking for a recommendation, you can’t go wrong with a gothic classic - The Haunting of Hill House.

To Follow The Nottingham Horror Collective

You can’t get much more October than a horror-based zine. Created by Nottingham creatives Emily and Ruth, check out their Instagram for regular updates and opportunities to contribute.

A lot of readers like to turn private enjoyment into public engagement. Bookshops are perfect places to do that

words: Lizzy O’Riordan photo: Curtis Powell

ANI-m AINs TRe A m

Anime fandom is far from a new phenomenon in the UK, but the range and accessibility of Japanese animated features on British cinema screens has arguably never been greater than it was this summer. In fact, it’s been too much for even a supposed anime die-hard like myself to completely keep up with.

Back in 2015, the UK-wide theatrical release of Dragon Ball Z: Resurrection 'F' seemed completely novel. Sure, Studio Ghibli’s starstudded English dubs have helped to get the likes of Spirited Away into cinemas since the early 2000s, but the more low-brow, highoctane thrill of seeing Goku sock Frieza in the jaw was something I once never expected to experience in a multiplex.

Anime is finally being recognised simply as cinema, and the big screen is richer for it

This August alone, however, cinemas across Nottingham screened a multitude of brand-new anime releases, including a fantasy survival epic (The Deer King), a two-part competitive swimming drama (Free! The Final Stroke), a colourful coming-of-age comedy (Fortune Favours Lady Nikuko) and the latest in the ongoing Dragon Ball saga, which the Arc Cinema in Hucknall commemorated with a big-screen video game tournament. Also, shout-out to Broadway for bringing back animeof-the-year contender Belle as part of its Summer Sale lineup!

The anime train continues to run through autumn, too. At the time of writing, samurai-era rock opera Inu-Oh is just on the horizon, and maritime blockbuster One Piece Film: Red – the number one movie of 2022 in Japan – arrives on our shores on Friday 4 November. It’s not all just new releases, either, with Porlock Press hosting a special screening of cult classic Millenium Actress at Savoy on Monday 10 October.

Gone are the days of such screenings being rare occurrences to be sought out, as Japanese animation gradually shakes off its status as “specialist event cinema” in the UK. It is finally being recognised simply as cinema, and the big screen is richer for it.

The

Have you ever seen a film that’s so bad it’s good? Do you often return to ‘hate watches’, sticking on something that’s enjoyable for its awfulness? If so, you’ll love Notts Bad Movie Club, the city’s regular film night showcasing the very best of the worst…

We all have our favourite movies, films that we can go back to again and again. Sometimes, however, these films won’t be ‘good’ in the classic sense of the word. There are some truly terrible films which can still be entertaining in a way the directors probably hadn’t originally intended. These ‘so good they’re bad’ movies are the basis for Notts Bad Movie Club, a new regular film night hosted by Will Bailey and Chris Barnes right here in the city.

I scour car boot sales for DVDs of terrible movies, and they now make the bulk of my collection. Actual good movies have been relegated to the loft

“It all started as an idea in lockdown,” explains Will. “I had been watching a lot of rubbish movies and discussed with Chris about the possibility of making a regular night for like-minded individuals to come together and enjoy these rubbish movies together.” The idea of communal viewings of cult films can be traced back to the likes of The Rocky Horror Picture Show, with fans joining in and shouting at the screen in a way that wouldn’t be acceptable in a regular cinema.

“Our first event back in August had a video game theme. We showed the classic Mortal Kombat and Street Fighter movies from the mid-nineties. We had a fantastic night and I think everyone else did too!”

The guys at Notts Bad Movie Club have a whole plethora of films to choose from, be it the exalted works of Hulk

Hogan or the early nineties kid-friendly weirdness of Mac and Me. The next event takes place on Friday 14 October and will suitably have a Halloween theme, with both Anaconda and Jason X being shown back-to-back. Hosted in the Tavern at Annie’s Burger Shack, guests can make a night of it with a range of food and drinks, including burgers and other classic movie snacks.

“We have tentative plans in place for the next few nights,” Chris explains, “hopefully having an event around Christmas and then regular screenings every six-to-eight weeks - mainly with a seasonal theme, like Valentine’s Day and Easter.”

Will seems to have taken his love of rubbish movies to the next level since starting up the club. “I scour car boot sales for DVDs of terrible movies, and they now make the bulk of my collection. Actual good movies have been relegated to the loft.” Both Chris and Will are selfdescribed movie obsessives and do enjoy good films, yet there is something about the art of a finely-crafted dud that just hits different.

Inevitably, our conversation turns to the question of which bad movies are Will and Chris’s favourites. “It has to be Troll 2,” answers Will, with little hesitation. Chris, on the other hand, takes a little while to think it through. “I’d probably say Evil Dead 2, but can that really be described as a bad movie?” No, it turns out, as Chris changes his mind. “It’s Masters of the Universe with Dolph Lundgren - I think I’ve watched that far too many times.”

Tickets for the next Notts Bad Movie Club night are available now through See Tickets

To Do Mayhem Film Festival Can you believe it? It's the Mayhem Film Festival once again! Offering everything from much-loved classics to lesser-known gems, this remains the ultimate celebration of the strange and spooky.

13 - 16 Oct, Broadway Cinema

To Remember

I Believe in Miracles No, it’s not a Hot Chocolate biopic - it’s a deep dive into the historymaking Forest side that won back-to-back European Cups under a certain Brian Clough. Released seven years ago, each watch still guarantees goosebumps.

To Follow Steven Sheil

Since it’s Mayhem month, why not go and follow one of the minds behind it all? Steven Sheil makes movies, writes about movies, talks about movies and supports movies… Need we say more?

