Wharf Life, Oct 26-Nov 9, 2022

by Matt

@mattgrayson_photo

Rebecca Ferguson

GIG - KT Tunstall

Boisdale Of Canary Wharf, Cabot Square Nov 11, 9.30pm, from £145 (show only) boisdale.co.uk

The Scottish singer is back on the Boisdale stage for another intimate gig, featuring her hits Suddenly I See and Black Horse And The Cherry Tree alongside material from her extensive back catalogue of albums and singles. At this gig she’ll be supported by recent Boisdale Music Awards winner Gina Larner – an up-and-coming singer songwriter from Brighton with a powerful voice and some serious guitar skills. A double bill not to be missed.

The noughties

return to the Cabot Square venue

in November, almost certain to play She’s So Lovely and Elvis Ain’t Dead. Fun fact, SFG’s fan club was known as the Wolfcub Club, building on the Scouting aesthetic, with solid supporters still calling themselves Wolfcubs to this

new spot

The Japanese-Danish venue has had a partial

with a new

28. Designed to tempt Wharfers seeking a

created – o cially launching

after

the

will also be used

No speci c events

sushi

but

will be

on the

Sticks’N’Sushi, Crossrail Place, Canary Wharf

GIG Scouting for Girls Boisdale Of Canary Wharf, Nov 16-17, 9.30pm, from £49 boisdale.co.uk

KT Tunstall is set to return to Boisdale Of Canary Wharf on November 11

Earn while you learn in a career where you can make a difference

Police officer

A

salary of c.£33.5k.

Are you looking for a new challenge? Searching for a career that provides a competitive salary from day one, whilst supporting you in building skills for life, and the opportunity to make a positive di erence? If so, a career in policing could be for you.

Whether it’s working with local communities, keeping the peace at major events, or patrolling the Thames, becoming a police o cer in the Met is only the first step in discovering a satisfying career with roles and opportunities as diverse as our Capital.

We’ll help you build on your skills and discover new strengths, while providing the support and training you need to prepare you for policing in London through one of our entry routes, including the opportunity to gain a fully funded degree through our Police Constable Degree Apprenticeship programme.

Want to know more about the Met, what our role really involves or help with your application? Come and meet your local o cers at one of our recruitment events, who specialise in supporting people like you to join.

Fulham, London,

For more recruitment events, or to speak to a member of the

the

Become

by Jon Massey

It turns out there are two farms on the Isle Of Dogs. Mudchute is filled with rare breeds and is a favourite spot for residents (and the occasional Wharfer) to take a restful stroll among the sheep and llamas. The other, however, is much less obvious.

Built inside three shipping containers sat in a brick-walled car park, just off Westferry Road, locals can easily be forgiven for not knowing Crate To Plate is there at all.

But packed inside its metal boxes are racks of hyrdoponic tech, carefully calibrated to grow crops in nutrient-rich water under LED lights. The business supplies restaurants in London and also grows produce at sites in Stratford and Elephant And Castle. Its Isle Of Dogs containers make it, almost certainly, the closest producer of ingredients to Canary Wharf. That means delivery times and mileage are negligible and Wharfers eating dishes created from its ingredients are consuming some of the freshest products available.

One restaurant that’s making the most of the facility is recently opened M – located on the lower floors of Newfoundland tower. Owner Martin Williams and executive chef Mike Reid are both big on sustainability and cutting waste. The restaurant proudly works to assess and minimise its impact on the environment.

The steaks it serves are carbon neutral, thanks to a partnership with charity Not For Sale, which offsets their impact through reforestation projects in the Amazon and helping to protect local people from modern slavery.

Order M’s Crate To Plate salad as a side and you’ll be dining on leaves grown less than 20 minutes’ walk away, in the mix.

“It’s as fresh as it can be, as close from farm to plate as possible, and that’s so rare – it’s a privilege to have that in Canary Wharf,” said Mike, who did a degree in business and marketing before apprenticing as a chef and going on to work with the likes of Gordon Ramsay and Michel Roux Jnr. “Sustainability has become more of a focus for us in

grown up produce

how Wharfers can eat Crate To Plate produce at M , harvested 20 minutes away on the Isle Of Dogs

Crate To Plate shipping containers are located on the Isle Of Dogs, growing produce to order using hydroponic systems

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

Mike Reid of M, left, and Sebastien Sainsbury of Crate To Plate take a look at the lettuce grown at the company’s Isle Of Dogs farm

Mike Reid, M Restaurant

the last five years and it’s always been part of my philosophy as a chef. You want to cook as sustainably as possible and use as many local ingredients as you can, which has always been a challenge at M because it’s a brand that showcases international food and flavours. Now it’s about how we interpret that, about the relationships we have with our suppliers and building partnerships.

“Crate To Plate is probably the perfect example of that. We create dishes with their produce in mind and at other times they grow things speculatively. It’s very much a collaboration.

“I try to visit the farms as much as I can and the last time I was here they had the most beautiful wasabi flowers. Normally you’d only get them five weeks a year, but here they grow all year round.

“It’s one of my favourite flowers to cook with, because the flavour is literally a punch in the face, but in the most subtle and beautiful way, and they’re gorgeous. To have that available all year long is incredible.

You’re not beholden to the seasons, so you can keep dishes on the menu with ingredients that are not impacted by the weather.

“From a chef’s point of view, we chase consistency more than perfection and Crate To Plate’s products are phenomenal. For me the flavour’s better too – there’s no pesticides, none of the nasties and the lettuce, for example is crispier and the taste fresher. It’s vegetables and herbs the way they’re supposed to be – whatever you’re tasting in the supermarket, times it by 10.

To Plate’s products are phenomenal. For me the no pesticides, none of the nasties and the lettuce, for the farm I wondered if I was

“When I first came to visit the farm I wondered if I was in the right place, but this is pure genius.”

music to the ears of Crate

Mike’s words will be music to the ears of Crate To Plate founder and CEO Sebastien Sainsbury. Part of the dynasty that created the supermarket chain, he spent time as a banker continued on Page 8

You want to cook as sustainably as possible, use as many local ingredients as you can, which has always been a challenge with M

Scan this code to nd out more about dining at M Restaurant

Plants are grown in plugs of soil that are then transplanted into vertical racks and fed with nutrient-rich water until they are ready for harvest

virtual viewpoint by Chris Ezekiel

Running a company that automates parts of the customer service processes, I’m always thinking of new ways we can help organisations to make life easier for their clients.

I’m also always considering my own experiences as a customer in this regard. A recent ight from Amsterdam to London transcended into farce. I arrived at the departure gate with an immediate feeling of foreboding. I could see a large group of people talking to the airline sta – never a good sign.

I was quickly briefed by a fellow passenger who was incredulous as he explained that our aircraft was just about to depart with only one passenger on board. The airline’s sta at the gate were explaining that a human error had been made whereby the wrong ight on the computer system had been cancelled and the system was now only allowing the check-in of a single passenger. None of us could quite believe it. The computer wouldn’t allow sta to check in the passengers for about half an hour and for a while it looked like the airline was really going to allow the aircraft to depart with just the one traveller.

This was the most ridiculous case of “the computer says no” I’ve ever encountered. There appeared to be no override and it was only after many frantic conversations with the airline’s IT team that sta were able to slowly start to check in passengers.

Computers don’t do discretion – there was no override to save a failing customer experience. There’s much debate about machines and AI one day taking over the world, but this ight made me realise that, in some ways, computers already have.

with interests in hospitality, before turning to vertical farming in urban environments as a way to help tackle some of the world’s problems.

“When I was in banking in 2007, I did research on food security and population growth because it really concerned me where our food was going to come from,” said Sebastien.

“If the number of people in the world kept on rising as predicted, it would mean the end of organic food

“That remained in the back of my mind and in 2015 I was at Expo 2015 in Milan where I saw a hydroponic farm.

“It’s not a new idea, it’s been around for thousands of years –think of the Hanging Gardens Of Babylon – and there are people doing it all around the world, but what’s changed is the technology.

