Wharf Life May 9

+ Why plastic litter is no longer OK on race day Page 6

May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

inside

what it’s like when athletic and rig master trainer, Luke Barnsley, teaches you to wield a kettlebell at The Yard in Canary Wharf’s Third Space

Mudchute Park And Farm Streets Of The World Beth Redfern Pilates Doner And Gyros Marathon plastic Navigator Wharf MCM Comic Con Neighbourhood The Full Nelson Higgins Homes Help To Buy Archery Fit Puzzles Plexal

kettle on getting our

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

Image by James Perrin – find his work at jamesperrin.com or @millerjamesperrin on Insta

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THIS IS YO U R S PAC E

THI691_Wharf Ad-DPS.indd 3-4

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S TA R T Y O U R T H I R D S P A C E J O U R N E Y T O D AY

CANADA PL ACE, LONDON E14 5ER T H I R D S PAC E . L O N D O N

07/05/2019 15:40

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read

fortnightly find

this issue’s Tiger Treasure

14 days later

plan your life from May23-Jun 6 where?

Museum Of London Docklands West India Quay SEE | Secret Rivers The Neckinger, The Fleet, The Walbrook – all their intriguing histories are revealed in this exhibition, which looks at London’s hidden waterways.

May 24-Oct 7, daily, free, museumoflondon.org.uk where?

Boisdale Of Canary Wharf Cabot Square

feast your eyes on these

This plush chap represents the soft side of capitalism and should allow savers of any age to fatten up their futures by stuffing him full of dosh.

Unfortunately as the world moves away from cash, these purpose-bred, domesticated animals are likely to become endangered unless a card slot mutation is forthcoming Fluffy Piggy Bank, £10 Go to uk.flyingtiger.com

arrival a fresh

An artist’s impression of how 1-5 Bank Street will look when it’s finished

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GIG | Charlie Pyne Named best jazz vocalist at the Boisdale Music Awards in 2018, Charlie brings her trio to Canary Wharf. She’s also performing on June 25 and 26.

May 28, 9.15pm, from £12.50, boisdale.co.uk

Why the London Marathon needs to see plastic as toxic

Luke puts us through a kettlebell class at The Yard in Third Space

where?

Boisdale Of Canary Wharf Cabot Square

GIG | Seyi Shay The Nigerian-based singer, songwriter and actor drops in for two east London dates promoting her latest collection of ditties titled Electric Package.

May 29-30, 9.15pm, from £19.50, boisdale.co.uk

challenge time

14 warm welcome

EBRD set for Wharf move in 2022 - 1-5 Bank Street

The European Bank For Reconstruction And Development is set to take the top 13 floors of 1-5 Bank Street. The deal will see the firm transfer from its current premises in the City’s Exchange Square to more than 360,000sq ft of space in Canary Wharf. Dan Bayley, senior director of central London office leasing at BNP Paribas Real Estate, which advised EBRD, said: “1-5 Bank Street is the largest letting deal in Canary Wharf since 2016 as well as the biggest new letting by Canary Wharf Group for over 10 years. With the current political uncertainty, this is a great vote of confidence in London.”

The mini golf course is back in Columbus Courtyard to the west of the estate and it’s completely free to play. Open daily from noon until 7pm on weekdays and 6pm at weekends, there are nine holes to attempt canarywharf.com

get in touch

correct us

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

we want to hear from you

How Jeroen Swolfs went around the capitals of the world snapping

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 42

need something fixed?

If Roka isn’t one of the notches on your chopsticks it’s time to make it so rokarestaurant.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 somewhere to try

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Canary Wharf

£7.49

on the radar

looking to the future Gone is The Fine Line in Canary Wharf. The Limehouse has risen in its place. Expect to find Fuller’s beers, a lively atmosphere and and “authentic” Sri Lankan restaurant serving spiced bites down beside the dock limehousecanary wharf.co.uk

44 Towers flock together.

Rockwell Property intends to put in a planning application to build a 40-storey tower on the Quay House site on Admiral’s Way, just across the DLR line from the two Wardian blocks, filled with hotel rooms and serviced flats rockwellproperty.co.uk

The cost of a doner or gyros meal including chips and a can of drink

dine

Doner And Gyros (From Berlin And Chicago)

Fighting to preserve crafts and rare breeds at Mudchute Farm

Is it really ever acceptable to eat a kebab on a plate? And what part should cutlery play? These are the dilemmas when arriving home with a bag heavy with the fruits of Doner And Gyros, recently opened on West India Quay.

Billing itself a healthier, leaner version of the post pub staple, suitable for lunch or dinner this meeting of popular Greek and Turkish snacks, reimagined in German and America and combined in Dubai is clearly countries (if not worlds) apart from more traditional venues.

My chicken doner comes in a generous bread, dragged through a garden of crunchy salad. The meat is moist and dripping with flavour rather than masked by an aggressive chilli sauce. Forget the cutlery – break out the serviettes.

This is a foodstuff that demands total commitment.

The chicken doner – on a plate Frankly, there’s no need for the chips – although they are crisp and well seasoned. The sandwich on its own is massive. Plenty for dinner and substantial for lunch. My companion’s beef gyros is equally filling and remains unfinished.

More a place to load up than get healthy, the restaurant is a welcome addition to the area.

Go to donerandgyros.co.uk

6 course tasting menu Paired wines with each course Spectacular river views £100 per person (£20 deposit required) Tickets available via the website

GOURMET NIGHT IN THE RIVER ROOM FRIDAY 17TH MAY

27 Coldharbour, Coldharb rrbour, rr, London, E14 9NS www.thegundocklands.com www. w w.thegundockl kklands.com gun.events@fullers.co.uk gun.eve vvents tts@ @fffuulll ers rrs.co.uk 0207 519 0075 7 75

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legal matters

by Richard Peter Tymkiw

Q

I’m currently cohabiting with my partner – what legal rights do we have should one of us die?

Making a will may be wise if you and your partner are in a common law relationship

A

Those in a common law relationship have precious little in the way of legal rights – in comparison with the raft of entitlements that arise from marriage or a civil partnership.

Unless you are the sole or a joint owner, you may well find that your property rights are largely non-existent. The exception is if you can show that there was a “common intention” to participate in the property or its proceeds.

The court has no power to award compensation either because of the length of the relationship or any financial contributions that may have been made.

Should your partner predecease you and die without making a will, their assets would normally pass on to other family members. Although it Forethought and may be open to you to apply to the court for agreement upon what reasonable provision, is to be done should the process is likely to prove expensive and the relationship sour, uncertain. may save on tears, It is possible for you, in agreement with your stress and expense partner, to enter into Richard Peter Tymkiw, Kidd Rapinet a Deed Of Trust. This can record your current arrangements and set out what is to happen in the event of a breakdown.

If properly approached and drafted such a document may well carry weight with a Family Court and be enforced.

It may also be wise to look at making wills if either of you wishes to provide for each other from your respective estates.

Love, care and commitment should always be the golden threads within the tapestry of any relationship. However, forethought and agreement on what is to be done should the relationship sour, may save on tears, stress and expense for both partners in the unhappy event of a breakdown.

“

Richard Peter Tymkiw is a family lawyer and the senior litigation partner at Kidd Rapinet LLP based at Harbour Exchange on the Isle Of Dogs Go to kiddrapinet.co.uk or follow @KiddRapinetLLP on Twitter or @kiddrapinet on Instagram

Dear Nick Bitel I want to preface this open letter by saying it’s not an attack on the London Marathon. I hope you are proud to be the CEO of an event that allows more than 40,000 individual runners to do so much good, generating vast sums of money for so many vital and important causes.

Neither is it an attack on the runners or their behaviour. All those who participate deserve our admiration and respect, especially those taking on the challenge for charity. Long may they continue.

My concern is the event’s environmental impact – specifically the more than 700,000 plastic water bottles handed out by sponsor Buxton this year.

These hardy little containers are dispensed and then cast down at the side of the road. By the end of the day, the route is strewn with them – a river of litter.

I know Buxton proudly trialled a “closed loop” recycling scheme this year. Every bottle was supposed to be picked up and collected by clean-up crews and its partner London councils. They did a pretty thorough job of sweeping the route itself clean.

Now look to the right. I happen to live on the marathon route and took a stroll after the circus had left town at around 10pm.

Located within about 800m of my address, close to the Mile 16 marker, I picked up 68 discarded bottles. I didn’t have to try that hard to find them. It took about 20 minutes. While some had ended up in flower beds and weren’t completely obvious to those making a cursory inspection, others were just lying there in plain sight.

Read carefully. I’m only going to write this once. If you put plastic out there, it will get out into the environment. There’s nothing you can do to stop that.

At present, the London Marathon makes a choice to use this material and risk its escape. I don’t know how many of the bottles handed out entered the Thames, but the number won’t be zero.

How many is reasonable? What proportion is it right to write off as acceptable pollution?

Forget Buxton’s fantasy of a closed loop. Even in the relatively controlled arena of the marathon it failed. Here is the evidence.

That the little bottles are 50% recycled plastic is little comfort.

I’m no expert, but I believe polyethylene terephthalate takes as long to break down in the environment whether it’s recycled or a completely virgin product.

I hope Buxton looks at the top image on these pages and sees it for the embarrassment it is. I hope you look at it and see the potential contribution to the ecological catastrophe humanity has already created. I also found discarded

700k

Number of plastic water bottles handed out to runners in the 2019 London Marathon

Closed loopy: These bottles and packaging were picked

not up after the route had

been cleaned. They slipped through the net

good enough

we would like to know how the London Marathon plans to go plastic-free in 2020 The streets pre-clean up

To be clear, we’re not blaming the runners here – they need hydration – it’s the solution to that which needs fixing

“

There are alternatives, there are solutions. You can find them. The time to be ambitious is now. Incremental improvement won’t wash Jon Massey, Wharf Life

Buxton packaging near the location of a water station the following day. Even those handing out the stuff failed to dispose of their plastic properly. Percentage-wise, granted, it’s not a lot. But any slippage has consequences.