@SSheil

@nottsbadmovieclub

Jamie Morris

words: Rich Higton

sc R ee

From being nominated for awards to screening at Broadway Cinema, Scott Driver’s short film, Hamster, has made its mark on audiences and critics alike. And, with its powerful message on PTSD and the impact of war, it’s easy to see why…

Where did the inspiration come from for this project?

I had just seen 1917 and I knew I wanted to do something like that, but obviously I was going to be very constricted by a small budget - so that scale was always going to be too ambitious. As a result, I looked into making a film that's more about the aftermath of war, and what it's like for a soldier after being on tour. I’d looked around and hadn’t found many decent films that really looked into PTSD and having to try and integrate back into society. So that was where the original idea came from.

I was lucky enough to sit down with a local veteran. I thought it would be weird for me to go much further with this idea without having actually met a veteran myself. Obviously, I've got no military background, but I thought if I could at least sit with someone and get a bit of information and insight from them, that could help to guide the process.

So I sat with veteran Johno Lee, who's a local veteran and amputee. He was nice enough to share everything with me, from the high points of being a soldier, to the lowest points that he went through. Off the back of that conversation, I went and wrote the script, and sent it to John. He’d say, ‘This is wrong. This is wrong. This is wrong.’ I’d make the changes and send it back until the script got to a position where it was ready to go.

What makes Hamster stand out from other films that have explored war, and specifically the war in Afghanistan?

This is very much focused on a soldier back in his home country, back in the UK after the war. There are flashback scenes in the film, but I always wanted to make sure the film would work without them. They certainly help, but really the main focus of this film, and 90% of this film’s runtime, takes place on home soil, and it was very much about focusing on what happens

from the moment you get off that plane or off that bus and you're back home. A few soldiers described it like being hit by a tonne of bricks, that realisation of not knowing what they need to do now.

A lot of soldiers join the army at a young age, they've gone into the armed forces as soon as they could. And then when that's all over, they find themselves not really knowing what to do themselves. It can be quite a difficult transition for them to then come back to society where everything is moving so quickly, and the pace of life is just so different. So that was a big one.

overcome these obstacles together. It almost felt like anything was possible, that we could achieve anything.

The film was made in partnership with PTSD Resolution. Why did you choose this as the charity to support?

They're obviously a charity specifically focusing on specialised therapy for veterans. I relied on them for getting advice on what their procedures are, in terms of how they deal with veterans. There's a therapy session scene in the film, and they were so helpful for guiding that. They were instantly keen to be involved and offered to support us where they could.

You mentioned that there are some flashback scenes to the warzone. How did you manage to shoot these on such a small budget?

That was probably the toughest thing we had to do, was to organise that flashback scene. We actually shot that sequence at a later date to the rest of the schedule, just because sourcing a location that even remotely mirrored what it'd be like in a warzone was so difficult. And obviously I need to get that approved by veterans; they need to see it and be like, ‘Yes, that works.’ So that was difficult in itself. But then having a constraint on budget and time made it even more difficult. But at the same time, I think when you've got a group of people who really believe in the project, you can

This film follows the success of Cheeseburger, which picked up awards when it was released. How did you find the response to that? It was a really nice surprise, actually. Again, that was made on a very low budget, so I was quite overwhelmed with the response to that. The script came from a place that was quite close to my heart, but you never know how it's going to be received by the wider audience. Yet we got one acceptance, and then another, and then some awards started to roll in and it was really nice. Obviously we don't do it for the awards, but it is nice to get some sort of recognitionespecially when we were accepted at festivals in and around Nottingham and the East Midlands, because we shot it in Nottingham and it was made by Notts creatives.

What’s next for you in your career?

I would really like to make a feature film next. I've been doing short films for a while, and I feel like I'm now ready to make that next step. Whether it's an extension of Hamster, taking it to a broader scale, or something completely different, I'm not sure yet. But I just know that I'm going to write a script that can be made into a feature, and then see where it goes from there.

interview: George White

Having a constraint on budget and time made things difficult, but when you’ve got a group of people who really believe in the project, you can overcome these obstacles together

HOCKLEYHUSTLE.CO.UK

Over the summer, one of Notts’ favourite nightclubs had a makeover. We chat to Stealth’s manager Alex Kirkland about the changes that have been made to the venue and what we can expect now that it has reopened its doors…

What inspired the redesign of Stealth?

Stealth first opened in 2004, and this April, the club celebrated its eighteenth birthday. I’ve been working there since it opened, and have had the pleasure of DJing here pretty much every week for the last fifteen years. In our early days, the Main Room had a large central bar, which limited the amount of dancefloor space. So, in 2013, we changed things around – moving and expanding the bar, putting it against one of the side walls and re-designing the DJ booth. This freed up so much more of the dancefloor, and really changed the game for us. In the years following, we went on to be featured multiple times in DJ Mag’s ‘Top 100 Clubs In The World’ list, as well as winning 'Best Club' in the most recent ‘Nottingham Best Bar None Awards’.

Lockdown was the first time in the club’s history that we had to close but this gave myself and the Stealth team time to discuss the changes we could make to improve the customer experience even further. We all decided that we wanted to try and give the customers more of a focused visual experience, as well as updating our sound and light offering, while making sure we maintained the club’s underground atmosphere.

What is your favourite thing about the redesign?

I think my favourite thing is that the new layout welcomes customers straight onto the dancefloor, which helps get the party started and really gets the atmosphere building from the off.

What artists and DJs can we expect to see at the venue this autumn?