“We don’t even use the term hydroponic any more, even since we installed the three farms on the Isle Of Dogs in 2020 – Crate To Plate is really ‘controlled environment agriculture’.

“Every aspect of each plant’s growth, from the amount of light it gets to the light wavelength recipe, the nutrients in the water, the watering schedule, the ambient temperature, the humidity and even how long the lights are on or off – because plants need rest – is very closely monitored and regulated.

“It’s all automated, bar seeding, transplanting and harvesting and that’s just where we are today.”

The company’s model not only

allows it to place farms close to its customers, minimising transportation, its technology means it uses approximately 95% less water than traditional farming methods.

It hopes to cut that to 99% with newer root-misting systems –crucial in a world where natural resources are destined to become increasingly scarce.

Crate To Plate can grow produce year-round to order and is unaffected by the weather. Its systems are not immune to problems, but these tend to be ones of maintenance rather than the lottery of droughts and floods.

“Farmers are suffering and they will suffer, but not because of us,” said Sebastien. “It’s because of climate change. We consume about 18million heads of lettuce a week in Britain and farmers supply about 90% of that, which means there’s still 1.8million being imported.

“In 2018, for example, we had the longest heatwave for 40 years and crops were all lost. Droughts are just as bad.

“With us, restaurants can give us an estimate of what they’ll need and we grow that for them, planting varieties that create less waste – flatter romaine lettuce, for example, for burgers so restaurants don’t throw out the middle of a baby gem.

@creativevirtual

@chrisezekiel

220 varieties, a dozen Genovese

“Our head of farming, John Sticha, spent about four years doing research and development in a container in the US to find the right plants – we tried more than 220 varieties, a dozen Genovese basils and more than 14 different types of lemon basil.”

The company’s drive to improve is relentless, with new tech emerging all the time. Its next project is a plan for a bigger, fully automated farm in Royal Docks

“When I was a banker, I was on the right, but now I’m on the left – I’m all about social responsibility,” said Sebastien.

“People laugh when I do nothing but talk about lettuce, which I knew nothing about five years ago. Being a vertical farmer is fun and it’s productive.

“We’re growing stuff that people are loving – sometimes it blows my mind how positive people are about our produce. I’m not a young man any more, but I feel completely regenerated.”

With all that extra energy, who’d bet against a robot vertical farm in east London?

Go to cratetoplate.farm or mrestaurants.co.uk for more details

Who decides who boards? Maybe it’s already the computers who are in charge

“

I arrived at the departure gate with an immediate feeling of foreboding. I could see a large group of people talking to the sta ...

Chris Ezekiel, Creative Virtual

Chris Ezekiel is founder and CEO of customer engagement solutions specialist Creative Virtual based at West India Quay’s Cannon Workshops

Scan

Twitter

The Crate To Plate Salad at M features mixed leaves, con t tomatoes, pickled shallots, avocado and a blood orange vinaigrette

A farm for all seasons: Crate To Plate founder and CEO Sebastien Sainsbury

Mike inspects the produce under blue light from the farm’s LEDs

Pedler offers a range of spaces in the lobby of One Canada Square that can cater to parties of between 30 and

by Jon Massey

We love a new opening at Wharf Life and Pedler is set to open its doors at One Canada Square just in time for the festive season.

Set to launch in the building’s ground floor on November 7, the restaurant’s multitude of spaces across the tower’s lobby are able to cater to parties both large and small.

The brand, well-known for its establishments in Peckham, has a long relation ship with day boat fishermen, independent farmers and small producers – it promises

wild caught, free range and hand-picked ingredients for its Christmas offering.

Pedler’s Christmas Party Menu (£45pp) features glasses of festive bubbles (£6) and includes the likes of Ham Hock Terrine and Smoked Salmon Mousse to start, Free

Range Bronze Turkey, Cornish Hake and Beef Bourguignon for mains and Mini Christmas Pudding, Choccy Mousse or Mince Pie Eton Mess for dessert.

The venue also has a selection of spaces available for exclusive private hire every day of the week.

These range in size with capacities of between 30 and 75 people.

Food and drink options –anything from cocktails and canapés to full set menus – can be created for clients by the Pedler team, catering to all dietry and lifestyle choices.

Reservations are now being taken for Christmas – email hello@pedlercanarywharf.com for more information

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Overlooking Canada Square, The Pearson Room restaurant and bar promises a “casual yet sophisticated” offering as the festive season arrives on the horizon.

Located at the heart of Canary Wharf above Waitrose Food And Home, this flexible venue is well placed to cater for parties large and small, from team dinners to larger drinks receptions and celebrations. For those looking for some thing spectacular, The Pearson Room is available for exclusive

hire every day of the week and can accommodate up to 350 guests for a standing reception or 170 for seated dining.

“This year we want to bring you the Canary Wharf Christmas you’ve been missing – making lasting memories and finally allowing Christmas to shine in a way it hasn’t been able to in recent times,” said general manager Emilie Parker-Burrell.

“Whether it’s that glass of mulled wine on a wintry evening or a festive feast with your colleagues, we’ve got every scenario not only covered but with our very own touch of Christmas sparkle.”

The venue is set to start serving a three-course Christmas menu from head chef James Goodchild on a pre-order basis from November 21, available throughout the festive period.

The venue recently introduced a special wintry cocktail menu from the bar team, headed by Peter and Theo.

For more information about Christmas party options at The Pearson Room email events@thepearsonroom.co.uk or go to thepearsonroom.co.uk

by Jon Massey

how The Pearson Room stands ready with its flexible space to accommodate seasonal groups from two to 350 guests

Whether it’s a glass of mulled wine or a festive feast, we’ve got every scenario not only covered but with our very own touch of Christmas sparkle

Emilie Parker-Burrell, The Pearson Room

points for those booking

events

scan this code to find out more about festive celebrations at The Pearson Room

The Pearson Room offers a

dining

festive season

PARTY WITH PEDLER THIS CHRISTMAS

where?

M restaurant can be found on the lower floors of Newfoundland tower overlooking both the waters of the Thames to the west and Middle Dock to the east through floor-toceiling windows.

what?

Private dining spaces and festive menus are the name of the game for Christmas at this Canary Wharf venue with options available to cover everything from celebratory lunches to whole venue hire for company-wide parties.

tell me more

From the end of November, M Canary Wharf will be transporting guests to the heart of Méribel, complete with chalet-style interiors and cosy furs in the venue’s alpinethemed winter wonderland. Expect plenty of mulled wine and a new Après-Ski Brunch.

and for lunch and dinner?

Groups of 10 or more can opt for a £69pp, three-course Festive Set Menu. Diners can expect the likes of Roasted Scallops, Stuffed Turkey (complete with pigs in blankets, naturally), Winter Wellington and White Christmas Pudding to top things off.

making

how about bigger groups?

M’s East Grill can accommodate up to 60 guests for lunch, dinner or drinks, with the option to add on a private wine room experience. Exclusive venue hire of the whole restaurant allows for up to 150 guests for a Christmas event.

something smaller?

M also boasts two private dining spaces – Anjuna and Riva – that can be hired individually or opened out into one larger room. Both come equipped with Bang & Olufsen audio and visual technology including Beovision Eclipse 4K OLED TVs in both. Anjuna and Riva can be used by parties of up to 12 indi vidually or accommodate 24 when joined together

and the big day?

M Canary Wharf will also be open on Christmas Day, offering a threecourse set menu with seatings available from noon until 3pm, priced at £150pp for adults and children under 13 at £75 each.

how do I book?

The

at M can be

at enquiries@mrestaurants.co.uk

restaurant’s

at

by Jon Massey

Party season is almost upon us and venues across Canary Wharf are gearing up to welcome groups of all sizes. Sticks’N’Sushi at Crossrail Place – located between the two Elizabeth Line entrances – will be offering three festive set menus.

Available for pre-booked tables of seven or more people, they each present an oppor tunity for diners to celebrate with a fusion of Japanese and Danish cultures.

On offer from November 28 until December 31, they’ve been designed to give Wharfers a break from the likes of turkey, stuffing and plum pudding.