Credit where it’s due. The marathon is down from more than 900,000 bottles in 2018 and a pilot programme with liquid-filled seaweed pouches fills me with optimism. This reduction means there’s only 700,000 to go. You’ve managed 200,000 in 12 months.

Quadruple your efforts and you’ll have sailed way past the finish line. There are alternatives, there are solutions. You can find them.

The time to be ambitious is now.

Incremental improvement won’t wash. Buxton has got another five years of its sponsorship deal. I suggest you take this to them.

But if their answer is a recycled plastic bottle of water covered in their branding, you might need to ask more than once. Otherwise, you risk images like the one above overshadowing the great things your event and its participants achieve.

My challenge to you is simple.

How will the London Marathon be plastic-free in 2020?

Jon Massey jon.massey@wharf-life.com

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

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in the know

doing the deals

hit the Wharf’s malls and restaurants for less If you tolerate this: Some of the 68 plastic water bottles we recovered following the clean-up of the London Marathon route just past Mile 16 on the Isle Of Dogs

20%

Try Karen Millen’s free, 90-minute styling service at its Jubilee Place store and receive 20% off all purchases made following the session. Must be booked karenmillen.com

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Wharf Life will be recycling all of the bottles we found after the marathon

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Take aim and loose as we try Archery Fit out in Greenwich

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Third Space trainer Luke Barnsley talks facilities, classes and the benefits of membership

by Jon Massey

T

hird Space can change your life if you let it,” said Luke Barnsley. The 33-year-old is athletic and rig master trainer at the Canada Square gym and health club in Canary Wharf and, with more than a decade working in fitness, is well placed to make the assessment.

I think we offer something nobody else does,” he said. “We’re a gym where every member of the team is pursuing excellence and I think that’s rare.

“We’ve been shaped to some extent by the attitude of people who work round here. They want to be the best at what they do.

“This gym has assimilated the ethos of that workforce and it’s been formed around that. The standard we hold ourselves by is: ‘Is it excellent?’. If not, we need to improve.

“The next thing is the classes.

I would argue a member here can spend less money than they would on workouts at a boutique gym, get access to showers, saunas swimming pools, a climbing wall – all this gym equipment – and get classes of the same calibre.

“With us, all the classes are included with membership, as are all the facilities and that’s definitely a reason to oin.

Group exercise is the reason we’re having a conversation. Luke has ust put me and my business partner through our paces in his kettlebells class at the club’s multi-function training space The Yard, which opened in January.

“I think it’s world-leading as a facility,” said Luke. “The Yard is very crossfit-oriented – what you get with crossfit gyms normally is they’re often a bit busted up, the paint will be chipping off the walls, but the kit’s good. e’re one of the first places to make an ama ing crossfit facility that has that five-star, premium feel. That’s what we set out to create.

“There’s a side for group exercise and one for personal training and members can use the kit whenever.

“In terms of classes, you have The Yard Workout Of The Day , which is a crossfit-inspired

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Years of experience Luke has working in the fitness industry

Luke says the first class people attend is always the hardest and things get easier and easier from that point on

make the change

Image by James Perrin – find his work at jamesperrin.com or @millerjamesperrin on Insta

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Canary Wharf

Luke comes from a crossfit background and runs several classes at Third Space class, Yard Strong, which is a strong-man-inspired class that features the logs, the Atlas stones and dead weight. I taught that this morning before kettlebells.

“Then, on the weekends we have Yard Circuit, which is a 50-person circuit class that takes over the whole space. The energy is really great.

“The Yard also has a boxing area upstairs for those interested in combat and a sports performance area for members to work on their own or with personal trainers.”

The classes are designed to be inclusive so members with varying levels of fitness can take part and feel the benefits. nsuring everyone feels encouraged and comfortable is part of Luke’s role.

He said: “It can seem a like a bit of madness when you’re taking the kettlebell class for the first time, for example – you’re just getting lots of stuff thrown at you.

“But there is a format to it. We start with the warm-up stuff ust to get you moving a little bit better, helping you get that little bit more range around your joints.

“Then we do the halo – moving the kettlebell round your head which is also warming up your shoulders, just getting your body ready.

“The chipper I did with you is a long list of exercises. It’s good for people taking the class because it allows them to get their heart rates up, but it also allows me to move around and assess where everyone’s at. ssentially, I show the class all the exercises and then I’m free to move about. With kettlebells, it’s a very coaching-oriented class.

“Most of the groups I teach are a broad range of people. Normally there would be five, six or seven beginners in a class and its structure allows me to spend time with them.

“The capacities are quite low compared to what we normally do at Third Space – perhaps 15 people compared to doing the 50-person stuff in the studio.

“After a few weeks you have your regulars so they don’t need as much guidance and that allows

“

Third Space is one of the first places to make an amazing crossfit facility that has that five-star, premium feel Luke Barnsley, Third Space

you to spend more time with the people who need it.

“Knowing the pair of you were attending, it was like: ‘How do I get over to those two so I can improve what they’re doing?’

“The rest may have needed a bit of motivating but less guidance, so that frees me up. verything’s scaleable.

“When you’re new you need the most help, but you also don’t want to feel like the attention is on you.

It’s a fine line to tread as an instructor so people don’t feel like you’re only stood next to them the whole time.

“It’s important to remember the first class you do is always the hardest. After that, attending is just going to be habit and it’s all travelling downhill from that point.”

In addition to Luke’s motivation, members can take advantage of the Myzone technology available at Third Space. Gym-goers can

Luke has developed a number of workout concepts for Third Space including Afterburner and Formula 3

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The Yard contains a wide range of five-star crossfit equipment choose to wear a heart rate monitor, attached to an adjustable strap around their chest, which connects to an app on their phone or specific screens around club. s they train their effort is displayed through a series of personalised, colour-coded tiles so they can keep track of their heart-rate. Blue means rest and recovery, green means warming up, yellow is OK and red means they’ve entered the optimum training zone.

“The technology we have is great for beginners,” said Luke.”It levels the playing field between advanced members and those starting out because it’s based on your maximum heart rate – how hard you work.

“Beginners’ can earn the same amount of y one ffort oints as regulars. You’re all sweating at the end. You buy the monitor from downstairs and then there’s an the app and the screen that can give you real-time feedback.”

Continued on Page 10

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Canary Wharf

continued from Page 9 For Luke, getting involved in the fitness industry brought together a passion for the gym and a lifelong love of learning. e said I studied philosophy at ancaster niversity – my dad went there, which is why I did, ust to shut him up. hen he passed away while I was there and I spent most of my time in the gym. It was the thing I did because I wanted to, rather than doing what everyone else had planned for me.

I got qualified as a trainer and I’ve been doing it for more than 10 years now. It’s great, I really like it and the learning process is never over. very day is a school day and you never get to a point where it becomes boring because you know it all. he industry is always developing. I love to learn – I’ve got 1 days worth of education booked this year. Because the industry is constantly moving – new ideas and science come to the fore – you have to keep moving too. nd then there’s the people. hey are lovely when they’re full of endorphins. It’s the exact opposite to the orthern line at rush hour. uke, who comes from a crossfit background, has also made extensive use of his creative energies while at hird pace.

I invented the fterburner, ormula , the and Yard , he said.

I’ve got a stable of about six class concepts at hird pace. hey often come about when things become popular again. achine rowing, for example, has seen a massive resurgence in popularity in the last few years. ollectively the industry forgets how ama ing a tool is and then we remember. It’s about being ahead of that curve – seeing how we can incorporate those things into a group environment. hat’s what started the discussion about ormula , which is one of our latest.

It’s studio based so the sound system is ama ing and I’m wearing a mic. here’s a bit of mobility and then the group splits into three. third of the group is on rowing machines, a third on kettlebells and a third on either bodyweight exercises or wall balls.

If it sounds challenging, it’s meant to and with supportive staff like uke on-hand, that’s how results are achieved. embership at hird pace starts at 1 per month. y one monitors are available to members for 9.

Go to thirdspace.london for more information or to arrange a tour of the club’s facilities

class act

what you can expect from a Yard Kettlebells class with Luke at Third Space

Luke demonstrates a move to of members during one of the classes he takes at Third Space

how the club’s facilities add to a quality class to deliver an unbeatable package on the Wharf

L

uke is right in his assessment.

The facilities at Third Space make all the difference. It might sound like a small thing but supplying plentiful ironing boards in the changing rooms is a simple bellwether for the club’s approach.

Attention to detail is paramount, be it the spotlessly clean and pristine training environment or simply considering exactly what men and women need after exercising to ease them into the working day.

And if that’s the ability to ensure one’s shirt is neatly pressed, then so be it – boards supplied, no hassle. It’s what sets it apart from other gyms and studios in the area.

A membership grants you access to impeccable facilities as well as the classes.

But how good are they? A mere beginner, I can only go on the experience I had attending Luke’s Yard Kettlebell class as a total novice.

Arriving slightly late, my companion and I grabbed our handled weights and found space at the back of class.

Held in The Yard, a recently opened, double-height temple to crossfit, the session began with some loosening up routines.

My inability to use a skipping rope, having not done so since primary school proved little handicap. There were plenty of moves

to cycle through that didn’t involve hitting oneself in the legs.

Soon it was on to some gentle kettlebell routines. A deep squat, followed by the halo – a slow circling of the head with the weight to get the joints moving. Glancing about, I was aware many of the other participants had pretty sizeable chunks of metal. But the atmosphere felt encouraging and supportive rather than fiercely competitive. The class was high quality.

Everybody’s focus was on Luke as he ran through a series of moves.

This established the pattern for the class as we all worked our way through swings and lunges.

As a beginner, despite the meagre weight I was working with, I didn’t manage to keep up. However, this

“

The atmosphere felt encouraging and supportive rather than fiercely competitive.

Everybody’s focus was on Luke Jon Massey, Wharf Life

was anything but disheartening.

With so many moves to work through and a roomful of people to learn from, it was easy to concentrate on simply doing what I was able and pushing myself to go as far as possible.