We are welcoming guest DJs to the club every Friday and Saturday. On Saturdays, Room 1 is predominantly house and techno, and we are looking forward to welcoming LF System and Interplanetary Criminal, two artists who have recently celebrated chart success after both bagging consecutive UK number ones in the UK Singles Chart. We also have Radio 1’s Danny Howard and Sarah Story, Australian producer Skin On Skin, up-and-coming tech-house artists Biscits, Maur and Sosa, and two of our favourite new producers Anish Kumar and Barry Can’t Swim. Our Fridays vary musically – covering everything from drum and bass and bassline to house, disco, techno and tech house. On the DnB side we welcome Kanine, Hedex, A.M.C and Tsuki. House music will be showcased by Denis Sulta and Ewan McVicar, techno with KETTAMA, tech house with East End Dubs, and local legends Darkzy and Window Kid will be providing some bassline and UK bass music. Plus lots more we are excited to announce soon!

How is it different to what we’ve seen at the club before?

We have moved both of the DJ booths and we now have the upstairs DJ setup central, with the main speaker stacks on either side in the corners of the room. The DJ booth has been lowered, enabling customers to get up-close to the DJs, being accessible on three sides. Additionally, we’ve installed video screens on the back wall behind the DJs, and lots of additional lighting which highlight some of the room’s features, as well as new and improved lasers.

We also have a small additional bar on the side of Room 1, with a new photo booth. In Room 2, we have moved the booth to the other side of the room to expand the dancefloor, stripped the walls back to expose some of the building’s features, installed video screens and lasers, redesigned the bar, and also installed more seating.

musIc RevIews

Abi Moore Apologies and Promises (Single)

Nottingham-based singer-songwriter Abi Moore's latest tune is as stripped back as it comes, with haunting piano numbers and vulnerable vocals mixing perfectly on Apologies and Prom ises to provide one of the most intimate songs I have heard in a very long time. Heartbreaking loss might not be the basis of an upbeat single, but time stands still when you play this track and it's one of my favourite releases of the past few months.

Bassey

Stealth is well-established and you’ve had so many amazing DJs in the past, what’s been your most memorable night at the club? That’s a very difficult question to answer – I think I would have to pick a few. Fatboy Slim was one that stood out for me. He’s an artist who would traditionally headline festivals and arenas all over the world, so to welcome him to our little club in Nottingham was a memorable one.

More recently the atmosphere has been crazy when local legend Bru-C has made a few impromptu appearances at the club, and on a personal level two of my favourite DJ sets have been when I’ve had the opportunity to play before and after Bicep and Peggy Gou.

On a different note, one event that I am reminded of quite regularly is when Stealth hosted a very early Ed Sheeran show. As a venue we pride ourselves on hosting artists before they break through to mainstream success, but unfortunately in this case I think we were a bit early on him, as it only sold two tickets – a fact Ed embarrassingly shared with the whole of Nottingham Arena when he played a sold out show there a few years back!

@stealthnottingham

Sancho Panza SHEIKHDOWN (Single)

Notts outfit Sancho Panza’s brand new single, SHEIKHDOWN, transports you into an alternate realm of sixties rock. With guitar styles reminiscent of classic rock yet still in the world of psychedelic indie music, this track is certainly my favourite to date, and sees them sporting a whole new styledemonstrating their ability to constantly evolve their sound. Make sure to catch them when they head to Rescue Rooms on Friday 4 November! Katie Lyle

Gemma Cockrell

The new layout welcomes customers straight onto the dancefloor, which helps get the party started

A celebration of nearly forty years dedicated to the exploration of abstraction, Marek Tobolewski maintains to immortalise the line with curiosity and an attitude that favours accidents and experiments. The works poised within the old school house in which the Primary studios are located, fittingly, are paintings using for the most part primary colours. A stand-out that shows up in continuum is a bespoke blue blend by Tobolewski reminiscent of cobalt and International Klein Blue. For the artist, colour flows through a procession of negative space — the canvas or linen laid bare to create the tides of the lines themselves, like fissures in the earth — notably without the aid of masking tape. These are Marek Tobolewski’s hand-drawn creations which are made all the more impressive by the patience and precision they require.

The bold blue, yellow and black colours of a triptych, are in their own right singular works that upon closer inspection could almost be the innards of one another, like a Russian doll

As you weave out of Beam’s cafe and into the main exhibition space, finding works in nooks as you go, an extensive granite line smudged across nine birch ply panels takes centre stage. The lightness of the room brings stark contrast to the metallic shine of the ply, as do the block colours that sit in amongst the literature in Beam’s bookshop — creating an optimum live experience for viewing the art as if it were hanging in situ in your own living room or kitchen.

One of his oldest works on show, a yellow oil painting from 2004, sits adjacent to his most recent piece. This careful curation reveals the lineage from asymmetry to symmetry that Tobolewski’s practice has undergone since the early 2000s. Along with this, the contrast between drawings and

paintings takes on a journey as if you are witnessing something private coming together before your eyes. Where the drawings appear as if they are breathing as your eyes follow the strokes, the paintings seem more static. Whether it be an illusion of the oil’s thick layering, the paintings, like a photograph, attempt to capture a singular moment of the drawing’s pulsations before it has gone forever. Susan Sontag on the reactive nature of photography springs to mind: “All photographs are memento mori. To take a photograph is to participate in another person's (or thing's) mortality, vulnerability, mutability.”

