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Afte r many years of neglect,
and strong campaigning by many local residents, the Stoke Newington Town Hall Assembly
Rooms are to be saved and restored. The Council is now looking for a partner to undertake
the renovation work and to bring the building back into use for both commercial and
community use. In the meantime, the Council is to ensure that the building is properly
safeguarded, made wind and water tight, insured and supervised, at a cost of £30,000. The
final cost will be much higher, but it is the only large venue for a considerable distance
and has great potential to be used regularly again.
In the past, the Assembly Rooms have been used for concerts, weddings, large family
parties and local schools event. As for music, who can forget Dodgy's brilliant gig a
couple of years ago or, at the other end of the spectrum, the annual Opera Cabaret. In the
1940s and 1950s, the phrase 'Going up Stokey?' meant the Assembly Rooms Saturday night
dance (which, incidentally answers the criticism that the term 'Stokey' has been coined by
recent incomers to the area).
The Town Hall itself has quietly been filling up, with a variety of Council departments
moving back into this historic building. Bringing back staff and visitors to the Town Hall
area during the day has resulted in far more people making use of the shops and bars at
this end of Church Street, a much-needed boost for local traders.
Bring me the head of Daniel Defoe. The Clissold Residents Association
have written to Hackney Council to complain about the removal of the plinth, headstone and
bust of Daniel Defoe from the entrance to Stoke Newington Library. This follows on from
the removal of the Chalmers Bequest - a collection of 17th -19th century oil paintings,
carvings, water colours, porcelain and bronzes - in 1993. The letter complains that 'these
items have resided here quite happily for many, many years as a feature of our local
history and a number of our members are upset that more of our local "family
silver" is being pillaged… we "dissenters" in Stoke Newington are most
aggrieved that the items were removed without a by-your leave or word of explanation'.
The great man now holds court in the new Hackney Museum on Mare Street and Museum staff
say that urgent repairs and renovation were required to the bust. But will they send it
back once Defoe has been restored to a pristine state? And, while we're about it, can we
have Marc Bolan's leather top hat back from the V&A?
While on the subject of the elfin electric warrior, Marc Bolan died twenty-five
years ago last month when his Mini crashed into a tree in Barnes. Born on Stoke Newington
Common in 1947, with his birthplace now marked by a blue plaque, Bolan spent his youth in
N16 and became an international star, recording such classics as 'Telegram Sam' and 'Get
It On'. N16 is hoping to establish a fund to celebrate Stokey's finest muso and
commemorate his life with a specially-commissioned statue, to be donated to the Library.
More details in our next edition.
The Stoke Newington Festival may have seen its last event unless a group
of people can be found to make it continue. To try and prevent this closure, a gathering
has been arranged at the Fire Station on Stoke Newington Church Street on Tuesday 29th
October at 7:30pm. If you can help in any way, or want to show your support for the
Festival continuing, please come along and help make it happen. That doesn't have to be
all, folks!
The Council seems determined to prevent Hackney residents addressing the
full Council over the ongoing library dispute. Two previous deputations were blocked in
May and June and, despite apparently offering assurances that an address would be
permitted in September, the Council again reneged. A demo and public meeting in support of
the striking librarians takes place on 5 October outside Hackney Town Hall, followed by a
rally at the Bullion Theatre
On the buses. January next year is the scheduled date for the new 476. As
it will run along existing bus routes it will not be vulnerable to the kind of delay that
has dogged the 393. Its route will follow the 76 from Northumberland Park to Stoke
Newington (via Tottenham, Seven Sisters and Stamford Hill), and then follow the route of
the 73 as far as Euston (ie via Church Street, Newington Green, Essex Road, Angel, and
King's Cross/St Pancras). It will run every 8 minutes most times, and every 12 minutes on
evenings and Sundays. It will provide much-needed additional capacity along the route 73
corridor, and they will be new low-floor fully-accessible buses.
No new bus routes for ages then two come along at once! Also within the next 6 months will
be the new half-hourly N76, following the same route as the daytime 76 to give another
24-hour service and Stoke Newington's fifth night bus (the others being N73, N106, N149,
and N243).
The Vortex has re-opened after extensive refurbishment and has renewed
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