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FRIDAY 23 SEPTEMBER 2011, 7PM AT ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL
CINEMA IN THE NAVE presents
WHISTLE DOWN THEWhistle WIND Cinema in the Nave presents
Down the
On 23rd September we are pleased to present a viewing in the Cathedral Nave of Richard Attenborough’s classic film “Whistle Down the Wind” made in 1961 and starring Hayley Mills, Bernard Lee and Alan Bates.
Wind
On 23rd September we are pleased to present a viewing in the Cathedral Nave of Richard Attenborough’s classic film “Whistle Down the Wind” made in 1961 and starring Hayley Mills, Bernard Lee and Alan Bates.
The plot follows the lives of three children who discover a fugitive The plot follows the lives of three children who discover a fugitive hiding in their barn. The bearded man, The referred to as “Blakey” the Police,to is mistaken for by the hiding in their barn. bearded man,byreferred as “Blakey” Jesus by the children. The fugitive makes no attempt to correct their mistake, especially when he discovers the eldest child, Kathy, is determined to protect Police, is mistaken for Jesus by the children. The fugitive makes no him from discovery by the local Police. attempt to correct theirthemistake, especially discovers the This is a film showing how children’s innocent faith when contrastshe with the pragmatic and suspicious adults in the town. Lots of parallels are to be found, eldest child, Kathy, determined to protect him from discovery by from the stable and theisshepherds, to the disciples and “Peter’s denial”. the local Police. Friday 23 September 2011, 7pm
at Rochester Cathedral This is a film showing how the children’s innocent faith contrasts with the pragmatic and suspicious adults in the town. Lots of Doors: 7pm £8 per adult (concs £7) Complimentary drink available parallels are to be found, from the stable and the shepherds, to the Introduction: 7.30pm For tickets please contact disciples and “Peter’s denial”. Film starts: 7.40pm Email development@rochestercathedral.org Running time: 99 minutes
www.theothercinema.info www.theothercinema.info
Doors: 7pm Complimentary drink available Introduction: 7.30pm By local film critic Nick Walker Film starts: 7.40pm Running time: 99 minutes £8 per adult (concs £7) For tickets please contact the Development Office on 01634 810074 or Email: development@rochestercathedral.org
Contributors Sam Froudist is a writer, blogger, and Bunting Enthusiast. Hailing from the Colonies (Australia), she’s a fresh Medway resident and has recently co-launched bunted!, a small bespoke bunting business in Rochester. Sam loves watching great theatre, getting overly passionate about things, and feeling so bourgeois that she has to throw red wine all over herself. Contact Sam at goodbyesamantha@gmail.com
Cover photograph of Bill Lewis by Emma Dewhurst Photograph of the Editor by Peter Still
Nick Walker is an events director, film critic and filmmaker. His flagship Medway project, The Other Cinema, is a weekly event held every Thursday at the Chatham Odeon. Following this Nick set up the Screen Classics programme at the Central Theatre, Chatham. He also writes, directs and produces short films and is the editor of Film Essay, for cinéastes wanting to write about film culture. Nick has worked for The Guardian and the London Film Festival. Currently he is Events Director at Film Education and Director of National Schools Film Week.
Contact us EDITORIAL: editor@wowmedway.co.uk FREE LISTINGS: listings@wowmedway.co.uk ADVERTISING: sales@wowmedway.co.uk 0845 388 2243 (local rate from BT landlines) DESIGN: A Stone’s Throw www.astonesthrowdesign.co.uk WEBSITE: Sue Davis Web Design & Consultancy, www.sue-davis.net
PRINTING: PB Group Sittingbourne, 01795 413880, www.pbgroup.co.uk
Works by graduates, students and alumni of UCA (University for the Creative Arts). UCA have opened a Pop-Up Gallery at the Pentagon Centre, Chatham, upstairs, showing a wide variety of work in different mediums. Open Monday, Wednesday & Saturday 10am-6pm (See The Artist’s Space)
WELCOME This month we have featured the long-neglected Medway painter and poet, Bill Lewis, who is holding an exhibition of new works at The Deaf Cat café. Also, I’m excited to announce that we will launching a new book of Lewis’s poetry next month. Watch this space! I am slowly working on expanding the magazine, and before long hope to have even more listings sections and more great editorial from guest contributors. Get in touch if you’d like to be part of a Focus Group to talk about the shape of things to come – and happy reading. Emma Dewhurst
Directory at www.wowmedway. co.uk Copy/listings deadline for October issue: 20 Septermber ©WOW Medway magazine. All rights reserved. Whilst PUBLISHER: Emma Dewhurst every effort has been made Distributed locally to Medway to ensure that details in this households and public pick-up publication are accurate, we points throughout the Medway cannot accept responsibility for towns. Current print circulation: such. Readers are advised to 3000 copies. check listings information to avoid disappointment. Views Great introductory ad rates expressed by contributors and available to all first time advertisers do not necessarily advertisers. All advertisers reflect those of the editor and also featured in e-edition of the magazine and in our online publisher.