Perception is ultimately the most intriguing aspect of Tobolewski’s collection. The bold blue, yellow and black colours of a triptych, are in their own right singular works that upon closer inspection could almost be the innards of one another, like a Russian doll. A black oil on paper painting is evocative of a human torso, and the oblong outlines throughout are remindful of the brain and its matter. Similarly, though lines form the infrastructure of as much the natural world as they do architecture and anatomy — roots, branches and beyond — to me Tobolewski’s work feels more somatic than botanical, with the exception of a red oil painting on linen which is strikingly floral. The only two ink pieces of the exhibition are, by essence of the form, less contained but remain to provoke a Rorschach-like test of individual and irreplicable meaning.

This is also evident in the chosen names of the works displayed. Rather than giving each piece a descriptive title, Tobolewski opts for coded names that speak to the materials and process used. There is no allusion given to what the works might mean to Tobolewski himself, allowing the viewer to make up their own mind without any predetermined ideas.

Indeed, the beauty of abstraction is that the symbolism it generates is endless. The only thing to do is decide for yourselves what these floating works mean to you. Just make sure to form an orderly line when you do.

beameditions.uk

To Learn

Skillshare: Blender Beginnings

Primary

Monday 10 October, 7.30pm

This workshop will provide a flexible introduction to working with objects, materials, animations in Blender, and will be helpful for absolute beginners and those who've used it a few times but got frustrated by the interface.

weareprimary.org

To Do Light-Up Mushroom Workshop Lakeside Arts

Saturday 16 October, 1pm

The Garden of Just Because is an interactive installation inspired by the micro view of a garden and the invisible world underneath the soil. Join Lakeside Arts for a workshop exploring the installation and creating your very own light-up mushroom installation to take away.

lakesidearts.org.uk

To Follow Pete Gray

@bigappetite.illustration

If you’re a regular LeftLion reader, you’ll have noticed the cracking illustrations Pete has come up with, turning some of the weirdest Overheard in Notts quotes into comics. He’s smashed every single one, and we’re a big fan of both his illustration prowess and sense of humour.

Marek Tobolewski: Line is on view at Beam Gallery until Saturday 22 October

Marek Tobolewski’s new exhibition weaves through the Beam Editions Gallery and contemplates the line as the cornerstone from which all life is built, natural or material, and pays homage to the consistent promise of the new…

words: Esme Rose Marsh photos: Marek Tobolewski

cAve DIvINg

Diving into the question, ‘What is a cave?’, Hollow Earth: Art, Caves and The Subterranean Imaginary brings together more than fifty artists to explore the concept throughout 150 pieces of art. From painting, photography, sculpture, sound, installation and video, as well as architectural models, the exhibition promises to take each and every visitor on a path of introspection that you would never think of regarding caves.

At the same time, it leaves an open space for a debate: How important are caves? Were they really the first museums? Through these questions, the concepts of thresholds, darkness and prehistory are explored.

Nottingham is home to over 800 caves beneath its surface, artistically carved into the sandstone bedrock. Different cultures, different religions, different beliefs are enshrined underneath the ground. Some will defend that gods and myths are the ones inhabiting the caves, that it was the house for the first men, that they’re dark and dangerous, or that they tell stories in the walls. But the artworks at the exhibition don’t answer questions; instead, they make you question more, wonder and look for a meaning. It's a trip in the world of art that holds reality and fantasy on a thin line of thought.

One of the enigmas that arises throughout the exhibition is how the human being perceives itself.

Why do we constantly see human faces in the most random and abstract figures? Why do we have the need to encounter what resembles humanity all the time? In the exhibition, in the darkest and most profound artworks, you will find yourself wondering why something as simple as three dots, or a hand-carved wall on a cave, seems so familiar. It is a space for theories and selfdevelopment, because you will either imagine it to your own eye or you will indeed see human faces where you normally wouldn’t.

The first gallery, The Threshold, is the one that can be considered the most evasive, leading the exhibition on a portal into the void. It is rawfrom its materials to the film presented with a background music that can both creep you out and engage you, there is an odd mixture that has a deeper meaning to it.

Those who dare to travel down into the darkness can follow to the third part of the exhibition, The City. Bringing us back to the light, the city interrogates architectural elements, the rational side of what today’s society considers caves as a place of shelter and survival. In there, you will learn and understand how the world is created, from doomsday bunkers to vaults and data farms. There is no space for illusion as the city highlights all the qualities of home, making caves a safe space for creation and development that will eventually bring us to today.

Gallery four presents The Deep, a mutation of brightness and darkness; bringing you to the realisation that the further we go, the less we know. That is a learning experience that belongs deep down in the caves but brings the unburied to life. Through a hologram on a big white wall, there are sculptures, books, mapping; a reflection on myth, ceremony and deep time.

Gallery two, which is divided into two parts, starts with The Wall. Focusing on the first creations in a cave, the wall and ceiling paintings portray a world and tell a story that we will never be able to fully decipher, and are left to one's interpretation. Cave art is a reality of the world, marking presence in each continent apart from Antartica. This gallery alone will take you to Algeria, Egypt, France, Greece, Guyana and Spain.

Continuing through gallery two, you come across The Dark; the name leaves nothing to wonder about, it is as the name says, dark. Do not freak out, though. Darkness can indeed be terrifying and cold, but there’s space for an enjoyable silence. It brings together objects, artworks and music that will guide you to catacombs and solitary rituals to abandoned bodies left to be; the forgotten ones.

The dark is what always haunts us, because it’s the unknown and what we can’t understand, but here you can simply contemplate it.

As the exhibition comes to a close - collecting storytellers and communities of explorers together - you ask yourself, has the exhibition even started? Hollow Earth is the kind of artwork that will investigate a specific object in such depth that you will find different meanings and reasons for its existence. Alongside the artists, members of the public will interpret and be allowed into a spiral of emotions and thoughts after each step through the galleries. No piece is the same, no emotion will be felt the same, and our advice is to let yourself be open to interpretation, go with an open mind to decipher what the meaning of a cave is to you. Allow yourself to explore and be pushed into the world and realities of the artists that share their views and beliefs, where deep past and troubled futures invade the space and invite the curious ones to take a step into the unknown.