First up is the Festive Menu for £40 per person, which includes dishes such as Shake Tataki, made with fresh salmon, daikon, cress kizami wasabi and ponzu and Red’N’Green Roll, made with roasted pepper, avocado, cucumber, yuzukosho, shiso and tsume.

Also featuring is Chicks’N’Blankets – chicken meatballs wrapped in bacon and flavoured with miso herb butter.

The Mistletoe Menu costs £65 per person and includes dishes such as Robusuta Korokke, a starter of lobster croquettes with shiso and lobster mayon naise and Gindara No Miso made with delicate black cod and miso.

Other notable ingredients include soft shell crab, wagyu beef and Iberico ham.

For diners who follow a plantbased diet, Sticks’N’Sushi is serving the Green Menu. Priced at £40 per person, it features

the likes of Kinoko Tataki, a dish of confit mush room with truffle oil, ponzu, kizami wasabi and daikon as well as Imo Yaki – a sweet potato stick with coriander cress and teriyaki.

When considering dates, the restaurant is offering incentives to groups who make reservations early in the week.

Bookings made for Mondays or Tuesdays including or before December 13 will see each guest receive a complimentary glass of Veuve Clicquot Cham pagne as a Christmas bonus from the team at the venue.

Smaller groups and walk-in customers can also get a taste

Robusuta Korokke

of Christmas on their plates via three seasonal dishes on the menu. Robusuta Korokke, Wagyu Aburi Nigiri and Miso Fried Sprouts will all be avail able over the festive period.

Seasonal drinks will also be on offer including the Pear And Ginger Fizz (£12.50), made with Japanese whisky infused with cinnamon and cloves, pear puree, lemon juice, ginger bread syrup and ginger beer.

There’s also a Matcha Eggnog (£11.50), a twist on the seasonal classic featuring golden rum, double cream, whole egg, Pimento Dram spiced liqueur, honey and Japanese matcha.

Sticks’N’Sushi was founded in Copenhagen in 1994 and opened its Canary Wharf branch in 2015. Today it operates some 23 restaurants around the world.

l Sticks’N’Sushi also offers gift cards that can be tailored to the buyer’s require ments – ideal for a Christmas present. These can either be sent via email or by post to the buyer or recipient Go to giftcard.sticksnsushi.com for more information

or

make a

at Sticks’N’Sushi

Minimum group booking size for Sticks’N’Sushi’s three set menus – the restaurant is also offering three seasonal dishes

festive season

Sticks’N’Sushi is all set to help Wharfers celebrate over the festive season

Maguro Tataki

Sticks’N’Sushi’s Crossrail Place restaurant in Canary Wharf

Miso Fried Sprouts

All-inclusive cost per person of Keith Prowse’s Baseline First and Second Serve packages at the Eastbourne International tennis tournament

an experience

by Jon Massey

The festive period is traditionally all about socialising, breaking bread and high spirits – a time for making memories. It’s also the season of gift giving and receiving.

Hospitality specialist Keith Prowse offers companies and individuals the chance to combine both these two elements and spread the merriment across the year.

The company has been at the forefront of the experience market for 200 years, working with the likes of venues such as Twickenham Stadium, Edgbaston, Lord’s, The Kia Oval, Wimbledon and Epsom Racecourse.

With a focus on the corporate market, it understands the importance of days spent with colleagues, family and friends, whether businesses are looking to entertain clients or reward the work of staff.

However, its all-inclusive packages are equally suited to people who simply want to show a loved one they care, with personalised gift vouchers available on request.

As a taster of the kinds of experiences Keith Prowse offers, new to its portfolio for 2023 are a range of experiences at Eastbourne International.

This ATP 250 Men’s and WTP 500 Women’s tennis tourna ment takes place annually in the week leading up to Wimbledon.

Having conducted extensive market research, Keith Prowse has developed its Baseline First Serve and Baseline Second

Serve packages, both priced at £168 per person (inc VAT).

Both experiences feature tickets in the East Stand at Devonshire Park Lawn And Tennis Club where the tourna ment is held, with the former including brunch and the latter afternoon tea.

Free-flowing beverages and live music come as standard, with hospitality taking place in the venue’s Winter Garden. Other packages, including dining in The Sky Lounge are available.

Eastbourne is located around 90 minutes’ train ride from London terminals.

All hospitality packages marketed by Keith Prowse are “sold as official” meaning buyers can have confidence in the quality of all elements from the seating locations to the food, drink and service.

For sporting events, part of the booking is reinvested back at grassroots level to support the players of the future. For more information or to make a booking go to keithprowse.co.uk/experience-days

scan this code for more about hospitality packages with Keith Prowse

The company’s packages are available at many venues including The Kia Oval

how Keith Prowse’s packages make the ideal reward, client entertainment or treat for a loved one this Christmas

Keith Prowse works with venues such as Wimbledon, Epsom Racecourse and Edgbaston

Kidd Rapinet Solicitors print Pages 1, 4, 17, 24 online kiddrapinet.co.uk

M Restaurant print Page 3 online mrestaurants.co.uk

Metropolitan Police print Page 5 online met.police.uk

Keith Prowse print Page 9 online keithprowse.co.uk

Sticks'N'Sushi print Page 11 online sticksnsushi.com

Pedler print Page 13 online pedlercanarywharf.com

The Pearson Room print Page 15 online thepearsonroom.co.uk

National Landlord Investment Show print Page 23 online landlordinvestmentshow.co.uk

St William print Page 25 online berkeleygroup.co.uk

Site Sales print Pages 27 online site-sales.co.uk

Hamptons print Pages 28, 29 online hamptons.co.uk

Galliard Homes print Page 32 online galliardhomes.com

Perfect Waxing print Page 33 online perfectwaxing.uk

Rooms To Breathe print Page 33 online rooms-2-breathe.co.uk

Interiors Of Essex print Page 33 online @Interiorsofessex Craft Central print Page 41 online craftcentral.org.uk

Wharf

Massey

is published by Massey

PUBLIC NOTICES

LONDON BOROUGH OF TOWER HAMLETS LICENSING ACT 2003 - NOTICE OF APPLICATION FOR A PREMISES LICENCE

Notice is hereby given that: J&Z Catering Services Limited has applied to London Borough of Tower Hamlets Licensing Authority for a Premises Licence under the Licensing Act 2003

Premises: Oysteria Bar, Unit 1, 40 Bank Street, London, E14 5DA

Licensable activities and timings are:

Sales Of Alcohol

Mon - 09.00-24.00

Tues - 09.00-24.00

Weds - 09.00-24.00

Thurs - 09.00-24.00

Fri - 09.00-24.00

Sat - 09.00-24.00

Sun - 09.00-24.00

Late Night Refreshment

Mon - 23.00-24.00

Tues - 23.00-24.00

Weds - 23.00-24.00

Thurs - 23.00-24.00

Fri - 23.00-24.00

Sat - 23.00-24.00

Sun - 23.00-24.00

Anyone who wishes to make representations regarding this application must give notice in writing to: The Licensing Section, London Borough of Tower Hamlets, Mulberry Place, 5 Clove Crescent, London E14 2BG or email: licensing@towerhamlets.gov.uk Website: www.towerhamlets.gov.uk Tel: 020 7364 5008

Representations must be received no later than 14 / 11 / 2022

The Application Record and Register may be viewed between 10am and 4pm Monday to Friday during normal o ce hours at the above address. It is an o ence under Section 158 of the Licensing Act 2003, to knowingly or recklessly to permit or make a false statement in connection with an application punishable upon conviction by an unlimited ne

printed by Ili e Print Cambridge. Copyright Massey

2021

a creation of

by Jon Massey

Singer, martial artist, entrepreneur. These are Dia Thanki’s passions but it’s in the third where our chief interest lies. So it’s not Motown classics or her practising the graceful forms of Wing Chun Kung Fu that will fill the next three pages, It’s her latest business venture.

Alchemy Machines, the company she founded and runs as CEO, is set to launch its first product in November following two years of development.

