Issue 70 - Hollywood Goes Dark

AS THE SCREEN ACTORS GUILD JOINS THE WRITERS ON STRIKE, THE LIGHTS GO OUT ON FILM AND TV PRODUCTIONS ALL OVER THE WORLD PAGE

SANDRO FARMHOUSE

BLACK MIRROR'S ANJANA VASAN

LIVERPOOL LONDON MANCHESTER ALTRINCHAM

7 THE EDITOR'S NOTE // 8-16 THE PRIMER

17 ON THE SHELF // 18-19 ESSENTIAL TRAVELS: STOCKHOLM

20-22 AN ESSENTIAL INTRODUCTION: MARA

26-27 COLUMN: LOUIS BENEVENTI // 28-33 ISABEL MARANT

34-35 DAVID M. ROBINSON: PRE-LOVED ROLEXES

36-37 WALES BONNER // 38-42 GOD SAVE THE GARM: THE REVERSIBLE CULTURE OF BRITAIN’S ICONIC BRANDS // 44-45 COLUMN: ROHIN JOHAL

46-51 OUT OF ORDER: HOLLYWOOD GOES DARK AS STARS TURN OUT THE LIGHTS // 52-55 RICHARD KELLY: A TIME AND PLACE

56-57 THE BEAR IS BACK // 58-63 ANJANA VASAN: REFLECTIONS FROM THE BLACK MIRROR // 64-69 UKWELI ROACH: HERE COMES THE WOLF

70-71 GET OUT OF MY PUB! // 72-77 MEET THE MAKER: MATT NEEDLE

78-79 COLUMN: EMMY HALLAHAN // 80-81 ESSENTIAL PANTRY

82-85 THE MARVELLOUS MINDS AT MEATOPIA // 86-89 SANDRO FARMHOUSE

90-92 THE GLENTURRET LALIQUE // 94-95 ONE MORE DRINK

96 CONTRIBUTORS

JAMES DOUGLAS

j.douglas@essentialstudio.co.uk

ESSENTIALJOURNAL.CO.UK // @ESSENTIALJOURNAL published by ESSENTIAL STUDIO // ESSENTIALSTUDIO.CO.UK

WRITERS

CONTENTS

Rosie Barker, Louis Beneventi, Emmy Hallahan, Rohin Johal, Katie Marshall, Liv Rainford, Cal Smith, Freya Yeldham

designer EVIE FRIAR evie.friar@essentialstudio.co.uk

editor-in-chief

BETH BENNETT b.bennett@essentialstudio.co.uk

SUMNER

“AN OUNCE OF ACTION IS WORTH A TON OF THEORY.”

Friedrich

Engels

THE EDITOR'S NOTE

The creation of this issue has felt, in some ways, an indignant display of dedication whilst also being, on a personal front, an endless and exhausting feat. With media strife and industry strikes, our original plan was bulldozed by a sudden press pause as we were only days away from hitting the streets with the iconic man who would have stepped on the cover of this issue. We could have looked to other industries and pulled names from there, but that felt disingenuous to all of us. Yes, we’re creatives and we support, with unwavering earnestness, the striking actors and writers; however, beyond that, we’re humans, we’re empathetic, and we’re exhausted too. We optioned instead to use our platform to do something worthwhile. To inform and educate and say, outright, that we believe in the fight for a more benevolent society. We support all those unions, both here and across the world, who are sick and tired of being sick and tired. Who are standing up for themselves but also one another, and refusing to accept a life where they are treated anything but fair. From the warehouse workers, to the railway staff, to the teachers and junior doctors and dock workers and radiologists and university staff and nurses and postal workers and even those who can’t strike but damn well want to, we support you.

This issue wouldn’t be here without the combined effort of the names on the previous page, from the relentlessly optimistic team who worked beyond expectation to create something meaningful, wonderful, and essential. These people who are entitled, like we all should be, to a fair, good, life. So let me express my thanks to the EJ team, to those on strike, to you dear readers, and without further adieu: welcome to EJ70.

BETH BENNETT EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

"OUT OF ORDER"

illUsTRaTED by EVIE FRIAR

BIG MUTTER BY ERWIN WURM

Photography by Evie Friar

Developed at Take It Easy Lab

Yorkshire Sculpture Park, Wakefield

@erwinwurm

@yspsculpture

WHAT WE'RE WEARING AIMÉ LEON DORE

LOOSE KNIT SWEATER

With the climate crisis sending our seasons into free fall, it’s become more and more essential to have a few layers on hand for the odd breezy patch in the middle of summer. Fashioned from Italian hemp yarn, the Aimé Leon Dore loose knit is our most obvious choice. The relaxed fit and open waffle stitching offers a sharp, yet comfortable style that makes this lightweight layer perfect for inbetween days.

WHAT WE'RE READING TRAINSPOTTING BY IRVINE WELSH (THE FOLIO SOCIETY EDITION)

Thirty years after Irvine Welsh crashed into the literary world with his energetic, filthy, and brutal parable of his heroinaddicted Renton, the glorious Folio Society are celebrating the bible of British Counterculture with an explosive new edition. Containing illustrations by award-winning illustrator Nicole Rifkin and introduction from esteemed professor John Sutherland, this edition perfectly encapsulates the book that birthed cult fanaticism, embracing the blue toned nuance of Renton, Spud, Sick Boy, Begbie, and Diane with illustrations resurrecting the hedonistic nineties of their pilgrimage to true satisfaction. Though it may be cliché to say, when you’re considering how to freshen your shelf this summer, choose Trainspotting. Choose the Folio Society 30th Anniversary Edition.

The Folio Society edition of Irvine Welsh’s Trainspotting, introduced by John Sutherland and illustrated by Nicole Rifkin, is exclusively available from foliosociety.com £60

WHO WE'RE LISTENING TO GRIAN CHATTAN - CHAOS FOR THE FLY

Chaos For The Fly is the debut solo album from the effervescent lead of Dublin’s exquisite export, Fontaines D.C.. Grian Chatten’s trademark poeticism is exemplified in this collection of tortured soliloquies, blending the familiar drone of his voice with a unique shape and beauty. The album brings to life a chorus of wounded isolation, hopefulness, and a particular sense of place that you’ll not only want to visit once, but will undoubtedly return to again and again.

WHAT WE'RE DRINKING RENAISSANCE RUM 2019 | 64.7%

Exclusive to The Whisky Exchange

From a small Taiwanese distillery, renowned for its openness, experimentation, and commitment to quality, Renaissance Rum 2019 is a welcome addition to their infamously exciting oeuvre. Aged in American white oak barrels, the rum is a deep and intense character with notes of dried mango, roasted pineapple, and berries. The long, powerful finish is the essential partner for these long summer days.

WHAT WE'RE WATCHING OPPENHEIMER & BARBIE

I mean, what else could it be? Two powerhouses of film releasing two starkly contrasting films on the same day? Greta Gerwig and Christopher Nolan’s latest films caused a social media sensation in the run up to their release, the most entrancing piece of peer-to-peer marketing seen this side of the millennium. And, god, how they’ve earned it.

Oppenheimer is Nolan’s damning biopic on the celebrated and scandalised scientist behind the creation of the atomic bomb. Charting J. Robert Oppenheimer’s life from Cambridge to the Trinity Test and beyond, Nolan’s sharp, calculated, and immersive filmmaking contains the layered nuances needed for such a divisive figure. With black and white objective fact and full-living-colour subjectivity, Oppenheimer is not presented as a sympathetic figure nor a raging megalomaniac; rather Nolan exquisitely undresses any assumptions or biases towards the scientist and tells his story in a way that feels at both times antagonistic and celebratory. Cillian Murphy shines as the lead, dancing in tandem to Nolan’s demands of the film, the sound and the visuals of Nolan’s hand amplify Murphy’s character direction and it feels almost impossible to comprehend one without the other. Oppenheimer’s supporting cast as well, featuring the likes of Matt Damon, Emily Blunt, Robert Downey Jr, Josh Hartnett, Benny Safdie, Florence Pugh, Jason Clarke, and Kenneth Branagh to name a few, are as equally involved in Nolan and Murphy’s vision, feeding into the brazenly complex nature of man while shining outright as themselves. It feels as though Christopher Nolan needed this film for his own artistic peace of mind, using it as an almost apology for his role in

rushing in the black-and-white morality of the modern superhero genre. This is his reprieve, his call to the depths of the human condition, a reminder that people are never simply good and bad. Oppenheimer may not, in fact, be the perfect film but in its understanding of itself as such allows it to become one of the most timeless and important films of the twentyfirst century.

Barbie completes Gerwig’s directorial debut trilogy; with two Oscar noms and a swath of critical acclaim under her belt for Ladybird and Little Women, hype aside, Barbie came with an almost incomprehensible amount of pressure for the writer/director. Yet, really, there was no doubt she could pull it off. Stand out performances from an all-star cast featuring Margot Robbie, Ryan Gosling, America Ferrera, Michael Cera, Issa Rae, Ncuti Gatwa, Emma Mackey, Kate McKinnon, Kingsley Ben-Adair, and Will Ferrell are as eclectic as they are addicting to watch. With a script collaborated on with husband and award-winner himself Noah Baumbach, Gerwig has crafted an inclusive and diverse Barbieland that celebrates the breadth of Barbie’s reach, and the adults who used to play with. Yet, Barbie’s beauty lies in its politics. Though surface level at a points – excused as a divine entry into feminism for the younger audience – the handling of the male ego and the cold, hard truth that men themselves are hurting under the patriarchy of the real world, Barbie is a reminder of the true roots of feminist theory: equality for women is equality for all.

Both Barbie and Oppenheimer are in cinemas now.

WHAT WE'RE LOOKING FORWARD TO ARLO PARKS AT OLYMPIA, PARIS

Hosted in the legendary Olympia, one of Paris’ most legendary spots to watch music, theatre and performers throughout the ages, the French leg of Arlo Parks’ upcoming tour is fast- approaching. This September we’ll see the usually sunflower-adorned Arlo grace the space with her newest songs from her latest album, My Soft Machine

If one thing is for certain, it will be one of the most romantic performances, in one of the most romantic cities in the world, with tears. Lots and lots of tears (+ wine).

WORDS LEAH MAGEE

ON THE SHELF

If Words Were Flowers by Curtis Harding

As personal as your record collection may be, I'm currently a believer that music, like food, is better shared. Whether listening with your partner while whipping up eggs on a Sunday morning, keeping things going after dinner with friends on a Friday evening or having a listening party with your neighbour midweek through the wall that maybe they didn't ask for, I encourage you to buy music not just for your own pleasure…and to feed your friends well.

Curtis Harding’s 2021 release, If Words Were Flowers, is first on my list for any of the above. Brought up on Motown and Stax, this 11 track LP has obvious tones of vintaged R'n'B, gospel and soul which brings warmth to any occasion. But it’s the variety of influences Harding brings along for the ride, such as the Hendrix-like guitars and strings fitting of a Succession soundtrack - see track 2, Hopeful - that truly steals an ear or two at your sunny Sunday pizza party.

Play alongside 5 by Sault, I Told You So by Delvon Lamar Organ Trio and the self-titled record by Jonathon Richman & The Modern Lovers.

WORDS KATIE MARSHALL

PHOTOGRAPHY KATIE MARSHALL

Our good pal and globetrotter Katie Marshall is on a mission to visit every European before she turns thirty. With a passion for making travel both financially and physically accessible for everyone, we invited her to share her adventures with us and pass her hacks on to you, dear readers. Up first, she defies the stereotype and saves in Scandinavia…

Travelling on the cheap is all about flexibility. You have to settle for flight times that may not be ideal, pack light, cook for yourself, and make peace with not seeing the ins and outs of every major attraction (I’ll mourn the ABBA Museum forever). Any number of those can be a dealbreaker for people - and that’s okay, you deserve to travel however you want. But if the way you want to travel is cheap, it’s time to say goodbye to four-star hotels and that 21kg luggage allowance. You’d just overpack anyway.