The exhibition will take place at Nottingham Contemporary until Sunday 22 January 2023

In the darkest and most profound artworks, you will find yourself wondering why something as simple as three dots, or a hand-carved wall on a cave, seems so familiar

Have you ever thought long and hard about caves (steady…)? If so, you’ll love Hollow Earth: Art, Caves and The Subterranean Imaginary, Nottingham Contemporary’s latest exhibition exploring what goes on beneath the ground - and if not, you might be surprised at just how fascinating they are…

words: Marta Tavares

Until 1947, no one had ever successfully swam the North Channel of the Irish Sea - a 21-mile stretch of icy cold, choppy water between Scotland and Northern Ireland. Then came Tom Blower, the Notts-born gentle giant who could snap six inch nails and lift two people at a time…

As far as nicknames go, you don’t get much better than ‘Torpedo’ Tom Blower. It conjures the perfect image: a solid unit slicing through the water, unmoved by current or cold, cascading ceaselessly toward its objective. Such was the determination of Hyson Green-born Blower – one of Nottingham’s greatest, if less celebrated, sporting figures – that he became the first person to swim the ice-cold 21-mile-stretch of the North Channel in 1947. Despite numerous attempts, it would be 23 years before someone else achieved it again.

If you’d lived in Nottingham before the Second World War, chances are you might have seen Blower powering up and down the Trent, constantly training his huge body to be the best swimmer he could be. His six-foot one-inch frame weighed over eighteen stone, he could hold two people up from his giant outstretched biceps, snap six-inch nails like they were breadsticks and would spend minutes at a time sitting at the bottom of the Trent, looking upward to watch boats pass peacefully overheard. He might sound more Marvel than man, and with good reason – Tom Blower could do what most people couldn’t. His almost superhuman strength made him a swimming colossus, and his name was known around the country as a result.

The stretch of water between Donaghaddee in Northern Ireland and Portpatrick in Scotland spans just shy of 21 miles. It’s an unforgiving expanse: powerful tides swell and at its deepest you could drop almost 200 metres before reaching the bottom. It’s claimed countless lives, and serves as a watery graveyard for dozens, if not hundreds, of ships. Not far from the shortest crossing lies the wreck of The Lusitania, the British cruise liner infamously sunk in 1915, costing over a thousand lives and bringing the United States into the First World War. To longdistance swimmers, it makes the English Channel seem like the swimming pool at your local leisure centre. The average person had no hope of swimming it.

But Tom Blower was anything but your average person. The son of a miner, Blower served in the Royal Navy during World War Two, once diving into the cold waters of the Atlantic to save a survivor of a divebombing raid. In Nottingham, he was known as Uncle Tom – the gentle giant who helped teach disable children how to swim, devoted large chunks of his time to local youth clubs and gave exhibitions of strength and swimming prowess for charity.

Despite his enormous mass, Blower cut through the water like a man half his size. He had the bizarre ability to stand or lay in the water without moving at all and, during his numerous lengthy sea swims, he developed a liking for the trudgen method – a combination of overarm strokes and scissor kicks with his legs.

His first attempt to swim the North Channel of the Irish Sea came in 1947, but ended in failure due to exhaustion. Not Blower’s exhaustion, however, but the exhaustion of the men crewing the boats that accompanied him, who simply did not have the energy needed to handle the water when it became as rough as it did that summer. But the following month, on 27 July 1947, Blower tried again. Kissing his wife goodbye, he promised “I’m not getting out for anybody this time.” He meant it.

predicted perfect weather had been dangerously incorrect, and Blower often disappeared entirely out of view of the one boat, containing his support team and wife, that still accompanied him, such was the size and ferocity of the waves.

His team made the decision to pull Blower out of the water for the sake of his own life, but his wife, heeding his earlier promise, forbade them. The cold and fatigue, coupled with the new challenge of towering waves, were taking their toll. First Blower lost the use of one of his arms, forcing him to switch to a type of lopsided breaststroke for a time. When his arm had righted itself enough, his legs gave way, meaning he now relied solely on his arms to drag his enormous frame through the chopping Atlantic Sea. At one point, Blower swam for four long hours without even making a mile of progress. But he hadn’t come this far to give up and, as the sea began to calm, he saw a sight that meant he must be closer to the shore: fishing boats.

Perfect weather had been forecast for the next fifteen hours, and the red sky shone down on the slimy glass texture of the Atlantic. It was late in the day when Blower took off, accompanied by a parade of vessels, some part of his team, some press and some just wanting to wish him well. As the boats slipped away, it was just Blower and the sea, reigniting the ceaseless struggle of man versus nature, as he beat on against the unforgiving waves. Around his waist he had tied a pair of battered old swimming trunks, tied with a piece of string, which held sentimental value to him. The sea temperature dropped below ten degrees as he battled swathes of clinging seaweed and shoals of fish so thick he had to fight through them as they nibbled at his thrashing feet. One observer who had accompanied the swim by boat was so cold that he had to thaw his feet out by wrapping them in a blanket and putting them in an oven. But for the next eight hours, Blower swam on without complaint.