Please mention WOW Medway if you use our advertisers’ services or attend an event you found in our listings
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@EmmaDewhurst7 WOW Medway is printed on 100% recycled paper
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Saturday 19th November
Vintage & retro clothing & accessories Vintage Style Tea Room & live entertainment It doesn’t get much better !
Old Town Hall
AUTUMN OPENING
High Street Gravesend DA11 0AZ 11am - 4pm Admission a snip at only £2.00 includes prize draw entry
time Swing rts ea Sweeth
www.monicasvintagefair.com
07531079241
The new Marlowe Theatre opens its doors at last this autumn, with a rollicking first season. The new building, designed by award-winning architect Keith Williams, has increased the seating capacity of the larger auditorium to enable it to take even the biggest touring productions. The Marlowe Studio is an intimate 150-seater performing space designed to be at the heart of the theatre and its community, with retractable seating for creative workshops and music gigs. Fully accessible, with no less than three bars and The Riverside restaurant thrown in, this new build has seriously upped the theatre’s game. Pick of the new season includes Pocket Comedy, the wonderful Pocket Propeller version of The Comedy of Errors, perfect for children; Theatre Royal Bath Productions’ The Madness of George III starring David Haig and Richard Alston’s Dance Company. newmarlowetheatre.org.uk
HERITAGE OPEN DAYS 8-11 SEPT Heritage Open Days celebrates England’s architecture and culture by allowing visitors free access to interesting properties that are either not usually open, or would normally charge an entrance fee. Among the many Kent-wide properties opening are Bridge Chapel and Bridge Chamber, Rochester and Stoneacre in Maidstone. heritageopendays.org.uk
IN BRIEF CANTERBURY ANIFEST is the South East’s only annual animation festival. The Festival includes workshops, family friendly-events and young people awards. 30 Sept-2 Oct canterburyanifest.com RECOLLECT MUSIC FAIRS (Records, CDs, DVDs and memorabilia) at Rainham Mark Social Club on Sun 18 Sept (9.30am-3.30pm) admission £1 and at Rochester Corn Exchange on Sun 25 Sept (10-4pm) admission free
LATE AND LOCAL IS HERE! At last! Late-night shopping on Rochester High Street! The scheme was initiated by Hometown owner Marion Haslam, who has encouraged some of the High Street’s most enticing independent shops, including Nucleus Medway, Capture the Castle and Baggins Bazaar, to stay open until 8pm on the last Wednesday of every month, with many of the shops running special offers and events.
VE I T EATING R C RI W Highly respected local writer and WOW Medway contributor Philip Kane is the tutor for two new Adult Education courses to be held at the Rochester Centre, Eastgate ME1 1EW beginning in September: CREATIVE WRITING FOR BEGINNERS (course code R09100111A) is on Tuesday afternoons from 1.30pm-3pm, and begins on Tuesday 20 September. 12 sessions for £68.50 CREATIVE WRITING (course code R09100011A) is a more intensive course on Monday evenings from 7pm till 9pm, and begins on Monday 19th September. 25 sessions for £172 Tel: 01634 338400 for more information. Fee concessions available. THE REGENERATE (theregenerate.wordpress. com) Phil Kane is also the driving force behind this online journal of words and images by Medway, a new site looking for regular contributors of articles, essays, poetry and short fiction as well as photos and other visual art - anything, ‘as long as it has a connection to that strange landscape known as the Medway Towns’. THE MEDWAY BROADSIDE (themedway broadside.com) In print and online, the area’s only truly independent broadsheet. The Broadside welcomes contributions – see their website for writers’ guidelines. ME4 Writers (me4Writers.wordpress.com) A group of practising writers run by Sam Hall, currently welcoming submissions for Letters Home, an on-going project culminating in an event and exhibition next year. Write a letter to the place you call home: this could take the format of a postcard, a letter, a drawing, video or audio track. (Max 1000 words; no minimum). Email: ME4writers@gmail.com
OCTOBER 27th Afternoon
Vintage Tea Party Free Event by Pre Booking Only OCTOBER 31st 7-11pm
Rocky Horror Themed Halloween Party Tickets £15.00 per person Disco with Buffet included NOVEMBER 2nd 7-11pm
Swing Night
Tickets £15.00 per person Live Band, Buffet included DECEMBER 10th, 14th, 15th, 16th, 21st, 22nd, 23rd 7-11pm
Masquerade Ball
Tickets Wed/Thurs £30.00 Fri/Sat £40.00 per person (min Tables of 10) Includes 3 Course Meal and Disco 31ST DECEMBER 7-1am
New Years Eve Masquerade Party
Tickets £45.00 per person Includes; Buffet, Free Arrival Drink, Disco
Tickets available from Barbutis 01474 550030 Old Town Hall 01474 550023
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Estella’s Legacy Presented by The User Friendly Theatre Company
A musical sequel to Great Expectations Words and music by Clare Graydon-James with Anne Graydon as Estella.