Scandinavia on a budget is in itself a bit of an oxymoron - Oslo, Stockholm, and Copenhagen are famously some of the most expensive cities in the world, regardless of the time of year you opt for. If I see one more guide that claims to have “free destinations” listed and they’re only free if you buy a £50 Stockholm Pass first, I’m going to commit war crimes. City passes are often touted as the big discount - and it’s true, if you’d rather spend £50 a day than £100 a day, they’re worth it - but for ultra-budget travel, they just aren’t a reasonable possibility. The good news is that the majority of museums have days with free access - look on their websites and expect to be going in the early evening, and catch the sunsets while you’re at it.

There’s also more free museums than you think in the area; Medeltidsmuseum, most of the Royal Palace, and the Stockholm City Museum are my top picks. Stockholm is full of beautiful outdoor sites - you could easily while away the hours wandering through Gamla stan, the Harbourfront, and any number of large parks throughout the city. Plus, for the more unorthodox traveller, Greta Garbo’s grave is housed in a beautiful, nature-heavy cemetery that accepts visitors on the basis that you remain respectful of the site itself - this ended up being one of my favourite stops.

Grocery stores are your friend. Learn to cook the basics - pasta, fish, and whatever local products catch your eye. If you have limited facilities, you can still get creative - I’ve made ravioli in Rome with a kettle, a mug, and a prayer, and at the time of writing have just stood stirring frozen chicken nuggets in a saucepan on the hob. LIDL, ICA Maxi, and Willy’s tend to be the cheaper grocery stores (three days’ groceries for one person came out to £8.50 / 114 SEK), and you can find them all over.

My accommodation of choice was Castanea Old Town Hostel - which, at £30 / 400 SEK a night for a four-bed dorm in the middle of Gamla stan, was pretty fantastic. A word of warning that the added facilities

are expensive - you have to rent sheets for 50 SEK (approx. £3.50), and I was offered a single load of laundry for £15 / 200 SEK, which made me want to fall through the floor and die. But it is clean, friendly, centrally-located, and even has an elevator to get there, which after a week of fourstory spiral staircases in Oslo could have single-handedly converted me back to Christianity. If dorms aren’t your thing, they have private rooms available for typically £71 / 945 SEK per night, and if you’d rather stay in a hotel, there’s a fair few three-stars in the area for around £85 / 1131 SEK per night. Try Castle House Inn, ProfilHotels Nacka, or the Park Inn by Radisson, and book in advance where possible.

You can do Scandinavia on the cheap, and don’t let five-star hotels and travel companies try to tell you otherwise. It requires a little more planning, but that 7-Eleven sandwich will still taste amazing when you’re sitting on the edge of the harbour watching the sun go down.

Promise.

AN ESSENTIAL

Finding a clothing brand that you truly connect with can be a tall order these days. The fashion industry is a sea of patterns and prints all shouting about identity, price tags and greenwashed production processes.

MARA, however, are a brand overflowing with integrity and promise, with a mission to produce sustainable clothing that sends a message. Allow us to introduce you two...

Can you briefly introduce us to the brand and how it came about?

MARA is a unisex sustainable brand focused on ethical and transparent production methods, with production and design based in Glasgow. We focus on versatile, high quality clothing made to last, with a focus on storytelling around waste in fashion. The brand serves as an ever evolving research project into what’s possible as an independent sustainable brand.

Where did the name MARA come from?

MARA was a name that we totally stumbled across while in a Wikipedia rabbit hole looking for inspiration. We ended up, somehow, reading about the story of the Buddha, and about how a demon, Mara, took things which were very mundane, and made them appear alluring in order to distract him on the path to enlightenment. We thought this reflected what we were trying to do pretty accurately, and once we realised it was also a Spanish word for a collective or a gang of people who are

WORDS & INTERVIEW EVIE FRIAR & ROB HELM

IMAGERY COURTESY OF MARA

centred around a common cause or belief, it was the clear winner in the name game.

Graphics are always a huge part of any brand. Who creates your graphics and where do you get the inspiration for them from?

The graphics are a bit of an amalgamation of everyone really, we don’t have a dedicated graphics person or anything per se. The graphics always come from our own tastes and interests, and reflect what we’re trying to say or how we feel at the time. From there we’ll figure out who the best person is to refine our idea and go from there. We like to keep it all in the family. A good example of a story behind a graphic might be our “Tired of Reality” shirt. The graphic comes from a Salvador Dali film from 1929. When I was young, maybe 9 or 10, my parents took me to see a Salvador Dali museum and that image stuck in mind ever since. It was just marinating in there, waiting for the right time to present itself as inspiration.

MARA has been built with sustainability in mind. Can you tell us more about your Altered Futures initiative and why you feel strongly about creating products in this way?

The Altered Futures collection is something that’s part of our story. It’s something that’s grown organically from within the brand rather than being purposely built into it. It tells the story of what waste is created during the fashion manufacturing process. It shines light on something you

don’t usually see, and as well as rendering our whole production process zero waste, it acts as a platform to have a discussion around waste in fashion and fashion's overall contribution to climate change.

Creating products through more sustainable methods takes a certain level of ingenuity. Did your team have a background in fashion design and manufacturing before starting the brand?

Neither of us have a background in fashion. I personally left school at 15/16 with absolutely zero education after that. It’s been a steep learning curve, but - we know what we like. We think that goes a long way. We also know our shortcomings and where the gaps in our knowledge are, so we’ve assembled a great team who have various expertise in garment production to help us cover all the bases. It’s important to us to keep it in house and hire people locally. Team work makes the dream work as the saying goes.

MARA's releases not only covers environmental issues, but societal issues as well. Why do you think clothing is such a strong platform for spreading the word or taking a stand on a certain topic?

We think it’s because clothing is a universal language. Everyone wears clothes. It’s something that everyone on earth has to interact with, in some way, regardless of where they are or what language they speak. It transcends those barriers. We find that fashion is almost identical to music

MARA

"

Clothing is a universal language. Everyone wears clothes. It’s something that everyone on earth has to interact with, in some way, regardless of where they are or what language they speak. It transcends those barriers.

in that way. It’s a language that anyone, anywhere, can understand, and therefore makes it the perfect platform for discussing ideas.

Last year, you partnered with Nike and ran an up-cycling workshop in their Glasgow store. What was that experience like?

It was a really affirming experience. It felt so validating to work with Nike on that project in Scotland for a number of reasons. Since the brands inception, people have been desperate to tell me to move to London. London's where it’s happening. You want to be in fashion? Go to London. So to do something like this, in Scotland, without having to make that compromise, felt great. We’ve always wanted to shout about the fact that there’s stuff going on outside of

London, exciting stuff, and we intend to continue pushing that fact.

What's next for MARA? Are there any future collaborations planned that you can talk about?

Really we just plan to be better every day, to make little improvements in sustainability, working with innovative materials and pushing the boundaries for what’s possible for an independent brand. We love collaborating with like-minded people in all industries and hope to have some work coming up that merges fashion with music and art. Basically working with friends who do cool stuff to do cool stuff together. There may also be more work coming with the swoosh, you never know.

Watch this space.

maragang.com

@maragang

LIGHT THROUGH DARK: A CELEBRATION OF THE CREATIVE PERSEVERANCE OF NIGO

WORDS

ROHIN JOHAL

@br0hin

For me, Nigo is one of the most influential designers within a streetwear context but not only has he worked with his heroes in the fashion world in Japan, he has also collaborated with some of the biggest celebrities and designers in the world. However it wasn’t always easy going for him, but is a clear indicator that his creativity, design and work ethic will always prevail.

BAPE was launched in 1993, working with Jun Takahashi with the main inspiration coming from the film series Planet of the Apes. During the first two years of BAPE, Nigo kept collections extremely exclusive in order to create hype around the product. Working with graphic designer Shinichiro Nakamura ‘Sk8thing’, the pieces would be worn by friends and a few lucky people that managed to buy some of the select few pieces. With this, a cult following emerged with only the coolest kids walking around Harajuku wearing their BAPE outfits. Stepping into the new millennium, BAPE went from strength to strength with the release of the BAPE STA’s in 2002, then going onto work with and style Kanye and Pharrell in the following years. Over the following decade, BAPE would grow into a worldwide success and Nigo himself would work with fashion houses like Louis Vuitton and launch other projects such as Billionaire Boys Club.

It seemed like everything was going well and BAPE was becoming this superpower within the world of streetwear and it was a cornerstone in contemporary fashion in Japan. However, on February 7th 2011, Nigo was forced to sell BAPE. After sitting at the helm of BAPE for almost two decades, Nigo’s mental health undoubtedly suffered. From this, a notable dark period began, yet Nigo still kept his creative dream alive and almost 10 years later he was appointed creative director at Kenzo.

With the trials and tribulations of always trying to achieve more and putting your own personal stamp on things, Nigo is really thriving at Kenzo but it wasn’t without its teething problems of his first few shows. But this highlights the tenacity and the love for the work he has. He could have easily lost hope and the drive behind his creative spark when he had to sell BAPE, but he kept going with Human Made and with Kenzo and now he is finally back to where he should be in the fashion world; a high flyer. Without his long term vision he would have perished back in 2011 and the world would have never seen the beauty of what he could design which would have been the biggest tragedy.

ISABELSS24MARANT

WORDS

FREYA YELDHAM

PHOTOGRAPHY

PIERRE ANGE CARLOTTI & JONATHAN LLENSE

"GRAPHIC PATTERNS BUMP INTO ORGANIC PRINTS. EVERYTHING ABOUT THIS SILHOUETTE IS A MATTER OF CONTRASTS AND OPPOSITIONS."

"A CHANGING, URBAN, CHICER SILHOUETTE."

CHANGING, URBAN,

Isabel Marant’s SS24 Menswear collection blends the line between casual and formal in a way that feels effortlessly captivating.

Even though I don’t tend to adhere to the gender labels on clothes, it’s rare for me to look at a menswear collection and think, "Damn, I want that." I want to wear so much of this collection, and I want to see it in the wild on other people, and think, "Wow they’re cool."

A particular item that stands out to me are the black trousers, which look tailored and yet have a looser wide fit, and are in a lustrous fabric - to me, achieving an almost impossible matching of soft and hard, luxury and tradition.

The options for what could go with these are endless, and yet I don’t think they’d get lost in an outfit. They’re not plain in any way, but they are adaptable. They’d elevate the plain and compliment the larger than life without taking over the show.

This is a collection for the man who normally shops vintage but has seen the (immaculately styled and shot) pictures and inevitably fallen in love with a few favourite pieces. It’s for the guy you meet at a gallery or a coffee shop, who is witty and smart yet not condescending. Who knows what they like and buys based on it.

SS24 is a selection that somehow achieves the tall task of combining pieces with classic elegance with pieces full of colour, pattern, and personality. It’s menswear that excites.

"YELLOW HUES SPICE UP BLACK & WHITE SHADES."

"OVERSIZE PROPORTIONS COMBINE WITH TIGHTER VOLUMES WHILE STRUCTURED PIECES ARE MIXED WITH KNITWEAR."

DMR'S ALTRINCHAM STORE PRESENTS NEW PRE-LOVED ROLEX COLLECTION

Previously loved watches are becoming the desired choice for watch connoisseurs being able to curate their collection in a much timelier fashion. At David M. Robinson's Altrincham showroom, we offer a complete range of Rolex professional and classical pieces. Furthermore, our team have looked extensively at the market to offer our clients the most competitive prices.

Featuring one of the most soughtafter watches in the Rolex collection, the Cosmograph Daytona. This highperformance timepiece which features a chronograph function and tachymetric scale, allows you to measure your average speeds whilst racing on the track. The history of the Cosmograph Daytona dates to 1963, its name linked to the world-famous Daytona Speedway, worn by Hollywood icon and experience racing driver Paul Newman. The timepiece we are showcasing is a 2020 model, in good condition with box and guarantee. Currently priced at £25,000.

Featuring the iconic Submariner. The Submariner was a breakthrough in innovation for Rolex as it was the first divers professional model launched in 1953 which could be submerged to depths of 100 metres of water and still work

perfectly, offering a graduated rotatable bezel and luminescent display perfect for divers needing legibility and reliability when diving at dangerous depths. The timepiece we are showcasing is a 2011 model featuring a lacquered blue dial which was only in circulation for a short period of time until Rolex reverted to the sunburst dial. The watch is in good condition which includes box and papers, currently priced at £12,000.