Luke was attentive without my companion or I feeling like we were under special scrutiny. Tips were dispensed and corrections were made where necessary. At other times we were left to our own devices, but never felt abandoned.

The mood was upbeat, slick and fast-paced, meaning the minutes flew by. The demands were not so complex that a beginner couldn’t follow them and softer alternatives were suggested where necessary for those new to the group.

And it worked. I left with heart rate high, sweaty of brow and light of brain following the final push.

Fortunately, the ample facilities of Third Space’s palatial changing rooms were on hand to allow for recovery.

With nowhere to rush off to, they provided a pleasant backdrop to the business of calming down and dressing for the day ahead.

Emerging, I felt refreshed and invigorated. So would I do it all again? Absolutely – when’s the next class?

Jon Massey

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

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virtual viewpoint

by Chris Ezekiel

by Rebecca Burns

136

Businesses are based at accelerator Plexal in Stratford

T Don’t get too bogged down in recording the now, just enjoy sharing the moments as they happen

T

ime travel has always been an exciting fantasy, and it’s been a great subject for many Hollywood blockbusters. Physics certainly doesn’t rule out the possibility of travelling back and forth in time.

Einstein’s theory of relativity illustrates that space and time are intertwined and that neither is constant.

There’s the classic twin thought experiment whereby one twin stays on Earth and the other travels on a rocket at close to the speed of light.

When the latter returns to Earth they find that their sibling has aged significantly more (note to my best pal Paul – that’s the reason I look so much younger than you, it’s all that travelling I do).

We don’t need to wait for time travel to become a reality though – our brains are time machines.

As humans, we are constantly thinking about the past and the future and this makes me wonder what Time is the most “now” is – what “this precious commodity very moment” actually means. and we need to ensure As soon as it happens it’s gone – relegated our thoughts about the to history. All we can past and future don’t do – and something we have done since cloud our minds humans wrote on the Chris Ezekiel, Creative Virtual walls of caves – is record that moment.

That recording is done on a much larger scale today, of course, more than ever before with people capturing so much of their lives on smartphones. Being able to consider the past and the future is a key attribute of what makes us intelligent and differentiates us from other forms of life.

However, as we contemplate the past and the future, it’s important that we don’t lose sight of the moment.

Time is the most precious commodity and we need to ensure our thoughts about the past and future don’t cloud our minds to the extent that we miss out on sharing and enjoying the “now” – for the fleeting time it exists.

“

Chris Ezekiel is founder and CEO of customer engagement solutions specialist Creative Virtual based at Cannon Workshops on West India Quay Go to creativevirtual.com or follow @creativevirtual and @chrisezekiel on Twitter

here’s a hidden micro city in east London.

Plexal in Stratford is a hive of activity – a community of people with a shared focus on innovation, social mobility and diversity.

It is located at Here East – the 1.2million sq ft complex occupying a chunk of the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park.

At its core the accelerator space is about change. From redefining the way many startups and scale-ups, as well as big corporations, are doing business, to providing a flexible workspace beyond the often isolated, self-contained spaces workers know but rarely love.

Within its walls is an innovation consultancy that unites ideas, people and technology with the oint ambition to figure out problems that matter to industry and society.

Opened in July 2017 by mayor Sadiq Khan, it occupies the buildings that once housed the press and broadcasting teams covering the 2012 Olympics. s well as desk and o ce space for rent, there’s a dedicated Makers’ Yard workshop for rapid prototyping complete with 3D printers and scanners, showers and lockers, indoor bike racks plus a free shuttle bus to Stratford International, bus and underground stations every five minutes.

An added bonus is that members get to swim in the London Aquatics Centre or channel their inner Sir Chris Hoy and cycle at the Lee Valley VeloPark.

Plexal is an all-on-one campus dedicated to supporting, inspiring and creating a movement where people collaborate to bring about change for the better. It’s designed to make this process more rapid.

At the helm is managing director, Andrew Roughan.

“Whatever industry a business operates in, all of them need to network,” said Andrew, a former COO of Here East and one of the original team behind the project to regenerate the Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park after the games had packed up and gone.

“Every business large or small needs to reach out to potential clients in order to grow and accelerate.

“By operating from a shared-office style space, it’s physically and financially easier for professionals to network and collaborate.”

More than 1,000 post-graduate students from both Loughborough London and University College London’s institute of robotics come and go from the campus alongside staff at fast-growth businesses including Matchesfashion.com and

core Plexal managing director Andrew Roughan is passionate about the power of networking. Below, office space at the accelerator, which is based at Here East

where change is at the

how Plexal helps companies connect by creating a community that collaborates

Sega’s Sports Interactive. BT Sport and Ford’s mobility team, which is looking at the future of mobility and connected transportation, work side-by-side, with some of the country’s most promising startups.

“We have big businesses and exciting new startups – people who had an idea last week and are now getting it off the ground, said Andrew, a former general manager at Cable And Wireless.

“You have academics,

researchers, universities and other big businesses within striking distance of each other. There’s no boundary between them.”

And in a move he describes as bold, there is no third party branding – Plexal does it all.

A team of on-site experts selected for their experience in advising startups on branding, insurance, banking, legal issues and recruitment are on hand alongside an innovation team offering workshops and accelerator programmes.

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Technology

The centre is also the base for the ondon ce or apid Cybersecurity Advancement, a UK government-backed cybersecurity programme that runs six-month programmes for the country’s top cybersecurity innovators.

Mobility is also a key focus. One current pro ect sees lexal working closely with to find new tech solutions to minimise the impact of roadworks.

But at its heart – and clearly one of ndrew’s passions – is social inclusion. he ardiff niversity law graduate is driven to seek out innovators from diverse and under-represented backgrounds.

In terms of demographics, 8.8 of the 136 businesses that call lexal home are female-founded and 20 out of the 136 businesses were created by people from ethnic minority backgrounds.

It runs a programme called lexiglass – an accelerator programme championing women-led startups by offering mentoring and advice to female entrepreneurs specifically. nd at the end of 2018, in partnership with charity y ife y ay, it helped launch the ocial Inclusion Unit (SIU) to advise the Government and businesses on delivering socially inclusive services and products. ne aim is to see how the technology sector can deliver greater social inclusion through growth and product creation. he simple fact is the tech sector lacks diversity, which is a problem we need to work together to tackle, not least because numerous studies show that more diverse teams increase productivity and profit, said ndrew.

If tech companies can draw on a deeper pool of experience, the revolutionary ideas and products that come out of them will be better.

“Social inclusion is also at the heart of fulfilling the promise and the legacy of social regeneration in this part of the city promised by the Games. artnering with the I is a natural next step, following lexiglass. e are committed to cultivating a more diverse tech industry from the ground up so that social inclusion, mobility and

“

Every business, large or small, needs to reach out to potential clients in order to grow and accelerate Andrew Roughan, Plexal

diversity become an integral part of who they are and what they do. he I is keen to sign up innovators from under-represented groups such as the physically disabled, those with non-physical disabilities such as autism, first generation immigrants and those from low socio economic backgrounds. particular focus is those with sight and hearing di culties. espite overseeing the 8,000sq ft complex and its 800 members, ndrew knows individuals rather than ust the companies he works with. ove anguage, for example, is a small company with a workforce made up of creative and like-minded deaf and hearing people, offering sign language interpretation and deaf awareness training.

It’s run by aomi Bottrill and e ene oldeyesus, an thiopian refugee who arrived in the with limited written nglish and American sign language. e is a first generation immigrant and he explained to me that 180,000 people use sign language as their primary language and yet there are only 980 trained interpreters, said ndrew.

It’s obvious we need to do something. or example, someone who is deaf and going for an interview, what tech support is out there for them? e need to delve into this and overcome it.

By creating a movement where there is collaboration with big business, we can innovate and change policy and products.

Looking to the future there are plans to launch an inclusive design incubator called pen oor – a collaboration between the I and My Life My Say. Its aim is to find technological solutions to problems that make it harder for under-represented groups to participate in society, with up to 12 founders being chosen to oin a four-month programme. he successful candidates will benefit from free workspace, mentoring and a tailored programme to support goals such as securing funding or developing new technology. ndrew is hoping to raise between 2 0,000 and 1million from corporate backers and is already in talks with Barclays and Microsoft.

By launching pen oor, we intend to help scale the impact of innovation, build on what works and address the gaps, said the dad of two, who commutes daily from eading.

But it isn’t all work at lexal.

There are a host of events in the 200-seater auditorium, which is also available for hire. ne date for the diary for lexal members is a screening of Game Of Thrones.

hat ndrew describes is a community made up of people from all over the world and from different backgrounds – a group coming together to use technology to solve some of society’s biggest challenges.

“I feel lucky to have been in the right place to oin ere ast, and to get the opportunity to lead lexal and continue on this exciting ourney, he said.

Go to plexal.com for more information about the accelerator space

You can come along, watch, have a glass of wine and meet new people, said ndrew.

It’s networking without the motive – nobody really knows the networking is actually happening at all. obody is trying to sell anything, it’s breaking down barriers between big businesses, that small companies and startups think are beyond their reach. hey aren’t. hey are here and they can help one another.

when did you last take the team out for a curry?

discover real indian food book online at limerestaurant.co.uk One Manilla Street Regatta Point, Isle Of Dogs London, E14 8JZ

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020 7515 4500

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14

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

by James Drury

3

Number of countries Jeroen didn’t visit during his epic Streets Of The World project

S

tanding on the streets of Kabul with six special forces guards for protection, photographer Jeroen wolfs had five minutes to get the perfect shot before being forced to leap back into a waiting armoured car.

Their presence was attracting attention. treet vendors were staring at him with a mixture of hostility and curiosity when suddenly a woman in a billowing blue burqa hurries past. lick.

The resulting photo is packed with the beautiful mundanity of everyday life in a part of the world we associate with war and tragedy.

Looking around, we can see two guys selling fruit from a wheelbarrow – another, toilet paper.

These are the scenes that play out when the news crews have gone home – the stuff of life that connects us all, wherever we are from.

