Wharf Life Jun 19

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David Galman on the need for an expert housing panel Page 16

Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

inside

Turning Tides Festival Canary Wharf Waste Fabienne Sandoval Landmark Estates Kidbrooke Village The Ahoy Centre City Park East Cristal Palace Secret Rivers Hand Cafe ElevatHer Puzzles Vicinity

we bravely find out what it’s like inside Le Chalet Cryo’s chamber at -90ºC before chatting with the facility’s director Lenka Chubuklieva

freeze the deep

celebrating the best of Canary Wharf, Docklands and the new east London people - events - treasure - property - nonsense

Image by Jon Massey

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Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

read

fortnightly find

this issue’s Tiger Treasure

14 days later

plan your life from Jul 3-17 where?

Crossrail Place Roof Garden Canary Wharf

STAGE | Sexy Lamp Comedy, original songs and storytelling come together for the tale of Katie’s assault on the showbiz industry and why she refuses to stay in the dark.

Jul 11, 7pm, free, space.org.uk where?

Jubilee Park Canary Wharf

feast your eyes on these

As the weather warms up, it’s time to start thinking about your arsenal for the water fights that are to come. While these imitation handguns are unlikely to win in any significant way when faced with the might of a supersoaker, it’s always wise to tote a sidearm just in case you lose your squirter Water pistols, £1 Go to uk.flyingtiger.com

shows a roundabout of

drama, comedy and opera

EVENT | Lunchtime Concerts Musicians from the Docklands Sinfonia bring a classical twist to the park in July with a series of small-group performances.

Jul 5, 12, 19, 26, 12.30pm, free, canarywharf.com where?

Rum And Sugar West India Quay

DANCE | Fiesta Cuba Recently launched, these salsa classes are drop-in or can be booked ahead. There’s also 20% off rums and a two-for-one happy hour to aid the moves.

Tuesdays, from 7pm, £10, cubanschool.co.uk

to do before Jul 3

Wimbledon descends on Cabot Square from July 1-14 with matches playing on the big screen from noon-7pm daily, picnic tables, a proliferation of balls (new, naturally) and a food market on weekdays from noon-3pm canarywharf.com

Westferry Circus Roundabout

Following success with performances of Wilde and Shakespeare last year, the pristine grass of Westferry Circus is all set to welcome Wharfers’ bums and picnics once more.

Kicking off on July 15 with a double-bill, the venue will host a 50-minute performance at 1pm by Bite-Sized Opera with four singers delivering a whistle-stop tour of the form desinged for lunchbreaks.

Hardened fans can then pop along later for the Scherzo ensemble’s semi-staged version of The Barber Of Seville at 7pm.

On July 22, Boxtree Productions present their take on The Legend Of King Arthur as Wart attempts to extract the sword from the stone.

Bike-based troupe The Handlebards return on July 29 with an all male Much Ado About Nothing.

And finally, Chapterhouse put a girdle around the roundabout with A Midsummer Night’s Dream on August 5. All of the theatre shows begin at 7pm.

As with all performances at Westferry, early arrival is a must to ensure a good spot. Toilets are located at the rear of the theatre.

Go to canarywharf.com for more information

Left, The Barber Of Seville and below, The Handlebards make progress on their trip to Canary Wharf

06

12

Chilling out in Le Chalet Cryo’s new cryotherapy chamber

Creating ElevatHer to bring women in finance together

the joy of six Every fortnight Wharf Life covers six areas surrounding Canary Wharf to bring you the best of what’s going on beyond the estate From Page 35

get in touch

correct us

Editorial email stories@wharf-life.com call 07765 076 300

we want to hear from you

04

Martin Gettings on winning plastic-free status for the Wharf

need something fixed?

The Action For Kids beach volleyball court is back from July 8 – free to watch naturalfitnessfood.com

Advertising email advertising@wharf-life.com call 07944 000 144

Our editorial team works hard to ensure all information printed in Wharf Life is truthful and accurate. Should you spot any errors that slip through the net or wish to raise any issues about the content of the publication, please get in touch and we will investigate.

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spot check diary date

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

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Canary Wharf

on the radar

doing the deals

hit the Wharf’s malls and restaurants for less

need to know

50%

Get the dust off the duds and slip those cowboy boots on – Nashville Meets London returns to Canada Square Park on July 27 from 2pm-10pm featuring the likes of Noah Guthrie Twinnie and headliner Lauren Alaina. The best country festivals are free canarywharf.com

15 Get ready for some serious shapes as Dancing City takes over Canary Wharf on June 29. Part of the Greenwich And Docklands International Festival, wild performances take place across the estate from 1pm-5pm festival.org

Selected lines at Karen Millen are half price, so pop to the Jubilee Place store and fill your bag ready for that trip away.

Or just get a new top for the office... karenmillen.com

36

Why this playground is making us wish we were kids again

Fabienne Sandoval on teaching the world to love a little bit better

2-4-1 38

Could you and your colleagues take on the Thames for charity? Find out about The Ahoy Centre’s corporate challenges, ideal for Wharfers

Drink on One Canada Square’s mezzanine from 4pm-7pm and get two drinks for the price of one over the summer.

Terms apply, ask staff for full details canarywharf.com

Live action theatre in the Gin Garden Food available £16 + admin fee

Friday 12th & 19th July Tickets available online www.thegundocklands.com

27 Coldharbour, Coldharb rrbour, rr, London, E14 9NS gun.events@fullers.co.uk gun.eve vvents tts@ @ffu fulll ers r .co.uk rs 0207 519 0075 7 75

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20,000

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3 wharf-life.com

Plastic bottles collected via Canary Wharf’s Deposit Return Scheme

by Martin Gettings

L

ast week the Canary Wharf estate became the world’s first Plastic Free Commercial Centre as recognised by marine conservation charity Surfers Against Sewage.

We’re also the first district in London to be awarded this status and we’re proud of this achievement.

But what does plastic free really mean in this context?

It’s worth thinking about for a moment.

Although we will never be able to live our lives without plastic, and although the billions of tonnes produced since the 1950’s has permeated global and local ecosystems and will take geological timescales to disappear, there is a way we can make a real difference to this massive problem.

We can certainly free ourselves from our addiction to the countless trillions of pieces of single-use plastic (SUP) that permeate our daily lives.

Plastic free means doing just that and re-thinking the behaviours and lifestyle that come with it. It’s about moving away from the excessively convenient existence we have sleepwalked into.

All around the world, people, communities and businesses are waking up and saying: “Stop, something must be done about this”.

Our community is no exception. On World Environment Day 2017, together we voted to tackle SUP and on World Environment Day 2018 we launched our Breaking The Plastic Habit programme.

Since then we initiated our #3weeks campaign, removing more than 1.2million straws from the estate. Our Deposit Return Scheme has taken nearly 20,000 plastic bottles and our water refill stations have been used more than 100,000 times – have you used one yet? There are seven to choose from.

But the best part of our activity here at Canary Wharf is that it is inclusive and involves the people, communities and businesses who want to participate and take action. The power of collaborative action cannot be underestimated.

The impact the wider Canary Wharf community has had in driving this project forward has been immense, and is clearly reflected in the incredible statistics we have been able to achieve.

Our Trailblazer Partner – Efendi Dry Cleaners in Jubilee Place – is offering rewards via the Helpful app and has introduced its own deposit return scheme for plastic hangers.

?

goes who knows where the waste

getting greener

A phenomenal amount of work goes on behind the scenes at Canary Wharf to minimise the estate’s environmental impact

“

All around the world, people, communities and businesses are saying: “Stop, something must be done about this Martin Gettings, Canary Wharf Group

The two Chop’d branches on the estate are now supporting Helpful too, with both offering customers the UK’s first 100% recycled, 100% recyclable, UK-made bowls. The chain is also incentivising customers to do the right thing through its reusable bowl reward scheme.

It also doesn’t offer plastic bags and rewards customers with extra food for refusing paper bags – which so far has saved 2.5million bags since 2004.

Elsewhere, Bright Horizons Family Solutions, which runs five day nurseries on the Estate, has joined us in eliminating SUP by removing it from all of its nurseries.

We also have recently set up the Compost Club, which will provide a resource stream for compostables – tenants like Farmstand will be among the first to use this facility.

News On The Wharf is supporting our Deposit Return Scheme with in-store discounts.

Together we are #BreakingThePlasticHabit but we are not done yet. This is an ongoing journey involving our whole community at Canary Wharf and, to date, more than 40 businesses and retailers have joined in our campaign by committing to remove at least three items of SUP. Morgan Stanley and Refin-

itiv have also been confirmed as Flagship Partners and we will be working closely together to amplify what we can achieve in collaboration.