Featuring the most prestigious collection on the list, the Rolex DateJust. The DateJust was first introduced in 1945 commemorating 40 years of Rolex, this is where the founder of Rolex Hans Wilsdorf first introduced the Jubilee bracelet and date wheel to the collection. You can still see elements of the original DateJust in current models showing us that Rolex really pay attention in implementing their heritage and traditions in each timepiece. The Lady DateJust, launched in 1957, twelve years after the DateJust, was another breakthrough for Rolex to produce; an elegant, compact but precise timepiece exclusively as a lady’s collection. The Rolex Lady DateJust 28mm we are showcasing is a 2019 model in great condition which includes box and guarantee, currently priced at £10,000.

IMAGERY COURTESY OF DAVID M. ROBINSON

WORDS

HEIDI GARDNER & JAMES WALWYN

From top to bottom:

ROLEX DateJust

REF: M279173-0011

ROLEX Cosmograph Daytona

REF: M116500LN-0002

ROLEX Submariner

REF: M116613LB

@dmr_watches davidmrobinson.co.uk

DAVID M. ROBINSON

WALES BONNER

BONNER

BEHIND THE BADGE

Grace Wales Bonner graduated from the world-renowned Central Saint Martins in 2014. Her graduate showcase collection ‘Afrique’ was awarded the prestigious L’Oréal Professional Talent Award, a sure-fire sign of the inevitable greatness to come. In this first collection, the foundations of Grace Wales Bonner’s unique approach to menswear began to show. Growing up in Southeast London to an English mother and Jamaican father, Grace remarks she was hyperaware of her mixed heritage and it spurred a deep, diasporic self-exploration. This initial blending of European high fashion with the spirit of Afro-Atlantic heritage became the definitive ethos of her postgrad brand. The clothing evokes a fascinating perspective on the rich history of the African diaspora, a whole celebratory one that, though disciplined and refined, is full of love for the culture itself.

The blending of these traditionally Western European styles with the thudding heart of African influence is both proof of her own journey to rationalising her relationship with both cultures as it is her pushing the boundaries for the Euro-Centric high fashion of today. In an interview with The Guardian, Grace Wales Bonner states:

“It’s working out how I could be and that I didn’t need to prove anything to be who I was…I have to be between places, because that’s a creative space for me. It’s the foundation of what I’m doing, a meeting and collision of cultures.”

This then lends itself to the framing of Wales Bonner clothes, the quietly subversive nature of how masculinity is presented. As her collections develop, one can sense the keenness to which she’s evoking a gentler representation of black men. The cinched waist and angled shoulders of the garments, along with the array of colour spectrum, softens the silhouette and with it defies the expectation of black men both to themselves and to the colonial prejudice. Wales Bonner understands the role of the fashion designer in the broader cultural context, looking at the impact of her work in the wider picture of society and interrogating her own role within it. The evolution of her collections is a demonstration of her challenging herself to find those inbetween places and invite others into them, to find their creativity, their style, and their sense of self, in hybridity.

walesbonner.net

A slight insight into the new British classic designer…

THE REVERSIBLE CULTURE OF BRITAIN’S ICONIC BRANDS

WORDS ROSIE BARKER

What comes to mind when you’re asked to think about ‘iconic’ British fashion? It’s difficult to pinpoint one singular look because British fashion and culture have been enmeshed throughout time and we are a society of variety. That being said, there are three brands that spring to mind as quintessentially British: Vivienne Westwood, Fred Perry, and Burberry.

A simple polo shirt might not seem culturally significant at face value; however, in the 1960s, the signature Fred Perry collared polo became an emblem for breaking class boundaries. The Wimbledon-aligned brand designed the now-infamous shirt with the highbrow sport of tennis in mind, seemingly at odds with the loyalties of Britain’s anti-establishment youth culture in the 60s. So why did mods, rockers and punks alike adopt this shirt in particular to be counterculture’s status symbol of the era?

The wheels were set in motion many years earlier, in the blue-collar town of Stockport. The son of a cotton-spinning factory worker disregarded the social narrative that reserved tennis for the wealthier classes and picked up a racquet anyway. He defied the criticisms of tennis authorities and overcame the mental bounds of classism to become the most successful tennis player in British history. With that, Perry became the personification of social ascent and an inspiration to the next generation of working-class youth.

Whether you mod-styled yours with a v-neck jumper, paired with bleached jeans and a shaved head, or finished your outfit with fishnets, studs and safety pins, the embroidered laurel wreath

- a symbol of triumph and victoryexpressed an aspiration to succeed, subvert expectations and move into positions previously deemed out of bounds by society’s norms.

It’s interesting that these factions of working-class youth, who were known to clash in many respects, were united in their appreciation of this cotton-threaded manifestation of social mobility. When the brand went on to experiment with vibrant colour combinations, fans of ska, rave, rock-steady and rude-boy style music, also started to utilise the polo shirts as a mode of self-expression, solidifying the brand’s presence in the underground music scene.

Later, when some skinheads migrated to far-right, white nationalist and neonazi groups, the signature collared shirt began to appear in images of violence and racism. To save its image, the brand opted to collaborate with musicians, such as No Doubt and Amy Winehouse, rather than sports people. It’s interesting the brand opted to realign with the music scene, rather than its sport industry roots. Although Fred Perry hadn’t set out to become a part of youth, music and working-class culture, the brand remained loyal to the people who had adopted it.

In the same era, conspicuous consumerism was on the rise, and an unmistakable red, white, black and tan nova check swept the nation. Most of the time, growing in popularity is every brand's mission, but as demand for Burberry rose on the streets of Britain, its credibility in the fashion industry fell drastically.

Founded in 1856 with the purpose to shield wearers from the dreary British weather, Burberry’s roots were in functionality. They were the outfitter to WW1 officers and secured the trench coat as a mainstay in civilian wardrobes. Its Latin tagline, innovative weatherproof gabardine and hefty price tag, however, clearly tailored Burberry to those who could afford to explore the outdoors. Back in those days, that meant Captains, Lords, Sirs and Antarctic explorers. Despite this history in high society, however, the signature nova check is more readily associated - in Britain at least - with trackies tucked in socks, TNs and shell jackets. Unlike Fred Perry, with its proud blue-collar roots, Burberry was unwittingly sequestered by the working class.

The insurgence of tabloid news and celebrity gossip in the 90s had created an environment where wealth equated to worth and, as a result, lower-income communities were frequently villainized

in the media. In the early 2000s, when an influx of knock-off Burberry arrived on the market, it became possible to get the label, and the esteem that came with it, without paying the price. Naturally, head-to-toe Burberry became the latest look among young people who aspired to emulate their celebrity idols and shed the unfair stereotypes pressed on them by the media.

While the rest of the world considered this the ‘downfall of Burberry’, in my opinion, this is when it became a truly iconic British look. Burberry shed the nova check pattern from all but 10% of its merchandise in an attempt to regain a fortune lost in decreased sales; however, years later, with the reclamation of working-class pride, and privilege becoming unpopular, Burberry played into its ‘chav’ aesthetic on the runway. The all-Burberry look went from ‘trashy’ to tasteful in the eyes of high fashion.

It’s a contentious story because there’s an injustice in the way that the allBurberry look was criticised when it was composed in a working-class context, but was praised when it was assumed in an affluent, runway environment. Despite this, it’s satisfying to know that workingclass British fashion is inspiring the global runway.

The photo-negative to Burberry, Vivienne Westwood’s clothing was initially designed for lower-income youth with a passion for self-expression and a penchant for subverting the status quo. Unlike Fred Perry, it wasn’t a side effect of successful social mobility that brought the Vivienne Westwood brand into the heart of the counterculture. Printing slogans such as “Try Subversion” and “Only Anarchists Are Pretty” to fabric was an intentional way of partnering with an audience that craved the opportunity to put on what they preached.

Vivienne Westwood was a punk activist at the helm of a boutique literally named for anti-authoritarianism - Seditionaries. Her style was the antithesis of conformity, yet, in an ironic twist, it is this rejection of commercial fashion that led to her designs becoming coveted by couture and Westwood herself becoming the most influential British fashion designer of the 20th century, the recipient of an OBE, and a Dame.

Following the punk rock 70s, the postThatcher 80s saw a boom in British nightlife and an influx of synth-heavy electronic music. The introduction of the ‘style press’, brought a new level of visibility to bands’ and artists’ style choices, and set the perfect stage for a liberating social

movement expressed through outrageous fashion. Westwood’s inspiration at the time - 17th and 18th-century silhouettes - is said to have partly influenced the style in which the New Romantics emulated their new idols: futuristic and gender-fluid, dandystyle buccaneer pants, frilly hats and theatrical hair and makeup.

The New Romantic scene burned bright and swiftly. Social trends came and went, but Vivienne Westwood maintained a symbiotic relationship with society, in which she both reflected and influenced culture. She wasn’t afraid to be political, and no matter the theme, kept a thread of rebellion running through every collection. As the mood of the nationand the world - developed around social justice movements such as climate change, civil liberties, gay rights, nuclear disarmament, and indigenous rights, so too did Westwood’s collections. In turn, her collections shone a spotlight on these important issues, no doubt increasing support for the causes.

The thing about counter-culture is that when the cause or the movement engages enough people, it can become another convention of popular culture - the very thing it set out to break. This is by no means a negative thing, it’s an accomplishment, especially when we’re talking about social justice movements. In the 21st century, now that we all have a platform in one way or another, it’s reassuring to know that concepts and ideas starting out from humble, rebellious, subversive beginnings can grow into the norm in a way that fosters acceptance, equality and positive change.

FUCK IT, I'LL BE A BARBER

WORDS LOUIS BENEVENTI

@louisbeneventi

I’ve been writing these columns for a few months now, and when Beth told me to try and write something about finding light from dark I thought there was only one thing I could write about. And it’s something I’m asked often.

“How did you become a barber, and why?” Well strap in kids. You’re going to find out. Let’s bring it back first. The why. Truth is, I just loved the vibe in a barbershop. Growing up, I’d got it cut by my dad’s hairdresser under some very specific parameters because of school: Above the ears, off the collar, no fades allowed and a specific one from my dad, don’t cut into the cows lick. Now, I get my dad’s angle. It was the small detail he really liked and that’s fine. But I never stood the dynamic from my school where apparently it was unprofessional to have a decent trim. Maybe they thought that if I got a skinfade, I’d steal a car, hold up a petrol station and get a five star wanted level on the streets of Los Santos.

Anyway, turns out that’s not the case, and the first thing I did once I’d moved to a different school and tried to catch-up with the Justin Bieber flick by growing my hair out and failing, was go into the barbershop for the first time.

I’d walked past it so often, but had never gone in. I’d always loved the big neon Coca-Cola sign, old school leather barber chairs, and the idea of the opportunity to have a free can of coke and a crack at FIFA whilst I waited for a trim at 14. The chance to try out Eminike and McGeady’s skill moves was just too tempting.

Anyway, I sat in the chair and the first attempt was an Elvis pompadour with sideburns… Well, attempted burners. Puberty had only just started and the bumfluff was yet to turn into hair. But the experience I had, allowed me to find somewhere I felt I belonged, and I walked out feeling good. It’s such an important part of any teen's life where you start to figure out who you want to be, and I’ll always be grateful to Farg’s Barbershop in Tunbridge Wells for helping me on that journey.

Cut to a few years later and I’m ending up sitting in the shop for hours whilst waiting for a trim and chatting with the boys about anything and everything, and appreciating a barbershop for what a great one can be. But with uni rolling round, I moved away and needed to find a new place, where I very quickly discovered that not all shops have the same quality. Apparently a short, back and sides is a Peaky Blinders undercut to some barbers, so I made an emergency trip. Back in Sunny Tunny on the Costa Del Kent, I’m back in the original shop and

the lads have all gathered round to discuss how to fix the mess. Mum wasn’t happy, but the fat Eden Hazard was an important stage of my hair styling career. But the big thing, was being reminded of that safe space. As much as I got a ribbing for the Tommy Shelby, they spent their time making sure we could get it fixed. So, for the next three years I travelled back from London for a trim. That awesome feeling when you find YOUR barber is unmatched, and in that period, he made me look and feel good on people’s screens with his tri-weekly pick-me-up.