Photojournalist Jeroen spent seven years documenting this humanity, photographing street life in 195 capital cities (that’s every country except quatorial uinea, Yemen and ibya . is images are now on display in an outdoor exhibition around anary harf, called Streets Of The World.

The idea for the project literally hit him in the face. n his way home from a night out, he stumbled on a kerb and landed flat on his face.

“I lay there for a while, looking at the street up-close and I started to think about all the people that had walked on this spot that day,” he said.

“I thought about what they were doing, what their lives looked like, and I realised it doesn’t matter if you’ve had a bad day or a good day, you still have to share these areas with everyone else and interact with one another.

“I thought it would be cool to photograph street life around the world. fter visiting 10 capitals to prove his concept, eroen realised a theme was coming through – his desire to show the positive side of life.

He’d worked on Dutch national newspaper Volkskrant, travelling the globe for political and social stories, so he knew the cliché that bad news sells. But it wasn’t the full picture.

You mostly see only one side of a story in the news, he said. It’s crucial photojournalists report on all the wrongs and I have huge respect for my colleagues, but it gives people a really nasty idea of what’s happening. here’s no balance.

“That’s what I wanted to do with

why Jeroen Swolfs spent seven years capturing images from 195 capital cities across the world

world training a lens on the

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

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

15

Canary Wharf

Jeroen’s aim was to document life around the globe beyond images in the news this pro ect. I saw the bad stuff, but I also found amazing stories.”

The next three years were spent trying to raise enough money to complete the project. That in itself was an adventure, involving repeated rejections. I approached so many people, and they all said no, he said. veryone thought I was raising money to go on a massive holiday.”

In the end, a utch entrepreneur saw the cultural value of the work and backed the pro ect, meaning Jeroen spent the next seven years on the road, returning home to the Netherlands only for Christmas or to get new visas.

Streets of the World is a fascinating glimpse into how people live around the globe, from ceania to urope, frica to sia.

Walking among the huge photographs, I saw picturesque island nations, elegant architecture, exotic fruits. It’s a chance to take another look at the places you thought you knew from the news. new perspectives In the Iraqi capital, Baghdad, Jeroen sought out Mutanabbi treet, a road that’s been packed with booksellers for over 1,000 years. In 200 a car bomb was detonated opposite a famous tea shop, killing the owner’s four sons and his grandson and wrecking the street. But the road was rebuilt by the community and that was the positive story Jeroen wanted to tell. o me, it was like the books beat the bomb, he said. I knew I had to photograph it.”

Coming towards the end of his long pro ect, the experience was to prove one of the defining moments.

I chatted for hours with the tea shop owner, who told me about their life during the war and the death of his sons, eroen added. hen he asked me why I was there. I explained I wanted to photograph positivity. o my surprise he reacted happily and told me: ‘I’m pleased you chose our street to photograph, to show what we’re capable

“

It’s crucial that photojournalists report on the wrongs but it gives people a really nasty idea of what’s happening. There’s no balance Jeroen Swolfs, Streets Of The World

of and to show the other side of the Iraqi people, to show my city to the world’. That was very emotional for me. If, after losing his family and seeing such devastation, he could see this was a good idea, that was enough for me. It hammered home the value of this project.”

In ogadishu, omalia, he photographed a group playing football on the beach. In the background, the buildings are ruined, but the people playing are still having a good time. It’s the strength of the human spirit in the face of adversity. very place I visited there was bombed after I left, said eroen. I was lucky to find a window right after an attack when the streets were quieter.

You can hear the stories of how Jeroen got his photos on a video walk, available for download using a QR code on the billboards displaying the images, or via streetsoftheworld.com for £3.99.

Jeroen has also written a book recounting his adventures. getting personal Jeroen used a 16mm lens for all the pictures, meaning he had to get physically very close to people to photograph them. This elicited a wide variety of reactions. Mostly they were positive, but he said he learned a valuable lesson early on.

I realised that being successful was about extending a hand and smiling, he said. In wanda, I was photographing some guys who came up to me and were being a bit aggressive. I realised it was because my body language had been quite macho and defensive. I saw myself how they must have seen me. So I gave one of the guys a huge smile, and he smiled back right away. e got on well and spent the afternoon together and became good friends. fter that experience, I smiled at everyone.”

It wasn’t all plain sailing, and eroen admits he got his ass kicked a few times, including getting punched in the face in Sudan.

I didn’t realise it, but I had been taking a photo of black market trading, and they took exception to me photographing them, he said.

But apart from that, I never got robbed or anything. People welcomed me in very friendly ways.”

His project is not about capital cities or countries, but rather an attempt to find common themes across the globe.

It’s impossible to depict a nation in one photo, said eroen.

I picked these cities because they were a way of photographing humanity. I was looking for friendship, love and perseverance, not nationality.”

Continued on Page 16

Jeroen’s image of Kabul was taken in a five-minute window before he had to leap back into the armoured car he was travelling in as his presence started to attract unwanted attention. A video walk tells the stories behind his photographs

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16

Wharf Life Apr 25-May 9, 2019 wharf-life.com

Canary Wharf

from Page 15 capital capture The shot of London was taken at the entrance to Oxford Circus station not long after the July 2005 bombings.

Despite the attacks, people were still taking the Tube, which Jeroen said showed how Londoners just got on with life, with a “typical British attitude”.

All the images are candid, with no interference or direction and all were taken using the same equipment, from the same perspective, with the horizon in the same place.

This gives them a certain continuity and puts the viewer in the photographer’s shoes as they explore the exhibition.

“Sometimes I waited in 40ºC heat for the perfect shot,” he said.

Travelling the world and seeing so much of humanity is something very few people get to do (although many dream of it).

Would he ever do it again?

“No,” said Jeroen. “I spent seven years by myself – and that’s quite lonely. I would never travel for that long again.

“But it was a dream come true to do it, and I’m so glad I did. I’m still in touch with some of the people I photographed.” lessons learned What did it teach him about us as a species, and the planet we live on?

“This experience didn’t make me a philosopher,” he said. “I already had an opinion, and this experience has only made it stronger – humanity is incredible. e can be selfish and it’s hard to give up certain things we’ve become accustomed to. But when things get really hard, we’re capable of doing amazing things.

“However, this world is in danger. The only way we can solve these problems is to come together.

“We have to accept it’s a shared problem – what happens in one country affects another.

“Having met all these people, I’m convinced that to be able to fix this we need to feel connected and share our togetherness. e’re not as different as people like to believe we are, or people want us to feel we are for their own political gains.

“That’s what I want to convey with this project; I want to create a sense of unity.”

Streets Of The World is on display across Canary Wharf until May 24 and is free to visit.

A free map is available for download for those who don’t fancy the video walk.

Jeroen’s Streets Of The World book is out now, priced €39.99 via his website.

Go to canarywharf.com for more information about the exhibition or to download the free map

Above, Jeroen’s images are displayed across the Canary Wharf estate. A free map can be downloaded to help Wharfers find their way around the 195 images Below, Jeroen’s work includes an image of London taken outside Oxford Circus Tube station a few days after the 2005 terrorist bombings

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

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

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Advertising Directory - Acknowledgements

find our advertisers’ messages here Chase Evans print Pages 1, 22, 23 online chaseevans.co.uk

Landlord Investment Show print Page 26 online landlordinvestmentshow.co.uk

Third Space print Pages 2, 3 online thirdspace.london

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Vantage Properties And Management print Page 28 online vantage-uk.com

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Sourthern Homes print Page 24 online shosales.co.uk

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Telford Homes print Page 25 online telfordhomes.london

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 Merrit, 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

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Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

bend

75

Minutes a taster session lasts at Beth Redfern Pilates in Limehouse

Beth offers both reformer and mat-based Pilates at her studio

and stretch

how Beth Redfern uses Pilates to take away the pain at her private studio in Limehouse

by Jon Massey

T

his is a big year for Beth Redfern. When we meet she has just resigned from the big-four accountancy firm where she works part-time in corporate intelligence. It’s not that she doesn’t enjoy her job there, but there’s something else that’s more important – nurturing her growing business as a Pilates instructor based in Limehouse.

“I have given in my notice at work, because I realise that I’m really busy in the studio,” she said. “I’m currently working six days a week and I don’t think that is sustainable, long-term.

“I do three days at work and three days in the studio. I decided to hand in my notice because I knew I couldn’t keep that up forever. Something had to give.

“I love my job and the company I work for – they’ve been fantastic – but Pilates is my passion.”

With a history of back problems and pain dating back to her teens, Beth’s interest in Pilates stems from her personal use of its techniques to alleviate her symptoms. he went to her first classes in 1999 before going on to train as an instructor of the mat-based form in 2005, so she could gain a better understanding of the exercises rather than teach.

Around this time she also first encountered reformer machines, eventually acquiring one and going on to train as a comprehensive Pilates instructor with Balanced Body.

“Doing Pilates had been so life-changing for me,” said Beth.

“The back pain I used to suffer was an awful experience.

“Every time my back went I would be very anxious because I knew I would be Beth is constantly in for a few days flat on my back, unable to on hand to guide move. her clients

“It was quite disabling. Whenever I felt it coming on, I would go into panic mode and that would make the whole thing even worse. What I found when I started doing Pilates was that it allowed me to understand my body more and gave me tools to be able to look after myself better. hen I felt my back starting to flare up I just knew what to do to help myself – so I didn’t panic and I was able to relax more. It made the whole experience not only physically less harrowing for me, but mentally less stressful too because, when I was younger, I used to feel that my back kind of ruled my life. Doing Pilates felt like I was taking back control, which was really amazing.

“Typically I work with women aged 25-55 who have long-term back pain, which has an impact on what they can do with their lives and how they feel, in order to help them get back on their feet again and get out of pain.

“However, Pilates is for absolutely anybody, whether they’re dealing with injury, or perhaps just older and want to keep themselves as active as possible. It’s also used by elite athletes. It’s fantastic for fitness.

“I’ve just been working with a client who spent their first 12 sessions working more on getting his body moving correctly. He came with pain, but he’s now out of pain.