The story of Estella's hopes and fears for the future
EXPECTATIONS Sky Sports and ESPN ALL LIVE MATCHES SHOWING Saturdays, Sundays and Weekdays Every Friday and Saturday night: KARAOKE WITH CHARLIE DRIVER & MICHAEL 8.30pm to close
Eastgate House, Rochester Wednesday, 14 September, 2.30pm £6 Booking essential
01634 332714
15 HIGH STREET, ROCHESTER ME1 1PY Tel: 01634 848182 www.facebook.com/medwayarchives
GOURMET GRUB Sam Froudist makes a Chatham café find
Tucked away on Railway Street (opposite the Prince of Wales Pub) Gourmet Grub is an unassuming little café with tasty food, right in the centre of Chatham They offer a wide range of ‘grub’ as it were, from breakfasts to gourmet sandwiches and an eclectic offering of hot food. My visit was during a weekday lunch break, and I decided on a chicken, mozzarella and pesto panini and a pot of tea (I must be going native, my intake of tea since coming to the UK has been outrageous). After ordering, but not paying, they told me to take a seat, which I thought was unusual these days, but decidedly pleasant, as I got to perch attractively in their sunny garden terrace, rather than mooching about near the counter looking hungry. The only fault I could find was the time it took for my food to arrive. It’s a pet peeve of mine, so I can’t deny that I was clock-watching, and on reading their take home menu, they do recommend ringing to pre-order food during peak times (they shut around two, so I’m guessing anything from 11:30 is a peak time!). I’m quite open to that idea myself – it’s got something of the VIP about it - I just wish I’d known beforehand. The panini was tasty with obviously straight-from-the-grill freshness, and cheap too, my lunch coming in at under a fiver. I can’t begrudge the delay too much, though, because what it tells me is that I’m not the only one who fancies a bit of Gourmet Grub for lunch!
6 Railway Street, Chatham ME4 4JL 01634 409181 Wow MEDWAY 7
FILM l MAIDSTONE FILM SOCIETY Hazlitt Theatre, Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PL 01622 753922
MFS’ 63rd season starts this month. Showing a diverse range of world cinema from classics to contemporary greats, a collection of twelve films run from September to April with screenings on Monday evenings at 8pm. Licensed bar. Special fixed rate parking in Fremlin Walk Shopping Centre after 7pm. Subscription rates for all 12 films: Adult £24; Couples Membership £42; Senior/Student £19; Guest per film £3.50. Concs available maidstone-film-society.org.uk
MADE IN DAGENHAM (15) 2010 Mon 26 Sep, 8pm Dir: Nigel Cole Cast: Sally Hawkins, Bob Hoskins, Andrea Riseborough Dramatization of 1968 strike against sexual discrimination at the Ford Dagenham car plant. 115 mins
JULIA’S EYES (15) 2010 Thu 15 Sep, 7.45pm Dir: Guillem Morales Cast: Guillem Morales, Oriol Paulo Thriller about a woman who is losing her sight investigating the mysterious death of her twin sister. ‘Thoughtful, creepy and effective’ - The Guardian. 112 mins
A weekly showcase of quality films from around the world, with a post-show discussion led by Nick Walker over a free glass of wine. £8.25/£6.25. theothercinema.info WIN WIN (15) 2011 Thu 8 Sep, 7.45pm Dir: Thomas McCarthy Cast: Paul Giomati Comedy drama about a struggling lawyer and part-time wrestling coach (Giomati). 106 mins
The Central Theatre, 170 High Street, Chatham ME4 4AS 01634 338 301
A big-screen celebration of cinema classics introduced by programmer Nick Walker. £6/£5 (booked online). Students £3.50. See four Screen Classics and get a fifth free. medway.gov.uk/ theatrebookings
THE MESSENGER (15) 2009 Thu 22 Sep, 7.45pm Dir: Oren Moverman Cast: Ben Foster, Woody Harrelson An American soldier struggles with an ethical dilemma when he becomes involved with a widow of a fallen officer. 113 mins
THE CONSPIRATOR (12A) 2010 Thu 29 Sep, 7.45pm Dir: Robert Redford Cast: James McAvoy, Robin Wright, Kevin Kline, Tom Wilkinson Mary Surratt, the lone female charged as co-conspirator in the assassination trial of Abraham Lincoln, is forced to rely on her reluctant lawyer to uncover the truth and save her life. 122 mins
l THE OTHER CINEMA
Chatham Odeon Cinema, Maritime ME4 4LL 0871 22 44 007
l SCREEN CLASSICS
THE OTHER CINEMA PRESENTS CINEMA IN THE NAVE
Rochester Cathedral, The Precinct Rochester, ME1 1SX 01634 810074
Tickets £8/£7 includes glass of wine WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND (U) 1961 Mon 23 Sep, 7.30pm (Doors open 7pm) Dir: Bryan Forbes Cast: Alan Bates, Hayley Mills See Nick Walker’s column opposite. 99 mins
TOP HAT (U) 1935 Mon 12 Sep, 7.30pm Dir: Mark Sandrich Cast: Fred Astaire, Ginger Rogers Utterly enchanting screwball musical comedy with astonishing dancing to the songs of Irving Berlin. A must-see. 101 mins BEST OF GENERAL RELEASES WEEKENDER (15) Gritty account of the early days of rave culture, with matching soundtrack. Rel 2 Sep JANE EYRE (PG) Bold new adaptation directed by Cary Fukunaga. Rel 9 Sep TINKER TAILOR SOLDIER SPY (Cert tbc) Classy adaptation of John le Carré’s bestseller with Gary Oldman and Colin Firth. Rel 16 Sep CRAZY, STUPID, LOVE (12A) Romantic comedy starring Steve Carell. Rel 23 Sep MELANCHOLIA (15) Director Lars von Trier described this as “a beautiful movie about the end of the world”. Kirsten Dunst stars. Rel 30 Sep
Following on from last year’s successful inaugural Cinema in the Nave event, when local Rochester cineastes were treated to Michael Powell & Emeric Pressburger’s ‘A Canterbury Tale’, cinema fans are this year looking forward to the 1961 classic ‘Whistle Down the Wind’. The film will again be screened in the Nave of Rochester Cathedral, which in itself is an amazing setting in which to watch a live performance: a setting which really lends itself to seeing something with a spiritual sensibility.