Last Wednesday we asked our community to vote again, this time considering Climate Action, Beyond Zero Waste, Wellbeing, and Responsible Purchasing.

Breaking The Plastic Habit will become business as usual, but what should we focus on next?

Imagine what we can achieve by working together. The great thing about sustainability here at Canary Wharf is that we can all get involved, at a personal, community and business level, with activity that is important to us all.

We are tracking our progress with statistics and stories that we can all relate to.

Our latest sustainability report is available at sustainability. canarywharf.com, setting out where we are.

We want you to get involved too and we want to help tell your story. It really is that easy.

Please get in touch with me via sustainability@canarywharf.com

Martin Gettings is group head of sustainability at Canary Wharf Group Go to canarywharf.com or breakingtheplastichabit.co.uk

behind the scenes as Canary Wharf continues its daily war on waste across the estate

by James Drury

C

anary Wharf hasn’t sent any waste to landfill for 10 years.

What happens to all the rubbish produced by the 120,000 people who work there every day? We went to find out. The glass-and-steel face of this busy district hides a surprising story of environmental sustainability.

As well as the enviable achievement of zero landfill waste, the Canary Wharf estate has used solely renewable energy sources since 2012, and has cut energy use by 33% since 2007, despite more and larger buildings being built.

Its Breaking the Plastic Habit campaign has removed or recycled over 5million items of avoidable

single-use plastic in 12 months, leading to the area being the first commercial centre to be awarded Plastic Free Communities Status by Surfers Against Sewage.

“It’s not just an environmental approach, it’s a good business approach,” said group head of sustainability Martin Gettings.

“If we just sent all the waste to landfill, it would be very expensive. But our approach has been proactive rather than simply adhering to legislation around waste – let’s be cutting edge.”

As well as plastic and other recyclable products, food waste is reduced through Compost Club – which sees tenants that produce food waste join forces, making it more economical to compost. IT items that are no longer

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3 wharf-life.com

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Canary Wharf

needed are given to charities.

“People are amazed that we run these initiatives and say it’s inspirational,” said Martin. “We are often asked to speak at conferences and are approached by companies who want to know how they can achieve these results for themselves.”

He said the estate also worked closely with its tenants to help them cut their waste and collaborate to maximise savings from sustainable practices.

One notorious source of single-use plastic is the takeaway coffee cup. To prevent them from leaking, they’re coated in plastic, but this means the paper can’t easily be recycled.

Canary Wharf’s waste management contractor Cawleys is one of the few firms in the country that can handle the process, and the estate has recycled over 4million since 2017.

I went behind the scenes to find out what happens to a coffee cup once a Wharfer has drained the last drops and placed it in a bin.

4m

Coffee cups recycled in Canary Wharf since 2017 step one once finished, take a snap of your cup using the Helpful app and it will show you where the nearest recycling point is on the Canary Wharf estate Continued on Pages 6-7

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Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3 wharf-life.com

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step two because they’re made from different types of plastic, the cup and the lid should be separated when you get to a bin and don’t forget to scan the QR code to accrue points on the Helpful app

Materials, cardboard and plastic are combined in disposable coffee cups making them difficult to recycle

step four they are then taken into the crucial but unseen service areas of the estate

step six when needed, items are rinsed before the waste is packaged up ready for transportation

step seven the cups are loaded onto a truck and taken to a specialist plant where the plastic and cardboard are separated – the latter is recycled into cardboard while the plastic is used as a fuel to generate electricity

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3 wharf-life.com

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Canary Wharf

step three the bags of recyclables are collected from the malls

by Canary Wharf Group staff

step five where they are painstakingly sorted to separate the different kinds of waste

Images by Matt Grayson – find his work at graysonphotos.co.uk or @mattgrayson_photo on Insta

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Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

Canary Wharf

-90ºC

The temperature the cryotherapy chamber is kept at ready for clients

by Jon Massey

T

the place to

chill

hree minutes. It’s not a long time. Of the 44,706,600 minutes someone would live if they reached the age of 85, it’s 0.000007% of their total time on this planet.

Time, however is relative. And that’s never been more apparent to me than shortly after stepping into the recently opened whole-body cryotherapy chamber in Canary Wharf.

Having arrived on time for our appointment, my companion and I are greeted by Le Chalet Cryo director Lenka Chubuklieva.

After filling out an extensive checklist to flag up any potential medical conditions that might conflict with the treatment, we’re given a tour of the Canada Place facility. Tucked away to the left side of Waitrose in the unit formerly occupied by bridal shop Les Trois Soeurs, it offers dry hydro massage on a specially designed water bed and skincare services.

But it’s the cubicle at the end of the slim establishment that we’re headed for. Behind a blue-lit glass door is a small white space looking out onto a brightly lit timer on the wall. The whole setup looks reassuringly unthreatening. The fine, crisp layer of frost on the floor is the only clue to its secret.

The dry air inside is at a temperature of -90ºC and my companion and I are about to enter. But first we’re provided with shorts, boots, gloves, face masks, ear muffs and a crop top in her case. And that’s all. Ready for three minutes in the freezer.

After we’ve changed into our togs in the deceptively warm room, we’re given a final safety briefing, an electronic massage and have our skin temperatures measured. It turns out I’m naturally a little colder than my companion.

Lenka tells us she’ll be just outside the door, keeping an eye on us just in case.

We’re asked to pick a song to listen to while we undergo the treatment. Nervous, we can only come up with T-Rex’s seminal Ride A White Swan as an alternative to the obvious Vanilla Ice ditty.

Then it begins. The door opens, the world fills with steam as the cool air meets the moisture of the preparation room. Engulfed and blind, we hurry inside and the door closes.

The frost crunches under foot.

And panic rises as claustrophobia begins to build. And then Marc

Bolan’s whimsical voice cuts through, telling me to: “Ride it on out like a bird in the sky ways, ride it on out like you were a bird.”

The cold is instant and intense.

It grips me and I can feel my body tense against it. Sluggishly I manage to start moving to the beat, desperate to fight against my desire to burst out of the chamber.

I tell my companion I can’t see a thing. Marc entreats me to “Wear a tall hat like a druid in the old days, wear a tall hat and a tattooed gown,” which isn’t especially useful. And slowly, agonisingly, the mist begins to clear. How long’s it been? How long? My companion tells me in a small voice that we’ve been in the chamber for about 20 seconds.

I can feel the mositure in my nostrils starting to freeze.

But after the initial shock I’m starting to acclimatise. As the air clears further, I begin to believe remaining in the freezer is possible, just as my companion becomes fully visible.

Some of her hair has goes white as the moisture in it freezes. Marc accurately pronounces: “Wear your hair long, babe you can’t go wrong,” and we’re a minute in.

A sense of calm descends.

We’re still dancing as best we can although it’s doing nothing to keep the cold at bay. But we’re going to do it. The timer ticks slowly but things are peaceful. The second minute elapses.

Halfway through the third, Marc’s finished telling us to: “Ride a white swan like the people of the Beltane.” We’ve managed to pick one of the few pop songs that doesn’t last three minutes. The player clicks onto some obscure T-Rex number neither of us knows.

But it’s enough to distract us for the final seconds as we attempt to adapt our furious movements to a new beat. The door opens and we’re out.

The biggest surprise is we’re not wet. My skin has dropped a good 15ºC but I feel alive. It’s not exactly the same as the endorphin rush from a burst of exercise, but there’s Continued on Page 10

why Le Chalet Cryo wants Wharfers to step into a chamber at -90ºC for three minutes

“

Marc entreats me to: ‘Wear a tall hat like a druid in the old days, wear a tall hat and a tattooed gown,’ which isn’t especially useful Jon Massey, Wharf Life

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Canary Wharf

from Page 8

£49

The cost of a first solo three-minute session at Le Chalet Cryo - the standard price thereafter is £89 Lenka Chubuklieva offers a range of packages at Le Chalet Cryo including a duo discount

a definite high. My companion feels it too a sense our bodies have been working very hard without sweating or straining our muscles. And that’s exactly how it’s supposed to feel. roponents of the treatment say it can help people burn an extra calories a day, that it kick-starts the metabolism, is a good remedy for a hangover, can help people sleep better and aid in recovery after a workout.

I can’t tell you whether any of that is true, however, I did sleep well that night and I felt akin to having done some serious exercise for much of the day after. Chilling out, while expensive at for the first session and thereafter, might ust be worth it. what Le Chalet Cryo says ot long after stepping out of the chamber, I sat down with Lenka to find out why she’s brought wholebody cryotheraphy to London.