The next morning saw one of the largest thunderstorms Scotland had ever suffered batter its way through the country. Hard rain fell, lightning struck and hail the size of golf balls pounded down as entire towns were left in darkness, villages were flooded and entire bridges were swept away. The

As he finally reached the shore of Portpatrick, Blower staggered out of the water, his legs betraying the physical thrashing his body had just taken. It had been 15 hours and 26 minutes since he’d last been on land, and it was taking every ounce of the strength he had left just to stand upright. A Scottish policeman shook his hand, and said of his achievement, “You’re the first one to ever do it, lad. And you’ll be the last.”

Back in Nottingham, the Lord Mayor interrupted a city council meeting to tell them of Blower’s success and over the coming days news of his achievement would spread everywhere. Tom Blower was a national hero, and could have comfortably dined out on the achievement for the rest of his days. But that wasn’t who he was, and he continued to make arduous swims, including conquering the English Channel twice, while working as an advertising representative for a cigarette company in Nottingham.

But each of those colossal swimming adventures would eventually take their toll as, in 1955, aged just 41, Blower died from a massive heart attack. The huge heart that had powered his enormous frame through the ice-cold waters of the Atlantic, battling towering waves and currents alike, had simply had enough. But for as short as his life was, Tom Blower achieved more than most could do in three lifetimes. He conquered a part of nature that no one had ever conquered before, and wouldn’t do again for another two decades.

words: Ashley Carter illustration: Ciaran Burrows

Kissing his wife goodbye, he promised “I’m not getting out for anybody this time.” He meant it

SATURDAY 1 OCT

�� Print Fair Contemporary Nottingham Contemporary Free, 10am

�� Dreadzone Rescue Rooms £22.50, 6.30pm

�� The Dualers Rock City £24, 6.30pm

�� Nottingham Confucius Institute: Autumn Charity Concert Lakeside Arts From £7, 6.30pm

�� Saturday Night Comedy

The Glee Club From £10.25, 6.45pm

�� Newark Book Festival - Jon McGregor

The HopBarn From £3, 7pm

�� The Clockworks Rough Trade £13.20, 7pm

SUNDAY 2 OCT

�� Print Fair Contemporary Nottingham Contemporary Free, 11am

�� Seasick Steve Rescue Rooms £20, 7pm

�� Uriah Heep Rock City £30, 7pm

�� Michael Palin: From North Korea Into Iraq Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £35 , 7.30pm

MONDAY 3 OCT

�� Artists’ Film: Selected 12

The Space, Nottingham Contemporary Free, 6.30pm

�� Top Gun Maverick Double Bill Savoy Cinema £5, 7pm

�� The Big Quiz Malt Cross 7.30pm

�� Cirque Du Soul Rock City £11.20, 10pm

TUESDAY 4 OCT

�� The Dangerous Summer Rescue Rooms £13.50, 6.30pm

�� Anthrax Rock City £32.50, 7pm

�� Petrol Girls The Bodega £10, 7pm

FRIDAY 7 OCT

�� Skids Rescue Rooms £25.50, 6.30pm

�� Lemonheads Rock City £22.50, 6.30pm

�� Rich Hall – Shot From Cannons Nottingham Playhouse £19, 7.30pm

MONDAY 10 OCT

OCT

The Fisher King + Introduction Broadway Cinema From £2, 5.30pm

��

�� Oh Wonder: Live + Signing Rough Trade £16.50, 6pm

�� Beabadoobee Rock City £18, 7pm

�� Pinhole Camera Workshop

The National Justice Museum Free, 10am

�� Mayhem Festival 2022 Broadway Cinema From £5, 3pm

�� Dare Rescue Rooms £25, 6.30pm

��

An Evening with Graham Norton Nottingham Playhouse £27, 7.30pm

WEDNESDAY 5 OCT

�� AJR Rock City £23, 6.30pm

��!!! (Chk Chk Chk)

Metronome From £8.25, 7pm

�� Vitality Roses vs Uganda She

Cranes Test Series

Motorpoint Arena Nottingham From £10, 7pm

�� Simon Day The Glee Club £20, 7pm

�� To Earth

The Space, Nottingham Contemporary £2, 7pm

�� Projector The Bodega £8, 7pm

�� Austentatious Nottingham Playhouse £20, 7.30pm

THURSDAY 6 OCT

�� Angelos Epithemiou: Can

Just Show You What

The Glee Club From £12, 7pm

�� Skeggs Metronome £13, 7pm

SATURDAY 8 OCT

�� Notts Book Arts Fair

St Leonards Community Centre Free, 11am

�� Caribbean Community Celebration Day

Primary Free, 1pm

�� Terry Pratchett - A Celebration Waterstones From £3, 2pm

�� London Calling Rescue Rooms £15, 6.30pm

�� Digga D Rock City £20, 6.30pm

�� Nottingham Panthers vs Fife Flyers Motorpoint Arena From £12.40, 7pm

�� LIFE The Bodega £11, 7pm

SUNDAY 9 OCT

�� Dinosaurs and All That Rubbish Lakeside Arts From £7.50, 1pm

�� Desi Central The Glee Club £18, 5pm

�� Courtney Marie Andrews: Live

�� Lovejoy Metronome £12.25, 8pm

TUESDAY 11 OCT

�� James & Clair Buckley: In Conversation + Book Signing Rough Trade £19, 6pm

�� Remote + Introcut Broadway Cinema From £5, 6.15pm

�� False Heads The Bodega £10, 7pm

WEDNESDAY 12 OCT

�� So What Is Climate Change? Nottingham Playhouse Free, 3pm

�� Ryan Hamilton & Warner E Hodges Rescue Rooms £15, 6.30pm

�� Maximo Park Rock City £27.50, 6.30pm

�� Maisie Adam: Buzzed The Glee Club £15, 6.45pm

THURSDAY 13 OCT

�� Pots and Pints

Rough Trade £27.50, 6.30pm

�� Aitch Rock City £32.50, 6.30pm

�� Sinead O’Brien

The Bodega £10, 7pm

�� Let’s Eat Grandma Metronome From £6.75, 7pm

�� Sherlock Holmes and the Sign of Four Nottingham Playhouse £12, 7.45pm

SATURDAY 15 OCT

�� Mayhem Festival 2022 Broadway Cinema From £5, 12pm

�� Ocean Grove The Bodega £11, 7pm

�� Stars of the West End - Kerry Ellis, Louise Dearman and the International Film Orchestra Albert Hall From £22, 7.30pm