Based at Level39 – Canary Wharf’s tech community and

workspace at One Canada Square – the idea for the business grew from a personal experience.

“I was involved in a car accident quite a few years ago,” said Dia. “I was coming off the motorway, going downhill and there was a lot of traffic ahead – it was gridlocked.

“I stopped my car but there was a van going at top speed, which crashed into the back of my vehicle – leaving me with whiplash and chronic back pain.

“As a result I was having a lot of meetings with my personal injury lawyer, but the discomfort I was in meant I wasn’t able to focus on what was being said.

“I decided to look for an app

that could transcribe voice to text, but the technology was generally very primitive at the time.

“It was then that I thought how wonderful it would be if meetings could be automatically transcribed accurately with who was speaking and when. People could then read or listen back and there would be an audit trail.”

Dia had been exposed to the emerging area of artificial intelligence (AI) as a student, first at Cass Business School (since renamed Bayes Business School) and then later during a masters in management information systems at Cranfield University.

“Back then, no-one really cared about it – it was a research topic,

but there were very few real-life implementations,” she said. “But I was fascinated with its potential and my final year thesis was in the area of multi-agent systems.

“It was all about process modelling using software agents to be able to replicate real-world phenomena to convert them into a virtual world.

“That’s when I began to think about the endless possibilities of a technology like AI.”

However, life took Dia in a different direction, as after graduating, a career as a singer beckoned and she eventually set up a business as the founder of label Diamanté Records. continued on Page 28

Minutes

how Alchemy Machines is targeting legal businesses with smart transcription tech

Much more than just words from a recording, Alchemy Machines’ platform provides summaries and analysis of recorded meetings as standard

PAPER LOVES TREES

European forests, which provide wood for making paper, paper packaging and many other products, have been growing by 1,500 football pitches every day!

After pursuing that course for a little over four years, Dia changed heading, going on to discover a strength in project management.

“That’s really my forte –starting with a concept for a web application or a mobile app and taking it from idea to a tangible product,” she said. “In the process of doing that, I was working with developers, designers both onshore and offshore, globally for organisations such as BT, BUPA and Apple.

“Just before I set up Alchemy Machines, I was working for Tech Nation which is very well known in the tech ecosystem. I was its Future 50 programme manager – curating events for the brand and through that work I became fascinated with the world of startups.

“Then Alchemy Machines got a grant offer and there was a need to focus on the company full time and build a team.”

With machine learning having taken off in the intervening years, it was time for Dia to explore the creation of something that has been in the back of her mind since she sat in the room with those lawyers.

“I’d reached out to various computer scientists, people who had worked at Google and Amazon and senior researchers – had lots of coffees and built up my knowledge,” she said. “I did a lot of different courses and then found some money to build a prototype, initially from Innovate UK, which is funded by the Government.

“The reason we chose to focus on the legal sector was that there seemed to be a demand, although the product we have developed could be as relevant in healthcare or financial services.

“Alchemy Machines solves the problem of unlocking workflow productivity for corporate professionals. The way we do that is to develop a voice intelligence platform that can transcribe

sector-specific speech into text, and then also analyse those conversations and summarise them. It’s a feature-rich voice intelligence platform.

“People confuse us with an AI transcription company, but Alchemy Machines is much more than that.

“Given the high rates at which people leave jobs in the legal sector and everything that’s going on in the world at the moment, now is the time for a technology like this to really come to the fore.

“While there are other areas where this kind of technology has been prevalent for a while, that hasn’t really been the case in the corporate and legal worlds.

“I think that’s because they haven’t embraced innovation as fast, although in recent years they have been forced to do so, partly because of the consolidation that’s happening in the sector.

“Legal firms were some of the last to embrace email, for example, but they are now using cloud technology with many companies migrating – it’s only a matter of time before everyone in the market follows.

“People are very risk-averse in the sector. There’s a lack of understanding about AI machine learning and sometimes that triggers fear, although it can also trigger excitement.

“There are many offerings out there and it can be difficult for businesses to differentiate. But we have a clear focus, we know that being GDPR compliant, for example, is very important for companies in the sector and we have worked with Legal 500 firms to build feasibility scenarios and really test our platform before launch.

“It works like this – let’s assume there’s a dispute resolution case within intellectual property law. A group of lawyers – a senior associate, a trainee and a client – are having a virtual meeting to discuss the case.

“Normally, the trainee lawyer would be typing out or writing notes before producing a final version in consultation with the senior associate before it’s given to the client or stored in-house.

“That’s a huge waste of time – especially for trainee lawyers who want to get their hands on high-value casework and not spend their time on boring admin tasks. It might be useful for them for a couple of months as part of their training, but afterwards it becomes tedious admin work.

“With Alchemy Machines, all they would need to do would be to press ‘record’ when the Zoom or Microsoft Teams meeting starts. The software then sits in the background and, for a one-hour meeting, it would take about 15 or 20 minutes to generate the report

2Years since Dia Thanki founded Alchemy Machines to create a smart transcription platform aimed at the legal sector

Alchemy Machines solves the problem of unlocking workflow productivity for corporate professionals

in our web application. There, the user will find the audio file, the transcription, the analysis and the summaries.

“That will include things like the ratio of who is speaking, the total number of people on the call and a sentiment analysis expressed as a percentage, based on whether mostly positive or negative words were used.

“The platform also tracks the duration of the meeting and the accuracy of the voice recognition itself and these are just the things we can measure now.

“I’m super excited for the launch because this wasn’t a product that was easy to create –it’s very complex because of the machine learning elements, but also the amount of time that’s gone into testing it with real-life users to ensure we’ve built something that’s simple, intuitive and valuable.

“The feedback has been phenomenal. I was speaking to a firm we’ve been trialling the platform with and they thought that our product was both more accurate and easier to use than a very well funded American competitor.

“Creating this product and this business has been one of the most challenging experiences of my life because it has demanded such a level of focus and resilience – and I trained as a martial artist for five years. There have been two really big challenges. The first is the same for any tech company selling solutions to large corporations and that’s establishing credibility.

“The second has been fund raising. There are still very few women seeking investment in businesses in general and especially in the tech and STEM sectors and that makes it tough.

“That’s slowly beginning to change and there are a few different initiatives that are encouraging girls and women to embrace technology and see the potential of it.

“As a business, we have some key targets to try and attract more women to join the sector and one of our machine learning engineers is a woman, so it’s been a great experience to share this journey with her. I hope many more will come to work in tech for Alchemy Machines or others.”

Dia will be speaking at LegalEx at 2pm on November 23 at Excel in Royal Docks. Alchemy Machines’ platform is set to officially launch next month. For more details go to legalex.co.uk or alchemymachines.ai

Dia’s company is based at Level39, Canary Wharf’s tech community centred on a number of floors at One Canada Square

Scan this code to find out more about Alchemy Machines

Image by Jon Massey

by Jon Massey

Piers Torday is no stranger to creating festive adaptations for the ancient boards of Wilton’s Music Hall in Wapping. The children’s author, best known for The Last Wild series, has brought John Masefield’s The Box Of Delights, Charles Dickens’ A Christmas Carol and last year Elizabeth Gaskell’s The Old Nurse’s Tale (rechristened as The Child In The Snow) to the east London stage.

November 2022, however, sees him go beyond renaming as he and the team retool Kenneth Grahame’s The Wind In The Willows as a modern Christmas show, complete with strikethrough.

The Wind In The Willows Wilton’s takes the original book’s familiar characters, takes them out of the Edwardian period and carries them into the 21st century, with the plot also pulled further down stream into central London.

“We changed the name partly because it was irresistible not to, but also to reflect the fact that this is a slightly different version of the story from one that people may have seen before,” said Piers.

“It’s always been adapted in period dress, full Edwardian, with colourful waistcoats and police in uniforms – and I’ve much enjoyed those versions – but we wanted to bring things up to date a bit to reflect the world we live in and the audiences that we serve at Wilton’s.