WHISTLE DOWN THE WIND
Set in a grim Lancashire farm community, three impressionable kids find an injured fugitive from justice named Arthur Blakey sleeping in their barn. Upon being woken by the children, the bearded criminal takes one look at them and exclaims: “Jesus Christ!” In their innocence they assume he is Jesus due to their sturdy religious upbringing and try to help him. ‘Whistle Down the Wind’ was directed by Bryan Forbes and produced by Richard Attenborough and stars the wonderful Alan Bates and the equally impressive Hayley Mills. Mills’ open face and honest eyes are persuasive, but she really needs the thick coat and bulky scarf she wears throughout the narrative and most of the other children in the cast are half as tall as she is. Hayley’s real life mother, Mary Hayley Bell (who was married to actor John Mills for more than 64 years), wrote the play on which the film was based. This is a film showing how the children’s innocent faith contrasts with the pragmatic and suspicious adults in the town. Lots of parallels are to be found, from the stable and the shepherds, to the disciples and “Peter’s denial”. Canon Phil Hesketh, Acting Dean of Rochester suggests that, “This classic British film from the 1960’s with Alan Bates in his first film is heavy in Christian symbolism. It continues to delight and challenge us in equal measure.” All in all this sort of event is just what cinema was invented for. The beautiful non-cinema setting is similar to early cinema screenings when theatres were utilised to show films. Its grand location is perfect for a film such as ‘Whistle Down the Wind’, and hopefully this event will attract real cinema fans.
The film will screen at Rochester Cathedral on 23rd September with doors open at 7pm. A complimentary drink will be included in the ticket price of £8 (£7 concession). Nick Walker will introduce the film at 7.30pm, with the film starting at 7.45pm. For tickets please contact the Cathedral Development Office on 01634 810074 or email development@rochestercathedral.org www.theothercinema.info Wow MEDWAY 9
PAINTER, POET, MYTHOGRAPHER: BILL LEWIS IS NO ORDINARY MAN: TRUE TO HIS MÉTIER, HIS LIFE STORY IS MYTHIC IN ITS OWN RIGHT
BILL LEWIS EMMA DEWHURST went to meet the artist on the eve of an exhibition of new works at The Deaf Cat Café William Edward Lewis was born in the early Fifties in the village of Barming, near Maidstone. The world was in recovery from the war and Barming was then a small, rural place. An only child, he has very little collective memory about his family, either imparted or gathered after the facts. “Someone once asked me why my stories are so strange and I said ‘because both my parents are fictitious’. As soon as I said that I realized it was true, because I couldn’t rely on anything they told me, or told each other.” The few facts Lewis does possess make fascinating reading. His father was a farm labourer, significantly older than Lewis’s mother (“He was the same age as my friends’ grandparents”). He spoke Romany, had an olive skin and a violent aversion to having his picture taken. Lewis remembers him pinning a hapless seaside photographer against a wall in Folkestone for attempting to take a snap and, years later, he attacked Lewis himself for the same. Also working class, his mother appears to have been even more elusive than his father. Lewis never knew her age and to this day is unsure of her real name: “She changed it to suit herself,” he says. Lewis does know that
her father drove a horse and cart which ferried beer, that she herself went into service as a housemaid and that she gave birth to her son two months prematurely. At that time his parents were living in an Anderson shelter in the middle of an orchard. The baby Lewis was placed in a manger (“Probably where I get my delusions of grandeur,” he remarks.) It was an “untamed childhood”. Together with his childhood friend Rob Earl, who would much later join Lewis as one of the original Medway Poets, he would wander the countryside from dawn til dusk. Lewis left school at fifteen with no qualifications and worked at various manual jobs, from warehouse man to apple picker to cleaner. But by his mid twenties an overwhelming desire to be an artist created an unbearable tension which resulted in a nervous breakdown. “I see it as a good thing that turned everything around,” Lewis says. After a spell in psychiatric hospital and rehabilitation, and against his parents’ wishes, Lewis applied for the Foundation Year at the then Medway College of Art and Design, which admitted him on the basis of a portfolio. There he met fellow artists Billy Childish and Philip Absolon, both of whom were influential.