“Because that’s no longer a factor, we’re upping the ante and starting to do more towards his fitness and I’m really starting to push him.

“I know that some of my clients have sessions with me because they know I understand how they feel. With back pain, it’s not just the physical discomfort, but also the emotional and mental impact of it. Some really appreciate the fact that I’ve been through it myself and that I understand how they feel and the effect it can have on their life.” hile every client is different, Beth said most would notice a difference after eight sessions. But it’s not just time with Beth that increases the rate of e cacy.

“I work with people on

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

programmes and I give people homework as well,” she said.

“After sessions on the equipment, I give people exercises to do and those will be picked for whatever is going on with their body – whatever is appropriate for the type of pain they are experiencing or the goal they’re trying to achieve.

“I have got some clients with whom I’ve worked long-term for a good couple

of years. Other people come looking for something very specific and they work with me for a period of time. In an ideal world Pilates is something you would do on an ongoing basis.

“Just being able to help other people like me is incredibly rewarding – a really lovely thing to be able to do.

“It’s amazing to realise this is my professional life now.

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

43

Wapping - Limehouse

“

The back pain I used to suffer was an awful experience.

Just being able to help other people like me is incredibly rewarding – a really lovely thing to be able to do.

taster test

what you can expect from a duet taster session with Beth

14 days later

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

Troxy Limehouse

Beth Redfern, Comprehensive Pilates Instructor

“Some of my clients are exactly those people who are working at desks all day and are not taking enough breaks.”

Beth offers mat exercises in her studio for those who prefer them and is also a trained specialist in pre and postnatal Pilates.

It’s the reformers and other equipment that dominate her studio, however, backed up by shelves filled with aids for balancing and adapting the machines.

“The equipment comes from Josef Pilates himself,” she said. “He was a German national – a gymnast and body builder – who was in Britain during the First World War and was interned by the authorities.

“He worked with people in the camp, doing exercises – the individuals who were working with him weren’t getting sick, whereas many other inmates were.

“So he developed this exercise regime and it was taking quite a physical toll on his own body, so he started developing the equipment by putting springs on beds.

“The idea behind most of the various pieces of equipment is that there are springs and pulleys that offer different degrees of resistance and they can either support the body or they can challenge it, depending on how you use them.

“There are so many amazing exercises.

You can do the same one on different bits of equipment and you get a really different experience – it can be challenging or easier depending on what you’re using.

“You might start on one bit of equipment, and once you’ve got stronger or better at it, then you can move on to the next bit.

“I actually have a friend who has bought a reformer for her home, and that’s how I started with it.

“I went to reformer classes and I thought: ‘I really love this and I want to be able to this several times a week’, so I bought one.

“For my own body I found that when using the equipment, even if I was having a bad flare up with my back, there was always something I could do that would leave me feeling better than when I started the class – it was always the support of the reformer.

“If you’re someone who’s never done Pilates I’d just say: ‘Do it – come to a taster session,’.

Beth offers free individual and duet taster sessions at her studio. The price of further sessions is discussed following these and a number of packages are available for those looking to purchase multiple sessions.

Go to bethredfernpilates.co.uk for more information or to book a free taster session

GIG | Sel Billed as “chart-topping Baltic bangers” this group hails from Lithuania, delivering blistering rap vocals with r’n’b beats in the back. Sold.

Jun 1, 7pm, from £38.50, troxy.co.uk where?

Wilton’s Music Hall Wapping Jon tries a pulley exercise with his legs during the session. The choice of festive socks made little difference to his performance To enter Beth’s quiet, private studio is to relax. Gentle ripples of music lend it the flavour of a luxurious treatment room despite the mirrors that deliver a curve of infinite images.

This is not the brutal pumping of the gym floor. Instead, initially, our duet session has something of the medical consultation about it. Forms are filled out, ailments discussed.

Beth’s manner is studious.

We’re being sized up.

Designed to give a taste of what a programme of sessions might deliver, we’re immediately started on two reformers, working our legs against the resistance of (probably) the lightest springs available.

The machines may resemble refined medieval torture devices, but they’re astonishingly comfortable and support all the right bits in the right places.

I’d let the calm atmosphere and the smooth dunes of music fool me, though.

A few reps in and the unusual, targeted movements were stretching my muscles.

However, I felt at peace even when working hard. The cage of pulleys, light wood and firm upholstery felt safe.

Beth encouraged us to cycle gently through the prescribed movements. This was no race, just exercises designed to address the issues we’d come in with. The taster progressed through seated arm exercises, then more on the legs.

Beth made her way back and forth between me and my companion, correcting form, offering words of encouragement and explaining where the stretches should be felt.

She straightened and manoeuvred us where necessary, constantly attentive to our efforts. The 75 minutes sped by.

Although clearly working some neglected areas quite hard, I left feeling loose and relaxed. It’s clear why some use Pilates for stress relief.

GIG | Songs From The Sea The Salts present a range of maritime songs both original and well known for an aural taste of the ocean. Expect to Blow The Man Down. Wahey.

May 29, 7.45pm, from £10, wiltons.org.uk where?

Wilton’s Music Hall Wapping

STAGE | OneTrackMinds A selection of writers, thinkers and musicians present thought-provoking stories about songs that changed their lives. Different people every night.

May 28, 31, Jun 1 Jul 12, 7.30pm, from £5, wiltons.org.uk

to do before May 23

See Antic Follies take over Jamboree in Limehouse from 7pm on May 22 for an evening of cabaret, burlesque and diabolical entertainment. Tickets for non-members at the Three Colt Street Venue are £5 jamboreevenue.co.uk Beth demonstrates an exercise on the Cadillac

spot check worth a visit Parched in St Katherine Docks? Try cafe White Mulberries to refresh whitemulberries.com want more? @wharflifelive

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Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

riverside recipes

by Matt Colk

grant will see heritage preserved at Mudchute Park And Farm with rare breeds and crafts given a boost

by Florence Derrick

Matt’s pan-fried gnocchi with minted peas, burnt shallots and wild garlic salad

G

nocchi is a classic Italian dish and for this recipe we are going to make it the way they do in the north of the country – using egg, flour and potato – nice and simple for a beautiful summer recipe.

Ingredients (serves 4) 1kg potato 150g plain flour 50ml egg yolk 8g salt 100g grated parmesan Some extra flour for rolling out 100g unsalted butter For the salad 140g peas

20g chopped chilli 10g wild garlic leaves (with flowers if possible) 10g chopped mint 100ml veg stock 200g ricotta 3g ground pepper For the burnt shallots 10ml veg oil 2 long banana shallots 4g salt and pepper

Method For the gnocchi, cook the potatoes with the skin on in an oven at 180ºC for an hour until very soft.

Scoop out the potato into a bowl – you should get around 600g and either discard the skins or fill to turn into snacks.

Once cooled, sieve the flour over the potato, add the grated cheese, seasoning and egg yolk and bring the mix together using a fork.

Then flour your hands and a clean work surface and gently knead the dough until soft. Cut it into six equal pieces and roll into sausage shapes about the same diameter as a pound coin. Slice into pieces around 2cm long and squeeze in the middle to form little pillow shapes. Cover and chill.

Boil a pan of lightly salted water and add the fresh gnocchi. Remove them when they start to float and leave to one side to cool naturally.

To cook the shallots, oil a non-stick pan and cut them length-ways, leaving the skin on. Put them face down in the pan. Cook in a hot oven for 10-15 minutes until charred and soft.

Meanwhile take two separate pans. In the first add a drop of vegetable oil then start to cook the chilli and wild garlic. Add the ricotta and vegetable stock and a drop of water, if needed. Then add the peas, chopped mint and pepper.

In the other pan heat the butter until foaming and add the gnocchi – cook till golden.

This can be done in batches to avoid over-filling the pan. You can finish them with a squeeze of lemon juice and some chopped chives if desired.

Then put elements of the dish together in a bowl. And garnish with a drop of olive oil and wild garlic leaves. You can add basil leaves too if you like.

Matt Colk is head chef at The Gun in Coldharbour, Blackwall. Owned and operated by Fuller’s it offers dining, drinking and relaxation by the Thames Go to thegundocklands.com or follow the @thegundocklands on Instagram and Twitter

M

udchute Park And Farm has been preserving its corner of the Isle of Dogs since it was set up in 1977, when farm animals, horses and plants were introduced to develop the area as an urban farm. Since then, its surroundings have changed beyond recognition with the residential towers of the Isle Of Dogs and Canary Wharf shooting up to dominate the skyline.

Recently, the Mudchute Association received a National Lottery Heritage Fund grant of £51,300 for a new rare breeds and rural crafts heritage project.

“We’re a visitor attraction with conservation and education in mind,” said farm manager Tom Davis.

“We’re helping to conserve the native rare breeds but combining that with teaching visitors to the farm about traditional crafts like spinning, weaving and dry stone walling.

“That’s because crafts are as important as the native rare breeds, and they’re dying arts.”

Mudchute isn’t just rare because of the unusual animals it provides a home for.

“We’re London’s only rare breed conservation centre and Tower Hamlets is the only borough in London that’s got more than one city farm in it,” said Tom. “We’ve got three. City farms were set up by local people for local people but now we reach a pan-London audience.”

So far, the grant money has gone towards appointing a project coordinator, to engage with rural craftsmen and women who will provide demonstrations and workshops on an ongoing basis.

“We had spinning and weaving

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

past remembrance of things

demonstrations every day in the Easter holidays,” said Tom. “We’re holding a free-entry agricultural show on June 29 and 30, and we’re hoping to get blacksmiths and wood turners for that.

“It’ll be fantastic to see all these rural crafts, side by side and hand in hand with the farm animals. It’ll be that grant application condensed into one place.”

It’s all paying into Tom’s longterm vision – to educate visitors to Mudchute Farm about agricultural methods, and the importance of rare breed farm animals to Britain’s heritage.

“City farms like ours bridge the gap between city people and the countryside,” he said. “It’s all about education. Nothing is more pleasing than seeing local school children interacting with the animals.