“In the kraine where I’m from, cold therapy is very well known, she said. “My mum used to go down to the lake in the winter time at - ºC with a group of people, break the ice and go diving in the water this was to boost her immune system and collagen production.

“A few years ago I started to research what we have today in the market and in the . “ hile Cryotherapy is very popular in the kraine, here it is still an up-and-coming trend, two years ago you had only one clinic offering a partial body treatment with gas as the coolant.

“It doesn’t really make sense because you have receptors in your brain but your head is exposed so isn’t cooled and that’s counter-productive. “ hat we offer here in Canary harf is a whole-body immersive experience you can listen to the music, you can dance.

“In simple terms, it’s basically a very e cient free er a very cold room with cold air that goes down to - ºC. That fluctuates when you open the door and warm air gets in. hat you experience is the shock of that cold, your blood starts rushing to all your vital organs to protect them, leaving your extremities.

“Then, when you come out, the oxygenated blood rushes back, so where you have in uries, for instance, that helps to decrease inflammation and you get pain relief. Also when you’re in there, your brain releases endorphins and this works like a painkiller.

“So if your have an in ury, you will feel the pain less and the endorphins make you feel happy. “ hile you’re there you increase your metabolism by something

“

In simple terms it’s basically a very efficient freezer with air that goes down to –95ºC Lenka Chubuklieva Le Chalet Cryo

like 15 , so while people say you burn up to calories that’s not in the three minutes, it’s over the course of a day. ou can do the treatment every three to four hours. “ eople also report that they get an improved uality of sleep from ust one session as the endorphins calm your mind.

Lenka, who has a background in modelling, currently uses the chamber three or four times a week herself and would do it more if it weren’t already so busy. “ eople are generally very curious to find out what it is, she

Le Chalet Cryo is located in Canada Place

said. “Canary harf is a fast-paced and fast-moving pocket of London and a lot of people are forward thinking.

“Because of cra y working hours, they are trying to find what they can do to improve the uality of their lives, their productivity and their sleep. verybody’s under pressure and stress to deliver, and it can take a toll. “ e were looking to see where there were people who would need the health benefits and where they couldn’t spend one, two or three hours on treatment. “ e didn’t want people to travel for half an hour to do a threeminute session. Canary harf is perfect because people can find the time and pop in for 1 minutes. “ rom start to finish, the whole session takes maybe 15 minutes from the moment a customer walks in the door, especially if they have completed a profile online, which can take some time. That really speeds things up. “ hile we do ask whether people have pre-existing medical conditions, that doesn’t automatically mean they can’t do the treatment.

“If you had Reynauds, for example, depending on the severity of it, we might provide an extra pair of gloves or extra pair of socks. It’s important for us to know these things. f course there are exceptions, for example, in pregnancy. urther claimed benefits are for those who have spent time exercising.

Lenka said: “ ne of the main uses is after workouts for muscle recovery, so you might not get so many muscle problems after therapy. “ e are getting feedback that people who train with heavy weights or who box, are noticing after cryo, that in their second training session they can push themselves harder, lift heavier weights or, when they are monitored, they’re achieving their personal best.

“Cryo is something I grew up with. I moved to London 1 years ago as a model and, from day one, I wanted to stay here. My family moved to ew ealand, so I had a choice and I stayed in London.

“The steps to setting up Le Chalet Cryo here were very simple but it was a very long wait to find this beautiful space. Three years ago, when I first came here, it was not available it was a wedding dress shop, so at least I have kept it white with ice. e have packages of five, 1 and sessions and we’re open through the weekend.

Go to lechalet-cryo.com for more information

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Months since the launch of ElevatHer on International Women’s Day

by Jon Massey

Sheena Shah has created a platform to connect women working in finance, fintech and tech

women connecting the

Images by Holly Cant – find more of her images at hollycant.com or via @hollycantphoto on Insta

S

heena Shah wants to bring women together.

Having started her career at Goldman Sachs she immediately stood out on the trading floor – a single female presence in a male-dominated environment.

“I was the only woman,” she said. “The guys were awesome, but you do feel there is a difference in perspective.

“When the company started signing up more women and we had juniors coming in, I became a mentor to them.

“When you take on that role you realise just how much you don’t know – they started asking me questions and the worst thing was sometimes I didn’t even know who to approach to find out the answers. So, I thought it would be great to have a platform where you could have all these women with their skills and experiences, instead of just a name.” ith the identification of a niche bubbling away, Sheena went on to roles with Morgan Stanley and Maven Securities before taking the plunge and founding ElevatHer. Initially aimed at connecting women in finance, fintech and tech who work in Canary Wharf and the City, users download an app on their Android or iOS devices.

After entering their basic information, users can then contact other women using the platform, connect with them and chat.

“It’s all different companies but within the finance sector, said Sheena.

“I’m reaching out to fintech and tech companies as well, because I realise there’s quite a bit of crossover, especially recently.

“We have so much in common.

The women in each sector can learn a lot from each other. It’s about helping them find mentors and peers in their industry.

“For example, I found it really hard to find a mentor. As the only woman, I was left to my own devices a little bit, which can be great, but, at the same time, it can be really hard to find other people to learn from.

“Having a female mentor can give you a fresh perspective.

You can learn so much from the different genders the way a woman might do things would be slightly different from a man.

“As a mentee, you learn so much. The whole point of a mentor is not just to give you advice, but to help you figure out your own advice and your own journey, and it helps you navigate your way through life.

“It’s been a big part of mine and I owe a lot to my mentors – I don’’t think I’d be where I am if I hadn’t had them.”

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

13

Technology

how personal experience drove Sheena Shah to create ElevatHer to forge connections between women Launched on International Women’s Day, Sheena said her own experience drove her to create the platform.

“It’s very different from my corporate career, she said. “ ou need a lot more drive and you really need to believe in what you’re doing.

“You need that kind of passion and you need to feel it every single day. I think I’ve always had the capacity to do this, but it’s only when you start creating something that’s yours that you get that drive.

“It’s almost like a fight or flight situation you keep fighting as long as you believe in it.

“For the decision to do it was uite personal. I’ve seen the challenges and heard people talk about them.

“As a mentor as well, you see the mentees go through similar things and you’ve gone through them too. or me, it’s very close.

“Then the more you progress, the more excited you get about it and you really do think you can make a difference it keeps me awake during the night, but it also keeps me going during the day.

O

One of the aims of the app is to forge closer links between women separated geographically, whether they’re working in the City or Canary harf.

Sheena said: “My vision is that, because finance and tech are so interconnected and they’re very close and similar in what they do, the idea is to bring women across the two sectors together as well.

“In the app you’ve got proximity functionality, so, for example, if you’re working in Canary Wharf and you’re going over to Bank for a meeting, you can see who else is around, connect and meet up.

“And while we don’t run events yet, we certainly want to. Right now though, because ElevatHer is tech-based and there’s nothing

“

We have so much in common. The women in each sector can learn a lot from each other. It’s about helping them find mentors and peers Sheena Shah, ElevatHer

like it in the market, we’re concentrating on that side of things.

Hopefully, in the future, we’ll organise our own events, too.

So far the platform has attracted 250 members, mostly working in finance.

“We’ve had quite a lot of feedback and it’s really nice to get that whether it’s positive or negative,” said Sheena.

“We’re constantly learning and updating the platform to make it better the idea is for members to use it 1 .

“We have a lot of people using it for networking and, what I didn’t expect is that many are using it for the events section, which is a nice surprise we list industry events on the platform.

“We have a box which asks users whether they’re attending and they can see who else is going to be there, which makes it a little bit more pleasant so you know who else is going to be there instead of ust going in cold.

Hesitating to describe ElevatHer as a fledgling social network, Sheena hopes it will become a forum for ideas.

“One of the challenges for women working in finance is in terms of numbers, she said.

“There’s not many of us around, so it’s really hard to bounce ideas off others.

“I feel that we’re missing that in the industry, so, hopefully the platform helps to bring women together to do that but also to share their experiences, so we’re all learning and progressing up the career ladder.

While securely based in cyberspace with a website accompanying the app, Sheena was clear its key goal is to facilitate o ine connections.

“Ours is more of a platform where you can meet people through the app, and then it’s up to the individual users to keep that relationship going, either through the app or outside it, she said.

“Our idea is just bringing people together, and how they do it is up to them.

“Anyone can become a mentor or a mentee at different levels, so anyone can learn or share experiences.

“I don’t want people to be segmented and say: ‘I’m not senior enough’, because you can learn from everyone.