�� Bonfire Man Nottingham Playhouse £7, 9.30pm

SUNDAY 16 OCT

�� Mayhem Festival 2022 Broadway Cinema From £5, 12pm

�� Cats In Space Rescue Rooms £20, 6.30pm

An Evening with Aggers & Cook Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall From £27.50, 7.30pm

��

�� The Four Tops and The Temptations

Motorpoint Arena Nottingham From £46, 7.30pm

+ Signing Rough Trade £15.50, 6pm

�� The Amazons Rock City £19.50, 7pm

�� Al Murray: Gig For Victory Nottingham Playhouse £29.50, 7.30pm

�� Mayhem Festival 2022 Broadway Cinema From £5, 7.30pm

�� Jongleurs Legends Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £27.50, 7.30pm

�� The Big Moon: Live + Signing Rough Trade £15.50, 6pm

�� BEKA The Bodega £10, 7pm

�� Harry Hill: Pedigree Fun! Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall

£32.50, 7.30pm

MONDAY 17 OCT

�� October Drift: Live + Signing

Rough Trade £12.50, 6pm

�� Great Minds: Rebecca Salter –Look Closer Metronome Free, 6pm

�� Monster Truck Rock City £20, 7pm

�� Honeyglaze

The Bodega £10, 7pm

�� H.E.A.T

Rescue Rooms £18.50, 7.30pm

�� Go_A Rock City £22.50, 7.30pm

TUESDAY 18 OCT

�� David Price in Conversation

Waterstones

From £4, 6.30pm

�� Peaness

The Bodega £10, 7pm

�� Suzi Ruffell: Snappy The Glee Club £13 - £15, 7pm

�� The Harlem Globetrotters Motorpoint Arena From £22.41, 7.30pm

�� What’s Love Got To Do With It?

Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall

From £22.50, 7.30pm

�� Joseph Toonga, Born to Exist: The Woman I Know Lakeside Arts £16, 7.30pm

�� Burning an Illusion Broadway Cinema £5 - £10, 7.45pm

WEDNESDAY 19 OCT

�� Don’t Mention the Night with David Belbin and Gaffa Five Leaves Bookshop From £6, 7pm

�� Jurassic World - In Concert Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall

From £27.50, 7pm

THURSDAY 20 OCT

�� Cult Film Club Presents: Reservoir Dogs Works Social £10, 6.30pm

�� Nick Helm: What Have We Become?

The Glee Club £15, 6.30pm

�� Hollie Cook Rescue Rooms £17.50, 6.30pm

�� Sunday Piano Series - Anna Tsybuleva Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall £12, 11am

�� Hockley Hustle 2022 Metronome From £9.99, 2pm

�� Samantha Fish Rock City £22.50, 6.30pm

�� Olga Koch: Just Friends

The Glee Club £15, 6.30pm

�� SHEAFS Rescue Rooms £10, 6.30pm

�� Sorry Metronome From £7, 7pm

�� Nottingham Fireworks 2022 Nottingham Racecourse From £2, 5pm

�� Real Lies The Bodega £11, 7pm

�� Detonate Halloween: In The Arena

Motorpoint Arena Nottingham From £33.14, 8pm

The Rock Orchestra by Candlelight Rock City £32.25, 6.30pm

��

�� Sugababes Motorpoint Arena £47.70, 7pm

�� The Story of Lovers Rock Broadway Cinema From £5, 7.45pm

FRIDAY 21 OCT

�� The Snuts Rock City £17.50, 6.30pm

�� Girls In Synthesis

The Bodega £10, 7pm

�� Friday Night Comedy

The Glee Club From £8 , 7pm

�� Wargasm Rescue Rooms £19, 7pm

SATURDAY 22 OCT

�� Family Outdoor Workshop Lakeside Arts £4, 10am

�� Condemned: A Halloween Special The National Justice Museum £15, 6pm

�� The Wombats Rock City £27.50, 6.30pm

�� Nottingham Panthers vs Sheffield Steelers Motorpoint Arena From £10.40, 7pm

��

Saturday Night Comedy

The Glee Club From £10.25, 6.45pm

�� Sean Mcloughlin: So Be It The Glee Club £15, 7pm

�� Sea Power Rescue Rooms £19.50, 7.30pm

�� The Drifters Motorpoint Arena £35.84, 7.30pm

�� Coffy + Introduction from Kim Thompson Broadway Cinema From £5, 7.45pm

MONDAY 24 OCT

�� Hugh Cornwell: Live + Signing Rough Trade £12.50, 6pm

�� Spontaneous Potter The Glee Club From £10, 6.15pm

�� Porridge Radio Metronome £13.50, 7pm

�� Kyla La Grange The Bodega £10, 7pm

TUESDAY 25 OCT

�� Rags to Riches Recycle Challenge Lakeside Arts £8, 10am

�� Cellar Darling Rescue Rooms £12.50, 6.30pm

�� Spontaneous Sherlock The Glee Club £10, 6.45pm

�� Skid Row Rock City £27, 7pm

�� Acoustickle Peggy’s Skylight From £8, 7pm

�� Nottingham Panthers vs Glasgow Clan Motorpoint Arena Nottingham From £12.40, 7.30pm