It was an important part of my routine, and really helped me when I was low. As time went on with my content creation, I was feeling it going stale and wasn’t enjoying it as much as I had done in the past. It was a nice escape from workplace politics, boring unnecessary drama and repetitiveness which were really getting to me, and eventually I had to stop. In all honesty, I was a bit lost though. Since 16, I’d put myself on a trajectory to go into the world of football and I wasn’t sure where to go.

I’d decided to have a clean break, move out of where I was and into my new place in June 2021. I was back in Wembley, it was hot, my hair was getting all over the place and I’d considered shaving my head at least 321 times. My barber back home had packed it in because of COVID, and I was feeling lost and miserable after fighting battles with landlords and not being sure what my next steps were. Then it hit me as I was unpacking my last bedroom box. I remember it vividly. I’d just stubbed my toe dancing about and putting off the unpacking process scrolling through TikTok and feeling sorry for my little toe. You know those moments? When you sit there and your brain just… Clicks. The sparks fly, your eyes widen and an idea just brings you to life. After panic attacks, being lost and not knowing where to go I’d found my way out. Wembley needed a barber like Gotham needs Batman. I called my dad, just to see what he thought. I’ve had enough harebrained to make Del Boy look like an amateur, but this one. This one was a stroke of genius. We spoke about it for a solid hour, seeing how it could it work, if it was the right decision, but it fit.

Two weeks later, after not picking up a pair of scissors in my life, I was staring at a mannequin head beginning my journey as a barber, and I haven’t looked back. Sure, it’s not been smooth, but re-training is the best decision I’ve made. When I was at one of my lowest points, it lifted me up. When I felt bad, a barber made me feel better, and then, I decided it was my turn to return the favours.

Sometimes, “fuck it,” really is the best policy.

It was a typical premiere day in London. It was the thirteenth of July. Leicester Square was awash with a thematic black carpet and the barrier around the Odeon heaved with excited fans eager to catch a glimpse of the star-studded cast of Christopher Nolan’s latest epic Oppenheimer. Nolan, in the good company of Cillian Murphy, Matt Damon, Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt and the rest of his motley crew, earnestly greeted the hankering press and fans, proudly talking on their electrifying experience bringing to life this motion picture maverick. Those with tickets ushered inside the infamous art deco screen, sold out to its capacity of nearly nine hundred, when Christopher Nolan stepped out to introduce the film alone.

Within minutes, the theatre was bustling with murmurs - speculations which had shadowed the evening like the dull British rain itself were soon recognised to have become true and Nolan confirmed it himself: “You’ve seen [the cast] here earlier on the red carpet. […] They’re off to write their picket signs for what we believe to be an imminent strike by the SAG, joining one of my guilds, the Writers Guide, in the struggle for fair wages for working members of the unions. And we support them.”

(SAG-AFTRA) with the WGA (Writers Guild of America) in strike action had felt, up until a few days prior, remote. There had been murmurs of the potentiality of a dual strike across the pond but over in the UK, swept up in the Summer film premieres and with most productions on Equity contracts as opposed to SAG-AFTRA, the political breakdowns were pretty much a detached entity to us. By the time the Oppenheimer cast had departed Leicester Square, however, Fran Drescher’s explosive speech ignited a fierce call for total shutdown that, still now some three weeks later, has left a haze of uncertainty over both American and British filmmaking.

Ridley Scott’s colossal sequel to his 2000 best picture winner, Gladiator, shut down operation in Malta with stars Denzel Washington and Pedro Pascal flying home to Los Angeles. Disney’s Deadpool 3 and Warner Brothers’ Beetlejuice 2 also came to a halt. Press circuits were cut short as actors are bound by strike rules not to engage in promotional content during this time, putting a full-stop ending to the summer of Barbenheimer madness. Fall film festivals found themselves in free fall, with many much anticipated releases from struck studios removed from programmes until the cast are able to walk the red carpet again — Amazon’s Luca Guadagino directed Challengers starring Zendaya was

The unification of the Screen Actors Guild

“WHAT HAPPENS HERE IS IMPORTANT BECAUSE WHAT’S HAPPENING TO US IS HAPPENING ACROSS ALL FIELDS OF LABOUR, WHEN EMPLOYERS MAKE WALL STREET AND GREED THEIR PRIORITY AND THEY FORGET ABOUT THE ESSENTIAL CONTRIBUTORS THAT MAKE THE MACHINE RUN.”

FRAN DRESCHER, SAG-AFTRA UNION PRESIDENT, DECLARES HOLLYWOOD’S ACTOR’S STRIKE.

THEIR HOMES. ”

“BY DAY 72 OUR SOULS WERE

“BY DAY CRACKING. OF THE LARGE. FUCKED

“LET THE WRITERS

DAY 72 OUR SOULS WERE CRACKING. THE DISTANT HORIZON THE STRIKE LOOMED LONG AND LARGE. BUT THEN THE AMPTP FUCKED UP.”

WRITERS STARVE. DRAG

AND MOST BE AT THE PILE WHEN THE ISSUED.

“EVENTUALLY THE PEOPLE

“MOST ACTORS AND MOST WRITERS SEEM TO BE AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PILE WHEN THE

“EVENTUALLY THE PEOPLE BREAK DOWN THE GATES

“THERE’S BEEN UNCHECKED OPPORTUNISM

JUST SPIRALLED CONTROL AND GOES ACROSS OF THE INDUSTRY RIGHT NOW.”

“MOST ACTORS AND MOST

WORDS & INTERVIEW BETH BENNETT

PHOTOGRAPHY RICHARD KELLY

Richard Kelly has made a name for himself in the sprawling British music scene photographing the best of British talent over the past twenty five years. From being the official photographer for the Arctic Monkeys and the first person to take a media shot of Florence and the Machine before they rocketed to success, he prides himself on capturing the very essence of upcoming talent. Now, he’s put these shots up along with some neverbefore-seens in the Kimpton Clocktower Hotel in Manchester so we hitched a ride down the motorway and caught up with the man behind the camera…

EJ When/How did you start out with photography?

RK I first got into photography when I worked at the Manchester Evening News as a messenger when I left school at 16. I used to see the photographers coming in dressed in their own clothes, no suits like everybody else. And their jobs would be something different every day; they’d go from shooting Oasis to Alex Ferguson at Man United and having that freedom really appealed to me. From then, I started going to night school and was awarded a City & Guilds diploma in Photography which led to working in film labs and photography printers. Then, I pursued higher education and got a degree in Documentary and Fine Art Photography where I started to shoot up and coming bands for a bit of money and worked as an assistant for bigger photographers who took me on location around the world. The experience of those was priceless. I feel like the technical skills I learnt with them, alongside my work in labs and darkrooms, taught me a huge amount about the craft and really gave me a solid foundation before striking up on my own.

EJ How did you begin to develop your individual photographic style?

RK There were two photographers in particular who I worked with, Gary Steer and Mary Scanlon, who taught me a lot about interacting with the subject of the photograph and how to make them feel comfortable and really get the best out of them. Their tutelage was really integral to informing my own personal practice.

EJ Can you talk a little bit about the relationship you have with music and photography?

RK When I was growing up, I was always drawn to iconic shots of musicians and they’re what I really remember when I think about photography in my early life. The photographs of The Beatles and Rolling Stones by David Bailey and then Oasis by Jill Furmanovsky, they’re like ingrained into my memories. So I’ve always had this very raw association of bands and their aesthetics/presentations. Then, as I got into photography myself I was drawn to going to raves in Manchester

and shooting the club scenes, really leaning into that documentary style that captures the unified euphoric experience of live music. This led to me getting work for Mixmag and other magazines which gave way to shooting more of the indie and up-and-coming bands in the North and, then, Britain as a whole.

EJ So can you talk a bit about the way you approach photographing talent then?

RK I approach talent the same way I approach anyone I meet. I think the worst thing you can do when preparing for a shoot and then during that shoot is to get in your head about it and be thinking, "Oh this person is…". They’re just a person with a job. I think a lot of people, especially those who’ve got a bit of fame, they’re used to meeting people who want to know everything, or want to be a part of the world and be involved in the scene and see these meetings as a way to get in, so it can be quite overwhelming and alienating for these musicians and artists. And as well, I think, there’s a level of a parasocialism, particularly with musicians, when people

have shared all the different moments of their lives through their songs that invites a level of familiarity that obviously isn’t reciprocated. You never want to go to a shoot acting like you’re someone’s best mate or even with the intention to become their best mate. It’s good to be friendly and get to know each other, of course, but at the end of the day, we’re all just doing our jobs that pay our bills. What I like to do is spend a bit of time talking through the shoot, even if it’s just five or ten minutes, throwing my ideas out there and allowing them to get a general feel for what we’re going to do. It helps create more of a two-way process where the person can communicate what they want out of the shoot as well and, ultimately, everyone is comfortable going into it.

EJ What’s your advice for ensuring you can completely capture the personality of a person/subculture?

RK Like I said, it’s a two-way process, so being open to the collaborative aspect when someone is sharing their ideas with you…it shows a side to them that’s

really quite lovely to capture. Of course, sometimes you’re working with someone and you may not have enough time to properly chat and have these moments, or maybe they’re not that open to some of your suggestions but as long as you’re making sure that they’re comfortable enough during the shoot, even with the little details of how you approach certain positions or angles, you’re going to see their character on the photograph. Documentary photography is easier almost in that regard because you can blend into the moment, like a fly on the wall, and you’re seeing people with their guard down in moments of proper joy so as long as your settings are all good, all you have to do is press the shutter.

EJ I suppose my final question then is what drew you to the title ‘A Time and A Place’ for this exhibit?

RK When Kimpton Clocktower Hotel approached me about the exhibition, we agreed that it was to be celebrating the musical heritage and prospective future of the music scene in Manchester. What

I wanted to do was use my platform to feature and then raise the profile of upand-coming talent in this scene. So using my historical shots of the Arctic Monkeys and Amy Winehouse was really a bit of a lure in getting people to look at the recent portraits I’d done of the likes of Antony Szmierek and Akemi Fox who are Manchester locals that are on their way up. In a way, it’s likening these newer artists to those that we now regard as British music royalty. It’s really about capturing people at a time and a place in their careers and reminding people that everyone has at this level once. Hopefully it’s introduced people to these new artists and they’ve left with some new tracks in their Spotify playlists.

Richard Kelly: A Time and Place will be a free to view exhibition on the walls at The Refuge until 31 August 2023

During the opening scenes of the sophomore season of The Bear, the ever-volatile Richie (Ebon Moss-Bachrach) stops head chef Carmy (Jeremy Allen White) in his tracks with one, oddly reflective question; “Yo, you ever think about purpose?” “I love you, but I do not have time for this,” is his response, shortly before admitting (or fibbing) that he does in fact have time and settling into a discussion about the changes they’re all facing and Richie’s place in those plans. Picking up exactly where season one left off, we find the team behind The Original Beef of Chicagoland preparing for their new venture, The Bear - a high end restaurant with its sights set on a Michelin star - funded by the cash loan previously concealed in cans of pulped tomatoes from their walk-in.

This conversation succinctly introduces the two fundamental themes of this season; purpose and time. Where the tomato cans once made their mark, hiding in plain sight throughout the show’s first run, clocks now permeate the visuals, acting as an ever-present reminder of looming deadlines and the balancing act of life’s many commitments. The neat trick this season plays is how it expands the canvas on everyone, allowing us an insight into each character’s individual struggles with that ticking clock. Marcus (Lionel Boyce) chooses to prioritise perfecting his craft over sitting by his mother’s hospital bed; Tina (Liza Colón-Zayas) and Ebra (Edwin Lee Gibson) are sent off to culinary school, with Tina electing to go full speed ahead at her new pursuit while Ebra draws out his days in protest; Natalie’s (Abby Elliot) pregnancy places a time bomb on her life while she grapples with the relationship she has with her own mother (a scene-stealing Jamie Lee-Curtis); the failures of Sydney’s (Ayo Edebiri) past haunt her as she chases a future dream.