Women Cooking Maize, Masaya, Nicaragua.
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The Medway Poets became an entity soon after Lewis left the College. Initially just Lewis and Childish, they were joined by Sexton Ming, Rob Earl and Charles Thomson. It was Lewis who christened the group – they needed a name for readings and no one could agree, possibly for the same reason that the group disbanded five years later: “There isn’t a room big enough for us all to be in at the same time.” They are remembered to this day. “We actually started this whole Medway Scene,” Lewis says. “We punched a hole in the wall for everything to go through – that and the fact that Billy Childish was doing his music at the same time.” I ask Lewis which he considers himself to be foremost, painter or poet. He claims poet, although admits that “sometimes when I can’t say what I want to say in words, the brushes come out.” His paintings are full of fantastical imagery, stunning colour and dreamlike figures. They are redolent of the works of Marc Chagall or Frieda Kahlo, with more than a touch of magic realism. Indeed, reading Gabriel García Márquez’ One Hundred Years of Solitude in the 80s gave his work a whole new direction. By this time he was married to Ann (“the best thing I ever did”). Together they went to Nicaragua at the height of the Civil War and a lifelong love of all things Latin American was born. Lewis spent most of the 90s touring America giving readings, leading storytelling sessions and continuing his remarkable self-education. He met and learnt from some of the leading intellectuals and literary figures of the day: among them Argentine writer Alicia Partnoy; poet and novelist Claribel Alegria, who became a life long friend and with whom Lewis performed his work both in Nicaragua and the USA; Sandy Taylor of the highly respected independent Curbstone Press and poet Carlos Rigby.
Says Lewis: “When I was thirteen I had a bad dream that I was going to die. I still believed in God then, so I said to God: ‘I’m not going to die until I finish reading’, so I have chain-read books ever after. From thirteen to fifty-eight I have read one book ‘lit’ from another, so that silly superstition helped my education.” Dovetailing with feeling burnt out by the US tours, Charles Thomson asked Lewis to join the Stuckists group at the end of the 90s. Founded by Thomson and Billy Childish, Stuckism has since become an international art movement. “At the time a lot of the Brit artists were doing things to get noticed, and we felt that was dishonest,” he says. “We were against art as an exercise in formulism. We believed that authenticity was more important than originality.” As a Stuckist Lewis’s work was exhibited London, Paris and Berlin. Today the artist sides with the Remodernist movement, inclining towards a spirituality in his art. “A lot of my work is about the exile from one part of the personality from another… I think I have finally managed to make sense of my shadow. A lot of my paintings are like a magic mirror that I hold up and see something of myself in them that I didn’t know about before.” I ask him if he thinks that is something that art does for artists. “It does it for artists - but if it’s good enough it does it for others as well.” Bill Lewis is exhibiting new works at The Deaf Cat café from 5-18 September WOW Medway will be publishing a book of his poetry in the Autumn. For more information email the Editor. www.billlewis-art.co.uk
VISUAL ART l ROCHESTER ART GALLERY & CRAFT CASE
Medway Visitor Information Centre, 95 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 338319 Mon-Sat 10am-5pm,
Sun 10.30am-5pm Free
PREVIEW: NOTHING IN THE WORLD BUT YOUTH 17 Sept-8 Jan 2012 The second major exhibition from Turner Contemporary focuses on youth experience and how it has been reflected in art, culture and the media since the late nineteenth century. As with the inaugural exhibition, Margate remains the inspiration and subject of much of the work, which will also consider what it means to be a teenager, and society’s ambivalent views of its own young people. The artist list is impressive and includes Peter Blake; Diane Arbus; David Hockney and Andy Warhol. In an interesting coupling, a number of Turner’s works, created during his youth, will be displayed. (There will be a review of this exhibition in the October issue of WOW Medway). turnercontemporary.org l THE DEAF CAT COFFEE BAR & GALLERY
83 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX Open all week 9.30am-5pm
To 4 Sept WEST END STUDIOS Six experienced local artists 5-18 Sep BILL LEWIS See this month’s main feature 19 Sep-2 Oct TAMWORTH ARTISTS Free thedeafcat.com l FRANCIS ILES GALLERIES
Rutland House, 103 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 843081
MICHAEL CHAPLIN RWS Kent artist, winner of the Turner Colour award 2011. From 3 Sep Free frances-iles.com
l NO.1 SMITHERY: The Gallery The Historic Dockyard Chatham, ME4 4TZ 01634 823800