“You can go into the app, sign up and say you want to be a mentor then it will match you up.

The app is currently free for

users and Sheena hopes it will also be a draw for women considering a career in finance.

“One issue in the industry is that not many people are applying for jobs because we’re not seen as sexy as we used to be, she said.

“The idea is to have this as a way of attracting more graduates to those roles because I think they are the future.

“We will also be releasing Phase Two in response to feedback. e have realised that we need the men on board as well to help move the needle and for men to be more aware of the issues women face in the industry.

“So I want it to be that people can choose between peer mentors and others. The idea is that we all work together as a team.

“In the future I would like to expand into different sectors science, technology, engineering and maths, for example.

“What I really want to do right now, however, is to concentrate on finance and fintech, because that’s my background, and give that 1 1 . The plan is to test it out in the UK and depending on how it goes, then to take it further.

Go to elevather.com for more information or to download the ElevatHer app

ElevatHer allows users to find mentors or mentees, connect with other women in relevant sectors and lists industry events taking place in London

Improve your customer experience with the conversational platform named the 2019 Product Leader in AI-Enhanced Customer Self-Service

www.creativevirtual.com | info@creativevirtual.com @creativevirtual | 020 7719 8332

14

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

Canary Wharf

A swimmer takes a dip

I

t was back in October 2018 that I interviewed Secret Rivers co-curator Thomas Ardill for the spiritual predecessor to this publication. Photographer Matt Grayson and I convinced him a riparian backdrop would be appropriate.

And so there we were, stood at the top of some stone steps leading down to the brown waters of the Thames as Thomas posed at Matt’s direction by the water’s edge. It was from there I watched, horrified as a sudden, unexpected swell breached the stonework behind the Museum Of London’s finest.

Fortunately, fleet of foot, he escaped to safety before being swept into the river’s murk.

And having toured his exhibition, recently opened at the Museum Of London Docklands, I’m particularly glad he survived.

Put together with co-curator Kate Sumnall and appropriately sponsored by the Worshipful Company Of Plumbers, it’s everything Thomas had enthused about and more, prior to his brush with drowning.

Exploring the history of the

in the men’s bathing pond on Hampstead Heath, the historic source of the River Fleet

immerse

Below, Folly Ditch, Jacob’s Island

by James Lawson Stewart

yourself in hidden waters

capital’s hidden waterways, obscured by development or converted into sewers, it’s filled with charm and oddity.

There are half-cocked plans to exhume buried rivers (necessitating the demolition of Buckingham Palace) and a life-size immersive walk-through of a Bazalgette sewer, built to

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contain the Fleet beneath the city. Everywhere are the piped sounds of water, artefacts pulled from the mud on digs – stories of Londoners’ lives plucked from the banks and put centre-stage.

Whether Wandle or Walbrook, Tyburn or Lea, justice is done.

These often forgotten water courses are championed as the very veins of the capital.

Especially moving is the contrast drawn between rich and poor. Luxurious scenes of pleasure gardens at Ranelagh that once bordered the Westbourne are hung beside a grim depiction of the filthy Neckinger, encircling Jacob’s island, infamous as Bill Sikes’ lair in Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist.

Frankly, studying a map of local cholera outbreaks, it’s a wonder Bill made it as far as terrorising Nancy – a chilling reminder of how foul life in London once was.

In short then, this exhibition demands to be imbibed through the eyes. Walk over to West India Quay and inject a little hidden water into your day, even if you have to spend several lunch hours investigating its gems.

Secret Rivers runs until October 27 and entry is free.

The museum is open daily from 10am-6pm.

Go to museumoflondon.org.uk

“

This exhibition demands to be seen.

Walk over to West India Quay and inject a little hidden water into your day Jon Massey, Wharf Life

A late Bronze Age copper-alloy sword thrown in the Thames

Images copyright Musem Of London

by Jon Massey

2

Surviving co-curators of Secret Rivers at the Musuem Of London Docklands, thankfully

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

35

Wapping - Limehouse - Shadwell

finding oneself in the Vicinity

14 days later

plan your life from Jul 3-17 where?

Wilton’s Music Hall Wapping

STAGE | Dead Poets Live Toby Jones stars as Robert Frost in this show, which explores his tragic friendship with fellow poet Edward Thomas and its part in his success.

Jul 8, 7.30pm, from £12.50, wiltons.org.uk

brutalist icon on the Wapping side of Tower Bridge boasts a muted but well-priced bar with a curious approach to food

EVENT | LIMEfest2019 The annual celebration of the local area is back, complete with the Canary Woof Dog Show, activities for kids, food, drink, petanque and more Jul 7, noon-5pm, free to attend, limehousefestival.com

by Jon Massey

T

he weather is wet and the concrete of The Tower Hotel a dull shade of brown. The grim, water-stained edifice twice voted the ugliest in London couldn’t be more jarring beside the Gothic splendour of Tower Bridge.

But a visit to its ground floor bar and restaurant, which delivers fine views of its close neighbour even on the dampest of days is tempting. Branding is sometimes the key to success. Readers with long memories may recall page 1 where Sheena Shah’s puntastic levat er is examined. Read on and there will be a greeting to the Ahoy Centre in eptford on page 42, while The Tide comes in at Greenwich Peninsula on page 40.

So the pleasure of answering the uestion: “Are you here yet with: “I’m in the icinity, is probably one reason people seek the place out. The venue is a lengthy space, all beige tiles and herringbone wood on the floor with an abundance of tasteful turquoise and copper in its fixtures and furnishings. It’s testament to the accuracy

where?

Ropemakers Fields Limehouse

where?

Jamboree Limehouse

GIG | Green Rock River Band Americana, traditional folk, brass jazz and country with an eight-piece combo who specialise in filling rooms with the sounds of times gone by.

Jul 5, 7pm, from £6, jamboreevenue.co.uk

Vicinity has windows aplenty to let as much of the river in as it can of avid ockney’s assertion that it’s best to live in the ugliest house on a street so you don’t have to look at it. Tower Bridge, the Thames, Butler’s harf they’re all outside, unsullied.

Hotel operator Guoman, which can do nothing about the building itself, has made a fair fist of cosiness at icinity. The service is swift when my friend and I pop by Lengthy for a drink and padron a chinwag and, peppers lack for the location, the softness the prices are of the familiar acceptable. tapas treat on The feel is, offer in other however, firmly venues across mid-range with the capital classics confused rather than

delivered as solid, consumable sides to our drinks. A bowl of pork scratchings with apple sauce is actually flavourless crackling that works the molars too hard.

Padron peppers look premium but are too lengthy for a single bite and lack the softness of this tremendous tapas staple.

The beer selection, while limited passes muster, and the wine list is well-priced. Tap water comes on demand, in contrast to so many places eager to eke out every little bit of paid-for consumption.

And while the rain prevents us from en oying the extensive outdoor space, on a sunny day its location would be the stand-out reason to visit. ust don’t bother with the snacks.

Go to vicinitylondon.co.uk

the far future

With tickets going fast, now is the time to book into the London Craft Beer Festival, which is set to take over Tobacco Dock in Wapping from August 9-11. Expect 80 breweries and live music. From £49.95 londoncraftbeerfestival.co.uk

spot check worth a visit Visit The Grapes in Narrow Street for Dickensian magic and Gandalf’s staff thegrapes.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

36

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

how life coach and author Fabienne Sandoval is aiming to spread a little love on the Island Are you ready?

Fabienne is hosting a series of workshops at One Love Community in Pepper Street entitled Learning How To Love and based on her personal journey of discovery

by Jon Massey

L

ove is all you need,” sang the Beatles to around 600million people to close Our World, the first live international satellite T broadcast. While that performance was 52 years ago, the Fab Four’s message continues to resonate down the decades, not least on the Isle Of Dogs.

There may be only one of her, but life coach and author Fabienne Sandoval is hoping to spark her own love revolution with a series of workshops held in Pepper Street. Born of a desire to share the knowledge she gained by studying love, they paradoxically have their roots in her lack of a relationship.

“About a year and a half ago on my th birthday I arrived at my flat, single and alone,” she said.

“I had always had this drive to find a really intimate, deep, amazing love – the stuff you watch in the movies. I believed that it was possible but I had never managed to find it. My relationships were toxic and negative – a mess – all the ‘good’ stuff, that supposedly would teach you a lot of lessons.

“By the time I was 30, I was kinda sick of learning those lessons and was ready to actually do whatever work was required to enter into a meaningful, loving relationship – that was my intention.

“I basically said: ‘I am now going to spend the next 12 months dedicating myself to love, learning how to love, become a student of love and ultimately manifest my soulmate by my 31st birthday’. That didn’t uite happen.