For Carmy, these themes manifest themselves the most when he reconnects with an old friend, Claire (Molly Gordon), a bright-eyed medical student who sees him for more than just his successes but also threatens

the very fabric of what has made him great. Pair that with a flashback episode based around a Berzatto family Christmas, that twins in tone with the stand-out, one-take seventh instalment of season one, it’s clear to see that Carmy has a lot on his plate to manage; to give his time to.

All these trials and tribulations, however, make way for excellent performances all round. The show is peppered with sharp yet subtle acting, as well as authentic moments that can only be conjured by a cast who are as much of a family off-screen as they are on. Matty Matheson, professional chef turned actor, effortlessly helps to keep the tone light, while Ebon Moss-Bachrach fully commits to a character arc that steals the show and leaves you itching to scream Taylor Swift's Love Story at the top of your lungs as you drive home from work.

Despite its short run-time, the show itself is generous with its minutes. Small delectable moments between two characters are savoured and montages of Chicago city life are as prominent as ever, taking the screen time needed to firmly re-establish the show in its gritty, midwestern setting. It has all the chaos and charm as season one while asking some very pertinent questions about work, relationships, generational trauma and finding your place in the world. For the music fans, the soundtrack is as electric as ever, featuring old favourites Wilco, Counting Crows, Bruce Hornsby and R.E.M, as well as finally giving us the explosive drop of Refused’s New Noise after starving us of its impact for the past year.

Given more time (and space on the page), I could go on and on about the intricacies of what makes this show great. Following up on season one was always going to be a hard task but Christopher Storer delivers an outstanding second course to what we hope will be a slow, indulgent feast that makes every second count. Bring on season three.

THE BEAR IS BACK THE BEAR

EVERY SECOND COUNTS

WORDS EVIE FRIAR IMAGERY COURTESY OF DISNEY

REFLECTIONS FROM THE BLACK MIRROR

WORDS & INTERVIEW

BETH BENNETT

PHOTOGRAPHY

BETH BENNETT

PRODUCTION STILLS

COURTESY OF NETFLIX

With her latest role in Charlie Brooker's anthology stirring up a storm, we invited actor Anjana Vasan on a walk around West London where she caught us up on her winding road to 1979.

EJ I’m really excited to get to chat to you today because it feels like I’ve seen you everywhere really, from We Are Lady Parts to Killing Eve and now Black Mirror - what I want to begin with is the very simple question: did you always know this is what you wanted to do?

AV I always knew, deep down, that I wanted to act but I wasn’t sure that it was a thing that you could really, feasibly do. I just didn’t have any idea or a plan of what the roadmap would be to doing something like that without the connections. So, I had this interest and passion for theatre and I thought to myself, you know, if I can’t be an actor, I want to be a director or work with children doing theatre through education. So I ended up doing Theatre Studies at University and learned those initial skills to be able to be a part of that performing world. But when I graduated, I knew I’d always regret it if I didn’t at least try and train as an actor so I made the decision to just give it a go.

EJ Your first role was in Fresh Meat, right?

AV Yes! I hadn’t even graduated and I got the role after auditioning and… I mean, my first reaction was to panic because it hit me that I’d actually have to do it. It was insane, you know? I was a foreigner who was studying over here and I just didn’t think it would happen, that I’d go back home once I finished studying. But suddenly I had this job and… I was going to be able to work here.

EJ Not only that, but it’s on TV with Jack Whitehall!

*This interview was conducted on 6th July 2023, before the SAG-AFTRA strike had begun.

AV Exactly! It was a real learning experience for me. I didn’t know anything about filming, the marks on the floor, and all I kept telling myself was ‘say your lines and don’t bump into the set’ - that was my only goal. But I had so much fun. Most of my scenes were with Greg McHugh who was so lovely and patient with me. I must have been quite doe-eyed and sort of a bit starstruck but he was able to make me feel at ease. I’ll always remember that.

EJ It really is a testament to your acting because you really can’t tell that it’s your first role. You look so at home on screen already at that point.

AV I think the thing is that it’s just one step, one foot in front of the other. You keep doing it. Then one day you realise that you’re still going. That’s what acting is. For a long time, I just wanted to be able to call myself an actor confidently. To be able to do that fully, that was my definition of success.

EJ From speaking to actors myself, I’ve come to understand that it’s like an apprenticeship in most ways because, well, you could do all of the theory in the world but you really learn by being on the job and having that experience.

AV The first couple of years after drama school is exactly that. You go on these small jobs. Make mistakes and learn from them. Like I’ve been able to follow my instincts and hone my own integrity through those early moments in my career.

EJ Which has led you to become an Olivier winning actress for your role as Stella in A Streetcar Named Desire. How was that experience?

AV The whole thing was very surreal and, like, really, really lovely. I know it’s very fashionable to say but I was genuinely just happy to be nominated. The evening itself

was exciting and being around all the team and celebrating what we’d been working on… I got swept up in it. I hadn’t even thought about what would happen if I won. Then I did. I had a very emotional response because I’d always wanted to be a theatre actor and I’d really built it up in my head. I had this very romantic notion of, like, living in London and working on the West End. So to get an Olivier Award was like recognising that naive, excitable, and fearless childhood dream of mine. I was doing all I’d ever wanted to do and this was celebrating it.

EJ And for Streetcar as well, which is one of the major plays in the pantheon of theatre…

AV Tennessee Williams is my favourite playwright and he’s also very popular for good reason but these plays don’t come around that often. There’s only a handful of actors who can say, "I’ve gotten to be in Streetcar on the West End". So that in itself is monumental to me and I was working with people that I felt very close to and was very proud of. It was such a special experience.

EJ You say that there’s only a handful of actors who are able to say they’ve been in a Tennessee Williams on the West End, but there’s only a handful of actors who are able to say that they’ve led an episode of Black Mirror. What was your reaction to finding out that you were going to be one of those actors?

AV It was very strange. I’d sent off the audition tape and received a call asking if I wanted to do it, and I was a bit like, "Do you want to meet me?" And they were like, "No, do you want to do it?" And all I could say was, "Are you sure?" It was so surreal, I still sometimes don’t feel like I’ve actually done it.

They call Demon 79 ‘Red Mirror’ because it’s different to the other Black Mirror episodes. It has its own flavour that feels really different. Obviously, there’s elements that

are distinctly Black Mirror but it’s unique in its story and delivery and I was just really excited about finding out about my character’s journey and her journey with the character of Gaap.

EJ Who was played by the fantastic Paapa Essiedu, of course. What I want to know is, on paper perhaps, the plot may seem a little far fetched, particularly in the world of Black Mirror, maybe a little cartoonish; yet the end product is nothing like that at all and it’s the chemistry between Paapa and yourself that sells it. Was this something you really worked on together or was it natural between the two of you?

AV It was one of those unique experiences where the minute we did the chemistry read, he came in and I knew instantly that this is who Gaap is. It was hard to visualise on paper a character who was funny and clearly charming but also had this…well, this sinister edge to him. But then Paapa walked in and it all made sense. I’ve been a fan of him for so long and he’d been a fan of me and, in that moment, it felt so familiar as if we’d acted together before but we hadn’t. Finding the tone just came from how we fed off each other. It’s funny, it’s very distressing, it’s weird but the turmoil that my character Nida goes through, how much can I push that? Whatever I was giving, Paapa was giving right back and it was a generous exchange; a proper connection.

The director of the episode, Toby Haynes, was aware of that and, yes we workshopped our scenes and ensured we knew what we all wanted to achieve, but we didn’t rehearse it to death, you know? It was important for Toby, and part of what makes it a good episode, is how he was able to capture those exchanges, emotions, and almost improvised energies live. It feels more natural, more distressing, more exciting which achieves that tonal balance between everything.

"Getting an Olivier Award was like recognising that naive, excitable, and fearless childhood dream of mine. I was doing all I’d ever wanted to do and this was celebrating it."

And we were able to laugh too. Paapa and I would check in with each other once that camera had stopped rolling and we’d just have a laugh. You can’t take these kind of things too seriously, I think.

EJ Striking that tonal balance really hammers home the themes of the episode as well, there’s this idea of bringing in these sort of supernatural and apocalyptic elements as a way to, not only reconcile with identity, but also as a type of outlet for rage, I suppose, towards the very prevalent racism still in England today. Do you want to talk about those themes and how you understand them?

AV I’ve seen Demon 79 a few times now but I remember seeing it at the first screening we did and… I was stunned. And even now, every time I watch it, I feel different things about it and that’s… That’s what Black Mirror does, yes, but it’s also highlighting the variety of experience and perspective that comes with being an immigrant. Those feelings I have each time are representative of those unique experiences. There’s something that every person of colour, every immigrant can connect to.

I’m an immigrant twice - I moved from India to Singapore and then eventually Singapore to the UK. We all have stories. I could spend all day talking about the various micro-aggressions that we face but… You want them not to define you as a person. You want to be able to rise above all that. But it’s not that simple. I think the fact that, for Nida, it’s 1979 and the person that she is, those experiences she has on a daily basis are hard for her to rise from. There’s the obvious things like her colleague who might say something racist that chips away at her but ultimately, it’s the fact that Nida is almost invisible to her world that’s the greatest aggression there is. That’s the greater humiliation. It’s as though she doesn’t matter in the grand scheme of this society, in this world. Who is she? How much is a person like her valued? Then the irony is that, well, she’s the one fighting to save the world. She’s trying to save humanity. But then how much does this world that she’s trying to save actually value her?

When I watched it, I was actually quite… I didn’t expect it to be so triumphant and moving. Gaap and Nida end the episode by going off together into total oblivion which is described as a sort of eternal

nothingness, that’s actually better. It’s the more romantic, optimistic version of the world she’s leaving behind.

And it poses the question of how the way we treat people on a daily basis affects their perception of themselves and their understanding of their place in the world. Nida makes herself so small because she’s essentially told to by all these people’s actions. And it is entirely based on her existence as a person of colour. It’s so easily done to people, that accumulation of the everyday diminishing of a person, just choosing not to look at them. Those are the haunting things, and the destructive things and what this episode does is present that to the audience. It says: your actions have people aspiring for oblivion because that’s safer and happier than the environment you have created. You can’t be saved if you don’t treat everyone like they could be a hero.

Black Mirror ‘Demon 79’ is now streaming on Netflix. @anjvasan

"Whatever I was giving, Paapa was giving right back and it was a generous exchange; a proper connection."

HERE COMES THE WOLF

WORDS & INTERVIEW

BETH BENNETT

*This interview was conducted on 6th July 2023, before the SAG-AFTRA strike had begun.

With BBC’s new hit police drama on the horizon, we thought it was only right to spend the morning with leading man Ukweli Roach. We caught up with him at London’s Saatchi Gallery and found out all about the juicy new role he couldn’t wait to sink his teeth into.

EJ So not only are you an actor, you’re a choreographer as well, right?

UR I started, I suppose, performing when I was young. I always knew I wanted to act from about fifteen but dance was something that I loved doing too. So I started taking dance classes when I was about sixteen. I’d actually started with tap dance back when I was a kid which helped with playing football because I loved playing sports as well so I was eager to pick it up again. Then I fell into commercial work while I was studying acting at RADA, and I was dancing for artists like Mariah Carey and at The Brit Awards.

EJ And I suppose that they go hand-inhand, really both acting and dancing. Looking at your performances and even in how you’ve been moving today for these photos, you have a distinct grasp of physicality that really comes across in your characters. Do you think that dancing has helped your acting career?

UR Absolutely. I think all actors should do some form of dance and that dancers should get acting training too. It’s that kinetic intelligence, knowing how you move and altering it naturally – it’s vital

for both. But for me? It’s just dance and movement all over. I love parkour. I like fight choreography. I like how it all informs each other. When you watch Jackie Chan doing his own stunts, all that intelligent movement is insane. I admire it, just something about that complete control.

EJ Having that physical control, was it something that you leaned on in Wolf? Your character Jack Caffery has quite a troubled past and you can really see how he carries it with him in how he moves.