TITANIC HONOUR AND GLORY To 30 Sep. Adults £15.50, Children £10.50, Conc £13.00, Family £42.50 Ticket gives unlimited returns to No.1 Smithery: The Gallery and all other Historic Dockyard attractions for one year. thedockyard.co.uk l NUCLEUS GALLERY
272 High Street, Chatham ME4 4BP 01634 812108
Gallery opening hours 10-5pm Free
SEDIMENTAL To 11 Nov A journey of (re)discovery for artist Stephen Turner which includes an exhibition, workshop and public events inspired by the estuary of the River Medway. The Craft Case will be showcasing an archival display of selected works and objects by the artist. MVO8 unveiling Thu 22 Sep, Light Vessel 21, Gillingham Pier A surveillance-inspired installation with footage from Moonview, a 2008 commission by NKLAP. Graduate artists from UCA will debut their short films inspired by Sedimental. Also on 25 Sep 11am4pm Email arts@medway.gov.uk l ROSE YARD WINDOW GALLERY Earl Street, Maidstone ME14 1PL
THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS Window displaying work by local artists, changing monthly. This month features MVAN artists Ruth Hornden, Jenny Fairweather and Diane Sergeant. Free 3-15 Sep DIFFERENT LIGHT – STEPHEN THOMAS GREEN A personal photographic take on Medway. Preview/meet the artist: Fri 2 Sep, 6-8pm. All welcome 17-29 Sep ROY SPARKES – RECENT PAINTINGS 2000-2011 Investigations in colour, texture and tone. Preview/ meet the artist: Fri 16 Sep, 6-8pm. All welcome nucleus-arts.com
l UCA POP-UP GALLERY
Unit 67, Upstairs at Pentagon Centre, Chatham
FALSE REALITIES Mon, Wed and Sat 10am-6pm. Featuring ceramics by Christina Lai and work by other UCA artists. See this month’s The Artist’s Space
l NUCLEUS MEDWAY
75 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 780932
Tue-Sat 10am-5pm, Sun 11am-5pm. Closed Mondays Kent-made work for sale: eclectic mix of paintings, ceramics, cards and more. Wow MEDWAY 13
MUSIC MEDWAY TICKETS LIVE: New booking website now live medwayticketslive.co.uk l DICKENS WORLD BRITANNIA THEATRE Leviathan Way, Chatham Maritime, ME4 4LL 01634 890421
MARITIME JAZZ FESTIVAL 22–25 Sep Some top musicians, including Trudy Kerr, Ray Gelato and Blew Tubes Full Blast big band, descend on the Britannia Theatre for this classy annual jazz fest. Workshops for all ages and abilities. Further performances at Ramada Hotel, Historic Dockyard and Simply Italian. From £11, All Days Festival Pass £27 maritimejazzfestival.co.uk l THE GORDON HOTEL 91 High Street, Rochester ME1 1LX 01634 831000 (hotel)
The Rochester Swing Preservation Society presents MUSIC FROM THE SWING ERA AND THE GREAT ‘AMERICAN SONGBOOK’ Fri 30 Sep, 8.30pm This terrific evening’s entertainment organised by Donn Barcott has a guest vocalist every month. Enquiries 01634 405037 l THE MUSIC ROOM, PIZZA EXPRESS MAIDSTONE 32 Earl Street, ME14 1PF 01622 683548
l THE BROOK THEATRE
Old Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4SE 01634 338338
FOLK AT THE BROOK: ANDY CUTTING Thu 22 Sept 8pm Winner of BBC Radio 2 Folk Award Best Musician 2008 and 2010. £10 HELP FOR HEROES AND FORCES CHILDREN’S TRUST CHARITY CONCERT Sun 25 Sept, 7.30pm Comedy, music and dance to raise money for wounded soldiers and the children of servicemen and women. Shane Hampshire and friends star. £10 MEDWAY SCHOOLS’ WIND BAND CONCERT Wed 28 Sep, 7pm Students from Medway secondary schools performing traditional wind band music and popular show tunes. £4 l THE CENTRAL THEATRE 170 High Street, Chatham, ME4 4AS 01634 338338
Medway Folk Cellar presents EWAN McLENNAN Tue 6 Sep, 8pm plus support from Skinners Rats. McLennan combines folk songs from Britain and further afield, with an emph- asis on his Scottish roots. £9
HEADS SOUTH Sat 17 Sep, doors open 7pm, show 8pm. Newly formed Latin Jazz Salsa Quintet led by pianist composer John Harriman and featuring UK Jazz trumpeter Steve Waterman, Cuban percussionist Chino Martell Morgan, Uruguayan bassist Andres Lafone and Buster Birch on drums. Tickets £11 pizzaexpresslive.co.uk l ROCHESTER CATHEDRAL ME1 1SX 01634 810061
Sun 18 Sep, 4.30pm Organ Concert rochestercathedral.org
The Man of Kent Ale-House 6-8 John Street. Rochester. ME1 1YN
www.themanofkent.com 07772 214315 In a world full of identikit pubs selling tasteless beer and poorly kept ales, we at The Man Of Kent take pride in being slightly different. With eleven different Kentish ales on offer at any time, alongside local ciders and wines, we’re proud of our county’s produce… we even stock crisps from Birchington. There’s also a huge selection of the best lagers, fruit beers, wheat beers and unusual drinks Germany and Belguim have to offer, complemented by fine whiskies, bourbons and spirits from around the world. Each Wednesday and Thursday night there’s music from some truly incredible musicians, from traditional folk to contemporary Medway Delta blues. We’re not saying there’s something for everyone… but there’s probably something for you. Which is as it should be. We’re like a pub. Just different.