“All I want to do is to teach people about high-welfare, ethical farming.

We teach children how you get several things from different animals – from sheep, for example, we get milk, wool and meat.

“Unfortunately, children associate milk with a carton in the supermarket,

A wide range of animals are kept at the farm including many rare breeds of sheep, pigs and goats

not with a cow. One child thought that chocolate milkshake came out of brown cows.

“With rare breeds, you’re able to teach a whole lesson to children. They can do geography, by learning about the location of where the animals came from.

“They can do numeracy too – has that breed of animal increased or decreased in number? Literacy, history, you can fit it all into the curriculum.

“It’s important to protect our heritage because farming has sculpted some of the most iconic landscapes in this country,” said Tom. “The Fells, the Yorkshire Dales, the Peak District – all these places were carved from the hooves and teeth of native rare breeds over hundreds of years. If farming was to stop, they would disappear.

“Farm animals are as man-made as the clothes that we wear. The Oxford Down sheep does not roam the Oxfordshire Downs, it was created on a farm in Oxfordshire. So when people say you should let them go into the wild – there is no wild for farm animals.

“Our native breeds don’t have the same protection as buildings, monuments, or even the humble pork pie, which has protected status. I think that’s crazy.

“Some of them are rarer than the Giant Panda, but people think it doesn’t matter because it’s just a cow, a chicken or a sheep. It does matter.

“Heavy horses were the tractors of their time but now they’re in dire straits. And if we lose them we lose one of the biggest parts of our identity in the UK. “The UK has 68 native breeds of sheep – that’s more indigenous sheep breeds than any other country in the

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Isle Of Dogs - Poplar - Blackwall | presented in association with mortgage specialist Bennison Brown

“

The rural crafts, rare breeds, ancient farming methods – they all die out.

You can’t bring them back once they’re gone

14 days later

to do before May 23

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

The Space Isle Of Dogs

Tom Davis, Mudchute Park And Farm

Above, sheep graze in the shadow of progress Below, farm manager Tom Davis says he wants people to eat less meat of a higher quality

entire world. ach of them fits the perfect little microclimate where they came from, they fit those habitats, ecosystems and agricultural environments like a glove. If you lose them, you lose the productivity and history of that particular area. he rural crafts, rare breeds, ancient farming methods – they all die out. It’s not like urassic ark, I’m not sat here with a mosquito and a bit of amber on a cane and a big grey beard. You can’t bring them back once they’re gone. or om, education about farming today and its connection to the ’s heritage and landscape can also help people make better food choices.

In this current climate, livestock farming is being pushed more and more, he said. eople need to become more aware of how hard farmers work. nce in your life you’ll need a lawyer, a policeman and a doctor, but every day, three times a day, no matter your gastronomic persuasion, you need a farmer. nd people should never complain about farming while they’ve got a belly full of food.

I want people to eat less meat of a higher quality – meat that’s got traceability and a story. y nan, growing up, would eat meat once a week on a unday. It would be foolish of me to think that everyone is able to buy free range meat. But it’s having that knowledge and making an informed decision. he animals at udchute are reared extensively rather than intensively. hey are allowed to live out a longer life, they’re outside. ome pigs can have three litters a year but ours only have one. lso, it’s local.

You might pay 20 or more for a leg of ew ealand lamb that’s done 20,000 food miles. e supply a butcher called eckstall nd mith, in adywell in ewisham.

It’s more sustainable.

If you don’t respect food, you’ll treat it as a throwaway commodity, which it isn’t.

You need to be grateful for every mouthful of food that you have.

Go to mudchute.org for more information

STAGE | Who I Could’ve Been This modern day story of love, loss and change is “for anybody who ever faced regret”. Tori Allen-Martin’s piece finds the glass half full.

Jun 4-8, times vary, £12.50, space.org.uk where?

Poplar Union Poplar

Thread your needle and get sewing at Craft Central’s Community Stitch Project - Supper Cloth. The free, drop in sessions, which run from May 9-12, 10am-5pm, will see a communal supper cloth created craftcentral.org.uk

spot check worth a visit STAGE | F**d Nope there aren’t enough stars for that to be a rude word; made you look. Worst Absurd Theatre delivers a satire on food, consumption and kale.

May 30, 7.30pm, £9, poplarunion.com

Check out Yokoso for Korean and Japanese fare off Crews Street yokoso-uk.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

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Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

why The Full Nelson has got a grip on the future of Deptford with its luxurious, cruelty-free food

The bar and restaurant is located in Deptford Broadway

by Jon Massey

A

s I prepare to consume a burger known as the Sith – squashed on a narrow shelf down one side of The Full Nelson – the familiar strains of Blue Öyster Cult’s (Don’t Fear) The Reaper rise jauntily from the bar’s sound system.

Filled with condiments such as Deptford Death Sauce, Siracha mayo and jalapenos, I’m scared that the music’s timely arrival will be all too apposite as I bite down on the bun.

But the reaper’s scythe stays sheathed. The dish is spicy but not life-threatening, delicious not deadly.

It’s also completely devoid of meat. For The Full Nelson, located in Deptford Broadway, serves only “veggie/vegan junk food”. There’s a completely animal-free alternative for everything on its menu.

Had I not known, neither my carnivore’s incisors, nor the other sensors in my mouth would have detected the substitution at the heart of the Sith.

Whatever the Nelson is using as its beef is so convincing that even days later I have trouble accepting no animals were harmed during the making of my burger.

What is clear, however, is the charm the place exudes. Narrow enough that it might have better been named The Half Nelson, it’s abuzz when my companion and I visit on a Saturday evening. re 0-somethings flock for the craft beer and, presumably, the darker fuzz coming over the airwaves. This is punctuated by ed ep to keep things su ciently light and turn the heads of the more mature visitors.

Unless you’re lucky enough to grab a side booth, this is not a bar for those overly bothered about the proximity of others who quaff their craft beverages and bite mightily into burgers mere inches away.

Those serving the food do a remarkable job of running the gauntlet up and down the bar, wrestling laden trays past the flailing arms and legs of drinkers and diners caught up in their enthusiasms.

The Nelson’s menus feature a gentleman bearing a striking

junk shop vegetarian

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Rotherhithe - Bermondsey - Deptford

resemblance to Conan The Barbarian and a female companion engaged variously in displaying their hard-won treasure (burgers and fries) and celebrating the arrival of their drinks with a passionate embrace.

While there’s a wryness in the writing, it stops well short of irritant, simply adding to the atmosphere in a bar where it’s easy to imagine every chip on the paintwork has a lengthy story to tell.

It boasts a fine range of beers, but it’s the cocktails that dominate our thoughts, perhaps because we’re sat less than a foot from the list on the wall.

Very reasonably priced – even without the special offers on Wednesdays and Sundays – the mixed drinks are a deftly twisted collection of classics.

So alongside the obligatory Espresso Martini and Aperol Spritz, there’s a Smoked Old Fashioned and even an Aviation.

While the latter is more ultraviolence than pretty violets, it’s still drinkable and the Old Fashioned tastes like something Tom Waits probably imbibed to add gravel to his voice. In other words, it’s just as it should be.

The service is surprisingly swift – a testament to the bar staff given the density of humans present – and our food arrives after an acceptable pause having made passage through the melee of the crowd.

Both my Sith and the Fonz of my companion are fine performers, ably assisted by the crisp presence of my rosemary and paprika-seasoned standard fries and her “posh” Penthouse chips.

The latter come liberally sprinkled with blue cheese dressing, tru e oil and armesan and probably constitute a meal in themselves calorie-wise.

While the Nelson may not be comfortable enough to sustain an entire evening, it is nevertheless an excellent spot for a few drinks and some important fuel ahead of further exploration.

Nobody is likely to accuse its food or drink of being especially healthy, but they are at least

“

While the Nelson may not be comfortable enough to sustain an entire evening, it is nevertheless an excellent spot Jon Massey, Wharf Life

Conan, beer in hand, congratulates a drinker on her wine selection

14 days later

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

Canada Water Theatre Canada Water

STAGE | The Parakeet Experience A genre-crossing feast for the eyes, ears and heart, this features punk poetry, sparkly-sharp fashion, wild dance moves and storytelling, apparently.

May 24, 7.30pm, £14, thealbany.org.uk where?

The Albany Deptford

STAGE | Identity - A Work In Progress International ensemble Seemia, fuse physical theatre, folk music and storytelling in this exploration of gender politics. It’s a comedy.

May 24, 4pm, pay-as-you-feel, thealbany.org.uk where?

Sands Films Studios Rotherhithe

The Dark Side is more pleasant than expected, at least if the taste of The Full Nelson’s Sith burger, above, is anything to go by

Flying high: the Aviation at The Full Nelson

cruelty-free and plentiful for the prices charged.

And, as Deptford continues to bloom, there are plenty of places within easy walking distance to continue the evening’s festivities.

As the waves of redevelopment and gentrification break, it’s no surprise this corner of south-east London is beginning to boom with restaurants and bars attracting sizeable crowds.

It’s also refreshing to see most of these are of an independent bent, allowing for the quirks and personality that make venues such as the Nelson vital constituents of the emerging town’s backbone.

Venues like this shape an area’s character and stop the inevitable spread of dull chains. Here’s to more of them.

Cocktails at The Full Nelson typically cost £7.50 while burgers are around the £8 mark. Fries are extra and cost between £3 and £4.50.

Go to thefullnelsondeptford.co.uk

GIG | Desde El Silencio Taking flamenco as a starting point, La Típica explore intimacy, loneliness, the parting of ways, joy and transformations on the Sands stage.

Jun 5, 7.45pm, £14, tunedin.london

coming up

See Ang Lee’s Eat Drink Man Woman – the tale of a Taiwanese family dealing with the death of a wife and mother and coming together over food at Deptford Cinema on May 17 at 7pm. Tickets cost £6 deptfordcinema.org

spot check worth a visit Find beer, hot sauce, vinyl at Hop Burns And Black in Deptford under an arch hopburnsblack.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

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14 days later

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

The O2 Arena Peninsula

how Archery Fit offers an opportunity to take aim at stress while keeping their fitness on point

6

Lessons in Archery Fit’s beginners course at its Greenwich range

by Jon Massey

GIG | Mark Knopfler And Band The former Dire Straits frontman brings his formidable solo and group back catalogue to Greenwich and Sultans Of Swing, probably.