“I made it to my 31st without a soulmate, but I did find out a hell of a lot about love and I just learnt so much I had to share it.”

After consolidating her findings, Fabienne’s next step was to team up with guided meditation app Insight Timer (insighttimer.com) to create a 10-part course entitled Learning How To Love.

It promises to allow users to learn to love again, to define what love means for them and to help them prepare their “greatest love story yet . More than 1, people have participated so far.

“It’s an alternative to doing the typical courses find your soulmate in six weeks – that sort of thing,” said Fabienne.

“Such courses are cool, you can learn a lot from them but they don’t really help you manifest love – it’s the wrong mindset. My course is split into 1 different days with 1 minutes of audio for each. We start at the beginning, because a lot of the time people begin by thinking: ‘I want to meet a romantic partner, I feel like I’m without, I feel that I’m lacking and I feel less-than’.

“When we look at love from that perspective, we live in that place of lack, and it’s harder to find someone because you’re constantly asking: ‘Are they here?

Are they here?’.

“Anyone that’s been on dating websites to try to find love knows it becomes exhausting. It does the opposite of what

you intend – it actually pushes it further away because you’re trying so desperately to find it that it can’t come to you. The course is designed to help prepare people for love.”

Following positive feedback on the online sessions, Fabienne decided to take her teachings into the real world, teaming up to host workshops at the appropriately titled One Love Community (1lovecommunity.org.uk), itself trying to breathe a little passion into the unfavoured western half of Pepper Street. abienne said: “The teachings in the online course and the live workshops are essentially the same although I will go deeper when it’s face-to-face. People can ask questions and I can respond – we can go down different avenues. “ e start by asking what the definition of love is for you as an individual. We do a lot of self-enquiry about what love means to you.

“Does it mean just having someone to go to Waitrose with, having a person to go to dinner with in the evening or does it mean having someone with whom you create and design a whole life together

that looks like magic It’s different for everyone. It has to be. People attending the workshops can expect to take away a lot of loving tools. Because we’re living in an age where we’re so busy all the time and we barely have the time to think, its time to sit down and really think about what all of this stuff means to you.

“You get to walk away with space and those realisations – that then creates a positive spin, because when someone learns to love themselves better, they can then learn to love their partner and others better. If we’re all taking daily loving actions, coming from a place of love, that

“

If we can do everything through a lens of love, then we can enhance our lives in so many ways

then creates a knock-on effect for the world as well. Anyone can attend.

“It’s about preparing you for love, and enabling you to love more deeply.

If you’re in a relationship, it will enable you to have a greater understanding of yourself and your partner and that will translate into having a more satisfying relationship.

“If you’re on your own, it will prepare you for your journey into love and what to look for in a partner as well as how you can attract the right person.”

Fabienne is also working on her second book – Thirty: The Age Of Love – set for publication, naturally, on St alentine’s Day 2020.

“It takes you through all of my trials and tribulations,” she said. “It’s about the actual journey that I went on so you get insights into my personal story.

“It talks about where I was at the beginning, how I found these tools and what discoveries about love they brought me. It will be full of resources and is like a blueprint to love. None exists right now that I know of. I’m very passionate about this topic it took me a long time to figure that out. If we can do everything through the lens of love, then we can enhance our lives in so many ways. Having gone on my ourney, I feel like I live in a different way, a way that feels good every single day. I can’t see any task that doesn’t have love attached to it in some way.

“I’d like to teach as many people in the world better practices around love.

We live in a space now where we think material things are really important.

“Love is often the missing ingredient.

Starting with it will change the whole world – a love revolution.”

Fabienne’s next workshops are set to be held at One Love Community on July 4, August 1 and September 5 from 6.30pm.

The sessions last an hour and a half and cost £15 per person. Other venues in London are also available.

For more information or to book tickets to one of Fabienne’s workshops, go to fabsthoughts.com

love Fabienne Sandoval, life coach and author

the look for

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

37

Isle Of Dogs - Poplar - Blackwall

10

Parts to Fabienne’s online course that’s all about love

After spending a year

14 days later

studying love, Fabienne

plan your life from Jul 3-17

created a 10-part online course on the topic

where?

The Gun Blackwall

and is now taking her teachings beyond the digital world

STAGE | Romeo And Juliet Experience the bard’s most romantic work on this historic pub’s summer terrace with a pint in hand and a tear ready to shed for the young lovers.

Jul 12 and 19, 7.30pm, £16, thegundocklands.com where?

Goodluck Hope Leamouth

FESTIVAL | Into The Woods Property developer Ballymore brings a night of music featuring Vanesa White, Anna Wolf, Donel and Flawless to its latest residential scheme.

Jul 4, 6.30pm, £15, goodluckhope.com where?

The Space Isle Of Dogs

STAGE | Lovers Anonymous A show of theatre, movement and improvisation that asks what it means to be in love in 2019. Listen to others and share your story.

Various dates from Jul 9-19, 7.30pm, £15, space.org.uk

to do before Jul 3

Browse pieces for sale at Craft Central’s Makers Market from June 29-30 on the Isle Of Dogs or participate in one of the paid workshops on offer including steam bending wood, saori weaving and macrame craftcentral.org.uk

spot check

Images by Holly Cant – find more of her images at hollycant.com or via @hollycantphoto on Insta

Head to Trinity Buoy Wharf for jazz on a summer’s day on June 23, from 2pm, £20 trinitybuoywharf.com want more? @wharflifelive

38

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

2003

The year the charity was founded to encourage young people to sail and row

water working with the

how The Ahoy Centre in Deptford delivers opportunities and life skills for the young through water sports

by Jon Massey

T

“

When you know the backgrounds to some of these kids, it’s gobsmacking – your heart has to go out to them Clive Ongley, The Ahoy Centre

Clive believes the practical skills of boating can help transform the lives of young people

Image by Matt Grayson – find his work at graysonphotos.co.uk or @mattgrayson_photo on Insta

he reason I got involved was my own background – I had great parents, no qualms there at all – but I wasn’t that good in terms of attending school,” said The Ahoy Centre’s CEO Clive Ongley.

“I was clever at one thing, which was not being there – it cost me two fags a day for someone to sign me in and out or whatever.

“I learnt virtually everything I think I know, through sailing. I was very lucky and got introduced to boating very young.

“For me personally, if you show me something with a practical application and I want to do it, then I will learn and read the books and so on. Without that, I’m never going to choose to read, I’m never going to achieve that.”

With skills and knowledge built on his sailing background, Clive went on to have a career in construction.

A chance encounter at a meeting led him to become aware of a precarious project to create a water sports centre on a “constantly fly-tipped, lump of mud in Deptford.

Following a bumpy beginning, the site was secured and with limited funding, a group of volunteers, including Clive, dug the foundations for what would become The Ahoy Centre by hand.

“The guys who tried to put it together originally mucked it all up,” he said. “I went back in to try and help them out. But the trouble was, because it was a ‘failed project’, nobody wanted to give any money. The first weekend we turned up, there were five volunteers and by the fourth there were 20. It grew from there.”

Fast forward to 2019 and The Ahoy Centre stands proudly on the banks of the Thames in Deptford, with a yard filled with sailing boats, powerboats and rowing boats. But this is just the infrastructure for the work the charity does with the disadvantaged children

and those with special educational needs that it helps.

“When you know the backgrounds to some of these kids, it’s gobsmacking – your heart has to go out to them,” said Clive.

“We’ve got kids that come here, and they’ve never been inside a shop, because they only go to the food bank.

“We had one boy who joined us, he was awkward, was told he’d failed at school, that he was absolutely useless, that he’d failed at this, failed at that. He lived in one room with his mum, his dad and his sister and they had to rotate the sleeping. You’d think this couldn’t be possible in the 21st century, but

pull together

raise some cash The Ahoy Centre offers a wide range of challenges, ideal for companies looking to generate funds for a good cause and indulge in some serious team building. Training is provided for all sessions Meridian Pull From Chelsea Harbour to Greenwich - 8.5NM Thames Barrier From Woolwich to Greenwich - 8.5NM English Channel To Colbert Nord Buoy and back again - 23NM 50km In A Day From Greenwich to QE2 Bridge and back - 31NM Great River Race Millwall Dock to Ham House - 21NM Bespoke challenges are also available. For prices or more details call 020 8691 7502 or email info@ahoy.org.uk

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

39

Rotherhithe - Bermondsey - Deptford

Above, left and below, young people take part in water sports from The Ahoy Centre’s Deptford base of operations, which has been running activities for the past 16 years

it is. Society is cra y we’ve got it a bit wrong.