September 2011 Thursday 1st September : Steve Winchester Wednesday 7th September: Lander Mason Thursday 8th September: Full Circle Swing Sunday 11th September: Kris Dollimore Wednesday 14th September: TBC Thursday 15th September: Kingsize Slim Wednesday 21st September: TBC Thursday 22nd September: Tener Duende Sunday 25th September: Pierre Vincent, live album recording Wednesday 28th September: TBC Thursday 29th September: Hobo Jones and the Junkyard Dogs Wow MEDWAY 15
THEATRE PICK OF THE MONTH: ON/OFF by h2dance and What if: projects
THE CENTRAL THEATRE
surburban social manners. £8, concs available. Mondays all seats £5 mlt.org.uk
Weekend of 24-25 September, all day and evening
JIMMY CARR – Laugher Therapy Fri 30 Sep 7.30pm The comedian always sells out so book early. Adult content – over 16s only. £25
THE ORCHARD
Turners of Medway, 105 Chatham High Street, ME4 4HA One of six temporary artistic commissions taking place in urban spaces across North Kent by the Encounter project, as featured in last month’s WOW Medway, ON/OFF is a dance event being staged in a vacant shop on Chatham High Street. The ex-car showroom will be transformed for this ‘happening’ – all welcome to come and dance, watch the performances and just hang out. Refreshments will be available. encounter-northkent.co.uk
170 High Street, Chatham, ME4 4AS 01634 338338
MEDWAY TICKETS LIVE New online booking website: medwayticketslive.co.uk DICKENS WORLD BRITANNIA THEATRE
Leviathan Way, Chatham Maritime, ME4 4LL 01634 890421
TIME FOR TEA Wed 7 Sep New ‘Good Old Days’ live show included in usual admission price. Full cream tea with scones and cucumber sandwiches is £5 extra JONGLEURS COMEDY NIGHTS Fri 2 Sep and 30 Sep. Doors open with pre-show live band at 7:30pm, comedians start at 8:30pm–10:30pm, DJ until late. Food available. £12.00 by phone or on the door, £11.00 online. Groups 10 or more, £10.80 dickensworld.co.uk EASTGATE HOUSE
High Street, Rochester ME1 1ER 01634 332714
THE BROOK THEATRE
Home Gardens, Dartford DA1 1ED 01322 220000
Old Town Hall, Chatham ME4 4SE 01634 338338
ESTELLA’S LEGACY Wed 14 Sept 2.30pm Presented by The User Friendly Theatre Company, this is a musical sequel to Great Expectations which follows the character of Estella after the events in Dickens’ classic tale. £6, booking essential
THE BROOK THEATRE AND DIZZY O’DARE PRESENTS CABARET OF CURIOSITIES Fri 23 Sept 8pm All manner of burlesque, including Tina Tuoshisto and Craig the Incredible Hula Boy. Adult content – over 16s only. £10
MEDWAY LITTLE THEATRE
256 High Street Rochester ME1 1HY 01634 400322
ABIGAIL’S PARTY by Mike Leigh 29 Sep-8Oct 7.30pm Leigh’s hilarious exposé of
CIRQUE DU CIEL SHANGHAI 6-7 Sep, 7.30pm Chinese stunts, aerial skills and the famous ‘Monkey Poles’. Family show. £18.50-£23.50 STEPHEN MERCHANT Hello Ladies Fri 9 Sep, 8pm Ricky Gervais’ co-writer in his first ever stand-up tour. Over 16s only. £26.50 + £2.50 booking fee THE VERY HUNGRY CATERPILLAR & Other Eric Carle Favourites 12-14 Sep, various times A treat for the very young. £11 OVER THE RAINBOW – The Eva Cassidy Story 15-17 Sep, 7.30pm, Sat Mat 2.30pm Award-winning musical telling the songstress’s life story. £15-£19.50 orchardtheatre.co.uk
Not all independent schools are the same. At Rochester
we have an average class size
an inspiring team of teachers,
of 8,
no uniform, no entrance exams,
a warm & friendly environment, an outstanding
ofsted
rating, 27 years’ experience preparing students for top universities, great food,
an award winning
wildlife garden, minibus
services and we focus on academic achievement while still encouraging independent thought
and creativity.