UR Jack is desperately trying to solve the mystery of his missing brother who disappeared when Jack was eight. It’s formed the direction of his whole life from choosing to become a detective to the complicated relationship he has with what being a part of the force means for his history. He’s literally got it on his shoulders, weighing down on him, so it affects him in every way. The traumas, the saviour complex, it all makes him such an interesting character to move with.

EJ And how did you tap into Jack’s obsessive and flawed nature?

UR It was a lot of preparation, to be honest. I worked on a system called ‘multidimensional character choices’ that was designed by a friend of mine called Toby Bukhari. And that’s how we really broke down all of my instincts for the role and the character of Jack. We did some in-depth character building to really establish what’s on the surface and then what’s in the undercurrent to Jack. So then that informs everything. From the way he walks to how he squints his eyes or certain intonations. Having watched it back now, it’s so rewarding to see that all of that work we put in before filming started to come out

exactly how we intended. Because it was all subconscious by the time the cameras were rolling. I didn’t realise how ingrained it all was until I was watching it back and seeing everything we’d done in each session.

EJ Sort of evoking the Stanisslavski method as well, I guess?

UR Yeah, of course. Like you have to undo your own movements to move how the character would. But I also think that character building is quite Meisner-ish as well because we’d do a lot of repetition work on facts about Jack and infusing those facts with what an audience would see. It was a bit of an amalgamation of all these creative systems. What was important is that I didn’t forget my instinct because that’s the reason I got the job, they saw something in me that they wanted in Jack so that was the gravitational pull for everything. I didn’t want to completely strip away what I felt was right, it was building on the information in the script and what we’d developed to really become him.

And it was exciting because, well, the complexity of him is one of the reasons why I wanted to tackle this project in the first place. He’s a policeman but he’s willing to break the law himself, he’s willing to use criminal tactics because he’s so set on finding the truth out about what happened to his brother. It’s enticing for any actor, I think.

EJ So looking beyond Jack, I mean the show is fantastic. It has these two narratives that are running distantly beside each other that begin to ramp up this tension and then when they finally, inevitably, collide it’s in quite a brutal way. It’s a lot more visceral and almost poetic in the delivery than what you would usually

"When you watch Jackie Chan doing his own stunts, all that intelligent movement is insane. I admire it, just something about that complete control. "

expect from a BBC police drama. When you’ve got the scripts and you’re cast in the leading role, what was it like to know that you were going to bring this all to life?

UR That was what really enticed me to the script. It isn’t sanitised at all. It’s honest, brutal, and it’s not safe, especially in this time we’re in. It was something that could have been scary to a lot of production companies and broadcasters but the combined bravery of everyone was exciting. He’s this terribly flawed character that, you know, we’re not trying to make him a white knight or some kind of here, he’s almost villainous at times but he’s real. I loved that we got to play out reality and all of these complications, and all the blood and gore.

As an actor, that’s what you want, really. That’s the good stuff. You can sink your teeth into and make it your own, you break it and throw it around and just…have fun. It’s where all the minerals are.

EJ Do you think that this role has impacted how you see the world?

UR I don’t think it’s truly impacted it but I think it’s made me more comfortable in myself, if that makes sense? I understand myself at a deeper level because I’ve got to understand Jack. Being able to have the visibility of those elements in me is definitely going to stay with me for sure.

Wolf is airing now on BBC One and available to stream on BBC iPlayer.

GET OUT OF MY PUB!

WORDS LIV RAINFORD

A LOOK INTO THE LASTING CULTURAL IMPACT OF THE QUEEN VIC’S PATRONS

Peggy Mitchell (lEFT)

Den and Angie Watts (RighT)

Portrayed by Leslie Grantham & Anita Dobson

Eastenders has always been a British rite of passage since the first episode aired in the 80s. Now, over 5,000 episodes later, its significance radiates throughout British culture and seeps into the rest of the world through its iconic characters and quotes as well as the collective writer’s ability to incorporate an impactful story line whilst including comedic value. The show continues to grip people with its high stakes storylines but also its relatability towards working class cultures. Being set in the fictional town of Walford, in East London where most characters struggle to make ends meet, the show is renowned for its ability to positively represent the neighbourhood friendliness and sense of community found within close knit council estates around the country.

Eastenders’ debut in 1985 was recently voted in a study by Honda and Dr. Ruth Adams (Senior Lecturer in Cultural and Creative Industries at King’s College London) as one of the most significant cultural movements in the past 50 years. Dr. Adams quoted for the study “Certain cultural events take on a significance not just for the individuals who were there but also become a part of our collective memory and identity. These events represent our experience and shared sensibility. We see ourselves reflected in them - often at our best, but sometimes at our worst.”

And it’s easy to see why Eastenders falls into this category.

Only this year did we see our now current King make a guest appearance on the show for Queen Elizabeth’s platinum jubilee. Often, well-known names in British culture step onto Albert Square, like Danny Dyer - who’s death in 2022’s Christmas special gripped the nation. Eastenders Christmas specials themselves are their own beast too, a festive evening spectacle that follows turkey and trimmings; so much so, even Prime Video offers a selection of Eastenders Christmas specials from 1992 up to 2004 for viewing on their streaming service.

Eastenders serves a greater purpose too, with storylines often discussing stories that are considered taboo and opening the dialogue in the nation’s homes. Such as a

hard-hitting knife crime story line in which a teenage character Shakil was killed off, and the repercussions of gang violence which is a prevalent stain on British Culture. The funeral episode featured the families of real-life victims holding up images of their own lost loved ones as the coffin was carried past, which received praise from critics and fans. This year a storyline for long-running character Stacey Slater (Lacey Turner) was introduced where she joins what can only be compared to Only-Fans in order to support her pregnant daughter Lily (Lilia Turner) who is only 13. This story line shocked the media and fans alike initially, but quickly gained traction with Lilia winning best young actress at the 2023 British Soap Awards – where Eastenders dominated with four winnings, including Best British Soap.

Eastenders was the first British soap opera to show a gay kiss on screen in 1989, which led to intense scrutiny from tabloid newspapers, with The Sun releasing an article calling for the show to be scrapped entirely. It was not and this year became the first British soap to feature a drag queen character who was introduced earlier this year - Tara Misu.

Despite being a fan of the soap or not, Eastenders has remained a cultural icon for Brits due to the heavily recognisable characters and plot lines. There’s Dot Cotton (June Brown), remembered by her signature hair style and cigarette in hand;

Pat Butcher (Pat St Clement) recognised by her earrings (London rapper CASISDEAD even has his own song titled ‘Pat’s Earrings’); the brutally entertaining Peggy Mitchell (Barbara Windsor) who will always been known as the true landlord of the show’s monumental pub, The Queen Vic; and legendary gangster-type Phil Mitchell (Steve McFadden). Eastenders actors have received knighthoods, damehoods, have gone onto Hollywood movies, and toured the clubs for University Freshers weeks to a chorus of rehashed quotes from the show: “I’ve got nothing left, Phil”, “I didn’t just become a slag, I became a total slag”, “Get out of my pub!”, “You’re not my mother” – “I am!” , “Riiiickkkyyyyyyyyy”.

Eastenders continues to lead cultural significance throughout British Culture, as it continues to explore impactful storylines as well as keep its comedic value. As well as introducing new characters with new storylines, Eastenders attempts to stick to their roots, keeping Phil Mitchell as Walford's resident mafia boss, Sonia as the resident trumpet player, and the legacy of Pat Butcher, Dot Cotton, and Peggy Mitchell living on even through episodes to this very day. It will be interesting to see how Eastenders continues to impact British culture over the next generation, but for now, you’ll find us on the BBC at 8pm, cup of tea and biscuits, shaken by the latest duff-duff.

Portrayed by Dame Barbara Windsor

MATT NEEDLE

Our 'Meet the Maker' features so far have all explored the world of physical objects; items created by artisans that you can hold, own, wear, touch and treasure. This time, we've gone digital. But graphic designer, Matt Needle's work still elicits the same response with collaged compositions, tangible textures and a depth to them that make you want to reach right into the frame. Let's dive straight in, shall we?

WORDS & INTERVIEW EVIE FRIAR

EJ Your love of films is a key part of your work, was this something that you pursued from the off-set when starting your career?

MN I think that my combined love of film, music and design have always been intertwined. From a very early age I was intrigued and inspired by film posters, video box art, record covers and book covers. These things pushed me towards drawing my own interpretations when I was a child, and that has filtered through to something I still do as an adult. My love of art and design aligned with those early influences and somehow turned into a career.

EJ Who are your main creative influences?

MN I draw inspiration from a lot of places The poster work of Bill Gold, Hans Hillman, Andy Warhol, Richard Hamilton, Japanese, Czech and Polish Film Poster design movements, the Dada Art Movement, and so many more.

EJ You graduated top of your class at university in Design and Applied Arts, how did you find the transition from design student to freelancer/business owner?

MN Daunting is probably the first feeling that comes to mind. Initially, I had already worked a bunch of placements at studios and magazines, I got hired to work part time for a studio whilst already in my 3rd year of University, but I noticed pretty quickly that I didn’t like the vibe of working on stuff that I wasn’t passionate about, in the style and voice of someone else and not getting to develop and explore my own direction and voice as a designer. So not long after graduating, I quit that job and went freelance. It was really hard at first, I would get sporadic commissions, lots which weren’t paying well, so I had to take some side jobs to help support me whist I worked and honed my craft and built my business.

The rise of social media at the same time definitely helped in searching for work,

connecting with people and getting my work seen. And I’d credit that in my journey.

EJ Your earlier work includes more flat illustrations and vector-based designs. What inspired you to transition to more textured, collaged approach?

MN I actually started out before that as a more collage based artist initially. But I decided to try working in and exploring a few styles whilst at university, and minimalism was something that was quite different to collage, but I could still focus on a symbolism/iconographic approach of conveying messages.

Whilst playing with this minimalist approach I started making little self initiated film posters and putting them online (Wordpress / Tumblr) and they started to gain traction and bring in a few projects. Once I started getting established in that style, it became hard to separate from it for a long while. On the one hand it was helping

me get work, but I don’t feel it was my best work and I yearned to go back to collage style (but a lot of people were hiring me and requesting that flat vector style.) Once I got to a certain level of stability work wise I slowly started to re-integrate my old way of working and phased out the minimalist element. Sometimes I still revisit it when needed, but luckily my old original style has returned to prominence within my working practice and helped propel me to even greater heights.

EJ When starting on a new film poster, do you have a systematic way of coming up with a design or do you tend to have an initial idea or spark of inspiration that you just want to run with?

MN Initially, I kind of jump straight into the project by watching the movie and sketching down loads of rough ideas. Something will (usually) spark within that process and I’ll run with it. When it's a commissioned project for a film that isn’t

out yet, I tend to develop a few options and work with the client to craft something that is almost a combination of elements from a few of the rough concepts.

EJ What is the one tool in your design toolbox that you tend to reach for the most?

An old school sketchbook & Photoshop are my two most used tools. I'm always collecting ("hoarding", according to my girlfriend) any little visual thing I see, I have boxes of stuff for potential collages, and I have folders of stuff for digital collaging on my computer.

EJ Do you have a favourite piece of work that you've designed or an idea that you're particularly proud of?

MN I'm pretty fond of my Bond Project as a whole, which I worked on in the pandemic. There are a few pieces I’d go back and rejig but mostly all of that stuff works for me. I’m also pretty proud of a lot of my Oscars

poster this year. I feel like, in the decade I’ve been doing that project, this year was my strongest.

EJ You've recently worked on tour posters for Bruce Springsteen, how did that opportunity come about? Do you approach your music projects any differently to your film ones?

MN The project runners CollectionZZ just reached out and asked me to put forward some ideas as a few of the pitches had been rejected. Luckily they liked my concept of his guitar, which had a different collage illustration in the scratch plate for each location.

I approach gig posters in a pretty similar way as I do film posters, it's all about drawing out something iconographic from the subject matter, making that somehow the focus of the piece in a clever or engaging way.

EJ You have worked on a few self-initiated projects, including your James Bond poster series, your annual #ForYourConsideration Oscar nominees' series, and your #Noirvember Film Noir poster series. Is it important to you to always have a selfinitiated project on the go?