“So we’ve not set it down the Thames in Cookham – where Kenneth Grahame lived – we’ve brought it downstream, where the river goes past Wilton’s, and into the heart of London and the City.

“It’s set now in 2022, Mole lives in Hyde Park and we’ve moved the Wild Wood to the financial district, and we’ve balanced the gender make-up so it’s not just chaps having a jolly good time.

“In doing that, however, we’ve remained completely faithful to the spirit of the book.

“When it was written, the book was unbelievably modern – full of stuff about motor cars and the characters having very contemporary adventures.

“Increasingly over time those things have become nostalgic, and the spirit of the book is about being very current.”

In addition to altering some details

In the book, rather madly, Christmas happens two-thirds of the way through. We’ve rearranged the story so that it takes place at the end

breathing new life into a

of the setting, Piers has also shifted the timeline around to reflect the season.

“The Wind In The Willows famously starts in spring, with Mole doing his cleaning, but in the book, rather madly, Christmas happens two-thirds of the way through,” he said.

“We’ve rearranged it so that Christmas takes place at the end – we’ve ordered the events more logically. I don’t want to give too much away, but it’s still about four friends and I think most people can recognise themselves or their friends in the main characters.

“Toad Hall will still be taken over by the weasels but part of the fun is for audiences to see what we’ve done with it.

“It’s been a huge amount of fun, putting it together – no-one has really updated the story before so it’s been the most brilliant opportunity and we’ve done it with lots of song and dance.

“The original book is actually full of songs woven into the story, so we’ve used quite a lot of those lyrics and written some to complement them.

“What many people also forget about this story is that it contains some of the most beautiful descriptions of the English countryside in literature.

“Kenneth Grahame wasn’t really a writer, as such; he was someone who dabbled in writing and became famous

through this book, but he definitely had a poet’s ear for describing our riverbanks, our natural flora and fauna.

“It’s not very dramatic, but we’ve tried to honour that as we tell the story in the age of climate crisis, so it’s going to be full of real bits of nature. We’ve tried not to buy anything new, but to use everything, which is as sustainable and low-impact on the environment as possible. It will look spectacular, but it’s not going to cost the earth.”

For Piers, the task of adapting The Wind In The Willows was more than just about creating a festive show.

“I’ve always wanted to adapt it,” he

said. “I write books about talking animals and I date my curiosity in that area to my parents reading me The Wind In The Willows. Some of the characters I’ve created myself are probably the result of numerous reiterations that started with Mole or Ratty.

“Even if they’ve not read the book, the audience will probably be aware of the idea of irresponsible Mr Toad, grumpy Badger in his sett or the very shy Mole blinking in the sunlight – it’s part of our national culture. To bring this London version of the story to life is a real joy.

“I think talking animals are very appealing because they allow children to experience adult emotions without feeling that they’re having to be little adults. In the story the animals live in houses of their own, they have their own occupations, they drive cars, they go to the shops, they go to court, so they do adult things – but there’s something enormously childlike about them too. They’re larger-than-life characters.”

While The Wind In The Willows Wilton’s is not a pantomime, Piers said it had been written to entertain all ages, including some topical references – a challenge given the current political turmoil.

“When I started writing, the character of Toad was irresistibly like Boris Johnson, but those references have all gone, for the moment,” he said.

“It’s not a panto, so it’s not going to be full of up-to-the minute references to the latest thing or celebrity gossip – but it is a Christmas show and they always have an end-of-term-sketch feel about them

“You want to draw people together. It’s very different to working on a normal play. For many, especially young people, a Christmas show might be the only time they will go to the theatre with their parents.

“It’s a family outing, so you have to try to include everyone and it’s Christmas so you have to remember people are there to have a nice time.

“To do that you have to have stories and jokes that operate on many levels.

Children will see the show as a battle, a story with funny scenes of Toad getting cross and losing something, but there may also be references for adults about the cost-of-living crisis or whatever else is going on, to make them feel they’re included in the story too. While it’s absolutely terrifying to work on some thing like this because you can see how it’s received every night, it’s also a great privilege to see those responses.

“Theatre is irresistible and thrilling because it is something that happens in the moment. That experience – when someone makes it work – is the most special one you can have.”

The Wind In The Willows Wilton’s runs at Wilton’s Music Hall from November 24 to December 31. Performance times are 7.30pm with Saturday matinees at 2.30pm. Tickets start at £13.

Go to wiltons.org.uk

how adapting Kenneth Grahame’s classic as The Wind In The Willows Wilton’s has been a nostalgic festive pleasure for author Piers Torday, setting the much-loved tale in London, 2022

Piers Torday, Wilton’s Music Hall

The entrance to Wilton’s Music Hall

The auditorium at Wilton’s will be lled with a contemporary take on The Wind In The Willows this Christmas

Christmas adaptations Piers

at Wilton’s Music

in Wapping

what’s on things to do, places to

people to see

Where? Troxy Limehouse

GIG | Ze Neto E Cristiano

Having formed in 2011, this Brazilian duo have risen steadily, truly reaching the big time in 2018 following the release of their second EP Acústico. Nov 20, 7pm, from £61.70, troxy.co.uk

Where? Half Moon Theatre Limehouse

KIDS | Woodland Tales With Grandad

This magical story is set in the woods and features a cast of extraordinary puppets who deliver an important tale with an environmental message. Nov 19, 11am, 2pm, £7, halfmoon.org.uk

Where? Wilton’s Music Hall Wapping

ash back

St Katharine Docks has become home to Northeastern University London , which is seeking to reach out to the local community with an open evening on November 26 for prospective students nchlondon.ac.uk

Scan this code to read our interview with NU London CEO Rob Faquharson at wharf-life.com

GIG | Carradine’s Cockney Sing-A-Long

The greatest moustache in East End entertainment returns to Wilton’s to shake the timbers with some rousing renditions of musical classics. ‘Av a banana. Nov 15, 7.30pm, from £7, wiltons.org.uk

Author Piers Torday

at Wilton’s Music Hall

Where? The Space Isle Of Dogs

To help raise money for a new lift in the building, The Space is hosting a quiz night with endish and simple questions sure to test the grey matter.

Nov 11, 7pm, £5, space.org.uk

Where?

Poplar Union Poplar

Nov 11, 7pm, free, poplarunion.com

Where? The Space Isle Of Dogs

by Laura En eld

This contemporary dark comedy is set in London and tells the story of a young couple quarantined in a studio apartment due to an unknown virus.

Nov 17-20, times vary, £15, space.org.uk

With canisters strewn all over the Isle Of Dogs, we take a look at the risks to spinal health inhaling nitrous oxide can cause, identi ed in a new campaign by sta and students at Queen Mary University in east London @n2oknowtherisks

When Laura Zabo moved to Tanzania in 2015, she was seeking change.

Her business in Hungary had failed and she needed a new passion. What she found there were dirty old tyres. She loved them.

“Africans recycle everything and, one day, I was walking through the local Maasai market and found some brightly painted sandals made out of car tyres,” said Laura. “They were so pretty and colourful and I found this a brilliant idea – that such an unwanted material could become so useful.

“I realised I wanted to show the world that we can recycle tyres and we have to, because we just have too much waste.”

She immediately started buying supplies and tools and learning how to transform the rubber into wearable objects such as belts and shoes – sometimes working 15 hours without eating.

“I just felt like: ’Wow, this is the mission of my life,’.” she said. “I was sure, with my creativity, that

I could make pretty items people would want.”

By the time she moved to London, jewellery was her focus and she began selling at markets in italfields and reenwich and at craft events in between day jobs in marketing and hospitality.

It revived the entrepreneurial s irit she had first discovered aged eight – selling beaded jewellery at school – but which had been dampened by the failure of her homoeopathy business.

“When that happened I was really depressed and was just surviving because I really didn’t know what I should do with my life,” said Laura

“I moved to Africa to reset and find something interesting that could really dedicate my life to.”

After she discovered it, London called to her because of the freedom it offered.

“I come from a much more conservative country – the UK really has the vibe of opportunities,” she said. “If you come here and believe in something, you can make it happen.”