“So knowing what their personal life is like and knowing what they’ve been through, to see them start to succeed, you ust go: ow’. es we need money to run the place, but what value can you put on the impact you’ve had on that person. It’s ust stunning.

“These young kids, if you give them the opportunity and you train them up, they won’t become a problem for society. In fact, they’ll get a ob and they’ll become taxpayers themselves. If we can turn them around early, how much money-wise to society is that worth

W

orking on the principle that learning skills through sailing, rowing and powerboating delivers that result, the centre offers a wide range of opportunities for young people irrespective of their background or abilities. “ e offer Royal achting Association and British Rowing ualifications, said Clive. “ e also run a separate apprenticeship course, which takes them through to a level two in sports activity leadership. So, they could go and coach other people, and we would look at some of them and give at least one of them some employment, if they’re up to scratch.

“The key part is the leadership.

They are getting those transferable skills, those are what we teach attitude, confidence-building all those things they thought they would never be able to achieve.

“About of what they do has got nothing to do with sailing or rowing, it’s to do with all those other aspects.

“There is no such thing as a bad kid, there are only bad adults because kids learn from them. It’s down to all of us to show the way forward. “ e now do mentoring too and we’re addressing mental health issues as well because, while we can make those changes for that moment in time when they are with us, some of the young people have very big problems. “ e have a brilliant head mentor on site and she, with her assistants can give them the skill-set and the mechanisms to help cope with some of the awful stuff theses kids have to deal with. “ ften they don’t have any peers or family members to give them support for whatever reason and that’s where you get the mental health issues starting to develop.

It’s a big problem.

Ahoy, which is an acronym for Adventure elp and pportunities for outh, has launched its Activity rogramme, which

offers young people a chance to try a range of activities, including rowing, sewing, martial arts, and cooking as well as giving guidance on nutrition, food hygiene and support with homework. Around regularly attend these sessions.

It also emphasises the importance of peer-to-peer education. “ e teach them young and try to get them ualified as early as possible, said Clive. “ ne of the reasons behind that is that there’s not much impact with old gits like me teaching a young person. But a 1 -year-old teaching a 1 or 1 -year-old is very powerful. ot only that, but the teacher gets a level of skill and leadership at a young age.

“There is a lot of responsibility in being a safety boat o cer or assistant safety boat o cer, for example, because you’re looking after the safety of 1 , or people and it’s your ob to make sure they come back.

“They can take that away in their lives at the same time as putting it into operation down here.

The charity’s work costs money, of course, and it relies heavily on contributions from companies to carry out its activities. It offers a wide range of sponsorship options as well as corporate rowing challenges up and down the Thames and beyond. “ hen we talk to most people once they’ve come down, they say they should have come down earlier, said Clive.

“It’s a wonderful thing, it’s in the centre of London, it’s directed at London kids, its everything that you’d ever want in terms of, Am I truly making a difference with the funding I give ’ “ e get people coming back, year after year, to do the rowing challenges. ou ask them why they’re doing that and it’s because they’ve seen the young people we deal with.

“Most people know somebody who has run the London Marathon, which is fantastic, but how many people have rowed the Thames The answer is very few.

“Take our Meridian ull, for example which starts at Chelsea, goes past the ouses f arliament and ends up here in eptford, ust short of the Meridian line. or the average team it’s an hour and ten minutes of rowing. “ e time it so it’s rowing with the tide so even if none of you rowed, you would eventually get here. But people get the whole point they get a target to aim for, they get fit and they get the bit about raising funds for Ahoy, because they meet the recipients.

“That is very rare. because when you hand over money to a charity you don’t often get to see where it goes.

For more information about the charity’s work go to ahoy.org.uk

14 days later

plan your life from Jul 3-17 where?

The Albany Deptford

STAGE | Empyre This tale of revolt and manufactured crisis promises circus, daredevil acrobatics and original music from theatre company Wake The Beast.

Jul 17, 7.30pm, £14, thealbany.org.uk where?

St Mary’s Church Rotherhithe

GIG | Hanitra The Madagascan singer, songwriter and guitarist brings her trio to Rotherhithe to perform songs from her latest album Lasa. An homage to women.

Jul 17, 7.45pm, £14, tunedin.london where?

Deptford Cinema Deptford

SCREEN | Summer With Monika Part of Deptford Cinema’s Ingmar Bergman season, this 1953 film tells the tale of two young lovers, an idyllic boat trip and their struggles with family life.

Jul 4, 7pm, £6, deptfordcinema.org

to do before Jul 3

Rob Auton’s The Time Show is a work in progress, a spoken-word investigation of all things temporal that asks: “What time is it?” and then goes on to: “What is it, time?”

Expect charm from June 25-27 for £7 thealbany.org.uk

spot check worth a visit Hidden under Deptford’s arches, Gin And Beer is a bar dedicated to two things ginandbeer.com want more? @wharflifelive

40

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

not one, but two free festivals are set to bring The Tide in on the Peninsula

14 days later

plan your life from Jul 3-17

by Jon Massey

where?

The O2 Arena Peninsula

GIG | Kiss The band come to their End Of The Road tour after selling tens of millions of albums, 45 years and incalculable amounts of greasepaint.

Jul 11, 6.30pm, from £53, theo2.co.uk where?

Greenwich Theatre Greenwich

STAGE | 10 Things I Hate About..

Taming Of The Shrew – writer and performer Gillian English lays into the Bard’s film adaptations and their impact on a generation in listicle form.

Jul 16, 7.30pm, £13, greenwichtheatre.org.uk where?

Cutty Sark Theatre Greenwich

COMEDY | Man Of 1,000 Farces Self-proclaimed international man of misery Johnny MacAuley delivers clowning, illusions, puppetry and vaudeville all in the hull of the ship.

Jul 6, 7.30pm, £17, rmg.co.uk

E

ven so comparatively early in its project to transform Greenwich Peninsula, a stroll around The confirms the colossal impact developer Knight Dragon has already had on the area.

We’ve had the installation of a phenomenally popular golf driving range, a succession of festivals and events, the opening of arguably Docklands’ best restaurant in Craft London and events venue Magazine is still to come.

The area is buzzing and the majority has been in advance of the thousands of homes the company is building; a bid to make the area attractive by raising its profile before attempting to tempt buyers.

With residential buildings rapidly coming to completion around it, the latest addition to this programme of public amenities is all set for unveiling.

The Tide is a 5km length of park leading from Peninsula Square down to the Thames and along the waterfront.

It has been designed as a collaboration between architecture practices iller Scofidio And Renfro – which was responsible for the High Line in New York – and eiheiser Agyros. hen complete it will eventually loop through all seven of the neighbourhoods being created on the Peninsula.

In addition to the greenery, its various raised platforms and walkways, visitors can expect sculptures by former Peninsula resident Damien Hirst as well as works by Morag Myerscough – who was

to do before July 3

Head to Greenwich Fair for three days of strange, diverting and thrilling performances from the acts participating in Greenwich And Docklands International Festival – June 21-23, various times festival.org

spot check one to try Not done it yet? Surely it’s time to ride Boris’ folly the Emirates Air Line emiratesairline.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

An artist’s impression of how The Tide will look when completed – a bold statement on Greenwich Peninsula

responsible for the colourful cranes during construction of the Upper Riverside buildings and Allen Jones, who was commissioned for the project and responded with an 8m-high piece in red steel.

Studio Morison have created a 27m-long picnic table for the area and an installation of “inflated water droplets” by Geronimo will be in place for the opening on July 5. And what an opening it will be because: turning tides festival Rather than simply snip a ribbon or pop a few confetti cannons, the park’s unveiling will be celebrated with a pair of free weekend festivals running July 5-7 and 12-14 Opening things up will be flamboyant drag act Sink The ink on the first riday from pm. ollowing on, first Saturday highlights include high energy London collective Melt Yourself Down at 4pm and Ethiopian jazz master Mulatu Astatke at . pm.

The acts to look out for on the first Sunday are hypnotic rhythms and tribal beats from DJ Lu:sid at noon and former Supergrass stuntman Gaz Coombes who headlines at . pm. ip-hop ensemble Tank And The Bangas headline on the 12th with Malian musician Omou Sangaré topping the bill the following day before The River Knows and musical director Dave Okumu close the festival with a series of guest vocalists including Beth Orton, Laura Mvula and Rosie Lowe.

Throughout both events there will be a varied programme of talks, wellbeing events, food, drink and temporary art on display.

This includes the opportunity for visitors to make a personal pledge with Yoko Ono’s Wish Trees in situ during the festivals.