May 28, 6.30pm, from £58.75, theo2.co.uk where?

Greenwich Theatre Greenwich

STAGE | A Womb Of One’s Own Wonderbox present Claire Rammelkamp’s dark coming of age comedy as Babygirl navigates sexuality, abortion and university.

May 29, 7.30pm, from £13, greenwichtheatre.org.uk where?

Cutty Sark Greenwich

IMBIBE | Gin Tasting Taste gin beneath the hull of the Cutty Sark in the Sammy Ofer Gallery. Guests will explore six expressions of the spirit and leave in high spirits.

Jun 4, 7.15pm, £40, rmg.co.uk/cutty-sark

to do in the coming days

Rita Ora brings her supporting tour for latest album Phoenix to The O2. Having sold 7million singles and had 13 top 10 hits, the pop heavyweight is riding at the top of her game. Tickets start at £42.75, doors 6.30pm theo2.co.uk

spot check one to try Vast and sprawling, The Gipsy Moth is peak pub in the middle of the town thegipsymothgreenwich.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

F

ormer Russian national champion archer Kate Godkin couldn’t find a club to shoot at after she and her husband oman moved to London. So the couple did what any sensible entrepreneurial partnership would do in the circumstances – they set up their own. rchery it, located ust off reenwich High Road, opened its doors in 2015 on the lower ground floor of a residential development.

Initially aimed sorry at proficient archers, it has since switched target (sorry again to a broader market catering to a full range the final penny in the pun ar of those looking to shoot regularly, compete, loose for leisure and relaxation or who are simply complete beginners and fancy a go with a bow.

It’s been four years since we opened – we ust had our fourth birthday, said oman, who has a background in banking. Basically there were two reasons behind starting the club – the first was that we came to the from ussia as entrepreneurs, so we were planning to start a business in any case and we were looking for opportunities.

“The second was that Kate, who has been an archer for more than 18 years now, was looking for a club to oin when we came here and she couldn’t find one. e researched the market and found there was a niche for such a venture, so we thought hy not?’. fter four years, we’re quite happy with how it’s going. here have been some di cult and challenging times. We were initially targeting a different audience. e were opening the club for experienced archers – but now our main audience is for those coming here for taster sessions, for parties, for team building and so on. e do everything, starting from tasters and corporate stuff, up to catering to the needs of experienced archers. ver the last four years we’ve welcomed more than 9,000 unique customers, so we have four of five new people every day. ut of those doing a taster session, 10-1 stay for our beginners course of six sessions. hile ate takes on the role of chief instructor, oman takes care of the back o ce operations, ensuring rchery it operates smoothly as a business. But there’s soul beyond profit here. he club is much more than an impersonal space to loose arrows at targets. isitors enter a room where a pair of geckos guard the reception desk, snug in their tank. iant letters fixed by poles to the ceiling spell out Archery Fit and racks

Archery Fit regularly fields teams in competition in London and beyond Images by Matt Grayson – find his work at graysonphotos.co.uk or @mattgrayson_photo on Insta

taster test

what you can expect from an Archery Fit taster session

After signing in and promising not to shoot anyone, my companion and I began the session relaxing on bean bags while an instructor showed us various types of bow and gave us a bit of history about archery.

Then it was into the hands of Kate who took us to the store cupboard for arrows, and finger and arm guards.

After stretching, we were given our stripped down Olympic recurve bows – each named for a superhero – and taught the basics.

Then it was time for our tense, fearful first shots at 6m at targets designed for 50m.

In Kate’s confident care we continued, mostly managing to hit the targets and even popping balloons at 12m.

The light-hearted competitions felt friendly rather than serious and there was a sense of vicarious delight in

Aim taken: The targets were (mostly) easy enough to hit seeing fellow novices make some excellent shots. The 90 minutes flew by but not without time for the nerves to fall away and the calm breathing to take hold.

The satisfaction of a solid shot is addictive. The control necessary to achieve it repeatedly, is elusive. But that doesn’t make hunting for it any less fun. Just a few more shots please....

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Greenwich - Peninsula - Woolwich

Head instructor at Archery Fit in Greenwich Kate Godkin is a former Russian national champion archer and has coached some of the best in the world Kate takes charge of many of the coaching sessions at Archery Fit including tasters for complete beginners

draw the zen of the

“

I wouldn’t highlight archery as a sport to complete beginners. I would emphasise the mental benefits Roman Godkin, Archery Fit

of glossy new bows for sale hang on the wall. Bean bags, books, maga ines and plentiful coffee give the space the feeling of a lounge.

Up the business end of the establishment, ra or wire, camo net and life-si e posters of superheroes decorate the twin 18m ranges.

“I joke in the sessions about people doing in real life what they may have been doing as heroes in computer games, said ate. eople brought arvel comics and books here and it has become a sort of theme. It wasn’t planned as a marketing idea, it just happened. We even have cosplayers coming to us.

And while the club does run a Hawkeye-themed programme for those keen to get in touch with their inner Avenger, they are keen to highlight the wider appeal and benefits of archery. eople will have fun in their taster

sessions, said ate, . But archery is also good for meditating on problems.

“I would not highlight archery as specifically as a sport to complete beginners, added Roman. “Rather I would emphasise the mental benefits. If you are feeling stressed, it’s a very good thing to try to see how it helps you with that.

“You need to control so many things – the details of your technique – to shoot well. To progress you cannot keep anything else in your mind. You need to concentrate and it’s a good concentration.

That helps you to leave everything else behind.

“Archery is not just a sport, it’s a mental activity, and we are trying to make the place very welcoming to everyone.

In terms of developing, like any activity, the more effort you put in, the more you’re likely to get out of it.

I don’t compete at the moment, said ate, who has coached two world champions. “I’m dedicated to the club and to coaching. If you want to shoot at the very top level, you must think about it all the time and take it very seriously.

“Sometimes I think I might go back to it – an archery competition is an ama ing atmosphere – but I would need to practise for six or seven days a week.

Before archers can shoot independently, they have to pass the club’s test – typically taken at the end of the six sessions in the

beginners course. Those who have passed “If we’re talking about bows, then are free to shoot on their own at the range you’re probably looking at about £300 for or can enrol for further coaching. the whole kit. It should last you at least “The beginners course is six sessions for two years. the price of five – 1 0 or 2 per class at “The most expensive bow would be peak time, said oman, . ff-peak it’s about £700. A traditional bow would cost 12 . n off-peak taster session costs 2 , you perhaps £400. It’s not cheap but many or £30 at peak times. people can probably afford it.

“It’s not as expensive as golf. You need At present, the couple’s plan is to to spend some money initially, for the kit, continue expanding their club at its but if you choose the correct things, they current premises. will last you for years.

Roman said: “We are the only “Some people shoot in their dedicated archery club in back yards, but if you want London and we don’t have to shoot a proper distance, plans for any more right then another cost would now as it’s quite an be the shooting. expensive venture.

“At archery Fit, you Everything here was can pay as you go. If purpose-built from we’re talking about scratch. experienced archers “We have thought with their own equipabout franchising, ment who shoot on their but again, it’s quite own, it would cost 10 expensive. per three-hour session at Archery Fit runs regular off-peak time or 1 at peak taster sessions and is located Roman Godkin time. roughly halfway between of Archery Fit “If you shoot more than Greenwich and Deptford twice a week, we recommend Bridge DLR stations. taking our unlimited option – a monthly Corporate and party packages are also payment of 12 . or this you get unlimavailable. Experienced archers can use the ited access to the club for up to 300 hours facilities on a pay-as-you-go basis or pay a a month and you also get a free slot in our monthly subscription. storage for your equipment.

Go to archeryfit.com

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3

Days the DLR will be graced by cosplayers heading to MCM London Comic Con at Excel

Whatever your pop culture passion, MCM London Comic Con is the place to be to celebrate it with other like-minded individuals

con falling for the

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51

Canning Town - Royal Docks

love and passion abound as MCM London Comic Con brings a host of stars to the halls of Excel in Royal Docks

by Jon Massey

T

he familiar cry of “I’m not even supposed to be here today” may well ring out across Excel in May. But the man uttering it will be wrong because Dante Hicks, the star of Kevin Smith’s seminal Clerks, has dates booked in the capital and he won’t be alone.

Brian O’Halloran and fellow cast member Jason Mewes (Jay) will be appearing at MCM London Comic Con alongside a host of big and small screen stars.

The UK’s largest pop culture event, which celebrates everything from movies to comics, videogames, anime, manga and cosplay returns to the Royal Docks venue from May 24-26.

The line-up for the latest show includes film star Sebastian Stan, who has appeared in the likes of Captain America: The Winter Soldier, Avengers: Infinity War and Avengers: Endgame, David Harbour, best known as Sheriff Jim Hopper in acclaimed Netflix sci-fi horror series Stranger Things and as the lead role in the latest Hellboy and Stephen Amell, who stars as Oliver Queen in superhero series Arrow and related shows such as The Flash, Supergirl and Legends of Tomorrow.

Misha Collins (Castiel in Supernatural) will also be

Expect Cosplayers of all kinds, some competing and others just dressing for fun putting in an appearance as will sibling stars of The Walking Dead Madison, Matt and Macsen Lintz. Anime and videogame voice actors Elizabeth Maxwell, Aaron Dismuke, Jason Liebrecht, Lindsay Seidel and Ricco Fajardo will be there too, as will Japanese manga duo Akira Himekawa (The Legend of Zelda).

Comic creators attending will include Andy Price, Simon Bisley, Andy Diggle, Mike Zeck, John Beatty, Alison Sampson; Mark Texeira, Howard Mackie and Whilce Portacio.