The 43-year-old has lived across the capital including in Lewisham and Margate – she’s now on a boat in West India South Dock. But when it came to her business

ash black

Scan this code to read our interview with QMU medical student Devan Mair who is leading the campaign

CONTEST | Spacelift Quiz

STAGE | Surviving Strangers

GIG | Yijia And Samad Majid

The powerful Chinese singer songwriter is set to perform at the Poplar venue for the latest in its Friday Sessions series with support from Samad.

Laura designs belts for women and men with prices starting at £29

Inner tubes and 30 tyres are recycled by Laura every month

Laura shows o her latest design – the hand-painted Manahattan Necklace, £75

Scan this code to nd out more about Laura Zabo

elevating that waste rubber

how eco-conscious maker Laura Zabo turns dirty old bike tyres into a fabulous array of rainbow products

she realised she needed a more ermanent base and landed at raft entral on the sle f ogs’s Westferry oad in ebruary.

was making from home before, but it was really uncom fortable, after so many years, she said.

ometimes would finish working at midnight and the ne t morning there was rubber everywhere. knew that if had my own works ace, could focus much more.

find the s ace at raft entral so ins irational and really like that the sle f ogs is like a iece of countryside in ondon er su lies mostly come from a tyre recycling firm but she often o s to anary Wharf to collect su lies from i i ’s bike servicing and re air sho at West ferry ircus. ou won’t find her edalling though, as aura isn’t a fan of cycling – or the cleaning re uired when tyres arrive.

verything is dirty and has to be sorted because each ty e of tyre has a different ur ose, she said. When ’m sorting them get com letely dirty and then the tyres have to be cut in half and soaked for a few hours in disin fectant before start scrubbing.

nce they are dry, the inner tubes are ready for crafting into delicate necklaces and earrings but the tyres, which she uses for belts, have to be ainted to make them erfectly black.

aura can make around ieces a week and her biggest seller is the urlywurly ecklace, which she said would be im os sible to make from any other material.

rices range from for a air of leaf earrings to for her statement necklaces and aura said it had been a conscious choice to charge as little as ossible.

come from a very oor family and know how bad it is when you like something and you ust don’t have money for it, she said.

didn’t want someone to be unable to afford my ieces. lso, some customers are unsure how eo le will react if they buy recycled bicycle inner tube ewellery, so don’t want the rice

to ut them off. More sales means can s read my message.

t has been working. ales have increased fourfold this year and aura has been inundated with re uests for collaborations and hotoshoots.

am so ha y eo le are valuing my items, she said. really feel the bu from every direction and like it is becoming something very o ular.

bviously, this is what wanted when started this business, but for many years eo le laughed at me when told them my ob was to recycle tyres and said was not normal. ow it’s becoming an industry and it’s brilliant.

aura believes her success is down to a change in her mindset.

have read about books since ovember about business and ersonal develo ment and feel much more focused on my goals, she said. think once your way is clear, you feel more stable in your ourney and good things ha en more easily.

nlike many makers who guard their rocesses, aura is now keen to share hers widely.

My ne t call is to o en a sho and teach my techni ues to make eo le realise anyone can make money out of u cycling, she said. t has been a game changer in my life. When craft, it is like meditation.

ven if you sell it very chea ly, the fact you created something and someone wants to buy it, will really change your life. cycling also teaches us what we throw away and that our main focus should be on creating instead of useless hobbies like sho ing.

aura, who buys of her clothes second hand, added find fast fashion so useless and su er stu id. eo le work so hard, then buy valueless items nonsto and it ust doesn’t make any sense for me. would love to ins ire eo le to try crafting instead. think every market should have one erson who sells u cycled tyre ewellery. ho e to be the erson who teaches them how to do that.

Go to laurazabo.com

See the work of Craft Central experts, including Laura Zabo, up-close at Craft Central’s home at The Forge from November 19-20, 10.30am -5pm.

The charity will be hosting an Open Studios and Winter Market event, which is free to visit and includes Silphi ‘s Venetian coloured glass jewellery and Pon Studio’s playful homeware.

The gallery space will be full of items to browse and buy, including Frank Horn’s leather accessories, Sato Hisao’s pop-up cards and paper craft and other products such as home accessories, jewellery,

fashion, prints, ceramics, stationery and textiles, from £2.50 to £500.

There will be drop-in, pay-what- you-can workshops from noon-4pm in badge making on the Saturday and Christmas deco ration painting on the Sunday. Also, Carb Club will host Paint Your Own Pieces ceramics workshops all weekend and, on the Saturday, Sarah Richards will run an upcycling DIY Christmas Jumper workshop for £15 adult, £10 child. Both require pre-booking. Go to craftcentral.org.uk

Images by Matt Grayson

The best selling Curlywurly Necklace, £59

shop local Winter Market

by Laura En eld

Iranian artist Gisou Golshani left their home in Tehran to escape the country’s repressive regime. The 24-year-old came to London and will be part of this year’s Disturbance event, which champions LGBTQIA+ artists.

t runs at gly uck in Bermondsey from November 10-12 and Gisou will be drawing on their Persian heritage for a multi-sensory, immersive instal lation and performance. We sat down with them to find out more.

the show

My performance will explore the story of a melancholic Persian bird, called the bittern, through an immersive film and sound installation and intuitive body movements. I’m hoping the space and performance will allow audiences to listen introspectively, to reflect on the story of this bird, and to make their ersonal inter retations of the work.

their inspiration

I have been researching melan cholia for the past few years, and recently came across the story of this semi-mythical Persian bird, which is somewhat looked down upon for its melancholia.

felt the urge to look into this melancholy from a new perspective.

the aim

I hope people will be inspired to learn more about Persian symbolism and mythology.

I want viewers to feel encour aged to make their own inter re tations about what they see, hear and feel.

There’s not only one way that you can inter ret the work and every interpretation and thought that comes up during or after the performance is valid and worth thinking about.

why Disturbance?

I attended the last showcase

and was captivated by the performances.

I thought it would be a great opportunity to test ideas in a new setting and get guidance from experienced professionals.

the challenge

The biggest for me is to believe in an idea that initially comes u . fter some time, find my flow and start working without doubting myself.

ometimes, it takes time to believe in a ro ect or find purpose in what I want to do or what think want to do.

But when I get myself immersed through having conversations with eo le or finding research material that interests me, I feel driven and stop questioning why I’m doing something.

leaving Iran

’ve known wanted to do some thing creative since I was very young. Growing up in Tehran, at some point in my teens, I felt it would be very di cult to ush for original and provocative ideas, to be able to express myself in a society where there is so much surveillance and censorship.

I visited London and it presented an opportunity for me to express myself more freely, as a creative queer Iranian.

the protests

Initially, I found it strange that my residency and showcase with Disturbance was coinciding with protests in Iran.

I felt as if anything I might do during this time wouldn’t compare to people’s resistance in the streets. However, I feel so empowered and hopeful watching the feminist uprisings.

Beyond the story of the bittern, my performance is also about how mismanagement of the Islamic regime has caused exhaustion of Iran’s water resources.

So I feel what I am investigating and researching during this residency is in direct dialogue with the current protests.

Follow @gisougolshani on Insta

how Ugly Duck in Bermondsey is helping marginalised and emerging artists share their work

Ugly Duck’s Tanner Street base

Artists have been selected to be part of Disturbance at Ugly Duck

Gisou will use ritualistic movement, collaged visuals and a multilayered soundscape to investigate melancholia in relation to the current droughts in Iran

Image by Tom Morley

Disabled, queer video artist Olivia Morrison presents Hug Me Properly following young, queer people on a night out as they discuss how their lives changed during the pandemic.

It’s something we started as a really small experiment during the pandemic, when LGBTQIA+ artists couldn’t continue their work and were in limbo,” said Deen Atger, creative director of Ugly Duck and founder of Disturbance

That rst event in October 2020 came about after he spent hours scrolling the internet and decided he wanted to nd a way to continue sharing the creativity he saw online and happening at Ugly Duck.