MN I love the self initiated pieces, they help me explore and evolve my style outside of commercial work, but they also work as a sort of advertisement for me and my work. It's also nice to just work on something for yourself, where I have no deadline and no amendments.

The busier I get with work and family life, the harder it gets to work on these types of projects, but as I mentioned previously the Bond Project worked perfectly for me in the Covid Lockdown where a lot of my projects got paused/scrapped. Likewise, I have the Oscars scheduled down for the start of every year and Noirvember for the end of every year so I can kind of plan my schedule around those in advance.

"

I approach gig posters in a pretty similar way as I do film posters. It's all about drawing out something iconographic from the subject matter, making that somehow the focus of the piece in a clever or engaging way.

EJ As a creative, you're very active on social media. How do you feel about artists and designers now having to promote themselves in this way?

MN It's a bit of a double headed beast really. As I mentioned earlier, I don’t think I’d be as successful at doing what I’m doing if I didn’t utilise social media when it was first exploding 10-15 years ago.

It coincided with me going freelance, helped me connect with clients/art directors/peers. Even now, it's very fragmented and spread over many networks, I feel it's important to use it to it's fullest advantage as a free promotional tool.

However, a lot of artists can feel pressure to feed the algorithm consistently with new art. Instagram and Twitter (or X?) keep messing with how things function to such a degree that only a fraction of people see what you are making. That can be pretty frustrating.

Overall I don’t think I would use it if I didn’t have to for work. I try to keep my private life mostly private (apart from the odd photo of my kid doing something cute).

@needledesign mattneedle.co.uk

I love the self initiated pieces, they help me explore and evolve my style outside of commercial work.

It's also nice to just work on something for yourself, where I have no deadline and no amendments.

HELP! SOMEONE FROM 1910 IS IN MY HEAD

WORDS EMMY HALLAHAN

@emmyhallahan

Lately, I’ve found myself unable to write at all. Getting through a sentence is a struggle, and getting through a paragraph? Forget it. It’s not going to happen. Perhaps it’s cheating, a little bit, to make my column for this issue about not writing, but I promise it ties back in with the theme.

I was recently working with some archivists, and during my time there, I came across a magazine. A handwritten piece from the November of 1910. Some of it felt structurally familiar, more or less - discussion of events, news, all that you’d expect from such a publication. One of the articles, though, felt like someone had crawled inside my brain and started piloting me Ratatouille (2007) style. For a brief moment, I actually wondered if I had written this - if in some strange state of semi consciousness I’d handwritten and faked an entire magazine from the 1910s. I told you I was delusional.

For some clarity on this matter, I always thought my sense of humour was something very modern. Shaped by growing up online, and being pretty plugged in for my teens, and then the (slightly) less online life that follows, where you roll your eyes at what the kids a decade younger than you are saying on the internet, rinse and repeat ad infinitum etc. etc. And yet, here this person is in 1910 cracking the same sort of jokes I am, using a tone that swings wildly between selfdeprecating and self-affected and making plenty of nods to the nature of the form. I’m perfectly aware that people from the past were all complex individuals with their own fascinating lives and perspectives. That being said, it was still strange to see a version of my

own voice reflected back at me through the decades, coming not from the words of some author or figure that may have permeated the public consciousness, but from the mouth of essentially just some guy. Nothing is original, apparently.

In my defence, I have never claimed to be original. I am, as a now defunct Twitter (or … whatever it’s called now?) account put it best, ‘the amalgamation of every single girl I’ve ever thought was cool’. I see strangers in outfits I love, and I write down everything they’re wearing so I can recreate it later. I still wear eyeshadow recommended to me by people I haven’t spoken to in years. I eat cucumber with a stupid amount of pepper and garlic on it because a friend of a friend of a friend told me about it once. I don’t kill bugs if I can help it, because my dad once said ‘if you kill something, a bigger version will come back for you’. I hold my thumbs because I read once somewhere that it brings you luck. Even though I haven’t worked at my old job for a while now, I still refrain from using the word ‘quiet’ at ones I’ve been in since - we all know what happens when you do. Don’t do that, by the way.

I skew far more neurotic than poetic, but sometimes, I do just get gripped with a feeling - a realisation if you will. Someone laughed at this joke. Someone played this game before. All that is new to me, was new to someone before me. I wear a stranger’s face and she smiles back at me in the mirror.

The subject of their article, by the way? The same as this one. The author’s inability to write.

80

PANTRY

BEEF

CANAPE SIZE)

Woongchul Park blends influences from his Korean upbringing with his refined European training at his one Michelin star restaurant Sollip.

INGREDIENTS

100g wagyu short-rib (or any tougher cut of good quality beef)

20g gochujang

1 tbsp of shallot, diced finely 2 tbsp of chives, sliced finely 1 tsp of cured daikon (or any pickled hard vegetable), chopped

1 tsp of mayonnaise (can be replaced with Original Heinz)

50g egg yolk

10g dijon mustard

20g honey

400g pomace oil (or any rich neutral)

4g salt

METHOD

Let the meat air-dry in the fridge, uncovered. After one hour drying uncovered in the fridge, cut beef into strips and dice roughly.

Finely chop the shallot and daikon, and slice the chives thinly to create small rounds.

For the mayo, combine all the ingredients, bar the pepper and oil, and whisk until a light layer of bubbles is formed, if you have one a hand blender will work just as well.

Slowly pour in the oil and whisk thoroughly until all the oil is incorporated and you can’t see any on the surface of the mayo.

Mix all together and finish with salt and pepper, best served on a sourdough cracker or oven crisped slices of bread with a dollop of caviar and/or a sprinkle of chives. @woongchul_park

"I love beef tartare; originally the Korean version which is raw beef mixed with sesame oil, and classic French beef tartare. So I was determined to put it on the menu - but combining both styles... It gives a crunchiness, a sourness and a bit of spiciness which creates a really good balance in the tartare."

SOLLIP BEEF TARTARE (SERVES 10

THE MARVELLOUS MINDS AT

WORDS & INTERVIEW

THOMAS SUMNER

T O P I

M E A A

PHOTOGRAPHY COURTESY OF MOAI PR

Meatopia, the festival of fire-cooking, returns to the Tobacco Dock of East London this August. Founded with a manifesto championing a more adventurous way of cooking, Meatopia is constantly evolving and pushing the boundaries of cuisine. We caught up with a handful of featured chefs ahead of the event to ask them about what they’re bringing to the table.

MEATOPIA 2023

August 31st - 3rd September

THE CHEFS

Tom Zahir Browne, Decatur

Tom has been cooking the cuisine of Louisiana and New Orleans in London for nearly a decade, focusing on bringing a taste of the South to homesick Americans across the capital, via the specialities of Creole and Cajun cuisine.

Ana Da Costa, Mama Da Costa

Ana is a home cook and self-proclaimed hot sauce queen with a passion for Macanese, Portuguese and Chinese cuisine.

Rebecca Goad, Bab Haus

Rebecca established Bab Haus alongside friend Leyli Homayoonfar in 2019 and brought the eclectic mix of Mexican, Middle Eastern, and American BBQ to South Wales.

Tom Zahir, Decatur

What is your preferred way to cook with fire?

What I love most about cooking over fire is that it's so manual. Through manipulation of coals and airflow you can create completely different cooking environments - it's just so versatile - from smoking meat slowly until it reaches tenderness over wooden logs, to a hard sear on a steak with white hot Binchotan charcoal, or even baking bread in a ceramic barbecue - it can all be done on fire provided you know what you're doing!

While I'd love to say my favourite way to cook over fire was at work in some capacity, I think realistically, like most people my favourite way to cook is on late summer afternoons in the garden, with the sun on my back, listening to some good music with my people and drinking some frozen daiquiris. I'm perfectly happy with a simple ocakbasi style barbecue and making sure that I use every last coal to good effectcharring vegetables while the fire is raging and settling to make salads and dipsgrilling meat over white hot coals, letting the fat hit the fire and fill the garden with smoke, toasting bread in fresh lamb fat and letting it crisp on the barbecue - and using the dying embers to braise and slow roast firm veg like carrots and sweet potatoes.

Around the world, which culture is the best at cooking over live-fire and why?

Honestly I respect the way that so many cultures use fire - I'm half Pakistani and I would struggle not to take a plate of

Ana

Da Costa, Mama Da Costa

What is your preferred way to cook with fire?

My perfect setting would be on by a beach on a late afternoon with a small disposable bbq and a couple of fresh sardines and few cold beers.

Around the world, which culture is the best at cooking over live-fire and why?

I am a big fan of the Japanese robata,

Seekh Kebabs, Lamb Chops and some Freshly fired Naan Bread to the gravebut it would be remiss of me not to say the American South - right? From the slow smoked barbecue that everyone knows, to North Carolina style whole hog barbecue, mopped in vinegar and cooked for hours - to tossing fresh Oysters on the grill and charbroiling them - the depth of technique and variety of cooking for me is unparalleled - and I really think the south turned live fire cooking into an art form and a science for so much of the Western World and deserve's all of its props - it's synonymous with smoke and fire for a reason - and really, there is nothing like pulling up to a sleepy town somewhere in Texas and smelling that post-oak smoke in the air, knowing you're about to get down on some incredible food.

Whose food are you looking forward to sampling the most at Meatopia? Have you tried it before and why are you looking forward to it?

God there are so many good chefs at Meatopia I am basically looking forward to trying everything! I love Ana Da Costa and Andrew Corbin's approach to East Asian cooking - and I hear Andrew is making Babi Guling - a Balinese Spiced roast pork dish that I love. I also cannot wait to eat Karla Zazueta and Ronnie Aronica's food having had incredible meals at Karla's house and Bench in the past few months! Also gotta shout out Milli Taylor, Reuben Dawnay, Melissa Thompson and Nathan Chapman of Quality Chop House - they're all the homies!

I think the simplicity of the preparation of dishes make the ingredients shine.

Whose food are you looking forward to sampling the most at Meatopia? Have you tried it before and why are you looking forward to it?

I am super stoked to see Zé Paulo from O Velho Eurico, he is a dear friend and I’ve tried his food many times so I know we won’t be disappointed.

Rebecca Goad, Bab Haus

What is your preferred way to cook with fire?

Direct heat, beautiful produce, and simple touches. Using a great charcoal such as Whittle & Flame, means the produce you are grilling doesn't need much more than a splash good olive oil, (I cannot express enough how this will change your life) and sea salt.

Around the world, which culture is the best at cooking over live-fire and why?

I think it's hard to say one culture does it best, so much of modern BBQ/fire cooking is a fusion of cultures, using different techniques and styles, taking influence from a variety of backgrounds.

Whose food are you looking forward to sampling the most at Meatopia? Have you tried it before and why are you looking forward to it?

Elliot Cunningham of Lagom, I first started following Elliot on Instagram back in 2019, visiting Hackney Church Brewing Co. later that year. Our order included his coal roasted chicken, featherblade bun, a sexy pork rib and beetroot carpaccio, the produce and cooking methods speak for themselves. I've been at Meatopia 2 years with Elliot, but never had chance to eat his dish at the festival, so he is top of my list this year!

COFFEE THAT’S WORTH THE GRIND

EAT THE CAKE

WORDS & INTERVIEW

BETH BENNETT

After rocketing to the final of The Great British Bake Off last year, Sandro Farmhouse has established himself as one of the most exciting and entertaining bakers of our time. Now, he’s using his skills and his love for others to provide educational support with his new initiative Baking On The Spectrum.

EJ So, you were baking for quite a while before you ended up on The Great British Bake Off last year, weren’t you? Can you tell us a bit about your journey and how you got here today?

SF Yeah, so baking started at home with me. We moved from Angola when I was young and so we were living in London. I was baking with my mum when I was a little boy, like most kids do, definitely more interested in licking the spoon. Grew up, kinda forgot about it really. Then when I was a young man, my dad died and I found baking again after that. I found the therapeutic qualities of baking then and couldn’t stop. It was something that grew naturally after that. I didn’t force it really. Then, yeah, got onto Bake Off. After that, I was asked to bake for a lot of celebrities like Lorraine Kelly and Stormzy.

EJ You spoke just now about how you found baking therapeutic and this is something you’ve spoken about at length before - why do you think that is? Is it the repetition of it?