“The first MCM London of 2019 comes to town packed with exciting exhibitors, exclusive content, interactive

experiences and – of course – an awesome array of special guests,” said the show’s event manager Josh Denham.

“Whatever aspects of pop culture you’re into, from sci-fi films and superhero comics to the latest videogames and anime series, May’s MCM London Comic Con is the place to be.”

Other attractions include YouTube and streaming stars in The Studio, writers and publishers at Author Corner, Asian food at PopAsia and Cosplay Central, which for the first time features its own dedicated stage, and free-play videogame zone Side Quest.

Dress to impress.

There’s also an area where families can relax called The Treehouse.

Tickets start at £17.50 for the Friday and a wide range of options are available. Kids under 10 get free entry.

Follow @MCMComicCon on Twitter for more details or go to mcmcomiccon.com/london

“

MCM Comic Con is packed with exciting exhibitors, exclusive content, interactive experiences and awesome special guests

14 days later

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

Thames Barrier Park Royal Docks

HEALTH | One Element Fitness Soon to launch in Royal Docks, this group offers exercise and social interaction in the stunning parkland by the barrier. Sign up for a free trial From May 25, 9am, free trial, one-element.co.uk where?

Excel Royal Docks

ART | Is The Space For Empathy?

Join artist and designer Enni-Kukka Tuomala for afternoon tea as part of her second workshop under the umbrella of The Campaign For Empathy.

May 25, 1pm-3.30pm, free, bowarts.org where?

RA Fold Canning Town

CLUB | Afrodeutsche, London Modular Alliance “If you like your electro deep and freaky, this is the line-up for you” or so Resident Advisor says of its forthcoming live sets by the acts above. Techno.

May 31, 10pm, from £8, residentadvisor.net

Josh Denham, MCM London Comic Con

diary date

Explore how your company might benefit from technological advances at the Blockchain For Business summit at Excel from June 12-13, 9am-6pm daily. Save up now as delegate passes start at £899 excel.london

spot check worth a visit Try Docklands Bar And Grill for food and drink in Royal Victoria Dock docklandsbarandgrill.co.uk want more? @wharflifelive

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ÂŁ10.50

The interior of Neighbourhood at Stratford’s East Village

What a pulled pork burger will cost you in Neighbourhood although chips are included

hood foods in the

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53

Stratford - Bow

The pulled pork burger at Neighbourhood is a triumph of smokiness and seasoning

there goes the Neighbourhood with its winning formula for fast food service

by Jon Massey

N

eighbourhood is more the shape of a beer hall than a traditional pub. Open daily for lunch and dinner, it’s a concrete shell that’s been filled with colourful seats, long wooden tables, pillar-box red leather banquettes and shelves of healthy plants in little pots.

While size certainly isn’t everything, the length of the bar is impressive – necessary perhaps to accommodate the comprehensive range of beers, wines and spirits on offer.

It’s the food we’re here to try, though, and the menu is packed with temptation, including a full complement of meats from the robata grill, sandwiches (noon-3pm only) and a selection of healthy-sounding salads.

Perhaps it was dining at The Full Nelson (see Page 46) a few days earlier, but the meat-filled burgers appealed.

Served with skin-on chips and an apple and fennel slaw as standard, the price range of £9.50-£12.50 is pleasing considering Neighbourhood is only a few minutes’ walk from Westfield Stratford City.

As we’re near the kitchen cut-off time of 3pm, we panic-order breaded halloumi and mac’n’cheese to start, completely failing to notice a deal for a trio of bites.

These are to be followed by a pulled pork burger for me and classic cheese burger for my companion.

It’s not long before our starters arrive, reaching our table only a short while after two glasses of Pinot Grigio show up.

For £4.50 the fried cheese dippers seem a little on the small side, but this

“

If it’s fast food you want, then Neighbourhood delivers with rapidity and portion size. It’s also a pleasant place to sit for an hour or two.

Jon Massey, Wharf Life

is made up for by the plentiful pasta, which is deep in dish and flavour.

It’s so moreish, in fact, the whole thing is gone in seconds throwing up the possiblity of a long wait for our main courses.

We needn’t have feared.

The impressive solidity of the ceramic condiment tray, complete with a generous mound of serviettes, shows Neighbourhood is well equipped for fast food.

This is kit purchased to deal with customer after customer and knock after knock from the inebriated. I doubt there are many who get to a state of impatience here – as our server delivers the flesh-filled buns a few minutes later.

Both are good, but the pulled pork wins the day thanks to the soft, toothsome meat and the powerful smokiness of its barbecue sauce.

The skin-on fries are its equal and a good portion when dosed up with appropriate levels of mayo and hot sauce.

The red cabbage, apple and fennel slaw is a little underpowered, but let’s be clear. Nobody is ordering this dish for its garnish.

If it’s fast food you want, then Neighbourhood delivers with rapidity and portion size.

It’s also a pleasant place to sit for an hour or two and evidence of the success East Village has had in hosting independent restaurants and bars on its sprawling campus.

Where once stood vacant commercial units, a crop of interesting and popular venues can be found for anyone tired of the shopping centre’s chains.

It’s an example set for those engaged in large regeneration projects across Canary Wharf, Docklands and east London that, when given a chance, such places lend significant character to an area, making it all the more attractive to live in.

And while Neighbourhood is next to a brand of Sainsbury’s, the fact it and its neighbours occupy the other units, prevents the dulling of the surroundings and keeps things fresh.

Next time you’re in Stratford, go for a stroll, pop into one of these businesses and support them. They’re doing a fine job.

Go to neighbourhood-bar.co for more information

14 days later

plan your life from May 23-Jun 6 where?

Theatre Royal Stratford East Stratford

STAGE | King Hedley II Lenny Henry starts in August Wilson’s touching and angry play set in 1980s Pittsburgh. Cherrelle Skeete also features as Hedley’s wife.

Until Jun 15, times vary, from £10, stratfordeast.com where?

Stratford Circus Stratford

STAGE | The Hunters Grimm This walkabout play by Teatro Vivo is inspired by the tales of the Brothers Grimm and is only for the brave and curious, apparently. Goodness...

May 17-Aug 25, daily, free, bowarts.org where?

Here East Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

EVENT | Innoskate The Smithsonian Institution celebrates skateboarding and the innovation within with skate design studios, skate clinics and free activities.

May 25, 10am, free, queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk

to do before May 23

Splash out on a ticket from £16.35 and see the best British divers in action at the London Aquatics Centre from May 17-19 as they participate in the FINA/CNSG Diving World Series. Tom Daley will be there britishswimming.seetickets.com

spot check try this place out Try Levi Roots Caribbean Smokehouse for some colour at Westfield caribbeansmokehouse.com want more? @wharflifelive

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impressive stuff

kudos to artist Fabian Ranaldi for using last issue’s creative space to create this comic – we’re very grateful he decided to share it with us – keep up the great work

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Creative space

this space is yours

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WORKING TITLE

56

Wharf Life May 9-23, 2019 wharf-life.com

SUDOKU

Crossword - Sudoku

Easy

5 9 2 1 6 8 4 3 7 Sudoku 4 a6break 7 from 9 3 that 2 phone 5 8 1 Take 8 3 1 7 5 4 9 6 2 How 7 to5 play 4 6 8 1 2 9 3 To complete Sudoku, fill the board by entering numbers 6 such 3 that 4 9each 8 row, 7 5column and 3x3 box one1to2nine contains every number uniquely.

3 8 9 5 2 7 6 1 4 1 find 3 strategies, 4 9 6 hints 7 5and8tips online You2can at sudokuwiki.org 9 7 8 2 1 5 3 4 6 6 to 4 play 5 8 7 3 1 2 9 More

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

© 2019 Syndicated Puzzles

8 3 1 7 9 7 6 9 3 8 5 9 6 2 7 8 4 1 3 2 1 5 4 3 5 9 1 4

Previous solution - Very Hard

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

7.

1.

8.

9.

10.

12.

1 .

18.

19.

21.

22.

A very long time back in the ring (5) onfirm that the wild animal has escaped , ow could cad harm currency? he brotherhood is clearly not in disarray lways a loss, apparently, but not to be repeated , grave diet, but not all one colour 10 he kingdom of nature, almost (5) he consequences of having property? ent to bed, having stopped work wear nothing left the race-track (5)

Notes

2. . . . .

11.

1 .

1 .

1 .

1 .

20.

o runs came when the girl fell , top the making of bread lean western tree laming sailor must be idle hy book of noblemen won’t include those too old? 8 o give up, with lady getting round forester Telephone teacher – he’s employed in the circus ternally increasing? 8 he drab dimension estitution finishes in the morning wenty, but no more in 1 (5) igurehead to take the stage in reality

Quick Across

. ew 8. crutinise 9. orth frican port 10. on ecture 12. udge 10 15. Workers’ association , 18. Proportion (5) 19. isturb 21. Porch (7) 22. Change (5)

Down

1. Teacher (10) 2. hun . oo . odiac sign . ustralian animal 8 . reedom 11. ruit 10 1 . ratory 8 1 . ommand 1 . Idea 17. Diminish (5) 20. poken

Across: 7 Novel; 8 Examine; 9 Tripoli; 10 Guess; 12 Arbitrator; 15 Trade union; 18 Ratio; 19 Trouble; 21 Portico; 22 Alter.

Down: 1 Instructor; 2 Avoid; 3 Also; 4 Gemini; 5 Kangaroo; 6 Liberty; 11 Strawberry; 13 Rhetoric; 14 Mastery; 16 Notion; 17 Abate; 20 Oral.

Across

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

Cryptic Solution

Cryptic

beating the

Across: 7 Arena; 8 Bear out; 9 Drachma; 10 Order; 12 Never again; 15 Variegated; 18 Realm; 19 Effects; 21 Retired; 22 Curse.

Down: 1 Maiden over; 2 Debar; 3 Wash; 4 Ablaze; 5 Baronage; 6 Woodman; 11 Ring-master; 13 Evermore; 14 Breadth; 16 Amends; 17 Score; 20 Fact.

The solutions will be published here in the next issue.

Quick Solution

No. 219