It saw three performers and three video artists perform to an audience of 25 in person, and 250 through a live stream.

The idea was to take artists out of their bedrooms and adapt their performances for the camera, to reach a wider audience.

Deen adding a development programme to this year’s Disturbance

It will include a residency and training in topics like how to talk about their work and how to make sure it’s accessible.

“A lot of the artists, especially the younger ones, have really good artistic training, but haven’t necessarily learnt how to go into a professional world,” said Deen.

“I think it’s really important to help them with that so they can become less marginalised.”

Revisiting their marginalised queer experience of growing up in southern China, River Cao will create a series of self-narrative spaces to rethink the emotions of grief.

This year will see the fourth edition of Disturbance take place and, with support from Arts Council England, it has evolved into a three-day event.

It will include live performances at Ugly Duck’s Tanner Street space, a day of live streaming on November 11 and an online portal where people will be able to access work made during the workshops and lms made during the performances.

The live streaming aspect has been developed with Rob Hall from the start and Deen said it was an artistic work in its own right.

Ugly Duck, which celebrates its 10th anniversary this year, had more than 120 applications for this year’s programme.

The nal 10 were chosen by a panel and will be mentored by creatives who have taken part in the programme previously –another way Deen is trying to grow their support system.

“We are very focused on elevating underrepresented voices – artists who are not always at the forefront of contemporary art,” he said.

STAGE | Dry Season

Where? Canada Water Theatre Canada Water

After being diagnosed with menopause at 39, Kat Lyons wrote a play to overcome the stigma surrounding it and share knowledge and empathy.

Nov 10, 8pm, £14, canadawatertheatre.org.uk

Where? Creekside Discovery Centre Creekside

WALK | Low Tide Walk

Waders and mudsticks are provided for this exploration of the riverbed. Walk with experts and nd out about the local and natural history.

Nov 20, 2pm-4pm, £15, creeksidecentre.org.uk

Where? Printworks Surrey Quays

Non-binary trans-masculine person Orlando Myxx presents lm The Plastic Drag, investigating how a new wave of diverse drag artists is rede ning the art of drag and its subversive potential.

“He doesn’t just lm the show, he is also live editing and has a very strong artistic take on what the online viewer is seeing,” said Deen, who has also been working with set designers to help transform Tanner Street into something new and surprising for audiences.

Since Ugly Duck took on the empty Victorian warehouse in 2012, the organisation has transformed the space into a thriving, creative hub where it has collaborated with more than 1,500 artists.

This work continues, with

“It is very important for me to make sure Disturbance is not just an isolated thing. I’m trying to develop an ecosystem, where artists come back as juries and speakers and mentors who are upskilling and still developing.

“It’s very much thanks to artists who took part in the rst event, when we didn’t have much funding, that we got to where we are. So it’s very important for me to continue getting them involved.”

Go to uglyduck.org.uk

ash back

Talia Beale’s To Trudge In Zundon explores how lm could subvert ideas about housing estates and addresses new voices of creative, queer kids who live in blocks of ats.

Head to The Albany in Deptford for Quiet Rebels, which deals with the stories of women who married men of colour. The play is set to run from November 9-11 and tickets cost £14 for all performances tehalbany.org.uk

Scan this code to read our interview with Quiet Rebels co-writer and co-director Julie McNamara

I’m trying to develop an ecosystem, where artists come back as juries and speakers and mentors who are upskilling and still developing

Deen Atger,

Duck

this code to nd out more about Disturbance

MUSIC | London Jazz Festival 30th Birthday Traditional jazz meets underground electronic music from The Hydra at this celebration. Bonobo, Danilo Plessow, Zakia and Mafalda will also perform. Nov 19, noon-11pm, from £24.50, printworkslondon.co.uk

by David Lefebvre Sell

Abs. Are they worth sacri cing those Greggs breakfasts for? Our needs constantly con ict

I‘ve heard it said recently that there is no growth in the comfort zone, and no comfort in the growth zone. I can’t remember who said it, but it was probably a CrossFitter.

Nevertheless, personal growth of any kind does require us to push ourselves outside our comfort zones – this is the main reason that it’s so di cult. All of us feel stuck at some point in our lives. We want to make some positive changes to our relationships, jobs or bodies, but we are unable to make that change stick.

Why is this? Partly it’s due to con icting desires – I want to have six pack abs, but I also want to eat breakfast at Greggs four days a week. We cannot simultaneously ful l contradictory needs, and we must see and understand how those needs might con ict with each other in order to be able to choose the more ful lling path.

The fact is that we cannot move towards one thing without also moving away from something else, and some people are paralysed by the fear of the nality of that decision.

But wait, it gets worse. Let’s go back to the idea of those six pack abs that I so predictably covet.

David Lefebvre Sell

What if I have a lifelong habit of self soothing with food? Meal planning will actually remove a coping mechanism – not an easy thing to do without support.

Or what if I have a deeply held belief that I am ugly? There are many ways that our past might hold us back from a better future, in order to make a positive change we have to start by believing it’s actually possible.

Unfortunately, many people continue to believe that they can bully themselves into being better versions of themselves, and this can even work for a time. But that approach never leads to greater awareness. It is only through understanding the con icts that hold us back that we can really move past them.

work making a place for

by Jon Massey

When I was a boy, on visits to my grand parents’ house, one of the highlights was an ancient bureau. This may mark me out as a peculiar child, but this dark, mysterious piece of furniture, with its polished wood and an infinite number of drawers, nooks and pigeon holes, held a universe of possibilities and secrets.

In reality, it contained old gas bills and bits of unused string. I wasn’t to know. I mention it because it shares some qualities with Bureau on Greenwich Peninsula – itself a multifunctional place of possibility.

Spread across two buildings at Knight Dragon’s Design District, the creative industries co-working space, membership club, bar and restaurant does many things – like that antique piece of furniture.

But its myriad spaces are anything but dark and mysterious, even if the ale grey fluting on one of the buildings has something of the roll top desk lid about it. Instead both blocks, designed variously by Architecture 00 and HNNA, are light, airy and functional.

“It’s somewhere for freelancers, gig workers, start-ups and small businesses that want to stay small – it’s secure, professional and very good-looking,” said Design District director Helen Arvanitakis.

“To give it some context, these two buildings are occupied entirely by Bureau, with the interior design created by Roz Barr Architects.

It was important for us to have a single company doing that because even though the two buildings look different, eo le should get the sense in both that they are still in Bureau.

“From the outside, one feels quite angular and macho with a lot of exposed concrete, while the other has an undulating facade with more exposed timber and windows that punctuate the walls, creating pockets of light throughout the building rather than big, open expanses.”

Access to Bureau comes at many levels, with day passes available for £15 plus VAT, covering use of a

desk from 8am to 8pm. Monthly hot desking costs , fi ed desks are £230 and serviced studios start at £280 per desk, all plus VAT.

Helen said: “We do vet applicants to some extent, although we’re fairly relaxed. We broadly follow the government definition of the creative industries – which is a really wide group, everything from heritage, museums and galleries, through to fashion, advertising and so on.

“However, we’ve expanded that a little bit, because we’ve found that there’s real value for our members and tenants to have businesses that are on the periphery of the creative industry. For instance, we have a specialist in intellectual property law, and that comes up a lot in the sector –it’s something that adds value to the community.”

That word – community – is at the

heart of the Design District project and Bureau is much more than a co-working silo with some interesting looking neighbours.

s a member, the benefits include being in a professional environment with someone on reception and lots of spaces you can use within the buildings,” said Helen. “There are phone booths, meeting pods, book able rooms with big screens and all the kit for doing video-conferencing, presentations and so on.

“We also have a totally fantastic restaurant with a brilliant team of chefs, which is open into the evening as a full-on bar.

“Then we also have an events rogramme with a good mi of stuff designed to inspire people and to educate them on particular aspects of the creative industries.