SF Definitely. You reach a point where you eventually get lost in it. You’re focused on trying to get this one thing done, measure everything perfectly, and get to the finished product. You forget the world around you when you’re, for example, kneading bread and you’re immersed in the sensory aspect of it all. It’s just a calming experience for me.

EJ Do you also think it’s about having that tangible finished product too?

SF Of course, yeah. When you’re finished, there’s a special moment when you’ve made something and you get to share it with friends and family. I don’t bake to be complimented, I bake to feel good in myself, but it is nice to get that praise too.

EJ Do you find that since this has become a full-time job for you that you’re always getting harangued by your friends and family to bring something to a meal or celebration?

SF I don’t really. I end up bringing a lot more to them on a normal day because I always have leftovers but because it’s my job, they don’t expect me to just whip something up for a birthday.

EJ Just bring over a Colin the Caterpillar cake, yeah?

SF Yeah, yeah. He’s never let me down. No one’s ever disappointed with a Colin.

EJ So with your success on Bake Off and now working as a full-time baker, do you find that engaging with something that you find therapeutic as a career has helped guide you towards further self-care outside of work?

SF Oh, for sure. I used to do it a lot for vanity reasons but now I’ve actually been going to people and researching, you know, what’s best for my skin? What workouts are going to improve how I feel here? I’ve also found that I’m using it for alone time now, to catch up with myself. I spend, like, thirty minutes doing self-care in the morning and evening and that means every day I’ll have an hour to myself to just…re-align.

EJ Phone off, music playing?

SF Yeah, absolutely. The world is so loud, you know? I just want to take some time to sit down, put cream on my face for a half an hour, and be at peace.

EJ So to get into Baking On The Spectrum, which is an initiative that came out of what you started during lockdown, isn’t it? It’s about providing that support network and bringing people together through baking?

SF Yeah, yeah. I’ve always been in very community orientated jobs whether I’m working as a support worker, a nanny, or just helping the community. I’ve been working in this realm for over a decade ago and I knew it was always something that I was going to be doing forever, like a calling or something. But, yeah, during lockdown a light bulb went off in me and I realised that I could help people who, like myself, were really anxious about the pandemic. So I started doing weekly bakes with me over Zoom and Instagram Live and, yeah, on one of them I was speaking to a girl with autism and that made me realise that there’s this community that already struggles in school and processing their feelings towards things and right now they’re going through this pandemic without the support network that they’re probably used to. And I wanted to give this community a support network, a safe place, and an educational place. So that’s how Baking On The Spectrum started.

The kids themselves and their families get so much out of it. It’s not just about feeling good. Children are getting to improve their fine motor skills, improve the way that they engage with their parents and carers. They’re able to learn and explore foods. The parents and carers are also seeing these kids achieving something so it’s giving them hope too, it’s giving them the encouragement that, despite what they may have been told, their child can learn skills and have a more independent life. It shows the kids too that with the right adaptations in place, they can do anything. They all have have an equal chance in this life if there’s that level of support.

EJ Like you said, as well, there’s also that educational aspect that helps children to understand the nutrients involved in their food too.

SF Yeah. A lot of autistic children really struggle with food because they’re very sensitive to textures or smells and tastes. However, what I do is introduce to the dietary benefits of the foods they struggle with and explore how we can cook them or bake them in a way were they’re able to consume them. I use a lot of fruits and vegetables because we want to encourage healthy eating and gets the children comfortable with those foods.

EJ So what’s next for Baking On The Spectrum?

SF We’ve got a program that’s going to start in September with applications coming out soon. We’ve got one hundred packages to send out to families to help them get involved — we’d love to be able to send out thousands but the budget is quite limited. But, yeah, we’ll meet once a week online and bake together. We’re also looking into support for parents and carers as well so they’ll have someone to talk to about certain challenges the make have. There’s lots that we’re working towards but, yeah, this September will be when it starts. We’ve also got a YouTube series that’s going to come out as well so everyone can join in and it’s accessible, you know?

EJ Can we have a little teaser on the recipes?

SF Well there’s a mixture of sweet and savoury recipes that use a lot of different hand motions and techniques that kids will enjoy and benefit from.

EJ My final question for you then, as cliché as it may sound, is: what advice would you give for aspiring bakers?

SF Eat the cake. Sometimes things go wrong and things don’t come out perfectly. But just back yourself, eat the cake, try again the next day. A lot of people get discouraged when things go wrong but, well, is it edible? Can it be edible if you add ice cream? Then eat the cake. Get back to it. Learn from your mistakes and trust the process.

@sandrofarmhouse

THE GLENTURRET LALIQUE

WORDS & INTERVIEW

BETH BENNETT

IMAGERY COURTESY OF LOTUS

Hiding in the foggy footlands of Scotland’s highlands, against the banks of the winding River Turret, lies Scotland’s oldest working distillery. Now, between the bottles, The Glenturret hosts the remarkable Lalique Restaurant under the guidance of Scottish chef Mark Donald. Seven months after opening, The Glenturret Lalique was awarded a Michelin star, so it only felt right for us to go and check it out.

Established in 1763, The Glenturret Distillery has been an essential component of the Perthshire village of Crieff for centuries and its traditions and vision have hardly changed since. The Distillery sits against the banks of the River Turret and its roots are firmly gripped into the soil of the Scottish Highlands. You can feel it, really, the history of the building as you walk around. The ancient grounds of the Distillery surround the more modern but still humbly traditional dining room of the newer Lalique Restaurant. Though exquisite and boasting luxury, there’s that embracement of the surrounding culture, the honouring of the grounds it’s built upon.

The menu showcases the very best ingredients from throughout Scotland and occasionally the wider world. There’s evident close ties with the local larder, the artisanal growers, producers, breeders, and fishers that convene in the food at Lalique with quality flavours,

ingredients, and a distinctiveness above all. Headed up by Chef Mark Donald, the food is playful but with balance, precision, and an innate sense of place in their execution.

Mark Donald’s cuisine threads together the story of a young boy from Glasgow who set out on a creative journey, took an unexpected detour spanning four continents before finding his way home. His menu embraces this never-ending curiosity, love of exceptional produce, personality and distinct humour, all unified and supported by award-winning technical expertise. It’s easy to see why this was granted a Michelin star. You’re a part of something here, history and sanctuary all in one.

@theglenturretlalique

theglenturretrestaurant.com

The Glenturret Distillery The Hosh, Crieff PH7 4HA

ONE MORE DRINK

WORDS CAL

SMITH

@calsmiff

Based in London, Cal is a connoisseur of the finer things in life; in particular, good grub and good drinks. With an optimistic, but realistic outlook, Cal's here to close us out with an insightful coda. Until next time...

...AND AN ACCOMPANYING TWO CENTS

Change for me comes in two forms, fast and slow. Both scare me, and both lead to uncertainty in the familiar. I’m certainly not alone in this feeling but I do envy those who take all in their stride, all those willing to take change easily whilst continuing their day-to-day as if little has happened. Be that oblivious or foolhardy. However, there is a fascination in understanding that approach to change. Change is holistically and fundamentally a natural part of life, so why be afraid of it? Embrace it, hardly like we can change the weather or the time of day. The same can be said for culture; change within the juggernauts of fashion, film, music, food, or consumption itself is inevitable. This is no more evident in the drinks industry, no and low alcohol options have arrived like an unanticipated storm. Who thought the British sensibility could change overnight? I don’t think even the great minds behind Grey Goose, Smirnoff and Glen’s thought they would be competing with vodka made from garden peas. C’est la vie.

People drink less, people don’t drink at all, and people seek the gratification of a weekend in other forms. To be clear I am not condemning the want or need to avoid alcohol, nor advocating drinking itself. Far from it. But let’s spare a thought for the post-midnight warriors, those committed to the times where one more drink has done nothing more than just hit that spot. The beautifully weird and wonderful conversations and scenarios the extra unnecessary sip has led to. Change may happen but let’s not forget those times.

Some things don’t change. Our obsession with glorifying and juxtaposing elements of British society by highlighting the extreme ends of Britishism seems to be one. Elements which would otherwise be seen as either the most or least desirable elements in normal life. The allure and familiarity of relatable storylines seem to be an almost inevitable and inescapable feature in our daily viewing, entertainment, and consumption. We glorify grit whilst taking gratification from the mannered and gentle.

This is no more evident in the portrayals and adaptations of British life on both the small and big screen. Bear with me as I explore Britishism through the little used medium of British directors…You are forgiven in advance if you stop reading now.

For some time now we have been living in the age of the antihero, where ruthless protagonists find themselves doing everything in their power to get what they want from Britain’s underbelly with a certain degree of mindless nihilism. From Guy Richie’s many endeavours in gangsterland to Steven Knights’ unhinged Brummie businessmen. These depictions of workingclass Britain leave the viewer glorifying the worst members of society, terrible people doing terrible things to people seemingly in less fortunate situations to themselves. Albeit often with a comic twist. The times when a Robin Hood figure is seen are very few and far between.

In contrast, works of social realism paint a picture of a British population struggling to untangle issues of identity, social struggles, youth, and the impact of personal and communal traumas. This coupled with a complex relationship between politics and the human condition evokes a much more hard-hitting view of Rule Britannia. Ken Loach or Shane Meadows pile on the emotions that bear little to nothing of those mentioned above, creating a complicated way to ‘enjoy’ your viewing time.

On the far-flung other end of the scale are the unapologetically rosetinted, technicolour middle to upper-class protagonists who appear ever so nice and pleasant in their beautifully carefree lives. In this Britain, the biggest issue everyone seems to face is how they will ever find true love’s kiss. If this is the Britain Richard Curtis wakes up to, then he really mustn’t have ever left Notting Hill. Is there a world where somehow Julia Roberts could be just a girl standing in front of Daniel Blake, attempting to navigate the complexities of the welfare system? But perhaps this is the beauty of Britain, highlighting the complex and difficult nature each of us can have with what it means to be British… Alternatively, you could subscribe to the downright fucking deranged American view that we're all either posh or cockney, but most definitely, unequivocally, inexplicably from the only place in the British Isles… London.

I prefer to think of the humble British garden pea.

WHAT YOU SHOULD BE DRINKING

Wildfires in Greece, flooding in Italy and Elon decided to ditch Larry the Bird. Frankly, it is difficult to argue things aren’t going down the pan on many a front, chiefly for the environment. However, the good folks at Manchester-based Ten Locks have sought to keep our spirits high and our planet healthy with their latest project, Pod. This primarily involves the cunning use of the British garden pea to produce surely soon-to-be awardwinning vodka. This stroke of genius means we can all sit back, and enjoy the sweet, savoury, and vegetal notes whilst saving the planet. Could we ask for more? podpeavodka.com

Pod Pea Vodka

CONTRIBUTORS

ERWIN WURM // YORKSHIRE SCULPTURE PARK

TAKE IT EASY LAB // AÍME LEON DORE

FOLIO SOCIETY // THOM WILLIAMS

THE WHISKEY EXCHANGE // SARAH RICHARDSON

MARA // ISABEL MARANT // DMR

WALES BONNER // FRED PERRY // BURBERRY

VIVIENNE WESTWOOD // RICHARD KELLY

DISNEY+ // ANJANA VASAN // NETFLIX

UKWELI ROACH // BBC // LAURA COLMAN

STATUS PR // MATT NEEDLE // SOLLIP

THE GLENTURRET LALIQUE // SANDRO FARMHOUSE

REBECCA GOAD // TOM ZAHIR // ANA DA COSTA

FREYA COOTE // MEATOPIA FESTIVAL

POD PEA VODKA

TERMS & CONDITIONS

Under no circumstances must any part of this publication be reproduced without prior permission of the publisher. Whilst every effort is taken, the publisher shall not be held responsible for any errors. Furthermore, the publisher shall not be held responsible for any advertising material/content. Please also note that the views and opinions written within this publication do not necessarily represent the views and opinions of the publisher. All prices and details stated within this publication are correct at the time of print, however these are subject to change and the publisher shall not be held responsible for these. Third party contributors own exclusive copyright to their own material that they have submitted as part of the publication. All rights reserved.

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