Also coinciding with the dates, Argentinian ceramicist and illustrator Kinska will be transforming the public art space at Now Gallery with My Opera House, an exhibition that invites visitors to navigate their way through a garden of her creations.

Greenwich Peninsula’s head of cultural programming Kaia Charles said: “Turning Tides will be a heady mix of arthouse film, music and public art.

“Renowned artists, musicians and curators from the UK and further afield will converge on The Tide this summer to celebrate a moment of change and a new London – and it’s all free to visit.”

Go to greenwichpeninsula.co.uk for more details and full listings of all events during the festivals

6

Days of music, art, wellbeing, food, drink, activities and Yoga will make up Turning Tides

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

41

Greenwich - Peninsula - Woolwich

tide time for the

The Tide is a new 5km park featuring specially commissioned art and designed by the architects that created the High Line in New York

LA-based artist Geronimo will unveil her installation I Can Taste You On A Rainy Day to mark the start of the festival, forming a backdrop for Sink The Pink

Nice and clean: Gaz Coombes of Supergrass fame will perform at the festival alongside the drag stylings of Sink The Pink, left

42

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

75

Minutes a performance of dance spectacular Cristal Palace typically lasts

movement music and

Cristal Palace’s giant chandelier features performers, sound, light and, naturally a Wi-fi connection to make it work

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

43

Canning Town - Royal Docks

why French street theatre company Transe Express want to get the whole of the Royal Docks moving with Cristal Palace

plan your life from Jul 3-17

by Jon Massey

I

t’s perhaps testament to the growing importance of the area that long standing, annual cultural explosion the Greenwich And Docklands International Festival (GDIF) is set to hold its closing spectacular in Royal Docks.

Echoing the opening ceremony just across the Thames in Woolwich on Friday, June 21, Transe Express will pack up its enormous chandelier and ship it north.

Once there, Cristal Palace will be recreated with a local twist at ABP London’s Royal Albert Dock development on July 6 at 9.30pm.

For this performance, French company Transe will team up with London-based choreographer Tony Adigun and Avant Garde Dance and students from the University Of East London to help boost their giant outdoor ballroom.

“These two performances, in Woolwich and Royal Docks will be our first time doing it in the , said Transe artistic director Remi Allaigre.

Those attending should be ready to move and braced for audience participation.

“During the show comedians and actors go to pick up the audience and bring them to the dance, he said.

“At the end it is more a dance party for everybody than a show. There are 21 artists from our company, comedians, musicians, acrobats and some technicians. And Avant Garde will perform one of their dance pieces in the middle.

Lasting about an hour and a quarter, the show is free to attend, a spectacular event to draw an end to the festivities.

“The show itself is about time, said Remi. “The style of music is from six different composers, because of different historic styles.

“There are different numbers during the show – we work our way up to techno. It means that in every time, people need to dance.

Production manager Nicole Dittmar Ragaigne added: “We come together in each culture and each time and each era, dance together and celebrate what we all have in common.

“We wanted to make a piece about this – what brings people together so they can have fun with one another.

Transe is known for its aerial work, having performed its very first aerial show, Mobile Homme, as part of the festival more than a decade ago, and those attending the performances can expect something significantly out of the ordinary.

“One important thing is that during all of this, we have a really amazing aerial display, said icole.

“The idea of the chandelier was

14 days later

where?

Excel Royal Victoria Dock

EVENT | Europe CBD Expo A UK first, this show for the CBD, Cannabinoids and medicinal cannabis industry is for both consumers and those working in the sector.

Jul 12-13, from 9am, £40 in advance, excel.london where?

Royal Docks Royal Victoria Dock inspired by parties and dances from the last century and to have something in common with them.

“It decorates the space and makes a Cristal Palace a real dance party. The chandelier is a symbol to transform a public space into a ballroom. Everybody on the square will have fun with it.

The show got its premiere in the USA in 2018 as a special commission for a festival in Philadelphia.

“They asked us to create a show for their festival, and that’s how Cristal alace was born, said icole.

“We performed there for 10 days and from there on we went to one of the biggest street arts festivals in France and that was a big success.

“That’s where the people from the GDIF saw our show – since then we are not stopping, it’s crazy. Everybody wants it.

As well as being the centrepiece of the show, the chandelier on a crane pays homage to the company’s history.

Remi said: “Transe Express is one of the older companies in street theatre in France. We are 37 years old and it turned to the sky with an aerial show in 1992 with Mobile Homme.

“From this time we changed and we researched how to make some new tours in the air with new technology.

“Now, in this chandelier, we have sound, lights and a i-fi system to make it work.

“

We hope that each person in the audience will dance. We want to make them move because this is our mission Remi Allaigre, Transe Express

Architects Of Air by Alan Parkinson will also be at Royal Albert Dock from June 21-23 for GDIF “We continue to research and every time to make it better in the air, with live musicians, circus performances – this is what we use.

Nicole added “We have seven different aerial shows on tour at the moment. I heard the story from the founders of the company, Gilles Rhode and Brigitte Burdin.

“They started out with small performances in the beginning just with two people and then it grew.

“But in street theatre, not many people can see everything that’s happening if you are on the ground.

“So they started thinking about it, how everybody could enjoy their shows. So that’s how they came up with the idea of using a crane to construct a structure, hang it 30m in the air so the audience could see and that’s what happened.

Such is the popularity of Cristal Palace already, that the company operates two core groups of performers with a number of people able to step in and play multiple roles if needed just to keep up with demand.

And perhaps that’s down to the show’s clear, uncomplicated message of participation and joy.

Remi said: “We hope that each person in the audience will dance. We want to make them move, because this is our mission.

“For Cristal Palace we want to take the audience with us and bring them into dance.

“We want them to leave very excited and very happy, in a good mood.

“For them to be going home singing our songs, and to have a really, really fun evening.

For more information about the Greenwich And Docklands International Festival go to festival.org

SWIM | Dock2Dock Take to the water and crawl 10k, 5k or 1,500m with the longest route running from Royal Victoria to Royal Albert Dock and back. A dip in the docks.

Jul 13, times vary, from 37.50, dock2dock.co.uk where?

RA Fold Canning Town

CLUB | Craigie Knowes The Scottish label brings Glasgow’s finest to east London including the eponymous DJ, No Moon, Carl Finlow and Eluize. An early shout for this one Jul 19, 10pm, from £8 online, residentadvisor.net

to do before July 3

The London Hong Kong Dragon Boat Festival is all set to take over Royal Albert Dock on June 30 with a riot of Chinese food, culture, drinks and, of course, racing on the water. Starts 10am, free to attend lhkdbf.co.uk

spot check worth a visit Try The Crystal Cafe for a selection of healthy bites and views over the water thecrystal.org want more? @wharflifelive

44

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

£10.50

how Hand Cafe in East Village is a masterclass in simple, effective food than water glasses. The open kitchen bustles behind a raised counter where every space is udging by the steady filled with useful stuff. stream of customers The menu is scrawled in bright on a Monday morning, chalk on a blackboard with a Hand Cafe in East wide selection of breakfast and Village’s Victory Parade brunch options available is no secret among resiChannelling my inner millendents at the former home of the nial, I order avocado, bacon athletes at the 2012 Olympics. and egg on toast, wincing at The younger sibling of 46b the memory of the miserable Espresso Hut in Hackney, slice of sourdough that arrived its presence in Get Living’s smeared with green and overly well-heeled rental district is expensive at The Sipping Room part of the landlord’s policy of the previous week. attracting independents.

When it arrives though, my And Hand is a barnbreakfast is everything storming success. that stingy serving Selling and serving wasn’t.

Greek products My two slices alongside are buried under more familiar half a glistening dishes, there’s avocado, a warm feel to plentiful bacon the industrial and two gently concrete shell it wobbling eggs, calls home. boiled to perfecMetal cable chantion and full of nels that support golden, runny yolk. the lights double as Adding a bit of Water glasses at shelves for potted bite, there’s also a plants. sprinkling of bitter, Hand in Stratford The kind of plastic pickled cabbage chairs familiar to the that lifts the whole bottoms of secondary school plate and a generous drizzle of students cluster round tables of olive oil. Paired with a solid cup light wood and metal. Tap water of Yorkshire Tea, it’s a fine way is served in old jam jars rather to start a Monday, or any other day of the week. My companion is equally impressed with her sausage and avocado sandwich, pepped up with a peppering of chilli flakes.

