You may laugh, but
would you wear size 6 shoes when you really need size 8? Of course
not – think of the discomfort. Yet 70% of women wear the wrong
size bra. Between 16 and 18 June there will be a fitting festival
held at Rosa, the corsetry and lingerie specialist in Church Street.
Established in 1939, Rosa has helped women find the correct size
bra for over 67years. To celebrate these years of achievement and
the history of underwear, the shop is offering three days of discounts,
free gifts and raffles. Check the window exhibition showing the
history of the bra and corset, then go in and be fitted.
According to informed sources, media darling Pete
Doherty – that clean-living, super-model dating, moral example
to us all – attended a private party at Barracuda in mid-May
at a John Etheridge gig. Apparently, he later took part in a jam
session, described as ‘brilliant’, although the late
hour and the alcohol may have coloured our correspondent’s
opinion. Don’t let them grind you down, Pete.
Happy first birthday to the new Vortex. The anniversary
month of May was headlined on the 17th of the month with a concert
by jazz legends John Dankworth and Cleo Laine, among a host of other
luminaries. A ground-floor café is now open and there are
plans to open a record shop in the newly-built building, while Gillett
Square is being refurbished (for a different view of what constitutes
‘refurbished’ read Penny Rimbaud on page xx). Visit
the Vortex website on www.vortexjazz.co.uk to find out about their
forthcoming programme.
There was a lot of running round Clissold Park
in May. First off was the Stoke Run, sponsored by Sunstone Health
Club, and a week later the Auld Shillelagh Fun Run. The former was
to raise funds for Stokefest, and the latter for St Joseph’s
Hospice. Tomas, landlord at the Shillelagh, is pictured at the beginning
of the 10 km run with his partner Lorraine (above). Well done to
the Shillelagh, who raised well over £2000, and to everyone
who competed in both events.
A good crowd turned up in late
April to celebrate the Stoke Newington Bookshop being chosen by
the British Book Awards as Independent Bookshop of the Year, London
Region. This is on top of having won LBC’s London Bookshop
of the Year in 2004, an award for which they have again been nominated
this year. Is there no stopping these power-crazed bibliophiles.
What next? The Oscars? Congratulations to Jo and all her staff.
The Bookshop also hosted a successful, well-attended reading on
Monday 22 May upstairs at the White Hart. Local author Pete Brown
read excerpts from his witty and informative new book Three Sheets
To The Wind, an account of his worldwide travels to investigate
beer in all its cultural and alcoholic aspects and the reading was
accompanied by free bottles of Belgian, German and US varieties.
Rush out and buy the book immediately. We will be reviewing it in
our next (September) issue.
While on books, local publisher Legend Press is
about to publish two more works of contemporary fiction this month.
Owner and managing director Tom Chalmers, a young man of considerable
energy and drive, is also becoming a regular contributor to N16
(see his article on the Kray Twins on page 27 of this issue). We
will be profiling Tom in our next (September) issue. In the meanwhile,
visit his company’s website www.legendpresss.co.uk.
The Internet – it’s all out there,
as I’m sure you’re tired of hearing, but for local librarian
Jeff Cotton it got somewhat closer. Jeff, who works in Stoke Newington
Library, has a website called Fictional Cities (www.fictionalcities.co.uk)
devoted to fiction and films set in Venice, Florence and London.
The site has been getting more hits than ever recently, and one
source of this traffic was some very warm recommendations on the
bulletin board of a site called Slow Travel (www.slowtalk.com).
Most of the members on the board hail from safely distant (mostly
American and Canadian) cities, but then one of them wrote ‘It
turns out the author works in my local library!’ and threatens
to pay a visit. So, watch what you say online, as not everyone you
annoy is going to be an American, just most of them. Be careful
out there.
The Stoke Newington Business Association is holding
a social evening for local business owners downstairs in La Sera
restaurant on the High Street on 13 June, with a 6.30pm kick-off.
They will be providing drinks and ‘nibbles’ and a chance
to meet other businesses and also join up to the association. They
have just completed their first year and will be renewing subscriptions
and looking for new members over the coming weeks. Contact Roseanne
on 020 7254 3467 for more information.
Hackney Council’s review of the Controlled
Parking Zones on and around Church Street is now under way, but
not without problems. The first round of Council questionnaires
was sent out from Fortress Mare Street. Some businesses received
two (with one going to a different address but thanks to the nice
local postie they received it), while others didn't receive one.
SNBA members alerted the council, then realised the envelope to
return the survey wasn't supplied, neither was an address to where
you could post it. Again SNBA members informed the council. Worryingly,
the person on the helpline wasn't aware of the review and had to
ask a manager what they were talking about. They admitted their
mistake and a letter was sent out with an envelope (how much money
wasted, so far?) Even now, lots of businesses on the High Street
haven't received the surveys so SNBA members took it upon themselves
to deliver them personally. A bad start.
Not content with opening his new Yum Yum, entrepreneur
Atique Choudhury has launched another restaurant, on the site of
the old Yum Yum. Mercado is an authentic Mexican restaurant/bar/cantina
and, only a few days after opening, it already appears hugely popular
with the Stokey demi-monde. N16 predicts another successful venture
for Atique, and we’ll be considering it in some detail in
the next issue, once it’s had time to settle in. You can’t
miss it, by the way, with the exterior resembling something painted
by Van Gogh during one of his more psychotic episodes.
It had to happen. It was inevitable. Stage B on
Church Street now has the first Polish restaurant in Stokey. Run
by the formidable Eva, it offers good traditional Polish grub at
affordable prices. Let’s face it, we are living in little
Poland, and Stokey is a better place for it, although local builders,
plumbers, carpenters etc may disagree. N16 embraces all newcomers
into the area and we welcome another culinary addition to Stoke
Newington. Try the sausages (‘to die for’ is, I think,
the phrase).
Rainbow Community Nursery was the first Community
nursery in London. It has seen generations of children pass through
its capable and caring hands in the past 33 years, including the
children of Diane Abbott, who is a trustee. They will host an Open
Day/Fete on 12 June and will be happy to meet with prospective parents
during that week. Everyone is welcome to come along, eat, drink,
dance and buy from the various stalls that will be heaped with goodies,
all funds raised going to the New Building Fund. Rainbow Nursery
has been negotiating with Hackney Council to regularise their occupation
for the last eight years by giving them a long lease, to enable
them to apply for funding to build a nursery. Come and tell the
councillors that they don’t want housing there. It is located
at the corner of Nevill and Walford Road.
The cover photograph of this issue features two
young Turkish people who work in the Z Bar on the High Street. Ozgur
Boz was born in Istanbul, and he is an accomplished musician who
plays frequently at the Arcola. Leyla Ozyurt is a business graduate
from Mersin in the south of the country, and she is currently studying
psychology at East London University. Thanks to both of them and
to Z Bar for their co-operation in the shoot, and to Robert Hyde
(07976 442161) for the photograph
|