www.rochester-college.org STAR HILL ROCHESTER ME1 1XF 01634 828115
YEAR 7 TO SIXTH FORM ISC ACCREDITED
• interviewing now for September 2011
• join for year 12, 13 or short retake courses
Wow MEDWAY 17
The ARTIST’S Space
Untitled by Christina Lai, 2011 Drawing from past experiences with anorexia nervosa and obsessive compulsive disorder, Lai creates painstakingly hand built and slipcast pieces that are deeply personal, reflecting the struggles of being trapped within a psychological state of ‘false reality’. Her exhibition, False Realities, features at the newly opened UCA Pop-up Gallery. Find it upstairs at The Pentagon Centre, Chatham until December. Opens Mon, Wed and Sat 10am-6pm Besides providing a platform for UCA students, emerging local and national artists, the UCA Pop Up Gallery aims to preserve the arts community through creative workshops and networking.
For Christina Lai: Email: christinalai@talktalk.net www.christinalaiceramics.co.uk For the Pop Up Gallery: Email: uca. popupgallery@gmail.com Or call Sebastian or Marta on 07551 037695
THIS YEAR’S CANTERBURY FESTIVAL (15-29 OCTOBER), KENT’S INTERNATIONAL ARTS FESTIVAL, HAS A POSITIVELY DAZZLING PROGRAMME, WITH SOMETHING FOR ALL The Canterbury Festival has always catered to all tastes, offering an enormous range of classical, popular and world music, theatre, talks, walks and exhibitions – but for the first time this year the Festival ventures into the realm of Science and the Arts. Lord Robert Winston will be launching the programme, with a thought provoking insight into the relationship between science, society and religion. There are six more events worth exploring, including stand up mathematician Matt Parker in Your Days are Numbered and rock physicist Dr Mark Lewney, who provides a guided guitar tour through the science of music making in Music: An Explanation by a Guitar Hero. The magnificent Canterbury Cathedral provides the setting for the Opening Day concert of inspirational African gospel music by the Grammy Award winning Soweto Gospel Choir (pictured). The Trondheim Soloists, a dynamic young chamber orchestra, are back by popular demand, and saxophonist Jan Garbarek joins forces with the Hilliard Ensemble to explore the Cathedral Nave’s acoustics. On the theatre front, Rebecca Vaughan’s one-woman show about Elizabeth I, I, Elizabeth, comes personally recommended, and The Dark Entry is a specially commissioned site specific play based on a story from the Ingoldsby Legend, giving audiences access to secret spaces of Canterbury’s King’s School in a spine tingling promenade performance led by Thomas Ingoldsby himself. Highlights of The Festival’s Opening Day include a Carnival Parade, and a stunning finale where – with a little help from the audience – there will be a sneak preview of All Hands, the new show by The World Famous, Kent’s pyrotechnic experts. A dedicated Family Programme runs throughout, offering performances and workshops for and by children, including Street Dreams by local theatre company Little Cauliflower. For full details of all Festival events and an online brochure see the Festival website. Tickets can be booked online or with the Festival Box Office (Visitor Information Centre, The Buttermarket, Canterbury) on 01227 787 787 www.canterburyfestival.co.uk
THE SEPTEMBER GIVEAWAY A chance to visit Canterbury during the height of the Festival! Canterbury Festival has kindly given WOW Medway two tickets to Night Light Theatre’s new production of Romeo and Juliet for one of two performances at the Gulbenkian Theatre, on Friday 21 October or Saturday 22 October. The show starts at 7.45pm. (Tickets usually £16, students, under 25s £10). The production promises a unique blend of puppetry, live music and physical theatre, with the adult characters portrayed by a collection of painstakingly crafted puppets, developed and worked with over the course of the rehearsal process. The show is underscored by live modern English folk music. A reduced but original text brings the show in at 75 minutes, so there is plenty of time to have a wander and treat yourself to dinner at one of Canterbury’s fine restaurants afterwards. To enter the draw, simply email the Editor at editor@wowmedway.co.uk or telephone 0845 388 2243, with your name, address, contact number and preferred performance date by October 1. www.nightlighttheatre.co.uk Wow MEDWAY 19
What’s on
Your online guide to events and entertainment in Medway
Medieval Merriment
3 and 4 September, 2011
Will Adams Festival
Capstone festival:
Great Lines, Gillingham. 7 November from 7pm
Kites ‘n’ Bikes
Medway’s biggest free bonfire and fireworks display, in-
10 September, 2011 cluding entertainment from Heart 103.1 & 102.8 FM,
guy making competition and25 craftSeptember, workshops (from2011 5pm). www.medway.gov.uk/events
Black History Bonfire and fireworks Month
Dickensian Christmas
Great Lines, Gillingham. 7 November from 7pm
October 2011
Medway’s biggest free bonfire and fireworks display, in-
3 and 4 December, 2011 5 November,cluding 2011 entertainment from Heart 103.1 & 102.8 FM, guy making competition and craft workshops (from 5pm). www.medway.gov.uk/events
whatsonmedway.co.uk