Anyone who wants to see how Anyone who wants to to run a cafe properly should see how to run a cafe visit Hand, a brand so confident it needs no website or constant, properly should visit cloying social media presence to Hand for excellent food, do its marketing. Just excellent food, a pleasant atmosphere a pleasant atmosphere and a lot of avocados. and a lot of avocados Follow @CafeHand on Twitter for more information Jon Massey, Wharf Life

by Jon Massey

J

“

For this riot of bacon, eggs and avocado on toast

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

45

Stratford - Bow

proper

14 days later

plan your life from Jul 3-17 where?

Theatre Royal Stratford East Stratford

breakfast

STAGE | Monologue Slam The industry showcase for actors looking to show what they can do returns to Stratford. Young participants do a minute, older thesps three.

Jul 15, 8pm, from £9 (usually £12), stratfordeast.com where?

Stratford Circus Stratford

STAGE | Festival Of Youth See Newham Harmony’s massed choir including students from 20 primary schools. Expect soaring vocals and a varied, beautiful range of songs.

Jun 8-10, 7pm, from £3, stratford-circus.com where?

Roof East Stratford

FILM | Fantastic Mr Fox Settle down to watch Wes Anderson’s animated classic at Roof East’s rooftop cinema and reflect that it was made locally at Three Mills Studios.

Jul 4, 9pm, £14.95, rooftopfilmclub.com

to do before Jul 3

The sausage and avocado sandwich costs £8.50

An immersive street art installation aimed at addressing the stigma of loneliness is set to pop up at the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park on June 23. London Is Lonely is sponsored by the International Quarter London londonislonely.com

spot check try this place out The bar at the East London Liquor Company is spirit heaven and still great eastlondonliquorcompany.com want more? @wharflifelive

46

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

Advertising Directory - Acknowledgements

find our advertisers’ messages here Chase Evans print Pages 1, 28-29 online chaseevans.co.uk

Berkeley Homes print Pages 22-23 online berkeleygroup.co.uk

The Gun print Page 3 online thegundocklands.com

Higgins Homes print Page 24 online higginshomes.co.uk

Capeesh print Page 5 online capeesh.co.uk

Sourthern Homes print Page 25 online bowrivervillage.co.uk

TfL print Page7 online tfl.gov.uk

Vantage Properties And Management print Page 26 online vantage-uk.com

Keith Prowse print Page 9 online keithprowse.co.uk

Folio London print Page 27 online foliolondon.co.uk

The Pearson Room print Page 11 online thepearsonroom.co.uk

Telford Homes print Page 31 online telfordhomes.london

Creative Virtual print Page 13 online creativevirtual.com

Galliard Homes print Page 34 online galliardhomes.com

Kidd Rapinet print Pages 14, 15, 33 online kiddrapinet.co.uk

be part of the Canary Wharf conversation To advertise in Wharf Life call 07944 000 144 or email advertising@wharf-life.com

without these people, Wharf Life would not have been possible Graeme Bellenger, John Garwood, Jon Dyer, David Galman, Natasha Maddison, David Campbell, Matt Grayson, Kerry Hill, Stephanie Massey, Sarah Leaman, Steve Grieg, Phil Wetz, Camille Waxer, Lucy Merritt, James Vellacott, Lyndon Nunn, Camilla Maddison, Philip Wild, Michelle Vellacott, Andy Shaw, Andrew Scott, Paula Voong, Nadia Maddison, Gary Pring, Edwin Chiu, Annamaria Maddison, Mike Televantou, Chris Ezekiel, Steve Askari, Michael Massey, Andy Shrimplin, Gooch Heer, Rudy Wong, Nick Preston, Steven Herd, David Massey, Ian Li, Andrew Brown, Jean Paul Toerien, Mark May, Ranald Macdonald, Mustafa Topkaya, Simon Spann, Enza Capodici, Mathew Heaton, Kim Wiper, Sophie Watt, Louise Howell, Victor Huang, Phillip Maddison, Spencer Fortag, Dan Smith, Richard Carroll, Randeep Thethy, Toby Wilson, Joel Rayney, Lana Marshall, Olivia Curle, Laura Warren, Rebecca Wood, Maria Tognarelli

thank you Jess Maddison co-founder and commercial director Jon Massey co-founder and editorial director

@wharflifelive

Wharf Life is published by Massey Maddison Limited, printed by Iliffe Print Cambridge and distributed by Willis News Distribution. Copyright Massey Maddison Limited 2019

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

47

Creative Space

this space is yours

what is this? a pyramid? a spaceship? you decide – share your works with @wharflifelive or #keepittoyourself – don’t like, subscribe or comment

Top marks, as ever to the brilliant Fabian Ranaldi who created this when asked to draw a dream island

WORKING TITLE

48

Wharf Life Jun 19-Jul 3, 2019 wharf-life.com

SUDOKU

Crossword - Sudoku

Medium

3

2 6 8 5 1 3 7 9 4 Sudoku 7 a5break 9 from 4 6 that 8 phone 2 1 3 Take 1 4 3 2 9 7 8 6 5 How 3 to9 play 2 1 7 6 4 5 8 To complete Sudoku, fill the board by entering numbers 4 such 3 that 5 2each 1 row, 7 9column and 3x3 box one6to8nine contains every number uniquely.

5 7 1 9 8 4 6 3 2 2 find 5 strategies, 7 3 1 hints 9 8and6tips online You4can at sudokuwiki.org 9 1 6 8 2 5 3 4 7 8 to 3 play 7 6 4 9 5 2 1 More

2 7 5 3 6 6 4

2 8 6 2 4 8

9 3 3 4 1 6 2

You can find more Sudoku puzzles and a wide selection ofTo others available in apps and books at str8ts.com. This complete Sudoku, fill the board Sudoku is supplied by Syndicated Puzzles. by entering numbers 1 to 9 such

that each row, column and 3x3 box contains every number uniquely.

Notes

2 7 2 7 8 1

© 2019 Syndicated Puzzles

7

Previous solution - Easy

For many strategies, hints and tips, visit www.sudokuwiki.org If you like Sudoku you’ll really like ‘Str8ts’ and our other puzzles, Apps and books. Visit www.str8ts.com

crossword Down

6.

1.

7.

9.

10.

12.

15.

17.

19.

21.

22.

He foresees support before the reform (7) A propeller fastener (5) The eggs are in her clutches (3) Had a handicap, in a manner of speaking (9) Pocket-money makes very little difference 5, The boss’s o ce 11 Painter examines a piece of furniture (9) Cross at being recalled for duty (3) Fearless Red-Indian (5) Rival bird is not on time (7)

2.

3.

4.

5.

8.

11.

13.

14.

16.

1 .

20.

Notes

Colour, being inexperienced (5) A place in which man’s pains may be alleviated (3) It’s not right to be abandoned (4) Diagrammatic form of catechism (9) Get even with Reg, perhaps? (7) Spanking vessels? (6) Imperturbable admission of inertia? (9) You’ve not been going straight if you have to make this up (6) Approves of indications of support (7) Class system moulded on the Orient (5) abric that’s stiff or limb (4) The man from whom Samuel imbibed wisdom (3)

Quick Across 6.

7.

9.

10.

12.

15.

17.

19.

21.

22.

Coalminer (7) Object (5) Mournful (3) Uncomfortable (3,2,4) Embody (11) Thoughtful (11) Trick (9) Anger (3) Name (5) Credit (7)

Down 1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

8.

11.

13.

14.

16.

18.

20.

Raid (5) Sick (3) Cure (4) Pierce (9) Throb (7) Meddle (6) Strangely (9) Severe trial (6) Include (7) Long for (5) Level (4) Container (3)

Across: 6 Collier; 7 Demur; 9 Sad; 10 Ill at ease; 12 Incorporate; 15 Considerate; 17 Stratagem; 19 Ire; 21 Title; 22 Believe.

Down: 1 Foray; 2 Ill; 3 Heal; 4 Penetrate; 5 Pulsate; 8 Tamper; 11 Unusually; 13 Ordeal; 14 Contain; 16 Crave; 18 Even; 20 Bin.

Across

whether you’re cryptic sleuth or synonym solver in it for quick wins, this should satisfy

Cryptic Solution

Cryptic

beating the

Across: 6 Prophet; 7 Screw; 9 Hen; 10 Stammered; 12 Small change; 15 Managership; 17 Constable; 19 Tax; 21 Brave; 22 Emulate.

Down: 1 Green; 2 Spa; 3 Left; 4 Schematic; 5 Revenge; 8 Smacks; 11 Impassive; 13 Leeway; 14 Favours; 16 Caste; 18 Lame; 20 Eli.

The solutions will be published here in the next issue.

Quick Solution

No. 420