“But there’s also a lot of interaction between Bureau and the tenants in the other buildings at Design District. We wondered when we were setting it up whether we would be able to achieve that, because the temptation

It is only through understanding the con icts that hold us back, that we can really move past them

a breath

David Lefebvre Sell is a Greenwich-based psychotherapist and Yoga instructor who teaches at Third Space in Canary Wharf

Follow @davetheyogi on Twitter and Instagram and @DavidLefebvreSellYogaAndPsychotherapy on FB

Scan this code for information about David’s work as a transpersonal counsellor and psychotherapist

how Bureau at Design District o ers myriad ways to accommodate creative businesses

Design District director Helen Arvanitakis says Bureau is all about creating community both within its two buildings and in the wider area

Bureau includes many breakout spaces for collaboration

Greenwich - Peninsula

Woolwich

Facilities at Bureau

is to hang out with Bureau members. So we regularly host social events and work hard to introduce businesses and individuals where there’s cross-over.

“For example, one of our members is a company that designs beautiful books. They recently worked on a knitting guide written by Tom Daly and used a post-production company based at Design District as a venue to do the photography shoot with him. Having that proximity was really helpful. I know we can all do things remotely, but creatives work better collaboratively when they are face-to-face.”

elen first worked on the Peninsula project in her capacity as managing director of product designer Tom Dixon’s studio. It played a major role in kitting out the gallery space and the now (sadly) closed Craft Restaurant as well as some of the Upper Riverside apartment buildings.

She said: “I’d always enjoyed working with Knight Dragon and stayed in touch with them after I left Tom Dixon. I went on to work with lots of small creative firms on the business side. The reason Knight Dragon was keen for me to work on Design District was because of that experience, I had an insight into the sector and understood what would motivate those small businesses to take a particular space.

“We have 14 buildings, soon to be 16. There’s one block where we’re looking for a tenant and a couple of smaller spaces, but the whole development is basically let.

“Bureau gives us that entry point for individuals and smaller companies. We offer a warm, welcoming environment and we’ve worked hard to fi our energy costs so we won’t be putting up our prices for the forseeable future.”

Go to bureau.club for more details

Scan this code to nd out more about space at Bureau

what’s on things to do, places to go, people to see

Where? The Queen’s House Greenwich

SKATE | The Queen’s House Ice Rink Slip, slide, glide backwards and even pirouette as the slippery stu returns at the heart of historic Greenwich. Ideal for the festive season. Nov 17-Jan 8, times vary, from £16, rmg.co.uk

Where? Fireworks Factory Woolwich Works

EVENT | An Evening With Shaun Ryder

O’ come all ye faithful, joyful and triumphant, to hear the words of the Happy Mondays and Black Grape frontman in a candid Q&A. Pills, thrills, bellyaches. Nov 17, 7.30pm, £10.50, woolwich.works

Where? Greenwich Theatre Greenwich

STAGE | Grubby Little Mitts

This slapstick sitcom has a avour of the surreal as sketches breakout across the stage at breakneck speed. Expect strange realities and weirdness Nov 11-12, 6.30pm, £15, greenwichtheatre.org.uk

ash back

Discover the work and workshops at Made By Manos a studio and pottery at Design District on Greenwich Peninsula where there’s plenty to buy, see and do. Expect the experimental and get stuck into some ceramics madebymanos.com

Scan this code to read our interview online with Manos about his business at wharf-life.com

I know we can all do things remotely, but creatives work better collaboratively when they are face-to-face

Helen Arvanitakis, Design District

include The Long Table, a space for makers to work and sit together

Where?

Victoria

EVENT | Working From Home Live

There’s more to remote working than pjs and Zoom. This trade event showcases innovations from garden pods to virtual experiences and o ce furniture. Nov 19-20, 10am-5pm, free, workingfromhomelive.co.uk

Where?

Beams Factory Road

GIG | Junction 2

One of London’s premier dance music festivals brings a special edition led by Drumcode’s Adam Beyer and techno pioneer Richie Hawtin. Nov 12, noon, from £24.50, thebeamslondon.com

Victoria Dock

EVENT | Women Of Silicone Roundabout

Founded in 2015, this is the agship event in the Women In Tech Series, and the original centrepiece of the global gender diversity movement in tech. Nov 22-23, from £415, women-in-technology.com

ash

Discover Perky Blenders X Good Vibes – a cafe that puts mental health, good co ee and food at the heart of everything it does from its home at Expressway in Royal Victoria Dock. Expect some seriously uplifting brews wegorgoodvibes.com

Good Vibes entrepreneur Roxanna Lyssa

wharf-life.com

seasonal show at Art In The Docks

Running from November 17-27, artists’ collective Art In The Docks will be hosting a Thursday-Sunday group exhibition of members’ works and a series of wellbeing workshops. Open daily from 12.30pm to 6pm at its dedicated Royal Albert Wharf event space, visitors can expect plenty to see and do at WinterFest.

While details have yet to be con rmed in full, previous shows have featured works by Art In The Docks members Christopher Mike, Sarah Land, Vincenzo Muratore, Colin Gold and Yuliya V Krylova. The collective works in partnership with Bow Arts and housing association Notting Hill Genesis, which is developing Royal Albert Wharf. Go to artinthedocks.com for more information about the exhibition and workshops

Royal Albert Dock

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Stratford

helping out a vital

auction on the opening night and framed prints (minimum donation £50) will be on sale.

Photographer Neil Martinson – artist-inresidence at Two More Years on Fish Island – is holding an exhibition and sale of prints to raise funds for Hackney Foodbank.

Growing up in Hackney in the 1970s, Neil began taking photos while still at school and continues to document this area.

Rare Hackney is set to open on October 19, with a total of 86 images available to view until November 15. The work captures times of work, protest and play on Hackney’s streets and in its businesses, documenting its people and places in the 1970s and 1980s.

There will be a blind

Unframed prints are also available (minimum donation £30). The exhibition, which will also feature a preview of Neil’s latest work, will be open every day from 9am to 11pm.

All proceeds will go to support the work of Hackney Foodbank. Founded in 2012 by local churches and community groups to tackle the problem of hunger in the area, the organisation provides food and household items o ering immediate relief to its users in moments of crisis.

It also aims to put people in touch with organisations who can help them address the root causes and wider e ects of poverty in their lives. In

2021, Hackney Foodbank helped 6,900 people who paid some 19,320 visits to it to collect food and household essentials.

However, the need is growing. The UK is gripped by a cost of living crisis, spiralling in ation and soaring energy costs. That has seen the charity giving out 300 parcels most weeks this year, about double the number seen in its busiest week in 2018.

Neil’s work can also be bought via his website. Go to martinsonneail.my portfolio.com for details

what’s

things to do, places to go, people to see

Where? Stratford Picturehouse Stratford

SCREEN | ROH Live: The Royal Ballet

This showcase celebrates the 60th anniversary of The Friends Of Covent Garden and includes new short ballets by Pam Tanowitz and Joseph Toonga. Nov 16, 7.15pm, £22, picturehouses.com

Where? Theatre Royal Stratford East Stratford

STAGE | Cinderella

This year’s panto has a distinctly Egyptian theme as the tale of Cinders gets a new home, complete with sphinx cats, pharaohs and Cleopatra.

Nov 19-Jan 7, times vary, from £10, stratfordeast.com

Where? London Aquatic Centre Queen Elizabeth Olympic Park

SPORT | Marathon Swims London

Take on distances of 1k, 5k or 10k individually or as part of a team. Participants must be 18 or over and spectator tickets cost £9.50 for supporters.

Nov 12, times + prices vary, queenelizabetholympicpark.co.uk

screen time

While we’re not sure exactly when, Everyman is set to open a cinema at International Quarter London in Stratford in 2024, having signed a deal with developer Lendlease, as it expands its portfolio of screens internationalquarter.london

Scan this code to to nd out more about IQL in Stratford, what’s there and how the area is developing

Garment factory, Shacklewell Lane, 1981, by Neil Martinson

Hackney and

seen

Scan this code for more about Rare Hackney on Neil’s site

by Jon Massey

how photographer Neil Martinson is showing and selling prints of his work to help a foodbank

Notes

Set by Everden