�� Canalhouse Comedy Night Canalhouse £2, 7.30pm

�� NQAC Birthday Cabaret Nottingham Playhouse £5, 8pm

THURSDAY 27 OCT

�� Black Victorians: Hidden In History Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall Free, 1pm

�� Jyoty Rescue Rooms £15, 7pm

�� Dystopian Future Movies The Bodega £9, 7pm

�� Manchester Collective: Arcadiana Lakeside Arts £20, 7.30pm

FRIDAY 28 OCT

�� Cradle of Filth Rock City £28, 6.30pm

�� Divorce The Bodega £8, 7pm

�� Hocus Pocus In Concert Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall From £32, 7.30pm

�� Bob Dylan Motorpoint Arena Nottingham From £75.95, 8pm

�� 24, 23, 22 Nottingham Playhouse £12, 8pm

�� Gladrags: The Fright Zone Rough Trade £10, 8pm

�� The Lost Boys - 35th Anniversary Broadway Cinema From £5, 8.30pm

SUNDAY 30 OCT

�� Tom Odell: Live + Signing Rough Trade £16.50, 12pm

�� The Rasmus Rock City £22.50, 7pm

�� Ladysmith Black Mambazo Theatre Royal and Royal Concert Hall From £27.50, 7.30pm

�� Ganja & Hess Broadway Cinema From £5, 7.30pm

MONDAY 31 OCT

�� Enter Shikari & Luke Morton: In Conversation + Book Signing Rough Trade £29.50, 6pm

�� The Wytches The Bodega £15, 7pm

�� The Big Quiz Malt Cross 7.30pm

�� The Thing Savoy Cinema From £5, 8.30pm

FOR THE FULL RUNDOWN, VISIT LEFTLION.CO.UK/LISTINGS

BEST OF OCTOBER

Goose Fair

When: Friday 30 SeptemberSunday 9 October

Where: Forest Recreation Ground

How much: Free Entry

Mushy peas with mint sauce, a mass of candy floss and enough rides to make you feel well and truly sick - these are just a few of the things that Goose Fair offers. Returning this year after a COVIDsized break, the fair promises to be bigger and better than ever, running for a full ten days instead of the usual five. Having taken place for over 700 years in one form or another, it’s an essential visit.

Nottdance

When: Wednesday 5 OctoberSaturday 29 October

Where: Multiple Venues

How much: Various Prices

Bringing dance to the city and beyond, Nottdance are hosting a month-long festival during October. Boasting events that include both workshops and performances, you can enjoy pieces such as The Nutcracker, Dog Rising and It Begins in Darkness, alongside classes on physical connection, transformation and much more. Tickets for each event are sold on the Nottdance site.

Whisky Stain

When: Thursday 13 October, 7pm

Where: Rock City

How much: £8.40

Self-described as southern stomp rock, you can catch Whisky Stain at Rock City this month, supported by Koi Callisto and Echo James. Ever grungy, the two-piece band promise bluesy riffs, punch drums and, of course, their usual energetic live performance. Having recently played at festivals including the Newark Music Festival and Deerstock, the eight-year-strong Nottingham-based band are sure to get you dancing.

Oktoberfest

When: Friday 14 OctoberSaturday 16 October and Friday 21 October - Saturday 22 October

Where: The Garage Chilwell How much: £17.50

Boasting official Oktoberfest pilsner beer and traditional German food including Bratwurst and Currywurst, Oktoberfest is returning to The Garage in Chilwell this month. Also featuring a live (and very interactive) Oompah band, you can look forward to an immersive time that will transport you to Munich for the evening.

Don’t Mention the Night Launch

When: Wednesday 19 October, 7pm

Where: Metronome How much: £6

Drawing on 44 years of interviews, David Belbin is launching his new book Don’t Mention the Night at Metronome this month. Telling the story of the Nottingham music scene in the 1970s, you can expect to come across familiar names including Nick Drake, Gaffa and Kevin Coyle. Now join Belbin as he’s interviewed by John Holmes, with a special performance from Gaffa rounding out the night.

Nottingham Coffee Festival

When: Saturday 22 October, 9am

Where: St Mary’s Church

How much: To be Announced

Whether you’re a coffee purist or an iced frappe lover, it’s hard to deny that Nottingham has a thriving cafe culture, with a bevy of independent coffee shops filling up our high streets. That’s why it’s so exciting that Nottingham’s first-ever coffee festival is being launched this month at St Mary’s Church. Featuring local legends including Outpost Coffee, North Star Roasters, 200 Degrees and more, we’re very excited.

Hockley Hustle

When: Sunday 23 October

Where: Hockley (Assorted Venues)

How much: From £11

Hockley Hustle is back! Representing the very best of Nottingham’s music culture and celebrating the Hockley area, the Hustle is a festival run by and for the community, with proceeds going to five important charities. Taking place across more than thirty venues, expect to hear sets across all genres from your local favourites, alongside those travelling from further afield. Make sure you grab your tickets early!

The Thing

When: Monday 31 October, 8.30pm

Where: The Savoy

How much: £6.95

Thanks to a collaboration between The Loft Movie Theatre and Straight to Video, you can look forward to seeing John Carpenter's classic horror film The Thing at the Savoy Cinema this Halloween. Just in time for its 44-year anniversary, you can catch the frightening story in impressive 4K, surrounded by fellow film lovers. Like all of Carpenter’s movies, expect a tense atmosphere, plenty of (slightly dated) practical effects and a stunning score.